Management Lessons from Mayo Clinic: Inside One of the World’s Most Admired Service Organizations

by Leonard L. Berry, Kent Seltman

"Management Lessons from Mayo Clinic" reveals for the first time how this complex service organization fosters a culture that exceeds customer expectations and earns deep loyalty from both customers and employees. Service business authority Leonard Berry and Mayo Clinic marketing administrator Kent Seltman explain how the Clinic implements and maintains its strategy, adheres to its management system, executes its care model, and embraces new knowledge - invaluable lessons for managers and service providers of all industries.

Drs. Berry and Seltman had the rare opportunity to study Mayo Clinic's service culture and systems from the inside by conducting personal interviews with leaders, clinicians, staff, and patients, as well as observing hundreds of clinician-patient interactions. The result is a book about how the Clinic's business concept produces stellar clinical results, organizational efficiency, and interpersonal service.

By examining the operating principles that guide every management decision at this legendary healthcare institution, the authors Demonstrate how a great service brand evolves from the core values that nourish and protect it Extrapolate instructive business lessons that apply outside healthcare Illustrate the benefits of pooling talent and encouraging teamwork Relate historical events and perspectives to the present-day Mayo Clinic Share inspiring stories from staff and patients

An innovative analysis of this exemplary institution, "Management Lessons from Mayo Clinic" presents a proven prescription for creating sustainable service excellence in any organization.

Genres: Business, Management, Leadership, Health Care, Nonfiction, Medicine, Buisness

265 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2000

Reviews

[Benjamin Park · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible book. The book was personally impactful at a time when my career path began to unfold before me. When I decided that I wanted to try to become a physician, it was because I decided that I wanted to spend the rest of my life helping and really caring for people. Yet that idea was always somewhat nebulous to me, Dr. Berry's book has revealed a way to turn those abstract ideals into a concrete foundation. I now desire to practice medicine with the conviction that "the needs of the patients come first". In doing so I hope to become an excellent physician, a physician whose values are aligned with those of the Mayo Clinic.

[Valeria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Были завышенные ожидания от книги. Тема управления медицинскими учреждениями очень близка, а к книге заставила обратиться ссылка на опыт работы с этой клиникой компании IDEO, которой я восхищаюсь.

Разбавили бы они типичный консалтинговый нарратив пятью практическими кейсами - как и что делали, было бы очень интересно и практично. А так - практически заставляла себя дочитывать.

Но в то же время, рекомендовала бы книгу всем сервисникам. Опыт клиники Мэйо показывает, что в служении людям и обществу можно зарабатывать деньги. И служит еще одним напоминанием о том, как должна работать идеальная сервисная организация.

А основной принцип клиники "нужды пациента превыше всего" очень созвучен с моими внутренним установками. Стань я врачом, клиника была бы работой мечты или я бы пыталась это воплотить в Украине.

[Shraddha Pant · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best books I have ever read in my life. The book wonderfully casts light on the patient-focused operational model of Mayo Clinic that has enabled the brand to durably sustain for over 100 decades to remain relevant even today. Each chapter profoundly surprised me pleasantly by dispelling common myths in healthcare as business. The book has incredible lessons for not just a healthcare services organization but any other services business that seeks to cater to needs of its customers (patients in healthcare).

This is one of the books that I will read multiple times in my lifetime. Wonderfully written and articulated to drive the point home in each chapter. And hats off to the ending of the book, where the author wonderfully evokes human emotions in the readers through a final anecdote about what Mayo Clinic stands for.

All in all, you just have to read it to believe it :).

[Chris Halverson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been in love with the Mayo Clinic since it saved my life at age 3. So I'm biased.
As someone who thinks about leading organizations and institutions this books has a lot to offer, and not just about the nuts and bolts of management, but about the soul of it as well.
The first half of the book felt more soul-ish and the second half more managerial, but put together you can see more clearly the choices made that make Mayo what it is.

[Usama Albastaki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice and simple to read. However it is more of a story telling book rather than a scientific book that will analyse Mayo clinic success. I liked the Cleveland clinic book that I read a few years ago more.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book could have been a Post-It Note: „Mayo Clinic is Really Great.“

[Kaya]

This book is about the art of service and how the Mayo Clinic (for over 150 years) does it best. Every business, every manager, and every leader will benefit from this insightful perspective.

[hannah g · Rating 3 out of 5]

i had to read this book for my work. it was pretty hard to get through and i did skim some of it (shh), but overall i learned a lot that i can apply in my work life.

[Fibin Thanveer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent insights into the working of a more than 100 year old institution. Simple language.

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book with lessons for us all. It describes in an easy to read and inspiring tone the way Mayo delivers a truly outstanding client experience in the hardest industry there is - healthcare.

Details: The authors detail the amazing history and evolution of the Mayo Clinic, where the focus on one goal - delivering great healthcare - has allowed the Clinic to alter it tactics dramatically over time.
On an organizational level, the Mayo Clinic has travelled its own path in numerous areas: among them salaries for doctors; becoming a non-profit in the 1930's; purchasing hospitals in the 1980's; business expansions into Managed Care and advanced testing; and geographical expansion into Florida and Arizona. It is an institution unlike all others in the way it operates from the ground up. When you believe in your goal is, it is much easier to take drastic action no-one else is even considering if that helps you achieve your goal.
The strength of the story is how this institution has continually re-defined what healthcare means - in terms of delivering better health care outcomes on an individual level. The authors spend a lot of time describing service as a "performance" and how in this era companies must inspire and engage their employees to continually re-define excellent service.
I have one minor complaint, the book was a little repetitive, and could have been better edited. 30 pages less would have been a lot more.

