I recently sat down with one of our lead project managers, Janelle McDonald. I enjoyed hearing more about her position at Perficient and the role Perficient plays in creating a more equitable healthcare industry, and I’m sure you will too.
Describe your role. How do you make a difference for our clients, colleagues, communities, and teams? What does a typical day or project look like?
Janelle enjoys traveling in her personal time.
As a Project Manager, I serve as a “translator” between business and technical resources to develop innovative healthcare solutions. A typical day starts with a Scrum call and usually ends with a tracking meeting for any roadblockers. In between there are lots of meetings and writing for user stories, requirements, and updates to Confluence. I find Jira/Confluence to be a great communication tool between our team and the client. Keeping up with the changes in healthcare technology is critical to making a positive impact for clients. For me, product management is knowing your market innovations and government mandates. As artificial intelligence invades healthcare systems, it is important to know the possibilities and recognize the client product pitfalls.
What are the things you value about working: 1) In your role? 2) On your team? 3) At this company?
In My Role: With over 25 years of healthcare IT experience, it is invigorating to see the rapid changes for the industry. Healthcare IT remained stagnant during the early 2000s; now it is evolving every day.
On My Team: The team’s can-do attitude during critical product delivery phases. Management is always available to remove roadblocks and scope changes.
At This Company: The vast array of resources and learning opportunities available to all.
SEE MORE: Work-Life Balance at Perficient
What made you decide to work for Perficient? What makes you stay and want to do your best work at Perficient?
I chose to work at Perficient because of their industry reputation. I stay because I am enjoying my work and not being targeted as a scapegoat when a project is difficult.
Healthcare and life sciences organizations are increasingly focused on equity. The digital transformations we deliver can either support greater equity or – the opposite – exacerbate inequities. How are you seeing diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) addressed in your work and in the industry? And how are you approaching your work through an equity lens?
Janelle’s dream home located in Scotland.
DE&I is critical to healthcare product work; specifically, member preferences. To support greater equity, it is necessary to gather more than claims and prior authorization data. Demographic data is insufficient to identify individuals experiencing health roadblocks. Engaging with the client to identify their pain points requires daily conversations and a deep understanding of the members interaction points. For example, is an increase in call center activity related to a change in payment policy? How can I assist that client to minimize the negative impact? Is the change mandatory or specific to the client? Another example is industry leaders are removing medical services from the prior authorization list. By using generative AI to identify at risk members the insurance companies are reach out to the members with preventative services.
In the work you deliver for healthcare and life sciences clients, how does your industry experience enable you to better-support client/industry culture?
My industry tenure of 25+ years, provides a client with a wide range of experience in digital systems, mandates, and innovation. Additionally, I am a member of several industry groups that work on technology advancements such as Medicaid Technical Advisory Group, Guidehouse, and Linkedin.
(Optional) What else would you like people to know about working at Perficient? Any final thoughts?
I love the diversity at Perficient. On a daily basis, I work with people from three continents and those who speak multiple languages. Traveling the world is my lifetime goal. I have lived in Turkey for three years, spent a month traveling Scotland, and visit Mexico regularly.
Healthcare Leaders Turn to Us
Our healthcare experts understand the unique challenges facing the industry. The 10 largest health systems and 10 largest health insurers in the U.S. have counted on us to support their end-to-end digital success. Modern Healthcare has also recognized us as the fifth-largest healthcare IT consulting firm.
We bring pragmatic, strategically-grounded know-how to our clients’ initiatives. And our work gets attention – not only by industry groups that recognize and award our work but also by top technology partners that know our teams will reliably deliver complex, game-changing implementations. Most importantly, our clients demonstrate their trust in us by partnering with us again and again. We are incredibly proud of our 90% repeat business rate because it represents the trust and collaborative culture that we work so hard to build every day within our teams and with every client.
With more than 20 years of experience in the healthcare industry, Perficient is a trusted, end-to-end, global digital consultancy.
SEE MORE PEOPLE OF PERFICIENT
It’s no secret our success is because of our people. No matter the technology or time zone, our colleagues are committed to delivering innovative, end-to-end digital solutions for the world’s biggest brands, and we bring a collaborative spirit to every interaction. We’re always seeking the best and brightest to work with us. Join our team and experience a culture that challenges, champions, and celebrates our people.
Learn more about what it’s like to work at Perficient at our Careers page. See open jobs or join our talent community for career tips, job openings, company updates, and more!
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