David Seligman, chairman and CEO of Best Doctors, Inc., in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, won the Gold Stevie® Award for Executive of the Year in Health Products & Services at The 2012 International Business Awards, presented in Seoul, South Korea, last October. (The entry kit for The 2013 (10th Annual) International Business Awards, the world's premier business awards competition, is now available. Request your entry kit today.) Here we look at how Seligman’s business philosophy and vision have shaped his company’s success.
Founded in 1989 by Harvard Medical School physicians and serving over 30 million members worldwide, Best Doctors works to help people get the right diagnosis and treatment. In a world in which published studies indicate from 15-28% of patients are misdiagnosed—translating into needless suffering and billions of wasted health care dollars annually—a growing number of companies and insurers are choosing Best Doctors’ diagnostic accuracy services and offerings.
Saving Lives Around The World
Under the leadership of David Seligman, its chairman and CEO, Best Doctors has made noteworthy progress recently in the areas of revenue growth, market expansion, and customer acquisition—progress made all the more impressive having been achieved during a shaky global economy. But if you were to ask David Seligman what he thought was the Company’s most notable achievement, he’d point to the lives that have been impacted by Best Doctors’ unique services.
Best Doctors has become a recognized global leader in combating misdiagnosis and the many quality problems of health care systems throughout the world. Through the efforts of Seligman and his team to deliver the right diagnoses and treatment for its members, the company reported in late 2011 it had corrected or refined diagnoses in 29 percent of cases in the US, and corrected or improved treatment in nearly 60 percent of cases, resulting in considerably improved patient outcomes and cost savings.
Company Achievements
When the management awards winner joined Best Doctors, the company had just a handful of dedicated employees and operated out of a small office in Boston. Almost 17 years later, through his leadership, Best Doctors has:
- Crossed the $150 million revenue threshold in 2012, from $94 million in 2010
- Grown its workforce to over 500 employees globally
- Increased its member count to more than 30 million people in every major region of the world
Seligman’s work has played a key role in efforts to deliver a measurable patient-outcome difference in thousands of lives each year, and in providing a common-sense model for how health care at its best could work around the world.
Groundbreaking Products
Seligman has overseen the delivery of several groundbreaking health products to the global health care market. Among them is InterConsultation™, which enables a case to be examined by a leading expert in that condition, allowing members and their treating physicians to be absolutely sure they have the right diagnosis and get the right treatment.
InterConsultation is an offering that has literally saved lives by giving members the correct diagnosis the first time around, or by correcting a previously incorrect diagnosis or treatment plan.
In 2012, Best Doctors, Inc. developed some unique web tools that it anticipates will help usher in a new age of expert physician collaboration. Their site will serve as a hub for a variety of resources, including a Physician-Only portal where experts will collaborate on patient cases, and Clinical Curbside, a physician-facing blog addressing diagnostic accuracy.
“These new tools will enable physicians to be even better diagnosticians,” said Seligman. “BestDoctors.com is providing patients, doctors, and employers the peace of mind that comes with knowing the best medical minds in the right specialty areas are working together on their health cases. Health plans are also served and can now access diagnostic support and independent second opinions for their network providers, thereby contributing to improved health outcomes and reduced costs. Whether you are a patient, employer or health plan, everybody wants the right health solutions.”
The Importance of the Right Diagnosis
Seligman has led the launch of a number of global insurance products, giving members the peace of mind that they will have the best possible care in the world should they need it.
Says Seligman: “The human toll of misdiagnosis is tremendous. It deprives patients of needed care and exposes them to the side effects of inappropriate treatment. It generates untold expenses from incorrect treatment, and can often mean deadly consequences when a condition goes undiagnosed and progresses in severity.”
Seligman continues to lead efforts to make better health care a reality for everyone, no matter where they live. On receiving the Stevie Award, Seligman commented: “Our team worldwide was deeply honored by this recognition from the International Business Awards. We think these awards speak to our innovative work to change and improve the health care paradigm by offering a truly patient-centric experience. Our mission is focused on taking the ‘guesswork’ out of health care by getting people the right information and correct answers, and we know that focus is what is resonating so strongly with our members around the world.”
Seligman and his team at Best Doctors believe that the right diagnosis provided the first time around—together with quality, more customized patient care—should be the rule and not the exception.
About David Seligman:
David Seligman serves as chairman and CEO of Boston-based Best Doctors, Inc., and has led the company’s growth strategy since 1997. Seligman has 23 years of broad management and strategic experience in the healthcare sector including market development, mergers and acquisitions, and performance turnarounds. Prior to joining Best Doctors in 1997, he was a Director of Operations and Corporate Development at Fresenius Medical Care.
Seligman graduated valedictorian from Thunderbird School of Global Management with a Masters degree, and from UCLA with a bachelor’s degree in Economics.
About Best Doctors:
Best Doctors works with the best five percent of doctors, ranked by impartial peer review, to help people get the right diagnosis and right treatment. Gallup® has audited and certified Best Doctors, Inc.’s database of physicians, and its companion Best Doctors in America® List, as using the highest industry standards survey methodology and processes. The global health solutions company, which has grown to over 30 million members worldwide, uses state-of-the-art technology capabilities to deliver improved health outcomes while reducing costs. Best Doctors seamlessly integrates its trusted health services with large self-insured employers, insurers, and other groups in every major region of the world. The company also designs and implements international insurance programs that help people be sure they get the right health solutions. For further information, visit www.bestdoctors.com.
These awards cannot be applied for directly. Winners are determined by a points system based on the total number of awards won in the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service, with a Gold Stevie win counting for 3 points, a Silver Stevie for 2 points, and a Bronze Stevie counting for 1.5. 
In a meeting with your CEO it’s agreed that your company will enter one of the Stevie® Awards competitions. Decision made. Your CEO then walks out of the meeting, so now all you have to do is make it happen.
