Saving lives through digital transformation
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THE POWER OF TECHNOLOGY: driving donor engagement and saving lives WRITTEN BY
LAURA MULLAN PRODUCED BY
MIKE SADR
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AUSTRALIA NEEDS MORE THAN 25,000 BLOOD DONORS EVERY WEEK, AND THROUGH DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION THE BLOOD SERVICE IS TAKING ON THE CHALLENGE
O
ne in three Australians will need blood or blood products in their lifetime – yet just one in 30 donates blood. An organisation
determined to reverse this trend is the Australian Red Cross Blood Service, a division of the Australian Red Cross which is in the business of saving lives. The organisation supplies communities with safe, life-giving blood and blood products, as well as organ and bone marrow services for transplantation. In fact, the firm collects 25,000 blood donations every week and 1.3mn every year – however, it needs more if it wants to keep up with a growing diverse population. Wanting to boost donor engagement, the group has pivoted towards IT and digitisation with Philip Nesci, who previously served as CIO at the Blood Service, helping to lead the charge. Nesci is well-equipped for the challenge: he’s presided as CIO for five different companies, overseeing business and technology transformations since the early 1980s. “I’ve been fortunate to have seen many waves of technology innovation,” recalls Nesci. “From PCs and the internet, to mobility and social w w w.do na te bl o o d. com . a u
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media, I’ve seen this industry grow
how “the Blood Service quickly
from a back-office function to one
recognised that technology plays
which is a key part of any business
a critical role in not only enabling the
strategy.” Now transitioning to the next
business but also fundamentally
stage of his career and moving to
disrupting the organisation.” The first
Board and Consulting roles, Nesci was
obstacle the group aimed to tackle was
keen to reflect on how the Blood
a straightforward yet challenging one:
Service’s digital transformation can
improving donor engagement. One of
be seen as an exemplary template
the major channels for interacting with
showing how technology can empower
donors is through a National Call
businesses and save lives.
Centre, whereby donors can call to
The catalyst for the advent of the 06
make an appointment. However, keen
Blood Service’s digital roadmap was
to meet the demands of a digitally
the appointment of a new Board Chair
savvy nation, the organisation soon
and Chief Executive, says Nesci noting
realised that online channels and self-service were critical to enhancing donor engagement. It implemented online channels like self-service portals, mobile apps, and chatbots which meant that donors could book an appointment at the touch of a button, anytime, anywhere. “These days, everyone is time poor and online channels give donors the ability to make and change appointments where and when they find it convenient, on any device,” he explains. “In the space of just over 12 months, donors are now making or changing over 30% of their appointments online.”
“In the space of just over 12 months, donors are now making or changing over 30% of their appointments online” — Philip Nesci, Former CIO, at Australian Red Cross Blood Service
On top of this, Nesci and his team
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believes the opportunities for innova-
also helped to spearhead a new
tion are limitless. “You could use
cloud-first strategy, leading a steady
voice-enabled online channels,
transition towards cloud services. “It’s
virtual reality (VR) in Donor Centres,
a key element of any digital strategy,”
and the Internet of Things (IoT) and
he says. “The Blood Service is
robotics in manufacturing. You could
adopting cloud capabilities to deliver
also use AI and data analytics across
increased agility so that it can better
all of the Blood Service’s activities –
respond to business needs, increase
from predicting donor behaviour to
security and tackle the growing
genomics matching and supply chain
volume of data.”
efficiencies,” enthuses Nesci.
You may not associate blood donation with technology, but Nesci
“Ultimately, this type of innovation will benefit donors and patients, and it w w w.do na te bl o o d. com . a u
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C O M PA N Y FACT S
• One in three Australians will need blood or blood products in their lifetime • One in 30 Australians give blood each year (3%) • One blood donation can save up to three lives • Australia needs more than 25,000 donations every week
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1996
Year founded
3,500
Approximate number of employees
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“ I’VE SEEN THIS INDUSTRY GROW FROM A BACKOFFICE FUNCTION TO ONE WHICH IS A KEY PART OF ANY BUSINESS STRATEGY” — Philip Nesci, Former CIO, Australian Red Cross Blood Service
will drive improved outcomes for the Blood Service.” As well as looking at the latest cutting-edge technologies coming to the fore, the Blood Service has also zeroed in on the fundamentals of IT, such as cybersecurity. The Blood Service experienced a cybersecurity threat early in Nesci’s tenure, but luckily the team was well equipped to combat the challenge. “A cybersecurity incident is something no organisation ever wishes to experience,” Nesci says
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candidly. “Fortunately, we had an
response, prevention and governance,”
outstanding and immediate response
Nesci adds. “One of the notable
from the executive team, the board and
positives has been that the Blood
the technology team.” Transparency
Service maintained the trust of donors
was key to resolving the issue; the
throughout the recovery without
Blood Service disclosed the incident
reputational damage to the brand.”
within 72 hours and made sure that
To keep up with the blistering pace
donors continue to engage with and
of innovation, the Blood Service is
trust in the organisation. “After the
increasingly and selectively adopting
incident, the Blood Service made
agile approaches to improve the speed
cybersecurity a top priority and
of the technology transformation and
implemented an aggressive cyberse-
manage the risks of delivery. With this
curity capability for detection,
in mind, a cultural shift was needed. w w w.do na te bl o o d. com . a u
“ I THINK THE BLOOD SERVICE WILL GO FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH UNDER THE NEW CIO” — Philip Nesci, Former CIO, Australian Red Cross Blood Service
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E X ECU T I VE P RO FI LE
Philip Nesci Philip Nesci is an internationally experienced leader in Digital transformation, strategy and delivery. He has held several Chief Information Officer and Executive Director positions in large, private sector organisations and in Health, both in Australia and overseas. Philip has a strong track record of strategy development and implementation delivered through strong leadership and extensive engagement with Boards and Executives. As a corporate advisor, Philip has worked with leading listed companies in Australia and overseas.
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“ IN THE SPACE OF JUST OVER 12 MONTHS, DONORS ARE NOW MAKING OR CHANGING OVER 30% OF THEIR APPOINTMENTS ONLINE” — Philip Nesci, Former CIO, at Australian Red Cross Blood Service “There is a program in place to raise the 18
organisation’s awareness of Agile,” he says. “With this approach, the Blood Service has recognised that some cultural changes are required both in the ICT team and in the business approaches.” While many firms in IT are finding the war for talent an indefinite struggle, thanks to the Blood Service’s sense of purpose it has been able to tackle this hurdle in its stride. “People want to come to work to make a difference,” Nesci adds. “The Blood Service has developed leaders and delivered outcomes with business partners, but it also has a noble purpose which a lot of people are attracted to.”
Now moving to the next stage of his career, Nesci has passed the baton to the Blood Service’s new CIO, Ann Larkins, ensuring that she can continue to lead the organisation towards a more innovative future. “The next CIO will take this journey to the next level,” he observes. “IT has confidence in the board and the executives, and, in partnership with them, it has delivered some major outcomes around the donor experience. Most recently, the Blood Service launched a new system that will enhance the vital matching
Plasma kiosks
service for organ transplantation in Australia; it’s a next-generation tool.” Traditionally, healthcare has been a slow adopter of technology. But with the growing pervasiveness of cloud, the rise of wearable devices and more, Nesci believes it’s “prime for disruption”. “I think the Blood Service, in particular, will go from strength to strength under the new CIO,” he adds.
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Australian Red Cross Blood Service National Office, Level 3, 417 St Kilda Road, Melbourne, Vic 3004 T +03 9863 1600 www.donateblood.com.au/contact-us