What inspired you to co-found CRH Healthcare, and how does its mission, “to deliver the Perfect Patient Experience Every Time”, influence your leadership ethos?

It was a crisis—the filing for bankruptcy in order to restructure the balance sheet of the global private equity firm we worked for—that inspired my co-founder and me to step out on our own. We had been working on a thesis for almost two years for an investment in the urgent care space and decided to pursue the opportunity, essentially two people and a PowerPoint, as the operators rather than an investor. We believed strongly that urgent care would continue to emerge as the third, and newest door, for patients to enter the healthcare system as an alternative to primary care and the emergency room.

Our mission is the foundation of everything we do and is what drives me on a daily basis. We know that we aren’t perfect every time and that new services or new customer segments will emerge where “perfect” looks different. It is this pursuit of perfect experiences that sets us on our continual pursuit of improvement and innovation.

As a leader in urgent care, how does CRH Healthcare stay ahead of evolving health-care trends and adapt its services to meet changing patient needs?

Although we started as newcomers to the industry in 2012 (and one industry icon even scoffed publicly at the “two private equity executives that just bought some centers”), we have grown into industry leaders with close relationships with other leaders (even the icon that scoffed at us) that meet regularly and discuss trends, technologies, challenges, and opportunities. It is these forums—along with what we hear from our patients, all of which receive a survey text after a visit—that help both CRH and urgent care as an industry to stay relevant. The pandemic was a good example of this, as many in the urgent care industry, including CRH, pivoted quickly to meet the needs of patients who were seeking testing, diagnoses, and treatment.

Your career spans diverse industries, from being a veteran of the US Navy to a consultant at BCG, a tech entrepreneur, leading a strategic branding and purpose-oriented firm such as BCG BrightHouse, a PE operating partner, and now in the healthcare space. How have you navigated these transitions, and what have you gained from each experience in terms of professional growth?

On a nuclear submarine, junior officers are frequently moved around as the leaders of the many divisions so they understand the operations of each while also learning the big picture of operating and fighting the submarine. This provides an excellent foundation for the role of submarine captain in the future. Although I didn’t stay in the Navy past my junior officer days, I have thought of my post-Navy career in a similar way. My career choices have afforded me a variety of experiences, each of which have added to my skills toolbox and provided me with the knowledge and confidence to lead as a chief executive. I am not the expert in most situations; however, because of my multi-track approach, I can hold my own in finance, marketing, operations, and strategic discussions, for example. As I learned from the submarine captains that I worked for, it is the questions you ask as a leader that matter, not the answers that you bring to the discussion. Smart, guiding questions come from experience and knowledge.

How has your BCG skillset contributed to your personal and professional growth since graduating from the firm? Are there key lessons or advice you still carry with you?

I grew up as the son of military officer, went to a military academy, and then was in the Navy before business school. That made BCG my first real job in the civilian world and, like business school, had a significant impact on the foundation of how I thought about industries, businesses and their challenges, and my potential. Although it has been many years since I left BCG, and after only a few with the firm, I still believe it was those years that ingrained in me the useful skills of structuring my approach to problems, methodically solving them in the face of ambiguity, and communicating effectively along the way. These are basic BCG consultant skills that have contributed at every other stop in my career.

Do you have a favorite memory from your time at BCG, perhaps a case team experience, tale from the road, or story from the office?

My fellow consultants from the class of ’98 are certainly my favorite memory of BCG. We were a large class for that office, which had only 20–30 consultants at the time, and we became pretty tight. Many of them are still in the Atlanta area, and when we get together after all these years, it is always memorable.

What is a memorable piece of advice you have received that you would like to share with fellow BCG alumni?

I don’t know if you can call a Seinfeld episode “advice,” but I have referred to one of my favorite scenes many times in my career because it illustrates the important concept of following through: doing what you said you’re going to do. Seinfeld makes a car reservation in advance and when he shows up, the company does not have that specific car available. He mocks the attendant as not understanding “the most important part of the reservation: the holding.” It is good advice in business, careers, and relationships and, at least for Seinfeld, made for a very funny scene.