Benjamin J. Holzman

Assembled an inter-departmental task force and established a four-week completion goal. Supervised the team’s collection of thousands of data points that verified the accuracy, timeliness, and authorization of submitted claims and sanctioned correction of errors in credentialing and coding. Classified and assembled the gathered information in manageable packets for submission to the payer and the company’s revenue-cycle corps. Due to communication delays generated by the third-party entity, the project required six weeks to finalize. Based on the audit’s revelations, prepared modifications to billing-submission workflows and recommended increases in the area’s support staff that anticipated revenue gains would more than cover.

Analysis of all claims showed an error rate of less than 2%. The examination also revealed more than 300 claims worth about $1.2 million that required correction to avoid delay or denial.

Assumed responsibility for crafting the missing action plan. Researched the critical factors qualifying target locals, conceptualized the strategy, and specified the go-to-market tactics of a six-month campaign. Presented the blueprint to senior management and received approval to proceed. While selecting explicit locations and hiring and training staff, collaborated with HR and the COO to hire a new business-development leader.

Stood up a new business in each of two states with sales expected to total $120,000 annually.

Perceived fiscal management training as the solution. Designed and conducted instructional sessions explaining the nature of variable expenses and how to adjust the timing of certain payments to match budget allocations. Included directions on sharpening labor utilization and deferring non-critical maintenance. Augmented the concentration on cost control with an emphasis on increasing billable revenue. Followed the classroom courses with one-on-one mentoring to build proper management practices within each unit and alleviate the need for corporate oversight.

Better spending practices alone added three points to the EBITDA score (up to 18%). Adding the increases in gross margin pushed the total to within one point of the 24% goal.

Initiated a cross-functional collaborative approach to providing the missing knowledge. Joined with IT in crafting a user-friendly scorecard that provided daily, almost real-time visibility of each technician’s treatment metrics allowing tracking of behavior improvement. Created an ongoing schooling curriculum that included class instruction and one-on-one mentoring sessions with clinic management. Learning through use of the tools, clinicians refined the autonomous ability to extend care and shorten treatment episodes, which made clients happy and raised per-patient billings.

Performance measurements increased in all areas culminating in a $1.2 million boost in regional revenue.

Identified a cadre of clinicians with leadership potential. Met weekly with each person to discuss professional goals, examine the essence of being in charge, and arrange a training schedule. Assigned extracurricular projects such as research case studies, case-management exercises, lessons in setting manageable operational KPIs, and resolution of instructional scenarios. Included aspirants in executive-level discussions concerning performance analyses.

Of the targeted group, four rose to the top and received promotions. More importantly, the process remained in place providing the mechanism for recognizing and growing future leadership.

Relied on prior experience as a front-office manager to prepare a remedial plan. Visited all facilities in New York, New Jersey, and Michigan speaking with managers about the issues faced and gathering ideas for viable solutions. Analyzed billing submission records to quantify lag times and queried the revenue-cycle crew to identify operational limitations. Studied the experience level, workflow directives, and communication expectations of the team hiring offshore clerical help eventually assuming supervisory duties. Concluded from the evidence that the problem lay in combining dissimilar obligations in the same job. Framed a restructuring alternative that centralized all hiring activities in a new department leaving current front-end leaders with a narrower, more concentrated list of tasks.

The resultant 45% reduction in field-level administrative work provided multiple benefits. Monthly revenue increased 37% due to more rapid patient enrollment. Hiring technicians happened three weeks faster and the time preparing for credential application decreased by ten weeks (68%).