“More Important Now Than Ever”: Leaders on How CHIME Has Affected Their Careers

In what ways has CHIME impacted your career most?

When we asked a handful of influential leaders how CHIME has impacted their careers, the answers varied, but one central theme kept coming to the surface: collaboration. The ability to connect with those who are facing the same obstacles and share knowledge on how to overcome them. As one respondent stated, “this may be more important now than ever before.” Below are the responses we received:

“The networking and lifetime friends I’ve gained along the way have been invaluable. In the earliest days of COVID-19 when the entire world seemed to suddenly stop, CIOs had no one else but each other to brainstorm solutions. Those CHIME relationships really counted when it was truly was life or death.

-Aaron Miri, SVP, Chief Digital & Information Officer, Baptist Health

Being part of CHIME allows me to broaden my network of colleagues exponentially by allowing me to interact with other folks from all over the country (sometimes all over the world) who are grappling with similar types of issues and are trying out new things that I may be interested in for my organization. Even in a very collaborative environment, it can be difficult to be able to share and build those trusting relationships. By having all of us under one roof, CHIME facilitates information sharing and relationship-building organically.

-Rich Temple, VP & CIO, Deborah Heart and Lung Center

When I joined CHIME in 2015, I was looking to expand my knowledge and understanding of the CIO role. I began with the CIO Bootcamp and have never looked back. CHIME has been instrumental in helping me develop as a leader and contributor to healthcare IT. Tim Stettheimer was my assigned bootcamp leader, and to this day, his model of honesty and integrity is something I continuously strive to achieve. Since I am from a small, rural organization, CHIME has served as a key to understanding how other facilities are meeting challenges, and moving healthcare forward with technology.

-Kate Pierce, CIO/CISO, North Country Hospital

CHIME has been a wonderful resource in providing educational briefs and virtual content which are consolidated and relevant to my work, and to those who I interact with on a daily basis. As a physician in Health IT leadership, it’s particularly important to be well versed in public policy/legislation, and I have found CHIME’s “Washington Debrief ” to be extremely valuable. Additionally, CHIME has provided me with the opportunity to meet several individuals whom I would not otherwise have met.

-Jason Buchanan, MD, Clinical Informatics Officer, Baylor College of Medicine

CHIME is about going to unfamiliar places and doing things you have never done but knowing that you are supported, you belong, and while you may fail at a specific task, you will never fail alone. There will always be someone there who can help you understand what didn’t work, why, and how to make it work next time. This may be more important now than ever before as we move into the age of Digital Health, patient engagement, remote care, new cyber threats and more privacy demands, DEI at work and in care. No one has ever done these things before, and no one can do them alone.

-David Finn, Vice President, AEHIS, AEHIT, AEHIA

CHIME is a building block for networking and education. It is a connector. It connects you to those in the industry you admire to learn from; to your peers to share and to find the answers on similar challenges; to our next generation up-and-comers to teach and to understand their new mindset; and to our partners and those we rely upon to develop and deploy the techniques and tools for our patients, our consumers, and our fellow caregivers.

-Craig Richardville, Chief Digital & Information Officer, Intermountain Healthcare

The CHIME conferences have been a tremendous resource for learning and networking. Attending sessions and hearing what other health systems are doing has helped bring our shared challenges and opportunities into focus. The dedicated time to network with other CIOs, industry leaders, and influencers has also been invaluable in creating and fostering meaningful relationships.

-Michael Saad, SVP & CIO, University of Tennessee Medical Center

The networking aspect has had a great impact on my career. Allowing me to learn and bounce things off others in my industry. The CHIME mentor program has been very favorable to me. Both mentors over the years have been willing to lend their expertise and time to help me grow.

-Chris Walden, VP, IT Hospital & Tenet Physician Resources

CHIME has been such a beneficial group to belong to. To start, the events are done well and with a very focused approach which is what separates it from the rest. The networking opportunities and resources provided are incredibly valuable and top-notch, but what I personally have found to be uniquely impactful are the certification programs. The CHCIO certification, for example, really stretches the vision of how CIOs approach their role as part of the leadership team and within the organization. The healthcare CIO/leadership community is very tight. CHIME does an amazing job at bringing us all together to tackle the challenges we all face, but it also provides the opportunity to catch up outside of work and have some fun as well.

-Nicholas Szymanski, VP & CIO, Signature Healthcare

CHIME has provided a network of seasoned professionals for me to interact with and learn from over many years. It has also provided superb educational opportunities on the most current and future topics facing our industry.

-Liz Johnson, Vice Chair, CHIME Policy Steering Committee