EMP-53

The first in a long, long, long overdue update on EMP-53!

Deepak Mital took on a new role heading up a new kidney transplant program at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn. He was also featured in an article in which he commented on this being a very big improvement for people on Chicago’s South Side. Not only will this location help patients avoid gridlock traffic, it will enable those who need both a kidney and a heart transplant to receive them at the same facility. Okay, impressive, to say the least. Thank you Deepak. You get the “making the world a better place award!”

Also in healthcare, Jay Kobitter has been on the move. He joined Sysmex America Inc., a billion- dollar Japanese company that manufactures top-of-the-line hematology, urinalysis and coagulation testing equipment. Jay is responsible for all North and South American supply chain activities, with the title of director of SAI operations. Jay notes, “It’s a great company and my commute is only five miles.” Congratulations Jay.
Where in the world is Greg Ahlberg? If you didn’t know, Greg is still with Abbott Laboratories and has been in New Zealand since 2005 as general manager of Australia and New Zealand. You can connect with him on Facebook and check out his pics. Did he get the EMP-53 post-graduation “dream job” or what?

Olympic action in Chicago after all? Scott Kirkpatrick wrapped up his last corporate stint as senior vice president of U.S. sports marketing at Hill and Knowlton and took the entrepreneurial plunge by launching a new business, Chicago Sports Partners (chicagosep.com), a full-service sports marketing and management company. The website is pretty cool and you’ll see that he and his firm represent some impressive Olympic athletes and major brands such as Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes, McDonald’s, Hewlett-Pakard, Best Buy and more. Cool website, Scott.

There’s more impressive leadership from EMP-53. John Stoiber is Smith Bucklin’s senior vice president and chief executive of business trade industry practice. He’s responsible for the full-service management of 45 trade associations in Chicago and D.C. (totaling $70 million and more than 160,000 members), and represents 65 percent of Smith Bucklin’s client base. John is also responsible for P&L, strategy, new business development, financial management, talent development, client performance and thought leadership. He and his wife Debra also had a new baby, Morgan — their third child. Jessica and TJ are the proud older siblings. Best wishes!

Rob Nelson is senior vice president of marketing and strategic business development at the American Health Information Management Association. A member of the senior leadership team, he oversees marketing, sales, service, research, membership, business development, account management, corporate relations and sponsorship. He is also managing director of global operations and led the launch of AHIMA’s global office in Brussels and is active in projects in North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia. He is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and also a certified association executive. Rob is also preparing for the start of a doctoral program in business administration/marketing. He continues to consult on the side, and wrapped up a small project with NASA last year.

Soren Burkhart has come back stateside. He rejoined Accenture as a senior manager in its IT strategy and transformation practice out of Washington, D.C. Soren and his family are looking forward to taking a two-week vacation to Italy this summer and plan to visit Rome, the Cinque Terre, Florence and Venice to celebrate his upcoming 40th birthday.

Reed Melton is still at the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association as director of strategic initiatives. He still talks some smack now and then, but now he is the authority we all aspire to be. He is doing great and likes to travel. Certainly this post will prompt a more detailed update.

Doing business together? Rumor has it that Phil Pang and Paul Darley are doing business together. Someone please confirm the rumor …

We have been remiss in collecting and publishing from our colleagues. Please do send your updates — professional and personal — and we will get them in Class Notes. Contact Rob Nelson at rnelson@axionconsultants.com or message him via Facebook or LinkedIn.