From communist Poland to building and living her American Dream, Dorota McKay's story is an inspiring story of resilience, grit, hard work, humility and never being afraid of taking risks but rather always asking for opportunities. Her words of wisdom for all of us healthcare leaders are crucial: If you're in doubt, always choose integrity and follow your moral compass. Your reputation is more important than any short-term gain. Listen to her story, learning, and powerful experiences around cultural transformations, in this inspiring episode.

"If you're in doubt, always choose integrity."

MEET OUR GUEST Dorota McKay Vice President, Controller, and Chief Accounting Officer for Vapotherm.

Dorota McKay is a creative problem solver with a passion for finance and personal development. She is currently a VP Controller and Chief Accounting Officer for Vapotherm, Inc., a publicly traded medtech company that develops innovative, comfortable, non-invasive technologies for respiratory support of patients with chronic or acute breathing disorders.

Dorota holds active CPA, CMA and CFE designations. Prior to joining Vapotherm she was a Controller for Decibel Therapeutics and a Finance Director at Oxford Immunotec. She is also corporate trainer and coach certified in Canfield Methodology and a Certified Culture Transformation Tools Practitioner with the Barrett Values Centre.

In this episode, we chatted with Melanie Ivarsson, Chief Development Officer at Moderna, who led teams in times the world was anxiously waiting for them to deliver us a hope with Covid Vaccine... and they did. How did they achieve this? How do you lead in such unprecedented times? How do you ensure this sense of purpose continues to live today? Hear all about those stories and about Melanie's biggest leadership learning throughout this once-in-a-lifetime experience: Enable others to be the best they can be, and don't get in their way.

"Hang on to your true self."

MEET OUR GUEST Melanie Ivarsson Chief Development Officer at Moderna.

Melanie Ivarsson is Senior Vice President, Chief Development Officer at Moderna, where she leads the Clinical Development Operations department. In this role Dr Ivarsson and her team deliver all clinical programs within the Moderna portfolio.

Melanie has more than 20 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry. Prior to joining Moderna, she was Head of Global Clinical Operations, at Takeda (following the acquisition of Shire) and spent 9 years at Pfizer in Clinical Development. She also held roles within the early clinical development group at Eli Lilly.

After receiving her PhD from the University of Bristol, she completed postdoctoral research at Lund University and New York University. Dr Ivarsson also holds an Executive MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management.

Bringing the human voice to inform decisions in healthcare, nothing can be more impactful. Going beyond the facts and the sad reality of inequities, health misinformation, and tragic health outcomes to really deeply understand the "WHY" question. Sema Sgaier, CEO and Co-Founder of Surgo Health, has made this her purpose and focus of her work in the non-profit and for-profit organizations she led. In this episode, we discussed data, conspiracy theories, the power of stories, and the importance of understanding what people really need on the ground and the "why" behind their behaviors. You'll also hear Sema's story, her leadership beliefs, and about the "professional love language".

"Be bold, step up, go after big ideas."

MEET OUR GUEST Sema Sgaier CEO and Co-Founder of Surgo Health.

Sema Sgaier is CEO and Co-Founder of Surgo Health, a healthcare technology company developing a revolutionary socio-behavioral analytics platform and generating novel, real-world data designed to inform and improve health equity and outcomes by enabling a greater understanding of the complex factors that influence how individuals engage in their healthcare.

Sema is a serial entrepreneur with close to 20 years of experience in healthcare. She co-founded and led Surgo Foundation and Surgo Ventures, where she led the development of analytic products that solve health problems with greater precision. She was Initiative Lead at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, where she brought innovations in data, consumer insights, and product introduction into large-scale health programs globally.

She has over 60 publications and is a frequent OpEd contributor to The New York Times and prestigious media outlets. She is an adjunct assistant professor at the University of Washington.

She completed her fellowship in Genomics at Harvard University, Ph.D. in Neuroscience from New York University, and M.A. in Neuroscience from Brown University. Sema is a member of the Board of Directors of the United States of Care. She was selected as a rising talent by the Women's Forum for Economy and Society.

Leadership is the ability to make decisions that benefit the whole system, it is those who go beyond personal benefit, beyond their own team's benefit, and do the right thing for the community. In this chat with Amy Kimball, we discussed leadership in healthcare non-profits, and also in entrepreneurship. We talked about the key components of building a thriving culture of excellence, high performance, and people-centered service. Hear Amy's inspiring journey, and her authentic thoughts about being "lonely at the top", something we all experience as leaders at some point in our lives.

"It is about what you want for yourself."

MEET OUR GUEST Amy Kimball Executive & Leadership Coach and former biomedical research CEO.

Amy Kimball is an Executive & Leadership Coach and former biomedical research CEO. Prior to launching her coaching business in 2022, she had been coaching professionals on the side for 15 years, while she held leadership roles in academic biomedical research.

