A transatlantic career journey: Meet Anthony H., Director of Upstream Marketing
Updated: Feb 17
Anthony H., Director of Upstream Marketing
He | Him | His
Anthony is currently the Director of Upstream Marketing focusing on Mako Robotics, but 10+ years ago, that wasn’t the direction his career was headed.
A rising tide raises all ships
In 2010, Anthony was considering joining Stryker’s sales team in the United Kingdom. Following a meeting with one of his former managers (who happened to work at Stryker), he was ready to join the team. What convinced Anthony that Stryker was the place for him? In his words, “Stryker’s reputation for excellence was very attractive, rising tides raise all ships. I wanted to surround myself with people who were driven to continually improve and achieve more. I knew being in this atmosphere, I would also be inspired in the same manner.”
So, how did Anthony go from selling neurosurgical devices for Stryker in the United Kingdom to leading a marketing team dedicated to identifying future unmet needs for Stryker’s Mako Business Unit at our Robotic Innovation Center in Florida? Excellent question.
Endless opportunities
Over the last decade, Anthony has held seven positions in four different Stryker locations. He’s worked in multiple Stryker business units and lived in three countries. Each of the professional changes Anthony accepted created the ability to become more agile and adaptive, skills that have served him well on his continued journey at Stryker. Anthony shared “Once you’re at Stryker, within six weeks you’ll know if this is the place for you. If it is, you’ll never want to leave. If you want to change roles or businesses, Stryker provides you with the ability to move around. Working at Stryker you can feel as though you’ve worked at several companies without ever leaving thanks to Stryker’s expansive footprint and breadth of services.”
When talking about his multiple moves Anthony shared that none of his relocations were mandatory, Stryker offered the possibility, and his family chose to live into the adventure.
Fun fact: Each of Anthony’s three children were born in a different country!
Stryker strived to provide a positive experience for the Harrison family during their multiple moves, including connecting them with other ex-pats who had shared experiences to help with integration. International relocation taught Anthony the best way to get the most out of a global move was by “Treating your new location as if you’ll live there forever. Making the lasting connections and putting roots down allows you to get the most out of an experience and build life-long relationships – both personally and professionally.”
The endless professional opportunities continue to play a large role in what keeps Anthony at Stryker to this day. “Whatever career goals you’re considering, you’ll find it at Stryker. And Stryker empowers its employees to do new things outside of their current role.”
Culture built to stand the test of time
In addition to Anthony’s “day job,” He is active in three employee resource groups (ERGs), is a Marketing Excellence Coach, and is involved in a few mentorship programs.
When it comes to mentorship, Anthony is an advocate for a 360-degree approach to development, “You should have someone you’re learning from, peers to lean on, and someone you’re helping to develop. I love the opportunity to mentor people with very different backgrounds than myself as well. You can learn just as much as a mentor as you can as a mentee. Our ERGs provide great opportunities to connect with people from different backgrounds. One of the most important things I’ve learned as a mentor is to only say yes if I can have the capacity to commit to giving that person what they need. I’ve been lucky to have great mentors over the years and enjoy having the chance to help someone else have a mentorship experience.”
Between international moves, multiple professional roles, and his enthusiasm to connect with colleagues in a meaningful way, Anthony has had several “career highs” that could be considered a peak – but the one that stands out was helping to build a brand-new sales organization in Canada. “You don’t often get the opportunity to build something new within an established company – it is rare and felt very special to be intentional about the talent and the culture from the beginning.” Anthony didn’t take this responsibility lightly, “It weighed heavy on me as a leader. I wanted the foundation to stand the test of time. I’ve been able to see the team be successful and seeing their collective success over time has been very special.”
A shared purpose
Anthony’s transatlantic career has taken him from the United Kingdom to Kalamazoo, Michigan, followed by Waterdown, Canada before landing in Weston, Florida. When reflecting on what working at the various Stryker locations was like Anthony noted “Everywhere you go within Stryker, globally, despite different cultural norms, there’s a shared sense of purpose that creates a feeling of community. Our mission “Together with our customers, we’re driven to make healthcare better” unites our teams.”
Life at Stryker has been a lot like a choose-your-own-adventure book for Anthony and his family. Each opportunity has opened new doors and created countless possible outcomes. When reflecting on advice he’d give to someone starting in their career he shared “Lead from where you are; be the best you can be in the role that you’re in. If you do this, the opportunities will come.”