Bullish On Houston and the Texas Medical Center
By Avinash Gavai
Last Updated:August 01, 2008

HOUSTON – As part of the Indo –American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Houston’s (IACCGH) Shell Distinguished Lecture Series, Daniel J. Wolterman, President and CEO of the Memorial Hermann Healthcare System gave a keynote presentation last Wednesday, July 23 at the The Roof in the Westin Oaks Hotel in the Galleria.
Past speakers have included dignitaries such as John Hoffmeister, President of Shell Oil Company, and Rick Perry, Governor of Texas.

Prior to working for Memorial Hermann, Wolterman had served as a senior vice president of the Sisters of Charity of the incarnate world health care system. He has more than 20 years of experience in various executive positions in the health care industry.

The session had a particular emphasis on the Texas Medical Center (TMC) and how it has benefited the Houston area in general.

The Executive Director of IACCG, Jagdip Aluwalia, began the proceedings by providing information about future IACCGH events. He also introduced and welcomed the leaders from over 15 area chambers, economic development agencies and other organization that partner with IACCGH. IACCGH’s past President Deepa Thakur, presented a plaque to Miguel R. San Juan, Sr. Vice President of International Trade for the Greater Houston Partnership’s support of the recent Trade Mission to India.

Jeff Moseley, president and CEO of the Greater Houston Partnership, gave an insight into the recent trade mission and also introduced Wolterman.
Wolterman shared statistics that illustrate Houston’s current economy, such as being number 1 on Forbes Best Cities for Recent College Grads and number 3 among the Best Cities for Young Professionals.

Also, Houston is a city where starting salaries are competitive driven by engineering, has a low cost of living, is home to twenty-three Fortune 500 Headquarters and contains the largest medical center in the United States.

He explained that the Partnership aims to attract new businesses with a commitment to target on Houston’s five, prominent economic sectors: aviation and aerospace, energy and petrochemicals, medical and biotechnology, information technology and nanotechnology.

The partnership has an ongoing effort to market the Houston area and to focus on Houston’s strengths for a formidable economic base. The Texas Medical Center is impressive in and of itself. Each year, “the TMC cares for 5.5 million patients, including more than 10,000 international patients.” Each institution is independently governed, which anticipates more pressure on boards to sustain as competition arises.

Indian Consul General, S.M. Gavai, presented a memento to Wolterman, thanking him for his involvement and sharing his expertise from the Greater Houston Partnership. The Shell Oil Group sponsored the event with the Houston Business Journal as media sponsor.