During her tenure as CEO of a midsized biomedical research institute, she led a turnaround to rebuild a culture of excellence, high performance, and people-centered service. Prior to that, she held research administrative leadership roles at large, Boston-based academic medical centers.

She holds an Executive MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management and has completed Georgetown University’s Leadership Coaching program. She coaches CEOs and other leadership positions that feel “lonely at the top;” mentors and advises start-ups; and serves in peer coaching roles within the helping professions community.

Learn more about Amy's work: www.amykimballcoaching.com

Small affection, care, and love can do miracles in life... This is what Ashoka Madduri co-founder and CEO of Target Therapeutics experienced personally, and what he is taking with him paying forward to the teams and communities he serves. From a small village in India to now leading biotech, Ashoka shares his inspiring story of grit, resilience, hope, optimism, and patience. Trust, empowerment, and care are for him the critical ingredients to building successful teams that can develop and bring breakthrough innovation to patients.

"Care and love can do miracles."

MEET OUR GUEST Ashoka Madduri Co-founder and CEO of TargetSite Therapeutics.

Ashoka grew up in a small village in south India. After completing his undergrad and masters he obtained DAAD matching scholarship and moved to Germany. He completed his PhD in Organic Chemistry from University of Groningen, Netherlands, where he worked on anti-cancer complex natural products. He performed his post-doctoral research to understand pathways involved in multi-drug resistance in Mycobacterium tuberculosis at Harvard Medical School. Over the years he has worked in multiple biotech companies and developed expertise in business development & corporate strategy.

He received his Executive MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management. Currently, he is a Blavatnik Entrepreneurial Fellow at Yale Ventures providing strategy & enabling multiple early-stage life science startups.

Ashoka is a Co-founder & CEO of TargetSite Therapeutics, a Yale spin-out, and Partner at Vestra Associates where he advises biotech companies on strategy and partnerships.

From an engineer who "loves to make things" to a longtime life science and technology leader who only makes things that matter to people and make their life better, learn in this episode with Paul Hartung how to build successful biotechs, launch startups in life sciences and most importantly assemble teams that will address relevant unmet needs. Paul leaves us with a simple yet powerful reminder: as healthcare leaders, we are doing important work we should never stop until we solve and cure the diseases we are addressing.

"Develop a passion in your team for them to come every day and solve relevant unmet needs."

MEET OUR GUEST Paul Hartung, a longtime life sciences and technology executive.

Paul Hartung is a longtime life sciences and technology executive with a proven track record in launching successful startup businesses and leading Fortune 500 organizations. Paul currently serves on several Board of Directors including Leuko and Verisense, he mentors at MIT VMS, MassBio MassCONNECT, and The Capital Network, and serves as a judge for MassChallenge.

He served as President & CEO through successful Phase II of Cognoptix, which has developed an innovative eye scan for early detection of Alzheimer’s disease. Paul also founded Sonivance, and has held senior management roles at 3Com, Summit (LASIK), Trumpf, Laser Fare and GE.  

Paul graduated with honors from MIT with an MS Degree in Mechanical Engineering. He is an active speaker, author, and inventor on a number of patents.

Sharing our core values is essential; living by them is crucial. For Jason Dupuis, this is a key part of daily leadership. His values are Passion, Dedication, and Integrity. Passion is "love what you do"; Dedication is "Be there"; integrity is "Do the right thing", a simple framework that Jason lives by and transmits daily to his people in healthcare. His words of wisdom are powerful for us in healthcare: always put "human first" and show-up!

"Showing up is a choice that every great leader makes."

MEET OUR GUEST Jason Dupuis a passionate Human Experience Strategist, Thought Leader, influencer, and speaker.

Jason Dupuis is a thought leader, speaker, and organizational behavior enthusiast who believes in the power of Human Experience as a key driver of organizational performance and strategy. Over the last 20 years, Jason has served as the Chief Experience Officer for PM Pediatrics Care as well as the Administrative Director for Admitting and Emergency Services at Boston Children’s Hospital.

Most recently, he joined Fidelum Health as a Consultant and Principal Healthcare Advisor to bring the Human Brand concepts of Warmth and Competence into the Human Experience in Healthcare. As a Core Value advocate and fanatic, Jason has devoted his career to successfully demonstrating that being “human first” and leading with personal and organizational core values can create efficient and profitable operations while simultaneously delivering an exceptional experience for patients, families, and care teams. In addition to his professional roles, Jason is an Adjunct Professor in the Hellenic College School of Leadership & Management as well as recently joining Boston College as an Adjunct Professor in their Masters in Healthcare Administration program.

Jason holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Health Management & Policy from the University of New Hampshire and a Masters of Health Administration from Simmons College in Boston, MA.

From helping others learn how to use Adobe by literally writing manuals to leading globally thousands of engineers in a major tech company, Minette Norman's recipe for success to deliver transformation is collaboration and inclusion. Empathy and building inclusive psychologically safe environments have been Minette's guiding principles as she led teams and now through her entrepreneurial journey and books. "Inviting" is her reaction to leadership. Minette leaves us with a charge to be bravely self-aware as leaders since our people look at us and we have the power and responsibility to make the positive changes needed around us.

