OREM, UT – A new report from KLAS examines the diverse landscape of revenue cycle consultants and whether the returns are worth the investment.

"Revenue Cycle Services: From the Extended Business Office to Transformational Services" highlights the performance of consulting firms offering extended business office (EBO) services, revenue cycle transformations and full revenue cycle outsourcing.

In the extended business office category, Perot Systems was the top-rated vendor, with a performance score of 88.3 out of 100. Other EBO firms highlighted in the KLAS report include ACS, Cymetrix, Deloitte Consulting, HRG, MedAssist, NCO, PHNS and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).

In the revenue cycle transformation category, Deloitte Consulting took the top spot with a score of 91.4, followed by Huron Consulting (Stockamp) and PwC. Early data is also available for Accenture. In the full revenue cycle outsourcing category, only one vendor, Perot Systems, is partially rated.

KLAS noted that high-performing EBO solutions are available for every size organization. MedAssist and HRG are lauded by community and mid-sized hospital clients, while Deloitte and ACS are favored by large hospitals and IDNs and Perot's clients span the spectrum – evidence that the size of a provider organization is not an obstacle to finding a successful EBO partner.

The KLAS report also found that performance ratings for revenue cycle transformation consultants vary widely between the C-suite and the business office. C-level executives, including CEOs, CFOs and CIOs, give Deloitte and Huron Consulting superior satisfaction ratings, while ratings from business office directors are much less positive, even from within the same facility. Early indications suggest that ratings for PwC will follow a similar pattern.

"Senior executives at healthcare organizations routinely give revenue cycle transformation consultants a significantly higher satisfaction rating than do the directors in the business office, even from within the same organization regarding the same consulting engagement," said Mike Smith, KLAS' general manager of financial and services research and author of the report. "The C-suite hires the consulting firm, but it is the business office staff, particularly directors, who are most impacted on a daily basis for the duration of the project – and the beginning of a project can be painful as existing processes are heavily scrutinized and changed.

"Other than being held accountable for results, the C-suite is somewhat insulated from daily operations," Smith said.