George Barrett Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Cardinal Health, Inc.
What is the biggest challenge in healthcare today, from your perspective?
We are a healthcare system going through a major transition. It is going to take time. It is going to be disruptive. In some ways the biggest challenge is to be able to compete in the world as it is today while positioning yourself to compete and win in a world that’s evolving.
We have no choice but to be competitive in a fee-for-service model. And we have to position ourselves to compete in a world that is moving toward some kind of value based payment system where care needs to be more heavily coordinated. These are all big transitions.
The challenges in health care, around the world, are being driven by a combination of demographic, public health, and economic issues. The US is going through the most significant kinds of changes because our system has been so distinct for so many years. I put Cardinal Health squarely in the middle of that system.
What is the most exciting initiative at Cardinal Health at this time and why?
The convergence of players throughout the system is significant for Cardinal Health. The ability to collaborate with other companies is enormously important. Our collaboration with CVS Health on generic drugs is a very important initiative, for instance. Almost 85 percent of prescriptions are being filled generically, and that will only continue to grow.
Cardinal Health has made some important moves around the support that we provide health systems. For example, we acquired Cordis from Johnson and Johnson with a different perspective on the medical device world. It is not just about the device, but about the patient and the procedure as well. What is the best way to get the highest quality outcome in the most cost-effective way? What we’ve concluded is that we can help hospitals and health systems manage the entire episode of care. It’s not just about providing the tools; it’s about providing the services, inventory management, and the follow-up care. We are seeing more payment models that cover the entire episode of care.
We just acquired a company called naviHealth. NaviHealth functions at a critical point in care — the point of discharge. NaviHealth uses data to help direct patients to the right setting, with the right caregiver, and with the right level of therapy and care.
As far as the work you have done at Cardinal Health, which of your contributions are you most proud of?
I think we have been able to sustain a very high performing organization with a deep focus on customers and patients, and we’ve built a place where our employees feel like they can really build a future, where they can grow and where they can have fun. I feel like perhaps I contributed to making that happen. I was just reading an article that I saw this weekend in the (New York) Times, and it’s called “A Toxic Work World.” The whole time I was reading it, I was really hoping that this is not the organization that I run, that our organization has a deep sense of purpose and performs at a very high level for the stakeholders who depend on us. Shareholders, customers, patients, business partners. I hope I helped create that environment, and if I’ve done that, then I can feel proud.
What do you wish you knew at the start of your career that has taken you years to understand?
I think everyone has to find the environment in which they can grow. It takes us a while as humans to get comfortable in our own skin. We are preoccupied by the way the world sees us and the way we think we have to behave or function in the context of that outside view. It takes years to start to figure out who you are and to realize your authentic self. You need an environment that helps bring that out. We don’t always think about that at the beginning of our careers. We think about titles, job descriptions, and compensation packages, and while those things are important, ultimately you have to figure out what’s the environment in which you will thrive. The advice I often give young folks when they are preoccupied by the description of a job: a great job description with a cool title in an awful environment is an awful job.
One of my first jobs in business was a jack-of-all-trades role. I didn’t have a very interesting title. The description was ambiguous, but I had a blast because I was learning so much so fast, and I got to touch everything. It was fun and a growth experience. I think it takes time to grow comfortable with who you are and to find the environment where you thrive and learn and grow. If you are in that environment, chances are good things will happen. If you are in the wrong environment you are probably not going to be at your best.
It’s really a hard thing to identify work place culture, especially in short visits, but it is important to visit a place and look around and watch people in the hallways, watch people in the cafeteria, poke your head in to a meeting and see what it looks like. For example, Cardinal Health has been a great company for 40 years. I arrived at a point where it was going through a couple of tough years. I remember walking into this meeting and no one was smiling and no one was laughing. IT was a big room, with probably 20 people, and as a leader it made me sad. It just shouldn’t be that way. Our world is incredibly competitive, it’s really difficult, we work long hours, we dedicate a lot our lives to this, and it should be fun. And fun means that you enjoy the people you are with, you challenge them, and you debate. Ask the people that work there what it’s like to work there.
Do you have any other thoughts or comments as we wrap up?
I think it is important to internalize what we do in healthcare. I think it is a privilege and a responsibility. So if you are going to be in healthcare, then I think you need to believe that what you’re doing matters. I also think that you have to be prepared for some ups and downs because it’s going to go through changes, whether you’re a physician, a nurse, or pharmaceutical executive, a med tech executive, or an insurer. You will have to be okay with some ambiguity and the fact that the world is going to change. You have to enjoy it and embrace it.
About Mr. Barrett
George S. Barrett is Chairman and CEO of Cardinal Health, a company ranked among the top 30 on the Fortune 500 and dedicated to improving the cost-effectiveness of health care.
Mr. Barrett joined Cardinal Health in 2008 as Vice Chairman. From 2005 through 2007, Barrett was President and CEO of North America for Teva Pharmaceutical Industries and Executive Vice President of Global Pharmaceuticals, having served as President of Teva USA from 1999 through 2004.
He is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Healthcare Leadership Council and The Conference Board. He is also a member of the Business Roundtable, The Business Council, Ohio Business Roundtable, and The Columbus Partnership. Mr. Barrett serves on the Board of Directors of Nationwide Children’s Hospital and The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
Mr. Barrett earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Brown University and a Master of Business Administration from New York University. He also holds an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Long Island University’s Arnold & Marie Schwartz College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.