Sarah Richardson and Becca Woods Spill the Tea on the Heart of the CIO

[00:00:04] Welcome to the High Tea with Grace podcast where we spill the tea on HIT. I'm honored to welcome

[00:00:10] Rebecca Woods and Sarah Richardson to the pod. Thanks for joining us ladies. So nice to have

[00:00:15] you. Thanks for having us. So let's start with Rebecca. Tell me about the career path

[00:00:20] that brought you to what you do for work today. Yeah, interesting path to how I started

[00:00:24] out. I actually graduated from Plymouth State University with a communications background

[00:00:29] bachelor's degree and minor in global tourism. So I actually started out in travel and the

[00:00:35] lady that worked next to me, her daughter works for Meditech. And so that's how I got

[00:00:40] in to HIT and started working for Meditech and just loved how it's all hands on learning,

[00:00:47] which is how I learn. Works my way up to be CIO in Vermont after a handful of

[00:00:53] years. And in 2018, went out and became an entrepreneur and founded my first company,

[00:00:58] Bluebird Tech Solutions. And then just two years ago, founded Bluebird Leaders, which is my 501

[00:01:05] C3, and we're creating a community to have more women in HIT. Will. All here for that.

[00:01:12] Sarah, how about you? Love to hear about your career path that brought you to what you do

[00:01:15] today. Sure, it's been pretty nuanced and also 30 years plus. So the moments that

[00:01:20] shape you. I started out in hospitality at a bachelor's degree from UNLB and worked in the

[00:01:25] casino business for about seven years. I morphed into opening a startup airline in the late 90s

[00:01:31] that went bankrupt. And I was in grad school at the time. One of my study buddies had a

[00:01:35] relationship with the CIO at the county hospital, and they needed my skillset. So I pivoted

[00:01:40] into healthcare and I was already in IT at that point. So it really created this nuance

[00:01:45] of life of being able to start at the county level, which was pretty phenomenal to really

[00:01:49] understand academic trauma care and then move to HCA and then HCA to other facilities,

[00:01:54] inclusive of a time with healthcare partners that were bought by DeVita that were bought by Optum.

[00:01:58] Pretty fascinating. So my last CIO role was with Tivity Health. Love it because I have a passion

[00:02:03] for senior care and senior wellness. And then now I'm with this week health been here about

[00:02:07] four months. Absolutely love everything I get to do, which is a culmination of 30 years

[00:02:12] of doing the things that you love to do best. Now I get to do those all of the time working

[00:02:16] with this week health. That's awesome. This week health is a media healthcare event

[00:02:20] organization, most notably, and we do a series of podcasts events, city tour dinners, we now

[00:02:26] have advisory, we cover cyber and risk and executive development and just a myriad space

[00:02:31] of topics really designed to solve healthcare challenges one connection at a time as principals

[00:02:37] doing that across the country and continue to build a community that helps to ensure

[00:02:42] that CIOs are never alone in their journey because it's a very lonely job.

[00:02:48] Yeah, it really is and such an amazing thing for the three of you to bring your CIO backgrounds

[00:02:52] right into all of this and you too, Rebecca, your kind of relationships from your past life

[00:02:57] in HIT consulting. So you guys sit in the middle of all of the trends happening in this

[00:03:04] space or back at you as like a women leadership kind of collaboration community builder and

[00:03:11] then you Sarah as the CIO community builder. And so I'm very interested to hear from you on

[00:03:17] what innovations excite you the most. You're hearing about innovations all day long, maybe

[00:03:22] I want to hear what innovations are so far out there that you think are just really cool.

[00:03:26] And then all innovations are really practical and pragmatic that you think are just really

[00:03:30] fascinating. Rebecca, we'll have you start. Yeah, sure. So I'm super passionate about

[00:03:35] getting more women in healthcare, IT and IT in general and really helping the group that's coming

[00:03:41] up rise up to be CIO or to be an executive or whatever it might want to be. Even if it's a nurse

[00:03:47] rising up to be in informatics. So that's one of my deepest passions and I'm super excited to

[00:03:53] turn that into reality now after all these years of working in the industry.

