Following a successful programme of workshops and analysis for Interserve’s board which resulted in a suite of plausible future scenarios, risks, opportunities and strategy recommendations, Interserve contracted Appleyards to focus on developing a new strategy for their Healthcare division.

Over a period of 9 months we facilitated an end-to-end strategic review and re-invention process delivered in three phases.

Phase One: leading a collaborative team of Interserve Healthcare professionals, outside experts and futures analysts we developed a range of plausible scenarios for the healthcare sector in the UK. Elements of this process were creative and design-driven, other areas involved rigorous technical research and the management of expert focus groups. 

Phase Two: explored the various strategic components that might comprise a viable and cohesive strategy in detail. This process covered a wide range of organisational challenges (e.g. workforce development, R&D risk, brand management), business impacts (social responsibility, environmental footprint, wider industry direction) in addition to market analysis and external uncertainties. The deliverables were a set of alternative candidate business models, all viable and costed for different levels of investment.

Phase Three: introduced the decision-making mechanisms designed not only to help Interserve arrive at the optimum combination of strategic options but also support ongoing strategy management, making the new direction sustainable, measurable and adaptive. Following mediated negotiations and stakeholder engagement across the leadership team we arrived at a detailed business plan covering 12 month, 5 year and 10 year horizons and coached the Healthcare team on communicating their strategy throughout the business.

The Benefit:

The resulting strategy, designed to unlock growth potential and exploit the turbulence of an uncertain market, represented a radical and innovative departure from previous thinking.  It is currently being operationalised with our ongoing support.