The Gary Bisbee Show

Meet Lieutenant General Ronald J. Place:

Lieutenant General Ronald J. Place is the Director of the Defense Health Agency (DHA), a joint integrated Combat Support Agency enabling the medical service to provide a medically ready force and ready medical force to Combatant Commands in both peacetime and wartime. Previously, LTG Place was the Director of the National Capital Medical Directorate of the Defense Health Agency. He received a Bachelor’s in Chemistry from the University of South Dakota and received his medical degree from Creighton University School of Medicine.

Key Insights:

Lieutenant General Ronald J. Place has established a career as both a surgeon and military leader. 

• Becoming an Army Doctor. LTG Place initially joined the military as a means to pay for medical school. However, after a deployment with a unit of soldiers dedicated to caring for each other and defending American freedoms, he changed his mindset. He went from being a doctor who happened to be in the Army, to an Army doctor. (10:57)
• Leadership Philosophy. If you have a leadership philosophy, write it down. Writing it down makes it real, and creates a starting point for the philosophy to be further refined. LTG Place updates his leadership philosophy at least once a year, inspired by what he learns from books, mentors, or his own experiences. (17:19)
• Mentorship. As a mentor, LTG Place actually refrains from giving advice. For him, the most important part of being a mentor is asking questions, pulling out insightful information so that ultimately the mentee can make their own decision. (21:31) 

Relevant Links:

• Learn more about LTG Place’s role as DHA Director
• Follow LTG Place on Twitter

Meet The Guests:

This episode showcases military leaders. Lieutenant General R. Scott Dingle is the Surgeon General of the U.S. Army and Commanding General of the U.S. Army Medical Command. Lieutenant General Ronald J. Place, M.D. is the Director of the Defense Health Agency (DHA). Joseph Caravalho, Jr., M.D. is a retired Major General of the U.S. Army and currently serves as the President and CEO of the Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine. Elder Granger, M.D., is a retired Major General of the U.S. Army and is the Founder and President of The 5P’s LLC. 

Key Insights:

Memorial Day is observed on the last Monday of May to mourn U.S. military personnel who died in service. We asked military leaders to share what Memorial Day means to them. 

• Honoring Past Leaders. LTG Dingle shares a quote from General Douglas MacArthur: no one desires peace more than the soldier because it is he, or she, who must pay the greatest price when called upon. (0:40)
• Honoring the Ultimate Sacrifice. LTG Place shared a personal story of a soldier that died in his medical care, succumbing to injuries from an IED. Following that deployment, LTG Place stopped thinking of himself as a surgeon first, and rather as a soldier first.(2:37)
• Honoring Selflessness. MG Caravalho points out that there are many patriots; many people that act selflessly for this country. However, Memorial Day is about those who chose to put on a uniform and promised to defend the United States no matter the situation and no matter the sacrifice. (6:54)
• Honoring History. For MG Granger, Memorial Day reminds him that freedom is not free. We must honor those who paid the ultimate sacrifice from not just modern wars, but also from the American Revolution, the Civil War, World War 1 and 2, and other historical battles that solidified America’s freedom. (9:27)

Meet Michael Osterholm, Ph.D.:

Michael Osterholm, Ph.D. is a Regents Professor, the Director of the Center for Infectious Diseases Research and Policy (CIDRAP), and McKnight Presidential Endowed Chair in Public Health at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Osterholm was appointed to President Biden’s Transition COVID-19 Advisory Board. He is author of “Deadliest Enemy” and hosts “The Osterholm Update: COVID-19” podcast. Dr. Osterholm received a Ph.D. and MS in Environmental Health and an MPH in Epidemiology from the University of Minnesota. 

Key Insights:

Dr. Osterholm is a distinguished leader in a variety of areas including as a scientist, public health official, author, professor, and advisor. 

• The State of the Pandemic. Pre-existing immunity from vaccines and prior infections clearly reduce severe illness and deaths. However, Dr. Osterholm questions, what’s after Omicron? What will variant Pi and Sigma look like? Viral evolution indicates that upcoming variants will be more infectious and have more immune system evasion. We must be prepared. (13:16)
• Lessons from Pandemics. There are sociological lessons to learn from previous disease outbreaks. The duration of the 1918 pandemic was around three years. However, after about a year, the public gave up on public health recommendations, and stopped acting on or accepting protections. (28:41)
• Vaccine Technology. Dr. Osterholm predicts we will see new vaccine technologies that are more immune enhancing. COVID-19 mRNA vaccines provide a rapid antibody response, which wanes in a matter of months. Adenovirus vaccines initially seemed less effective, but result in a stronger T-cell response, which is a more durable immunity. New vaccine technology will need to produce a complex immune response, rather than focusing on just the antibody response. (30:49) 

Relevant Links: 

• Check out his podcast “The Osterholm Update: COVID-19”
• Check out Dr. Osterholm’d book “Deadliest Enemy: Our War Against Killer Germs”
• Watch “American public 'done' with pandemic, even if it's not done with us: Osterholm | ABC News”

Meet Bruce Vanderhoff, M.D.:

Bruce Vanderhoff, M.D. is the Director of the Ohio Department of Health. Before his directorship, he was the department’s Chief Medical Officer. Prior to that, Dr. Vanderhoff served in a variety of roles at OhioHealth, including the Senior VP, Chief Medical Officer, and VP of Medical Education, Quality, and Patient Safety. He also practiced as a family medicine physician. Dr. Vanderhoff received his M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from Franklin University.

