Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1499344
65 HEALTHCARE NEWS 65 Chicago health system CEO to step down By Molly Gamble M ichael Zenn is set to step down as CEO of University of Illinois Hospital and Clinics in May and move into the new role of senior advisor for enterprise strategic initiatives within the university's office of the vice chancellor for health affairs. The change, announced by UIC Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs Robert Barish, MD, on March 14, is pending approval by the University of Illinois board of trustees. Mr. Zenn would step down May 15. Dr. Barish said he "will soon announce" an interim CEO for the Chicago-based system, which includes a 455-bed hospital and more than 20 outpatient and specialty clinics. It is one part of the university's UI Health enterprise. Mr. Zenn was named CEO of University of Illinois Hospital and Clinics in 2018, and before then served as the system's interim chief ambulatory officer and CFO. n require preparation or previews, or lean on talking points that are saved in a Word file. At a certain point, it's understandable if people feel executives are paid too well to not answer a question. It's a shortcoming that's difficult to justify. Down-to-earth leaders come to play. If they don't have an answer, they look into it and find out. eir answers may not be the most eloquently phrased or coin a trademark, but they address the question. eir response may change as they learn more or as events transpire. eir approach is undeniably human and a good-faith effort to show their cards. It's a big part of how they earn trust. 3. How seriously they take themselves. Healthcare is not the most welcoming of spaces. Between the advanced degrees and education required to work in it, the longstanding and futile complexity in how it is regulated and financed, the deterrents from cost to wait times for people trying to access it — there are a lot of barriers to entry. e last thing we need is leaders who exude the same effect by being unrelatable and perpetually an arm's length away. Self-effacing leaders go a long way in healthcare, the ultimate team sport. ey recognize their limitations, faults and idiosyncrasies. (Spoiler alert: We all have them.) ey welcome devil's advocates and hole-poking to their thinking before getting too far ahead of themselves. ey talk openly about their mistakes and mistrials, and deal productively with disappointment. ey genuinely connect with others and have an easy time building relationships. ey take their work seriously, not so much themselves. Importantly, grounded leaders recognize the problems healthcare faces are too big and thorny for any one person or group to go it alone. ey do not see themselves as the sun with everything revolving around them, and instead build strong coalitions, teams and the leaders who will succeed them. n Comprehensive suite of tools and services to help you: — Reduce spend on supplies and maximize capital budgets — Prevent and mitigate the risk of infection and potential harm — Improve staff and patient safety Learn more www.ecri.org/ambulatory-care-solutions