Healthcare Executive Tim Talbert, NP: Leading Through Startup Growth and Organizational Change
- 2 days ago
- 26 min read
Clinical Leadership in Healthcare Startups: What Clinicians Learn Navigating Growth, Risk, and Operational Strategy
Helen is joined by Tim Talbert, nurse practitioner, veteran, and healthcare executive who spent more than a decade leading clinical teams inside healthcare startups. Tim began his career in clinic-based primary care before stepping into an early-stage company delivering high-acuity care directly in patients’ homes. He led teams of advanced practice providers while partnering closely with operations to align clinical outcomes with business priorities.
Tim grew alongside the organization as it raised more than $700 million and expanded nationally. He took on increasing leadership responsibility while navigating hypergrowth, operational restructuring, and leadership transitions common in venture-backed healthcare companies.
Helen and Tim explore what clinicians learn when they step inside startup environments and explain how clinical training encourages algorithmic thinking while startup leadership requires systems thinking and comfort with uncertainty.
The episode offers a practical look at how clinicians translate frontline experience into leadership and healthcare innovation.
Must-Hear Insights and Key Moments
Clinical and operational leaders succeed when they stop treating their goals as competing priorities.
Clinicians are trained to think algorithmically, but startup leadership requires systems thinking.
Tim helped build a venture-backed healthcare organization that raised more than $700 million and expanded nationally.
Hypergrowth creates leadership opportunities, but it also forces clinicians to rethink stability.
Leaders do not always have the answer. Leadership means committing to find the solution.
Strong clinical and operational partnerships create alignment between patient outcomes and business goals.
Mentorship from both clinical and operational leaders helped Tim navigate leadership decisions during periods of growth.
Tim led teams of 20 advanced practice providers while partnering with operational leaders to align clinical and business goals.
Tim reframed risk during his startup career, shifting from viewing risk as uncertainty to recognizing it as opportunity.
Clinicians trained for algorithmic decision-making must shift to systems thinking when leading inside startups.
Words of Wisdom: Standout Quotes from This Episode
“When I first started off, risk equaled uncertainty. Now I recognize that risk is opportunity. Having survived risk and gone through it, you realize there are a lot of opportunities for providers and provider leaders.”- Tim Talbert
“Everything is algorithmic-based and we want certainty and a defined outcome. Risk is not something we accept from a clinical standpoint, but when you apply it to operations, that is where the opportunity exists.”- Tim Talbert
“It is okay to tell the people you are leading, ‘I do not have the solution or the answer right now, but I am going to find out.’ Having that humility can be transformational for leadership and for a team.”- Tim Talbert
“We all have self-doubt. Even when you get closer to the top, you realize they are just human and they do not have all the answers.”- Tim Talbert
“Clinical training teaches certainty. Startup environments ask us to think differently.” - Helen Tanner
“Clinicians are inherently risk averse because of how we are trained. Startup environments stretch that thinking and force us to view risk as opportunity.”- Helen Tanner
“At the beginning of a startup, you are wearing so many hats. You are the clinician and the patient care leader, and you are building the systems at the same time." - Helen Tanner
“That was the first real wake-up call for me about startup life. There is no true vacation. There is no true checkout at the beginning.” - Helen Tanner
“If you were a clinician, inside a startup, it’s easy to believe growth equals security, more funding, bigger valuation, national expansion.” - Helen Tanner
About Tim
Tim Talbert is a nurse practitioner, veteran, and healthcare executive with more than a decade of experience leading clinical teams inside healthcare startups. He began his career in clinic-based primary care before stepping into an early-stage company delivering high-acuity care directly in patients’ homes.
Tim entered the organization in a market-level leadership role, balancing clinical care with operational oversight while leading teams of advanced practice providers. Over the course of the company’s rapid expansion, he grew alongside the organization as it raised more than $700 million and expanded nationally.
