Becker's Hospital Review

16 THOUGHT LEADERSHIP OSF HealthCare's 15-year focus on succession planning By Kristin Kuchno W hen Bob Sehring joined Peoria, Ill.-based OSF HealthCare 23 years ago, the health system had five hospitals and 8,000 employees. Today, those numbers have grown to 17 and 26,000, respectively. Under Mr. Sehring's leadership as CEO since 2017, OSF HealthCare has expanded through mergers and acquisitions, growing its Destination Center in Peoria for complex care and bringing care closer to home for patients. "My hope would be that, as I retire in a little over a year, I have le OSF better than I found it," Mr. Sehring told Becker's. "I know OSF has le me better than they found me." He joined the system in 2002, previously serving as CEO of OSF HealthPlans and chief ministry services officer for the health system. He plans to retire in April 2026. One of his most significant accomplishments as CEO came in 2024 with the opening of the OSF HealthCare Cancer Institute in Peoria. Since its launch in April, the institute has interacted with 70,000 patients. "Like any overnight success, it took about 10 years," he said. In 2024, OSF continued its financial recovery and workforce stabilization following the COVID-19 pandemic. e system also added its 17th hospital, OSF HealthCare Saint Katharine Medical Center in Dixon, Ill. Building on this momentum, Mr. Sehring is prioritizing growth in 2025, particularly in OSF's Destination Center in Peoria for complex healthcare, including four key specialty institutes: Children's Hospital of Illinois and its cardiovascular, neurological and cancer institutes. "As we think about the future and the growth in those four areas in particular, we are investing time, energy and quite a bit of treasure in those areas to be able to grow them and serve a broad geography," he said. Another key focus is strengthening OSF's regional hubs outside Peoria, including in Galesburg, Bloomington and Peru, Ill. e system's hub-spoke model is designed to keep care closer to home while reserving Peoria's institutes for the most complex cases. "How do we do a little bit of both?" Mr. Sehring said. "How do we support the region and build those up so they can provide a high level of outstanding care in the communities they serve, but also then collaborate with the OSF Destination Center in Peoria to make sure that those that need to come to our specialty institutes for the highest level of care can get here and can be treated with an excellent patient and family experience?" Mr. Sehring credited OSF's success to the strength of the organization and its people. "As a CEO, and really as any executive, we do very little on our own," he said. Succession planning In December, Mr. Sehring announced his intention to retire. Michelle Conger, system chief strategy officer and CEO of OSF OnCall Digital Health, became president on Jan. 1 and will succeed him as CEO. A lengthy transition for the top role is a well-established practice at OSF. e system's three more recent CEOs — Jim Moore, Kevin Schoeplein and Mr. Sehring — each had transition periods of 12 to 14 months. is approach has allowed incoming leaders to collaborate with their predecessor and gain deeper insight into different areas of the organization, Mr. Sehring said. "OSF has been engaged in significant succession planning over the past 15 years," he said. "For one, because the nature of the business is changing so rapidly, you always have to make sure that you have the depth and breadth of people." Ms. Conger and CFO Kirsten Largent are examples of long-standing OSF leaders who were well-prepared to step into critical roles, he said. "It's not just at the executive level," Mr. Sehring said. "It goes down to our vice presidents and directors to make sure that we can build a pipeline of people who can support this organization and the needs going forward." n The 1 word AdventHealth's chief strategy officer is tempted to tune out By Kristin Kuchno I nnovation does not have to be a sweeping change implemented all at once — it can be achieved through smaller, intentional steps, David Banks wrote in a Feb. 19 LinkedIn post. Mr. Banks serves as chief strategy officer, group president and CEO for primary health and multistate divisions for Altamonte Springs, Fla.-based AdventHealth. "Lately, when I hear the word 'innovation,' I'm tempted to tune out," he wrote. "I don't think I'm the only one." Change is more likely to last when it feels attainable, Mr. Banks said, outlining three strategies to support this approach: 1. Clarify the intention. Ensure the team understands the problem and why the change is happening. 2. Build space to test — and fail. This allows continuous progress while the concept is fine-tuned and proven. 3. Celebrate the small wins. Recognizing results along the way fosters natural buy-in, Mr. Banks said. n

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