Arthrex was pleased to welcome this year's Leadership Collier class to the Inc. Medical Education Center as part of the program's "Commerce Day" on Thursday, January 19. President and Founder Reinhold Schmieding welcomed the group of 50 local leaders and presented about Arthrex and its impact in the community, followed by a tour of the manufacturing operations at AMI North.
Leadership Collier is part of The Greater Naples Chamber of Commerce’s family of leadership programs. It’s an intensive, eight-month program made up of 10 full-day sessions that empowers leaders in the local community who represent major employers and a variety of industries. Each year, one Arthrex employee joins the Leadership Collier class and takes part in the sessions where societal and economic challenges facing Collier County are explored through hands-on experiences that allow them to be fully immersed in facets of local government, education, human services, economic development, arts and media, and much more.
This year, Communications Manager Lisa Gardiner was selected to represent Arthrex as a member of the 2017 class. She says the experience so far has been amazing and shared more in a question and answer session about the program:
Q: Why is it important for Arthrex to be involved with Leadership Collier?
A: Arthrex has such a significant presence in this community. As a leading employer, healthcare technology innovator and magnet for medical education tourism, we provide critical economic diversification. It’s important that Arthrex hosts Leadership Collier every year to ensure that growing leaders in our community are fully informed about our past, present and future impact, as well as the unique challenges we face. For employees who participate in the program, we are given an extraordinary opportunity to discover new ways to serve the community as ambassadors of Arthrex.
Q: What has been the most interesting thing you’ve learned by being in the program?
A: I can’t pick one thing, really. Every session is something new and enlightening. From learning what the face of poverty truly looks like in Collier County to suiting up in firefighter gear, visiting the mosquito control laboratory, listening in on 911 calls and walking backstage at Artis–Naples, it’s been a very special opportunity to receive “behind-the-scenes” experiences and education about all facets of the community. It’s allowed me to gain broader and deeper perspectives and discover areas where I can make greater contributions.
Q: If you could trade jobs with anyone else in your class for the day, who would it be and why?
A: My class is comprised of a diverse group of leaders representing many different areas, such as government, healthcare, nonprofit and the private sector. I think I work for the best company and wouldn’t want to trade jobs with any of them (not even for a day!). But, it’s been so valuable to build this strong local network and make these individual connections. I look forward to the future and working with my class on the public policy issues we have collectively become passionate about, as well as furthering Arthrex’s mission and impact in our community.