Today, he serves as President of Clinical Operations at HealthBridge, where he splits time between patient care and operational leadership. His work focuses on improving the transition from hospital to home through virtual care, care coordination, and collaboration with home health teams to reduce readmissions and close gaps in care delivery.
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Blog Transcript:
Note: We use AI transcription so there may be some inaccuracies
Helen Tanner: If you were a clinician inside a startup, it's easy to believe growth equals security, more funding, bigger valuation, national expansion. But what happens when that same company experiences hypergrowth, restructuring, merger, and all within your leadership career? My guest today has lived that entire journey.
Tim Talbert, an experienced nurse practitioner, veteran, and healthcare executive. Who stepped beyond traditional clinical roles and a startup leadership during one of the most dynamic growth periods in home-based care. He grew inside venture-backed organization that raised more than $700 million and expanded nationally, and he led through that, those operational shifts that followed, and now he's building again.
Today we talk about what that journey does to your leadership identity and what it takes for a clinician to operate at the executive level. Tim, thank you so, so much for being here today.
Tim Talbert: Thank you, Helen, for having me. That's a real true honor to be here.
Helen Tanner: So, Tim, tell us, when did you first realize that your career might extend beyond traditional clinical roles?
Tim Talbert: I think,2020, right? I mean, isn't that the shock that we all felt the shock to the system? I think I started realizing, as I was watching some of the. structure of the current healthcare system started to change. we started doing virtual visits with our patients, during COVID and we started doing drive-through lab testing.
Right. And I think it just showed that you can deliver healthcare in other ways, to patients, and you're not necessarily sacrificing the quality in that care. So that kinda my, wheels turning of maybe the healthcare delivery model can be different. Um, and I got excited and started pursuing other options and, that led me down this, current journey.
Helen Tanner: So what were you doing at that time? right before you kind of stepped in working with a startup, were you in a hospital setting, a clinic setting or,
Tim Talbert: yeah, it was clinic based, primary care. so it was large provider practice. I think we had 12 providers at the time. and we're just doing acute visits in chronic care management, in a family practice setting.
Helen Tanner: So when you decided it was that you wanted to pursue something different, how did you find out about the opportunity to join a company like, you know, a startup, maybe a smaller clinic or, something that maybe would allow you to kind of stretch, within your experience, but why Startup?
Leaving Traditional Practice for Startup Work
Tim Talbert: it is a great question and I wish I had a real creative answer for you other than I had a really bad day at work. I went on Indeed. I went on Indeed. I found, a job posting I posted and I got a phone call that day. Oh, wow. Um, and so it was really kind of opportunity and fate in that standpoint. it was a risk and, I didn't know about lot about.
The model I was going into at the time.
Helen Tanner: Mm-hmm.
Tim Talbert: But, I was primed for it, because of the, COVID, changes.
Helen Tanner: Absolutely.
Tim Talbert: Yeah.
Helen Tanner: So you. Joined a company that, brought high acuity care directly into patients' homes and at a time when really people still equated serious medical care with brick and mortar.
over the next decade, that company grew, had lots of major funding rounds. I mean, almost pushed it into unicorn territory. And then a lot changed. and so just kind of exploring more about your experience inside that journey, because people listening to this, clinician, leaders listening to this, and have already talked to some guests who have been through somewhat similar journeys and then, mergers or acquisitions or closing their doors, and everybody has.
Their own journey and different things to add. And it's so valuable because I think people think startups, they know it's gonna be so sexy and it's so, fun or let's try it. But it's so challenging and hard and it can be very unstable and it can be, a thrill, a wonderful thing too of your growth.
So kind of. Diving a little bit deeper into your journey when you first started, what were you responsible at that time? Did you go in as a practicing clinician? Did you go in as a leader?
Tim Talbert: Great question. No, it was boots on the ground, right? Okay. Market, market level leadership. so it was kind of a dual role of administrative and, in clinical.
And so I was seeing patients, doing the work. Then also managing, oversight of the clinical operations,for the market as well. I had about 20 providers, underneath me. So it was leading a group of, advanced practice providers, and also in dyad with the operations team.
