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Indy Local Black History makers 2022 ** Updated ***

In her role as Chief Financial Officer and Chief Strategy Officer, Sherron Rodgers leads the development of new system-wide functions with a focus on growing revenue, improving operations, and analyzing new growth opportunities for Eskenazi Health. As part of this, she leads the organization’s business development team and manages the various development teams.

Through her team, she is establishing a common approach towards continuous improvement that is being implemented throughout Eskenazi Health as a way to support the organization’s strategic priorities. Specifically, she has been tasked with working with the CEO to facilitate and implement a $25 million annual financial improvement effort.

Additionally, Rodgers has been responsible for introducing the business development function to Eskenazi Health, comprehensively evaluating each clinical service line, and creating action plans to build upon the strengths and address the opportunities of each. She has integrated business development alongside operational excellence has equipped Eskenazi Health to manage complex change from identification of the opportunity through sustained implementation, minimizing handoffs and delays. Rodgers ensures her team members are fully accountable for their improvement initiatives, intentionally focused on adding value and utilizing customized techniques to meet the need; this approach has ensured her teams remain a relevant partner across all major initiatives and amongst the senior leadership team.

She also leads the Eskenazi Health Network, a program she developed for employers to partner directly with Eskenazi Health to deliver high-quality healthcare for their members while managing healthcare costs for the employee and employer.

Rodgers is responsible for developing a system-wide improvement approach that has promoted innovation and improved outcomes across Eskenazi Health. In 2018, she lead an aggressive improvement plan focused on improving the operating margin by at least $25 million in one year, while at the same time crafting a plan to deliver an additional $25 million in 2019. Under this plan, Eskenazi Health was able to exceed its goal of improving the operating margin by $50 million in two years. Due to the comprehensive nature of her plan, Eskenazi Health was able to achieve this without extensive employee layoffs or severe budget cuts. She was the only senior leader identified by the CEO to assist with this initiative which has now yielded over $80 million dollars in financial improvement for the health system.

Rodgers has introduced the business development function to Eskenazi Health, comprehensively evaluating each clinical service line, and creating action plans to build upon the strengths and address the opportunities of each. In addition, business development has initiated growth strategies and new services which have allowed Eskenazi Health to extend care to more members of the community.

As the leader of the care transitions team, Rodgers has helped the team develop a culture focused on direct team engagement, goal setting, transparency, ownership, and improving outcomes. In turn, the team has strengthened its processes and approach to ensuring successful patient discharges which have led to decreased lengths of stay and readmission rates. Through Rodgers’ innovative thinking and guidance, the call center decreased its dropped call rate from over 50 percent to below five percent, while tripling call volume with 40 percent fewer resources. Team members now have individual and team-based accountability targets that drive a healthy spirit of competition and pride. As a result, engagement is high – the team’s employee turnover improved by 50 percent, retention is now two times that of average call centers.

Rodgers also made an impact while a member of the Indiana University Health operations leadership. She built a Project Management Office (PMO) by creating an accessible approach to project management and IS governance, focused on accountability and outcomes. Also during her time at IU Health, she was responsible for improving the patient experience. In less than 18 months, Rodgers transformed the team by improving staff engagement, significantly reducing spending, and revising all aspects of the department including branding, leadership accountabilities, and operational processes. Within this period, the team’s patient satisfaction results improved from the lowest quartile to being rated amongst the top 7 U.S. News & World Report hospitals in the country, an unparalleled improvement.

Meet the 2022 Indy Black History Makers: How it Started How it’s Going
Local Black History
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