Mcleod Health: Matrix Structure

In the past eight years, Mcleod Health has acquired two hospital systems and over forty physicians and their practices. This amount of growth has tested the integrity of the organization’s leadership structure and its ability to effectively communicate from all levels of leadership. While the governance structure for the organization has not changed, the executive leadership team has recognized the need to adopt a more effective structure that supports its’ mission of functioning more as a system rather than individual units.
Matrix Structure
Developing a matrix structure is an approach that may allow Mcleod Health to more effectively manage its organization across multiple regions by using the principles of the matrix structure

to improve in areas of decision making, communication, and collaboration (Lesson 8, 2016). The matrix structure creates a dual reporting structure by dividing responsibilities into two categories: function and production. In a hospital setting, the functional department may be the physicians whereas the production department may be the hospital where the physicians are providing services. The physicians would have a direct report to the medical group’s leadership and ad direct report to the hospital’s chief of staff because they are a part of the process to produce services (Robbins and Judge, 2009).
The advantage of employing a matrix structure is that it allows physicians, the functional group, to respond in a timelier manner and empowers them to appropriately apply resources where needed, when needed, and fosters a stronger commitment to the hospital, production department (Robbins and Judge, 2009).

Another advantage to migrating towards a matrix structure is that it will empower teams to make decisions and work towards breaking the silos that may exist within the organization (Lesson 8, 2016). The disadvantage of this structure is that conflict could arise within each department and crossover to other departments if roles are not clearly defined. Conflict within, and among, these groups may create undue stress that could lead to bigger issues of trust, poor performance, and poor communication (Robbins and Judge,

2009).
Intermountain Healthcare restructured its organization into a matrix structure and aligned its resources based on service lines as a solution to managing locations and teams from afar. The healthcare system believes that its successful implementation of this matrix included implementation of a program charter. The charter provided clear delineation of duties for each role so that leadership at multiple levels throughout the system knew how the work was being led (The System Approach to Service Line Management, 2016).
Intergroup Development
Adopting a matrix structure, as recommended above, may need to include a strategy to help the functional and production departments to better identify with one another by first identifying each other’s roles within the organization and the expectations that each department needs to meet.

Taking a proactive position to address rules of engagement and expectations of departments and teams may improve the organization’s efforts to adopt and implement change. One approach that could be taken is that McLeod Health may need to first work on team building by developing a strategy around intergroup development that focuses on deconstructing existing perceptions of groups and strive to break the barriers of stereotyping. For example, in a matrix structure, a physician arrives to the hospital for assignment and is assigned to an area of the hospital where he does not get along well with the hospitals nursing team. The physician is already approaching the assignment with a negative attitude and poor outlook of the work to be done based on his team’s perception of the hospital team. The physician has already expected to have a bad experience that could lead to unintended consequences. One of these consequences is that his poor attitude is reflected in his work and now the hospital team is left with the perception that he may not be a very good physician or team member. In developing a strategy, the strategy may need to leverage tools, such as surveys, to assess the

progress of implementing a new structure and the development of new work relationships or trainings focused on team building (Robbins and Judge, 2009). If we applied the principles from James 1:19 to our everyday work, that includes listening, not being quick to react, and exercise control of our emotions, our engagement with different teams and leadership may be received in a more positive manner and with less conflict.