Agile mHealth Marketing: 6 Traits to Innovation Disruption

You are a change agent. You are an innovator. You disrupt the current status.

Healthcare is an industry screaming for change and innovation, especially how healthcare uses information and the need for faster, more effective communication.

Marketing mHealth solutions is not for the meek. It requires a strong will and comfort with change in an uncertain environment. It demands a flexible, agile mindset. It calls for these 6 essential qualities and traits.

1. The guts to challenge the status quo- Healthcare and healthcare IT has definite long-held beliefs about how things work and should be done. You must take innovative ways at looking at the challenges presented in healthcare IT, and have the gumption to speak out based on your perceptions and experience.

2. Keeping a cool head in the midst of adversity- You have the ability to draw upon past experiences and insights to remain present and engaged when faced with the uncertain, complex, and high pressure situations found in healthcare and IT. This gives you the ability to tap into insightful thinking and expression of your ideas- even when the battle is raging around you.

3. Ability to take time to reflect- In the rush to do, it’s rare to step back and take time to reflect on the work you do, the impact and meaning of your work, and how it is changing customers’ lives. Reflecting upon what you do has the potential to offer insights into your performance and your ability to rise to meet new challenges.

4. Seek challenges with purpose- Agile marketers know they must push through levels of comfort to explore situations where no proven outcomes or processes exist.

5. Open to always learning- Break down legacy thinking. This is the first step to opening your mind to new possibilities. Rather than “Best” practices, think “Next” practices.

6. Resist the urge to go defensive- Openness is fundamental to increasing your knowledge. But having an open mind isn’t a one-way process. You must communicate what you believe and why you believe it. Others will challenge your beliefs. Some challenges will come attached to a personal agenda, while other challenges do have merit. When you share ideas, people will no doubt offer feedback. Some will disagree with you. The agile mindset resists the urge to go defensive when challenged. Agile marketers listen carefully and seek to understand opposing views and perspectives. Valuable lessons and insights are filed away to meet future challenges.

Clayton Christensen, Harvard Business School Professor, coined the term “disruptive innovation”. Disruptive innovation is a process where a product or service takes root initially in simple applications at the bottom of a market and then relentlessly moves up market, eventually displacing established competitors.

Isn’t healthcare IT ripe for disruptive innovation?

Will YOU make change happen?