So what were the operational objectives and how do we mirror those with our clinical, outcomes as well?
Helen Tanner: I love that you mentioned dyad. so I think that's really an important, factor to think about. when you're a clinician leader and you have those operational objectives, was that dyad.
Already set up. Was that something that you helped drive? I think that's a, best practice, right? Is to have a dyad. and so talk about that experience.
Tim Talbert: That was the structure of the company to have an operational and then a clinical that dyad. So that was already in place.
but I think the interpersonal relationship between the two was the critical part. So building that relationship with your operational partner, I think understanding, and this is where a lot of my growth came as a ClinOps leader now, is putting on my clinical, vision and my clinical, biases aside and looking at the operational piece and under change and understanding how the operational objectives did help with advance the clinical objectives.
And they weren't necessarily at odds with each other there could be a synergy between the two. obviously you're gonna run into situations as a leader where there is some conflict and having to resolve that, is difficult. but it ultimately was a business and so we had to find out what was best for the business, but also best for our patients.
Yeah.
Helen Tanner: if I understand right, you were promoted a number of times within your past company, and there was a lot of hypergrowth. You know, what prepared you? For, for that executive responsibility?
Tim Talbert: well, I think a couple things. I think starting off ground level, if you're looking at a micro view and understanding the day in and day out and knowing the challenges intimately, I think really helped.
It also helped, from a leadership standpoint, your providers know that you've been there, done that. Kind of getting that, the validity. I think my military experience helped as well from a leadership perspective. yeah, to your point, it was hyper growth.
I mean, there was obviously challenges with that. but I was fortunate to having a lot of opportunity and with that growth, expansion, there was a lot of opportunity there.
Helen Tanner: Did you have any mentorship? I know you and I, were fortunate to communicate through some of our journey, and I felt like that was a real challenge for me and I was very grateful to know that you were somewhat nearby to kind of vet every now and then, but did you have a mentor or, community that you reached out to when you needed support as a startup clinical leader?
Be well.
Tim Talbert: I had, yeah, I did. I felt very supported in my previous role. I had both, clinical and operational leaders, who I sought, counsel from both of them.
Helen Tanner: Okay.
Tim Talbert: I think there was, again, working through the, sometimes the conflict that might exist between clinical and operations.
just understanding the why. I think was the big thing for me and I was able to, seek that counsel and, get advice from, er, we had an ER physician I was close with and, just great, great leadership and just understood human nature and just understood, how to implement change.
And then from an operational, just people who've worked, tested in, different other startups and really had a lot of insight help me grow.
Helen Tanner: because of everything that you've experienced, that growth, a merger, you've experienced, those changes and some of that instability, but Right.
That comes with that. How do you define stability now? And now that you're in this new role and you're building again. How has your relationship with risk changed now, if at all?
Tim Talbert: I think when I first started off, risk equaled uncertainty, right? And I think risk was scary. you didn't wanna leave the nest, I had this mindset of being with a large corporation, and all the benefits associated with it.
Now I recognize that risk is opportunity. And I think just having that paradigm shift. Having survived risk. Mm-hmm. Yeah. And gone through risk. You still laying on your feet whether it's successful or not. And there's a lot of opportunities for providers. There's a lot of opportunities for provider leaders.
And so I think that, I don't see, I don't perceive the risk the same, just having that experience. and again, there's a lot of opportunity, and not uncertainty anymore.
Helen Tanner: Yeah. I love that. I was having. A conversation with, another colleague recently about, how we as clinicians are just inherently risk averse.
I mean, with our training and then how I think. We become fortunate with this experience in this kind of environment to stretch, to think of risk, as you say, as an opportunity. And that was for me, one of the biggest transitions in learnings, throughout my experiences. At first you're like, oh wait, let's double check.
Can we do that? And you can accidentally maybe become. the devil's advocate, that's a frustration to stop the momentum when you don't mean to, you know, you're just checking, you're crossing the t's, dotting the i's when really, you need to, find a way to reframe that, to move it forward, but then check risk in a different way.
