As a technology company that’s 100% focused on environmental health, we’re always on the lookout for talented professionals within the industry that have a curiosity for tools that can make their daily lives easier. With that in mind, I recently spoke with two successful agency leaders from Michigan and Colorado that we’ve been fortunate to have as teammates at Hedgerow Software. Bob Gouin has been with the team for almost eight years after spending 25+ years in Michigan public/environmental health. Greg Rajnowski is finishing up his first year with us after nearly 20 years in Colorado public/environmental health. They’ll tell you more about their backgrounds in their own words, but we thought you’d find their perspectives insightful as EH practitioners, turned technologists, that work closely with agencies to implement and adopt environmental health technology.
Bob and Greg, tell us about your careers and environmental health background.
[Bob] I started my environmental health career as a front-line inspector in Michigan in 1994. From there I launched into working with nearly every EH program, progressing from coordinator to manager and supervisor roles, retiring from a local health agency as the director in 2017. I worked for four different local health departments and participated in many initiatives. A sample of those exciting milestones includes participating in Michigan’s first State Program Accreditation process, National Accreditation (PHAB), State of Michigan Food Safety Standardized Trainer, pilot project lead for Michigan’s first FDA Risk Control Plan, EH participant in incident responses within the Local Emergency Operations Centers, past-president of Michigan’s Association for Local Environmental Health Administrators, EH representative for Michigan’s first Public Health Advisory Council, and project lead of numerous local, state, and federal EH grants. I’ve been a project manager and client account manager for Hedgerow since 2017.
[Greg] My early career was as a high school life and physical sciences teacher. I started building Microsoft Access databases for grading students and things like that. Five years later, I went into Colorado public and environmental health as a program manager for emergency operations planning and risk assessment, research and development for community environmental compliance activities, and worked with school district partners and county waste management to identify gaps in solid waste management and waste diversion projects. I then became a project manager for a large clinic transformation project funded by the Colorado Health Foundation that included a quality improvement effort to fully transition to a digital electronic health record (EHR) system; which ensured joint commission compliance and Lean Principle integration. After that, I was the director of environmental health and sustainability at Delta County covering a variety of regulatory programs in air, water, and solid waste. Next, I did some consulting for six months and joined Hedgerow Software about a year ago.
Why did you make the transition from EH practitioner to a tech company?
[Greg] Let me start a bit earlier. In 2011, it was an exciting time to see data and technology start to become a factor within the public health industry. Funny story, I call it the great binder migration of 2011. Once agencies started using computers, everything that was on binders, paper, and charts in people’s offices got cleaned out and stacks of empty binders migrated into the hallway. The exciting part was everyone was just starting the digital transition to computers using data within public health, epidemiology, and so forth. I was fortunate to have a unique skillset to help teams make the move to digital more seamlessly. Joining Hedgerow felt like a natural step forward within my career as someone who likes to facilitate change and help agencies adopt technology within their daily workflows.
[Bob] Having reached the pinnacle of Environmental Health in Michigan at that time, adding an M.B.A. degree along the way for good measure; I was looking for something new. Hedgerow offered me a unique experience where I was able to learn something with every implementation project, as well as continue my favorite role – that of an EH problem solver.
What is it like supporting agencies as they implement and adopt EH technology like Hedgerow Software?
[Bob] I would describe it as very dynamic and fulfilling. My experience thus far with health agencies across the U.S. and Canada is that they all seem to strive for the same goals – deliver the best possible public health services to their customers (public); Improve processes and build on efficiencies; leverage new tools to improve their internal EH experience accomplishing those agency goals. So personally, learning from each of our agency partners in what, and how, they are delivering to the public today; vs what improvement options Hedgerow has that will facilitate positive outcomes for them – that’s the rewarding experience for me. Being a part of a newly energized agency, armed with tools ready to take positive steps forward. It just doesn’t get any better than that!
[Greg] One of the most challenging aspects of project implementations is that EH teams already have full time jobs. Which means, they can view a new project as something that adds more to an already full plate. Look, as a previous EH leader, I understand what it’s like to have limited resources such as time, staff, and finances but the great thing about implementing helpful technology, like the Hedgehog Platform, is the flexibility and control it provides. It’s not an overly rigid and modular technology. Meaning, you can make updates to workflows in Hedgehog without having to contact us to make them happen. Couple this type of flexibility with ease of use and we help agencies get more return from their technology investment. Once agencies have those aha moments, it gets really exciting.
Bob, as an experienced implementor, what are some of the latest agency trends you’re seeing?
[Bob] Having been in the EH world for 30 years, I’ve seen many a trend come and go. A few key questions I commonly hear from agencies across the U.S. and Canada: (1) Can your technology help me provide public health data and/or health outcomes to the public? (2) Does your technology leverage modern features that are going to move my agency forward? (3) Is your technology intuitive and flexible such that my users will have a positive experience working with your system every day?
Greg, what’s it been like in your first year at Hedgerow?
[Greg] This is the first job since I’ve been in the environmental health arena where I’ve been able to fire on all cylinders using my skillset for project management, technology, and EH practical knowledge. For example, when we start a new implementation I look at an agency's documentation and try to reconstruct their workflows, which is a bit like piecing together the scene of a crime! You’re trying to save them time by looking at their inspections, applications, fees, schedules, etc. related to a workflow. What makes it more complex is converting data from one tech system to another, which we do frequently. It’s critical to make sure all of this is done right because when we meet with new agencies and put our technology with their data in front of them, the agency must recognize it as something that is theirs. It’s very much like solving a mystery at times, which I didn’t expect to be the case when I joined the company. Being able to tap into the Hedgerow team’s collective knowledge working with agencies for three decades has been enlightening.
If you were going to recommend one or two things for agency leaders to think about as they select an EH platform, what would it be?
[Bob] My absolute number one thing I recommend agencies to do during a technology evaluation is a peer review of existing customers. If peer agencies can’t speak positively regarding the technology and/or implementation team; that should raise a MAJOR red flag. My second recommendation is to keep an eye out for third party involvement. If the technology vendor has to rely on outsourcing any portion of the implementation process, that automatically adds complexity, risk, and usually cost, to any project. I very often receive positive feedback that as your in house project manager, I was able to see you through from start to finish of every component of the implementation and training.
[Greg] I spoke about flexibility of the technology system earlier being a key requirement for agencies and I want to circle back to that. I’ve already heard some pretty amazing stories here about our clients being able to launch new workflows when the pandemic broke out. Relying on inflexible, modular technology that takes ages to get updated by your vendor is the number one mistake I see agencies make. In Colorado, the state health department added four separate state software packages because their existing rigid system couldn’t pivot.
Anything else you’d like to mention?
[Greg] I’d highly recommend agencies try to have at least one person on the team that has a three-legged stool skillset -- EH knowledge, project management, and technology savvy. In fact, if you’re evaluating technology vendors, it’s also wise to ensure they have implementation teams with that skillset. Otherwise, projects become a struggle when the tech provider doesn’t understand EH and EH doesn’t understand the tech.
[Bob] Be mindful of change management. Plan on, prepare for, and be ready to embrace change. Our most successful implementations are those that the agency is prepared with a change management strategy. Strategize about how you will communicate internally, engage all of your stakeholders, and plan ahead for testing and roll out. The agency will be successful if they take the time to formalize and plan for change, which we of course help with along the way.
Thank you both for your insights today and for joining our team. Learn more about Hedgerow’s services and make sure to connect with Greg and Bob on LinkedIn.