1.

What brought you to Mayo Clinic, and how long have you worked here?

Life brought me to Rochester many years ago. Upon arrival, I was enamored with what Mayo Clinic stood for and what it meant to the community. Additionally, I wanted to move my career path in a different direction, so I set a goal to become part of the Mayo Clinic team. After much persistence, I was hired in Internal Operations (now Specimen Operations) more than 17 years ago. I held various roles in that area until I became a field service manager in Nov. 2019.

Michael Goard

2.

What’s your current role and what does a typical workday look like for you?

As a field service manager, I support the southeast portion of our Client Site Specimen Processing team (CSSP). The CSSP team works onsite for one of our many primary clients. We’re responsible for the expert handling of specimens bound for testing at Mayo Clinic Laboratories. Our team has grown a great deal. On any given day, I could be facilitating interviews, working on a project in the home office, or visiting staff at a client site. It’s truly a mixture with great variety.

3.

How do you think your work benefits providers and patients?

The staff I support are responsible for sending thousands of patient specimens in need of our expertise in laboratory testing. The proper care of those specimens is critical to the care of those patients. Additionally, our staff works at high-volume client sites, and the relationship we have with those clients contributes greatly to our success as an organization. In many ways, I do my best to cultivate, maintain and strengthen those relationships while supporting a great team who takes care of thousands of patients daily.

4.

Is there anything about you or your job that others might find surprising?

Some may be surprised to learn that we have Mayo Clinic Laboratories staff outside of Rochester, but onsite in a laboratory with many of our primary clients. To date, we have approximately three dozen facilities spread all over the country. 

5.

Which part(s) of your job is the most challenging, and why?

Managing remote staff can be challenging. In addition, our staff is embedded deep within the laboratory of a completely different organization. A little extra care and effort is required in making sure our staff realizes the important role they play for our team and for Mayo Clinic.

6.

What gives you meaning and purpose in your work?

I enjoy knowing that I play a small but mighty role for an important mission. I take great pride in sharing that I work for Mayo Clinic. We are known worldwide to be the very best at what we do for patients. If my work impacts that cause just a little bit each day, that gives me great satisfaction.