Whether it’s finding product solutions for healthcare providers or competing in endurance races, Cardinal Health’s Tyler Rorrer is always looking to see how far he can push himself toward success.
By Pete Mercer
For Tyler Rorrer, one of the best aspects of his job is the dynamic nature of the healthcare supply chain. Each day brings a new challenge that requires a different strategy, constantly keeping him on his toes.
He said, “The beauty of this role is that no two days are the same. One day I might be meeting with a director of nursing to discuss how single-patient-use lead wires could help reduce the risk of cross-contamination for their health system and the next day I might be leading a feeding tube placement.”
Rorrer is a specialty products representative with Cardinal Health in Jacksonville, Florida, serving as the product specialist for nutritional delivery, cardiology and sequential compression solutions. Part of this role allows him to assist clinical staff with procedures involving Cardinal Health’s IRIS feeding tubes, which gives the clinician’s direct visualization through an integrated camera to help place the feeding tube.
Essentially, Rorrer is working to streamline the healthcare procedures and processes for clinicians, while improving the outcomes for their patients. The feeding tube is simply one example of the kind of collaboration he gets to participate in every day, whether it’s with the hospital C-Suite, VAC, physicians, supply chain, and other key decision makers.
So far, he’s enjoyed incredible success at Cardinal Health. Rorrer earned back-to-back President’s Club Awards in fiscal year 2019 and 2020 with the Ambulatory Surgery Center sales organization. In 2022, he transitioned to Cardinal Health’s Specialty Sales team, where he continues to drive success within the North Florida and Southeast Georgia territories.
Striving for excellence
In addition to pursuing excellence in his professional career, Rorrer is also an avid endurance athlete. Growing up, he played competitive sports, where he was constantly pushed to be better. His soccer team regularly went to the biggest tournaments, where they either came in second place, or won the tournament altogether. There was even a period where Rorrer’s team didn’t lose a single game for over a year and a half.
He said, “Ultimately, I think those experiences growing up allowed me to establish a desire to achieve and it’s translated over into my career and personal life. I also have an insatiable desire to be the best possible version of myself. I get excited thinking about the possibility of what could be and what’s next.”
In the last 12 months, he completed his first half-Ironman and full marathon, and he regularly runs 50 to 60 miles each week, while still making time to go to the gym at least four times a week.
“My dad was very into running and from time to time he would take me along as a training partner,” Rorrer said. “We would do local 5k races with him, which is probably where my journey with endurance sports started.”
After registering for his first half marathon in 2020, he fell in love with charting his progress and seeing how far he could push himself. “That year, I beat my goal time of 1:35 and in 2022 I beat my goal time of 1:27 for the half marathon. I love setting stretch goals and seeing what my body and mind can achieve. It’s been awesome to see all the progress I’ve made the past few years, and I’m excited for the lofty goals I will achieve in the future.” His next goal is to qualify for the Boston Marathon, which is something that only 4.3% of annual marathon finishers get to participate in.
This drive to be his best self is part of what makes Tyler so successful at Cardinal Health. From his years of playing competitive sports, coupled with his time doing endurance sports, he’s learned several key lessons that he has carried into his professional development:
- Success happens when preparation meets opportunity. You fall to the level of your preparation. You’re either preparing to win or preparing to fail.
- Consistency is key. Putting in the work will pay dividends in the long run.
- You need to be able to adapt. What’s worked in the past might not work today.
Another huge factor in his success stems from working with the Florida State University Sales Team and Pat Pallentino, the former director of the Sales Institute at Florida State University. During his time at Florida State University, Rorrer competed with the Florida State Sales Team in role play competitions, working with established individuals within the sales profession.
Rorrer said that working with this team allowed him to “establish a great foundation and principles of what the sales profession should look like.” He learned from some of the best sales leaders in the business and adapted those teachings into his sales approach.
Getting a better perspective
Earlier this year, Rorrer went on a mission trip to Masaka, Uganda, with his church to partner with Okoa Refuge. “The Okoa Refuge has been around since 2012, and they’ve been able to establish phenomenal relationships throughout the communities. Due to the connections, we were able to serve in several areas around the communities. My favorite day was when we ran a medical clinic for a village in Uganda.”
Rorrer said that in some cases people walked over 10 miles to receive medical treatment for a wide variety of issues they were experiencing. “They would see our team of physicians and get the medicine they needed to help with their current ailments. While they were waiting for their medication, we were able to speak with these individuals, learn about them, and share the gospel.”
In addition to the medical clinic, Rorrer and his team constructed a mud home for a man who did not have the funds to build a new place to live. They were also able to assist with childcare at the Okoa orphanage and build a church in the community where they set up the medical clinic.
Mission trips to places like Uganda, Haiti, Costa Rica, and Nicaragua give Rorrer a better perspective on the many blessings in his life. He said, “Overall, it’s great to go these third-world countries and gain perspective of how fortunate we are. After this trip, I created a gratitude list with one thing for every year I’ve been alive. We take so much for granted, and when I’m feeling down, I turn to my gratitude list to reflect on how fortunate I am.”