Program Lead – Hospital & Health System Consulting

This position is listed on behalf of a partner company, who manages all applications and next steps. Our partner is looking for a Program Lead – Hospital & Health System Consulting based in the United States. We are seeking an experienced healthcare professional to lead and support consulting engagements that help hospitals, health systems, and healthcare organizations strengthen operations, preparedness, and long-term resilience. This role offers the opportunity to apply specialized expertise across healthcare strategy, emergency management, workforce development, operational improvement, and organizational transformation. You will collaborate with healthcare executives, clinical leaders, and multidisciplinary teams to assess challenges, develop actionable recommendations, and implement practical solutions. Projects may span strategic planning, emergency preparedness, training and exercises, continuity planning, value-based care, and enterprise-wide transformation initiatives. The position combines analytical problem-solving, stakeholder facilitation, and subject matter expertise to address complex healthcare needs in both rural and urban communities. This is a remote, proposal-based independent contractor opportunity, with engagement dependent on the successful award of upcoming client projects.

Lead healthcare consulting engagements: Manage or support projects for hospitals, health systems, community health centers, rural healthcare providers, and other healthcare delivery organizations. Provide specialized expertise: Apply knowledge in one or more practice areas, including hospital emergency management, Hospital Incident Command System (HICS), healthcare operations, workforce development, strategic planning, value-based care, continuity, resilience, and healthcare transformation. Conduct organizational assessments: Evaluate operational performance, preparedness, workforce capacity, organizational structures, and healthcare systems to identify gaps, risks, opportunities, and improvement priorities. Develop strategies and implementation plans: Support the creation and execution of healthcare strategies, operating models, policies, procedures, programs, and improvement initiatives aligned with client needs. Design and facilitate client engagements: Plan and lead stakeholder interviews, workshops, executive sessions, training programs, tabletop exercises, functional exercises, and other collaborative activities. Engage healthcare stakeholders: Work with hospital executives, clinical leaders, nursing and medical staff, emergency management teams, operations, finance, human resources, quality, IT, and external partners to build alignment and support implementation. Strengthen emergency preparedness and resilience: Contribute to emergency operations planning, HICS implementation, continuity planning, medical surge preparedness, infectious disease response, exercises, and after-action and improvement planning. Support healthcare transformation: Help organizations improve care delivery models, operational efficiency, workforce sustainability, technology utilization, data capabilities, value-based care, and enterprise systems. Translate requirements into practical solutions: Interpret federal and state healthcare regulations, funding priorities, industry standards, and leading practices to develop actionable recommendations and implementation approaches. Produce high-quality deliverables: Prepare assessments, reports, strategic plans, roadmaps, presentations, dashboards, training materials, and executive-level briefings. Collaborate across disciplines: Partner with multidisciplinary teams and subject matter experts to deliver integrated solutions addressing complex healthcare challenges. Requirements Education: Bachelor’s degree in healthcare administration, public health, emergency management, nursing, medicine, business administration, or a related field. Professional experience: 5–10+ years of experience in healthcare, public health, workforce development, or related consulting environments. Healthcare sector experience: Demonstrated experience working with hospitals, health systems, critical access hospitals, Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), or community health centers. Assessment and strategy expertise: Experience conducting workforce or organizational assessments, developing strategic plans, or implementing healthcare programs and improvement initiatives. Subject matter knowledge: Demonstrated expertise in at least one relevant area, such as healthcare emergency preparedness, HICS, healthcare operations, workforce development, training and exercises, strategic planning, value-based care, continuity, enterprise systems, or healthcare transformation. Stakeholder engagement: Strong facilitation, communication, and relationship-building skills, including experience working with executive leadership and cross-sector partners. Analytical and problem-solving abilities: Capacity to evaluate complex organizational challenges, interpret relevant requirements, and develop practical, evidence-informed recommendations. Preferred advanced education: Master’s degree in Public Health (MPH), Healthcare Administration (MHA), Business Administration (MBA), Nursing (MSN), or a related field. Preferred certifications: Certified Emergency Manager (CEM), Certified Healthcare Emergency Professional (CHEP), or Certified Healthcare Safety Professional (CHSP). Additional preferred experience: Familiarity with value-based care, alternative payment models, population health, care coordination, payer-provider transformation, hospital operations, enterprise systems, organizational transformation, quality improvement, or performance improvement. Public-sector and funded initiatives: Experience supporting programs involving CMS, ASPR, CDC, HRSA, HHS, FEMA, state health departments, healthcare coalitions, or other federally or state-funded healthcare initiatives. Contractor eligibility: Must be able to work as an independent contractor (1099) and provide a valid Employer Identification Number (EIN). Engagement is contingent on the successful award of the relevant contract. Benefits Hourly compensation: $75–$125 per hour, depending on skills, experience, training, licensure, certifications, internal equity, location, travel requirements, and organizational needs. Remote work: Opportunity to work remotely within the United States. Meaningful client impact: Contribute to projects that strengthen healthcare preparedness, improve healthcare delivery, and support organizational resilience. Varied consulting engagements: Potential to apply specialized expertise across healthcare strategy, operations, emergency management, workforce development, and transformation. Collaborative environment: Work alongside multidisciplinary professionals and healthcare stakeholders to develop integrated solutions to complex challenges.