Karen Conway
Karen Conway
Karen Conway, MSc, CMRP, is vice president of Healthcare Value at GHX. A global supply chain executive and value-based healthcare strategist, she focuses on driving collaborative innovation to advance health equity, environmental sustainability and system and organizational performance.
"I work with organizations across healthcare to understand and advance the use of resources that best generate optimum health for people and populations, while supporting the ability of healthcare professionals and organizations to achieve multiple, interdependent objectives around financial performance, business continuity, diversity and equity, and environmental sustainability."
Overview
- internationally recognized healthcare industry strategist and thought leader
- expert adviser to global consultancies
- Member, U.S. Healthcare and Public Health Sector Joint Council
- National chair (former), AHRMM, American Hospital Association professional supply chain organization
- Honorary member, HCSA, NHS procurement association
Professional experience
Conway has served in numerous professional industry roles on a global level, all with a focus on building a highly efficient, collaborative and evidenced-based healthcare system. Through her extensive network, she convenes organizations to address some of the most challenging issues facing healthcare that can only be achieved through multi-stakeholder engagement.
A sought-after international author and speaker, Conway delivered closing remarks at a G20 Summit pre-event on health sector sustainability in 2020 and led the supply chain curriculum at national summits on health system recovery and health equity in 2020 and 2021, respectively.
In her professional roles, Conway is credited with helping foster development of the Institute for Supply Management Hospital ISM® Report On Business and the AHRMM Learning Community focused on adoption of unique device identifiers, and the McKenna Health Policy Lecture at Arizona State University.
She has also served as an expert adviser to global consultancies, including McKinsey, Booz Allen, The Pew Charitable Trusts, the Brookings Institution, and to commercial and government healthcare leaders in the UK, Canada, and Australia, China and Japan.
She is board secretary for the Strategic Marketplace Initiative and is a founder and co-chair of the Healthcare Financial Management Association CFO Advisory Council. Conway is a member of the GS1 Healthcare Global Leadership Team, in addition to helping found several community not-for-profit organizations addressing health, environmental and economic well-being.
Areas of expertise
Healthcare supply chain operations, value-based healthcare, health equity, environmental sustainability, unique device identification, social determinants of health, continuous quality improvement, systems thinking
Education
- MSc Healthcare Delivery, Arizona University (2017)
- BA Philosophy
Professional certifications
- Certified Materials Resource Professional
- Certified Lean Sigma Six Green Belt
Publications
An internationally published author and speaker, Conway co-authored a book on global leadership, Leading from the Edge, which identifies the leadership qualities that enable global CEOs to simultaneously drive profitability in their core businesses, while fostering innovation to ensure future viability.
Conway has published more than 300 articles, including a monthly column Value.Delivered that has appeared in Healthcare Purchasing News for more than a decade. Conway was also a contributing author to eBusiness in Healthcare, published by Springer in 2008.
Her 2018 Capstone project, developed in conjunction with the U.S. FDA, provided insights into the role of trading partner collaboration in achieving the intended benefits of regulation.
Presentations and conferences
Conway is regularly called upon by national and international organizations to present her research on the role of supply chain to support an equitable, accessible and affordable healthcare delivery system.
In 2022, she led a Socratic Dialogue with clinical, financial and supply chain leaders on the main stage at AHRMM, demonstrating the criticality of multi-stakeholder engagement.
In recent years, Conway has been recruited to speak by organizations including the National Health Service (NHS), the UN Development Programme, the Mitre Corporation, GS1 Global, HFMA and thinC360.
Conway is also a frequent lecturer in graduate-level programs including physician MBA programs and the strategic management of the healthcare supply chain.