VP, IT Group Revenue Cycle

Encompass Health has retained Kirby Partners to conduct a nationwide executive search for candidates for their VP, Information Technology Group Revenue Cycle.

Reporting to the CIO, Rusty Yeager, the Vice President, Revenue Cycle is responsible for managing the Information Technology Group (ITG) Revenue Cycle team for Encompass Health.

Encompass Health is a national leader in post-acute healthcare services and the nation’s largest owner and operator of inpatient rehabilitation hospitals in terms of patients treated, revenues, and number of hospitals. They provide specialized rehabilitative treatment on an inpatient basis. They operate hospitals in 37 states and Puerto Rico, with concentrations in Florida and Texas. As of December 31, 2023, they operate 161 inpatient rehabilitation hospitals with approximately 38,100 employees, ~229,500 discharges, and $4.8B in revenue. They are committed to delivering high-quality, cost-effective patient care.

For 2024, Encompass Health was again named to Fortune’s list of the World’s Most Admired Companies.  Becker’s Healthcare named Encompass Health to its list of the 150 top places to work in healthcare in 2024 as well.

This position supports the technology that ensures the timely and accurate billing of the services provided and maximizes collections on all billings. This position is one of five VPs reporting to the CIO: Deputy CIO; CISO; VP Corporate Systems & BI, VP, Clinical Transformation, and VP, Clinical Technologies.

The ITG group is responsible for all enterprise Information technology services for the company. ITG comprises ~280 people with an average tenure of ~13.5 years. In last year’s engagement survey ITG had an 87% engagement score with 74% participation.

The VP, Revenue Cycle is a consultative role that partners with operations to provide technology recommendations and information to help manage the business. This position provides leadership, management, and direction to the company’s IT revenue cycle organization and function, including recommending, developing, and updating strategic long-range plans to support the organization’s strategic goals.

Encompass Health’s Home Office is in Birmingham, Alabama, and their Business Services Office is in the Tampa area. This allows for a remote or hybrid work arrangement or relocation to Tampa or Birmingham. The team of eight reporting to this position are remote employees. Limited travel to both locations is expected for the development of crucial operational and IT relationships.

The current Revenue Cycle system is being retired and they are currently in a RevElate build with Oracle. The pilot go-live for RevElate will be in the Fall 2024 for one hospital in the Tampa market. Encompass Health recently had a successful transition to Oracle’s patient registration and has recently “kicked-off” an Oracle Fusion ERP project. As a larger Oracle client, Encompass Health is looking to maximize their investment and is partnering with Oracle to build a Health Information Management solution.

Position Scope

• Oversee all Revenue Cycle functions, ensuring proper handling and directing billing activities for timely billing and reimbursement
• Collaborate effectively with the Operations team to enhance front office and Revenue Cycle Management (RCM) operations
• In partnership with the Central Business Office, develop and implement the strategic vision for the organization’s revenue cycle
• Partner with finance and operations teams to evaluate collection capabilities and ensure adherence to payer contracts
• Facilitate the development of departmental mission, goals, policies, procedures, budget, and work standards for Revenue Cycle departments
• Review the departments’ performance and ensure compliance with accreditation, legal, and other regulatory requirements
• Continuously improve processes by implementing industry best practices and lean methodology to drive operational excellence
• Develop processes for timely billing and adjudication of claims to maintain a benchmark cash goal level
• Develop denial management processes to eliminate root causes and reduce the impact of denials on the organization
• Manage applications related to the patient revenue cycle, including eligibility checking, charge capture, patient billing, claim scrubbing, medical coding, clearinghouses, denial management, and cash posting
• Oversee technologies such as Patient Revenue Systems, HL7, ANSI, EDI, and role-based access control
• Manage individuals, including hiring, training, work assignments, performance evaluation, and professional development plans, ensuring productivity and maintaining high standards of quality
• Assess and respond to current and future internal and external healthcare trends to establish the necessary direction for revenue cycle activities

Skills & Abilities

• High level of personal integrity, the ability to professionally handle confidential matters, and show appropriate judgment and maturity
• High degree of initiative and dependability to work independently with little supervision
• Commitment to coaching/mentoring, people development, and team building with a proven capability to work effectively in a team-based organization, collaborate cross-functionally and globally, exercise influence at all levels, and build alignment around a common vision
• Skill at intelligent, focused thinking with superior analytical skills; a quick study in new situations; and strong planning and implementation skills
• Skill in driving effective operational performance and ability to build a strong foundation for growing the business
• Ability to attend to operational and financial details, establish clear expectations, set aggressive and realistic objectives, and bring multiple parties together to deliver exceptional results
• Ability to be decisive and action-oriented while maintaining an appropriate level of flexibility
• Capability to drive highly committed and capable management teams; coach and mentor and/or bring in additional talent as needed; and provide employees with the authority, accountability, training, information, and resources to achieve full potential and successfully drive the company’s performance
• Oral communication, written communication, active listening
• Information ordering, deductive reasoning, social perceptiveness, time management, critical thinking
• Ability to coordinate, analyze, observe, make decisions, and meet deadlines in a detail-oriented manner

Qualifications

 Minimum Qualifications:

• Associate or bachelor’s degree in management information systems, Computer Science, Business Administration, or Healthcare Administration
• Minimum ten years of experience in Patient Revenue Cycle technology leadership and/or Patient Revenue Cycle operations
• Minimum four years in a senior leadership role, with increasing levels of responsibility
• Proven track record and experience in developing and maintaining enterprise-level IT systems and operations as well as successfully executing programs that meet the objectives of excellence in a dynamic environment
• Experience and functional knowledge in all aspects of the Patient Revenue Cycle process and associated technologies
• Knowledge and understanding of relevant legal and regulatory requirements, such as Sarbanes-Oxley Act, HIPAA, and Payment Card Industry/Data Security
• Experience with contract and vendor negotiations
• Experience and credibility in functional areas, including healthcare provider business domain, revenue cycle IT strategy and planning, IT project management methodologies, vendor management, relationship management
• Relevant experience in the healthcare industry with one or more leading healthcare providers
• Successful collaborative development of a long-term vision based on a thorough understanding of industry trends and opportunities
• Demonstrated creativity and effectiveness in addressing major strategic challenges

 Preferred Qualifications: 

• Master’s degree
• Oracle Cerner RevElate experience

About the Tampa, FL metro area

Encompass Health’s Business Services Office is located in the Tampa, Florida area.

A vibrant metro area
The Tampa Bay metro area, (Tampa, St. Petersburg, and Clearwater), is highly scenic along the state’s Gulf Coast with world-class beaches. Tampa is fast growing, energetic, and one of the most populous cities in the state. Tampa’s downtown’s riverwalk is a 2.4 mile continuous pedestrian walkway along the Hillsborough River with diverse restaurants, many earning Michelin star status.

Highly-desirable quality of life
The area offers year-round sunshine with opportunities to enjoy numerous recreation options including outdoor sports like sailing, boating, golf, biking, and water sports.

Financial benefits
No state income tax in Florida allows residents to keep more of their earnings.

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.