In the News

Keeping it local

It may sound hokey, but the North Highland Co. is bringing a sense of community to the business world. It’s something that Fletcher Lance, one of the company’s vice presidents, says is integral to success.

"The secret to almost anything in life, whether it be personal or professional, is trust," Lance says.

Lance defines trust as meeting and exceeding expectations: "Clarity with what you say you’re going to do, and then you do it, and then you do it over time."

North Highland, a business consulting network based in Atlanta, specializes in providing local consultants at the top of their game. Instead of road warriors who enter the scene in a whirlwind and are gone by Friday, North Highland consultants live and work in the same community as their clients. And that builds the trust Lance sees as so important.

"I see our clients every day," he says.

And with closeness to clients like Vanderbilt University and HCA Inc. comes a high level of accountability.

Michael Montijo, senior vice president of solutions at Healthways Inc., agrees. He says the physical proximity of the consultants is a perk too.

"The local capability allows them to stop in very quickly," Montijo says.

You see these people around the community or at a ball game, Lance says, and that forces his consultants to be responsible for their work.

Trust may be just what is needed in the rocky times ahead as the health care field, which makes up 80 percent of clients for North Highland’s Nashville office, undergoes major reform. The firm saw 110 percent growth in that sector in 2008.

One upcoming issue concerns health care information technology that is part of the federal stimulus package and includes $20 billion to fund electronic health records.

The process aims to improve the quality of health care and its coordination. Congress says that 90 percent of doctors will be using the system within the next decade.

A second issue that may be down the road: a government-sponsored health plan and about 46 million newly-insured Americans flooding the health care system.

But Lance says these issues are chances for growth. The Chinese words for crisis and opportunity are one in the same, he mentions.

When that integral piece of the puzzle — trust — is in place between client and consultant, it is the chance for uncertainties and roadblocks to turn into springboards.

The company now has more than 40 offices and 1,400 employees worldwide.

Most defining business decision? Eighteen years ago, when a senior executive was giving a young guy advice, he said, ‘You know this health care thing isn’t going away.’ And I guess I was smart enough to listen. I had a lot of respect for him, and he was exactly right.

Greatest business challenge? The scalability of the business. We’re going across 18 offices. There’s a tremendous amount of demand. We guarantee all of our work. Making sure we scale the other offices like we have Nashville.

Greatest client challenge? Assimilating to the change. We’re positioned for more change in health care than maybe we’ve seen since Medicare was implemented. And the speed of the change: This time it’s going to happen.

What is your greatest frustration? I get frustrated with people that can’t see the opportunity — the "Eeyore Effect." There’s a tremendous amount of opportunity.

What is your five-year vision? Continue to serve our clients and offer them services that help them with their growth and their strategic issues and continue to be a partner and trusted advisor to them. I think we’re on course to double revenue in five years.