Director of Surgery Scheduling

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

Capacity, Block, and Template Management

• Own block and template governance, including allocation, release, and reallocation rules, and lead the surgeon-facing process to adjust time based on utilization data.
• Plan and manage operating room and procedure room capacity across all sites, including the specialty hospital, to maximize access, utilization, and case volume while protecting service quality.
• Establish and maintain standards for add-ons, urgent cases, cancellations, and reschedules, and resolve scheduling conflicts among surgeons and sites.

Surgeon and Stakeholder Partnership

• Partner with surgeons, practice leaders, and service line leaders to align schedules with growth plans, new providers, and new service offerings.
• Hold surgeons and leaders accountable to agreed block, template, and scheduling standards, and bring utilization data to the conversation.
• Present performance results and recommendations to executive, physician, and operational leaders.

Scheduling Operations and Readiness

• Direct daily operations of surgical and procedural scheduling to meet targets for time to schedule, scheduling accuracy, and case-booking completeness.
• Establish scheduling readiness standards with perioperative, anesthesia, pre-admission testing, and clinic teams, including clearances, orders, authorization status, and instrument, implant, and equipment needs.
• Partner with perioperative leaders to improve first-case on-time starts, reduce day-of-surgery cancellations, and resolve recurring scheduling-related delays.
• Coordinate with Patient Access and Revenue Cycle leadership to reduce denials related to authorization, demographic, and insurance errors originating in scheduling.

Performance and Reporting

• Establish and report performance measures, including block and template utilization, first-case on-time starts, cancellation rate, time to schedule, and denial rate attributed to scheduling.
• Audit scheduling accuracy and adherence to standards; identify root causes and implement corrective action.
• Develop, implement, and maintain scheduling policies and procedures, and evaluate and recommend scheduling systems and workflow improvements.

Leadership and Compliance

• Lead, develop, and evaluate scheduling managers, leads, and staff, with authority to hire, discipline, and terminate or to make weighted recommendations on those actions, including training, coaching, performance management, and discipline.
• Hold regular team and cross-functional meetings that produce clear decisions, owners, and deadlines.
• Maintain working knowledge of Medicare, Medicaid, commercial, and managed care requirements that affect scheduling and authorization, and ensure compliance with payer and regulatory requirements.
• Ensure records are stored securely and handled in compliance with HIPAA privacy and security requirements.
• Other related duties as assigned.

EDUCATION

• Bachelor's degree in healthcare administration, business, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

EXPERIENCE

• At least 10 years of experience in surgical or procedural scheduling or perioperative operations, including at least 5 years in a leadership role.
• Experience managing block and template allocation and utilization, including working directly with surgeons, required.
• Experience scheduling across multiple sites and care settings, such as clinics, ambulatory surgery centers, procedure centers, or a hospital, preferred.
• Experience with Epic or a comparable scheduling and practice management system preferred.

REQUIREMENTS

• Ability to travel between sites and for training as business needs require.

KNOWLEDGE

• Deep knowledge of surgical and procedural scheduling, block and template management, and OR capacity planning.
• Strong knowledge of perioperative workflow, including pre-admission, clearance, authorization, and case-readiness processes.
• Working knowledge of Medicare, Medicaid, commercial insurance, and managed care requirements affecting scheduling and authorization.
• Strong knowledge of operational management, workflow design, and performance measurement across multiple locations.
• Understanding of physician practice and ambulatory surgery operations and their impact on growth and access.

SKILLS

• Analytical and problem-solving skills, including the ability to use utilization and scheduling data to make and defend decisions.
• Strong written and verbal communication and presentation skills, including facilitating discussions among diverse perspectives.
• Negotiation and influence skills with surgeons, physicians, and executive leaders.
• Developing, coaching, and leading high-performing teams in a technology-enabled environment across multiple locations.
• Proficiency with Microsoft 365 and scheduling or electronic health record systems.

ABILITIES

• Ability to hold surgeons and leaders accountable to agreed standards with credibility and professionalism.
• Ability to exercise sound judgment and make timely decisions based on accurate analysis.
• Ability to motivate teams and drive sustained performance improvement.

ENVIRONMENTAL WORKING CONDITIONS

• Normal office environment with regular presence at surgical, procedural, and clinic sites.
• Some travel between sites and for training as needed.

PHYSICAL/MENTAL DEMANDS

• Requires sitting and standing associated with a normal office environment.
• Some bending and stretching are required.
• Manual dexterity using a calculator and computer keyboard.

ORGANIZATIONAL REQUIREMENTS

• HOPCo Mission, Vision, and Values must be acknowledged and adhered to.

This description is intended to provide only basic guidelines for meeting job requirements. Responsibilities, knowledge, skills, abilities and working conditions may change as needs evolve.