Every company wants to be an innovator, and during my time at Johnson
& Johnson, I’ve found innovation begins with a company’s people and
culture.
Our shared history shows just how powerful a culture that embraces
change can be. Depending on where you lived, for most of recorded
history the average human life span topped out at roughly 40 years. It
fluctuated some, but stayed pretty much the same until the late 1800s.
That’s when scientists and doctors – including those in my own company –
realized that controlling germs, slowing the spread of disease and
preventing infections from the simplest of wounds could prolong many
lives.
Since then, we have managed to double life expectancy – a feat never
before accomplished in the history of humanity. And, it’s likely to
almost double again in a shorter amount of time.
Thanks to advances in medicine and technology-enabled medical
devices, children born today could live to 140 years of age. Think
about that for a minute … living a life more than double what most of us
expect today. The social and economic implications are enormous.
A look inside: Promoting culture change for a new future
Those of us in healthcare are the ones building towards this reality, working in new ways and with different partners.
Science and technology are merging in ways that are being reinvented
every day, and our Supply Chain, along with our partners in Research
& Development, is at the forefront of this change. We will need to
capitalize on the changes brought by technological advances, and use the
needs and insights from our patients and customers today to find the
best ways to meet the new needs of tomorrow.
Embracing this change begins with culture, which is why we started
our journey toward this new future by opening Johnson & Johnson’s
aperture.
Our shared history shows just how powerful a culture that embraces change can be.
Kathryn Wengel
Worldwide VP and Chief Supply Chain Officer, Johnson & Johnson
We realized that the best ideas aren’t necessarily inside our own
four walls, or even in healthcare. For example, by collaborating with
the electronics industry, we made significant advancements on time and
speed, and transitioned from off-line Quality Control testing to
integrated in-line Quality Management through the introduction of new
advanced technologies.
To do this, it takes time and speed, in a way not normally applied to
healthcare. But transformational change does not come part-time – so we
have dedicated a small segment of our workforce to work full-time with a
clear focus on our most important needs. In this way, the team can
really carve out time and resources to focus on breakthrough innovation.
We also opened our doors and our minds to finding the best ideas –
anywhere – bringing in new and diverse talent, and looking for the best
concepts anywhere on the planet. Techniques like crowd-sourcing and
design-thinking helped us merge these ideas with unmet needs in the
market. We are also focused on scaling great ideas more quickly, taking
lessons from one channel (i.e. retail) into other channels (i.e.
hospital).
Our journey has taught us that, no matter how innovative of a company
you are, you often need to embark on culture change and look to the
outside to maintain a competitive edge.
Embracing our new reality
Digital transformation is a lot more than a catch-phrase and most
industries, including healthcare, are leveraging the power of
digitization but not yet realizing its full potential. It’s not just a
matter of implementing technology – your workforce must be involved from
the get-go.
For example, it is still rare to be able to fully trace every element
of a product from origin through to individual patient outcomes via
digital health records and real-world evidence. My own organization
experienced a learning curve to embrace this new reality, and we’re
starting to see the results of allowing our best talent to be bolder and
focused on ideas that can have the biggest impact for our customers and
enhance their experience with us.
No matter how innovative of a company you are, you
often need to embark on culture change and look to the outside to
maintain a competitive edge.
Kathryn Wengel
Worldwide VP and Chief Supply Chain Officer, Johnson & Johnson
The rapid advancements in computing, Big Data and technology are
enabling rapid innovation in a way I have not seen in my career. We’re
not just making products anymore. We also make a product’s digital twin.
This twin is the basis for how we collaborate across the healthcare
supply chain to create a digital thread that will allow our healthcare
systems to shift over time from a pay by use to pay for outcomes.
We’re already seeing the fruits of some of these new ways of
working. For example, we’ve moved decisively to use augmented reality
using QR codes and mobile technology to accelerate changeovers. We
started with a test-and-learn at our Vision Care plant in Jacksonville,
Florida, and ported the learning there to more than 80 locations around
our global supply chain.
By embracing change, Johnson & Johnson’s Supply Chain innovates
and delivers to one billion people every day. Yet, there are billions
more people around the world who want and need this science and
technology. Evolving how we work with R&D, commercial partners and
our customers moves us along everyday so our children or grandchildren
can look forward to not just a healthy and meaningful life, but also a
longer one.
by Kathryn Wengel
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