CASE STUDY:
ENGAGEMENT TURNAROUND

Summa Health logo
The Situation

In early 2017, Summa Health in Akron, OH, went through a disruptive change in executive leadership that significantly affected patient volume, financial results and engagement within this regional integrated health system in northeastern Ohio. Particularly damaging was the alienation of a significant number of Medical Staff members and clash with the strong existing culture of collaboration within the system.

The Solution

As part of the system’s comprehensive turnaround strategy, Summa Health engaged Stamp&Chase in March, 2017, to assess employee and physician engagement and develop comprehensive, targeted strategies to re-engage key stakeholders. Major aspects of this engagement included a comprehensive assessment of engagement at all levels of the organization; evaluation and redesign of the system’s values and associated behaviors, which resulted in an enthusiastically embraced new credo called “Our Commitments”; and a new leadership development program delivered to over 450 managers at all levels of the organization.

The Results

“The work done by Stamp&Chase proved to be invaluable during a time of crisis for our organization,” said Ben Sutton, Senior Vice President, Strategy and Performance Management for Summa Health. “The team was extremely accessible and quickly began the process of developing, implementing and executing a strategy for improving engagement across the organization.”

  • Annual employee turnover decreased from 18.2% to 15.4%, with nursing turnover dropping from 13.6% to 9.4%
  • Physician alignment indicator increased by 16%
  • Employee engagement score increased by 3.4 percent after only four months
  • Moved from 6th to 41st percentile rank on Press Ganey staff engagement survey within one year
  • Market share increased by 2 points
  • $50 million+ operating margin turnaround in 12 months


Building on the extremely positive impact the new President/CEO has had, Stamp&Chase’s strategies have supported physicians’ and employees’ recommitment to the success of Summa Health. The impact of this effort is seen in both qualitative feedback from staff and overall company.