“Working together, we improve people’s lives”. That’s the vision of The University of Vermont Health Network (UVMHN) where I started this week as the interim Chief Technology Officer. I am excited to be 
part of a healthcare provider organization again – even though it is temporary.
The first week has been what you’d expect – meeting new people, learning new acronyms, understanding the key issues, getting accounts and devices setup, getting access to systems, and gathering documents for review. While healthcare organizations differ, the issues and challenges are common.
My focus over the next several months will be to drive forward major infrastructure projects. With the Epic Wave 1 implementation scheduled for November at multiple UVMHN affiliates, there are critical interdependent projects that my teams will need to complete.
The opportunity to be part of a team, solving problems and making a difference is something I love doing. Yes, the days will be long, there will be lots of meetings and email, and production support issues. But, at the end of the day, I’ll know that the systems and solutions we provide and support make a difference in the lives of clinicians and in turn our patients and families.
As I act like a sponge and drink from the fire hose in the early weeks, I’ll need to get up to speed quickly on all the current activity and issues. Fortunately, the organization is not entirely new for me. I worked with Dr. Adam Buckley, Chief Information Officer, and his leadership team in late 2017 and again recently on consulting engagements focused on IT redesign. But consulting is nothing like how deep and broad you need to go as an interim leader. As I said at our redesign retreat this week, I’m switching gears from an outside view to an inside view and excited to be part of the team.
I shared with my new directors that I write a weekly blog. They can find out a lot about me, how I think and how I lead by reading some of my posts. One of them was quick to ask if they would be new subject matter. I told him yes, of course. There will be many lessons and experiences worth sharing in the coming months.
After all, I started this weekly blog nearly five years ago to share and to teach. Over 250 posts later, hopefully you have found something of value here.
Stay tuned – more lessons, insights and stories to come.
Related Posts:
Interim management is different
Different organizations, common IT challenges
What to expect from an interim CIO
Get started by asking the right questions
Ensuring smooth leadership transitions