[00:03:59] But I think one thing that really excites me as well and I've done some posts on it is

[00:04:05] utilizing technology and how we're going to do that to move from sick care to care.

[00:04:10] And what we're going to do to start moving that needle in starts with food and technology and

[00:04:16] handheld devices and remote patient monitoring all the way from ambient listening and then

[00:04:21] go a little bit further. I think we're a little ways out, but it's starting and how we're

[00:04:26] going to use genomics to start moving that needle as well. Just reading about that stuff is

[00:04:29] super exciting. They put all this junk in our food and we need to start making better choices to

[00:04:34] just stay out of the lustles and absolutely. And it's interesting when you think of that,

[00:04:41] it's almost like technologies together are changing models of care, which is fascinating

[00:04:46] to think of it that way. So what about you? What kind of excites you in the tech space

[00:04:50] that you're hearing about? It can be specific technologies or just models, whatever is

[00:04:55] interesting to you. So I love that you just touched on the ability to stay at home

[00:04:59] and all the research shows that you can live a longer, healthier, happier, independent life.

[00:05:03] More importantly, your ability to do those things at home and to have

[00:05:06] interaction with your caregivers in a way that allows you to make those decisions and

[00:05:10] not have to rely on facilities for sick care. So if you have those relationships

[00:05:14] with your physician, I'm a big fan also of things like precision medicine and genomics.

[00:05:19] If you start to add things like augmented reality and virtual reality,

[00:05:22] not just for medical training, but for patient education. And really what I love is

[00:05:27] reading more and more about pain management. So when you think about the opioid crisis

[00:05:30] we have in the United States, you can use alternative therapies that don't involve

[00:05:34] actual opioids or other drugs. Then you start to get in front of really the human

[00:05:38] element of what can make people have the ability to even use the digital therapies

[00:05:43] and mobile health apps to stay healthier. And so when you layer in that digital

[00:05:47] component of care, but you still realize that the purpose to me behind some of those things

[00:05:53] and whether you're using AI and ML components for accuracy and diagnostics or patient outcomes,

[00:05:59] what's really important is if I can do that telemedicine visit and avoid

[00:06:03] just a routine care, that's fine. All these things about automation and all these amazing

[00:06:07] technologies to me are important because they allow the caregiver, the nurse, the physician

[00:06:13] more physical time with the patient. Because when someone is truly ill or someone is at their most

[00:06:18] vulnerable, what they need is that human connection. And they need that human connection of person.

[00:06:22] And then you think about even during COVID, when physicians really wanted to be able to do

[00:06:27] a nurses was just hold a patient's hand while they were dying. All the technologies are

[00:06:31] phenomenal and they're phenomenal so long as they still allow us to create better

[00:06:35] opportunities for the human element inside all of these equations.

[00:06:38] I'm very interested to hear how your roles changed as you went through your career

[00:06:43] when you started your job as a CIO, Sarah, how did that change when you through the years

[00:06:50] since digital transformation has been happening at a more rapid pace than ever now?

[00:06:54] Sure. What changed the most was when we started talking about digital transformation,

[00:06:59] I always found so fascinating about that as it's always been digital

[00:07:02] in the basement of a hospital back in the day. And we really used to think about maximizing

[00:07:06] some of our data center capabilities. Then over the years, we got into COLO and then we got

[00:07:10] into cloud and storage. And those are from perspective, they're important. It's really

[00:07:14] important to be able to understand now how cyber has taken up the front seat and everything.

[00:07:18] It's in our personal lives too. So I feel like that's one of the easiest stories to tell is

[00:07:21] that cyber resiliency is at home and at work. I'm also really interested now in this space

[00:07:27] of interoperability. And I remember putting in our first EHRs and today,

[00:07:32] how do you create a space where you're enhancing the EHR? So it may be a component

[00:07:35] of the center of the universe, but there are one off solutions that create a better

[00:07:39] ecosystem for your hospital. Organizational change management became an absolute passion of mine

[00:07:43] because getting the adoption of the technology and the ongoing usage to be optimized in a way

[00:07:49] that's beneficial to the organization and then really watching that over a period of time,

[00:07:53] that's where the biggest lean in has been from where I started, which was just getting

[00:07:56] people to actually use technology as a part of their day to where it's everything that they

[00:08:01] do and appreciating what those dependencies really mean for us. So interesting. And you

[00:08:06] too, Rebecca, how did your job change from start to finish? Sarah and I, we started out when

[00:08:12] everybody was still on paper and we're helping them through that change management of going over

[00:08:17] to technology and using computer cell phones have just came out. And when I was CIO in Vermont,

[00:08:24] we were the first hospital to send text message reminders out. That was evolutionary.

