OK, Just One More ‘R’ – Reflection

Throughout 2014, this newsletter has been organized around seven leadership principles … The Seven Rs. As the year draws to a close, I am adding an eighth, Reflection. I tease my kids all the time about their being “my favorite son” or “my favorite daughter.” I only have two children, so it’s true. I also have a favorite R: Relevance. In my opinion, if what you are doing isn’t relevant, the rest is, well, irrelevant. To demonstrate, here is my Top 10 list (in no particular order) for Optimé/healthcare relevant activities in 2014:

10 –  SmartINVENTORY: Optimé released the industry’s only patient demand-driven inventory optimization application. Supply chain relevancy to the patient!

– Synergy Purchasing Coalition: In an effort to ensure that I stay in touch with our customers, I built and ran this purchasing coalition myself.

8 Movember: I again grew my moustache and joined a team for men’s health.

7 SmartSURVEY: Optimé launched a technology readiness survey to help supply chain leaders assess their use of technology and initiate an organizational roadmap.

6 – MAHRMM Board: To do my part to help further our profession, I have accepted a nomination to serve on the board of the Michigan chapter of the Association for Healthcare Resource & Materials Management.

5 – Detroit Marathon: To avoid unnecessarily contributing to the cost of care, I have taken up running. My wife Carol and I joined 3 others and ran the Detroit Marathon Relay.

4 – The International Board for the Advancement of Medicine (IBAM). Sometimes relevance requires giving something up. My partners and I wound down an organization that fostered healthcare infrastructure development in Russia and the Ukraine, as we did not want to contribute to the unrest in that region.

3 – Guest lectures: To help inspire students to consider a career in healthcare supply chain, I’ve added the University of Wisconsin to my guest lecture circuit.

– 7Rs, the book: With my good friends Nick Gaich and Fred Crans, a plan has been put in motion to complete a book that we’ve had in our sights for years.

Build for Mallory Project: Mallory Weggeman touched many of us with her keynote speech at the fall IDN Summit. I am proud to have been an inspiration for, and a donor to, the project to give back.

Wishing you all a very relevant 2015!

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