Simon Philip Rost
Simon is the Marketing Director for GE Healthcare’s Digital Health and Artificial Intelligence Portfolio in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
Over the last decade with GE Healthcare, Simon has held various leadership positions in marketing and sales in MedTech and Healthcare IT. He has successfully focused on building and commercializing solutions that bring together medical devices, healthcare IT, digital solutions, consulting, and services.
Before his time in GE Healthcare Simon established himself as an expert in Marketing, Technology, Strategy, and Sales working for the boutique management consulting firm Daemon Quest, now part of Deloitte.
Simon is a professor of digital healthcare management at IE Business School, the European Corporate Chair of HIMSS and a mentor to digital health, health tech and artificial intelligence start-ups.
“The one who dares wins!”
Q&A WITH SIMON
Define your experience in the IMBA in one word.
Impactful!
The IMBA experience has a long lasting and highly positive impact on my professional as well as personal life.
How did your experience at IE prepare you for your professional career? In what ways do you think the program changed your life professionally and personally?
IE and my time during the IMBA in Madrid broadened my way of thinking and set the starting point for a new direction in my career. Initially I had the plan to boost my consulting job to the next career level by perusing the master’s degree. During the time at IE, I (re)defined what my personal drivers for career success are and I decided after the MBA to pivot in my career and to join the healthcare & technology space. A decision that I have never regretted.
What was networking like in the program?
The benefit of networking during and after the MBA program has been priceless. Being at the IE campus sometimes felt like taking part in a meeting of the United Nations. You meet such a diverse crowd at IE providing you with unique opportunities to experience a wealth of cultures and to learn from different backgrounds.
What was your favorite memory from your time at IE?
That is a real tough question, because there are so many. As I am still in close contact with the alumni community and as I am teaching at IE, new memories are created on a regular basis. If I need to pick one memory I would choose “The Global Village.” The Global Village reflects the spirit of IE and celebrates IE’s diverse community that represents every corner of the globe. A truly unique experience.
If someone was considering going to IE, what would you tell them?
Referring to the slogan of a famous American sports brand I would tell them “Just Do It.” Jokes aside, I would tell them that the ROI of the network, the education, the gathered experiences, and the personal growth are worth taking the risk.
Why did you choose to study this program at IE?
The diversity of the students and faculty, the entrepreneurship focus, the city of Madrid, the feedback from alumni and the feeling after my first campus visit made me chose IE as my alma mater.
What is one thing you wished you knew, when you were a student? What advice would you give to students who are about to begin the program?
The new impulses you receive from your peers. The best advice I can give you is “don’t do the usual and try the new.” The beauty of the IE family is the diversity in culture, backgrounds, opinions, and capabilities giving you a wealth of opportunities to experiment new things. Go to that Lebanese Dinner, join the Korean Club, and take part in the exchange program, take every opportunity during the year to reinvent yourself and to broaden your mind.
Tell us about the IE alumni community and the impact they have had in your life and/or career. Why do you think it’s important to engage with the IE alumni community?
During my IMBA opening ceremony in the year 2010 IE gave a promise to me, the promise of an exciting journey in form of the poem Ithaca from Constantine Cavafy. In 2010, I embarked on my MBA considering it a lifelong experience. Some IE classmates have become closest friends and even my best man in my upcoming wedding. The IE Alumni community allows you to stay in touch with friends from all over the world, stay connected to your alma mater and it always offers you the possibility to return to Madrid.
As one of the first contributors towards the Illuminated Bricks campaign, how does it feel?
An investment in education is an investment in our future. It is an enriching feeling to give future generations of talent the opportunity to become part of the IE family and to obtain the same top-notch education I received.
What made you decided to give your first gift?
I have been lucky and fortunate in my life so far and it felt like the right moment to give back to the IE Family. I hope my donation encourages more alumni to contribute to the IE Foundation.
In your opinion, why is it important to give back? Why does this cause matter to you?
My father spent part of his working life performing voluntary medical missions in developing countries and helping the poorest of the poor. I was raised and educated with the mindset that giving back is a moral and societal obligation. Furthermore, I believe in the right of every human being to receive education, that is why I believe it is my responsibility to give back.
What can we do within our IE Community to create an impact and support education?
There are various ways to give back and have an impact on education within the IE Community. Here are 4 ideas that worked for me in the years after my program.
Donate to programs like this in the IE Foundation. Become a mentor to students in impact projects and in dedicated mentoring programs. Provide real-life problem statements and guidance for university impact projects. Design an elective in a needed area and become adjunct faculty. Choose the way that works for you but start somewhere.
What would you tell someone who was thinking about contributing?
Don’t think twice and donate an amount you consider as suitable. The investment in education creates a better society and impacts someone’s future.
If you had a billboard you could display to the entire world, what you would put on it?
The one who dares wins!