The Top 25 Consultants 2014: Jeff Lee

Not entirely surprising since Lee says Mindlance had been able to retain more than 98 percent of its workforce since 2007, which is one of the highest employee retention rates in the industry.

"With this kind of staffing stability, we have been able to transform new client engagements into long-term partnerships. Delivering consistent results year after year and from project to project has been crucial to our firm's success," he says. "We are able to produce positive outcomes for our clients because our firm is dedicated to taking care of its employees."

In life sciences technology consulting, the work we often do requires profound technical expertise and in depth knowledge of clients' specific business challenges, Lee says. "And I believe our people are the best in the industry."

Today, Lee leads the Life Sciences Practice at Cumberland Consulting Group and is responsible for overseeing the strategic growth of the practice, while serving many of the organization's top clients. With nearly two decades of pharmaceutical industry experience, Lee is a subject matter expert in commercial and government contracting, including charge-backs, rebates, Medicaid and government pricing.

Lee says he truly enjoys the challenge of learning new things and thrives when faced with solving complex problems. "I also enjoy working in an environment that inspires me, like the culture at Cumberland," Lee says.
"I am very passionate about the work we are doing as a consulting practice, but what I enjoy most is the group of people I get to work with on a daily basis—our leadership team, our employees and our clients. It's motivating to work with such dedicated, intelligent and hard-working individuals."

Lee calls the Top 25 Award "a call to action." He says he accepts the award "as a challenge to continue to grow professionally, to lead our firm with integrity and to exceed our clients' expectations in delivery."

What's the biggest factor to your success?

"There is no substitute for hard work, but I have found that focus is the key to accelerating results. It's important to choose a defined area in which to excel rather than trying to be good at everything, because ultimately, you won't be great at anything. In addition, setting clear goals and prioritizing activities to meet those goals has worked for me. Finally, in order to succeed, you must be willing to take risks. As the saying goes, if there is no risk, there is no reward. What keeps me motivated is the opportunity to create something bigger than myself. Building a company culture that allows everyone to succeed as a team gives the work I do meaning and purpose. My motivation is not to see what I can do alone, but to focus on what we can accomplish together."