The launch of the new CompHealth brand campaign and promise reminded me of this quote:

"Regardless of age, regardless of position, regardless of the business we happen to be in, all of us need to understand the importance of branding. We are CEOs of our own companies: Me Inc. To be in business today, our most important job is to be head marketer for the brand called You." Tom Peters in Fast Company, 1997

At CompHealth, we work hard to demonstrate our brand through action. We have the best people to help you provide the best healthcare. As a healthcare provider, you also have a brand. We are extremely grateful to those providers who embody our brand and are the reflection of what we so proudly represent. Some of our providers work to purposefully create a brand, and others do not. Unfortunately, when we do not work to create our own brand, someone else may do it for us, and it is possible we won't like the result. I've been fortunate in my 13 years in the recruiting industry to see fantastic examples of branding in action. Skill and knowledge can't be underestimated in the medical profession, but I have seen physicians exceed all expectations, winning awards and accolades, not based on skill alone but based in part on their personal brand. Unfortunately, I've also seen the opposite, a highly skilled, extremely competent, well trained physician with a tainted reputation based upon perceptions. The only way to control our brand is to paint the picture of how we see ourselves and how we want others to see us.

"Dr. Johnson is a very caring individual, is punctual, efficient, provides excellent care to our patients, and is very patient-centered. In addition, he is very reliable and easy to work with." "Dr. Smith is a pleasant, competent physician; however we had numerous issues with nursing/hospital staff attempting to reach him when needed. Dr. Smith was not quick to respond to pagers or telephone calls. He claimed it was beeper/telephone issues."

I've changed the names here to protect identity and confidentiality but I know both healthcare practitioners, and would feel confident in having myself or my family receive care from either of them. At the core, they are both excellent physicians working to better the lives of their patients. Unfortunately, the latter has not worked to paint the picture of what he represents. His behavior, being slow to respond to calls, regardless of the reasoning, painted a picture to others that he was not reliable. In the end, though his clinical reviews were excellent, he was not asked to return. The first physician, has been requested to work numerous times at multiple facilities, he has chosen to do volunteer work in under-served areas abroad, but many of our facilities would hire him in a heartbeat! It is always a good exercise to stop and reflect upon your brand. How do your colleagues view you? Do you project a positive brand? Would you want to work with you? If you take a hard look and can honestly say yes, congratulations! If you have some questions, ask a friend, a colleague or a family member how they view you. It may be time to do some goal setting and personal PR. What is your brand? Tell us about it. How do you work to communicate your brand?