At Sobi, our specialization in rare disease therapies means that our team understands firsthand the challenges people face when they are affected by serious diseases. We believe they deserve better. It’s that simple. Our mindset is to challenge current standards to deliver better care: That’s much harder. Which is why agility is so critical at Sobi.
As our Vice President of Customer Experience, Insights and Operations, I’m constantly adapting to change. Sobi prides itself on being an agile organization, moving quickly and shifting approaches as needed to make the biggest impact possible for patients, customers, our company, and each other. We cultivate teams that push boundaries and openly embrace change.
I consider openness to change a critical part of our culture and even a necessary quality for my colleagues to thrive in their careers. Agility. Flexibility. Proactivity. Prioritization. These are the essential skills today. Can you step into a role, identify how to excel at it (or better yet, improve it), and take the steps needed to make that happen
A changemaker can problem-solve in new ways because they are agile and open-minded. They are eager to spearhead new approaches—and to re-evaluate existing ones. They reimagine what a new way of working or a process might look like, versus automatically assuming a standard procedure is good enough.
Innovative thinkers never accept that something is good enough just the way it is. They challenge the status quo. My early experience in management consulting trained me to run toward change, embrace it, and look for opportunities to make our day-to-day better. I make a habit of asking, ‘Why are we doing it this way?’ I’m not afraid to say, ‘Let’s actually not do it this way anymore and, how might we do it better?’
Agility and adaptability can sometimes be seen as reactionary. It’s actually the opposite. Organizations like Sobi strive to develop a change culture because it’s critical for continuous improvement. It helps align the team to be comfortable working in the unknown and treat it as an opportunity to create change.
Sobi encourages me to embrace the unknown. It’s one of the reasons I love it here. We’re an organization on a mission to help people with serious diseases. We were one of the first to clone DNA for hemophilia treatment, and our breakthroughs with hereditary tyrosinemia type 1 (HT-1) led to the first available therapy for this previously untreatable disease. That innovation continues to drive our business forward as we expand our portfolio into new and much-needed therapies.
Challenging the status quo is hard. It requires confidence to transform how your job is done or how rare diseases are treated—or, in our case at Sobi, both—upending the order of things.
It takes a collective organizational mindset to build an agile culture and help individuals gain the confidence to identify and follow through on change opportunities.
In my experience, a successful agile culture has two necessary and complementary factors to it: empowerment and support. Empowerment gives permission to make decisions. Support gives the structure, resources, and help needed to see the change vision through to completion.
Sobi’s leadership team commits to being the ultimate status quo questioners. In my case, it was made clear early on that I could absolutely succeed in my role and that I’d get the help I needed along the way. Everyone is empowered to draw on our varied experiences to positively influence how Sobi operates. This creates the right environment for us to thrive and support one another to successfully create change.
When I assess job candidates, I look for like-minded collaborators who are resilient and adaptive. When you’ve built a network of supportive people with a record of helping you navigate change, you will benefit from their clear perspective and support.
Empowerment and support aren’t a given in every organization. Communication is key when you find those lacking from leadership or your team. Show the people around you the transformative power of the change you’re seeking to make. Be candid about your goals and the why behind them. Articulate your needs and get detailed about your action plan. With the right clarity, they’ll get on board and find the right ways to help.
To be clear, obstacles are inevitable. Things can start to feel overwhelming. In these moments, try to understand what’s worrying you or your team. Is it job security? Is it about the time commitment? In many of these situations, there are going to be periods where work needs to kick into overdrive. Find the things you or your team need to recharge while change is underway.
Never stop reminding everyone involved about your ultimate goal. That’s an incredible motivator in tough times. What are the benefits of the change? How is it going to help them? Keep in mind the reward will be worth the effort.
Working to treat rare diseases is unpredictable. How can we reach them earlier and ensure access to the right treatment? How do we make sure we’re tailoring and constantly adjusting how we reach customers and patients to meet their needs? The people we serve depend on our agility and our ability to anticipate their needs. That’s a huge responsibility. When done right, it’s the most fulfilling reward. Our focus on the patients who are waiting for us is our strength. Our agility and resilience in the face of change make us who we are: an organization moving swiftly to find new ways of making life better for the people who need it most.