Key Insights:

Dr. Vanderhoff dives into pandemic management and leadership lessons from a state government perspective.

• Ohio’s Vax-a-Million. Dr. Vanderhoff described the design behind Ohio’s vaccine lottery. The goal was to incentivize people that were inclined to get the vaccine, but hadn’t done so yet. Two weeks after the program was announced, there was a 28% increase in the number of people getting vaccinated. (3:33)
• Lessons for Public Health. Dr. Vanderhoff emphasized that we cannot predict all potential public health threats. However, we know that people who are healthy are better able to weather pandemics and other health challenges compared to people who are unhealthy. Thus, improving the overall health of people is a crucial part of preparation for future public health threats. (19:58)
• Problem Solving Methodology. To achieve big goals, Dr. Vanderhoff recommends designing a plan that is iterative, that breaks down the problem into smaller steps. He also points to the importance of understanding lived experience. Seek out perspectives from workers on the frontlines before formulating solutions to their problems. (33:35)

Relevant Links:

• Read more about Dr. Vanderhoff
• Read “DeWine names Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff as the Ohio Department of Health's new director”

Meet Daniel Pink:

Daniel Pink is the author of five New York Times bestsellers aboutbusiness, work, creativity, and behavior. His latest is “The Power of Regret: How Looking Backward Moves Us Forward.” Daniel hosts a MasterClass on sales and persuasion, and he contributes to in The New York Times, Harvard Business Review, The Atlantic, and Slate. Previously, Daniel was the host and co-executive producer of the television show “Crowd Control.” Daniel received a B.A. from Northwestern University, and a JD from Yale Law School.

Key Insights:

Regret is a complex, but common negative emotion. It is uncomfortable, but when confronted, it can be transformative.

• Transformational Regret. Reflecting on regret has been found to decrease cognitive biases, and improve skills related to problem solving, strategy, and negotiation. Daniel shares research that showed that participants who were asked to reflect on what they regretted about a previous negotiation exercise did better in the next negotiation. (12:05)
• Four Categories of Regret. Through his research, Daniel found four core regrets. foundational regrets are about stability, often related to finances or health. Boldness regrets are about taking chances, like traveling or starting a business. Moral regrets are about doing the right thing. Lastly, connection regrets are related to the loss of relationships. The most common regrets are connection regrets. (17:08)
• How Leaders Can Use Regret. Daniel encourages leaders to share their regrets and mistakes. It creates an opportunity for powerful conversations about what can be learned from regrets and how to prevent future ones. It also helps normalize regret, which is important because regret is normal. (30:55)

Relevant Links: 

• Check out Daniel Pink’s website
• Listen to the Pinkcast, Daniel Pink’s podcast
• Read “What Can We Learn from the Solace of ‘At Least’ and the Sting of ‘If Only’?” by Daniel Pink

Meet Sean Lane:

Sean Lane is the CEO of Olive and CEO of Circulo Health. Previously, he was an Intelligence Officer for the National Security Agency. He was also founder and Chairman of the Board for Betamore, Founder and Chairman Emeritus of Digital Harbor Foundation, and Founder of APX Labs. Sean received a Bachelor’s in Political Science and Government from Miami University. 

Key Insights:

Sean Lane is freeing up healthcare’s scarcest resource: time. 

• Explaining Olive. Olive is an automation company for healthcare. Olive herself is a virtual assistant that can learn to automate various administrative and operational tasks using artificial intelligence and deep learning. (10:58)
• Leadership Philosophy. Sean sums up his leadership methodology with the phrase “Love to lead.” Love is an acronym: “L” for leadership, because everything is a leadership problem; “O” for otherhood, to always think about others; “V” for vision, making vision a reality; and “E” for expectations, setting them clearly to avoid confusion and frustration. (22:29)
• Start Early. Sean became interested in leadership through the manuals and books his father brought home. Sean points out that now we have the internet! Take advantage of the vast resources around leadership, and decide what methodology you want to embrace. (29:24)

Relevant Links: 

• Learn more about Olive
• Check out Sean’s website
• Watch “A plan to redirect a trillion dollars in the US healthcare system with Olive CEO Sean Lane”

Meet Rasmus Hougaard:

Rasmus Hougaard is the Founder and Managing Partner of the Potential Project. He is the author of “The Mind of the Leader,” “One Second Ahead,” and recently published “Compassionate Leadership: How to Do Hard Things in a Human Way.” Rasmus is also a contributor for the Harvard Business Review, Forbes and Business Insider. He received a Master’s degree in Organization and Behavior Studies from Roskilde University.

Key Insights:

Rasmus Hougaard is on a mission to create a more human world of work.

