Not for profit and business collaborate to target improvements in delivering human services

Business solutions company FlowConnect Pty Ltd has launched a consulting division to help non-government organisations (NGOs) and other service providers to transition to new business models required under the National Disability Insurance Scheme and Consumer Directed Care.

 In an innovative collaboration with not-for-profit organisation Richmond Fellowship Tasmania (RFT), the new business arm called FlowConnect Consulting will provide services enabling NGOs to manage the changes required by these new Federal Government initiatives. Underpinning these consulting services is access to information systems specifically directed at the delivery of human care.

 Heading the consulting business as national consulting services manager is Mr Danny Sutton.

 FlowConnect’s chief executive officer Colin Hoschke said “FlowConnect Consulting will capitalise on Mr Sutton’s private sector experience and his recent not-for-profit expertise as the chief executive of Richmond Fellowship Tasmania (RFT) to help NGOs address the issues they are confronting in a fast changing market.”

 Mr Sutton said “at RFT we found transitioning to the NDIS affected every part of our organisation. We had to confront a broad range of challenges, such as the additional cash flow required under a payment-in-arrears model, how we would market our services directly to consumers and how our staff recorded their time.

 “If we took too narrow a view of change, there would always be risks that could not be managed or controlled effectively. So, we focused on driving outcomes for our consumers and transforming our organisation to make it happen. This has been a two year journey so far.

 “As the arrival of NDIS looms many NGOs are finding they need additional experience to address a range of issues. At a high level those issues include evaluations of organisational preparedness and the development of strategic NDIS market entry plans,” Mr Sutton said.

 Under the partnership, Richmond Fellowship Tasmania and FlowConnect will share resources and experience to develop and implement transformational best practices in the areas such as outcomes based management, business process design and organisational alignment, activity based funding, workforce optimisation, client-centred planning and service delivery and the use of mobile solutions for remote workers.

 The new consulting business will also market its services to other organisations in the welfare, health, housing and mental health sectors which will look for implementation support for the required business transformation initiatives and the change management which accompanies such processes. Other clients will need complex business process management solutions or will be case management oriented businesses.

 Operating from the C3 centre in South Hobart, FlowConnect Consulting will provide services nationally and internationally.

 A graduate of the University of Tasmania and the Mt Eliza Business School, Mr Sutton has an Executive MBA and an extensive and successful career in the public and private sectors. His achievements with the strategic transformation of Richmond Fellowship Tasmania, a mental health services provider, were recognised last month with a global Workflow and Business Process Management Award in Chicago.

 About FlowConnect Pty Ltd

 FlowConnect Pty Ltd is an Australian based and owned company, established in 1994, which develops solutions focused on business process automation (BPA). Its flagship product, VisiCase, is a cloud-based service that supports the complex case management required in human care delivery, justice administration, and financial services. For more information visit www.flowconnect.com