ZOÉ FRANCIS, PhD
New Orleans,LA
Summary
Pragmatic professional with solid experience in leadership roles. Adept at implementing strategic business plans, driving growth and improving operations. Skilled in financial management and stakeholder relations. Collaborative and dedicated to building and leading talented and motivated individuals.
Overview
22
22
years of professional experience
Work History
CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
Institute of Women & Ethnic Studies
08.2019 - Current
- Provides day-to-day operational leadership and support to staff that mirrors the mission and core values of organization with the highest level of personal and professional integrity
- Oversees, directs and manages all daily business operations and internal administrative staff of the organization
- Develop, implements and manages operational policies and procedures
- Finds solutions to complex problems by breaking down complicated issues and communicating effectively to the Board of Directors (BOD), Executive Leadership Team (ELT) and Staff
- Helps manage grant activity related to daily operations; including financial auditing, overseeing outcomes and reporting
- Ensures all legal and regulatory documents are filed, reported, audited and in compliance with laws and regulations for the organization
- Responsible for overseeing budgets, financial reporting, and fiscal accountability
- Monitors monthly financial reports to assure that revenue targets are met and expenses are controlled
- Takes action to improve performance and achieve financial goals
- Responsible for oversight, input and developing best practices for Human Resources and related functions listed, but not limited to; HR policies, procedures, documentation, on-boarding employee experience, culture, employee accountability, performance measures and evaluations, employee handbook and compliance
- Initiates and implements process improvement strategies relating to workflow, quality of programming, safety and experience
- Manage federal grant work plans
- Provides timely, accurate, and complete reports to the BOD on agency performance and yields input from the CEO when compiling information
- Ensures all programs and departments meet the short-term and long-range plans, and budgets based on defined agency goals and growth objectives as determined by the BOD and with collaborative input from the CEO
- Lead all internal operations, including strategic planning, financial operations and interdisciplinary team communications for national organization
- Create five-year plans and implement new processes and approaches to achieve it
- Serve as the internal leader of the organization by coordinating the annual operations plan, forecasted budgets and present critical financial affairs to the CEO and Board members for over 25 grant and contractual sources; includes federal, state and private funders
- Grant proposal writing, contract composition and budget preparation for federal, state, local, private funders and stakeholders
- Develop and implement systems for reporting, measurement and supporting local revenue generation
- Provide organization with a strong day-to-day leadership presence; bridge national and regional operations and support an open-door policy among all staff
- Lead the performance management process that measures and evaluates progress against goals for the organization
- Manage six direct reports including the Finance Director, Human Resource Director, Grants Manager and Director of Programs
- Demonstrate cultural competency, foster leadership and professional development amongst team members
CHIEF OF STAFF
Institute of Women & Ethnic Studies
09.2017 - 08.2019
- Acted as a strategic advisor to the CEO and senior management team
- Represented CEO in meetings, by email, and phone calls with internal and external stakeholders
- Managed the CEO's calendar and prioritizes their time and schedule
- Drafted letters, emails, reports, and other correspondence on behalf of the CEO/President
- Supported CEO/President in meetings by taking notes and assuming responsibility for completion of action items
- Acted as the liaison between CEO and other executives, clients, and stakeholders to ensure consistent communication and ensuring involvement or decision-making at the proper time
- Participated with the CEO and senior management team in strategic planning, policy development, and decision-making
- Ensured timely and effective completion of projects and initiatives of the CEO
- Researched and recommended new and revised policies and strategies
- Established standards and procedures for hiring and managing the office staff and personnel for the CEO/President
- Maintained accurate confidential files and data records
- Worked in partnership with the organization's Founder and Executive Director to create strategic five-year plans and implement new processes and approaches to achieve it