[00:08:30] And then fast forward all these years and I agree with Sarah that there's a lot of pressure on

[00:08:36] security and also seeing the role of the CIO change. I don't think it's so much pressure as

[00:08:41] everything's on the CIO now, it's almost nicer to see it spread out. There's SISOs,

[00:08:47] there's chief medical information officers. And so the role of technology is understood

[00:08:52] at an organization level that it's everybody's problem and everybody needs to adopt it.

[00:08:57] Obviously the CIO is making changes, but it's also bringing in the team and the steering

[00:09:03] committees to help make those decisions. So it's really nice to see the evolution of the

[00:09:07] organizations adopting technology as a whole instead of back in the day. And it's one thing I

[00:09:14] brought to Vermont is let's bring the users together and get their opinion. But years

[00:09:20] ago just like IT would pick that solution and it would get implemented and you would hear

[00:09:24] across the country, right? This doesn't work for me too many clicks whatever and so to see that

[00:09:31] evolution has been really heartwarming and fascinating to bring everybody along.

[00:09:36] Absolutely and has the more empowered patient, we know patients are using tech to hack their

[00:09:42] health right now. How does that impact the CIO's role? Are they asking users and patients

[00:09:48] more often how they're experiencing technology? Are they feeling like they need to start training

[00:09:53] patients on how to this, how is that impacting the CIO's role?

[00:09:57] I feel like just at the cusp of it right. I think in terms of the CIO, it's data and HIPAA

[00:10:03] and what are we going to do to keep it secure. I think that patients are scheduling online

[00:10:08] and text message reminders and that stuff is happening. I think we're just at the cusp

[00:10:13] of the next level of what that's going to look like and being able to, I'm excited for when

[00:10:19] I can tap my data just like I share with Venmo or share money with whoever to my phone to a provider

[00:10:26] and it uploads my history from out in California and I bring it over to Boston or whatever it might be.

[00:10:33] I think we're just at the cusp of that and it's going to be really exciting. I truly think that

[00:10:38] the patient should be owning their data and start taking a better ownership of that

[00:10:42] and I think that's a wave that's coming as well. Couldn't agree more,

[00:10:46] but I'm a huge proponent of that. Patients really just owning their records, owning their data.

[00:10:52] Nobody else is going to be responsible for the quality of your data like you will be.

[00:10:56] So Sarah, I'm interested with all of this digital transformation happening,

[00:11:00] what are you hearing are the greatest barriers to entry for these folks or barriers to

[00:11:05] implementation of tech? Sure. I think about the barriers to technology often you hear me say it

[00:11:10] in the beginning of the adoption factor of understanding that anytime you're going to

[00:11:14] put something into an organization especially that either be enterprise-wide or have a

[00:11:19] significant impact or lasting impact on patient care. It's not with the C-suite making just the

[00:11:23] decision, it's the entire change population that has to make those things happen. You need

[00:11:27] a champion not only at the executive level who owns the outcomes, you need champions inside

[00:11:32] who are making those things happen. We learned that through how many botched deployments

[00:11:36] of computerized physician order entry or trying to get the carts on wheels out originally

[00:11:41] or to some of the technologies 20, 25 years ago which sounds dated but the things we learned about

[00:11:46] how to do those things effectively have carried over into the fact that you should be one or two big

[00:11:50] things a year. Now it's consistently and all the time your portfolio and your governance and

[00:11:55] your ability to figure out what happens next is massively tied to your resource allocation,

[00:12:00] to your ability to understand how you have the right partners who own it.

