Assignment 1: Interview

Assignment One - Interview

by
Geoffrey Wynn
MSL 0681-OL1-31779
Leading Change

Nova Southeastern University
April 13, 2014
2

Introduction

The interview subject chosen for my diagnostic review of leadership principles was Donald Jones, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE). The reasoning behind selecting Mr. Jones was that he is considered a leader in the medical association industry and is well respected in the community at large. He is a graduate of Jacksonville University with a Master in Business Administration (MBA) and has been an executive at his current level for almost 40 years. The combination of academic and vocational
Jones noted that while at the FMA he was promoted to CEO of the association and he worked in that leadership role for several years. The most significant change came when the FMA decided to offer allied health professionals membership per the voting results from the current physician members which created some animosity within the organization. The votes were very narrow in margin which left some members alienated since they wanted to keep the association more focused on physicians only. Mr. Jones decided that the best way to address the membership was to inform them on how the decision will assist their practice as a whole by inviting their own staff to be a part of the continuing medical education process. Apparently it worked as according to him there were no reports of a mass exodus of physicians leaving FMA and membership grew stronger with the change implemented. The previous results
Donald Jones confirmed that his father was a great personal inspiration to him but that Jesus Christ was his ultimate hero in any facet of daily life, whether it be personal or professional. Besides his religious hero and father he stated that Dr. Yank Coble was the main person that kept him in the medical association industry during the more turbulent times. Dr. Coble was a Jacksonville, Florida based endocrinologist in which held the position of president for FMA, AACE (founding president), the American Medical Association (AMA) and eventually the World Medical Association (WMA) (Anonymous, 2004). Mr. Jones first met Dr. Coble as a student at Jacksonville University as an intern serving the university’s Board of Directors which Dr. Coble was a member. Dr. Coble noticed his leadership qualities and work ethic according to Mr. Jones to the point that he was offered an employment opportunity at FMA. Eventually Dr. Coble asked Mr. Jones to work as a consultant for the fledgling association known as AACE which was an offshoot of the more notable Endocrine Society based in New Orleans, Louisiana. The point that he followed Dr. Coble as a leader in the industry granted him opportunities from the value of networking his skills and remaining vigilant to his aspirations similar to his mentor. In essence Dr. Coble was grooming Mr.