The Travels: SSCM5

Wednesday, April 04, 2007

SSCM5

To my friends, colleagues and readers:

I am pleased to announce the launch of a new supply chain consulting firm: SSCM5.

For the past several years I have hung my shingle with American Healthcare Solutions, LLC in Pittsburgh. As one of the founding members of AHS I always have and continue to take great pride in the success of this organization: though clearly Jan Jennings is the driving force that made AHS what it is today. It was while working with Jan and the other members of AHS that I honed the high standard of ethics and extraordinary concern for the interest of a client that a good consultant must carry with them 24/7 - far more than the casual observer outside the profession could ever realize. For this I will be forever grateful. However, sometimes even with the best of organizations, with good, no make that great leadership, there comes an intersection where one must decide which direction to take. This is particularly true with smaller or mid-sized firms that simply cannot be all things to all people. With mixed feelings I came to that point with AHS and we will now head on slightly different courses.

Many shared the opinion that Supply Chain Management was never as fully developed within the AHS fold as it could and should be, needing more attention and resources - to be a core focus. By early May my associates and I will complete the launch of the new firm, to be headquartered in suburban Philadelphia, which will target the special needs of the healthcare supply chain market. Moving the business physically closer to home will allow me more time to focus on and expand a product line that will cover all of the needs an organization may have vis-a-vis supply chain management and related processes.

I hope you will all wish us luck with this new endeavor. With the obstacles faced by any new business, prayers are also appreciated.

PS - Killer website to follow.

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Often the subject matter covered here is contentious. This is to be expected in a field where billions of dollars are spent – sometimes without prudent planning and sometimes under less than ethical circumstances. And the pressure to be the firm that gains those dollars through sales is placed on highly trained and sharply competitive front line sales teams. For that reason some of the comments on articles are not in agreement with this writer’s take or point or view. This is entirely acceptable. I am one man in a huge industry. In my personal experience the greatest growth occurs during periods of discomfort. By definition, growth always takes you to a new, less familiar, i.e. less comfortable place. However, some comments go beyond the bounds of civil discourse. As the moderator of this site I have 2 options with comments: Publish or Reject. I cannot modify. It is frustrating to preview a long comment that is obviously from the writer’s heart that must be rejected for violating one or more of the following rules (of common sense): 1) No comment that libels any individual or organization will be posted – period. You may not like the salespeople from company X or the VP at hospital Y, but on this site everyone will be treated with respect. “Travels” will not be a sounding board for petty or juvenile resentments, nor will it be used to take cheap shots. 2) Facts are facts and opinions are opinions. They need to be framed as such. There is a popular cable TV show that states “The Spin Stops Here”. Think of that when writing comments. Blanket statements without support that appear to be from outer space won’t post. You are advised to advertise opinions. 3) Speak for yourself. Statements of fact about organizations other than your own need to have attribution. If it appears that you have obtained information through paranormal methods there is a strong likelihood the comment will be rejected. Don’t make statements about what is happening at company X or hospital Y, because other than public pronouncements, you really don’t know. 4) It takes character and courage to speak for yourself, to stake yourself to a position publicly – not anonymously - and to challenge the status quo. I try to do just that with this site. Anonymous postings are sometimes, though not always, permitted. An example was when we had the discussion concerning payments to physicians by implant manufacturers. Since this site is visited by both the hospital and supplier communities anonymous commentary was permitted. The simple fact is that an honest dialog on the subject was not possible if someone’s employment status could be at risk. However, when we discuss the disciplines of Strategic Supply Chain Management anonymity is not required. Please, keep commenting. We all learn through dialog.