Navigating Leadership Transitions: How One Healthcare Organization Elevated Performance
Author
Roger LaGrone
Date Published
Synopsis
Following the recent departure of two key leaders running a healthcare call center, there was an urgent need for an experienced call center leader to maintain continuity and support operations during the critical transition of call center leadership. The organization was also facing significant challenges: call efficiency was 2X industry benchmarks, half the team was struggling with performance and retention, and an 11-14-month coaching gap had created a development vacuum. Adding to the urgency, there was a critical focus for the organization to drive toward profitability with the goal of reducing costs to $1.7M in their 2026 budget for the call center.
As a growing startup, the business needed to use technology to reduce cost-per-interaction instead of scaling with inefficient processes. The organization focused on activating and migrating into more robust, capable systems, built AI data management capturing frameworks, omnichannel capabilities, and implemented targeted Quality and AHT coaching programs. Although many of the improvements were in progress, the one that provided hard, immediate savings measurement was the Average handle time performance. Results from the 5-week initiative included 27% faster new hire ramp-up, 24.57% improvement among struggling performers, and 17.9% efficiency gains across operations, projected to save $400K-$744K annually. October 2025 delivered the strongest AHT performance in company history, demonstrating that these operational changes are sustainable.
Client & Challenge
Our client is an innovative healthcare third-party provider delivering innovative health plan solutions. Their 45-agent call center represents the heart of their member engagement strategy, managing diverse call types from simple ID card requests to complex claim pricing disputes and provider billing issues, with member/provider call types running a 25/75 percent split. Agents navigate complex healthcare systems, including multiple platforms, coordinate with third-party administrators like Cigna, and resolve issues while maintaining high service quality.
Operational Challenges
Following the departure of two key leaders, the organization faced operational challenges compounded by leadership uncertainty. Call-handling performance was significantly higher than industry standards. Our comprehensive assessment revealed critical gaps:
• 43% of agents are performing significantly below optimal levels.
• 71% productivity gap between top and bottom performers, best handling 835 calls while the lower performers managed only 487 calls.
• 11-14 months of absence of systematic call monitoring.
• Claims System 1 averages 101 seconds higher per call than Claims System 2 per call, a significant channel disparity.
• Schedule adherence gaps create 15-25% productivity degradation.
• No structured off-phone coaching time or schedule adherence for ad-hoc training, disrupting customer coverage.
• Limited self-service capabilities via traditional provider and member support information.
The financial stakes were substantial: analysis showed significant savings potential through operational efficiency improvements, with the bottom performers averaging over 4 minutes longer per call than top performers. The improvement potential represented hundreds of thousands in annual savings toward the $1.7M budget goal.
Solution Approach
Voyage Advisory provided one of our senior consultants to serve as executive leader, reporting to the COO, providing hands-on leadership during this pivotal transformation period. While the organization searched for its permanent Vice President, we ensured seamless continuity, built momentum for lasting change, and made meaningful operational improvements.
Our comprehensive approach spanned workforce optimization, technology deployment, quality management system implementation, performance management frameworks, staffing model development, and operational assessments. We partnered closely with supervisors and contact center leadership, providing intensive intervention targeting the bottom 43% cohort while delivering optimization coaching to the remaining top performers.
Phased Coaching Approach
Week 0 Foundation: Adopted reporting mechanisms and identified the bottom-performing agents and new hires for targeted intervention. Established baseline metrics and prepared infrastructure.
Week 1 Observation: Monitored calls and evaluated results without coaching to establish a true baseline through pure observation. This critical step prevented false positives and ensured accurate measurement.
Week 2 Launch: Launched intensive coaching with morning performance reviews and live call feedback, recruiting agents into the everyday coaching program. Results started showing immediately top 40% demonstrated 8.4% improvement.
Weeks 3-4 Intensive Intervention: Delivered continuous intensive coaching with live assistance and peer mentoring, providing 2-3 coaching sessions per agent weekly. This is where breakthroughs happened. A rigorous coaching framework combining daily performance huddles, one-on-one skill coaching, and real-time feedback mechanisms drove immediate results and transformed team performance.
