Naji Gehchan: Hello, leaders of the world. Welcome to “Spread Love in Organizations”, a podcast for purpose-driven healthcare leaders, striving to make life better around the world by leading their teams with genuine care, servant leadership, and love.
I am Naji, your host, for a special episode in partnership with Jill Donahue for her new book “A Dose of Inspiration: 100 purpose stories from Pharma Leaders”. I am joined today by Kevin Williams, Chief Medical Affairs Officer, Global Medical Excellence & Innovation, at Pfizer. Kevin joined Pfizer in January 2004 as a Director, Regional Medical & Research Specialists working in the HIV disease area. After moving into a Team Leader position in July 2005, he has served in various leadership roles during his career in the company. Kevin is also Co-Chair, Board of Directors for SAGE, the country’s leading national non-profit organization focused on advocacy and services for LGBT+ elders. Kevin received his medical degree from the UCLA School of Medicine, a Masters in Public Health and a Juris Doctorate from Harvard Law School. Kevin, It is such a pleasure to have you with me today!
Kevin Williams: Thank you. Thank you for having me.
Naji Gehchan: Can you first share with us your personal story? From being on the forefront of HIV/ AIDS patient care to now leading a large organization in pharma… What is your purpose story?
Kevin Williams: I grew up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
My father was a physician. In fact, he was the third African American physician in Baton Rouge. And I grew up. seeing him in practice, watching him, uh, take care of patients. I often went on hospital rounds with him or, uh, on house calls back in the days when physicians still made house calls and, uh, I got to see up close and personal, the practice of medicine and his work inspired me.
Um, when I became a teenager during the summers, I actually. I worked at his office for two weeks when his receptionist would go on vacation and, uh, I got to help him, uh, take care of patients. I managed the front desk, checked patients in, took them back to the exam rooms. And, uh, I was inspired by, by what he did and knew that I wanted to go into, uh, into medicine.
And so after college, I. Apply for medical school ended up moving out to Los Angeles and going to medical school at at UCLA. And I will say that part of that decision, um, was influenced by personal factors within within my life. And I think it’s an important. Point to note that I am a member of the LGBTQ plus community because that that did impact the decisions that I made in terms of where I went to medical school.
And, you know, at the time I went to college, uh, in New Orleans at Tulane University, 60 miles away from Baton Rouge, thinking that, uh, I would be able to come out, um, and Live my my life is in my as my authentic self and I found that I still remained in the closet because I was so close to Home, so I’m when I just made a decision to go to medical school I decided I need to get far away so that I can be my authentic self as well as study medicine and and so I ended up in Los Angeles and after a medical school did a residency in internal medicine and wasn’t sure at that point what my next step was.
I had a pull between going into private practice and seeing patients, but also being interested in academic medicine. So, I decided to do a fellowship in health services research. and got a master’s in public health at that time back at UCLA in Public Health and was doing research looking at access to care for HIV positive individuals and the impact of access on outcomes.
It was, you know, fascinating research. It was really important and needed at the time, but I found that during the two years of my fellowship that my clinical skills were deteriorating and, you know, I actually did end up taking an academic position, um, at UCLA. But after six months, I ended up leaving because I really felt that I needed to take care of my community.
And that’s how I got involved in, in HIV and AIDS care. Um, when I left, uh, academic medicine, it was really the height of the AIDS epidemic. So I, I finished my fellowship in, uh, 91 and began practice in the beginning of 1992. At the time we went into practice, there were very few. medications available for, uh, people living with HIV and AIDS.
At the time, it was really AZT, DDI, and DDC were the only medicines available. Um, but I knew that I had to be down in the trenches, taking care of my community. Um, and that was really what drove me into leaving academic medicine and going into private practice. And I ended up staying in private practice for eight years.
Doing HIV medicine and it was an amazing time. It was incredibly rewarding. Um, I felt that I was able to take care of members of my community to be there in a way for them that I thought was important, knowing that many of them were not going to survive this illness, but being able to be compassionate, caring, empathetic.
force in their lives. Uh, as these 2030 40 year old people were dealing with death and dying at a time when they should be really experiencing the best parts of their lives, having aspirations and doing new things and they’re dealing with issues of death and dying. So it was a very very rewarding time to, um, work with those individuals to have very intense relationships with patients.
