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Scheduled Weekly Hours:

Vice President | Hospital Operations, OR, and Emergency Services

• Reports to: Chief Operating Officer, Gundersen Region

• Location: Emplify Health by Gundersen, La Crosse Main Campus, La Crosse, WI

Position Summary:

The Vice President of Hospital Operations, OR, and Emergency Services provides strategic and operational leadership across a broad portfolio of clinical and non-clinical services. This leader is responsible for integrating operations, improving performance, and advancing quality, safety, workforce effectiveness, regulatory compliance, and financial stewardship across the health system.

This role is a key partner to executive leadership and requires a relational, strategic leader who can work effectively across diverse stakeholders, including frontline union staff, surgeons, clinical teams, and system leaders. The ideal candidate leads with empathy, accountability, and a strong commitment to excellence.

Areas of responsibility include: OR, OSC, Pre-Post Op, Sterile Processing, Anesthesia, Telephone Nurse Advisor, Hospital Operations, Environmental Services, Facilities Operations, EVS, Food Service, Security, Laundry, Cath Lab, GI Lab, IR Lab, Gundersen Tri-State, Gundersen AIR, Pulm Lab, Inpatient PT/OT, and Respiratory Therapy.

Essential Job Duties / Major Responsibilities:

• Translate organizational mission and priorities into clear division goals and multi-year plans.

• Lead strategic planning and disciplined operational execution to support foundational and transformational goals.

• Identify opportunities to grow service lines, improve operations, and strengthen competitive position.

• Represent the division at the system level and influence enterprise strategy and resource decisions.

• Oversee safe, efficient, high-quality service delivery across all assigned areas.

• Develop and manage operating and capital budgets to meet financial targets.

• Use operational data and dashboards to monitor performance, identify trends, and drive timely improvement actions.

• Ensure compliance with regulatory, accreditation, and licensing requirements.

• Build and retain a high-performing team through strategic hiring, development, internal mobility, and succession planning.

• Create career pathways and support learning, professional development, and continuing education.

• Foster psychological safety, belonging, and a culture where staff feel valued and empowered.

• Provide coaching, feedback, and support for individual growth.

• Help clinical staff practice at the top of their license by reducing unnecessary administrative burden.

• Champion safety, continuous quality improvement, innovation, and adoption of evidence-based practices and emerging technologies.

• Lead the team through organizational, regulatory, and technology-driven change with clarity and confidence.

• Build strong relationships with physicians, clinical staff, administrative colleagues, and system leaders.

• Partner cross-functionally to advance shared goals.

• Represent the division in community, payer, and external stakeholder settings.

• Communicate performance results and priorities clearly to staff and senior leadership.

• Prepare and present regular operational and financial reports to executive leadership.

• Lead strategic workforce planning, including demand forecasting, skills gap analysis, and talent redeployment.

• Facilitate team meetings focused on results, alignment, and shared problem-solving.

• Perform other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications:

Education:

• Required: Master’s degree in a clinical discipline, Healthcare Management, or related field

• Desired: Master’s degree in Healthcare/Hospital Administration or Business Administration (MBA)

Experience:

• Required: 10+ years of progressive leadership experience

• Required: 5 additional years of leadership experience demonstrating the ability to execute operational strategy

• Required: Strong record of selecting, developing, managing, and retaining effective staff

• Required: Broad experience in healthcare operations, including finance, information systems, service development, communications, patient relations, and healthcare regulations

• Desired: 1 year of vice president experience in health care operations

Ideal candidates will bring hospital operations expertise, strong relational leadership, and the ability to work effectively across union environments, surgical services, and frontline teams.

Core for Leaders:

• Strategic Planning and Execution: Monitors industry and market developments, assesses impact, builds operational plans, communicates priorities, and secures staff buy-in.

• Quality Care and Service Excellence: Drives safe, high-quality patient care and exceptional patient and customer experiences through continuous quality improvement and strategic planning.

• Safety Leadership: Fosters a culture where safety is the highest priority for patients and team members.

• Financial Stewardship: Uses established systems and processes to ensure accountability, operational effectiveness, and responsible resource allocation.

• People Leadership: Recruits, engages, develops, inspires, manages, and retains a high-performing team.

• Cross-Functional Leadership: Leads through collaboration and integrated processes to achieve shared objectives.

• Regulatory Compliance: Ensures full adherence to regulatory agency requirements.

• Community Relations: Serves as the organization’s representative and connector with the community.

• Department-Specific Responsibilities: Performs duties unique to the department as applicable.

Application Process:

Interested and qualified candidates should submit application materials through the apply link. All inquiries and applications will be handled confidentially. References may be requested.

Qualified candidates will participate in a multi-step interview process, including an initial screening, additional stakeholder interviews, and a final assessment and on-site interview.

This is a rare opportunity to lead the heart of the hospital and shape the future of operations across a broad and vital portfolio. The ideal candidate will be a visible, relational, and strategic leader who builds trust across diverse teams and drives meaningful results in a complex environment.

If you’re energized by the chance to influence system strategy, strengthen frontline operations, and lead with compassion and accountability, we encourage you to apply.

If you need assistance with any portion of the application or have questions about the position, please contact [email protected] or call 608-775-0267.

We inspire your best life by relentlessly caring, learning and innovating. This is our purpose. Together with our values — belonging, respect, excellence, accountability, teamwork and humility — our pillars set our foundation and our future.

Equal Opportunity Employer