Yeah,
Clinical Teams Inside a High-Growth Startup
Tim Talbert: that's a great point. I think when you look at how we practice medicine, right? Everything's algorithmic based and we want certainty and we want a defined outcome. And so risk isn't something that we accept from a clinical standpoint, but when you apply it to operational, that is where the opportunity is from a risk standpoint.
So you're right, that is a paradigm shift. it is changing your thinking. you can do both, and I think that's the neat thing. So
Helen Tanner: did that. Shift in learning come pretty quickly for you, or was that like, you know, through like lessons learned or do you have
Tim Talbert: lessons learned? I mean, just going from a brick and mortar setting to in-home acute care, right?
From a sterile environment where you're, in a white coat and everything's clean and perfect to going into someone's home who has infestations, pets, kids. All the distractions.
Helen Tanner: Yes.
Tim Talbert: Right. in a non-sterile environment. I mean that in itself was a learning experience and a change. and then to go from an organization that was well established to one that was changing and trying to find their way.
And so there was just this, , constant six month cycle of, new pilots, new programs, new implementations, trying to figure out what would work and where was the growth, where was the path for the company. Yeah. And so I think there was just a lot of, change, a lot of, uncertainty.
but I think you get desensitized to it. You get used to, it becomes your new norm.
Helen Tanner: Mm-hmm.
Tim Talbert: And, again, you just view things through a different lens.
Helen Tanner: talking about, confidence through that. as you are transitioning into stronger, stronger leadership roles and representing your team through all those changes, did you have times of feeling, like questioning your confidence or doubting yourself at times?
And if so, how did you work through that?
Tim Talbert: Absolutely. I think through this whole process.one of the, probably the biggest takeaways I've had is that we all have self, self-doubt, right? And even when you get closer to the top, you realize that they're just human and they have self-doubt and they don't have all the answers.
so I think from that standpoint,I felt validated that it was okay for me not to have the answer. But where were the resources? how could I come up with a solution? And work through the problem. not coming up with a solution wasn't an option, or it still isn't an option, but, it's okay to not have the answers.
And it's okay to tell the people below you, the people that you're leading. I don't have the solution or the answer for this, but I'm going to find out for you. And I think having that humility, it's transformational from a leadership and from a team perspective as well. but yes, lots of self-doubt.
lot of trial and error. but was in good company and I was well supported.
Helen Tanner: Yeah.
Tim Talbert: And, it's trial and error. You learn from your experiences things always work out
Helen Tanner: well. And now that you're building again, so you are no longer with your prior company and now you're building again with a new company.
what stage kind of is your new company? where are you all in your growth or building, I should say?
Oh, well, I would call startup. I mean, the company's been around for a few years, but we're kind of reinventing
ourselves.
we're a humble 15 employees. so we're really kind of getting out into the market, making our product known, and just kind of building relationships.
And trying to see where the need and the demand is, for the market and trying to tailoring our product, to, that need and demand. so we're early stages, but it's exciting. just feel like there's a lot of opportunity.
what is your role now? What are your responsibilities?
Tim Talbert: right now I'm the president of clinical operations. Okay. So two hats. I mean, again, When you have 15 people in your company, you know, anybody can be the president. But so, I'm still working clinically, three days a week I see patients, and then on two days is more administrative. I'm looking at workflows, processes, establishing protocols.
I'm looking for inefficiencies and, using some of our, my ba past experience to kind of look for pitfalls and those traps that you can fall into. and so, Just excited to create something new and to put my stamp on it and, to see how we can impact more people in a, non-traditional way.
Helen Tanner: a couple of colleagues who are now joining startups have reached out to me about the balance of.
you're asked to see patients clinically, but then you're asked to do admin and build to, and there's a lot of worry. Like, I need to tell the leadership that I need specified time for, admin and building time, and then I need specified time for clinical time, which is all true.
