For decades, human organs, some of the most fragile cargo imaginable, have been transported on ice. Not because it was the best method, but because that’s how it had always been done. A process with life-or-death consequences remained unchanged simply out of habit.
I didn’t fully grasp the flaws in this system until I experienced it firsthand. I saw the gaps in coordination, the last-minute scrambles, and the life-altering consequences of relying on outdated methods. But identifying a problem isn’t the same as knowing how to fix it.
Innovation happens when leaders refuse to accept the way it’s always been done. It happens when they show up, ask questions, and stay immersed in their industry long enough to see the gaps that others overlook. Research proves this: Founders with at least 3 years of industry experience are nearly twice as likely to succeed as those without it.
What numbers don’t show
Before developing Paragonix’s organ preservation technology, I spent years traveling with transplant teams, standing in operating rooms, and observing every step of the process. I experienced how outdated transport methods created uncertainty, how communication breakdowns led to preventable delays, and how every inefficiency had real consequences for patients.
Numbers tell part of the story, but experience fills in the gaps. More than 103,000 people in the U.S. are waiting for an organ transplant, and every 8 minutes, another person is added to the list. A spreadsheet can track transplant success rates, but it won’t capture a patient’s anxiety as they wait, unsure if a life-saving organ will arrive in time. Data can show transit times, but it won’t reflect the pressure on a transplant team racing against the clock, knowing that every lost minute could mean losing a life.
Many well-intentioned ideas fall apart because of this gap between analysis and reality. Harvard Business School professor Tom Eisenmann calls this pattern a “false start” — when founders launch solutions before fully understanding the problems they’re trying to solve. His research shows that many entrepreneurs, eager to launch, skip the critical step of customer discovery and assume they’ll figure out the details as they go.
Turn immersion into innovation
The most effective solutions come from understanding the problem in practice—seeing it, feeling it, and engaging with the people who experience it every day. That doesn’t stop once a company is built. I travel with our sales reps, visit transplant centers, and speak directly with the people using our technology because that’s the only way to understand what’s working and what’s not.
Staying embedded in an industry provides the knowledge to innovate, but making a real impact requires persistence. Here are three things I’ve learned:
- Expect resistance and keep going
Even with overwhelming evidence, people still doubt new ideas. Research shows that controlled organ preservation improves outcomes, yet resistance remains. Some pushback strengthens a solution, but not all criticism is useful. The closer you are to the problem, the easier it is to separate valid concerns from reluctance to adapt. Staying in the field provides the conviction to push forward when others hesitate and the clarity to know what feedback is worth acting on.
- Listen for what’s not being said
People don’t always voice their biggest frustrations. A transplant team might say a process works, but watching them tells a different story. For decades, organs packed in ice could only travel so far before becoming unusable, which forced teams to work within tight geographic boundaries. These limitations were simply accepted as part of the job. Real insights come from noticing inefficiencies and workarounds that shouldn’t exist. Leaders who look beyond what’s being said are the ones who recognize opportunities for real innovation.
- Identify patterns, not just problems
Not every problem needs fixing, but when the same inefficiencies surface again and again, they’re worth a closer look. For years, transplant teams worked around unpredictable organ arrival times. They developed contingency plans, adjusted schedules at the last minute, and braced for delays. Real-time tracking wasn’t the result of a single brainstorming session—it came from recognizing a repeated problem. The best insights start with paying attention to the patterns others ignore.
You can’t spot a breakthrough from behind a desk. No matter the industry, meaningful innovation starts with questioning what others accept, seeing the problem firsthand, and refusing to look away.
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