The May 9, 20011 issue of Forbes Magazine features an article titled Transitions: Michael Reinvents Dell. Based on a recent interview with Michael Dell, the author discusses the transition of Dell from a “shiny box seller” to a board-based supplier of IT products and services with $61.5 billion in annual sales.
In the article, Jim Breyer, the highly successful venture capitalist who sits on many boards, including Facebook, Wal-Mart and Dell, is attributed as having made the following statement regarding Michael Dell:
“Michael has an extremely rare combination of intense product passion, deep business model and profitability insight and extraordinary courage of conviction.”
If you plan to be a highly successful senior leader within healthcare, or within any significant healthcare organization in the future, I suggest you spend some serious time thinking about Jim Breyer’s statement… “intense product passion… deep business model and profitability insight… extraordinary courage of conviction.”
I believe that (1) intense product passion, (2) deep business model and profitability insight (adequate margin to fund the future for not-for-profits) and (3) courage of conviction are three of the critical leadership strengths and attributes of future highly successful healthcare leaders.
Take some time to carefully examine, and ask others you respect to help you examine your product passion, your business model and profitability insight, and your courage of conviction. I would bet good money that time carefully spent examining and taking appropriate action to strengthen your leadership attributes and ability in these critically important areas will pay handsome dividends for the remainder of your career!
Intense product passion… deep business model and profitability insight… extraordinary courage of conviction! Without question, critical keys to your future as a healthcare leader!
