Listening Leads to Innovation

Some of the greatest life-improving and potentially life-saving innovations are the result of simple, good, old fashioned listening. That's right. I participated in a roundtable on Friday hosted by the US Chamber of Commerce Business Civic Leadership Center (BCLC) which also had representatives from BlueCross BlueShield, Campbell Soup Company, HPCareer.Net, Hyundai, INOVA Health System, Merck, Shire, Standing PR, Trust for America's Health, and UnitedHealth Group Incorporated.

We discussed innovations in health and wellness, and one of the common themes I took away with me is that really listening to those you are trying to serve can lead to remarkable breakthroughs. 

Take, for example, GSK's new smart phone app called MyAsthma. This little doodad can help 235 million people around the world better manage their asthma. The app easily connects individuals to content tailored just for them. The make-it-easy, make-it-personal-approach is of course backed by research, but the true genesis of the app is from insights gathered directly from patients themselves. GSK'ers listened to the patient.

GSK's new app is just one of many examples of innovation in health and wellness featured in the new BCLC report: "The Role of Business in Health and Wellness Innovation." I invite you to check it out, and make sure to scroll to page 18 to read more about GSK's innovative MyAsthma app in an article by Dr. Jacqueline Parkin, GSK's Vice President of Immuno-Inflammation!