The University of Arizona invites applications and nominations for the University of Arizona’s Senior Vice President for Health Sciences. Reporting directly to President Robbins, the Senior Vice President for Health Sciences will be a major player in the University of Arizona’s future and, as such, a key member of the President’s senior leadership team. The Senior Vice President for Health Sciences will have primary oversight for the College of Medicine-Tucson, the College of Medicine-Phoenix, the College of Nursing, the College of Pharmacy, the Mel & Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, and the Arizona Cancer Center, as well as for several centers and institutes. In addition, this Senior Vice President will be the key partner representing the University in its emerging and exciting relationship with Banner Health.

For full position specification, please visit hr.arizona.edu/svphealthsciences

The Search Advisory Committee, co-chaired by Gregg Goldman, Senior Vice President for Business Affairs and Chief Financial Officer, and Iman Hakim, Dean of the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, and President Robbins are partnering in this search with Russell Reynolds Associates; the Russell Reynolds Associates team is being led by Drs. Charles Falcone and Ilene H. Nagel.

The University of Arizona Health Sciences is the state-wide leader in biomedical research and health professions training. As noted above, the UA Health Sciences include the UA Colleges of Medicine (Phoenix and Tucson), Nursing, Pharmacy and Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, with main campus locations in Tucson and the growing Phoenix Biomedical Campus in downtown Phoenix.

Outstanding UA benefits include health, dental, and vision insurance plans; life insurance and disability programs; paid vacation, sick leave, and holidays; UA/ASU/NAU tuition reduction for the employee and qualified family members; state and optional retirement plans; access to UA recreation and cultural activities; and more!

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The Senior Vice President for Health Sciences will have primary oversight for the College of Medicine-Tucson, the College of Medicine-Phoenix, the College of Nursing, the College of Pharmacy, the Mel & Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, and the Arizona Cancer Center, as well as for several centers and institutes. In addition, this Senior Vice President will be the key partner representing the University in its emerging and exciting relationship with Banner Health.

The University seeks an individual who will embrace the new partnership with Banner Health, who will be creative in leveraging the incredible opportunities provided by this partnership to the benefit of all the health sciences colleges. UA seeks an individual who will appreciate the value of having two medical colleges, one based in Phoenix and one in Tucson, each with unique strengths, and each responsive to their respective health care communities. UA seeks an individual who will embrace the idea of clinical and research excellence in varied forms, and who will work to empower the two medical colleges each to become outstanding, in the varied paths they have and will chart. Moreover, they seek an individual who will see the opportunities to build synergies across all the health sciences, and to create opportunities for inter-professional research, education, training, and patient care excellence. The overriding aspiration for the UA’s Senior Vice President for Health Sciences will be for him/her to develop a unique model of health sciences, where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, but where each part is a self-standing center of research, clinical and teaching excellence.

President Robbins seeks a leader who will see the organizational complexity of the University of Arizona Health Sciences (UAHS) as a strength that presents enormous opportunities to chart a path for the 21st century, in which multiple health sciences colleges partner with leadership and faculty from across the university, to build, for example, bio-engineering, public health science and social science collaborations, and a host of other collaborative initiatives to complement the core missions of each health science college. In sum, he seeks to appoint to this position an individual who will leverage the strengths of the health sciences for the benefit of the entirety of the University of Arizona and the surrounding communities.

The University of Arizona seeks candidates with a distinguished record in clinical/translational or basic research; substantial administrative leadership experience, particularly in an academic medical center and/or research-intensive university; demonstrated achievement in faculty recruitment, external fund development, and community partnerships; and a broad understanding of national health policy, and the future challenges and opportunities for academic health sciences.

In terms of the performance and personal competencies required for the position, we would highlight the following:

Setting Strategy

• The capacity to understand the complex organizational landscape and the ability to anticipate and articulate the critical issues, opportunities, and threats in the foreseeable future.
• The ability to create and articulate an inspiring vision for UAHS, not only for the areas for which he/she is directly responsible, or from which she/he comes, but for the enterprise as a whole.
• The inclination to seek broad input and to analyze data from a variety of sources to support decisions and to align others with the UAHS overall strategy.
• An entrepreneurial and creative approach to developing new, innovative ideas that will stretch the organization and push the boundaries of the UAHS enterprise.
• An eagerness to participate in university-wide strategic planning processes and collaborative implementation of strategic goals with other UA units.

