In early October, President and Founder of MDRG, Sondra Brown, attended the Society for Health Care Strategy & Market Development (SHSMD) Connections 2025, a conference for healthcare strategy professionals in marketing, communications, planning, and business development.
This year, Sondra attended the special Monday Executive Summit. This event brought together CEOs and CMOs for focused conversations about the future of healthcare leadership and strategy. Here’s what inspired her:
There was one big standout theme that kept surfacing throughout the day: Trust.
Lisa Henry from the American Health Association (AHA) cited their favorability study and the Edelman Trust Barometer, both of which point to a decline in trust across all institutions, including hospitals and health systems. While healthcare still ranks more trusted than insurance and government, the gap is narrowing—with big implications.
Dr. Valerie Montgomery Rice delivered a powerful keynote that brought it all home: “Trust is your most valuable currency.” Her reminder that transparency equals credibility couldn’t come at a better time. In a system that’s often confusing and difficult to navigate, healthcare organizations must do everything they can to increase clarity and build trust.
This is aligned with what we’ve been thinking and discussing at MDRG. We recently carried out our own research on how declining institutional trust is changing patient relationships. We spoke with eleven industry leaders who echoed the sentiments I heard at SHSMD—where trust is eroding, why it’s happening, and how healthcare leaders can respond. (See the full report here.)
One of my favorite sessions explored what CEOs need to succeed in today's environment.
The discussion centered on relationship building, emotional intelligence, and a concept I absolutely loved: being "Humbitious"—humble, hungry (ambitious), and competent. This reminded me of the "Get it, Capable of it, Want it" framework from the book Traction.
What struck me most was the emphasis on humility. It's so often overlooked in leadership frameworks, yet it's critical for ensuring all voices are heard, not just the loudest one in the room.
As we move toward more collaborative workplaces where the best ideas come from collective conversations, having leaders who are willing to listen and get in the trenches to understand their team's day-to-day realities is vital for overall success.
As I reflect on my own career, working for CEOs and being a CEO, the most effective leaders are those who give voice to everyone in the room, who approach every encounter with a team member as a learning opportunity—for the CEO.
We need more leaders who are Humbitious. This is a leadership style that will carry CEOs into the future with teams of Gen Z and younger Millennials. The old-style authoritarian leadership style won’t work with these employees. They will demand more of leaders, and it is up to us leaders to level up.
Another session, “Unifying Strategy, Brand and Culture,” emphasized the connection between internal organizational culture, brand alignment, and business strategy.
Effective leadership begins with listening and empathy. I heard this reflected in several of the sessions to some degree. Strong institutions start with strong leadership, requiring leaders who:
This mindset of listening and collaboration is something we practice at MDRG every day, and it was affirming to hear it echoed in a room full of healthcare leaders.
My conversations with other SHSMD 2025 attendees reinforced the importance of humility, transparency, and authenticity as the foundation for progress in healthcare. When healthcare leaders listen first and build trust from the inside out, they strengthen every relationship—with their teams and their patients alike.
We can better serve our clients when we understand their business goals, both internally and externally. The Executive Summit sessions were a great resource to help guide our work with an eye for what’s shaping healthcare from the ground up.