2007 Annual Report
ASHHRA Strategic Plan for 2008 - 2010
At-a-Glance Version
How the Strategy Was Determined.
Strategic Direction No. 1: Products and Services
Strategic Direction No. 2: Relationships, Influence and Advocacy
Strategic Direction No. 3: Growth
How did we determine these three strategic directions?
ASHHRA went through a lengthy and exhaustive process that was designed to answer these basic questions:
• What keeps healthcare HR professionals up at night?
• What can we do as an organization to create more value for our members?
• How can we ensure that we’re well-positioned to continue serving our members?
An important part of the process was making sure we engaged a wide variety of stakeholders along the way. Their contributions were invaluable in helping shape the strategy’s final outcome. In brief, here are the steps we went through:
1. ASHHRA board members conducted a thorough review of research and data covering healthcare workforce demographics, employee engagement, compensation and benefits, diversity, retirement trends and the aging workforce.
2. Board members employed what they learned from this review along with their personal experience and organizational observations to complete an in-depth questionnaire that focused on priorities for the healthcare HR field and for ASHHRA members. As part of a visioning exercise, board members were also asked what key issues they believed a new strategic plan should address.
3. A consultant worked with the board in conducting a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis of the organization.
4. ASHHRA leaders engaged in a dialogue and review of the “In Our Hands” publication and helped AHA identify where progress had been made and where it was still most needed.
5. Approximately 80 ASHHRA chapter leaders—presidents and other officers—from across the country participated in the leadership conference in Chicago in June. Here, ASHHRA leaders asked participants for their perspectives on priorities, shared their work to date and collected the feedback from this large group of leaders.
6. The ASHHRA board then gathered input from a host of different constituency groups, including CEOs of hospitals, past presidents of ASHHRA, people new to the healthcare HR profession, non-hospital HR professionals, our new regional consultants, and a range of HR professionals across various regions. Each board member took responsibility for conducting phone interviews with from seven to 10 individuals from the different constituencies. The interviewees were supplied with a draft strategic plan and asked questions such as the following:
• Do the strategic directions support the ASHHRA mission and vision?
• Are they achievable?
• What most resonates with you related to this plan?
• What do you most like about the plan?
• What’s missing?
• What concerns you?
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Strategic Direction No. 1: Products and Services
ASHHRA will be the expert in delivering relevant and effective products/services that exceed members’ needs and expectations and positions HR healthcare leaders as key strategists within their diverse organizations. The following are specific goals associated with Strategic Direction No. 1:
•Deliver technologically efficient, user-friendly and customizable products/services.
•Deliver strategic and transformational solutions to workforce issues.
•Deliver talent management and employee alignment solutions that enhance retention, drive employee engagement, improve patient satisfaction, and support organizational effectiveness.
•Build the business acumen of the healthcare HR leader to articulate strategic solutions and demonstrate their return on investment.
•Efficiently advance members’ professional development including certification, mentoring, and networking opportunities.
•Develop personal leadership opportunities for all professional levels, including ASHHRA volunteer and leadership positions to enhance chapter functioning and development, build revenue, and increase membership.
Strategic Direction No. 2: Relationships, Influence and Advocacy
ASHHRA will establish strong relationships with aligned external stakeholders to increase its influence on healthcare workforce issues, advance its strategic directions, and diversify its revenue. The following are specific goals associated with Strategic Direction No. 2:
•Institute an assertive and proactive plan to drive workforce excellence through AHA and state hospital associations.
•Develop collaborative ventures with aligned business partners to deliver services that enhance value to members and diversify revenue sources.
•Collaborate as an equal partner with, and provide healthcare human resources expertise to associations recognized by healthcare business leaders (e.g., AONE, ACHE, HFMA, AHA Government Relations).
•Advocate on a national level for global solutions to address the shortage and diversity of the healthcare workforce.
Strategic Direction No. 3: Growth
By advancing the value of ASHHRA membership to healthcare HR professionals globally as well as in all settings, ASHHRA will be positioned to attain a total membership of 5,000 by 2010. The following are specific goals associated with Strategic Direction No. 3:
•Review current membership demographics to develop marketing plans for untapped segments and to customize materials for market segments, including, but not limited to, students, AHA member hospitals with no ASHHRA representation, and non-hospital healthcare settings.
•Refine and articulate in printed materials the value proposition for all member relationships, including ASHHRA chapters, SHRM, and others.
•Leverage AHA relationships and other external partnerships to advance the value of membership.
•Use technology and other communications tools to increase the visibility and accessibility of ASHHRA products and services to all members through a consistent brand.
•Advance the role and service of Regional Consultant as a resource to members in the local regions.














