We forged into our second year of virtual BI Week with the spirit of trying new things. For those who are unfamiliar, BrightInsight Week is an annual week-long event for our employees to bring focus on the year ahead, celebrate our momentum, get to know one another, and just plain have fun!
This year we hoped to deliver a cohesive experience for all participants from 10 different countries as we threaded the week with informative sessions, entertainment and inspiration. To accomplish this, we opted to have 100% of the team members participating virtually—and with close to 100 people experiencing their first-ever BI week, the uniform experience was appreciated.
Our CEO Kal Patel set the tone by re-grounding us in our company culture. Kal dove into our mission and what it really means at the ground level—reminding us how we can all play an important role in revolutionizing patient outcomes with technology.
Underscoring this rallying cry was guest speaker Jose Drabwell, past president of IPOPI, the leading advocacy organization for primary immunodeficiency (PID) patients worldwide. She spoke about the global situation regarding immunology and access to care, and how the work we’re doing, if done well, can create meaningful, positive impacts on the rest of the world.
Keeping with the theme of revolutionizing the world for better outcomes, we made it a priority on Martin Luther King Jr. Day to take time as a company to recognize Dr. King and honor his memory. We invited guests to align with our intention and were joined by author, diversity strategist and founder of Rework Work, Stacey Gordon, who also assisted us last year in learning about unconscious bias. This year, she led a thought-provoking session on the importance of building an environment that supports diversity and fosters inclusion.
Our ears and hearts were filled with the soulful, brilliant guitar work of Cam Callaway, who’s no stranger to us at BrightInsight. This year his arrangement of songs spoke to Dr. King and the change he was trying to affect in the world, making the week’s experience all the richer.
If all that inspiration wasn’t enough, we drove home our work’s positive impact on the world by showcasing products we’re making and selling to our customers.
Some of the most exhilarating sessions to come out of the week were with customer guests we invited to share their own personal insights and experiences, including Brian Johnson, Senior Director of Customer Engagement Management at CSL. These sessions brought inspiration and support, and the hour each took to talk openly and answer questions in Zoom flew by. Both speakers confirmed that while what we’re doing is incredibly difficult, it’s also incredibly impactful to patient outcomes—and it’s changing the cultures at their own companies.
When asked about her favorite BI Week moment, Senior VP of Marketing, Jamie Burgess said, “Hands down, Regan Rousseau serenading us all the way from Nashville. It was absolute perfection.”
Swati Reichmuth, Senior VP of Strategy & Enablement, also loved the up-and-coming songwriter’s live concert but was particularly inspired by the Rheumatoid Arthritis demo. “It was a great demonstration of our product capabilities and what BrightInsight can do for digital health,” she noted, echoing the shared sentiment of many that BI Week ignited more enthusiasm in a culture already brimming with passion for what we do.
As Kal reflected, BI week was the perfect microcosm of BrightInsight. “We had an opportunity to see so many amazing colleagues talk about the incredible work that they and their teammates are doing. We mixed in all these external speakers that both reminded us of and brought our mission to life,” he shared. “And then you add in the entertainment and the self-care, and it literally made for a perfect week. I was so proud and so happy to be a part of it.”
Check out this recap video that showcases what a significant week it really was.
Thank you to everyone who helped make this BI Week such an inspired and engaging one. We’ve had overwhelming feedback that it was a great way to gain alignment and build excitement for the new year, with 81% of attendees giving us their enthusiastic agreement. It’s this passion that keeps driving us at BI to reach greater heights and make greater impacts.
Here’s to a successful 2022!