‘Why Am I Not Seeing More Women In The Hiring Mix?’ MedExec Women Founder Says It’s Time For Change
Executive Summary
Maria Shepherd, co-founder of MedExec Women, a nonprofit that seeks to empower executive leaders in medtech, is preparing to host the group’s fifth annual conference in Boston, which is expected to draw 200 attendees. Shepherd spent more than two decades in the medical device industry before starting consulting firm Medi-Vantage. She talks to Medtech Insight about her own career path, how the industry is changing, and the importance of “grooming” the next generation of young medtech leaders.
Friday, March 8 is International Women’s Day. To celebrate the day and Women’s History Month, Medtech Insight spoke with female leaders in medtech, regulatory and health care delivery about their experiences as women, women-specific industry challenges including research and innovation needs, and how women in leadership roles today are inspiring and empowering rising generations.
On 2 April, more than 200 medtech leaders, mostly women, are expected to attend the annual MedExec Women conference to network, hear about trends and strategies for success, and soak up leadership skills from speakers like Ashley McEvoy, former head of medtech at Johnson & Johnson (Pty) Ltd.
This year will mark the fifth annual gathering, a milestone that Maria Shepherd, who co-founded the organization in 2019 with the late Laurie Halloran, is proud of.
“It's been a huge success,” Maria Shepherd told Medtech Insight. Shepherd, a medtech veteran who is president of consulting group Medi-Vantage, said as more women attend the annual conference, the network of women in the executive ranks continues to grow – and with it the support women can give each other to “pull each other up” in the executive ranks of medtech.
One of the highlights of this year’s event will be an interview with McEvoy, who stepped down as J&J’s medtech leader last year after nearly three decades with the company.
McEvoy will speak about her personal successful journey in medtech, including the importance of having a growth mindset, staying curious, asking questions, and remaining open to continuously learning, according to Shepherd. She believes that while women have come a long way in the still male-dominated medtech industry, they still face barriers such as being overlooked or not being considered for executive roles. She believes that MedExec Women can help empower women by focusing on “strategy, execution, growth and creating a community,” concepts that Shepherd also uses to describe her own career path in medtech.
The interview that follows has been slightly edited for content and length.
If you look at some organizations like Lantheus Holdings, Inc., the former CEO, Mary Ann Heino, or the former CEO at Insulet Corporation, Shacey Petrovic, had a very good balance of women in their executive ranks. And as these women get promoted, they will be more comfortable in saying to their HR directors, ‘Why am I not seeing more women in the hiring mix? I want to see at least three candidates.’
So women grooming other women for executive level roles is a great help. Also, it was a big boost to my career to get an MBA. I think I would not have become a vice president of marketing without my MBA. I graduated with a science degree from the University of Pennsylvania but getting that training in finance was very helpful. My other advice: Persevere, work hard, be smarter than everybody else in the room. Don't expect it to be easy and be very, very strategic.