Associate Director - Healthcare Strategy & Innovation - job 2 of 2

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Guidehouse is a global consultancy providing advisory, digital, and managed services to the commercial and public sectors. Guidehouse is purpose-built to serve the national security, financial services, healthcare, energy, and infrastructure industries. Recognized by Forbes as one of the Best Management Consulting Firms for 2024, Guidehouse is disrupting legacy consulting delivery models with its agility, capabilities, and scale, delivering technology-enabled and focused solutions that position clients for innovation, resilience, and growth. With high-quality standards and a relentless pursuit of client success, we at Guidehouse collaborate with leaders to outwit complexity and achieve transformational changes that meaningfully shape the future.

At Guidehouse, you will be part of a growing, talented, inclusive, high-performing community of strategy and healthcare leaders and teams that are focused on bring competitive, collaborative, and resilient spirit to serving the nation’s healthcare organizations and communities. You will have the opportunity to inspire and be inspired by the change we affect in the industry, the lives we touch, and the impact we drive. You will have a voice and the chance learn, grow, elevate, and thrive in a global firm where values matter, ideas are heard, and aspirations achieved. You can expect that your learning and development matter through the investment Guidehouse makes in your personal and professional growth.

Strategy:

Strategy at Guidehouse works with C-suite executives, business leaders, and boards of directors of the nation’s leading commercial and public sector organizations. With a relentless focus on helping them ‘Outwit Complexity’ facing their industry, business, workforce, consumers, and communities, Strategy helps organizations drive profitable growth, reduce costs, elevate competitive positioning, transform into new performance frontiers, and achieve value-accretive, sustainable outcomes. Our Strategy service line focuses on cutting through the ambiguity, shaping the future, and architecting the transformational pathways for our clients to advance and prosper with resilience.

You are a High Performer. You are a Changemaker. You are Curious. You are Resilient. You are Data-Driven. You are Technology-Centric. You are Value-Obsessed. You are Future-Looking. You are the best of Strategy. As a high-impact, collaborative team player you bring consulting experience in Healthcare Payer/Provider Strategy. Your proven expertise serving clients is complimented by your people development skills and managerial promise.

What You Will Do:

As an Associate Director, you are a team player, people developer, and strategy practitioner all in one – leading and serving with analytical excellence, strategic dominance, structured-problem solving, and poised planning. Your experiences include (but not limited to) advising and helping Payer/Provider clients execute on strategic planning, business model strategy, operating model strategy / design, competitive agility, enterprise transformation, cost reductions / ZBx, M&A, service line strategy, product strategy, and innovation.

You are a leader and strategic driver within our Healthcare Strategy practice. You are a high-impact, collaborative changemaker with a proven track record in healthcare payer/provider consulting. You bring advanced expertise in strategy, project leadership, and people development, and are adept at managing multiple complex projects simultaneously. Your role is pivotal in shaping client outcomes, developing future leaders, and advancing our firm’s strategic vision.

A core expectation of this role is to serve as a master practitioner and teacher, using an apprenticeship model to develop the next generation of consulting leaders. You will actively coach Managers and junior consultants in the foundational and advanced skills of strategy consulting, ensuring they learn not just by observation, but through deliberate practice, feedback, and structured skill-building.

Key Responsibilities:

Strategic Leadership and Project Oversight

• Lead multiple, concurrent client engagements, ensuring delivery of high-quality, innovative solutions that align with client and organizational goals.
• Develop and implement comprehensive strategies for healthcare payer/provider clients, including business model transformation, operating model design, enterprise transformation, M&A, and service line innovation.
• Oversee project teams, set clear objectives, and ensure projects are delivered on time, within scope, and on budget.
• Apply and teach advanced strategic frameworks (e.g., wind tunneling, SWOT, Porter’s Five Forces, PEST, 3Cs) and data-driven methodologies to solve complex business challenges and drive measurable value.

Client Relationship Management

• Serve as an advisor to senior client stakeholders, building and maintaining long-term relationships.
• Anticipate client needs, proactively identify opportunities, and deliver actionable recommendations that support client objectives.
• Represent the firm at industry events, conferences, and client meetings to enhance brand visibility and thought leadership.

