• The ability to interact successfully with diverse and politically sophisticated groups

• The ability to articulate the supply chain goals and objectives internally and externally

• The ability to represent the organization to the healthcare community

• Intelligence, vision, personal integrity and the ability to "git ‘er done."

With the requirements stated above, I have narrowed the field to a few hundred candidates. Credentials are ubiquitous; everyone has them. Supply chain is perceived by many to be a rather uncomplicated function. Charles E. Housley once told me, "Anyone bright enough to know when to rotate the coats at Sears is bright enough to be a Director of
Materiel (his word) Management."

And frankly, that is probably why so much mediocrity exists in our industry. Let someone get a MBA, learn a few buzzwords, work a year or two in contracting somewhere, and they feel ready to carry the supply chain flag. A lot of people know the words to all the songs and how to sing them, and often they can sing well enough to get hired.

Sadly, the answer is probably not — at least probably not at the level that optimizes the opportunity that is present. Most learn how to impress the people they need to impress in order to retain their jobs, and they are certainly better at it than their counterparts in other support services functions. The Supply Chain Leader position has largely escaped outsourcing.

In the Dec. 18, 2006, edition of Modern Healthcare’s By the Numbers, the Supply Chain did not appear in the top 15 hospital departmental management contracts (although Food Service, Facilities, Housekeeping and Laundry did).

Quite honestly, if I were CEO of a large system of hospitals or integrated delivery network (IDN), I would consider outsourcing the function except for one thing: No one out there has distinguished themselves as a market leader. Many have tried, but no names instantly jump to mind as stellar performers.

So I’d have to find my own leader. Here are the five I have met over the years who I believe represent the best of the best. I will list them in alphabetical order (how’s that for a copout). Remember, to make this list it is a given that they possess the basic requirements. I will tell you what sets them apart.

Afshin Fatholahi, Cottage Health System, Santa Barbara, CA. I have known Afshin for over 20 years. When I met him he was Director of Materials Management at Massillon (OH) Community Hospital. Afshin is a living representation of the phrase, "working your way up." He began his healthcare career on the loading dock at Akron City Hospital. Along the way he has earned two Masters degrees and has successfully integrated two IDNs — Genesis Health System in Davenport, IA, and Cottage Health in Santa Barbara. The reason I would hire Afshin is that he makes the workplace better. The shortest list in the world would have to be people who have met Afshin that do not like him. He is a consensus-builder. He is genuine; people meet him one time and never forget him. Being liked is not a prerequisite for the position, but it doesn’t hurt, and Afshin brings likeability to the table with his other qualities.

Nick Gaich, Stanford, Palo Alto, CA. I first met Nick in 1993 when we were both chosen to be members of the DeRoyal Materials Healthcare Executive Forum. Nick was one of those guys that impressed me from the first few seconds I talked with him. I was impressed because I knew that he was smarter than me. Alright, I know I’m leaving the door open for cheap shots here, but if you have met Nick, your first impression had to be the same. At Stanford, Nick has spent several years working in a very complex and financially-challenged environment. He has been innovative because he has had to be innovative in order for the organization to prosper.

Nick is also cooler than most people — with hair that must have the tensile strength of titanium. When you meet Nick, you will undoubtedly think, "What’s that?" "That" is a scraggly little pony tail on the back of his head — so scraggly, in fact, that you have to look at it several times to figure out just what it is. Since he’s from the West Coast, I have always felt that Nick was probably a practitioner of some exotic religion and that the pony tail was there so he could be snatched up to heaven when he dies.

Carl Manley, Sentara, Norfolk, VA. Carl Manley looks like a shop foreman from the ’50s. Short, balding, with intense eyes that can bore a hole through you, you would not be surprised to see him out on the work floor someplace directing activity. If you stopped at that first impression you would miss the mark by a wide margin. Carl Manley is one of the rarest types of people there is: He’s a visionary who can implement what he conjures up.

At Sentara he has built a system-based distribution network that is without parallel. Using his own brains and his own people he has fashioned a truly exceptional consolidated distribution center. I met him in 1997 when we at VHA Performance Consulting were called in to take a look at his distribution operation. He had literally put the distribution center together virtually overnight and had made it work. It worked so well that we could find very, very little to improve. He was running his operation at a ridiculously low mark-up (well under 4 percent); he had planned for the future and he took care of his people. Smart as a whip, Carl used to let people go home when the work was done and still get paid for a full day. By doing that he knew how much excess capacity he had in the operation. If I needed something done operationally, Carl would be the Manley I would call.

Dick Seim, York (PA) Hospital. Dick Seim has moved beyond the boxes. He is currently the CEO at the York (PA) Hospital. Prior to that, he was the COO for the Christ Hospital of the Health Alliance of Greater Cincinnati. I met Dick in 1997 when he was leading the Supply Chain at HAGC. At that time the Health Alliance was a hodgepodge of cultures that were yet to come together as a system. The system was dead in the middle of a materials management information system that, to say the least, was not going well. To make matters worse, the hospitals that comprised the system were by no means similar. There were two smaller hospitals in Kentucky, Jewish Hospital (at two locations—one in the city across from University Hospital and the other at Kenwood — 12 miles north), University Hospital and the Christ Hospital. The organization was new — very new. People at each location did not trust their counterparts from the other locations — most especially those from Christ Hospital.

It was Dick’s job to bring the Alliance together. And he did — not with bold, brash, out-in-front-with-a-saber leadership, but rather with a calm, quiet hand that guided rather than pushed. The thing you noticed most about Dick Seim was his kindness. I remember an occasion around 2002 or 2003 (I forget the exact date). I was visiting the hospital and was going to have lunch at Skyline Chili with Dick and Steve Roland (current materials manager at the Alliance). We were going to meet Dick at the front of the hospital and as we pulled up there he was helping an older gentleman get his wife (who was in a wheelchair) into their car. I’m sure the older gentleman had no idea who was helping him. But I did, and that scene alone speaks volumes for Dick.

Peggy Styer, Catholic Healthcare West.
I met Peggy Styer around the same time I met Nick Gaich. If there is a person who contains all of the elements of the previous four, it would be Peggy. I don’t know exactly how or when I met her, but as the DeRoyal Materials Healthcare Executive Forum was being formed, I actually nominated her, having met her only briefly. Like Afshin, Peggy is engaging and friendly. Like Nick Gaich, she has worked in immensely complicated organizations and has led project on a scale that cannot be contemplated by the average Supply Chain Executive. Catholic Healthcare West is huge, and huge organizations have a multiplier effect for every challenge. Peggy is one of the very few supply chain leaders I have ever encountered with significant overseas experience. Like Carl Manley, she can get things done, not just think them up. And like Dick Seim, she has that reserve and calm that very few people possess — you know, the folks whose heartbeat slows down in moments of stress.

There you have it — my list. So what? you may say. What does this guy know about hiring for the 21st Century? Well, if you have read this with insight, you will understand this: All things being equal, it’s the human qualities that set us apart. And in my 35 years as a supply chain leader, these folks represent the best of the best.