Marking the Five-Year Milestone

What were you doing five years ago? Chances are, much like this year, you may have been watching presidential candidates vie for voters’ attention. You may even have been complaining about the skyrocketing cost of gas. (The average price of gas in 2003 was $1.71 a gallon—wow, the good ol’ days, eh?) While I ordinarily would be tempted to say the more things change, the more they stay the same, with this issue of Medical Product Outsourcing we celebrate a little something different: our five-year anniversary. Although five years may not seem like a long time to you, take it from me: In the life of a new media outlet, five years is a significant milestone. As such, please forgive us a tad bit of egocentricity on this occasion.

As I wasn’t yet part of the MPO story in 2003 (though I do remember reading some of the earliest issues with great interest), Howard Revitch, the magazine’s group publisher, recently sat down with me to provide a little perspective into MPO’s early days. Here’s a little bit of our conversation:

What were your goals in founding MPO five years ago?

I wanted to create a publication that truly explained and explored the nuances of the partnership between the OEM and outsourcing service provider. It’s a unique relationship, and there needed to be a magazine just as unique to cover it. Prior to MPO, I think it was a market that was under-served. So our goal from day one was to focus every issue on the outsourcing partnership like no other magazine in the medical device industry previously had done.

Do you think you’ve achieved what you set out to accomplish?

Yes. I think we’ve come a long way. But because we cover an ever-changing industry, it is important for MPO to stay cutting-edge, just like the companies we cover. Editorially, we certainly have accomplished that and will continue to change to meet the market and readers’ demands.

In what areas do you think MPO has been most successful?

We have been able to reach both the OEMs and contract service providers and educate them, first with our magazines and then with our conferences. With MPO, when we go to meetings or trade events, I am always amazed by how many subscribers tell me that they read our magazine from cover to cover. I’ve been in publishing a long time, and you don’t hear that too often. That’s when you know you’re doing something right.

What has been most surprising/unexpected during the past five years?

I’m always amazed by how many people in the medical device industry still don’t understand what outsourcing is. Some people think it’s the same as offshoring—which it is not—or have a negative connotation of it because they think it means sending US jobs overseas. There are still a lot of people to educate. When I describe outsourcing to someone, I ask: “Do you paint your own house?” Usually the answer is no. You find someone who can do it better, faster and, ultimately, cheaper than you could. That’s outsourcing.

What do you hope to accomplish going forward?

As the outsourcing sector and medtech industry continue to grow, we need to stay in tune with what’s happening in all areas of medical device development and manufacturing—to be the leading outlet for device industry coverage, information and education.

Well, on that note, I guess we’d better get back to work. There’s a lot still to do. In the meantime, please enjoy this issue’s fifth anniversary executive roundtable (page 44). A diverse group of medical device industry and outsourcing corporate leaders generously provided their time, talent and experience to discuss how the market has progressed during the past five years. In addition, panel members also share details about some of the technology and trends they believe will shape the industry in the next five years and beyond.

I very often use this space to say thanks to our readers. But, with this issue in particular, your significant contribution is most sincerely noted and appreciated.