[00:12:04] Rebecca's point, IT used to own everything. IT really shouldn't quote unquote own anything

[00:12:08] other than some of the infrastructure keeping lights on. All those applications need to have

[00:12:12] business owners, they need to have product owners and no choice should be made without a business

[00:12:16] owner and a product owner in that mix. And with all of those things being said barriers today

[00:12:22] are everything from low margins or no margins in some facilities. I had a dinner last night

[00:12:27] with 15 CIOs here in Denver and one of the top items of discussion is how do we afford it?

[00:12:33] Some places have an $800,000 budget because they're critical access,

[00:12:36] some places have a multi-billion dollar budget. End of the day when you're in a community like

[00:12:40] Denver is an example, those patients inevitably are going to go in between these facilities and so

[00:12:46] interoperability and access to your record still a big deal. What happens when you go to a vacation

[00:12:50] location and you get injured and are your records following you? They're not. So those

[00:12:55] are some of the things I still think about it. How do we make healthcare simple for the

[00:12:59] consumer and also in a way that the technology is in a barrier to providing the care that

[00:13:03] the clinicians and physicians want to be able to give? Rebecca, I'm interested to hear your thoughts

[00:13:08] on this too. Very great insight, Sarah. It's really interesting to see the heart of the CIO, right?

[00:13:13] And what are their pain points here? Those are really fascinating to hear about. Rebecca,

[00:13:17] what are you hearing? What are some of the pain points that are keeping CIOs and hospitals

[00:13:22] and health systems from really moving forward on digital transformation? Yeah,

[00:13:27] aside from security, which is always front and center, I think there is digital transformation

[00:13:33] is happening. I also think that the organization needs to give the opportunity to the CIOs and

[00:13:39] their VPs an opportunity to get out there and see what's happening. I feel like some are still

[00:13:44] in that bubble and so allowing them to go to conferences and talk to the big bad vendors

[00:13:51] and actually see what they're doing and what they're bringing to the table and learn about

[00:13:55] what's coming out there and being educated on the opportunities that these vendors have,

[00:14:01] even if it's a startup and they might take something on as a beta tester for the organization,

[00:14:06] which might be a little bit cheaper but come out as a win in the end. And building those

[00:14:11] relationships with those types of vendors is going to really help the healthcare IT as a whole

[00:14:17] move forward. And so I think years ago it wasn't as welcoming as see that more

[00:14:22] with a lot of the conferences coming out and I still feel that people need to get out there

[00:14:27] and educate themselves to be able to choose the right solution for their organization.

[00:14:33] It seems like if you have more time on a personal level with a CIO, you have more of a chance to

[00:14:38] explain your value proposition and how you differentiate yourself on the market.

[00:14:42] And when you're doing these conferences and you're seeing them regularly and having

[00:14:46] regular conversations, a lot easier to move that sales cycle along right versus just having

[00:14:51] a conversation. Yeah, it's about relationship building right. It goes on both sides. There needs

[00:14:56] to be trust on both sides. You need to build those relationships. The vendors need to prove that

[00:15:01] they can do what they're saying right and so that builds over time and then being able

[00:15:06] to have that referral to that hospital that they've set up or couple and the CIOs can

[00:15:11] talk to each other. There's huge benefits to this and that's how we're really going to be

[00:15:14] able to move healthcare forward in a more lightning speed situation.

[00:15:19] I know.

[00:15:20] Make sure when I was CIO over 10 years ago when I started and I took a team to Hems in Vegas

[00:15:26] and Hems had one of those photo booth things and behind me it says send the backs machine

[00:15:32] back to 19, what I said 70 or whatever it says. I still have that photo and I'm like,

[00:15:38] God, they're still here.

[00:15:40] So I would love to hear about the collaboration that you guys have together. So Sarah Richardson

[00:15:46] with this week health and Rebecca Woods with Bluebird leaders. I'd love to hear a little

[00:15:51] bit about how this came about and what you're planning to do together as you collab. I love

[00:15:57] for you to start.

