Linda MacCrackenMarket Strategist
Igniting Sustainable Advantage
Evanston, IL
lmaccrac@hsph.harvard.eduLinda MacCracken is currently serving as faculty at Harvard and a proactive business advisor, standing out as a seasoned health market strategist enabling client teams to find exponential results. She is adept at leveraging insights and guiding workshops that produce clear paths for health firms that ignite team, lay out roadmaps and identify ROI value opportunities. Her work empowers teams to exceed expected outcomes, transition rapidly into market leadership and secure funding at promising value identification. This work has supported delivery and marketing teams to refine services, increase magic moments, integrate digital touchpoints while improving margin, ratings and achieving sustained target market leadership positions.
Having served as Associate Director at Accenture and VP Advisory Services at IBM Watson (formerly Truven Health Analytics/Thomson Reuters Health), Linda’s leadership has also grown a consulting practice, as VP Product Management, elevating both renewal rates and sales through innovative consumer and health market solutions. Linda’s insights include talks like “Consumer Reinvention to Maximize Access & Experience” at SHSMD, “Boosting Senior Loyalty with a Blend of IT and Digital” at HIMSS. She co-authored “Health Marketing” in MBA for Healthcare by Oxford Press, and authored Market Driven Strategy, AHA Press, as well as other influential publications.
Linda holds a BA in Psychology/Political Science, Macalester College and MBA/HCM, Boston University. She was honored by the American Hospital Association’s SHSMD with the 2020 Leadership Excellence Award. This past year she continues to serve on the Marketing Strategy Editorial Board, has been a reviewer of Digital Health Marketing Awards and Accenture’s Health Tech Challenge Awards, and co-chaired SHSMD Rising Stars Committee. Linda is a frequent speaker on experience optimization in health delivery, market strategy and digital convergence.
Linda has contributed her expertise to the articles below.
// By Linda MacCracken and Jane Weber Brubaker // A focused, bidirectional collaboration between health system call centers and marketing teams is critical to ensuring positive customer experiences that deliver on the brand promise and ultimately drive organizational targets for growth and revenue. But done right, all of these problems can be avoided.
The SHCM Editorial Advisory Board is made up of leaders in the health care marketing field who are committed to shaping the future of the industry. They offer ongoing feedback on our editorial coverage, write occasional articles, and point us to developments and people SHCM members like you should know about. We’re very pleased to announce that Suzanne Hendery Read More
The SHCM Editorial Advisory Board is made up of leaders in the health care marketing field who are committed to shaping the future of the industry. They offer ongoing feedback on our editorial coverage, write occasional articles, and point us to developments and people SHCM members like you should know about. We’re very pleased to announce that Lindsay Resnick Read More
The SHCM Editorial Advisory Board is made up of leaders in the health care marketing field who are committed to shaping the future of the industry. They offer ongoing feedback on our editorial coverage, write occasional articles, and point us to developments and people SHCM members like you should know about. We’re very pleased to Read More
Well before cases of COVID-19 began to spike in the U.S., health care organizations were watching the response to the pandemic unfold worldwide and preparing for the worst-case scenario. Communications to myriad stakeholders have been and are being created, coordinated, and standardized across multiple channels. Accurate, up-to-date information is essential for all of us. To Read More
// By Jane Weber Brubaker // Well before cases of COVID-19 began to spike in the U.S., health care organizations were watching the response to the pandemic unfold worldwide and preparing for the worst-case scenario. Communications to myriad stakeholders have been and are being created, coordinated, and standardized across multiple channels. Accurate, up-to-date information is Read More
“As health marketing strategists, we find ourselves on a frantic pace to reinvent,” says Linda MacCracken, a senior principal at Accenture and SHCM board member. “The new mantra for 2020 is to find, reach, and engage a higher purpose — that of unleashing trapped value. “Trapped value is the common challenge where digital and related Read More
// By Linda MacCracken // As health marketing strategists, we find ourselves on a frantic pace to reinvent. The new mantra for 2020 is to find, reach, and engage a higher purpose — that of unleashing trapped value. Trapped value is the common challenge where digital and related technologies are creating value faster than companies Read More
// By Jane Weber Brubaker // Consumerism is driving all industries to innovate, and health care is no exception. The ideal state is a digitally enabled, frictionless consumer experience. But in a highly complex industry like health care that has traditionally operated with a command-and-control vs. consumer-centric mindset, it’s a massive change. Adding to the Read More
The Strategic Health Care Marketing Editorial Advisory Board is made up of leaders in the health care marketing field who are committed to shaping the future of the industry. They offer ongoing feedback on our editorial coverage, write occasional articles, and point us to developments and people SHCM members like you should know about. I am very pleased to announce that Edward M. Rafalski, Ph.D., MPH, FACHE, and Kathy Selker have joined this elite group.
“In my ongoing conversations with industry leaders about what’s shifting in health care, five factors rose to the top of the list for 2019, as marketing moves to new dimensions, and closer to health system collaborative scaling of smart pilots.” In our new article, Linda MacCracken, senior principal, customer engagement at Accenture Health, and Strategic Read More
Five Key Market Dynamics for Marketers to Manage // By Linda MacCracken // “In my ongoing conversations with industry leaders about what’s shifting in health care, five factors rose to the top of the list for 2019, as marketing moves to new dimensions, and closer to health system collaborative scaling of smart pilots.” In this Read More
The SHCM Editorial Advisory Board is made up of leaders in the health care marketing field who are committed to shaping the future of the industry. They offer ongoing feedback on our editorial coverage, write occasional articles, and point us to developments and people SHCM members like you should know about. I’m very pleased to Read More
// By Lisa D. Ellis // Has your health care organization’s marketing strategy kept pace with your largest payer—Medicare? If not, you could be missing important opportunities to target seniors and caregivers with your services and keep them coming back for more. Need to Focus on Seniors — and Their Caregivers As organizations have become Read More
The SHCM Editorial Advisory Board is made up of leaders in the health care marketing field who are committed to shaping the future of the industry. They offer ongoing feedback on our editorial coverage, write occasional articles, and point us to developments and people SHCM members like you should know about. I’m very pleased to announce that Linda MacCracken has joined Read More
How often do you go to Starbucks, and what do you order? Your answer likely will be different from that of your co-worker or neighbor, since everyone has his or her own unique lifestyle and taste. The same premise also holds true when it comes to selecting health care services. Different people have different needs Read More
// By Lisa D. Ellis // For one health system, extensive research served as a catalyst to bring staff members together to create a dynamic campaign that truly resonates with its target audience. How often do you go to Starbucks and what do you order? Your answer likely will be different from that of your Read More
“One of the great pleasures of [Strategic Health Care Marketing] is tracking the innovative marketing approaches that are key to building consumer engagement,” says Linda MacCracken, senior principal at Accenture (and member of the SHCM Editorial Advisory Board). After numerous conversations with providers and technology innovators, and from reviewing trending analytic indicators, she has identified Read More
// By Linda MacCracken // One of the great pleasures of this journal is tracking the innovative marketing approaches that are key to building consumer engagement. After numerous conversations with providers and technology innovators, and from reviewing trending analytic indicators, I have identified five key factors in building strong customer engagement. How do these topics Read More
// By Andrea Simon, Ph.D. // A hospital “call center” often has been considered an irritating expense health care organizations have to endure, because people use phones and want to reach a doctor or patient in the hospital. But maybe it’s time to ask, “What if we’ve always been wrong?” Maybe a call center actually Read More