Epic was born from a humbling lesson borne by its CEO, Judy Faulkner. Yet this experience left an indelible mark on the company and its leader.
Here are Ms. Faulkner's best pieces of advice on leadership, as reported by Becker's:
- When Epic delivered its first billing system, it charged $3,000 — much less than it cost the EHR vendor to create. But the loss was a lesson learned for the company and one Ms. Faulkner has remembered "to this day." She said the loss made her realize that "when they describe the work needed to you, they are often missing a lot and inadvertently making the work seem much simpler than it really is."
- Ms. Faulkner tells her 14,500 employees "congratulations" when they do a good job. She saves "thank yous" for people who give her "a ride or a book or a cookie." She said congratulations' shows the employee's work and their success, and thank you implies that "it's my project and you did it for me."
- At a five-hour introductory meeting with new staffers, the CEO asks them: "Why do you come to work? She then makes them rank these six reasons in order of importance.
- Ms. Faulkner said the most important thing for software from a health system's point of view is accuracy. From the developer side, the most critical thing is that the development is generalized and not hard-coded for a single time or place.