And, you know, that things changed and In HIV, we got combination therapy, different classes of medications, and patients were doing better. And my practice was beginning to evolve. It was becoming less HIV, more general internal medicine, and I thought maybe There was an opportunity now for me to do something different because I thought I had skills and capabilities that were not being fully utilized in the practice of medicine, leadership skills, strategic thinking, uh, that I wanted to put into effect.
And initially I had the idea of getting involved in health care policy and I decided that I would go to law school with the idea being that. Having a background in medical practice and HIV, uh, mass and public health, uh, and a law degree would paint an interesting package for somebody who wanted to get involved in health care policy.
Um, so I ended up moving from Los Angeles to Boston, uh, went to Harvard for law school. And after I graduated. Decided that that actually was not the career path that I wanted to take and was really at a crossroads because now I had to figure out what that next move was. And I actually wasn’t sure what it was.
I ended up moving down to New York and started looking for opportunities. And. Um, honestly, was not looking to join the pharmaceutical industry when this opportunity, uh, arose at Pfizer. Um, uh, you know, for for those of us who went to medical school or pharmacy school, uh, it will sound familiar when I say that they drill into your head that the pharmaceutical industry is the dark side, the evil empire.
And So honestly, I had that perception of industry when this opportunity presented itself to me at Pfizer, and I was not really looking to join industry, but this opportunity was, uh, too good for me to pass up. It was an opportunity to get back into working in HIV and AIDS, which is an area that I was passionate about as a field based medical individual, MSL.
And so I decided to take a chance. And I joined Pfizer, uh, in January of 2004 and never looked back. I mean, 20 years later, still at the company, um, had an amazing career during my, my time. I’m at Pfizer, you shared some of. uh, the opportunities that I’ve had and my ability to move into different roles, different leadership roles to have different experiences in different therapeutic areas and develop both personally and professionally.
So it has really just been an amazing journey.
Naji Gehchan: Well, thank you so much, Kevin, for sharing this powerful and inspiring journey of yours. I certainly relate to Several parts of it. I want to start with with one specifically, uh, you said you were you worked in the trenches, right? You help people the moment they needed it most.
Um, and obviously, I’ve had this as I shared briefly with you before, uh, in moment and tension and war. And then now you’re doing it in a different way and impacting people in different ways. So I’m sure you two talk with a lot of scientists, physicians who are thinking about this transition. What is your number one advice of how they should think about their impact moving from really immediate care for patient to the pharma industry?
Kevin Williams: The impact that you have is, is different in, uh, it’s at a different level, um, in private practice. The impact that I had was very immediate and it was very individual. Um, as I saw patients. You know, evolve, improve or perhaps not improve. But there was that kind of one on one immediate interaction relationship and immediate feedback.
Uh, I think in the pharmaceutical industry, it’s a little bit different. Uh, the impact is not as immediate, but it can happen on such a larger scale because you’re bringing medicines Uh, to patients that, you know, have these medical needs and you that are making a difference in their lives, and you’re doing it on a much larger scale than than you’re able to do when you’re in private practice.
So it’s a different type of impact, but it’s, uh, equally as powerful. And I think, you know, they, uh. Um, I’ve often been asked which is which is better. And I would say that they’re different there. You know, it’s not that one is better than the other. The impacts are so different. And the experience of what you’re able to deliver is so different when you’re one on one versus when you are working in a large company.
Um, and You know, there are other aspects of working in a large company that I think, um, uh, are also, uh, critical, at least for me, they were, uh, because it’s not just the impact that I have on patients. But one of the things that, you know, that I, that I talked about in terms of skills and capabilities that I felt that I had that were not being fully utilized in medical practice was that I love.
to teach, and I love to mentor people. And I didn’t really have that opportunity as much in medical practice, uh, as I did when I moved into the pharmaceutical industry, the opportunity to lead large teams and groups and organizations to help colleagues develop and advance in their career paths. To help watch them grow in their careers is very rewarding.
And so in addition to the impact that I could have on patients, there’s also the impact that I could have on my colleagues, uh, and which. You know, just add so much more to the experience.
Naji Gehchan: So talking about this specifically, the leadership impact and your leadership impacts you’re having on your teams, you’re a purpose driven leader, I believe.