- Served as the internal leader of the organization by coordinating the annual operations plan, forecasted budgets and present critical financial affairs to the CEO and Board members for over 25 grant and contractual sources; includes federal, state and private funders
- Grant proposal writing, contract composition and budget preparation for federal, state, local, private funders and stakeholders
- Developed and implement systems for reporting, measurement and supporting local revenue generation
- Provided organization with a strong day-to-day leadership presence; bridge national and regional operations and support an open-door policy among all staff
- Built partnerships in new markets, established relationships with the funders, and political and community leaders at each expansion site
DIRECTOR OF HUMAN RESOURCES / PEOPLE OPERATIONS
Kindred Hospital
03.2013 - 06.2017
- Responsible for strategic resource & capability planning to ensure that the right people with the right skills will be available at the right time in the right place to deliver the business strategy
- Optimized attraction, development, and retention of high caliber employees
- Ensured a strong diverse, pipeline of talent with well understood career development paths
- Implemented fair employment practices that meet the needs of the organization
- Supported the COO in ensuring that the company organization design is fit for purpose and is sufficiently agile & adaptive to respond to future strategic requirements
- Acted as internal facilitator, coach, and advisor to the leadership team in relation to organizational design & development, people management, and development of a high-performance culture
- Oversaw staff operations, business planning, and budget development of HR programs
- Delivered a comprehensive HR service, including recruitment, compensation, benefits, training and development, and employee engagement & relations, performance management
- Ensured that day-to-day problems and complaints from employees regarding employee benefits, payroll, and paperwork are dealt with promptly and efficiently
- Advised 50+ managers on employee and labor policies, such as ADA and FMLA and ensure compliance with Affirmative Action /Equal Employment Opportunity requirements
- Advised and support on disciplinary matters and the termination of employees as per the organization's policies
- Analyzed of employee data and provision of management information and KPIs, developing insights, and recommendations to inform the organization's strategies
DIRECTOR OF HEALTH INFORMATION MANAGEMENT
Community Care Hospital
10.2008 - 03.2013
- Supervised, monitored and reviewed investigative procedures, investigation strategy, and data analysis of all personnel involved department activities, special projects and programs by auditing and assuring compliance with established protocols and quality assurance guidelines
- Managed credentialing, coding, medical records, and case management departments
- Ensured all medical staff licenses and credentials are current with the credentialing team and present to Medical Executive Committee
- Established policies and procedures, objectives, and department standards to meet The Joint Commission, Department of Health and Hospitals, and Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services requirements
- Prepared quarterly abstract and plans to Director of Quality
- Supervised all activities, including, medical record completion, medical billing, ICD 9 and ICD 10-CM coding, transcription, chart abstracting, DRG and APC assignments, filing, storage and retrieval of patient medical records
- Provided monthly trainings to staff for continuing education and certification requirements
- Helped ensure timely utilization of acute hospital services to meet the admission and discharge needs of all patients in the most cost-effective manner and within the reimbursement restraints
- Managed information and financial data, and to analyze and measure performance
- Oversaw medical Medicare, Medicaid, self-pay and commercial billing departments
- Responsible for tracking all Utilization Coordinators pre-certifications and concurrent reviews
- Prepared monthly financial and census reports to the Chief Executive Officer regarding patient accounts
- Prepared patient account aging reports, length of stay reports, individual physician data for inpatient and outpatient program
CLINICAL MANAGER
Ochsner Health System
08.2006 - 10.2008
- Designed and managed monthly tracking databases to track program activity outputs and outcomes
- Participated in grant research writing or other projects to procure supplemental funding for state-of-the-art surveillance instruments and technologies and prepare reports, papers, presentations, and articles for scientific and non-scientific journals on disease investigations, and preparedness for nuclear/biologic/chemical threats
