Witt/Kieffer Names Co-Leaders of Healthcare Practice
June 7, 2017 – Recruiter Witt/Kieffer has named Paul Bohne and Donna Padilla as co-leads of the firm’s healthcare practice, effective July 1. They succeed Andrew P. Chastain, who was promoted to CEO in March.
“Our work helps strengthen and improve communities by helping build successful, thriving healthcare organizations,” said Mr. Bohne. “Alongside Donna and with our outstanding team, we plan to continue to further the future of healthcare delivery by helping shape the leadership of the country’s top institutions.”
“Identifying and recruiting effective, inspiring leaders who also match the organization’s mission, vision and culture is our top priority,” said Ms. Padilla. “Our partners rely on our understanding of their values and needs, and we take pride in delivering transformational executives that help organizations succeed and thrive.”
Healthcare Specialists
Mr. Bohne, currently senior partner and vice chair of Witt/Kieffer’s healthcare practice, has vast expertise in working with health systems and other organizations on senior level search assignments and leadership-related consultations. He has helped lead more than 100 president/CEO searches on behalf of health systems and health-related organizations, among his more than 500 search assignments overall. In addition, Mr. Bohne has partnered with boards, guiding them through presidential transitions. Earlier in his career, he worked for a member of the U.S. Congress and later drove a national recruitment marketing campaign for the U.S. Public Health Service. He also provided recruitment strategies for the Indian Health Service and National Health Service Corps in their missions to provide care in medically underserved areas.
Ms. Padilla, also currently senior partner and vice chair of the healthcare practice, works with healthcare boards and senior leadership teams within a variety of healthcare organizations. She has achieved market prominence serving faith-based providers and complex health systems. She has conducted 500 healthcare executive search assignments for CEOs, COOs, CFOs, CNOs and other senior leaders. Prior to joining the firm, Ms. Padilla held a national marketing role with a large, Minnesota-based managed care corporation. She currently serves on the board of the National Association of Latino Healthcare Executives.
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“Donna and Paul each possess a wealth of healthcare experience and valuable marketplace insight, and we’re confident that they will put that unmatched expertise to use for our clients during this unprecedented time of rapid change for the industry,” said Mr. Chastain. “Their proven track record and demonstrated leadership with both clients and colleagues make them exemplary choices to co-lead the practice.”
Witt/Kieffer has been an advisor to hospitals, health systems, academic medical centers, physician groups and other healthcare enterprises for more than 45 years. With more than 100 expert search professionals nationwide, its consultants recruit CEOs, CFOs, COOs, physician executives, and many other leaders.
Expansion
Witt/Kieffer recently increased its Southwest Florida presence, with a focus on serving healthcare organizations located in and around Naples, including Fort Myers and Port Charlotte. The expansion is led by senior partners Kimberly A. Smith and Oliver B. Tomlin. They join Jena E. Abernathy, managing partner of Witt/Kieffer’s board practice, who has a long history of working with healthcare and private equity businesses across Florida in board services and economic development. Ms. Smith and Mr. Oliver have more than 25 years of experience in executive leadership and executive search within the healthcare field to area executives, hiring managers and boards of directors of hospitals, health systems and health-related entities.
“With rapid change occurring in the healthcare industry across the country, clients know how critical the right leadership is to success and increasingly look to us to serve as trusted partners and advisors,” said Mr. Chastain. “Kim, Oliver and Jena are conduits to our entire firm’s healthcare resources and expertise and they deeply understand the industry’s leadership needs, both nationally and locally.”
Ms. Smith, who has held several senior executive roles, including president and CEO of Jewish Memorial Hospital and Rehabilitation Center in Boston, said Southwest Florida has a unique healthcare environment. “We support local systems in a variety of needs at the senior executive level, including the recruitment of top-notch executives who truly know the surrounding communities and their specific health and wellness needs,” she said.
Mr. Tomlin, whose background includes a tenure as president and CEO of a regional healthcare company, said recruitment can make all the difference in healthcare. “The right leadership can make or break a health system, and the right leader needs to be aligned with the community,” he said. “In order to recruit the kinds of executives that will make a positive difference in an organization, we cast a wide net and recruit nationally — and even internationally.”
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor; Stephen Sawicki, Managing Editor; and Chase Barbe, Managing Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media
