A People-First Approach to Leadership: Chris Ground

“I like to surround myself with great people, give them a definitive, almost palpable vision, then move out of the way and strive to keep up with them!”

— Chris Ground

FINDING YOUR LIFE’S passion in the context of your career is an aspiration for many, although few are fortunate enough to make a living doing what they love. For Chris Ground, chief operating officer at FFF Enterprises Inc., in Temecula, Calif., the man, the mission and the vision have clearly merged. For more than 13 years, Ground has played an instrumental role in helping FFF, the nation’s largest distributor of critical care biopharmaceuticals, achieve a flawless safety track record. While many factors have contributed to this stellar achievement, Ground sums it up pretty simply: “We never lose sight of the fact that the product moving through our secure channel is for a patient. Safety must be, and therefore is, at the center of everything we do.”

Practicing What He Preaches

As a leader, Ground is known for practicing what he preaches: “When you move into a leadership role, people begin to pay attention to what you say and how you conduct business. It’s really important to lead by example, something I endeavor to do in my personal and professional life.” Ground maintains an open-door policy that encourages collaboration and fosters the team environment he values. Despite a recent promotion, he stresses that leadership is relational rather than positional.

In a culture that is more collegial than corporate, this relational style lends itself to a high-performing, committed team that, as he says, takes their work, but not themselves, seriously. “I like to surround myself with great people, give them a definitive, almost palpable vision, then move out of the way and strive to keep up with them,” says Ground. “Everyone wants to be a part of something greater than themselves, and if you can get people to embrace the vision, they will want to get there as a team. When you have a team like that, there’s no stopping you.”

Making Patient Safety His No. 1 Priority

Ground’s career includes 18 years on the manufacturer’s side of the business where he developed a somewhat cynical view of product distribution channels. The shady tactics he witnessed firsthand left him with little desire to ever “switch teams.” That is, until destiny intervened in the form of a meeting with Patrick M. Schmidt, chief executive officer of FFF, that convinced him that there was one distributor focused on creating a secure supply chain and putting patient safety first.

“At the time, the distribution chain was considered unseemly to say the least,” recalls Ground. “It was common for distributors, especially during times of short supply, to practice price gouging and other unsafe handling practices. When Patrick started talking to me about tracking lots right down to the patient, and securing the supply chain, he immediately got my attention. He was describing a company that could potentially change the way business was done, in a way that would ultimately benefit patients. I wanted to be a part of that.”

Since joining FFF in 1998, Ground has helped the company grow from $178 million in annual revenue to more than $1 billion. He also has played a pivotal role in making FFF the leading distributor of albumin, intravenous immune globulin (IVIG) and flu vaccine in the country. In his current role as chief operating officer, Ground oversees the various business units and innovative programs for the company.

Ground’s initial reason for joining FFF, his passion for patient safety, has been instrumental in bringing the company into a leadership position on the subject of pharmaceutical supply chain safety. “It’s a source of great pride that the mission that resonated so strongly with me when first speaking with Patrick has become a reality,” says Ground. “We have impacted this industry in a positive way, and I couldn’t be more fulfilled.” The company has implemented what it calls the 8 Critical Steps to Guaranteed Channel Integrity, an intricate system of safeguards that includes product lot tracking, high-tech storage, handling and shipping guidelines, and a commitment to purchase products only from the manufacturer, and to distribute only to healthcare providers.

Ground’s dedication to product and supply chain safety has its roots in a painful personal experience. During the early 1980s, Ground lost a dear friend who contracted AIDS from a tainted blood transfusion. As referenced in the article titled “Good Blood” featured in this issue of BioSupply Trends Quarterly, the HIV infection in our nation’s blood supply 30 years ago put a spotlight on the need for viral inactivation technologies and more stringent safety and screening steps within the blood/plasma industry.

“That experience added to what had already become a personal passion,” says Ground. “Over the years, I’ve had the privilege of touring many of our manufacturing partners’ plants and have observed the pride they take in the purity of their product, as well as their stringent safety guidelines. Understanding the role the supply chain plays in product safety is extremely important, and everybody along the way has to take some responsibility and accountability. At FFF, we take our role very seriously.”

Looking to the Future

As he looks to FFF’s future, Ground is excited about expanding the company’s industry relationships and sphere of influence. “We have embraced a much more comprehensive relationship with all the stakeholders in healthcare, including patients, providers and payers,” he explains. “We believe our industry is in a pivotal time of change, and as a result, we are looking at various models that will still meet our end goal: to get the critical-care products we distribute from the manufacturer to the patient in the safest and most efficient way possible. It takes a team that goes far beyond our corporate walls, and I feel blessed to work with such great partners — from the manufacturers and payers, to the patients and advocacy groups — that all share this worthwhile vision.”