Q&A With CEO Stanley Bergman
Stanley Bergman is Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer at Henry Schein, Inc.
Q: What has been your company’s greatest achievement?
A: Our 89-year record of growth, achieved by a relentless commitment to serving our customers and investing in our Team Schein Members, is our greatest achievement. As a company with a “higher ambition,” we firmly believe that balancing our social purpose with our long-term financial goals will drive sustainable success, while also making a positive difference in the world.
Over the course of nearly 9 decades, we have reinvented the organization to meet customer needs, taking advantage of new technologies and tapping into burgeoning markets. Through it all, we have remained focused on our efforts to drive innovation and build market share, while holding ourselves accountable to the 5 constituencies—customers, suppliers, shareholders, Team Schein Members, and society at large—that make up our “Mosaic of Success.” Our consistent track record in delivering solid operating results, along with our pipeline of future growth initiatives, significantly contributes to the company’s business achievements.
Above all else, however, there is one advantage that sustains our future and that’s Team Schein. We have proven again and again that we can weather any storm and continue exceeding expectations. It is for this reason that I believe our best years are yet to come.
Q: Why do dental professionals know they can rely on you?
A It is our belief that dental professionals rely on us because of our network of valued suppliers and industry experts, our comprehensive offering of technology and services, our supply chain excellence, our deep industry and professional relationships, and the talented Team Schein Members who support all members of the dental team every day. The dental professional can rely on us to care for their practice while they care for their patients.
When we say “Rely on Us,” we make a promise. We promise to use the power of our collaborative network of trusted advisors and the organizational intelligence it represents to deliver information, education, and consultation on the valued solutions we offer. Our suite of offerings includes more than 300 solutions in the following categories—business solutions that help customers successfully manage and grow their businesses; clinical solutions that help customers stay on the leading edge of patient care; technology solutions that help customers harness innovation to benefit the clinical setting and their patients; supply chain solutions that provide customers with the industry’s broadest product selection and deepest inventory, and of course delivering the right products at the right time.
Our customers’ needs have changed over the course of our 89-year history, but our commitment to creating an outstanding customer experience has never wavered—from our high-touch engagement to the valued solutions we offer to meet the unique needs of our customers. Three simple words, “Rely on Us,” capture our implicit promise of customer value. They represent the scope of our solutions, the knowledge of our network, and the consistency in our supply chain excellence that results in relevant differentiation for our customers.
Q: What is your company’s vision/strategy for the year ahead?
A: We are currently in the process of developing our 2022–2024 strategic plan, which we believe will enable us to continue delivering value to our Mosaic of Success. A core element in our strategic efforts is a further advancement of our value-added model, with our One Schein initiative. This unified go-to-market approach enables practitioners to work synergistically with the entire value of Henry Schein, Inc. One Schein is bringing Henry Schein’s supply chain, equipment sales and service, specialty, Henry Schein One, and other value-added services together, allowing our customers to leverage the combined value that we offer through a unique approach to managing customer engagement. Ultimately, One Schein enables customers to enhance patient treatment options and outcomes and simplify business operations, in addition to the opportunity to drive practice profitability.
As we look to the future, we believe that no other company delivers a combination of products, solutions, expertise, and access to a network of trusted advisors that is equal to Henry Schein’s, which dental practitioners value as a resource to help drive practice success.