How health plan executives actually want to be pitched by vendors
I recently sat down with Providence Health Plan CEO Don Antonucci to answer a question I hear constantly from founders: How do you actually sell to a health plan?
Don has spent roughly 30 years in health insurance, including time on both sides of the table—buying solutions and selling them. That made this conversation unusually practical. We covered what he researches before meeting a vendor, why strong products still fail to advance, who founders should approach inside a plan, and what separates an interesting pitch from something his team can realistically implement.
A few weeks ago, as part of a commitment to having more real conversations with vendors in the market, Antonucci shared a viral reflection on a business pitch that had not gone well:
So many of you engaged with the post and made alternative suggestions for how the meeting should have been handled. That led to Don and I reconnecting to discuss all the faux pas he sees from vendors and what pitches have truly stood out.
The most useful part was hearing how a health plan executive evaluates a company in real time. The product matters, but so do the preparation, timing, credibility and amount of work the vendor creates for the buyer.