Associate Highlight | Program Management

Q: Hi Andrew! Would you mind starting off with an introduction of yourself and your professional background?

Of course! As you know, my name is Andrew and I am the Director of Program Management at The Resource Group. I started my career with a technology company in their consulting division. Having a bachelor’s degree in Philosophy and Psychology and a master’s in Theology, with no previous business experience, made this first step in my career a very interesting and challenging one. I was able to work my way up into a management level position where I gained experience in a multitude of areas: surveys, analytics, training, process development, project management, and logistics procurement. At this point in time, I was traveling a lot and knew I wanted to transition into a role that better aligned with my values and took me off the road every week which is how I found The Resource Group. The Program Management community was ideal for me as it tied in all of my historical knowledge and skills and allowing me to use them across an entire organization versus siloed projects.

Q: How was the Program Management Community created at The Resource Group?

The Resource Group is a matrix organization, with our solutions and communities structured horizontally in the matrix. Leadership at The Resource Group saw an opportunity for improvement in cross-community collaboration and process improvement. This is where the idea for Program Management began. We started as a community who oversaw individual continuous improvement activities and management of projects and have developed into a community that finds, creates, and implements programs to some of The Resource Group’s largest resolution-based initiatives.

Q: What does the future of the Program Management Community look like?

We are always looking towards what components of The Resource Group need standardization, additional efficiency, or strategic realignment. For example, about two years ago, our community designed the framework for monthly forecasting and planned for contract actions in a more systematic format. We worked with other communities, such as Data Action, to provide tools for the Contract Design and Sourcing Communities to assist in managing the day-to-day work for those communities. With the current climate of healthcare, there are many opportunities to improve and enhance The Resource Group. As a community focused on change management, we are excited to assist in the development and implementation of sustainable change to our Resource Group communities and the end-users we are privileged to serve.

Q: Why is Program Management’s work important and how do you serve our end-users?

Given our role, we interact with all areas of The Resource Group and, in turn, the customers and end-users being served. This gives the Program Management Community the opportunity to view initiatives and projects from a cross-organizational perspective. This is especially important when thinking through any level of change, as a comprehensive review can assist in making any transformation more effective and valuable. On a similar note, our roles and interactions allow us to reduce the duplication of efforts and manual effort across the organization, and in turn, increase productivity levels. As an organization working to reduce the cost of quality healthcare, any opportunity to become more streamlined and efficient is important as we continuously work towards affordable healthcare for all.