From strategy to practice: a work-applied management approach to hospital accreditation readiness in Indonesia

Purpose This study aims to explore how work-applied management (WAM) tools can enhance organizational readiness for hospital accreditation in Indonesia. It focuses on how human resource learning, standard operating procedures (SOPs) and governance reform act as practical pathways for organizational change in resource-limited Class D hospitals. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative-dominant embedded mixed-method case study was employed, adapting classical strategic tools (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT), internal–external (IE) matrix and quantitative strategic planning matrix (QSPM)) into a work-applied strategic mapping (WASM) framework. This reframing positions the tools as both diagnostic and reflective learning devices that engage hospital managers and staff in the strategy-to-practice process. Data were collected through interviews with 9 key informants, document analysis, field observations, a questionnaire survey of 40 hospital staff and analytic hierarchy process (AHP)-supported strategic prioritization. Findings The WASM analysis identified that human resource training and SOP standardization are central to building accreditation readiness, while governance reform strengthens accountability and sustainability. Therefore, accreditation readiness in Class-D hospitals is less about large-scale technological investment and more about embedding work-applied organizational learning into daily practice, thereby extending existing evidence on organizational readiness through work-applied strategic mapping and the participatory implementation of strategies. Practical implications This study demonstrates how work-applied strategic mapping can translate strategy into workplace learning, supporting hospital leaders, managers, healthcare staff and accreditation assessors in aligning limited resources with accreditation requirements. Originality/value This study uses the WAM literature by operationalizing and reframing SWOT, IE, QSPM and AHP as reflective organizational-learning mechanisms. It provides empirical evidence from the underexplored context of Indonesian Class D hospitals, offering a practice-based perspective on how applied management tools can foster workplace changes and improve future accreditation readiness.