Dr. Chesley Publishes on Health Systems Mergers
Dr. Colin Chesley, Assistant Dean of Student Services and Assistant Professor for the East Tennessee State University College of Public Health, has published an article in the International Journal of Healthcare Management. The article, “Merging organizational cultures in healthcare: Lessons from the USA in differentiation among tiers in a health system merger,” discusses the organizational cultures of two merging partners before the merger is consummated, identifying levels of differentiation among employee tiers.
Culture has a greater impact on the potential success or failure of a merger and acquisition than almost any other factor. The merger of one organization with another can produce many consequences both positive and negative. On the positive side, new synergies and collaborations may improve multiple outcomes. On the negative side, cultures might clash or one group might feel overwhelmed by the other.
With the increase in health system Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A’s) since the Affordable Care Act, health systems must carefully weigh and measure the current organizational culture prior to the consummation of the merger, seeking to understand differentiation within and between the merging organizations, and requires that the organization be analyzed by employee levels or tiers.
The cultures are analyzed utilizing the Competing Values Framework (CVF). The population included all employees of both health systems with the survey respondent sample stratified by the following employee types: (Tier 1), entry-level employee; (Tier 2), supervisory level, and, (Tier 3), executive level. Statistical procedures included independent t tests and indicated a statistically significant difference between the current cultures of the health systems prior to the merger with significant differences in the cultural perceptions of Tier 1 employees and Tier 2 employees.
As a result of this study, it may be assumed in these culture studies that the primary differences will exist among Tier 1 employees, and that consideration should be given to this group for cultural integration given their size and impact on the organization. This group is known to at times resist cultural integration, even fiercely clinging on to old procedures and paradigms as a way to subvert the merger process. Generalizations regarding Tier 1 may be useful to organizations considering mergers and acquisitions, and may assist in preemptively working with this key group of employees to ensure that cultural integration goes as intended.