Children's Nebraska
Chief Financial Officer
Children's Nebraska is a leading independent, nonprofit pediatric health system headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska and serves children and families across Nebraska and a multi-state regional footprint. The organization is Nebraska’s only freestanding, full-service pediatric hospital and provides care across more than 50 pediatric specialty and subspecialty areas.
Founded in 1948 as Children’s Memorial Hospital, the organization was established through a partnership between leaders at the University of Nebraska medical community and Omaha civic leadership with the mission of expanding dedicated pediatric care in the region. Over time, the organization evolved from a community children’s hospital into a regional pediatric referral destination and academic partner. The organization operated within Methodist Hospital beginning in the early 1980s before opening its own standalone pediatric campus in Omaha in 2000. In 2023, the organization rebranded from Children’s Hospital & Medical Center to Children’s Nebraska to reflect its broader statewide and regional identity and future growth ambitions.
Today, Children’s Nebraska operates an integrated pediatric care model spanning inpatient, outpatient, emergency, specialty, behavioral health and physician services. The organization includes two physician organizations, Children’s Specialty Physicians and Children’s Physicians, its affiliated pediatric medical groups, and maintains a longstanding clinical and academic partnership with the University of Nebraska Medical Center Department of Pediatrics and Creighton University that supports education, specialty medicine, research and workforce development.
Mission
To improve the life of every child through Exceptional Care, Advocacy, Research and Education.
Vision
To be a global leader for children’s health.
Values (I.C.A.R.E.)
Children’s Nebraska’s culture and decision-making are guided by five core values:
- Innovation – Advancing pediatric care through new ideas, technologies and continuous improvement
- Collaboration – Working across teams, disciplines and communities to achieve better outcomes
- Accountability – Delivering on commitments with integrity, transparency and stewardship
- Respect – Creating an environment where all individuals are valued and heard
- Excellence – Pursuing the highest standards in care, service and organizational performance
Scale & Clinical Distinction
- 279-bed pediatric hospital headquartered in Omaha; including a comprehensive Behavioral Health and Wellness Center
- Nebraska’s only independent freestanding children’s hospital
- Nebraska’s sole Level I Pediatric Trauma Center
- More than 50 pediatric specialty services
- Regional referral center serving patients across a five-state region and beyond
- Home to Nebraska’s highest level neonatal intensive care capabilities and expanding behavioral health platform
Strategic Position & Recent Momentum
Children’s Nebraska has continued to invest meaningfully in long term growth, with a focus on expanding specialty access, strengthening pediatric behavioral health services, growing its ambulatory footprint, and deepening academic partnerships. Most recently, the organization opened a new Behavioral Health and Wellness Center, significantly increasing capacity for pediatric mental and behavioral health services and reinforcing its role as a regional referral destination.
Overall, Children’s Nebraska combines meaningful scale, strong regional influence, and sustained clinical and operational momentum, positioning the organization to continue expanding its reach and capabilities while advancing its long-term growth strategy.
Strategic Priorities
Children’s Nebraska is actively investing in growth initiatives designed to strengthen long-term access, scale and pediatric market leadership, including:
Leading the way in safety, quality, and exceptional experience- Championing the needs and welfare of children
- Improving the health and wellbeing of children through discovery and innovation
- Training and developing the pediatric healthcare workforce
- Fostering an environment where individuals, teams, and our organization can grow and thrive
Financial & Operating Position
Children’s Nebraska maintains a strong financial profile and continues to invest in future growth initiatives while sustaining organizational stability.
Strong Financial Position: Approximately $1.2B in revenue with stable performance and a strong balance sheet, supporting continued investment in growth, facilities and clinical capabilities- Scalable Financial Model: Disciplined financial foundation with continued evolution to support expansion, more dynamic decision making and increased investment in strategic priorities
- Growth and Complexity: Significant recent growth, including campus expansion and service line development, driving greater scale and the need for more advanced analytics, forecasting and enterprise capabilities
Academic & Clinical Partnership Model
A differentiator for leaders joining Children’s Nebraska is the organization’s longstanding collaboration with the University of Nebraska Medical Center Department of Pediatrics and Creighton University, creating an environment that blends:
Clinical excellence- Academic medicine
- Workforce development
- Research and innovation
Market Position
Children’s Nebraska continues to strengthen its position as the region’s leading freestanding pediatric health system, while expanding its reach as a broader referral destination. The organization serves a core population across Nebraska and Iowa while attracting patients from 42 states, reflecting the growing breadth and complexity of its clinical programs.
This market position has been supported by a period of significant investment and expansion. Over the past several years, Children’s has more than doubled in size through major campus development, highlighted by the addition of a large-scale inpatient tower that expanded capacity and created a more advanced, integrated care environment. More recently, the organization has continued to build on that foundation with targeted investments in ambulatory access and specialty services.
