Q&A

7 Great Quotes From The Smart VAR Healthcare Summit

jim roddy

By Jim Roddy, VP of Marketing, RSPA

Smart VAR Healthcare Summit

An avalanche of valuable information was shared all day at the Smart VAR Healthcare Summit, powered by ScanSource and Business Solutions, on May 6 at the Hyatt Regency in New Brunswick, NJ. One of the highlights of the afternoon session was a four-person, healthcare end user panel titled, “Take The Guesswork Out Of Healthcare IT: Learn What Healthcare Providers Need From VARs,” moderated by BSM Editor-In-Chief Mike Monocello.

I couldn’t write fast enough to capture every aspect of the panel — as one Smart VAR attendee said, “I’ve never taken more notes at a conference in my life” — but I think you’ll find these healthcare provider insights valuable:

  • Pay attention to my LinkedIn and Twitter accounts. I’ll post questions there about solutions I’m interested in. 
  • Third-party telemarketing is not an effective way to engage me. Because if you get my interest and I want to talk deeper about your product, the person on the phone can’t answer my questions. Then we have to set up another call and start all over again. 
  • Don’t tear down the current product I’m using when trying to sell yours. That product has helped a lot of people — a lot of kids. Share the strengths of your solution. 
  • In a larger healthcare organization, start with the CTO. They don’t know the detailed pain points of each department, but they know the organization’s strategy and where your solution might fit. 
  • We are glacier-like slow when buying IT ... until it’s time to go. Once it’s approved, we need it yesterday.
  • I wish we had an express lane (for product purchases), but we don’t.
  • It’s tough to get into a healthcare organization, but when you do you could be our trusted partner for 5, 10, 15 years.

The panel of healthcare end users included Mark Roberts, enterprise manager of mobile technology for Yale New Haven Health System; Linda Girgis, MD, physician and owner of Girgis Family Medicine; Jim Shellhamer, technical system analyst of the mobility management group at Lehigh Valley Health Network; and Albert Ferreira, project manager of virtual care at Holy Cross Hospital.

This first-of-its-kind Smart VAR Healthcare Summit featured news on the latest trends in the healthcare vertical, secrets from successful healthcare VARs, and VAR opportunities in healthcare. The one-day event gave VARs the opportunity to meet colleagues and connect with healthcare channel leaders, learn about new channel services, and meet vendors. Technologies featured at the summit included mobile computing, bar coding, networking, asset tracking, wireless infrastructure, telehealth, and warehouse technologies.

Smart VAR Healthcare Summits, powered by ScanSource and Business Solutions, are sponsored by: Motorola, Honeywell, Datalogic, and Zebra. A second Smart VAR Healthcare Summit will be held in Chicago this August.