"You have so much more power to change the workplace than you think."

MEET OUR GUEST Minette Norman, a leader, entrepreneur, author, and thinker.

Minette Norman brings decades of leadership experience in the software industry to her consulting business, Minette Norman Consulting LLC, which is focused on developing transformational leaders who create inclusive working environments with a foundation of psychological safety. Minette has extensive experience leading globally distributed teams and believes that when groups leverage diversity in all its forms, breakthroughs happen. Her most recent position before starting her own consultancy was as Vice President of Engineering Practice at Autodesk, where she transformed how Autodesk developed software. Responsible for influencing more than 3,500 engineers around the globe, she focused on state-of-the-art engineering practices while nurturing a collaborative and inclusive culture.

Minette is a keynote speaker on topics of inclusive leadership, psychological safety in the workplace, and embracing empathy. Named in 2017 as one of the “Most Influential Women in Bay Area Business” by the San Francisco Business Times and as “Business Role Model of the Year” in the 2018 Women in IT/Silicon Valley Awards, Minette is a recognized leader with a unique perspective.

Minette has co-authored a book about psychological safety for leaders, The Psychological Safety Playbook: Lead More Powerfully by Being More Human, which will be published in February 2023. Her second book, The Boldly Inclusive Leader, will be published in August 2023.

Minette holds degrees in Drama and French from Tufts University and studied at the Sorbonne Nouvelle in Paris.

More from Minette below:

A diplomat who became passionate about innovation-driven entrepreneurship and ecosystems shares what it takes for communities, cities, and countries to become innovation hubs. Phil Budden's work is centered on studying and creating those ecosystems grounded around 5 key stakeholders interconnected: Entrepreneurs, Government, Universities, Big Businesses, and Risk Capital. For him though, beyond all, it is about people and connecting those great minds together to create impact. His words of wisdom are powerful for all of us leaders: "be thoughtful about your leadership and its impact."

"Leadership takes innovative tech to impact."

MEET OUR GUEST Dr. Phil Budden, Senior Lecturer at MIT Sloan focusing on 'innovation-driven entrepreneurship' (IDE) and innovation ecosystems.

Phil Budden Senior Lecturer at MIT Sloan focusing on 'innovation-driven entrepreneurship' (IDE) and innovation ecosystems. Phil's approach combines academic, historical, and real-world perspectives on how different stakeholders can all contribute to building successful innovation ecosystems.

Prior to MIT, Phil had undertaken projects on innovation and entrepreneurship for the British Prime Minister's office and served as the British Consul General to New England where he had been responsible for transatlantic business issues, including trade and investment, corporate/government affairs, as well as science and innovation.

Phil has held several diplomatic posts with the British government:  British Cabinet Office; British Embassy, Washington DC; 1st Secretary and Adviser to the PM.

Phil holds a BA and MA in History from Lincoln College, the University of Oxford; an MA in History and Government from Cornell University; and a PhD in History and International Political Economy from the University of Oxford.

The key to innovation is being fearless, ensuring we are not afraid to try and fall. Leadership is serving, empowering, and humility. Imagine the world if we feel empowered we can change it for the greater good. This is how Navin Goyal feels - "empowered" - and wants to ensure he is transmitting this to leaders, entrepreneurs, and people around him. Through his journey as a physician, entrepreneur, and now a VC, he is focused on leveraging capital to grow impactful companies across the globe.

"The pressure we put on ourselves to not fall is silly. Just get up and keep going."

MEET OUR GUEST Navin Goyal, a physician and entrepreneur who serves as CEO of LOUD Capital, an early-stage venture capital and alternative investment firm leveraging capital, entrepreneurship, and education to grow impactful companies across the globe.

Navin Goyal, M.D. is a physician and entrepreneur who serves as CEO of LOUD Capital, an early-stage venture capital and alternative investment firm leveraging capital, entrepreneurship, and education to grow impactful companies across the globe. Bringing his physician training to do good for people, Navin strives to make venture capital more purpose-driven, inclusive, and accessible.  Before co-founding LOUD Capital, Navin practiced anesthesiology in a large hospital-based setting and was the Medical Director of a community hospital for several years.

The beginning of his entrepreneurial journey was co-founding OFFOR Health (formerly SmileMD), a venture-backed mobile healthcare company that expands access to care across the United States with a dedicated focus on lower-income and rural communities. Navin is a frequent speaker at medical schools, hospitals, and businesses worldwide, sharing his perspective on how physicians can bring their ethical code to influence and impact the world more fully.

His story, his experience, and what he sees as an opportunity for physicians to have a broader impact on themselves and society is the focus of his book, Physician Underdog. Navin received his M.D. from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine and trained in anesthesiology at the University of Chicago Medical Center.