I’m intrigued how you drive this purpose and making sure that your team on a daily basis, as we all can be so taken into our operational work and forgetting this larger picture of why we do what we do. I’m interested to know how you drive this with your teams at a large scale
Kevin Williams: now. We always keep the patient front and center of everything that we do.
We often talk about The patient, uh, talk about patient care, talk about the importance of the work that we do to bring medicines, uh, to address unmet medical needs. Uh, so ensuring that you’re always keeping the patient front and center and all that you do, uh, always talking about the importance of that is really critical, I think, to maintaining your purpose and to keeping it as your North Star.
You said something in
Naji Gehchan: the beginning. I would love to go back to you talked about authentic self. And those days, unfortunately, we’re seeing more acts of hate. If I don’t think we should call them non love, but really acts of hate towards different communities and a lot of tensions instead of care and love as we both believe in leadership.
Um, and it’s. We had this discussion yesterday, even with my partner and we’re saying, yeah, well, do people keep these things at check at the door before they come to work? How should we deal with it as leaders? So I’m interested to understand from your lens, how, how are you doing this? How are you ensuring your people come and can be at their best and can really be who they are?
Kevin Williams: I think the best way to do that is to role model the behavior. Um, if you bring your authentic self, um, uh, show your vulnerability, be exposed, uh, it encourages others to do so. If you create an environment where people feel comfortable being themselves, then they will excel and do their best work. Uh, and so the way that I do that is by Being my authentic self.
I’m, I’m very open about, uh, being a, a gay man. Uh, I, I think it’s important, uh, uh, to model that behavior and that openness so that others, uh, who May feel less secure or less comfortable being open about whatever it is that, you know, that, that, that they’re not letting others see, you will feel that they’re in a safe space where they can be more open because I think the more you’re able to do that, the more you’re going to enjoy what you’re doing, the, the, and the more you enjoy what you’re doing, the better you’ll be at it.
Naji Gehchan: I’m going to move now and give you a word. And I’d love a reaction from you. So the first, the first word is leadership.
Kevin Williams: Leadership is about, well, I’ll tell you an interesting, this is my, this is how I think about leadership. Um, I was watching the, uh, NFL, the National Football League. Playoffs. This is probably 10 years ago. And before the game started, you know, they’re doing an interview and they’re interviewing, uh, Shannon Sharp, his former tight end for the Denver Broncos.
And they asked him. What do you look for in a coach? And I thought his response was so spot on that I used it all the time when I talked to people about leadership, because what he said is, you know what I need from a coach is someone to put me in a position to succeed. And then let me do my job. And so when I think about leadership, you know, my job as a leader is to make sure that my people have the tools, the resources, the feedback, the coaching, the support that they need to be successful, and then trust that they know what they’re doing and empower them to do their jobs.
What about patient centricity?
Patient centricity is the north star of all that we do. It is the hallmark of being in a medical role in the pharmaceutical industry. Uh, it is the hallmark of being in any role in the pharmaceutical industry. Uh, It is critical to all that we do that the patient is the reason that we do what we do, and patient centricity means not just thinking about the patient, but including the voice of the patient.
One of the things that you mentioned is that I’m co chair of the board of SAGE, which is a non profit. Uh, LGBTQ plus elder organization focused on advocacy and services for LGBTQ plus elders. And one of the things that we say, uh, is nothing about us without us. And, you know, it’s a, it’s a phrase that, that many will use, uh, but I think it’s so important that when we think about patient centricity, that we include the voice of the patient in all that we do and understand that it.
You know, it is not our responsibility to speak for the patient. It’s our responsibility to listen to the patient and make sure that The medicines that we’re developing are meeting their needs, not the needs that we think they have.
Naji Gehchan: That’s so powerful. Nothing about us without us. And I love how you said our responsibility is to listen to patients and bring their voice to what we’re doing daily. The third one is health equity.
Kevin Williams: Health equity. Is understanding that
you can develop the best medicine in the world to treat a specific condition, but if you are not taking into account the other factors that influence whether or not that medicine makes it to a patient, then, uh, you know, you’ve, you’ve failed at your responsibility. People come to the table with different levels of understanding.
Access education background, socioeconomic conditions, all of those things influence their ability to access the health care system to access medicines to understand the, uh, the dynamics, the importance of, uh, taking medicines, uh, all of these things contribute to the health of. The individual patient and unless you are able to understand all of the different influences and address them, you know, you may very well be feeling that patient in front of you because, you know, either they don’t understand, uh, what you’re asking them to do, um, they don’t have access.
