At KaiNexus, we believe our success is best reflected in the achievements of our customers. Each year at KaiNexicon, we honor some of our most outstanding customers through the Nexie Awards. This Annual Nexie Award Ceremony is a cherished highlight of KaiNexicon, celebrating our customers' dedication and exceptional accomplishments over the past year.

Now, drum roll, please…. 

Here are the 2024 Nexie Award categories and winners:

The Lifetime Achievement Award: Mike McGowan - Memorial Health System 

This year’s Lifetime Achievement Award goes to Mike McGowan from Memorial Health System. The Lifetime Achievement Award is given in honor of Chris Burnham, our late friend and colleague who founded our Lean Strategy department and was a devoted mentor to many of us. Chris cared deeply about Lean, and he loved being a KaiNexian. The Lifetime Achievement Award is given only rarely to an individual or team that has made a significant, extended impact on their organization’s continuous improvement program and our work here at KaiNexus.

Mike McGowan has been a partner and friend to KaiNexus for more years than most of us can remember. Last year was the first and only time he missed a KaiNexicon. Here at KaiNexus, we blame processes, not people, so we try not to hold his absence against him. He has been a customer, partner, and huge supporter since 2016. Sure, we could mention 5,500 improvements and projects that resulted in a $55,000,000 impact, but we all know that his real contribution is his love for his people, for Lean, and his devotion to rooting on his Fighting Irish football team every fall. 

Mike, thank you for your steadfast partnership and support throughout the years. We’re all better KaiNexians and better people for having known and worked with you. 

The Team of the Year: Cleveland Clinic

We're proud to award the Team of the Year to Cleveland Clinic! The Nexie for Team of the Year is awarded to the organization that epitomizes the spirit of collaboration and innovation. The Cleveland Clinic team has been a leader among not just KaiNexus customers, but among the entire CI community. This organization sets a high standard and has been a great partner in creating an easier way for everyone to be able to participate in CI. From the daily interactions, product enhancements, and their dedication to their mission, we're so proud to partner with this team! 

Honorary KaiNexian Award: Justin Self - BJC Healthcare

This year’s Honorary KaiNexian award is Justin Self at BJC Healthcare! The Honorary KaiNexian is awarded to the person who embodies the spirit of a “Champion.” Justin is a long-term advocate and promoter of KaiNexus. His continuous improvement approach to everything he does challenges the platform to grow for their team’s benefit and for the benefit of all other future users. He has an internal reputation for giving it to us straight with kindness and patience. 

Though he is employed elsewhere, he feels like he's been part of our team since BJC partnered with KaiNexus. The KaiNexus team is truly grateful to his commitment to progress! Thank you, Justin! 

Top Turnaround Award: Polytainers

This year’s Award for Top Turnaround goes to Polytainers. The Top Turnaround is awarded to the organization that has displayed the most progress using KaiNexus to build its improvement culture since last year’s conference. The Polytainers team has demonstrated a remarkable commitment to collaboration and their willingness to work with us on redefining their processes has led to a fantastic partnership. Building from the ground up is never easy, but through exceptional leadership, teamwork, and dedication, they have made leaps and bounds forward in creating standard practices.

Their commitment to excellence serves as an inspiration to us, reminding us of the incredible impact that determination, an open mind, and partnership can have on achieving success. Thank you for being an incredible partner to us.

Partner of the Year: Yili Oceania 

This year’s Partner of the Year award goes to Yili Oceania! The winner of the Partner of the Year award goes to a company that is more than just a customer; they are a partner and collaborator in continuous improvement that has not only grown themselves but also helped KaiNexus grow.

Yili Oceania has partnered tirelessly with us over the last year to improve themselves and they also assisted us with new processes and ideas to make us better. They are always willing to share their knowledge and provide feedback so we can improve. We truly appreciate the partnership that this team has provided and how they’ve pushed us to be the very best. From pulling KaiNexus in to help with projects to talking to Product about ideas to hosting on-sites for potential partners and helping us create business reviews, we couldn’t ask for a better partner. Thank you to everyone on the Yili Oceania team! 

Innovator of the Year: Jack Henry

We want to give a huge shoutout to the recipient of this year's Innovator of the Year Award, Jack Henry. This award is all about celebrating folks who've shaken things up, who think outside of the box, and who combine KaiNexus with other technology to come up with creative solutions.  Whether they're applying automation, creating their own project walk-throughs, or suggesting creative ways to solve problems and increase engagement, these are the people who make us go, "Wow, why didn't I think of that?" 
The Jack Henry Team has shown patience, forethought, and a willingness to experiment, and we are so grateful to partner with them! 

The KaiNexie Award: Keith Langtry and Kelsey Gaertner

This year, the two KaiNexie Awards went to two relatively new KaiNexians who have completely blown us away by their ability to add value to the company—and our customers—far beyond the scope of their defined positions.

The first Nexie was awarded to Kelsey Gaertner, Documentation and Support Manager, has been with us since December 2022, and in that time, has left an indelible mark on KaiNexus. She's used her exceptional time management, prioritization, and communication skills to make a difference on so many teams. Kelsey contributes to high-level strategic projects for the company, such as spearheading an initiative into a guided onboarding software integration while simultaneously knocking her regular duties out of the part. She's eager to pitch in on any project, for any team, at any time, regularly stepping outside her comfort zone and regular job responsibilities. We're so thankful for Kelsey's many contributions across our company, and are thrilled to honor her with this award. 

Our second Nexie Award goes to Keith Langtry, Director of Sales. Keith has quickly earned the trust of every customer-facing resource at KaiNexus. As a sales leader, he works tirelessly to coach the team in ways that are respectful while still pushing for growth. Across the larger organization, he continues to listen to countless calls for sales, CSM, and other KaiNexians to provide valuable feedback on how people can manage meetings more effectively. Keith also continues to focus on his own continuous improvement - he constantly forwards articles, blog posts, and other helpful content, and he has already read three books this year to improve his sales coaching abilities.

That's a wrap on our 2024 Nexie Award Season. Stay tuned in the coming weeks for more content about what all happened at KaiNexicon.