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Broadlane, Health Alliance Team Up to Increase Diversity Supplier Spending

The goal: Help Health Alliance of Greater Cincinnati increase annual diversity supplier spending to $23 million.

The result: Mission accomplished in the first 10 months of 2006 fiscal year.

The process: In late 2004, Ken Hanover, chief executive officer of the Health Alliance of Greater Cincinnati, committed to increase Health Alliance's spending with diversity suppliers - firms certified as minority-owned, women-owned, small or historically underutilized - to $23 million, or 16 percent, of its planned fiscal 2006 supply spend.

The initiative was kicked off at the start of Health Alliance's fiscal year in July 2005 and required the development of a culture of awareness and education across the organization to ensure its success. Broadlane was designated a strategic corporate partner for the initiative and assigned team members to thoughtfully increase the number of diversity suppliers under contract.

Broadlane team members met weekly with Health Alliance supply-chain executives to discuss planning and implementation of the program and worked with local small-business owners and community leaders to gain perspective on the project. The team also reviewed the diversity qualifications of local suppliers and evaluated scorecards detailing participation by hospital.

The team worked to make Health Alliance aware of the diversity suppliers already on contract with Broadlane in an effort to increase spending with those suppliers. Broadlane also focused on educating department heads about new vendors and their products. This was done to reassure end-users that greater participation by diversity suppliers in contracting bids resulted in a more competitive bid process, and thus, better pricing for greater quality.

Broadlane's assistance helped Health Alliance exceed its goal of $23 million in supplier diversity spending in the first 10 months of its 2006 fiscal year.