"Remote and virtual methods of doing business seem to be what most people are focused on. I encourage businesses to focus on that aspect."
Dr. Ehsan Ali is the founder and CEO of “Beverly Hills Concierge Doctor and Urgent Care.” He is board-certified in Internal Medicine and is fellowship-trained in Geriatric Medicine. Dr. Ehsan Ali completed his medical education at NYU (New York University) in 2008. Dr. Ali is on staff at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Dr. Ali is the Lead Physician and provides medical care to all our concierge medicine members.
Dr. Ehsan Ali has made appearances on several TV news stations, television shows, magazines, newspapers, and various media outlets domestically and internationally. CNN, LA TIMES, GQ MAGAZINE, HUFFINGTON POST, WALLSTREET JOURNAL, PAGE SIX are just a few examples.
He enjoys living a healthy and active lifestyle, such as running, hiking, swimming, and weight training. Dr. Ali volunteers at free medical clinics located in inner-city/urban areas in his spare time.
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Table of Contents
We are thrilled to have you join us today, welcome to ValiantCEO Magazine’s exclusive interview! Let’s start off with a little introduction. Tell our readers a bit about yourself and your company.
Dr. Ehsan Ali: My name is Ehsan Ali. I was born and raised in California. I knew I wanted to be a physician ever since I was 7 years old. During med school I knew there was a need for a “concierge doctor”, which is a doctor who is available 24/7, makes home visits, provides above and beyond medical care, etc. And so in 2014 I opened doors to my practice in Beverly Hills.
2021 and 2022 threw a lot of curve balls into business on a global scale. Based on the experience gleaned in the past couple years, how can businesses thrive in 2023? What lessons have you learned?
Dr. Ehsan Ali: When there is a will, there is a way. The pandemic changed the way our business functioned significantly. Although our traditional method of business slowed down, with our innovative thinking and creative methods of offering medical care, we actually did very well.
We learned to adapt to new technology and keep up with current (and constantly changing) trends, and tap into parts of our industry where there was a void. Whatever industry you are in, I recommend people keep an open mind and be creative. Think of things that are not being done, and try to stand out and be different from your competition.
The pandemic seems to keep on disrupting the economy, what should businesses focus on in 2023? What advice would you share?
Dr. Ehsan Ali: Remote and virtual methods of doing business seem to be what most people are focused on. I encourage businesses to focus on that aspect.
How has the pandemic changed your industry and how have you adapted?
Dr. Ehsan Ali: Our business model was traditionally seeing patients in the office, or their home. During the pandemic we started offering virtual appointments, which we still offer. That was something that all our patients enjoyed and appreciated.
Many of our patients now choose to be seen via Telehealth (saving them time with the commute, saving the hassle of driving/parking). Everyone is busy and they appreciate the conveniences. We offer nurses to come to patients homes for any testing, which is another convenience patients love. We are also available 7 days a week now.
What advice do you wish you received when the pandemic started and what do you intend on improving in 2023?
Dr. Ehsan Ali: If someone had told me business was going to grow so rapidly, I would have loved to be better prepared and organized. I would have had additional staff ready so that we could have been prepared for the rise in number of patients we were seeing.
For 2022, I am focusing on being more organized and having proper delegation, making sure I have teams created within our business to focus on specific tasks. Also, continue to offer new and unique healthcare treatments as they become available.
Online business surged higher than ever, B2B, B2C, online shopping, virtual meetings, remote work, Zoom medical consultations, what are your expectations for 2023?
Dr. Ehsan Ali: I believe this method of business will continue for 2022 and onward. We look forward to being able to offer this method of treatment/business.
How many hours a day do you spend in front of a screen?
Dr. Ehsan Ali: I spend about 10 hours in front of a screen.
The majority of executives use stories to persuade and communicate in the workplace. Can you share with our readers examples of how you implement that in your business to communicate effectively with your team?
Dr. Ehsan Ali: Employees often make mistakes, and I find myself repeatedly having to tell them the same thing. I have realized the best method to communicate is to personalize the reasons for the task. For example, I will tell the staff, “The reason we need to do ‘XYZ’ is because once I was responsible for doing this task, and if I did it the wrong way, the end result would be disastrous with an unpleasant result. But, if you can modify the way of doing it, we can prevent ‘XYZ’ from happening.”
Example: Patient calls (at 4:59 pm, and we close at 5 pm) “Hi, I want to be seen today”.
Staff response: “Sorry we can’t, bye”, then hangs up the phone.
My way of communicating/teaching staff: “When you don’t politely explain why we cannot accommodate a patient, we come across rude and as if we do not want to help the patient. Patient will then tell everyone not to come to us because we don’t care. You have to say, “We would love to be able to help you, but it’s 4:59 pm right now, and we close the office in exactly 1 minute. By the time you arrive there won’t be any doctors in the office. How about we schedule you for first thing tomorrow morning?”
Business is all about overcoming obstacles and creating opportunities for growth. What do you see as the real challenge right now?
Dr. Ehsan Ali: Most business owners will agree, at this time specifically, it is very hard to build a strong team of employees who all have the same work ethic and level of motivation. I don’t want an employee who is interested in just showing up 8-5, sitting at their desk (may or may not be productive) and concerned only about their paycheck.
I would like to have a staff full of intelligent, motivated, go-getter employees who can help me grow our business and take it to the next level.
In 2023, what are you most interested in learning about? Crypto, NFTs, online marketing, or any other skill sets? Please share your motivations.
Dr. Ehsan Ali: Coming up with more creative social media, different then what everyone else in my industry is posting.
Learning about and offering any innovative treatments we can offer.
A record 4.4 million Americans left their jobs in September in 2021, accelerating a trend that has become known as the Great Resignation. 47% of people plan to leave their job during 2022. Most are leaving because of their boss or their company culture. 82% of people feel unheard, undervalued and misunderstood in the workplace. Do you think leaders see the data and think “that’s not me – I’m not that boss they don’t want to work for? What changes do you think need to happen?
Dr. Ehsan Ali: In my opinion, I think most bosses just don’t care. They think it’s a privilege for employees to work for them. That is unfortunate. Employers need to be able to connect with their employees, and become more engaged so that employees feel “heard” and appreciated.
On a lighter note, if you had the ability to pick any business superpower, what would it be and how would you put it into practice?
Dr. Ehsan Ali: Being able to read people’s minds. That way I already know what they want, why they are here, what their goals/expectations are. That war out consultations would be much more efficient.
What does “success” in 2023 mean to you? It could be on a personal or business level, please share your vision.
Dr. Ehsan Ali: Success to me is just having a very good work/life balance and feeling content with both. Having a thriving business, as well as enjoying my life with friends and family in my spare time.
Jed Morley, VIP Contributor to ValiantCEO and the host of this interview would like to thank Dr. Ehsan Ali for taking the time to do this interview and share his knowledge and experience with our readers.
If you would like to get in touch with Dr. Ehsan Ali or his company, you can do it through his – Instagram
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