Chief Operating Officer of Ambulatory Operations

The Chief Operating Officer (COO) provides strategic and operational leadership for the academic physician practice, ensuring the delivery of high-quality, patient-centered care while advancing the organization’s clinical, academic, research, and financial objectives. The COO oversees Baylor Medicine’s day-to-day operations ambulatory sites, procedural areas, and support functions. Working in close partnership with physician leaders, department chairs, faculty, administrators, hospital and health-system executives, and academic leaders, the COO translates organizational strategy into effective operating plans, scalable infrastructure, and measurable results. The ideal candidate is an experienced healthcare executive with a strong understanding of academic medicine, physician practice operations, ambulatory care delivery, faculty practice models, value-based care, revenue cycle management, and organizational change.

Reporting Structure

• Reports directly to the Executive Vice President of Clinical Affairs, or designee, and works in collaboration with Department Chairs, Chief Quality Officer, Chief Medical Officer, President’s team, Medical Directors, and Clinical Administrators to manage quality, safety, and patient experience throughout the Baylor Medicine clinical enterprise.
• Works collaboratively with other members of the Baylor Medicine Council and/or their direct reports to enhance the clinical quality mission.

Strategic and operational leadership

• Develop and execute the operating strategy for the academic physician practice in alignment with institutional priorities.
• Lead the development and implementation of annual operating plans, performance goals, budgets, and capital plans.
• Establish effective systems for accountability, decision-making, communication, and execution across clinical and administrative functions.
• Identify opportunities to improve access, capacity, productivity, patient experience, quality, and financial performance.
• Build an integrated operating model that supports the practice’s clinical, education, research, and community missions.
• Assess opportunities for growth, new services, affiliations, partnerships, mergers, and expansion into new markets.

Clinical practice operations

• Oversee the operational performance of outpatient practices, specialty clinics, procedural services, and other practice locations.
• Improve patient access, scheduling, referral management, care coordination, clinic utilization, and continuity of care.
• Partner with medical directors and department leaders to optimize provider templates, staffing models, workflows, and practice capacity.
• Promote standardized, evidence-informed operating practices while respecting specialty-specific needs.
• Support the implementation of team-based care, population health initiatives, digital health services, and other innovative care models.
• Ensure effective coordination between the physician practice, hospitals, academic departments, affiliated organizations, and community partners.

Physician and faculty partnership

• Establish strong, collaborative relationships with department chairs, division chiefs, medical directors, faculty, advanced practice providers, and practice leaders.
• Partner with physician leadership on clinical strategy, governance, compensation, recruitment, retention, professional development, and succession planning.
• Support an environment that recognizes and balances clinical, teaching, research, and service contributions.
• Facilitate timely resolution of operational issues and conflicts.
• Engage physicians in performance improvement, strategic planning, innovation, and organizational decision-making.
• Promote a culture of trust, professionalism, inclusion, transparency, and shared accountability.

Quality, safety, compliance, and patient experience

• Ensure that clinical operations support high standards for quality, patient safety, service excellence, and regulatory compliance.
• Partner with the CQO to monitor outcomes and address performance gaps.
• Advance initiatives related to patient experience, access, care coordination, and population health.
• Ensure compliance with applicable federal and state laws, accreditation