[00:15:58] I'd love to start. I think this is a perfect example of organizations coming together,

[00:16:05] building that trust in that relationship. So Bill and I have been talking since I almost

[00:16:10] launched Bluebird leaders. We've had conversations, we've done drive-bys, we've done lunches and just

[00:16:16] getting to know each other and feel each other out. It's almost how you do a job search, right?

[00:16:22] As an executive, you're not just going to jump and not know anything about the organization.

[00:16:26] I really value what Bill brings to the table and his leadership and his mentorship.

[00:16:30] And so over the beginning of this year and 24, we started talking about what our relationship

[00:16:37] would look like and how this week can help Bluebird leaders and vice versa. And so we came

[00:16:43] to the decision that this week health would really help elevate the conference, our annual SOAR

[00:16:50] conference which is coming up September 18th through 20th in Atlanta. We have about seven

[00:16:55] tickets left. So they're really helping us with the staff and the amazing staff like Sarah. I get

[00:17:02] to work with Sarah Richardson every day. The staff behind this week health, Bluebird leaders is

[00:17:07] really just me and a couple others that have helped and collaborate with them on calls. It

[00:17:13] feels like I'm part of a team. So it's been really great.

[00:17:16] It truly is fantastic because Rebecca and I knew of each other for a long time. We'd walk

[00:17:20] by in hallway, see each other and just the name was always there. And then really a couple

[00:17:24] years ago, we literally just one day were like, Hey, let's do more stuff together. And then when I

[00:17:28] made the choice to join Bill's team full time in May, it was that catalyst to say, okay, we don't

[00:17:34] need to create a woman's track of this week health because just because I'm a woman joining the team,

[00:17:38] it's, hey, how do we continue to create spaces for women to be uplifted and amp their profiles

[00:17:43] that we've already been having these conversations with Rebecca, let's figure out how to do

[00:17:47] something with Bluebird leaders. And so we have a long term agreement to partner and work

[00:17:50] through different opportunities and ideas. And we're such a nascent stage where we're like,

[00:17:55] yes, we're going to support SOAR. There's so much more to it than that. The ability to realize

[00:17:59] like how you figure things out together. And it doesn't always have to be perfect. And the

[00:18:02] reason I say that is Bluebird leaders just turned two. I've been here for four months as we

[00:18:07] understand the dynamics of how to do things well and each time doing better. We're all about

[00:18:11] healthy complex, healthy dialogue, figuring things out, going, oops, that didn't work. This

[00:18:20] week health really is still in startup mode. Bluebird leaders is in startup mode with Bluebird

[00:18:24] tech. You start bringing those mindsets together and the art of the possible, which is one of those

[00:18:29] things that just makes me tick all the time is what can we do together? It's never about what

[00:18:34] we can't do but to rope ourselves back in sometimes so you get 50 great ideas. Let's be honest,

[00:18:38] one or two of them, what you can focus on and deliver at any given point. So we're at

[00:18:42] the beginning of what will continue to be something truly phenomenal together. And

[00:18:46] what's most important is that women see women supporting each other and doing things together

[00:18:50] that maybe you couldn't do by yourself. But the point is you don't have to be alone when you're

[00:18:55] a part of this week health and Bluebird leaders. So interesting you say that because I was just

[00:18:59] at an event this past weekend and there was a woman CIO there and she said, I'm just so lonely

[00:19:05] all the time. It's just 10 to one man to me. It's only me in every room that's a woman.

[00:19:13] And I just wish I could collaborate with other women in this space and hear how they're thinking

[00:19:16] and creatively. And they go out and they do their golf, but I'm left behind because I don't really

[00:19:21] like golf unless I want to go be terrible at it. Right? So it's great that you're building this

[00:19:26] space for these women leaders who are used to being 10 to one to be able to be together

[00:19:32] and help learn from one another and connect and grow. It is. It's lonely at the top as a

[00:19:36] healthcare CXO and then it's lonely at the top as an entrepreneur. Right? And then layer on that

[00:19:45] we're not as diverse and there's less women. And so to have a place to collaborate with

[00:19:51] women, whether it's Bluebird leaders or a city tour or your high T Grace that you just hosted,

[00:19:57] which was just phenomenal and looked awesome on drinking my tea now and I can't wait to go

