Originally Published MX November/December 2003
EDITOR'S PAGE
Let's Be Clear
In his recent speech to the Medical Innovation Summit sponsored by the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Baxter Healthcare chairman and CEO Harry M. Kraemer, Jr., had a lot to say on the subject of leadership. For sheer breadth of importance, however, one theme seemed especially noteworthy.
Emphasizing the importance of corporate communication, Kraemer noted that executives often assume employees and other stakeholders will figure out on their own what direction a company is taking, and respond appropriately. But the better role of a company leader, he suggested, is to communicate such information clearly and directly, and to dedicate whatever time may be required to do so.
To be effective, Kraemer emphasized, company and industry leaders must have a firm grasp on the basics of management. Leadership by example, an understanding of how to manage people, and the ability to write and communicate, he said, are all more important than industry-specific knowledge.
In the context of today's medical technology industries, inability to communicate can have dire consequences. Consider, for instance, this small bit of information provided by Kraemer: in 1980, the largest thousand companies in the United States derived less than 5% of their revenues from alliances and partnerships; in 2002, 35% of those companies' revenues came by way of such routes.
In such an environment, clear and accurate communication is essential. Without it, the processes involved in managing a company's intellectual property portfolio would become mere outlines for future litigation. Similarly, the complex of tasks involved in negotiating an alliance would grind to a standstill, and the resulting contracts would become impossible to understand and enforce.
Considering that medtech's international landscape is rapidly becoming littered with broken deals and cross-litigation, perhaps a little more emphasis on communication skills is in order.
Copyright ©2003 MX
