About Konstantina Rowald, Project Lead
Location: Erlangen, Germany
Key Strengths: Project management, hospital operational master planning, due diligence, pharmaceutical and diagnostic sector
Value Partner Since: 2019
Personal Interests: Travel, biking
Key Strengths: Project management, hospital operational master planning, due diligence, pharmaceutical and diagnostic sector
Value Partner Since: 2019
Personal Interests: Travel, biking
How a molecular biologist became a healthcare consultant
Dr. Konstantina Rowald has a strong background as a research scientist. She changed careers to become a healthcare consultant because she wanted to help effect change on a large, broad scale.
At Siemens Healthineers Value Partners, she has that opportunity — helping large hospital systems and healthcare providers expand, boost patient experience, optimize their workflows, keep pace with the digitalization of healthcare, and plan for the future.
“In the end, every consulting project is a bit of a scientific project, because you have to think of strategies and find new ideas that nobody has yet thought about — something that just might be possible.”
Why the switch from molecular oncology to healthcare consulting?
Konstantina Rowald spent the first six years of her professional career as a molecular biologist, receiving a Master of Science degree from Friedrich-Alexander University in Erlangen-Nuremburg, Germany and a PhD in Molecular Oncology and Tumor Genomics from Ruprecht-Karls University in Heidelberg.
Over time, she came to realize that while her scientific pursuits were driving her towards ever-greater specialization, she was more interested in making a difference on a broader scale. “I wanted to influence the healthcare market of the future,” she says. So, in 2016, she changed course and became a healthcare consultant, even managing her own firm for a time. In 2019, Konstantina joined Siemens Healthineers Value Partners for Healthcare Consulting.
“What I like about the biomedical field is the broadness of it and the influence it has on so many different topics. I was never the type to specialize too much,” she explains. “But still, I love the analytical side of science. I love the thinking process.”
Over time, she came to realize that while her scientific pursuits were driving her towards ever-greater specialization, she was more interested in making a difference on a broader scale. “I wanted to influence the healthcare market of the future,” she says. So, in 2016, she changed course and became a healthcare consultant, even managing her own firm for a time. In 2019, Konstantina joined Siemens Healthineers Value Partners for Healthcare Consulting.
“What I like about the biomedical field is the broadness of it and the influence it has on so many different topics. I was never the type to specialize too much,” she explains. “But still, I love the analytical side of science. I love the thinking process.”
What makes being at Siemens Healthineers Value Partners so special
What Konstantina appreciates about being a Siemens Healthineers Value Partner is the team’s hands-on approach. “When we’re asked to consult on a healthcare planning project, instead of just giving them a slideshow, we literally work with and talk to the people and interview them — everyone from doctors to nurses to the assistants that do the scheduling — to figure out how we can make a difference,” she says.
Konstantina also values the team spirit she has experienced working with her colleagues and peers at Siemens Healthineers. She has found her Value Partners coworkers to be collaborative and approachable. "It’s not like being on a work team, more like being with a group of friends.”
Konstantina also values the team spirit she has experienced working with her colleagues and peers at Siemens Healthineers. She has found her Value Partners coworkers to be collaborative and approachable. "It’s not like being on a work team, more like being with a group of friends.”
“What attracted me was exactly this vision, that I wanted to influence the healthcare market of the future.”
On the complexities of hospital planning
Konstantina has played a key role in hospital operational business planning, market research, and competitive landscape assessment. She notes that such healthcare projects are a moving target in many ways because of the myriad variables involved, and the continuous iterative evolution of the project’s goals and execution. “It’s super interesting but also super challenging – because you need to advise on a situation that's always in flux. Healthcare is undergoing a transformation influenced by rapid scientific progress and digitalization. You are working with clients daily on projects where the outcome is not a defined thing. And that helps you develop yourself too. I enjoy it a lot.”
Her natural curiosity extends to exploring the world
An avid traveler, Konstantina says, “I have friends all over the world, and there's nothing I like more than visiting them wherever they are at the moment — and by doing this, discovering the place.” In addition, she enjoys recreational bicycling. She sometimes combines these interests by touring new places on her bicycle.
Anticipating the future is a necessary part of the present
One of the biggest challenges in hospital planning, Konstantina believes, is making it “future proof.” “How do you design a hospital that could take three to five years to build, when you don't even know what the world will look like in five years?” she elaborates. She asserts that the combined diverse backgrounds and expertise of the Siemens Healthineers Value Partners consultants qualifies them to assist healthcare providers in anticipating future needs and planning accordingly.
As an example, Konstantina cites the value of her scientific background in preparing facilities for the future of medicine. While molecular biology may not seem relevant right now, molecular techniques such as mass spectrometry and next-generation sequencing may soon be commonplace in healthcare facilities.
She also sees similarities between consultancy and scientific exploration. “In the end, every strategic project is a bit of a scientific project, because you have to find a strategy that nobody has thought about yet – something that just might be possible.”
As an example, Konstantina cites the value of her scientific background in preparing facilities for the future of medicine. While molecular biology may not seem relevant right now, molecular techniques such as mass spectrometry and next-generation sequencing may soon be commonplace in healthcare facilities.
She also sees similarities between consultancy and scientific exploration. “In the end, every strategic project is a bit of a scientific project, because you have to find a strategy that nobody has thought about yet – something that just might be possible.”
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