Helping to shape the digital future

FELLOWSHIP FOR INNOVATION MANAGEMENT AND IDEAS COMPETITION

Fellowship to enrich digitalization strategy

One thing is certain: our society is becoming increasingly digital and healthcare is also being decisively changed by digital offerings and new technologies. This transformation brings new opportunities and challenges, also for Kliniken Schmieder. For this reason, a digitalization process was launched within the company several years ago. There was much discussion and consideration of how the Kliniken Schmieder could equip themselves even more for the digital future in an innovative way. Many digital projects are already being implemented. This digitalization strategy is now being enriched by the so-called “Fellowship- Program for Innovation Management and Idea Competition”.

When it came to the topic of innovation, it was obvious to seek the support of the IST Institute for Strategic Innovation and Technology Management at HTWG Konstanz. The idea of a Kliniken Schmieder IST Fellowship Program was born out of joint deliberations with the Institute’s Director, Prof. Guido H. Baltes, on what form cooperation might take. Christina Lang is a research associate and doctoral student at the IST Institute and will accompany the Kliniken Schmieder in part of the digitalization in the future within the framework of this fellowship.

Specifically, the aim is to motivate employees to develop their own ideas on digitalization and to propose solutions in a creative, innovative way for challenges they perceive in their everyday work at the clinic. “Using the potential of our employees, who are experts in their own fields, and not simply implementing ideas from on high in the day-to-day running of the clinic, that’s what it’s all about,” says Simon Flockerzie, who, as Head of Corporate Development at Kliniken Schmieder, is overseeing the project together with his colleague Lisa Blawert.

All employees should feel that they are being addressed. In the best case, ideas then become concrete products, services, or business models. In the long term, co-designing for the digital future should work entirely without the external support of Christina Lang and the institute. “We provide our expertise in the form of methods, coaching or mentors for a while, but the employees themselves are supposed to become initiators and experts of project ideas,” explains the 28-year-old.

Christina Lang is looking forward to working in a company in the healthcare sector, having previously gained experience mainly in mechanical engineering companies. “It’s an enriching change for me, because at Kliniken Schmieder the focus is on people. When it comes to digitalization, healthcare facilities always have to ask themselves how the well-being and safety of patients can be ensured at the same time, which I find exciting,” she says.

Paul-Georg Friedrich, Chairman of the Management Board of Kliniken Schmieder, is also happy about the new cooperation: “We can use the know-how and experience of the IST Institute to better absorb innovative ideas and solution approaches from the workforce. At the same time, we promote an innovation-friendly ecosystem in the district of Konstanz, to which the IST Institute contributes significantly.”