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Good Business and Good Music

Both require creativity, passion, discipline, practice and teamwork, says CZMI President Ralf Kuschnereit

The following “Industry Insights” installment is an excerpt of a conversation between Scot Morris, OM’s chief optometric editor, and Ralf Kuschnereit, president and CEO of Carl Zeiss Meditec Inc.

What do you feel are the greatest threats or challenges to the eyecare profession?

I feel today that the eyecare profession remains one of the most dynamic health professions. It is a technology-driven field, dealing with one of the most precious gifts we have: the gift of sight.

Yet, with that, the profession will face the same challenge that all health professions will face — the ever-evolving healthcare environment.

Keeping up with compliance changes, reimbursement and coding changes, health system and delivery changes — all while maintaining professional competency — requires both planning and dedication.

In addition, professions like eye care will continue to see rapid growth in patients and pathology due to the issues associated with the aging eye. The profession will have to focus on efficiency and patient flow without compromising quality.

What are the greatest opportunities for the profession?

The greatest opportunities in eye care today for both the business and medical sides are in the “enabling technologies,” such as EHRs and image management systems (such as the Zeiss Forum), which allow practices to improve workflow and data management. There are many lessons to be learned from manufacturing on methods for eliminating waste in the system and maximizing quality and productivity, and eye care can learn from these.

Enabling technologies also provide opportunities to improve vision and reduce morbidity due to eye disease. The pace of innovation continues to speed up, and the pipeline of new technology to drive better patient outcomes has never been stronger.

How can the profession help itself?

I am confident that the eye-care profession can take the lead in many areas we have discussed. There is great leadership in the eyecare field — not only unparalleled clinical expertise, but also substantial business acumen. Being proactive and focusing on the potential improvements that can come from change is one way for the profession to help itself.

What does the profession need to do for industry to ensure our mutual survival?

Medical device companies are under a lot of pressure, and the costs continue to rise rapidly. The new Medical Device Tax, compliance and regulatory complexities and material costs have all contributed to an increasingly difficult business environment for manufacturers.

At the same time, downward pressure on reimbursement has also added pressure to the doctors. It is a difficult scenario, so at Zeiss, we have focused on reducing waste in our manufacturing and R&D processes in order to stay competitive. It seems that medical practices will need to do this as well.

Ralf Kuschnereit, president and CEO, Carl Zeiss Meditec Inc.

There are many lessons that can be shared between the industry and the profession, and on-going collaboration will be essential for both. Zeiss is always looking to work together with eyecare professionals to guide innovation that will benefit everyone involved.

What is the most important thing that the profession needs to know about what Carl Zeiss Meditec is focusing on through the next 12 months?

Many years ago, Zeiss set out on a path to focus the products and services we provide on systems or solutions for our customers. Our innovations include the Zeiss Cataract Suite, the Glaucoma Workplace, Forum eyecare data management software and more — all created in order to support the changing demands we saw coming. We remain even more committed to this strategy and feel that it fulfills our company vision to be the “partner of choice” for all our customers.

We have transformed our service organization and focused our product development teams on the needs of the customer first — and then challenged them to develop the technologies required to solve those needs. To survive, companies will have to understand their customers’ needs and partner with them to find the best solution.

Can you share one personal item that industry should know about you?

I love music, and I play the trombone myself. I always see a lot of similarities between running a business and making good music. Both need a lot of creativity and passion, while also needing practice and discipline. Additionally, with both successful business and good music, they are not about one person; they are about a whole team (or band) of people with the right attitude who have come together to create something meaningful.

What was your first job, and what did you learn that you apply to your current position?

After working at a university on ophthalmologic applications with different lasers, my first job in industry at Zeiss was as a scientist in the field of optics. We had been developing lenses to create smaller structures for lithography. This was a completely new field and at the boundary of physics, but we knew that if this would work, it would be a game-changing development in the lithography business. What I learned there is how important it is to have a clear vision of an exciting result. This vision will help you stay focused, work through tough problems and sometimes enable solutions that nobody thought of before. OM