It’s What Already?!? Reflections On a Lively Year
In case you missed the memo, it is December already.
What?! It’s December? And is that the year 2023 looking funny at us?! How can it be the end of the year already? I feel like we just finished open enrollment for 2022! The adage “Time flies when you’re having fun,” seems to aptly apply to the year 2022 for U.S. HealthTek. Work and fun are not usually synonymous, but all of us here certainly strive to make it so – and I can say proudly, gratefully, we’ve achieved it. And yet despite having a bountiful year, we have even more to look forward to! But first …
Q1: Industry Appreciation
The first quarter of 2022 went by in a flash. Highlights included onboarding new clients, kicking off exciting new projects, building out new service offerings, and the initial planning of our first company-wide retreat. We also sponsored the extremely fruitful ACLA annual meeting in Washington D.C. There we were, bolstered by hearing that legislators may finally be aware of and understand the value and importance of laboratory testing (okay, it took a worldwide pandemic for that to happen, but nevermind that). It was an inspiring and emotionally satisfying moment as the overwhelming message of appreciation to the laboratory industry for their contributions to the COVID fight was well received, to say the least. They finally get us.
Mike Pratt, Bryan Firestone, and Robert Negosian at EWC.
Q2: EWC & Corporate Retreat
The second quarter of this year was kicked off by the Executive War College meeting in New Orleans. This meeting is always valuable, but after two years of virtual or no meetings, everyone was thrilled to see each other and share their own trials and tribulations of the recent challenges (you’ll find a recap here). Shortly after War College, our team spent a long weekend together in Nashville, TN. We wrote about this valuable corporate experience in-depth back in June, but upon further reflection, it really was a zenith moment for our company. We all had a great time together despite some palatable disappointment in the lack of line dancing we were able to find! (Maybe that was for the best? We’ll never know ….). As we have always been a virtual office, with team members spread out all over the country, it was especially appreciated.
Our intent was to be sure our team left Nashville feeling valued, and know that they make a difference to our company and our clients every day. A consequential bonus was that the unstructured conversations and casual exchange of ideas enabled us to come out of that retreat with a new, inspired focus on possibilities.
We paused and reflected … then we started turning ideas into reality.
Q3: Action Items
The third quarter found us turning those possibilities into realities. After the natural summer lull, there were big pushes to get projects moving more efficiently and faster. In addition, a few of our employees had completed vendor-specific LIMS implementation training, and others earned their certification in Bio-Pharma validations. Also, serious planning for the next step for U.S. HealthTek ensued.
Q4: New Directions
Our team is expanding, and we welcomed long-time friend and colleague Jeff Policastro to the U.S. HealthTek family in the new position of Senior Vice President, Commercial Strategy. You’ll be hearing from Jeff in January and some of the exciting new offerings as we expand our services and products. Also we’re implementing all these new plans and more, from an update on our website to possible restructuring, in a manner that will make us even more supportive to the labs we partner with.
On the lighter side, our Halloween Happy Hour was a great way to celebrate the accomplishments and get up-to-date with all the water cooler conversation missed out on a daily basis due to our virtual set up.
Here’s to 2023!
2023 and Beyond
As we look towards 2023, our vision and future is bright. We will continue to work with honesty and integrity, and are excited about the ways we will raise the bar in service offerings to clients. Internally, we will continue to offer comprehensive benefits to our employees and maintain an environment where our associates can thrive and succeed. We believe that businesses that work together, grow together. We are happy to part of this journey of prosperity and success with you. Happy Holidays!