Country Selector: North America
October is Global Diversity Awareness Month. It’s a reminder that’s especially important today to recognize the diverse minds and beliefs held by all cultures around the world. At Ascom, we know our innovation and diversity are linked. Meet some of our team members who are helping create this better future.
Our Diversity Inspires Innovation – In Healthcare and Beyond
October is Global Diversity Awareness Month. It’s a reminder that’s especially important today to recognize the diverse minds and beliefs held by all cultures around the world. At Ascom, we know our innovation and diversity are linked, and we’ve purposefully created a global framework to share, learn, and grow from each other across our 18 regions. From research and development to sales and service, finding new and better ways to do things is part of our DNA. It's helping us transition from a product to a solution company driving enhanced communications workflows in healthcare and beyond. When you think about it, nearly every industry aspires to meet the quadruple aim of healthcare – higher quality, lower costs, and greater user satisfaction for all users. That’s our goal too. Meet some of our team members who are helping create this better future.
Konstantinos Nikolopoulos - a.i. Head of Rest of World
Q. Describe your role at Ascom
A. I am currently the a.i. Head of Rest of World (RoW) – the most diverse, geographically broad and complex region of Ascom. In my role I get to work with colleagues across seven distinct markets, and together we support our customers and partners in over 40 different countries. This has been the most remote and widespread team that I have ever had the privilege to lead and a truly unique experience doing so in the middle of a pandemic.
Q. Tell us why you like being part of a global organization and what you’ve gained through the experience of working with a diverse team
A. Having lived and worked in multiple countries across the world, from Europe and Middle East to Asia and the US, I have experienced firsthand the opportunities global organizations – like Ascom – can provide for employees to broaden their perspectives and interact closely with different cultures and mindsets. I have also seen great examples of teams that bring together truly diverse groups of people, and this is consistently reflected in their success against strategic and operational challenges. I personally really enjoy always learning new business practices and techniques as they apply in different parts of the world as well as being exposed and sometimes challenged by different viewpoints.
Q. What drew you to healthcare and technology?
A. There are very few industries where you can touch the lives of many—and make a difference—the way you can in healthcare. This is particularly true when we could use technology to reduce inefficiencies and help improve outcomes across entire communities, regions, or even countries. This combination of high impact and wide reach can be truly rewarding. This is why I was attracted to the industry very early on in my career.
Q. What advice or lesson would you share with others about the value of diversity?
A. The benefits of international diversity apply across multiple dimensions – from personal to professional to organizational. Companies that can enable and build teams combining the best functional expertise from around the world with deep, local knowledge of the markets they operate in, will be the ones most likely to succeed and overcome challenges. For individuals, my advice is to be open to new views and ideas, appreciate cultural differences, and seize any opportunities to be exposed to people from different countries and backgrounds. You might reevaluate the way you see the world or enjoy a fresh perspective you may have been missing.
Natasia McLean - Sr. Data and Analytics Manager, North America
Q. Describe your role at Ascom
A. As the Sr. Data and Analytics Manager in North America I am responsible for data and analytics for the North American region. I provide reports, dashboards, and assist in process improvement and implementation. Being part of this global team allows me to continually meet new people, learn about different cultures, and expand my understanding of other people. This allows me to be more empathetic, gain more insights into how people make decisions, and become a better team player.
Q. Tell us why you like being part of a global organization and what you’ve gained through the experience of working with a diverse team
A. I've always had a passion for technology. Graduate school ignited my passion to combine technology and healthcare. While in graduate school I completed research on a neuro-memory chip to investigate neurological disorders, such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. This research ignited my passion for technology and how it could be beneficial in healthcare. This research inspired me to continue in the healthcare field and venture into clinical research and medical technology. I felt my passion for technology and healthcare could have a significant influence on improving and contributing to cutting edge technology in healthcare.
Q. What drew you to healthcare and technology?
A. My grandmother being misdiagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease and seeing the minimal treatment for her actual condition drew me to healthcare technology. Seeing how healthcare technology can ease everyday living for those suffering neurological disorders and even saving lives drew me to this industry.
