The Early Careerist and Young Professional’s Guide

As an early careerist or young professional in health care strategy, the Society for Health Care Strategy and Market Development (SHSMD) recognizes that you may have unique questions and needs compared to seasoned professionals. We are here to help! 

Networking, Collaboration & Learning Resources
 

• The Young Professionals Online Member Community is an online forum for you to share your experiences, ask questions, and gain valuable insights from peers. This is a safe space for questions you may be hesitant to ask your colleagues, such as the meaning of unfamiliar acronyms, or those particularly relevant to early-career professionals navigating the initial stages of their journeys.
  • Be sure to check out the other Groups in the MySHSMD homepage! If you find a Group you would like to join, simply click on the green “Join Group” button near the top of the page.
     
• Member Meet Ups are another great way to virtually connect with your peers to discuss and potentially solve real world problems affecting the health care industry today. Although discussion topics are predefined, we encourage the free flow of ideas and collaborative discussions around processes, strategic initiatives, and trends/opportunities in the field.
  • Are you facing a challenge in this constantly changing health care landscape that you want to discuss? We invite you to submit a topic for future learning initiatives.
     
• The SHSMD Connections Annual Conference features a variety of networking opportunities, such as in-person Member Meet Ups, including one for young professionals. SHSMD Connections is a great opportunity to get cutting-edge education while meeting like-minded peers and making connections that often last a lifetime.
   
• The SHSMD Mentorship Program is a resource for you to further your career, ignite an innovative new idea and develop your strengths. Mentees can connect with Mentors for six months to collaboratively explore and work toward agreed upon goals. Or try Flash Mentorship, an opportunity to work through a specific task, skill or project. Mentees get the opportunity to pick their mentor, so you are paired with someone who has the experience you are looking for. 
   
• Our Resource Library provides hundreds of tools to help you do your job and grow your organization. Organized by resource type and topic, it is easily searchable so you can find the answers and guides you need.
   
• Every other month, our Spectrum newsletter brings stories from the field to your fingertips. Each issue contains feature stories presenting best practices and case studies in health care strategy, marketing and communication, and public relations. It’s your frontline source of what your peers are doing at their organizations.
   
• Futurescan: Health Care Trends and Implications is a series of publications from SHSMD and ACHE that discusses key trends transforming the future of health care. Gain insights from industry leaders on how to prioritize emerging needs while maintaining existing strengths in this dynamic landscape. SHSMD members get one free digital copy!
   
• Bridging Worlds: The Future Role of the Health Care Strategist is intended to provoke thought, inspire discussion, and drive change. It includes stories from the ground highlighting how individuals and health care organizations have increased their resiliency and adaptation, redefined competencies, created new roles, and adopted lessons from other industries. 
   

Other Valuable Opportunities
 

• SHSMD's Student and Diversity Enrichment Program is a great way for historically underrepresented groups to jump-start their career in the health care strategy field. This membership program, designed for students, provides qualified candidates with the opportunity to join SHSMD and attend the SHSMD Connections Conference for free. If you know someone who could benefit from joining this program, please help spread the word by sharing our flyer!
   
• The SHSMD Career Center includes tools and resources specifically designed for health care strategists like you who proactively manage their career paths and professional skills. The landscape of health care strategy changes rapidly, and preparing for its future means preparing for yours as well. Take steps with SHSMD to position yourself for performance excellence!
   
• SHSMD and the Commission on Accreditation of Health Care Management Education (CAHME) have partnered to provide students from CAHME-accredited programs with a free one-year student membership that will support your coursework by providing access to timely industry-leading resources.
   

Upcoming Education Events for Health Care Marketers, Communicators & Strategists
 

View the Full Education Events Calendar  


Got questions? Contact us at shsmd@aha.org.