Football has been and still is a part of my DNA. I grew up watching and playing the game I love. My dad was a semi-pro — he worked for a company during the week, the Homer Laughlin China Co. in Newell, West Virginia, and on the weekends he played for the company team. The players got a small increase in their pay, hence the term semi-pro. Dad was a big man for those times and played on the line. I remember watching him play.
I was a big kid and not all that fast, so it was a given that I would be a lineman. In high school I played both offense and defense, and got to be pretty good on the defensive side of the ball. My dad got to watch me play his sport. I was offered scholarships to play at the next level and tried to do that at my home state school, but an old knee injury cut my playing dreams short.
I had the privilege to coach a high-performing base team while on active duty in the Air Force. I learned so much from the game I love, and even today the values and the work ethic I learned direct my actions and reactions. The game taught me to read my keys and adapt, and apply those reads to the current play. It taught me to call an audible.
Making adjustments
In football, an audible is called just before the snap to adjust to the opposing team’s formation. Likewise, in business, making swift adjustments is an essential element in any successful enterprise.
Akron General recently called an audible to help patients facing increasing out-of-pocket costs due to high deductible health plans. Akron General is the market leader in providing outstanding emergency care services close to where patients live with our free-standing, innovative emergency departments at our Health & Wellness Centers. After studying the market, it became clear that patients were seeking a lower-cost option when their need for care was only urgent, but not emergent. As a result, Akron General now offers patients urgent care services at several sites throughout our area in addition to our outstanding emergency care services.
Emergency departments run on an unpredictable schedule and patients with the most severe symptoms are seen first. Patients who require prompt medical attention but whose condition isn’t life threatening often receive faster care at a lower cost at urgent care facilities. Adapting our patient care model and providing urgent care services is a winner in the eyes of patients, filling their need for the right care option at the right time. To date, utilization rates have been impressive and patient satisfaction is rock solid.
Calling an audible works successfully in football and it works in business, too. It can work for your organization as well. Be open to change, always keeping the needs of the people you serve first, and have the courage to act.
