Location: Hybrid (at least 3 days per week in our NYC, Denver, or Charlotte offices)

Position Summary

The Lead Strategist, Medical Network and Managed Services is a, non-executive individual contributor role that serves as a strategic and operational partner to the Senior Vice President, Medical Network and Managed Services. The role converts broad business priorities into actionable work plans, operating cadence, decision points, executive-ready communications, and follow-through mechanisms that support provider network, managed services, client readiness, and cross-functional execution objectives. This position exercises independent judgment in evaluating complex operational, financial, provider network, and stakeholder inputs; determining appropriate methods and sequencing; identifying risks, dependencies, and decision needs; and recommending practical solutions. The Senior Advisor influences outcomes through analysis, communication, project leadership, and stakeholder alignment rather than direct people-management authority or enterprise executive decision-making authority.

Position Responsibilities:

• Serve as a strategic thought partner to the SVP by translating broad Medical Network and Managed Services priorities into actionable workplans, milestones, timelines, decision points, and follow-up routines.
• Establish, maintain, and continuously improve the operating cadence for Medical Network and Managed Services, including leadership meeting agendas, priority tracking, KPI reporting routines, governance preparation, and action-item follow-through.
• Lead functional work streams or special projects of moderate resource requirements, risk, and/or complexity, including provider network optimization, managed services readiness, process improvement, implementation support, and enterprise priority workstreams.
• Coordinate cross-functional initiatives involving Provider Contracting, Provider Relations, Network Operations, Managed Services, Client Services, Product, Technology, Finance, Compliance, Legal, Sales, and other internal stakeholders to clarify ownership, timelines, dependencies, and escalation paths.
• Drive proposal management activities for RFPs and RFIs by coordinating internal and external stakeholders, synthesizing business, operational, and technology inputs, tracking deliverables, and supporting timely leadership decisions.
• Develop executive-ready briefing materials, presentations, talking points, status updates, decision memos, and business summaries that synthesize complex provider network and managed services matters into clear recommendations.
• Analyze operational, financial, network, provider engagement, and implementation data to identify trends, risks, dependencies, and opportunities to improve execution, readiness, service delivery, or stakeholder alignment.
• Monitor progress against department goals, service commitments, implementation milestones, and strategic initiatives; identify barriers and recommend practical solutions or escalation paths based on business impact and urgency.
• Facilitate alignment across leaders and teams by communicating difficult concepts, negotiating priorities or trade-offs, and influencing stakeholders to adopt a shared path forward where priorities, timelines, or ownership are unclear.
• Support preparation for internal governance forums, executive updates, client or provider-related discussions, and other leadership meetings by gathering inputs, validating content, and ensuring messages are accurate, consistent, and decision-ready.
• Identify opportunities to improve team processes, communication channels, documentation standards, reporting routines, and decision-making practices across Medical Network and Managed Services.
• Maintain confidentiality and exercise sound judgment when handling sensitive provider, client, business, personnel, or strategic information.
• Ability to travel as needed to support client engagements, implementation activities, provider/network initiatives, and business priorities.

Scope and Decision-Making Authority

• Operates with significant independence on assigned work streams, using judgment to determine methods, sequencing, stakeholder engagement approach, and appropriate escalation paths.
• Exercises professional discretion in evaluating variable factors, synthesizing complex inputs, identifying risks, and recommending solutions to support operational, customer, project, or service objectives.
• May lead functional teams, workgroups, or projects with moderate resource requirements, risk, and/or complexity; does not directly manage employees unless separately assigned.
• Influences outcomes through analysis, communication, project leadership, stakeholder alignment, and decision support rather than through formal executive authority.
• May represent the SVP’s priorities in meetings or work streams, but does not independently set enterprise strategy, approve budgets, make final business commitments, or exercise executive decision-making authority.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Strategic execution capability, including the ability to convert broad priorities into organized, measurable, and time-bound plans.
• In-depth analytical and critical thinking skills, including the ability to interpret data, identify patterns, evaluate risks, and develop practical recommendations.
• Strong business judgment, discretion, confidentiality, and ability to determine when issues require escalation or leadership decision-making.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to simplify complex topics for senior leadership and cross-functional audiences.
• Ability to influence without authority, negotiate priorities, and build credibility with stakeholders across teams, functions, and levels of leadership.
• High degree of organization, attention to detail, follow-through, and adaptability in a fast-paced, matrixed environment with shifting priorities and competing deadlines.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in business administration, healthcare administration, public health, operations, finance, technology, or a related field, or equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
• Five to eight years of experience in healthcare operations, provider relations, network management, managed services, consulting, business operations, strategy execution, project management, proposal/RFP coordination, or a related professional discipline.
• Demonstrated experience supporting senior leaders through business planning, initiative tracking, executive communications, performance reporting, governance preparation, or cross-functional project execution.
• Strong understanding of healthcare delivery, provider networks, payer/TPA or managed services operations, client service models, or related healthcare business processes.
• Experience developing clear written materials, presentations, dashboards, decision summaries, operating reviews, and status updates for leadership audiences.
• Proven ability to independently manage multiple complex priorities, evaluate competing inputs, solve problems, and drive accountability across stakeholders without direct supervisory authority.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate difficult concepts, influence cross-functional stakeholders, and negotiate alignment around priorities, timelines, trade-offs, and decision needs.
• Advanced proficiency with Microsoft Office tools, especially PowerPoint, Excel, Word, Outlook, and Teams; experience with project management, reporting, or data visualization tools preferred.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master’s degree in business administration, healthcare administration, public health, or a related field.
• Experience in a healthcare technology, pharmacy benefit management, third-party administrator, payer, provider network, managed care, or consulting environment.
• Project management certification, Lean Six Sigma training, Agile experience, or comparable process improvement background.
• Experience supporting provider-facing operations, network performance initiatives, client implementation, service delivery, proposal/RFP activity, or operational transformation efforts.