How I think the challenge is, How do you, I guess, balance out, it sounds like you have them separated by days. I remember I did the same thing
Tim Talbert: right.
Helen Tanner: This day is my clinical day, these days are my admin days. and I'm not talking about admin charting, you know, like building days, leading days.
Right. If you will, if you wanna call it that. how do you figure that out or how will you know, for example? Okay. I can't do three days anymore. I have to do one day because now I need four days of leadership focused time, if you wanna call it that. How do you think you'll balance that?
Or what would you give that advice? Uh,
Reality of Startup Leadership
Tim Talbert: yeah, it's a good question. I think it's, fluid. I think some weeks I'm busier clinically, and then there's some weeks I'm, there's higher demand from an operational standpoint. and this is probably not, popular answer.
is sometimes when you're in a startup, it's not a 40 hour job week, you know, a week job.
I mean, I think when you're in a startup, there's gonna be long hours and longer days. and I know it's not sustainable and I, look forward to a time where maybe that's not the case. But I think right now you have to put the work in to get to that point. Um. not the risk of burnout or, impacting family or relationships, obviously.
it's a difficult balance. I am fortunate to have, ownership, in the company.
Helen Tanner: Yeah.
Tim Talbert: And so for me, it's a vested interest for it to be successful. And so I think for me, I'm able to separate the mindset of, it being burdensome. Like, this is mine. I own it. And I think that changes, for me, my perspective.
Helen Tanner: Absolutely.
Tim Talbert: the risk reward. So I'm not working for someone, I'm working for myself.
Helen Tanner: Yeah.
Tim Talbert: And I think that changes. So, your perspective.
Helen Tanner: Yeah. And I think the other thing, you pointed out a ownership, obviously that changes perspective for everything, but secondly.
even if having an equity stake, at whatever percentage that is, or even maybe not full ownership, but a piece, understanding that at early days there really is not a nine to five. in the future as things build and you could delegate more and there's more people right, then certainly that will get better.
That was really hard for me. I remember, my first year I was the only clinician and. The clinical leader growing. and Thanksgiving came and then we were like two or three months old, and all of a sudden I realized there was nobody else to take call. And I had a trip to Hawaii planned with my family for like over a year, and I just thought, wait a minute.
I mean, I had a collaborating physician, but. The role was not that he would cover call, you know, and I just remember feeling all of a sudden so overwhelmed, like. This is fully on. I can't, there's no break. there's no true vacation. there's no true checkout and I don't know, that should have been obvious.
but it wasn't at the beginning. It wasn't at first, and that was the first wake up call, like, welcome to Startup world. There is, you are wearing so many hats and you are the clinician and you are the patient care. Leader here. So, and of course that got better and then, got to a point where there was 12 to 13 and now we were taking call, once every three to four months.
but that was such a wake up call. It does get better, but at the beginning it's all the time.
Tim Talbert: know you know this as well, I mean, when you have a call out, right? Yeah. Like you're hopping in the car, you're picking up the, burden.
So recognize the increased, demand at the moment. but also need to be conscious of the pressures that I'm putting on the people underneath me so that they, it is a job for them.
Helen Tanner: Right. So,
Tim Talbert: and just, and just being sensitive to that and that work life balance,
not asking them for to, to do any more than they're able to do. startup's world can be difficult from that standpoint, especially to your point. a lot of times you wear different hats and you are the answer. So
Helen Tanner: as we continue to build, to grow, I hope to have.
Tim Talbert: One of my takeaways from prior work is to have increased levels of redundancy, right? So that I'm not always gonna be the fail safe, but there are people who are cross-trained or who have better knowledge of systems or can cover, so that way the product doesn't fail just because one person's out or one person, needs to take time off.
So.
Helen Tanner: Yeah. And actually that was gonna be my next question for you is, what are you intentionally shipping now that you learned from your prior experience and you wanna bring forward or that you would do differently?
Tim Talbert: Yeah. Obviously redundancy.
