By Andrew Chancellor, CEO of Wellbeing International Foundation
When healthcare and healthtech brands consider expansion into new international territories, the primary concern is typically external complexity. Which is understandable, given the hurdles of compliance, regulation, and all of the other legalities. But the reality is often very different, with the greatest problems coming from within. Regional drift – the slipping of standards, culture, and decision-making – begins to break down the cohesion of the company, as each new local team develops its own interpretations of company values and mission. It’s a natural progression, as individuals and teams fill knowledge gaps with their own cultural norms. But the result can be a total disconnect from the original brand. So, what can you do to prevent that?
Using values to create global cohesion
Let’s begin with the understanding that your company’s values aren’t enough. Values may be an integral part of every company mission statement and brand book, but unless solid processes are implemented to ensure their proper adoption, they will always be seen through the individual’s cultural lens. The only way to prevent that from happening is to ensure clarity, initiate means to operationalise them, and consistently reinforce them. Without those steps, failure is probable.
Create scalable systems
Before you take steps to scale any business, you must first build an infrastructure designed for iteration and growth, and this is particularly essential in healthcare. This means clearly documented processes, defined ownership, consistent routines, shared standards, and a unified decision-making framework. Together, these elements ensure the company can scale without sacrificing efficiency, quality, or values, while remaining compliant with the wider business’s standards. The aim is to create both the foundational design and operating engine of the business. It’s forming an almost box-ready model that embeds coherence, consistency, and efficiency into the base code of every new venture.
Focus on governance and documentation
In many other sectors, governance is often seen as a tedious necessity, but in healthcare, it’s an absolute essential. Not just in global scaling, but in every day operational processes. Far from being simple bureaucracy, effective governance removes ambiguity. Clear decision pathways and thorough documentation create a framework everyone can understand, defining answers to all of the key questions that come with business establishment, management, and growth. This structural clarity closes interpretation gaps, ensuring decisions are made consistently and with confidence. Strong governance ultimately delivers alignment, compliance, and reliability as the business grows.
The need for shared organisational identity
Rapid growth often leads to the formation of micro-cultures within the branches of each new territory. And this is not without value; local autonomy enables teams to respond to the specific requirements of their market. However, it can also lead to the overshadowing of the company’s core identity.
Establishing a clear, cohesive brand and organisational identity from the outset helps guard against this risk. Identity goes beyond what the business does; it encompasses purpose, values, expectations, and the way teams work and communicate. It is the unifying force that keeps the organisation moving forward. So, if you fail to intentionally embed it into every new office as the business expands, problems inevitably follow.
Growth is the best time to identify weaknesses
Expansion almost always reveals a company’s weak points, highlighting where gaps, inefficiencies, and ambiguities exist. Largely because as a business scales, these issues intensify, becoming more complex and more difficult to resolve.
Regional drift can be avoided if you establish a strong foundation of systems, processes, and shared values before growth begins. This enables deliberate, strategic expansion rather than misaligned efforts that can dilute focus and put the brand’s reputation at risk.
Why cohesion matters
For decades, growth has been treated as the main priority for businesses. Entering new markets promises opportunity and profit, but when expansion lacks consistency, clarity, and cross-regional alignment, it often becomes unsustainable. To scale successfully, adding value while strengthening reputation, a business must prioritise cohesion. Strong cross-regional communication, intentional culture-building, clear documentation, robust governance, and shared systems create the alignment needed for durability and long-term success.
In healthcare and healthtech, regional drift isn’t just damaging to the brand, but potentially dangerous from an ethical point of view. But it’s still a common occurrence. Not because of weak oversight or flawed strategy, but because no thought has been given to clarity. Global scaling is entirely achievable – in this sector, there’s significant demand for it – but only when it is built on a foundation of consistency. Systems must be designed to travel, carrying your values, processes, strategy, and brand with integrity into every new market.
