CASE STUDY: REDWOOD HEALTH SYSTEM – QUESTION #2 2
Case Study: Redwood Health System - Question #2
Question
What problems will Elizabeth Wells have in executing her strategy?
Answer
Redwood Health System was considered a leader in the delivery of California’s Health
Care System (Argenti, 2023). It catered to low-income patients as well as high-income patients.
Their employees demonstrated pride and had a high morale. In addition, they loved the retired
CEO Eric Bell, which kept them employed in the health care system. Redwood Health System
tried to move to a managed care model in the early 2000s, but it was abandoned due to
physicians feeling that their autonomy was being put in jeopardy, as well as an increase in
paperwork. In keeping with Argenti (2023), the Affordable Care Act (ACA), has now forced
Redwood to move to a managed care model and to find leadership with the ability to usher in the
change. Elizabeth Wells was hired to bring about this change. She discussed her plans, but she
did not discuss her strategy.
In a healthcare organization, executing a new strategy can present numerous challenges.
According to Srivastava and Agrawal (2020), one of the important reasons for failure in
implementing change is the resistance to change. Employees primarily resist change because of
the comfort they grew accustomed to doing things the old way. Change can have associated risks
such as fluctuations within financial, and technological resources. Job security is another risk
because of the new skills that may be needed, which the existing employees may lack.
Implementing a new strategy will require the employees to trust the new leadership. Men
et al. (2020), shows that top executives and leaders in an organization need to communicate
CASE STUDY: REDWOOD HEALTH SYSTEM – QUESTION #2 3
effectively to alleviate employee fears and foster employee trust. This will lead employees to be
open to and support changes. When leaders articulate their vision of change, they must ensure
that their employees know what is happening at every step of the way, training them in the
procedures and skills needed. These employees become motivated to implement change. In
addition, leaders are to be the example of change which challenges employees to change their
behavior to a more accepting attitude and supportive behavior.
Belschak et al. (2020) found that extensive and long-term change initiatives could lead to
strain and uncertainty. Employees become more negative and this attitude affects their
performance negatively. This in turn ultimately leads to an increase in turnover retentions.
Employees that like to take credit for other person’s work, gain an advantage by spreading
rumors, sabotage team efforts, or manipulate others to do their work are more negative during
change processes. Some employees are only negative at the beginning of the change process.
However, information and communication helps create a realistic expectations of employees
during the change process which dispels the negative attitudes of employees. In keeping with
Belschak et al. (2020), the use of change-supportive communication is extremely significant
during the initial phases of a change and continuous through the change process to keep
employee’s morale high, and in turn retain employees.
Biblical Integration
In Ecclesiastes 3:1, it says, “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose
under heaven” (New King James Version, 1982/2024). This indicates that an organization can
experience many seasons of change. Seasons can indicate growth and maturity. The first time
Redwood Health System tried to implement a managed care model it was too burdensome for the
system (Agenti, 2023), it was during a season which they thought was going to negatively impact
CASE STUDY: REDWOOD HEALTH SYSTEM – QUESTION #2 4
their professional autonomy. However, the organization realized another season has come where
they need to implement the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Acknowledging the season they are in,
they hired Elizabeth Wells. Elizabeth Wells needs to ensure she is communicating with not only
executives but with all employees to ensure her strategy is successful.
CASE STUDY: REDWOOD HEALTH SYSTEM – QUESTION #2 5
References
Argenti, P. A. (2023). Corporate Communication. McGraw Hill LLC.
https://prod.reader-ui.prod.mheducation.com/epub/sn_64f0/data-uuid-
374ce431337648f48afdb154b048d413#data-uuid-f85e7e5da62c41469d1af86ef3005038
Belschak, F. D., Jacobs, G., Giessner, S. R., Horton, K. E., & Bayeri, P. S. (2020). When the
going gets tough: Employee reactions to large-scale organizational change and the role of
employee Machiavellianism. Journal of Organizational Behavior. 41(9), pp.830-850.
https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2478
Men, L. R., Yue, C. A. & Liu, Y. (2020). Vision, passion, and care: The impact of charismatic
executive leadership communication on employee trust and support for organizational
change. ScienceDirect: Public Relations Review. 46(3), pp.101927.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2020.101927
New King James Version. (2024). Ecclesiastes 3:1. Bible Gateway.
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ecclesiastes+3%3A1&version=NKJV
(Originally published by Thomas Nelson, 1982)
Srivastava, S. and Agrawal, S. (2020). Resistance to change and turnover intention: a moderated
mediation model of burnout and perceived organizational support. Journal of
Organizational Change Management. 33(7). pp. 1431-1447.
https://doi.org/10.1108/JOCM-02-2020-0063
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