Team Leadership, Apprenticeship, and Talent Development

• Lead, mentor, and develop Managers and junior consultants, fostering a culture of collaboration, innovation, and continuous learning.
• Use an apprenticeship model to teach and model classic strategy consulting skills, including:
• Issue-based problem solving and hypothesis-driven analysis
• Choice structuring and decision-tree logic
• Structured communication (e.g., pyramid principle, storylining, executive summaries)
• Analytical and quantitative modeling
• Strategic thinking and business acumen
• Framework application and synthesis of insights
• Stakeholder management and influencing skills
• Project management and prioritization
• Provide regular feedback, conduct performance evaluations, and support career development for team members

Business and Practice Development

• Drive business development initiatives, including proposal development, client presentations, and identification of new business opportunities
• Contribute to the growth of the healthcare strategy practice through thought leadership, offering development, and internal process improvement
• Collaborate with other leaders to shape the strategic direction of the practice and ensure alignment with organizational goals

Financial and Operational Management

• Oversee project budgets, resource allocation, and financial performance, ensuring efficient use of resources and achievement of profitability targets
• Monitor and report on project progress, risks, and outcomes to senior leadership and clients

Key Competencies:

• Strategic vision and execution
• Leadership and team development through apprenticeship
• Mastery and teaching of classic consulting skills (problem solving, structured communication, framework application, etc.)
• Advanced project and financial management
• Client-centric mindset and business development acumen
• High emotional intelligence and adaptability

What You Will Need:

• Bachelor’s degree
• 7+ years of strategy consulting experience in top-tier or boutique consulting, with a focus on healthcare payer/provider industry
• Demonstrated success managing multiple, complex projects and leading cross-functional teams
• Advanced strategic thinking, analytical, and problem-solving skills
• Exceptional communication, presentation, and relationship-building abilities
• Proficiency in data analytics tools (e.g., PowerBI, Tableau, Alteryx) and financial modeling
• Willingness to travel as required

What Would Be Nice To Have:

• Master's in Business Administration (MBA) highly preferred
• Master’s in Healthcare Administration (MHA) or related advanced degree
• Experience with AI, cloud, or machine learning in healthcare
• Active participation in healthcare industry associations  

What We Offer:

Guidehouse offers a comprehensive, total rewards package that includes competitive compensation and a flexible benefits package that reflects our commitment to creating a diverse and supportive workplace.

Benefits include:

• Medical, Rx, Dental & Vision Insurance

• Personal and Family Sick Time & Company Paid Holidays

• Position may be eligible for a discretionary variable incentive bonus

• Parental Leave and Adoption Assistance

• 401(k) Retirement Plan

• Basic Life & Supplemental Life

• Health Savings Account, Dental/Vision & Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts

• Short-Term & Long-Term Disability

• Student Loan PayDown

• Tuition Reimbursement, Personal Development & Learning Opportunities

• Skills Development & Certifications

• Employee Referral Program

• Corporate Sponsored Events & Community Outreach

• Emergency Back-Up Childcare Program

• Mobility Stipend

About Guidehouse

Guidehouse is an Equal Opportunity Employer–Protected Veterans, Individuals with Disabilities or any other basis protected by law, ordinance, or regulation.

Guidehouse will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable law or ordinance including the Fair Chance Ordinance of Los Angeles and San Francisco.

If you have visited our website for information about employment opportunities, or to apply for a position, and you require an accommodation, please contact Guidehouse Recruiting at 1-571-633-1711 or via email at RecruitingAccommodation@guidehouse.com. All information you provide will be kept confidential and will be used only to the extent required to provide needed reasonable accommodation.

All communication regarding recruitment for a Guidehouse position will be sent from Guidehouse email domains including @guidehouse.com or guidehouse@myworkday.com.  Correspondence received by an applicant from any other domain should be considered unauthorized and will not be honored by Guidehouse.  Note that Guidehouse will never charge a fee or require a money transfer at any stage of the recruitment process and does not collect fees from educational institutions for participation in a recruitment event. Never provide your banking information to a third party purporting to need that information to proceed in the hiring process.

If any person or organization demands money related to a job opportunity with Guidehouse, please report the matter to Guidehouse’s Ethics Hotline. If you want to check the validity of correspondence you have received, please contact recruiting@guidehouse.com. Guidehouse is not responsible for losses incurred (monetary or otherwise) from an applicant’s dealings with unauthorized third parties.

Guidehouse does not accept unsolicited resumes through or from search firms or staffing agencies. All unsolicited resumes will be considered the property of Guidehouse and Guidehouse will not be obligated to pay a placement fee.