They don’t know the questions to ask. Um, and I’ll give you An example of, um, a situation I had with a, uh, with a, with a patient. Um, and it was a It was a 70 year old black male that came in to see me and he had, um, he was, he was HIV positive and I treated him, uh, with medication at the time, Virocept, a protease inhibitor.
And the way that you take Virocept is it’s three pills, um, and it’s taken three times a day. So a total of nine pills a day. I told him, uh, And when I prescribed the medications, three pills, three times a day, I found when he came back in three months later, he had been taking one pill three times a day.
And so I asked him about that. He goes, well, you said three pills, three times a day, which he interpreted as one pill, three different times and three different times. Uh, and it occurred to me that. You know, just because I understand something doesn’t mean that the patient understands and it’s important to check for that understanding health literacy, big part of health equity, right?
So that’s and that’s just one example. And, you know, the consequence of that misunderstanding could be fatal because he could develop resistance. To the virus can develop resistance to that produce inhibitor because, uh, he was having an adequate blood levels of that medicine. So, uh, it’s important, uh, to be sure that you are clear.
Uh, you understand all the components of what’s going on in the patient’s life to ensure that you’re able to deliver the best care possible. What a great
Naji Gehchan: example. I’m sure if I want to just double click on that. How are you translating this today as an executive in the pharma world? Like how I also constantly thinking about this, obviously.
Uh, and I’d love your thoughts, how you translate health equity and our responsibility at healthcare leaders. Uh, in the pharma industry to ensure that we’re making real moves to improve that.
Kevin Williams: I mean, I think it’s important that, um, that that be part of what we do as pharmaceutical leaders, that it’s not just about bringing medicines to market that address medical needs, but that we’re also funding initiatives and efforts that address some of the The issues around health equity, whether that be around access or whether it be around health literacy, work that you do with plain language summaries to make sure that patients have access to information and in a way, uh, that they can understand it and digest it.
So we can’t just be about bringing the medicine to market. We have to think about all those other influences on. getting access to that medicine and where we feel we can make an impact and make a difference. We also need to, to be involved and, you know, to resource those areas.
The last
Naji Gehchan: word is spread love and
Kevin Williams: organizations.
I think it is, um, one of the things that, uh, I have always tried to do in, uh, in standing up a team or a group is to create an environment where people feel nurtured and cared for. Um, and, you know, that means creating an open, transparent. Environment where people can come to you. I mean, again, I talked about being their authentic selves and so modeling that behavior I think is important.
I think it’s also, uh, listening more than you speak. Um, it is asking people, you know, how they feel, ensuring that they feel cared for and listened to, um, and creating an environment where they feel they can do their best work.
Naji Gehchan: Any final word of wisdom for healthcare leaders around
Kevin Williams: the world?
I think you have to, um, well, I actually, there are a couple of things I would say. One, uh, uh, I think you have to be willing to step outside your comfort zone. Because only when you step outside your comfort zone, do you grow and learn. If you just keep doing what you already know how to do, you’ll never grow.
Uh, so it’s important to step outside your comfort zone, no matter how scary it is. I feel with every opportunity that I’ve taken on that was new and challenging. Uh, it was, it was terrifying, but I was a better leader. Because I took on that opportunity and maybe the corollary to that is I would say, so it’s important to believe in yourself and to believe in your ability and do your best.
I will tell you one final story that I love that my father told me. When, um, I was growing up, uh, and it’s a, it’s, it’s, it’s, it’s kind of about believing in yourself. Uh, when, when my father was in medical school, he went to Howard, uh, uh, medical school, he said he had a classmate and the classmate, uh, said to him one time, he said, uh, Al, his name was Alvin, he said, Al, Um, you know, medical school is so hard and I don’t know how I’m going to make it.
Um, and when I start to feel that way, I go down the hall where they have all the pictures of the previous graduating classes. And I look at all of those photos and I say to myself, you know, I’m going to be fine. I know I’m going to make it through medical school because there’s got to be somebody up there who’s dumber than me.
So you got to believe in yourself.
Naji Gehchan: I love it. Well, thank you so much, Kevin, for being with me today and this great chat.
Kevin Williams: Thank you so much. I appreciate
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