Helen Tanner: Yes.
Tim Talbert: previous company like, as you said, it, tons of venture capital, lots of growth, massive growth and expansion.
It was great for me. Right. I think that there was a lot of opportunity that came with that growth Alma. but I think for me would be a little bit more, would be a slower, purposeful route. we don't have investment money, now we are, profitable as a company month over month.
But it's a slow growth. you talk about risk versus, stability. here I was with the company. Tons of money coming in. you feel like it's more stable, but the balance sheet didn't say that.
Helen Tanner: Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Tim Talbert: Right. And now I'm with a company that's much smaller, profitable month in a month.
I actually have more stability here, with this just a slow, productive growth model. so just a completely different approach. and also. we're not answering to investors. our decisions are our own, and we're able to, have full control, and guide the ship.
we're not at the mercy of someone else's whims, so.
Helen Tanner: Yeah. And, when you decided to join this company, were those questions and learning about the ownership, investors, were those really important questions for you before you decided to join on
Tim Talbert: Absolutely.
Learning from past experiences.
Helen Tanner: Mm-hmm.
Tim Talbert: who's on the board? who's the decision maker? so there's questions that I never have asked before. Yeah. Right. And so just having that clarity, realizing before who is, making decisions that will directly impact me and the company.
and so I just had yeah, having that clarity, of how business works, versus just as clinicians, we often just go into a job blindly.
Helen Tanner: Yes.
Tim Talbert: See, the patients trust that the paycheck's gonna clear. And then return home. Yeah. And so I think having that, the mindset of how business works, I think there was a lot of, more insight to my questioning.
I guess, what answers when you were thinking about next, next step? And you were talking or learning about the board, learning about the ones, is there anything that would've turned you off to have been like, no thanks, or,guess, what was the most important to you from your lessons about what you joined next?
Helen Tanner: I, I'm thinking about or people listening and, you know, trying to figure out, why did Tim ask those questions? What was so important? why would it matter if they were a venture backed versus not? is there a way you can answer that?
Tim Talbert: I guess it comes down to control, like for me, right? what would I have control over? what would I be responsible for?
Helen Tanner: Mm-hmm.
Tim Talbert: I think that would be a big thing.
Helen Tanner: Because you will have less control. the more investors, the more people sitting on the board, the more people, having their hand in the decisions.
Right. Then that takes the control from you, in other words.
Tim Talbert: That's exactly right. Yeah. And so if my objective as a clinician is to reach more patients, maybe patients that are, at high risk or patients who are, um. Isolated from the current healthcare system. That's my job. That's my goal as a clinician.
That's the objective for the business. If there are business owners who don't understand that objective and they have a different outcome or different mindset, then that would take me away from my mission and my objective. And if they're not aligned, it's not gonna work.
Helen Tanner: Mm-hmm.
Tim Talbert: for me, integrity is important.
Like, who am I getting into? Are these people that are. I have a good reputation of these people who are, trustworthy, because I'm putting my name to it that was really important to me. are we actually gonna follow through on the missions vision of values that set support for the company?
that's critical too.
Helen Tanner: Mm-hmm.
Tim Talbert: I'm not gonna compromise on integrity, for business.
Helen Tanner: Absolutely. If a clinician is wanting to operate at more of an executive level, in particular in this case, in a startup, is there anything that they need to be willing to let go of or relax on, to really operate at that level?
Tim Talbert: yeah.
Helen Tanner: You mentioned risk. We mentioned loosening
Tim Talbert: a little on risk. I think change is a scary word for people, right? I think when we talk about change, a lot of us get to go into fight or flight.
Helen Tanner: Mm-hmm.
Tim Talbert: Right? Like we're on edge. the irony is, change is where the most opportunity is.