Executing for Results

• The ability to set clear and challenging goals while committing the organization to improved performance; tenacious and accountable in driving results.
• Comfortable with ambiguity and uncertainly; the ability to adapt nimbly and lead others through complex situations.
• A thoughtful risk-taker who seeks data and input from others to foresee possible threats or unintended circumstances from decisions; someone who takes smart risks.
• A leader who is viewed by others as having an unwavering degree of integrity and forethought in his/her approach to making decisions; the ability to act in a transparent and consistent manner while always taking into account what is best for the organization.
• Understands the broad research mission – basic, translational, and clinical – and is committed to its success and sustainability.

Leading Teams

• The ability to attract, recruit and retain top talent, motivate the team, delegate effectively, celebrate diversity within the team, and manage performance; widely viewed as a strong developer of others. An individual who demonstrates a generosity of spirit will be deemed an ideal candidate.
• The ability to delegate effectively while maintaining focus on strategy and overall goals of the University of Arizona health enterprise.
• The desire to develop strong partnerships with all relevant constituents, including but not limited to: UAHS and UA faculty and staff, community stakeholders, and Banner Health personnel; and contribute to the success of all entities.
• The ability to persevere in the face of challenges, and exhibit a steadfast resolve and relentless commitment to higher standards, which commands respect from followers.
• A leader who is self-reflective and aware of her/his own limitations; leads by example and drives the organization’s performance with an attitude of continuous improvement by being open to feedback and self-improvement.

Relationships and Influence

• Ability to foster and strengthen the relationship with Banner Health as well as other clinical partners in Phoenix.
• Ability to engender community engagement in both Tucson and Phoenix.
• Naturally connects and builds strong collaborative relationships with others, demonstrating strong emotional intelligence and an ability to communicate clearly and persuasively.
• Demonstrates an appropriate understanding of and enthusiasm for each of the three missions of an academic health sciences center.
• An ability to inspire trust and followership in others through compelling influence, powerful charisma, passion in his/her beliefs, and active drive.
• Encourages others to share the spotlight and visibly celebrates and supports the success of the team.
• Creates a sense of purpose/meaning for the team that generates followership beyond his/her own personality and engages others to the greater purpose for the organization as a whole.

Relevant Experience

• Has demonstrated career progression that has prepared him/her for a position of this scope, complexity, and scale.
• Has experience working with leadership of departments, research institutes, centers of excellence, or other mission critical entities as appropriate.
• Has served as a visionary and strategic leader with knowledge and experience in academic institutions, health centers, and teaching hospitals.
• Has participated in the management of a clinical and/or a research enterprise and demonstrates an understanding of the issues involved.
• Has demonstrated experience in fiscal management.
• Has demonstrated experience in fundraising.
• Has demonstrated experience in advancing a diverse faculty.
• Has knowledge of the value of health-related research and education and exhibits the capability to help to improve integration of the colleges within UA Health Science and the Banner Health clinical enterprise.

Education and Credentials
It is anticipated that the successful candidate will have earned a doctorate in a health professions or scientific field and have academic credentials sufficient to engender respect within the University of Arizona and the national academic community at large. The successful candidate should have had progressive, broad leadership experience in complex academic environments. He/she should exhibit a substantive understanding of the important issues in the national health care reform activities, as well as a deep understanding of academic health centers. And, he/she should be politically astute and understand that a leadership position of this stature calls for an individual with outstanding judgment, and a sense of the importance of the “optics” of all decisions.

Russell Reynolds Associates at UA.SVPHS@russellreynolds.com

Prospects nominated and/or those who wish to be considered by the Search Advisory Committee should provide an electronic version of their curriculum vitae as well as a brief bullet point summary of administrative roles they have held and their accomplishments in each.

At the University of Arizona, we value our inclusive climate because we know that diversity in experiences and perspectives is vital to advancing innovation, critical thinking, solving complex problems, and creating an inclusive academic community. We translate these values into action by seeking individuals who have experience and expertise working with diverse students, colleagues and constituencies. Because we seek a workforce with a wide range of perspectives and experiences, we encourage diverse candidates to apply, including people of color, women, veterans, and individuals with disabilities. As an Employer of National Service, we also welcome alumni of AmeriCorps, Peace Corps, and other national service programs and others who will help us advance our Inclusive Excellence initiative aimed at creating a university that values student, staff and faculty engagement in addressing issues of diversity and inclusiveness.