🤷🏽‍♂️ Do leaders matter in healthcare?

Pop quiz: name three iconic leaders in the history of tech.

It’s not hard, right? Now, how about three leaders in politics. Or, three leaders in the history of American industry. I’ve got your Ford and will raise you a Musk.

Ok, now name three iconic leaders from the history of healthcare.

Or just one.

I’m waiting.

A question that’s been gnawing

There’s a question that’s been gnawing at me for a few months now. Ever since I wrote The “Great Man” Theory (of Healthcare), I’ve been wondering whether it matters at all who leads a healthcare company. If it does matter, to what extent does it matter?

I wrote then about how so many of the problems we talk about are systemic in nature:

We talk about things like misaligned incentives, or regulatory hurdles, or faulty business models.

In contrast, we rarely talk about the impact of individuals.

This question resurfaced lately when I was approached to help write a book about leaders in healthcare. The idea was to interview innovative or transformational leaders of healthcare around the country, and then write a book of lessons learned. Like a Harvard Business Review, but focused on lessons from healthcare leaders.