Chief Technology Officer

University of Wisconsin Health (UW Health) has retained Kirby Partners to support its search for a VP/Chief Technology Officer.

About UW Health:

UW Health is the integrated health system affiliated with the University of Wisconsin–Madison, serving more than 867,000 patients each year across the Upper Midwest and beyond. With more than 2,000 physicians and 26,500 dedicated staff, they provide care through six main hospitals and more than 105 outpatient locations.

UW Health partners with the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, where doctors lead cutting-edge research and train future health professionals. As an academic medical center, breakthroughs in medicine have helped extend and improve lives across the nation and around the world.

In Illinois, they bring that same level of expert, compassionate care to the community. UW Health proudly offers patients in Northern Illinois access to advanced treatments and trusted care teams.  UW Health’s goal is simple: to bring world-class care closer to home and make every patient experience the best it can be.

For the 14th consecutive year, U.S. News & World Report ranked University of Wisconsin Hospitals No. 1 in Wisconsin on its Best Hospitals list.

Position Overview

Reporting to the System VP/Chief Information & Digital Officer, the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) will lead a team of 200 and serve as a key enterprise executive responsible for enabling UW Health’s clinical, digital, and data strategies through stable, secure, and scalable technology foundations.

The CTO will partner with clinical, operational, academic, research, digital, and clinical informatics leaders to advance innovation, AI adoption, automation, and technology-enabled transformation across the organization. This includes supporting clinician-facing platforms, virtual care capabilities, and emerging technologies while maintaining high standards for availability, safety, and regulatory compliance.

The CTO will also partner closely with the Chief Information & Digital Officer, the VP/Chief Information Security Officer, and other enterprise leaders to ensure technology architecture and operations effectively manage risk and support organizational governance expectations. The CTO will lead vendor strategy and technology investment planning and establish measures that link technology performance to clinical, operational, and financial outcomes.

This is an exceptional opportunity to help shape the technology future of one of the nation’s leading academic health systems.

Strategic priorities:

• Enterprise cloud strategy and modernization
• Infrastructure integration and rationalization
• AI platform enablement
• Automation and operational simplification
• Technology resilience and cybersecurity maturity

Key Responsibilities

• Define and execute the enterprise technology strategy, architecture, and roadmap in alignment with organizational clinical, digital, and operational strategies.
• Provide executive oversight of enterprise technology platforms and operations, including:
  • Core infrastructure services (data centers, networks, hybrid and cloud environments)
  • Enterprise, solution, and platform architecture
  • Data protection, backup, recovery, and lifecycle management
  • Disaster recovery, business continuity, and technology resilience
  • Operational technology security and risk management
• Translate strategic plans and budget targets into operational action plans which guide resource allocation and the coordination and direction of personnel; direct operations in areas of responsibility to achieve the annual operating plan.
• Establish and enforce enterprise technology standards, architectural guardrails, and engineering practices to promote reliability, scalability, automation, and operational efficiency.
• Lead technology investment planning and prioritization, including evaluation of mainstream and emerging technologies, development of business cases, and assessment of value, risk, and operational impact.
• Direct vendor and supplier relationships for enterprise technology platforms and services to ensure performance, financial stewardship, service quality, and alignment with organizational objectives.

Qualifications

Education 

• A bachelor’s degree in a relevant field, such as Engineering, Computer Science, or Business Administration, is required.
• A master’s degree in a relevant field such as Computer Science, Business Administration, or Public Health is preferred.

Work Experience

Minimum:

• Seven (7) years of progressively responsible management or supervisory-level experience in information technology.

Preferred:

• Experience operating within a large, complex integrated delivery system and/or academic medical center.
• IT leadership experience in an organization or system of similar size and scope.
• Demonstrated success leading a combination of IT functions, including infrastructure operations.
• Demonstrated success driving significant enterprise-wide organizational change management in collaboration with operational partners.
• Demonstrated success driving the adoption of innovative IT capabilities resulting in significant realized value.
• Demonstrated success forming and sustaining collaborative, trusted-advisor relationships with stakeholders and colleagues.
• Demonstrated success building, developing, mentoring, and succession-planning high-performing leadership teams.

Required Leadership Competencies

• A visionary with a modern approach, skilled in both setting strategy and operational excellence.
• Strong executive presence and the ability to influence stakeholders and colleagues.
• Ability to translate complex technology topics into clear clinical and business value.
• Skilled in building relationships and quickly establishing credibility across a complex, matrixed environment.
• Experience in cloud migration with a focus on disaster recovery and business continuity.

Location

Relocation or residency within a commutable distance from Madison, WI is required.

About Madison, Wisconsin

Capital city and vibrant college town

Located in south-central Wisconsin and nestled between Lakes Mendota and Monona, Madison is the capital of Wisconsin and the second-largest city in the state. Madison offers a diverse mix of museums, arts venues, festivals, local shopping, award-winning restaurants, and sporting events.

A highly desirable place to live

Consistently ranked among the top 100 places to live in the U.S. by Livability, Madison offers an eclectic mix of big-city amenities and scenic attractions. It is ranked among the five best cities for biking in the U.S. and features the nationally acclaimed Capital City Trail. The trail network offers easy access to beautiful rural spots and nearby communities. Madison boasts highly rated public schools and stands out as one of the top 5 best state capitals to live in, according to WalletHub.

Renowned sustainability and wellness

Madison is known for its eco-conscious residents and dedication to sustainability. It serves as a national model for preserving green space, boasting about 11.6 parks per 10,000 residents, which is one of the highest rates in the U.S. Madison also consistently ranks as one of the top 15 happiest and top 10 fittest cities in America.

Procedure for Candidacy

Final candidates should expect two interviews with Kirby Partners recruiters (including a video conference interview). You may be asked to complete our “Executive Profile” and submit references to be considered for presentation to the search committee.