Ongoing Sustainment: Continued the process with sustained daily coaching to maintain momentum and prevent regression. Built supervisor capabilities to continue independently.
core workstreams
1. Day-to-Day Operations Excellence: Established structured operational rhythms bringing clarity, communication, recognition, and consistency. Implemented a quality management system with systematic call monitoring. Recommended performance management frameworks using bell curve distribution models that identify exactly where to focus efforts. Supported the building of a comprehensive staffing model for 2026 capacity planning and conducted operational assessments, uncovering hidden opportunities.
2. Technology That Empowers: Activated call center quality monitoring systems, transforming them from near-zero utilization to essential daily tools. Real-time dual-metric scorecards gave supervisors power to track both efficiency and quality simultaneously. Established digital knowledge repository through Amazon Contact Lens and leveraged Amazon Q for AI-powered knowledge management, enabling agents to find answers instantly.
3. The AHT Challenge: Turning Potential into Performance: Launched an intensive coaching program for the bottom 43% with 2 to 3 personalized sessions per agent daily, daily performance reviews, and real-time call feedback. Knowledge management system deployment dramatically improved agent speed by reducing research time. Established mentor-mentee pairs, creating a culture of peer support. Trained supervisors to sustain coaching excellence beyond our engagement.
Results & Impact
Centivo Call Center Transformation: Program Impact Summary
Key Success factors
- Intensive daily coaching (2-3 sessions/agent/week)
- Dual-metric management (AHT + Quality)
- Peer mentoring program (19 pairings)
- Real-time performance visibility
- Quality monitoring system activation
- 6 supervisors trained & capable
Breakthrough Performance Improvements
Lightning-Fast Wins (Days 1-5): New hires achieved the impossible – improving by 27% in less than a week! The quality monitoring system came alive, closing the 11-month gap and giving the team visibility they had been missing.
Week 2 Momentum: By Week 2, the top 40% cohort showed 8.4% improvement, while new hires demonstrated an additional 6.98% improvement. Early results validated the methodology's effectiveness across all performance tiers and built organizational confidence.
Bottom 43% Breakthrough: The agents who started as bottom performers became our success story. They improved dramatically over three weeks, achieving a remarkable 24.57% efficiency gain. This was not an incremental improvement; this was a transformation.
Organization-Wide Excellence: The entire operation improved by 17.9% over the prior year, achieving 30%+ combined operational efficiency improvement. October 2025 marked the best performance in organizational history! Please see the chart below that provides a before-and-after performance view of the overall Quality and AHT plan that was deployed.
Quality Improved: There was zero quality degradation throughout the initiative. Quality scores remained stable and even improved in some areas, proving that speed and quality are not opposite. When you give people the right tools, training, and support, they deliver both.
Financial Impact & Long-Term Sustainability: We project annual savings of $400,000 to $744,000, with a remarkably short 4-month breakeven period. The organization gained 30%+ capacity increase without hiring a single additional agent, directly supporting the $1.7M 2026 Budget reduction goal.
Knowledge Transfer for Continuity: As we transitioned to permanent leadership, the Voyage Advisory senior consultant prepared a comprehensive knowledge transfer document capturing the full scope of work, current state, strategic recommendations, and ongoing initiatives. This ensured continuity and positioned incoming leadership to build upon the transformation foundation established during the interim period.
conclusion
This engagement proves something powerful: when experienced interim leadership steps in during transition, combines quality management implementation with intensive coaching and performance analytics, you do not just improve numbers, you transform operations and elevate people. Following the departure of two key leaders, Voyage Advisory provided the continuity and expertise needed to navigate this critical period. Through our systematic approach in a short time, the Health Care Third Party Provider client achieved 30%+ operational efficiency improvement and unlocked $400K-$744K in projected annual savings toward their $1.7M 2026 budget call center goal reduction. But here is what really matters: we proved that operational efficiency and service quality are not competing priorities; they are partners. October 2025 record-setting performance validated that these improvements represent genuine transformation, not temporary gains. With sustainable capabilities now embedded and comprehensive knowledge transfer completed, the organization is positioned for continued excellence and growth under permanent leadership.
Written by: Roger LaGrone