[00:20:02] next time. So just a place to a safe place, right? And then to build that network in those

[00:20:08] phone of friends. I have this phenomenal network that you can send your feelers out and people

[00:20:13] that have helped and just surround like a big hug. It's great. We want all the women to be on

[00:20:18] the nest and collaborate together. Right? Absolutely. And remember that if you see

[00:20:22] another woman in the industry that you're like, wow, I really admire that person say something

[00:20:27] because you may be able to collaborate and build something beautiful. So now I want to dig

[00:20:31] into your personal lives and what helps you work your best and make a difference. You guys are

[00:20:37] busy professionals, you've had successful careers and continue to work your best every day and it's

[00:20:44] inspiring to see. So what are things that you do to keep yourself at the top of your game?

[00:20:49] Sarah, let us know what you do. What do you do to stay strong and focused?

[00:20:54] Sure. I'll start with just the physical component because if you're not getting enough

[00:20:59] sleep, you're not getting enough hydration, you're not eating healthy, you're not exercising,

[00:21:03] you're putting yourself at a different advantage from the very beginning. So take care of the basic

[00:21:07] blocking and tackling elements. And if you're on the road and you've got kid care and elder care

[00:21:12] and all kinds of things that are happening, you can still fit it in. So take care of you

[00:21:16] first because if you don't, you're not going to be able to take care of everybody else.

[00:21:19] And everybody depends on us to take care of them. I'm also in a very healthy marriage.

[00:21:24] Should I tell people that? Because I know the difference between one that's not and one

[00:21:28] that isn't. I have the most amazing husband, we've been together over 11 years and understanding of

[00:21:32] I'm gone half the time. He actually totally loves it because then he gets to do his stuff,

[00:21:36] well, I'm gone but when we're together we're intentional about that relationship and really

[00:21:40] making sure that each other, how do they need to be the best version of themselves?

[00:21:44] Having a healthy work culture is really important. I've worked in horribly toxic

[00:21:48] environments. I've also created amazingly healthy and productive environments. And so

[00:21:53] when I joined this week health, it was because that's the intentionality that Bill and the team

[00:21:57] put forward and that's the energy we bring forward to others. When you create something

[00:22:01] that is very unique and special, not only is it evident in how you show up and how people

[00:22:06] experience you, it's also contagious. And so when you are thoughtful and you are kind and you

[00:22:11] are intentional about the way you show it for yourself and others, it has a reciprocity

[00:22:16] and an amplifying effect for others. I think of the exponential impact of being nice to

[00:22:20] somebody. It's amazing what a smile can do. And for what we do, the empathy we bring to the table,

[00:22:25] we're in health care because we care about people. And when you are genuine in that aspect,

[00:22:30] then other good things happen. And I was at HCA for a long time, loved my journey there.

[00:22:35] I always said that good people beget good people and I will live by that mantra for my

[00:22:39] entire life. And so I'm grateful that I get to take the best elements of what it means

[00:22:43] to give back every day in my career. Powerful. Rebecca, I'd love to hear from you too.

[00:22:48] What are things that you do? And also I'm interested to hear what are you hearing from

[00:22:53] other women in your community? What are they doing to stay focused and on the top of their game,

[00:22:58] Rebecca? I agree with Sarah. It's keeping in check mind, body, spirit amongst multiple jobs

[00:23:06] and two children and luring them around everywhere. We'll have a conference call

[00:23:11] and trying to give them snacks while telling them to be chronic because this is a recording.

[00:23:16] It's crazy, right? Yeah, it's crazy. And then we just got a puppy. Yeah, let's throw that into

[00:23:21] the mix. That's great. So literally paused call yesterday and had to turn off camera because

[00:23:27] he decided to do his duty right there in front of me and I'm like, I can't smell that.

[00:23:34] I think it would be left out to say that as moms and women, our life is a little bit

[00:23:40] crazy. And so for me, I go and run, walk or I do triathlons and so I'm run biking, swimming.