The Takeaway: If the Mayo Clinic can achieve this level of collaboration and performance - your business can too. Read this book to understand how, and get lots of actionable ideas on how to start.

[Gerhard Peters · Rating 5 out of 5]

Management Lessons from Mayo Clinic is an excellent book! It mostly is about the history of one of the world's most admired service organizations. At the end of each chapter the authors have a a section for management lessons. Since my work is in information technology I found the following section helpful and it also speaks to why ROI is a waste of time as I wrote about here. From the book... "Use technology to support values and strategy. Technology is a tool to help an organization be what is wishes to be. Its purpose is to benefit its users, to enable their success, to make life better. Technology investments that do not benefit users, that thwart their success, or that make life worse are destined to cost the investing organization dearly. Technology designed to strictly to save money usually result in an excessive waste of money and a mountain of heartache. All technology should solve real problems in the context of an organization's core values and strategy." "Mayo Clinic has benefited enormously and durably from major technological investments. These investments have in common their direct link to the Clinic's core values and strategies....Saving money trough technology has frequently been the result, but rarely, if ever, the goal." The authors point out that health care is one of the most complex services organizations. They say that if it is possible to create and sustain an excellent brand as Mayo Clinic it is even more attainable in other service organization. It is an inspiring and hopeful story. Read it and find out for yourself!

[Jonathan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is based on several years of research around the founding and operations of the Mayo Clinic. It shares many details and practices around what makes Mayo Clinic one of the most recognized brands in Healthcare today (If I remember correctly, according to a study, about 15% of respondents said they would want attend Mayo for a major medical problem, the next closest was half of that).

I found the early founding of the clinic to be quite interesting, from the Mayo Brothers' early success (late 1800s to early 1900s), to the creation a foundation that could survive themselves. One interesting fact is that all physician's at Mayo clinic are paid a flat salary, so no would directly benefits financially increased billing, and the founding brothers started this practice with themselves.

Overall, the book provides many management lessons for service-based organizations and many references to follow-up on specifics. However, the lack of enough critical anecdotes and data about Mayo Clinic detracts from getting the feeling that you have the complete picture. This leaves the ready wondering whether the clinic could really be as good as the book suggests, which it likely is given the patient satisfaction levels. The book also highlights how incredible it is to find a 100 year old brand, which is quite impressive.

[Joel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leonard Berry is a leading service researcher and this "review" of the Mayo Clinic, its history and guiding values, is one of the best books on "service" I've read. Mayo shares some common values with large integrated systems: core value of "patient first," leadership by physicians who are on salary only, "destination medicine," and a commitment to "One Mayo" to preserve the brand. They are reliable and effective and efficiency comes from the "all under one roof" and shared medical record concepts. The only weakness is the same as for other like organizations: the discussion of cost control is limited.

[Ernest · Rating 4 out of 5]

A review of the Mayo Clinic and its systems to consistently produce a high quality service of healthcare. Topics reviewed : values, culture, system engineering, personnel development, leadership and strategic planning processes. A good book to read for a health care provider at the beginning of a career and also for individuals serving in a healthcare system to compare tools and procedures used to attain institutional goals.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book not only outlines the remarkable history of the Mayo Clinic in a lucid and engaging way but explores and dissects the reasons that Mayo continues to be an exemplary provider of medical service, even after over 100 years of existence. There are many valuable lessons in this book for any hospital, doctor, nurse, or health care provider.

[Johnny · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book discusses what makes the Mayo Clinic, an 140 year old instituion, one of the leading medical care facilities. Though the authors are a bit repetitive, how many times can you re-phrase the customer/patient comes first, it was still interesting to know that their focus hasn't changed in 140 years.

[Fabiola · Rating 3 out of 5]

Desde el título es claro que este libro será un comercial, pero siento sobrevaluados los comentarios sobre ser uno de los más importantes libros de administración. Me parece que le toma demasiados capítulos para entrar en temas que pudieran ser de utilidad a cualquier tipo de persona en la industria de servicios.

[Austin Cope · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! Healthcare can be a discouraging and even depressing industry to work in. It's so refreshing and encouraging to learn about about a healthcare system that places high importance on culture and people.

Mayo Clinic is an incredible success story and I thought it was fascinating to dissect their methods and learn from their success. I would love to work at a place like Mayo.

[Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simple and inspiring book. Many key lessons focused on putting the "patient" (ie., customer) first and the value of teamwork. Reminder to check your ego at the door and work across silos created in a business structure. Interesting history of The Mayo Institute and a successful healthcare organization.

[Cyndie Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

How Mayo Clinic became the most recognized brand in medicine. How do you create great service when you provide a service that people wish they didn't need? Great lessons on teamwork, employee empowerment, and sticking to your values that can help all businesses.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

For physicians and healthcare C-suits this book emphasizes the key to Mayo's outstanding success. "The patient first" is its mantra, accomplished via a physician-led dynamic that makes team medicine the rule. Everyone wins, especially the patient.

[Bayu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very insightful. Every service manager can learn a lot from this book. But the models that Leonard Berry tried to formulate here, were not as impressive as the ones in his previous books.

[Bill Donhiser · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very well written book. Should be required reading for every health care provider. A lot of value here

[Mauro Kleber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excelente visão das práticas de gestão de uma das mais admiradas clínicas do mundo. Essencial a qualquer um que queira administrar serviços de saúde

[Tim Feagan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting history of Mayo Clinic and it's unique culture.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Apply to whatever business you are in.