From Missed Deadlines to Meaningful Impact: My Journey with eSCMIS/eLMIS

When I was entrusted with the responsibility of executing the electronic Supply Chain Management Information System (eSCMIS)—and later its expanded version, the electronic Logistics Management Information System (eLMIS)—I knew it was more than just a technology project. It was about building trust, ensuring transparency, and touching lives across communities that depended on medicines, vaccines, and health commodities arriving on time.

The Beginning: Hope Meets Reality

On paper, the project was clear: digitize and integrate logistics for better supply chain efficiency in the health sector. But in practice, the path was messy—filled with shifting deadlines, budget constraints, data inconsistencies, and resistance from those who were comfortable with the “old way” of doing things.

I still remember the sinking feeling when the first major milestone slipped. The entire team was exhausted, and the atmosphere in the room was heavy with disappointment. At that moment, I realized that leading wasn’t about pushing harder—it was about listening deeper.

Challenges and Risks

The obstacles we faced weren’t only technical—they were human.

1. Data Migration Risks: Legacy systems were fragmented, and migrating them risked losing critical health supply data. Every meeting with technical experts carried the fear that one misstep could erase years of records.

1. Stakeholder Resistance: Frontline health workers worried that the new system would complicate their already overwhelming workload. To them, “digitization” sounded like more reporting, more clicks, more screens.

1. Deadline Pressure: International partners and government ministries had fixed expectations, and missing deadlines felt like letting down an entire ecosystem. The weight of accountability was real.

1. Team Burnout: Long nights, repeated system tests, and endless rework created frustration and disengagement. Some colleagues questioned if the effort was even worth it.

The Emotional Journey

The human side of the project was the hardest part. There were tense meetings where frustration boiled over, and days when exhaustion led to silence rather than collaboration. At times, I felt caught in the middle—balancing government officials demanding quick results, partners pushing for accountability, and teams on the ground just trying to survive the workload.

This is where emotional intelligence became my most powerful tool:

1. Empathy: I spent time with health workers in clinics, listening to their fears and frustrations. Their honesty reshaped how we trained and simplified the system.

1. Resilience: Instead of letting missed deadlines break morale, I reframed them as lessons learned—steppingstones rather than failures.

1. Transparency: I made it a point to communicate openly with stakeholders, even when the news wasn’t good. Those difficult conversations, while uncomfortable, built long-term trust.

Breakthrough Moments

One of the key turning points came when we shifted from a “top-down rollout” to a human-centered approach. Instead of pushing features, we piloted small components in select clinics. This allowed frontline staff to see quick wins—like automated stock-out alerts or faster reporting—that directly made their lives easier. Slowly, skepticism turned into curiosity. Curiosity evolved into advocacy. And before long, those who once resisted became champions of the system.

Another breakthrough was creating spaces for vulnerability within the team. During weekly check-ins, I encouraged everyone—not just managers—to share what was stressing them. These honest conversations reduced tension, sparked peer support, and reminded us that we were in this together.

The Final Push

The last stages of eLMIS were a race against time. Despite setbacks, we pulled together—developers fixing bugs overnight, trainers working weekends, and coordinators traveling across districts to ensure adoption. We didn’t meet every original deadline, but by the time the system went live, it was resilient, reliable, and embraced by the very people we once feared would resist it.

Lessons Learned

Looking back, eSCMIS/eLMIS was not just about technology—it was about navigating human emotions under pressure, balancing empathy with execution, and redefining leadership in the face of uncertainty.

I learned that:

1. Deadlines matter, but trust matters more. Missing a date can be forgiven; breaking trust cannot.

1. Technology succeeds when people feel heard. Adoption is not about systems; it’s about users.

1. True leadership is tested in the quiet moments. Not in grand presentations, but in the late-night phone call to a tired teammate, or the patient conversation with a frustrated nurse.

When I saw the first automated stock-out report being generated—something that once took weeks to compile manually—I knew the effort had been worth it. This wasn’t just a system launch; it was a transformation that would ripple through supply chains, clinics, and communities.

The project taught me that success is not defined by perfect execution, but by the courage to adapt, the resilience to continue, and the empathy to keep people at the center.

"Leadership is not about meeting every deadline—it’s about turning setbacks into steppingstones for lasting impact."