Women in Sourcing for Health Systems (WISH)
by Lisa Risser
May 7, 2026- Early in my career, I made a transition that felt both exciting and uncomfortable. I moved from finance into operations and suddenly found myself working closely with physicians, nurses, and clinical teams.
Up until that point, my confidence had been grounded in what I knew—financials, analytics, and operational performance. But in this new environment, I was surrounded by clinical expertise that I didn’t have. I remember sitting in meetings, listening to conversations filled with medical terminology and clinical perspectives, and quietly questioning whether I truly belonged at the table.
I wasn’t a clinician. And at times, as a woman in those settings, I felt that even more acutely.
That mindset began to shift during a leadership development program I attended shortly after moving into operations. As part of the program, we were divided into teams and given a complex challenge to solve. The most effective teams weren’t led by the person with the deepest subject matter expertise—they were the ones where everyone contributed, where different perspectives were encouraged and valued.
That experience was a turning point for me.
I realized that I didn’t need to be a clinician to add value. In fact, the value I brought—financial insight, operational understanding, and the ability to connect strategy to execution—was just as important as clinical expertise.
That realization has profound relevance in healthcare supply chain—especially for women.
Many women working in supply chain, value analysis, or operational leadership roles find themselves in rooms dominated by clinicians and physicians. These conversations often center around product selection, clinical preference, utilization patterns, and patient outcomes. It can be easy to feel like you are at a disadvantage if you don’t share the same clinical background.
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