The opening of the $114 million Behavioral Health and Wellness Center represents a further step in that evolution, introducing a comprehensive, campus-based model for pediatric mental health that brings crisis, inpatient, outpatient and primary care services together in one location. Designed to address growing demand and improve access, the facility reflects a broader shift toward more integrated, patient-centered care delivery.
Taken together, these investments underscore a clear trajectory of growth and momentum, as Children’s Nebraska continues to expand its physical footprint, enhance clinical capabilities and strengthen its role as a leading pediatric provider both regionally and nationally.
Leadership Environment
Children’s Nebraska operates within a mission driven, People First culture grounded in its ICARE values of Innovation, Collaboration, Accountability, Respect and Excellence. The organization places a strong emphasis on teamwork, workforce engagement, and delivering a high-quality patient experience, with a continued focus on supporting and developing its people.
The leadership environment is defined by collaboration and a shared commitment to advancing the organization’s strategic priorities. Leaders are expected to work across the enterprise, build partnerships that support growth and change, and translate strategy into operational results. The organization is focused on strategic performance advancement, innovation, and strengthening capabilities to support its growing scale and complexity in a rapidly changing environment.
Overall, the culture balances a strong sense of purpose and engagement with a growing emphasis on execution, adaptability, and long-term sustainability.
Commitment to Inclusion & Belonging
Children’s Nebraska describes its culture as one where team members, patients, families and partners are welcomed and supported through an intentional focus on respect, belonging and recognizing the unique strengths and experiences of every individual.
National Recognition for Nursing Excellence
Children’s Nebraska continues to distinguish itself nationally through its commitment to clinical excellence, workforce engagement and exceptional patient outcomes.
Most recently, Children’s Nebraska achieved its fifth consecutive Magnet® recognition from the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) and, for the first time, earned Magnet® with Distinction recognition — the highest level of nursing excellence awarded by the ANCC. This elite designation is reserved for organizations that exceed Magnet performance standards and demonstrate exceptional achievement in nursing quality, innovation, patient outcomes, and workforce engagement. Fewer than 70 hospitals nationally have achieved this distinction.
Magnet® recognition is considered the gold standard in nursing and reflects excellence across patient care, professional practice, leadership, and organizational culture. Hospitals earning Magnet® with Distinction consistently demonstrate strong clinical outcomes, high nurse engagement and retention, exceptional patient experience and a culture that promotes innovation and continuous improvement.
Children’s Nebraska was additionally recognized across 12 exemplar categories, reinforcing its position as a national leader in pediatric nursing excellence and further demonstrating the organization’s commitment to delivering safe, compassionate and high-quality care for children and families.
For leaders considering Children’s Nebraska, this recognition reflects an organization that invests deeply in people, advances professional excellence and maintains a sustained focus on quality, accountability and long-term impact.
The Opportunity
Position: Chief Financial Officer
Location: Omaha, Nebraska
Reporting Relationship: Chanda Chacón
Direct Reports: VP Finance, VP Chief Revenue Officer, Director Managed Care
Purpose of the Position
The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) will guide and direct all financial functions of Children’s Nebraska, including the
organization’s financial strategy, fiscal stewardship, and financial operations. The CFO is responsible for financial
reporting, capital planning and investment activities, treasury and financing relationships, and engagement with
external financial and ratings institutions. This leader will provide executive oversight across core financial and
administrative functions and ensure strong alignment of financial strategy with operational priorities, enabling more
integrated and forward-looking decision making in support of long-term strategic objectives.
Serving as a trusted and highly collaborative strategic partner to the Chief Executive Officer and executive
leadership team, the CFO will play a critical role in shaping organizational strategy and advancing a more
innovative, growth oriented and solutions focused finance function. This includes strengthening partnership with
operations, fostering alignment across the enterprise, and helping the organization thoughtfully evolve while
continuing to support mission impact.
The CFO will define the financial vision for the organization and provide leadership to the finance team to deliver
exceptional, proactive, and transparent support to clinical and operational leaders. Through building strong
relationships, promoting access to data and insights, and fostering a culture of accountability and collaboration,
the CFO will help position finance as a strategic enabler of performance, growth, and enterprise decision making.
Position
Working in close partnership with senior leadership, the CFO will help evolve the organization’s financial and operating model to support innovation, scalability, and long-term sustainability. This includes enhancing data driven decision making, embracing new technologies and capabilities, and supporting thoughtful approaches to growth and investment. The CFO will help position Children’s Nebraska to navigate a rapidly evolving healthcare environment while advancing operational performance and delivering high-quality outcomes for children and families across the region.
Key Responsibilities
Serve as an active member of Children’s Nebraska’s Executive Leadership Team, contributing to organizational strategy, enterprise decision-making and culture development through a collaborative, mission-driven leadership approach.