- Collaborated with evaluation coordinators to complete and submit required surveillance and evaluation deliverables such as Annual Performance Reports, Evaluation Reports, etc
- To various grant issuers
- Used existing databases to surveil the prevalence of chronic disease outcomes and associated risk factors in Louisiana
- Responded to internal and external data requests from a variety of stakeholders providing raw data, aggregated tables, and other information as needed
- Conducted literature reviews and assisted in preparing reports from analyses of surveillance data, literature reviews, and other information using epidemiologic analytic techniques
- Utilized graphical and mapping software to create visualizations of data for a variety of audiences
- Demonstrated strong commitment to data-driven quality improvement cycles
- Liaised and negotiated with medical and non-medical staff internally and with people in external departments
- Managed clinical, professional, clerical and administrative staff
- Managed the recruitment, selection, appraisal and development of staff
- Gathered and analyzed data and using it to plan and manage both projects and systems
- Planned and implemented strategic changes to improve service delivery
EPIDEMIOLOGIST
Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals
05.2002 - 08.2006
- Worked closely with federal and state environmental regulatory agencies to assess various Superfund and hazardous sites throughout Louisiana
- Participated in site visits to assess current site conditions and determine future site needs
- Performed multi-media health assessments and consultations based on environmental data from sites
- Planned and conducted meetings and forums to inform residents of site risks or the lack thereof
- Performed epidemiological investigations on various health outcomes
- Analyzed and evaluate health outcomes from the Louisiana Tumor Registry data
- Evaluated and adapt existing methods and develop new methods as necessary to facilitate effective and efficient data linkages in Environmental Public Health Tracking
- Evaluated current health, exposure and environmental data collection and surveillance (tracking) methods and developed best practices that increased efficiency, and decreased time and cost for data collection
- Environmental Justice Coordinator and advisor to State Health Officer
- Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals Brownfields Coordinator
- Provided epidemiologic support for grant applications
- Participated in grant planning meetings and calls as needed for upcoming grant opportunities
- Developed surveillance plans to accompany grant applications
Education
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY - Epidemiology
UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA
Birmingham, AL05.2010
MASTER OF HEALTHCARE MANAGEMENT - Executive Education Division
University of New Orleans
New Orleans, LA05.2007
MASTER OF PUBLIC HEALTH - Epidemiology
Tulane University School of Public Health And Tropical Medicine
New Orleans, LA05.2002
BACHELOR OF SCIENCE - Major: Biology Minor: Chemistry
Dillard University
New Orleans, LA05.2000
Skills
- Proficient in Quickbooks
- Proficient in all Microsoft applications
- Proficient in Asana
- Proficient in Canva
- Proficient in accounting software
- Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Trainings
- Operations Management
- Cross-Functional Teamwork
- Strategic Planning
- Process Improvement
- Performance Management
- Compliance Management
- Executive Leadership
Trainings
- Proficient in Quickbooks, all Microsoft applications, Asana, Canva and other accounting software
- Registered Health Information Technician (RHIT)
- AHIMA Certified Coding Associate
- Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Trainings
- Proficient in all Microsoft Applications, ICD 9 and ICD 10-CM codes
- Member of Louisiana Public Health Association
- CPR Certified
Timeline
CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
Institute of Women & Ethnic Studies
08.2019 - Current
CHIEF OF STAFF
Institute of Women & Ethnic Studies
09.2017 - 08.2019
DIRECTOR OF HUMAN RESOURCES / PEOPLE OPERATIONS
Kindred Hospital
03.2013 - 06.2017
DIRECTOR OF HEALTH INFORMATION MANAGEMENT
Community Care Hospital
10.2008 - 03.2013
CLINICAL MANAGER
Ochsner Health System
08.2006 - 10.2008
EPIDEMIOLOGIST
Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals
05.2002 - 08.2006
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY - Epidemiology
UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA
MASTER OF HEALTHCARE MANAGEMENT - Executive Education Division
University of New Orleans
MASTER OF PUBLIC HEALTH - Epidemiology
Tulane University School of Public Health And Tropical Medicine
BACHELOR OF SCIENCE - Major: Biology Minor: Chemistry
Dillard University
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