The value in "value added"--a tool for understanding your operations.

There are two roles a value added profile can play--as a communication tool and as a target for restructuring. As a communication tool, the profile very clearly shows the inefficiencies of the system and the resulting underutilization of employees. These messages establish for everyone the need for and urgency of change. If your organization is convinced of the need for change, the restructuring process is made easier. The other benefit of the profile is not as a benchmarking tool between institutions or even between bedside care areas of the same hospital. Rather, its real benefit is as a rule to measure progress towards a goal, and to identify when adjustments to the design need to be made.