Financial Strategy and Executive Leadership
- Serve as the principal financial advisor to the CEO, Board of Directors, and Executive Leadership Team
- Develop and execute long range financial strategies aligned with organizational priorities and growth objectives
- Lead enterprise financial planning, including budgeting, forecasting, capital planning and multiyear financial modeling, incorporating more dynamic and data driven approaches over time
- Support strategic decision making related to investments, partnerships, business development and organizational growth
- Ensure strong stewardship of organizational assets and long-term financial sustainability while enabling thoughtful investment and innovation
Financial Operations and Performance
- Provide executive oversight for accounting, financial reporting, treasury, reimbursement strategy, audit compliance and internal controls
- Lead revenue cycle strategy to optimize reimbursement, patient access and overall financial performance, with a focus on modernization and scalability
- Oversee debt management, liquidity planning, investment strategies and capital structure to maintain a strong and flexible financial position
- Drive operational excellence through financial analytics, reporting and continuous performance improvement
- Establish performance measures and partner with leaders to translate insights into actionable improvements across the enterprise
Supply Chain & Operational Excellence
- Provide executive leadership for supply chain strategy, sourcing, procurement, logistics and vendor partnerships
- Ensure alignment between financial stewardship, operational priorities and patient care excellence
- Advance innovative supply chain solutions that improve resilience, cost efficiency and service delivery
- Partner across clinical, operational and administrative teams to identify opportunities for improved efficiency and resource utilization
Technology, Innovation & Digital Transformation
- Champion financial modernization through automation, predictive analytics and AI enabled decision support
- Lead digital transformation efforts that improve visibility, efficiency and enterprise decision making
- Evaluate and leverage next generation technologies and digital capabilities to support innovative clinical and administrative functions
- Partner with IT and operational leaders to expand use of data, analytics and emerging tools to enhance performance and scalability
Strategic Partnerships & Talent Leadership
- Build strong partnerships across clinical, operational, academic and administrative functions to drive aligned decision making and shared accountability
- Collaborate with physician leaders and executives to develop financially sustainable care models
- Foster strong external relationships with payers, suppliers, banking partners and community stakeholders
- Build and lead a high performing finance and supply chain organization
- Strengthen succession planning, leadership development and organizational capability
- Model Children’s Nebraska’s People First Promise and ICARE values in leadership and decision making
- Reinforce finance as a collaborative, service oriented partner that supports enterprise priorities and operational success
Year One Critical Success Factors
- Innovation: Help advance evolving care delivery and reimbursement models through a forward-looking approach to planning, analytics and decision support.
- Insight: Develop a comprehensive understanding of the operating model, academic partnerships and growth strategy to help guide decision making and shape the organization’s future direction and scale.
- Evolution: Build upon a strong financial foundation by advancing the finance function’s structure, capabilities and ways of working to support the organization’s next phase of growth.
- Alignment: Partner with leadership to align financial strategy with growth priorities, reinforcing integration between finance and operations.
- Credibility: Establish trust and strong working relationships across the executive team, Board, and clinical and operational leaders
The Candidate
Experience and Professional Qualifications
- Minimum of 10+ years of progressive executive financial leadership experience within a complex healthcare organization of relevant scale and complexity
Leadership
- Experience leading finance in organizations navigating growth, transformation and evolving reimbursement environments
- Proven experience building and developing high performing teams through mentorship, talent development, succession planning and accountability
- Demonstrated executive presence with the ability to lead through influence, collaboration and change across diverse stakeholder groups
- Ability to operate effectively in highly matrixed environments and build alignment across leadership teams
Strategic Finance Acumen
- Deep expertise across core healthcare finance disciplines, including financial planning and analysis, capital structure, treasury, budgeting, forecasting, revenue cycle and enterprise performance management
- Experience aligning financial strategy with operational priorities within complex, matrixed environments
- Experience supporting strategic initiatives such as partnerships, affiliations, joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions and other growth-oriented investments
- Experience evaluating and advancing service line growth, ambulatory expansion, physician integration and capital deployment
- Experience working within value based and evolving reimbursement models, including exposure to payer strategy, managed care and risk-based environments
- Understanding of healthcare economics and reimbursement dynamics, with the ability to adapt to changing market conditions
- Strong strategic and analytical capabilities with the ability to evaluate complex issues, generate insights and translate them into actionable business strategies
Innovation and Technology Orientation
- Experience evaluating and enabling next generation technologies and digital capabilities to support innovative clinical and administrative functions, including data, analytics and emerging tools that enhance decision making and performance
Board and External Engagement
- Experience communicating effectively with Boards of Directors, financial institutions, rating agencies and other external partners while maintaining credibility and trust
Education
- Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting or Business Administration
- Masters degree and/or CPA certification is required
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Korn Ferry shall provide equal employment opportunity to all qualified candidates, and will refer candidates without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, disability, veteran status or any other legally protected basis. Artificial Intelligence tools may be used in connection with the recruitment process for this position.