Mm-hmm. So if you can find solutions, if you can be a problem solver doing that, as a leader. When there's change or there's chaos, the people underneath you look to you and they look to see how you respond. And if you respond calmly and poised, even if you're not on the inside, if you respond with that calm and poise, it gives them the certainty it lets them know that they are, gives them the sense that things are okay.
and so I think that would be my thing is embrace change. be a problem solver for it. because that's where the best opportunities for, and that's probably why I was a successful, in promotion. just because during this periods of change I was able to be a problem solver and solution and an advocate of the changes that were happening.
Helen Tanner: Absolutely.
Tim Talbert: And I think that's where the, the opportunity is. So absolutely. Don't, don't be afraid of change.
Helen Tanner: Love it. well, very good. So, before I. Ask the couple closing questions. Do you wanna share a little bit more, about what you're building now, what you're doing more specifically, or I guess Sure.
Is there anything else you wanna share?
Building HealthBridge and Closing Hospital-to-Home Gaps
Tim Talbert: it's a company we're working for now is called Health Bridge. It's a Richmond based company. and we're focusing on patients during the transition phase from the hospital to home. Obviously this is a, critical piece just with CMS, guidelines and initiatives.
but as having done work with patients from in home, and I know you've done the same thing, seeing that, those seams, that's where they break down between home and from hospital home. Yes. And so how do we do that, whether it's in home or in our case, we're doing it virtually, in collaboration with home health.
And so that's kind of our focus area is working on readmission rates. Taking patients maybe that don't have a PCP. Sometimes life happens and you don't have a primary care provider and you find yourself in the hospital, and you need someone to sign home health orders, refill medications, things like that.
So we're fulfilling that niche and that gap and, huge need. but we're helping with readmission and we're helping patients with education. I have a strong support team of nurses. Who are great case managers, to help advocate and, build relationships with our patients. So that's kinda where we're, starting.
who knows where things work will take us, the opportunity will take us, but at this point, we've had some really great, impacts. maybe it's anecdotal and it's just all one E patient or two patient here, but. really having some impact, at a patient level. And so it's been very meaningful.
Helen Tanner: That's great. Well, congrats on your new venture. I'm excited
Tim Talbert: to, yeah. Thank you though. Yeah, I'm excited. it's gonna be a great opportunity and it's nice to get back into, a more clinical role as well, so.
Helen Tanner: Oh, yes. Wrapping up here, what do you, I always ask these two questions.
I love to hear these, answers from everybody, but what was the single most resource that helpedfor you, a person, a tool, book, framework, community mindset, and why as you entered into startup and startup leadership?
Tim Talbert: my father is my biggest influence. He's been 50 years in sales and business.
And it taught me early on, we're all in sales, whether we know it or not. And so understanding human nature, understanding what drives people, understanding how to read people. just knowing what people want and what their desire, that's the key to sales. And so I think that's kind of framework I've used in my relationships and in business is just understanding people, assuming best intent.
People, I think we're all have best intent, lead with curiosity, get to know people, build relationships, and I think that's, been the best for my relationships and, it's led to a servant leadership type mentality. That's certainly, well,
Helen Tanner: I just wrote about this, but it's scheduled for later, but when you said this, I'm like, yes, because,
A lot of people don't realize in startups, especially being a clinician, you don't think of yourself sales, mean, and you're not. like in quote, you're not a sales person. But out of the quotes, I mean, you are. I mean you, especially in the startup. Everything you do, everything you represent, everything you say.
Everything your team says is selling the company and is promoting the company, pitching the company. I just remember early on when I was responsible as you were for hiring, training, kind of onboarding and a lot of the clinical team, not just providers, but pretty much. A lot of the early clinical team from top down.
And I realized that one point that somebody really didn't know who we were that was hired, they were still explaining us as a traditional home health model. and we were home-based, primary care from people listening, home-based primary care, not home health. We did not have any home health.
we worked with home health as you are now. And, I remember thinking. this has to be 1 0 1 for any onboarding before I get into any clinical training or, set up the ride alongs or anything. They need to know a pitch. They need to have their elevator speech. I don't care if you're the medical assistant front desk, obviously.
what are your employees saying? What are they telling their friends, their boyfriend, their husband, their mom? Like where am I working? You know, not even just client or clients or patients. And I immediately reframed and made sure. since then, what are we doing? What is the pitch?
what are people saying about our company? and they are in sales and always, but especially early on. So I, resonate with that so deeply.
