December 16, 2020

Statement of Manuela Deverill, CEO at CIM med GmbH: Reflecting a year beyond normal



Reflecting a year beyond normal

No doubt, the Covid-19 pandemic filled the headlines globally and across nations. It dominated the healthcare and other industries in 2020. Its impact on the global economy, healthcare systems as well as business and personal lives has become a major threat around the world. Despite all obstacles that we had and still have to face we not only mastered all challenges, but grew beyond ourselves. Our success as a company is mainly based upon three key factors:

Being speedily adaptive and reactive to new realities.
Right from the start of the pandemic we implemented new ways of doing business with actions ranging from rapid response to fundamental and strategic shifts. Going virtual was an essential factor to stay in touch with our customers, suppliers and business partners. Adapting work flows and introducing new processes to increase volumes and optimizing supply chains were crucial for liable deliveries. We tripled our output by ramping up production within six weeks, being ready to meet both tight lead times and high volumes.

Changing team dynamics.
It has become imperative to create an environment for relationships to prosper. We host online office hours where teams can talk about both work-related subjects and more conversational, daily topics like finding the balance between parenting and working from home. To avoid that individuals feel disconnected by not being aware of the role each team member is playing, a line manager is allocated to each team to make explicitly clear new structures and the required outcome of the team’s work. Strong team work and a shared mindset is key not only within CIM med. Conversation between our supply chain team and our suppliers have become more focused and productivity has considerably increased by regular virtual meetings. If suppliers understand the purpose they bring to us, they will see the long-term cooperation rather than a one-time chance to benefit from a temporarily increased demand.

Looking much further ahead.
To envision how the crisis may continue to affect the medical industry and what strategies and innovations are required to remain competitive, are fundamental criteria to direct CIM med’s future. Building resilience against unexpected risks is a complex process, but one we can achieve by evaluating ideas, trends and outlooks. Then embracing a new agenda. We now have to define the path forward by reflecting, learning and responding.

CIM med has been successful in 2020, but this would not have been possible without the dedication of our employees, the support of our suppliers and the trust our customers put in us. Thank you all!

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