Michael is an expert in healthcare marketing strategies and changing consumer behavior,
with 17+ years of experience. His award-winning work has benefited pharmaceutical companies, hospitals,
patient organizations, insurers, non-profits and others in both human and animal health arenas. He has
worked with some of the world's leading healthcare brands, including Pfizer Inc., Weight Watchers International,
Johns Hopkins Medicine, Teva Neuroscience and the American Psychological Association.
Meet the Expert:
Michael O’Brien
Senior Vice President, Healthcare
What makes a great brand?
Rabid fans who spread a positive brand message via word of mouth.
It works faster than any other form of marketing.
What got you into this business in the first place?
I started as a legal reporter covering criminal courts and serial
murders for a small daily in Florida. It was gruesome, and I knew I needed a change.
Marketing and PR was a natural progression for me, because I could apply similar skill
sets (without having to view autopsy photos). It worked out.
Do you have a method for coming up with ideas and solutions for clients?
People make things too complicated. You have to keep it simple. Deeply
understand a client’s need. Figure out what it will take to move the needle. Then
try to come up with a something no one ever did before.
What was a big influence in your career?
Someone twice my age had the courage to put a young person in a senior
leadership position. That taught me a lot about empowering people and inspiring them to achieve.
That young person has never forgotten that lesson.
What was your “finest moment,” the thing you're most proud
of?
I helped turn one of the ugliest moments in sports history into a home run.
I was working for an institution focused on rare pediatric disorders. This happened to be around
the same time that Baltimore Orioles baseball player Roberto Alomar spat in the face of umpire
John Hirschbeck and later made a comment about Hirschbeck’s son, who died from ALD, a rare
pediatric disorder. After working with the Orioles to arrange a donation from Alomar and the
team to an ALD research fund at the institution, I was able to convince Hirschbeck to allow a
reporter to tell his family’s story for the first time ever, and educate the public about ALD.
That story ultimately won a Pulitzer Prize (not to mention national media attention). It
doesn’t get better than that.
If you had to live on a desert island, what would you miss most?
TV. I have to admit I’m a TV addict. I could not live
without my TV, DVR, DVDs and any other acronym that emits pictures and sound.
What’s your p.o.v about politics?
Whatever your party affiliation, closely observing politics is a
crash course in the best (and worst) of public relations. Politicians will show you
the good and bad of handling crisis, sticking to your message and communicating a
unique point of view.
What was college like for you?
I loved college. I played on the university’s baseball
team and was always busy. But, I’d have to say that I gained the most valuable
experience not in the classroom, but at my internships. During that time, I worked for
a TV station, radio station and newspaper. I got a taste for the whole media industry.
What do you like most about working at IMRE?
You mean besides the fountain soda machine?