[00:23:48] I got to do something. I also have to do something because my ADHD and my brain racing as an

[00:23:54] entrepreneur all the time, if I don't go do that and have that space to think and know that

[00:23:58] the technology isn't going to be ringing at me, I turn it off purposely. I need that space

[00:24:03] set myself and center myself. But I also think I come from a gymnastics background and I know

[00:24:10] being a gymnast and the level that I got to that failure is okay. The many times I fell over and

[00:24:16] over again and bringing that to the teams and being a leader that allows the team members of

[00:24:23] Vale gathering back together, learning from that and then setting them off to fly again

[00:24:27] has always been important to me. And as a leader, I just always want to be relatable and lead with

[00:24:34] kindness. When I was CIO, I told the story before you come in, you're soothed and heels and it's

[00:24:41] intimidating. And that's not what I want to be. I want to be part of the team. And so

[00:24:46] I would take my badge off very frequently when we had big decisions to make. And so

[00:24:51] I have this card but not laying that down. We need to decide this as a team.

[00:24:55] And that made me more relatable, more trustworthy with my team and made me more approachable. So

[00:25:01] when there really was a problem that we had to talk about, they were comfortable with bringing

[00:25:05] that to the table. I love that, leading with authenticity and understanding that

[00:25:11] there are going to be failures and there's going to be hard cultures. But at the end of

[00:25:14] the day, you are the change. Thank you for sharing that. To finish off this conversation,

[00:25:19] I'd love for our listeners to figure out how they could find you online.

[00:25:22] LinkedIn. I'm all over it.

[00:25:25] We are all over LinkedIn every day, all the time. We often will repost and mention each other.

[00:25:32] That's terrific. And before I forget, did you happen to bring tea with you today?

[00:25:37] Oh my goodness, my mug. This is my Proto Technology mug. I'm an advisor to Proto

[00:25:41] Technologies, which is a growing MSP in Atlanta. Their CEO is a female and her name is Marisa

[00:25:51] Moldonado. She leads with authenticity. She has some of the best culture I've ever seen in an

[00:25:56] organization. They're a growing MSP that supports the majority of the health care industry. The mug

[00:26:02] is surrounded by all other stickers that I collect at conferences and stuff like that.

[00:26:07] I love that. How do I always handle it?

[00:26:10] Sarah, what about you? What is your mug?

[00:26:12] So it's actually Harrods, which I figured, oh my gosh, if we're going to be talking

[00:26:15] about tea, what is more of an homage to it than Harrods from London, of course.

[00:26:20] I could be getting in the habit of when you're over there, you drink tea and then you come back

[00:26:24] and you're like, oh, a light tea for breakfast. A little tea and a little milk and a little sugar.

[00:26:27] It seemed weird at the time, but it's not. So it's just straight up breakfast tea this morning

[00:26:31] because it's easier. And I'm on the road and someone else's house. I'm like, what do you have

[00:26:34] for tea? And they actually had it this morning, especially to is one of my best friends.

[00:26:38] She's also an exceptional Sarah Hayes Brooke. Her daughter, Katie, is going to do a semester

[00:26:42] abroad in London and starts next month. I don't have kids myself, but I basically

[00:26:47] adopted hers at one point in my life. So being able to see her drive as a

[00:26:52] young college student, going abroad to study history and the things that she loves most,

[00:26:57] it's so rewarding to be a part of people's lives on multiple journeys from when they're

[00:27:02] kids to now they're adults. And even though they're adults, like they're still in college,

[00:27:07] are scared about going overseas, but they're excited about that opportunity. So again,

[00:27:11] it's women lifting up women and all journeys of your life. So this is an homage to both

[00:27:15] Katie's journey to London in September, but also because we have the opportunity to spend

[00:27:20] this morning with you, Grace. So thank you for that. Absolutely. Thank you so much.

[00:27:24] About pink. And you'll have to have her bring some Herod's tea back for you from London.

[00:27:30] Thank you guys for joining us today. We really appreciated the opportunity to learn from

[00:27:34] you both. Thank you so much. It's been great. Thanks, Grace. And thanks to you folks

[00:27:38] for joining us too. Check out the High Tea with Grace podcast website for more great

[00:27:42] interviews with esteemed guests like Rebecca and Sarah today.