Q. What advice or lesson would you share with others about the value of diversity?
A. A diverse environment has multiple benefits for personal and career development. Diversity in the workplace adds value to an organization by allowing you to approach your job from different perspectives. These different perspectives provide various views and strategies to achieve organizational goals and missions.
Mwila Kapema - Global Segment Marketing Manager
Q. Describe your role at Ascom
A. I started at Ascom about 8 years ago now as a product marketer. At the time, my role focused on being the go-between the marketing communications and product management function to bring the benefits of the technical product specifications out in a way that resonated with our customers. I had responsibility for our mobile products devices, including pagers, feature phones, and intrinsically-safe handsets. I joined Ascom just as we prepared to launch the world’s first smartphone, purpose-built for clinicians. Today my role is a little bit different because we’ve changed how we’re going to do our marketing to focus on individual segments. I own the acute segment globally, so my product portfolio now spans every product that we have from mobile devices to software to solutions. This focus means we’re messaging the entire solution from the button that the patient presses in the bed to the software that decides what to do with that button push, to the device the clinician is holding when she receives that alert.
Q. Tell us why you like being part of a global organization and what you’ve gained through the experience of working with a diverse team
A. I’m never bored. Colleagues all over the world come from to me with all sorts of different challenges and understanding the nuances between the different regions keeps the job exciting - being able to see how one region is dealing with a particular problem and being the one who brings them together gives me a sense of fulfillment. I’m able to travel to different places and meet customers around the world. I’m thankful to have been able to see our products in use and see how we make a difference. I feel like I’m doing something truly greater than myself.
Q. What drew you to healthcare and technology?
A. I’ve always been into technology. I was one of those guys growing up who loved gadgets, so to be able to work with tech everyday and to be the one who articulates how that technology truly makes a difference or solves a problem for the customer is the fun in it. I landed in healthcare through a series of coincidents, but I love where I landed.
Q. What advice or lesson would you share with others about the value of diversity?
A. Diversity for me is enriching. It’s about how much learning you can do from your peers by forgetting about all the different boundaries, and all the differences between people. Everybody has a different viewpoint and being able to see and share those viewpoints is the most enriching thing I can imagine. I learn so much from my colleagues and from the exposure to different cultures in working for a global organization.
Jan Rose - Head of Ascom Enterprise West, North America
Q. Describe your role at Ascom
A. I have the privilege to lead Ascom’s Enterprise West sales team in North America. While Ascom has a legacy in the healthcare industry, fields like retail, hospitality, and manufacturing are facing the same type of challenges. For example, they’re dealing with staffing shortages and need to do more with less. Our technology solutions help them maximize their output. One of the key pillars I bring to the table is a strong relationship with our partner Cisco to drive our expansion into these markets in North America. We’re building the success we’ve had globally and bringing it here.
Q. Tell us why you like being part of a global organization and what you’ve gained through the experience of working with a diverse team
A. I enjoy the challenge of leveraging the work we’ve done at Ascom with multinationals through their headquarters base and expand it at the local level in North America to build a larger, stronger ecosystem that makes our solution truly beyond borders.
Q. What drew you to healthcare and technology?
A. I’ve built large complex network solutions for stores, restaurants, and most recently healthcare facilities. Once you lay the network, the routing switch, the communications, the WiFi, etc. the question becomes, “What do you do with it? How do we leverage the investment to get the right intelligence to better serve our customers?” That’s where Ascom comes in with the applications to help organizations measure the intangible nature of software running in the cloud. The end result is more value for businesses and their end users. Whether it’s using predictive analytics or the right algorithms to affect business outcomes, that’s what drove me to Ascom.
Q. What advice or lesson would you share with others about the value of diversity?
A. Embrace it. You’re never going to grow unless you reach out and get uncomfortable. My family is multicultural, and I am enriched by the Spanish my grandchild speaks to me. I celebrate the blending of different cultures because family is not just about DNA. It’s about who you embrace, who impacts your life, and who do you impact. The culture adds flavor. It adds spice and sweetness, so savor it. And remember, there are things you cannot get by staying in your bubble, so get uncomfortable and get out there.