Becker's Speaker Series: 4 questions with Thorek Memorial Hospital Chief Innovation and Strategy Officer, John Squeo

John Squeo serves as chief innovation and strategy officer for Thorek Memorial Hospital in Chicago.

On Friday, Sepember 22, Mr. Squeo will speak on a panel at Becker's Hospital Review 3rd Annual Health IT + Revenue Cycle Conference. As part of an ongoing series, Becker's is talking to healthcare leaders who plan to speak at the conference, which will take place September 21 through September 23 in Chicago.

To learn more about the conference and Mr. Squeo's session, click here.

Question: Looking at your IT budget, what is one item or expense that has surprised you in terms of ROI? How so?Squeo John headshot

John Squeo: On-premises virtualization. My two year server refresh cost cycle has been reduced by a factor greater than 10.

Q: Finding top tech talent is always a challenge. Say a CIO called you up today to ask for an interview question that would distinguish the best candidates from the mid- to low-performers. What question do you suggest he or she ask?

JS: Tell me how to determine if a project or initiative has achieved success?

Q: We spend a lot of timing talking about the exciting innovation modernizing healthcare. It's also helpful to acknowledge what we've let go of. What is one form of technology, one process or one idea that once seemed routine to you but is now endangered, if not extinct? What existed in your organization two to five years ago but not anymore?

JS: Data security. Attack vectors employed by data thieves and miscreants have multiplied. There are so many ways that data can be accessed, captured and extracted that its nearly untenable to protect all leakage points. We have moved from a more symmetrical data leakage pathway to much more asymmetrical data leakage pathways.

Q: Tell us about the last time you were truly, wildly amazed by technology. What did you see?

JS: I was browsing an aisle in my local Home Depot searching for a replacement part for a bi-fold door. I couldn't find it anywhere, nor could a store employee. In frustration, I Googled my best description on my iPhone and the first link was for Home Depot. I tapped on the link and it presented the exact photo of the part. I was about to buy it online but noticed that it stated "available in home store." It showed the aisle and bin number. In shock, I looked up and saw I was in the referenced aisle and next to the bin number. I started digging behind items located in that specific bin and found the exact part the employees and I had searched for. Well done Home Depot, customer for life and now I Google for the aisle and bin the moment I step through the door.

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