Associate Director, Clinical Performance Management

University of Iowa•Iowa City, IA

10d

About The Position

The Associate Director, Clinical Performance Management provides leadership for an enterprise portfolio of clinical performance, reporting to the Administrative Chief of Staff. The role translates executive direction into coordinated work plans, establishes accountability, and advances complex initiatives across clinical and administrative areas. It serves as an executive advisor and portfolio leader, setting approaches, recommending priorities, resolving cross-functional barriers, and escalating decisions. The position leads assigned staff and establishes the operating structure, performance measures, and governance discipline needed to deliver sustained organizational results. Operating with significant independence and authority in a highly matrixed academic health care environment, the Associate Director is accountable for enterprise outcomes, staff supervision, decision support to senior executives, and implementation results. The role leads the Clinical Performance team, oversees its work products and deliverables, and partners with clinical, physician, operational, financial, and administrative leaders to improve organizational performance. Applicants must provide a cover letter and resume addressing the qualifications. Successful candidates must disclose conviction history and undergo criminal background and credential/education verification. Up to five professional references may be requested. The position is not eligible for University sponsorship for employment authorization.

Requirements

Master’s degree in health care administration, business administration, finance, or accounting, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
Seven years of progressively responsible leadership experience in health care administration, operations, strategy, performance improvement, business management, or a related field.
Demonstrated success leading complex, cross-functional initiatives and driving organizational performance through accountability, governance, and effective execution.
Experience advising senior leaders and executives, including synthesizing complex information, evaluating strategic options, and recommending courses of action.
Experience supervising, coaching, and developing professional staff and fostering high-performing teams.
Ability to develop and implement performance measures, operational plans, executive reporting, and continuous improvement strategies.
Advanced analytical skills and ability to translate clinical, operational, financial, workforce, and quality data into actionable recommendations.
Ability to manage organizational, financial, and human resources and navigate a complex, matrixed environment.
Excellent written, verbal, facilitation, negotiation, and executive presentation skills.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications and other business, reporting, and project management tools.
Demonstrated commitment to fostering a welcoming, respectful, and collaborative work environment.

Nice To Haves

Senior leadership or management experience within an academic health system, academic medical center, or integrated health care organization.
Experience leading clinical performance, quality improvement, operational excellence, enterprise strategy implementation, or organizational transformation initiatives.
Experience interpreting and using clinical quality, patient safety, access, workforce, financial, and operational performance metrics.
Experience with Epic, enterprise reporting tools, and data visualization platforms.
Knowledge of University and UI Health Care policies, governance structures, and regulatory requirements.
Experience with Graduate Medical Education (GME), clinical departments, grants administration, external benchmarking, accreditation, or recognition programs.
Three to five years of experience managing, coordinating, or leading significant programs, projects, or operational initiatives.

Responsibilities

Lead the assigned enterprise clinical performance and strategic execution portfolio.
Translate executive priorities into annual operational and strategic roadmaps, work plans, accountable owners, milestones, performance measures, and escalation paths.
Advise executive leaders on portfolio priorities, sequencing, resource tradeoffs, organizational risk, and implementation readiness.
Direct high-visibility, cross-functional initiatives from executive authorization through implementation, stabilization, and outcome evaluation.
Establish and lead governance structures, including charters, decision rights, executive reporting, issue escalation, and accountability routines.
Chair or provide senior administrative leadership for enterprise initiatives, committees, and executive-sponsored advisory groups within the assigned portfolio.
Provide strategic and operational leadership for the Clinical Performance team and align its priorities, resources, and work products with organizational goals and executive expectations.
Direct, supervise, mentor, and develop professional staff through coaching, performance management, career development, succession planning, and ongoing feedback.
Set team performance expectations and accountability standards; oversee and approve analyses, presentations, executive communications, recommendations, and other work products.
Foster collaboration, continuous improvement, innovation, accountability, and professional growth.
Assign and prioritize workloads, monitor capacity, and deploy resources effectively.
Develop team capabilities in strategic planning, performance improvement, change management, project execution, data analysis, executive communication, and leadership.
Maintain final accountability for the Clinical Performance team's performance, outcomes, and deliverables.
Set expectations for executive meetings and governance materials so decisions, risks, dependencies, and recommended actions are clearly presented.
Maintain an integrated view of enterprise commitments, strategic dependencies, operational capacity, and competing priorities.
Lead organizational assessments, benchmarking, business analyses, and performance reviews, translating findings into executive recommendations and action plans.
Partner with clinical, physician, operational, financial, and administrative leaders to resolve barriers and improve quality, safety, access, workforce, financial, and operational outcomes.
Define and monitor key performance indicators and benefit-realization measures, intervening when progress or outcomes are at risk.
Determine when initiatives are ready to transition into routine operations and confirm ownership, resources, controls, and monitoring are in place.
Represent the Administrative Chief of Staff or assigned executive sponsors on enterprise initiatives and governance forums, as delegated.