Two Harvard Business School professors, Robert Huckman and Gary Pisano, evaluated the work of Pennsylvania heart surgeons who practice at more than one hospital. The death rates from similar procedures performed by the same surgeon can vary as much as fivefold at different hospitals. Most of the time, patients did better in the hospital where their surgeon performed more operations.

The results suggest that the surgeon's interactions with anesthesiologists, nurses and technicians are crucial to the outcome of the surgery. "The argument has always been that if you want to get something done well, you go to the best surgeon," Huckman says. "Our findings suggest that the skills of the team, and of the organization, matter."

Circadian Technologies, Inc. confirms that in facilities where managers and employees work cooperatively together to achieve desired results, stress levels are low. In facilities where managers indicate that stress levels are extremely high, workers compensation claims are 15 times higher than in facilities where stress levels are low, according to Circadian.

Maintaining good working conditions and positive employee/employer relations decreases the costs of absenteeism, turnover, safety and accidents and reduces healthcare costs in extended-hours operations, according to Circadian.