Tim Talbert: we're all marketers, we're all advocates. And, One of our values for our company is excellence in all that we do.
Helen Tanner: Mm-hmm.
Tim Talbert: Right? Because everything that we do goes out with our name on it and it is sale selling marketing. And so we do it with excellence. and so that it's a high quality product. cause that has to be representative in everything we do. So.
Helen Tanner: did you add that value in or was that there before?
'cause I feel like
Tim Talbert: it was there before actually.
Helen Tanner: Oh, what has, because
Tim Talbert: it was, that was there before I joined the company. and actually just reading the values were, you know, to the question you asked me before, that was an important piece. What are the values of the company? What's the mission of the company?
and again, to that point, we follow through on that and we do, you can't have a emission values and, um. Vision and not holding ourselves accountable to that, because there's gonna be difficult times.
Helen Tanner: Yeah.
Tim Talbert: And we've already been tested, right? Mm-hmm. Possible. PHI issues, hipaa, things like, how do we respond, oh, it's not a big deal.
we can avoid this Right? Where no one was impacted. But that's not, the values that we set. how do we hold, accountable all things that we do and how do we show excellence in everything that we're doing?
Helen Tanner: I love that. And I wasn't sure, I didn't realize you were a veteran.
Thank you so much for your service. Oh my gosh. When you send me your No,
Tim Talbert: absolutely. Yeah.
Helen Tanner: knowing you're a veteran, it makes even more sense of your, why you do what you do probably, and also the leadership that you lead with and your, so I think that's, thank you.
Tim Talbert: absolutely. It's my pleasure. Yeah.
Helen Tanner: okay, last question. How has being a clinician shaped the way you operate in startups, and then vice versa, how a startup works shaped the way you think as a clinician.
Tim Talbert: I think we talked on this somewhat. I think there are two different mindsets, right? I think clinicians think very algorithmically, very certain, and operations are more abstract.
And I think that there's benefits in both. I think coming in operationally, setting up policies and procedures for this company being more setting up guard rails. Not restrictive of creativity or what we can do, but saying these are the standards that we need to achieve. if I'm not here anymore, if I'm gone, the company still goes, it's still autonomous based off policies and procedures, and that's kind of how medicine works, right.
Anybody can pick up and diagnose, someone and treat someone based off, evidence-based guidelines. So can we create something like that operationally, that's not too restrictive, but it can create a, foundation of autonomy within our company. And if people have autonomy, they have higher satisfaction rates
Helen Tanner: Yes.
Tim Talbert: Within their job. So that's kind of one approach that I've taken. and then I think again. Clinically just understanding the why. why do I have to do this from a, why do I have to code this way from a business?
Helen Tanner: Mm-hmm.
Tim Talbert: Right? Why do I have to worry about, the hierarchical coding or, this modifier or capturing this, question.
So things like that. I think from a business standpoint, looking at, whether we like it or not, we all came into medicine, to help others. It wasn't to make a lot of money or from a business standpoint, maybe that's an added benefit, but we all came into this. it's for service of others.
but understanding the business side of it as a clinician, has changed the way I do things. I'm doing the work anyway. I need to capture it.
Helen Tanner: Right? Um,
Tim Talbert: and we need to get credit for it as a company. And that's not wrong or selfish, to do that. It's the way the system is set up.
Helen Tanner: right.
Tim Talbert: Tim, thank you so much for your time today and sharing your expertise, your experience, your perspective.
Helen Tanner: I'm just very thankful, for you. So appreciate
Tim Talbert: it. Thank you for this opportunity. I'm excited to see this podcast grow. I'm honored to be on it and, I cherish our friendship, so I appreciate this, Helen. Thank you. Of
Helen Tanner: course.