• Rethinking Leadership. The idea of a leader single-handedly saving a company is outdated. Rasmus shares that leadership today is about motivating teams of people behind a shared vision. Leadership is through influence and communication, rather than commands and mandates. (14:05)
• Wise Compassion. Rasmus’ research found that the most effective leaders combined a caring attitude with business acumen and the courage to do difficult things. Good leaders can do hard things in a human way. (19:38)
• Relearning Being Human. Leadership in the 21st century is about unlearning management and relearning being human. Leaders should enter conversations with vulnerability and honesty. They should put aside traditional prescriptions for leadership, and rather focus on the individual, unique employee in front of them. (23:12)

Relevant Links: 

• Learn more about the Potential Project
• Check out Rasmus’ book “Compassionate Leadership: How to Do Hard Things in a Human Way”
• Read Rasmus’ contributions to Forbes on Leadership Strategy

Meet Jim Detert:

Jim Detert, Ph.D. is the John L. Colley Professor of Business Administration at the Darden Graduate School of Business Administration, and a Professor of Public Policy at the Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy at the University of Virginia. He is the author of “Choosing Courage: The Everyday Guide to Being Brave at Work.” Professor Detert received an M.A. in sociology and Ph.D. in organizational behavior from Harvard University. He also holds an MBA from the University of Minnesota and a BBA from the University of Wisconsin.

Key Insights:

Have you ever wanted to disagree with your boss, or make a tough decision you knew would be unpopular? Jim Detert, Ph.D. shows us how. 

• Why Courage Matters. Courage matters firstly for ourselves. Acts of courage define our legacy, and our biggest regrets tend to be inactions. Secondly, courage is important for organizations. Courage is fundamental to innovation because innovation is about challenging the status quo. (11:16)
• Emotional Intelligence. Emotional Intelligence is not the lack of emotions, rather the ability to read other’s emotional state and channel your own emotions properly. Emotions are information. For example, if you give a presentation in a monotone way, it won’t garner any excitement for the idea. Similarly, ignoring a coworker’s reddening face won’t deescalate a situation. (24:36)
• How to Lead Courage. Leaders must acknowledge that fear exists and work towards a culture that promotes and protects courage. This includes modeling courageous actions, defending employees that are courageous, and examining potential barriers to bravery like financial and promotion incentives.(35:48)

Meet Rajeev Singh:

Rajeev Singh is the Accolade CEO and Chairperson. Accolade is transforming employer health benefits programs through providing personalized, continuous and integrated health services. He is also a board member of Avalara and Amperity, and a Trustee of the Seattle Children’s Hospital Foundation. Previously, Rajeev was Co-Founder, President and COO of Concur Technologies a highly successful company with a multi-billion dollar sale to SAP. He graduated with a B.S.E. from Western Michigan University. 

Key Insights:

Rajeev Singh is a successful entrepreneur who pivoted to healthcare to make tangible, positive changes in people’s lives.

• Aligning on Mission. Rajeev emphasizes the importance of mission and values over objectives or measurables. Core values keeps a company aligned to its mission and moving in the right direction. It gives talented employees a compass to make decisions. (11:46) 
• Aligning Incentives. Rajeev thinks the healthcare status quo exists because financial incentives are misaligned. To drive adoption, Accolade promised clients that if they didn’t see lowered costs and improved patient satisfaction, they didn’t have to pay. By delivering on those promises, Accolade has a nealry 100% retention rate from its customers. (17:41)
• Aligning Yourself. The key to being an effective leader and entrepreneur is first introspection. Understand yourself and your internal motivations. Second, read as much as you can. And third, have a solid foundation and support system of family and friends. (35:30)

Relevant Links:

• Learn more about Accolade
• Follow Rajeev on Twitter
• Read “Q&A with Rajeev Singh, CEO of Accolade”

Meet Niyum Gandhi:

Niyum Gandhi is the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer at Mass General Brigham. Previously, he was the CFO, EVP, and Chief Population Health Officer at Mount Sinai Health and a Partner of Health and Life Science at Oliver Wyman. Niyum is a co-founder and Board Chair for Dandelion Helath AI, and on the Board of Directors for HealthPass New York and Northeast Business Group on Health. He received an A.B. in Economics from Harvard University. 

Key Insights:

Niyum Gandhi highlights the relationship between finance and strategy, and showcases how finance can support operations and further an organization’s mission.

• Solving at Scale. Scale can be an asset and liability. It is harder to integrate at scale, but health systems have an obligation to do so, as it advances quality of care, fortifies the balance sheet, and can diversify sources of margin. (05:34)
• Fundamental Tradeoffs. Niyum describes that some healthcare services are high value but will never make margin. Margin is fundamental to financial health, but also providing those services is important to the local community; both are a part of the mission. It is important for health systems to balance those tradeoffs. (13:04)
• The Economics of Healthcare. Traditionally, health systems stay in the black by forgoing investments for the future. Recently, more systems are making more long-term investments; however, inflation is raising costs. A challenge for healthcare leaders is balancing between investing in the future, while effectively addressing the financial challenges of today. (15:54)

Relevant Links: 

• Listen to “Margin & Mission” with Niyum Gandhi
• Follow Niyum on Twitter