The Surrender Experiment

As Personalized Programming prepares to go public as Medical Manager Corporation (MMGR) on the NASDAQ, Singer is named CEO, with John Kang as president and Rick Karl as general counsel. As the IPO approaches, Singer reflects on how life has led him from living in the woods to running a company worth over $100 million. A particularly emotional moment occurs when Singer retrieves the Personalized Programming stock certificate from his safety deposit box, a symbol of his journey from earning $5,000 a year to overseeing a multimillion-dollar corporation. This experience deepens his commitment to serving the company and using the wealth for the greater good, marveling at how life has unfolded so miraculously.

While his role as CEO remains demanding, Singer embraces it as part of his spiritual journey, applying the focus and discipline he’s developed through meditation. He quickly realizes the need for better communication with independent-minded executives scattered across the country and introduces weekly status reports to stay informed.

Singer soon finds that managing the increasing workload requires help, which comes in the form of Sabrina, a skilled business analyst with deep experience in the healthcare software industry despite her young age. Sabrina plays a crucial role in helping Singer manage the company, especially in growing the business. Together, they launch Medical Manager Network Services, which connect doctors to the healthcare industry electronically, quickly turning it into a $100-million-a-year business.

Through rapid growth and hard work, Singer finds that the more he surrenders his personal desires and ego, the more spiritual energy he gains. His experience reaffirms that letting go of self-centered thoughts leads to personal, professional, and spiritual growth.

The rise of the internet transforms the healthcare industry and affects Medical Manager Corporation’s business. Singer and John Kang realize that competitors like Healtheon and WebMD are gaining access to physicians online without needing dealer networks. To stay competitive, they need to embrace internet connectivity. This leads to discussions with Synetic, a company building a sophisticated healthcare internet portal. Synetic sees potential in merging with Medical Manager due to its vast network of over 100,000 physicians already connected electronically.

In May of 1999, Singer flies to Texas to meet Synetic’s chairman, Marty Wygod. Singer’s commitment to the vision of perfecting Medical Manager and serving doctors has driven him for 20 years. Despite his hesitation, he sees the merger as a natural progression for the company’s growth, which has outgrown its capacity to operate independently.

Marty proposes a $1.3 billion merger and agrees to let Singer, John Kang, and other board members maintain high-level positions, with Singer as co-chairman. Despite this, Singer recognizes that Marty will ultimately be his boss, a situation new to him at the age of 52. The chapter ends with Singer embracing the uncertainty, prepared to learn from this new experience, both personally and professionally.

Singer describes his experience with the proposed merger between Medical Manager Corporation and Synetic. Despite Medical Manager’s larger revenue of $140 million compared to Synetic’s $70 million, the potential value of Synetic’s web portal makes it an attractive merger partner. After serious deliberation, the board unanimously accepts Synetic’s $1.3 billion offer. Singer, although inexperienced in billion-dollar mergers, relies on expert legal counsel and banking assistance, with Sabrina working closely by his side. The merger is announced publicly in May 1999, making headlines on CNN and in the Wall Street Journal.

The merger expands Singer’s responsibilities, bringing him into a new world of business beyond just practice management. He now has the opportunity to work with an exceptional team of executives that Marty Wygod has assembled, which Singer finds particularly exciting.

However, by early 2000, competition with Healtheon/WebMD intensifies when they acquire Envoy, the largest claims clearinghouse, for $2.5 billion. This acquisition poses a serious threat, as Envoy handles Medical Manager’s vast claims processing. Singer recognizes that maintaining competitiveness will be difficult, and he’s relieved not to be solely in charge of navigating this challenge.

Challenges arise after the merger of Medical Manager Corporation and Healtheon/WebMD. After the initial excitement of the merger, which sees Medical Manager valued at $3.5 billion, the Internet bubble burst, drastically affecting both companies. WebMD's stock plummets from over $100 per share to $17.50 by the time the deal closed—later falling to $3 per share by 2001. Singer witnesses the leadership of Marty Wygod and Marv Rich, who lead drastic cost-cutting efforts to stabilize the company.

One particular experience stands out to Singer. Marv brings Singer to California to address the demands of WebMD’s development team. The team of 800 developers has issued ultimatums, but Marv, in a bold move, tells them that their demands will not be met, giving them the option to leave. This firm decision ultimately allows for a relaunch of WebMD's website with a smaller team, which becomes a key foundation for the company's future success.

Singer also recalls a tense moment as Marv’s team arrives in Alachua to evaluate and potentially downsize Medical Manager’s Practice Services Division. Despite initial concerns, Marv’s team leaves impressed with the division’s performance, and no cuts are made.

Singer reflects on a series of remarkable events that unfolded in the year 2000, highlighting his increasing involvement in public and highly influential situations. He accompanies his friend Ray Kurzweil, a fellow board member, to the White House, where Ray receives the National Medal of Honor in Technology. Singer finds himself humbled by the experience, reflecting again on his journey from the woods, where he began writing The Medical Manager, to such a prestigious setting. He expresses awe at “just throwing [himself] into life’s wind to see where it would take [him]” (206).

Later that year, Singer’s company, Medical Manager Corporation, is inducted into the Smithsonian Institution archives as part of an initiative to document the Information Technology Revolution. Singer brings along employees and close friends to celebrate this unexpected honor.

Singer also details his trip to Washington to meet with the Department of Justice (DOJ) regarding the potential antitrust concerns surrounding Medical Manager’s merger with Healtheon/WebMD. The government is concerned about competition in the healthcare industry, but after intense discussions, Singer and his team alleviate their concerns.