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When crisis hits, what separates exceptional leaders from the rest?

Dr. Heidi Steinecker draws from her remarkable career as Deputy Director of the California Department of Public Health and US Citizen Diplomat to reveal the unexpected qualities that define crisis leadership.
"What will do the least amount of harm?"

This guiding question frames her approach to crisis management: She acknowledges that perfect solutions rarely exist, but strategic thinking can minimize suffering. Rather than merely reacting, she advocates for a proactive stance that combines data-driven decision-making with boots-on-the-ground intelligence gathering.
Heidi challenges conventional wisdom about crisis response. Being too calm during congressional testimony once drew criticism, yet she argues that compartmentalizing emotions while remaining focused is precisely what effective leaders must do. This emotional intelligence extends to recognizing when teams need mandatory breaks, a lesson learned during marathon pandemic response efforts when staff worked seven days a week for months.
The conversation explores how relationship-building before crises creates the foundation for an effective response and how trust and cultural understanding outweigh technological solutions. Her unique global perspective bridges lessons from remote villages to state-level pandemic management. And she finds hope in the next generation of leaders entering the workforce, who bring fresh enthusiasm and innovative approaches to complex problems. Their creativity and comfort with new tools promise more responsive, effective crisis management for the future.
Dr. Heidi W. Steinecker is a distinguished public health leader with over two decades of experience in healthcare delivery systems and public health policy.

She has held several key leadership roles, including serving as a US Citizen Diplomat for US Department of State, Deputy Director at the California Department of Public Health and Principal at Resultant Consulting, where she advises government leaders on innovative ways to improve healthcare system strengthening, disease surveillance infrastructure, data modernization, and proactive analytic systems for preventative interventions in population health. Her work spans pandemic preparedness, quality and safety systems, and global health security, including epidemiological fieldwork in Uganda’s border of DRC and Rwanda. With a proven ability to align strategy, policy, and operations, Dr. Steinecker is committed to building resilient health systems and disease mitigation platforms to improve local and global health. Her expertise lies in integrating data-driven systems with people-centered processes to drive transformational change across all levels of healthcare and public health infrastructure.

You can learn more about her on LinkedIn.

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