Sg2 Blog

Health care providers in many markets have found themselves becoming a part of something larger than they originally signed up for. For hospitals and health systems to be sustainable during current workforce challenges and margin pressures, they are increasingly joining large networks to drive revenue. As a result, the health care industry is seeing record numbers of mergers and acquisitions, ofte...

How serious are health care systems about their consumer strategy? For decades, consumerism in health care has been a “nice to have” but not a “must have.” Health care as an industry didn’t value customer loyalty because they didn’t see those utilizing their services as customers, they saw them as patients—and patients require care. Thus, the health system...

At Sg2, our job is to stay ahead of changing health care trends—and to help you, our members, proactively navigate industry change to benefit your top lines. Over 10 years ago, we introduced the smart growth concept because we foresaw the need for a course change in health care strategy. Smart growth challenged members to invest in services not just clinically appropriate, but also financial...

Sg2 partners with chief strategy officers and executives from leading health systems to understand the role of strategic planning and how it continues to evolve in response to broader industry trends. Learn how organizations are currently approaching the planning process by checking out findings from our recent survey of senior strategy leaders. Download our Strategic Planning Placemat to better u...

Sg2 was formed in 2001, and, today, our cutting-edge expertise, analytics and tailored consulting offerings help health industry leaders anticipate health care trends and provide them with unparalleled insight into local market dynamics. We are just one of the companies that founder Michael Sachs started—and grew—with his vision, passion and leadership. Michael passed in 2019, and we ...

It is with great sorrow that we share the passing of Sg2 former imaging expert and beloved friend and mentor Henry Soch on November 16, 2023. He was a leader of Sg2’s clinical technology research, analyzing the impact of medical technologies on care delivery and collaborating with organizations to develop operational strategies. “I am among the many at Sg2 (and in health care in...

Health care is dynamic, and external market forces are increasingly volatile. Health systems are beginning to see margins stabilize, but long-term financial strength continues to be top of mind for health care leaders throughout the nation. One way systems can look to diversify financial performance is through enhancing their value-based care (VBC) strategy, but how to best do that may take on man...

As healthcare organizations face unprecedented workforce and financial challenges, much emphasis is placed on capacity constraints with rising acuity and regulatory scrutiny as powerful underlying trends. Many systems struggle to find the right balance between their margins and their missions, and often see their capacity realities outweigh their community's health equity needs. Or, if they've lau...

Most health care systems by now have defined their strategy for addressing value-based care (VBC)—even if that strategy is to minimize their involvement in VBC arrangements. To stay relevant, strategies require regular evaluation to consider current trends and market conditions. This is especially true with VBC, since VBC touches every aspect of health care financing and delivery. Any market...

As part of Sg2’s value-based care (VBC) analysis and market research, we review the quarterly earnings calls from a subset of publicly traded legacy payers and VBC-focused entrants. The summary is designed to highlight emerging trends and dynamics in these closely related industries, especially as they tie to VBC. The following post draws from recently released earnings call transcripts fro...