Evolving Strategically with the "AOTrauma Reduce to the Max" Project

In this interview, Matthias Dunkel, Executive Director of AOTrauma, shares the "AOTrauma Reduce to the Max" strategic project. This initiative serves to ensure that AOTrauma continues to be the leader in knowledge development and transfer in musculoskeletal orthopedic trauma care.

Where does AOTrauma currently stand? Which current developments tell you that a strategy is needed?

AOTrauma is on a successful course of action. Just looking at 2015, we have delivered more successful educational events than ever before, our membership basis is steadily growing, we are expanding our geographical reach, and we are regularly producing new innovative research and educational materials. A strategy is needed to ensure that our energy and activities are properly channeled in a way that people can understand and identify with.

What is the "AOTrauma Reduce to the Max" strategic project and why is it important for the organization?

AOTrauma offers so many useful and unique services and products to support the professional development of our surgeon community. Yet, it is often difficult for surgeons to identify what they exactly need and how the AO can optimally support them. We, therefore, need to concentrate our key messages on the most important elements to help them. Although it might sound like a paradox, sometimes less is simply more.

In your opinion, what constitutes a good strategy?

1. A good strategy must be aligned with and support the vision and mission of the AO Foundation.
2. It must be a combination of top-down guidelines and at the same time, it must also consider broad, bottom-up input from all of the stakeholders concerned.
3. It must be built-up in a logical way, with a predefined structure and terminology. Nowadays, everybody talks about "strategy", but very rarely people do mean the same thing.
4. And most importantly, it must be communicated in a simple and understandable way to all stakeholders involved.
   
   

To put it simply: A good strategy must be able to convey in a consistent way what we do, why we do it, and how we do it.

What are the keys to successfully implementing a new strategy?

The strategy must work and be relevant in multiple dimensions. Globally valid components must be balanced with specific regional realities, and it must provide answers and guidance to seasoned AOTrauma officers and faculty as well as new AOTrauma members alike. So there is not just one communication and one implementation. By using a modular approach and by focusing on a few specific and relevant aspects, we intend to address a variety of stakeholder groups with different engagement plans.

What will AOTrauma look like in 2019?

Actually, not so different from today. We do not plan a revolution but an incremental evolution. AOTrauma should continue to be the leader in knowledge development and transfer in musculoskeletal orthopedic trauma care, our faculty will always remain the most valuable of our assets, and we will strive to expand and enrich our community. But there will also be more emphasis on assuring a secure and sustainable organizational framework and we will definitely invest more efforts and resources in brand awareness and recognition.

What kind of obstacles do you see along the way to 2019?

As in many organizations, change management will be a challenge. We all have our daily working routines and few people are really waiting to take on new projects and special initiatives. AOTrauma has worked successfully for many decades, and we need to balance time-proofed concepts with new innovative ideas and concepts. This applies to faculty, to AOTrauma staff, to AOTrauma officers, the core working group in developing a strategy—the community at large including faculty, members, etc—and the many external partners we work with.

For which of its achievements should AOTrauma be known for in your opinion?

AOTrauma should be broadly perceived as being the independent global leader for excellence in knowledge development and transfer in musculoskeletal orthopedic trauma care.

What pieces are still missing to the puzzle?

There are three major elements we need to improve on:

1. Securing and diversifying our resources and capabilities (finances and know how).
2. Establishing a better "faculty life cycle" (constant rejuvenation, while meaningfully building on the immense knowledge pool we already have).
3. Significantly improving our communication efforts, in order to increase our brand awareness and recognition.
   
   

Which areas should AOTrauma focus on in the future?

We can and will not compromise on the quality of our research and educational content. Going forward, we have to make sure that we follow the trends in the healthcare industry, and deliver support tools that are relevant to the daily practice of our community. We also have to make sure that our products and services are being delivered in the right formats, to the right audience, at the right time, and in the right locations. And, last but not least, we need to become much better in the way we promote and communicate all of the great services we can and will offer.

What is the legacy you would like to leave in your AOTrauma Executive Director role?

I want to be remembered as the AOTrauma Executive Director who supported the AOTrauma International Board and the AOTrauma management team in implementing a relevant strategy that has been clearly communicated to all stakeholders and that people actually understood, remembered, and identified with.

What is your vision beyond 2019?

Most goals and objectives we are currently working on do not have a sharp stop at the end of 2019. We will have to constantly refine our priorities based on the changing environmental premises. In this context, one of the most important long-term efforts will be the ongoing improvement and reinforcement of our relationships with existing and valued industrial partners. At the same time, we have to broaden and diversify our financial basis, by actively reaching out to new sponsors and partners, while remaining loyal to our core mission.