From Puget Sound, Wash. to Miami Beach, Fla., change is pervasive across the blood world. Community blood centers that were once unshakably loyal are seeking new leadership and value from America’s Blood Centers to guide them through a business climate that is almost unrecognizable from just a few years ago. This competitive and economically challenging environment has transformed member expectations, and the time is now to lead our organization into this new era, which is all about value to our blood center members.
ABC is embarking on a strategic planning process that will yield a three-year plan for membership review at the ABC Annual Meeting in March. As we accelerate ABC’s cadence toward achieving this goal, Facebook’s mantra of “move fast and break things” may not work for us, but the spirit of acting quickly certainly applies.
The landscape is rapidly changing and we must do more than simply adapt. We must determine what will gratify our members, now and in the future, leverage the strength of our core values, and integrate our capabilities to maximize member value. A robust strategic plan will guide us with renewed focus and energy to deliver on our member priorities.
ABC member voting representatives and CEOs will receive a survey this week that asks questions regarding priorities and opportunities to serve you better. In December, your ABC executive team will draft a conceptual framework for our strategic plan based on your survey responses. The ABC board of directors will meet via conference calls in December and January before convening in early February for deep strategy discussions of the draft plan and issues, as well as input on prioritization and tactical movement. The ABC executive team will finalize details of strategic activity and tactics in order to have the final plan presented at the ABC member meeting in March.
We need you, the members, to be partners and work collaboratively and effectively in ushering ABC into the future. There is an unprecedented pace and breadth of disruption taking place in many healthcare industries. Innovations are transforming how everyday people go about their lives and trade organizations must innovate as well. The development of our strategic plan is an opportunity to disrupt ourselves in order to innovate and support the greatest good of our members.
Christine S. Zambricki, DNAP, CRNA, FAAN, Chief Executive Officer; czambricki@americasblood.org