What happens when you're trained to make life-or-death decisions, but growing a business requires you to step back, listen, and let others lead?
Dr. Aaron Kovaleski knows both sides of that responsibility.
As an interventional radiologist and President of Endovascular Consultants of Colorado (ECCO), Aaron divides his time between treating patients and building a growing healthcare business. But the skills that make someone an exceptional physician don't automatically make them an effective CEO.
In this episode of the Leadership Capacity Show, Aaron and I discuss his unconventional journey into medicine, why he opened his own practice in January 2020, and what he's learning as he transitions from physician and founder to business leader.
We explore one of the most interesting distinctions in his career: In the procedure room, he must make immediate decisions and direct the team. As CEO, he's learning that listening, trusting others, and stepping away from decisions can produce better results.
We also get into his unconventional approach to hiring. Aaron doesn't believe in hiring for "culture fit." Instead, he believes a strong workplace culture should benefit from people who bring different strengths, personalities, and perspectives.
We discuss:
• How a childhood accident influenced Aaron's decision to become a physician
• His unconventional path from emergency medicine to interventional radiology
• Opening Colorado's first office-based lab during 2020
• Why being a physician and being a CEO require different leadership approaches
• Learning to delegate hiring, operations, and culture building
• Why ECCO doesn't hire for culture fit
• What makes an intelligent professional different from an effective manager
• The challenges of expanding a medical practice into multiple locations
• Balancing business growth with patient care
• What he's learning about building a company that doesn't depend entirely on him
Dr. Aaron Kovaleski is a board-certified, fellowship-trained interventional radiologist and President of Endovascular Consultants of Colorado (ECCO). He founded the practice in 2020 with a commitment to providing patients with accessible, compassionate care. Today, he's expanding the business while continuing to practice medicine.
New episodes every Tuesday.
Chapters
00:00 — Preview
01:04 — Meet Dr. Aaron Kovaleski
02:02 — Why Aaron Chose Medicine
04:37 — From English Major to Biology
05:04 — An Unconventional Medical Career
05:58 — Running a Rural Emergency Room
06:55 — Discovering Interventional Radiology
08:42 — Founding Endovascular Consultants of Colorado
09:43 — Physician vs. CEO: Two Different Leadership Approaches
13:35 — Opening a Medical Practice in 2020
17:48 — Learning to Delegate as a Founder
24:26 — Why ECCO Doesn't Hire for Culture Fit
27:11 — Rethinking Workplace Culture
29:35 — Expanding Into Multiple Medical Practices
31:42 — Private Equity, Business Growth, and Patient Care
ECCO Website: https://eccomedical.com/
Dr. Aaron Kovaleski on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aaron-kovaleski/