This Month’s Philosopher: Charlie Robinson, WG'15
To learn more about Charlie, click here.
LIFE LESSONS
If I knew then what I know now, I would have...
…started my career with a more deliberate focus on mission, pursuing roles that I felt were at the core of what I wanted to accomplish. I know that’s an incredibly unremarkable notion, so let me attempt to add some context in an effort to make this Philosopher’s Corner worth your time.
A few months ago, I started a new role leading community health and safety net initiatives at L.A. Care, the nation’s largest publicly operated health plan serving 2.7 million beneficiaries in Los Angeles County, including the majority of the county’s 70,000 unhoused individuals. Something about being here felt wonderful and different compared to some of my previous roles. It wasn’t because this is a public agency compared to the private organizations I’ve worked for. It wasn’t because it’s large and unwieldy compared to the small, nimble start-ups I’ve helped establish and lead, or because there’s no equity to be had. Though all these things are true, what I was feeling was something harder to define.
Like many of you, I’d always wanted to spend my energy and time working to make the world better for the most vulnerable among us. When I started my career, I charted a path that tangentially touched the core of what I wanted to be doing — roles at healthcare organizations with a notional mission of helping people, but none particularly aligned with my own personal goals. The knowledge, insights, and relationships I gained from the Wharton HCM program were fundamental to my journey, but it wasn’t until I joined the military and spent a year in Afghanistan that I got a taste of what it felt like to work in a role that fully aligned with my heart and my mind. I’d never tried harder, been happier, or achieved more.
It took me longer than I would’ve liked to start learning this lesson, and it’s clear that what I’m feeling in my current role is that sweet alignment between what I want to be doing every day and what I actually do. My hope is that, as we all continue to learn this lesson in different ways and contexts, we’re able find that sweet alignment at every turn.
If I knew then what I know now, I would NOT have...
…underestimated the challenge of navigating the “mission-versus-margin” tension that exists within value-based care organizations. As I’m writing this, I can hear the echo of the many talented and well-meaning leaders and peers who have articulated: “there is no mission without margin.” This is undoubtedly true. But the statement belies a reality that underpins the real issue as I’ve seen it unfold. The real tension doesn’t come from the question of whether the business generates any margin. The challenge often stems from how much margin key stakeholders in the business ecosystem demand.
I wish I could share some hard-earned knowledge with you that could act as an easy blueprint for solving this problem. I’d love to tell you how to lower the barriers to deploying innovative, effective solutions to those who need them most. Unfortunately, I can’t. Instead, the lesson I’ve learned is that this problem manifests differently with every solution, every target population, and every organization. For those of you who are focused on developing healthcare solutions to serve communities in need, I urge you not to underestimate this challenge. But I also urge you to reach out to peers and mentors for support and take on this challenge with spirit and focus.
FAVORITE QUOTES
- “If there's a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it.” ~Toni Morrison
- “We may not have chosen the time. But the time has chosen us.” ~John Lewis
- “There are two ways to live. You can live as if nothing is a miracle. Or you can live as if everything is a miracle.” ~Albert Einstein
RECOMMENDED READING
- Parable of the Sower (Fiction, Octavia Butler)
- Overstory (Fiction, Richard Powers)
- Evicted (Nonfiction, Matthew Desmond)
- Barbarian Days (Nonfiction, William Finnegan)
- L.A. Affairs: I’m queer. I’m a military veteran. So where do I belong? (Los Angeles Times, Charlie Robinson)
Contact Charlie at: [email protected]