In this episode of The RC Executive Lounge Podcast, David Kelly, a seasoned revenue cycle leader at Mary Rutan Health, shares a thoughtful and pragmatic perspective on what it takes to modernize RCM while staying grounded in organizational realities.

David begins by discussing the importance of organizational structure, including why reporting directly to the CEO, rather than the CFO, gave him broader visibility into enterprise priorities and enabled stronger alignment between revenue cycle strategy and overall organizational goals.

He dives into denial prevention and patient financing as critical multi-year initiatives, sharing a real-world example of a zero-balance review effort that delivered six-figure savings, while also surfacing an unexpected long tail of complexity that required sustained focus and transparency.

The conversation explores David’s views on AI and automation, where he strikes a balanced tone. While acknowledging today’s hype cycle, he explains why AI still holds significant promise in enabling a fully touchless revenue cycle, particularly in an environment marked by talent shortages and operational strain. He also highlights ambient listening as a technology with meaningful potential to improve both patient experience and downstream revenue cycle performance.

David emphasizes the importance of connecting front-line work to a larger mission, sharing how helping teams understand the impact of accurate patient and insurance data supports Mary Rutan’s ability to remain an independent organization.

He closes with practical leadership advice on transparency with teams and reflects on several influential leadership books that helped shape his management philosophy over the years.

This episode offers a grounded, experience-driven view of how revenue cycle leaders can balance innovation, discipline, and people-first leadership while navigating long-term transformation.

Learn more about ArceeHQ and our comprehensive AI solutions platform for reducing denials, increasing adoption of patient financing and utilization of financial assistance: 👉 https://arceehq.com?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=episode1Download the free white paper on the play book for reducing claim denials: 👉https://arceehq.com/claims-denial-management/the-executive-guide-to-reducing-claim-denials-with-agentic-ai?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=episode1Download the free white paper on the play book for increasing patient financial engagement: 👉https://arceehq.com/patient-financial-engagement-financing-and-assistance/the-financial-engagement-playbook-agentic-ai-strategies-to-boost-collections-with-compassion?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=episode1Evaluate your ROI of reducing claim denials using the ROI calculator: 👉https://arceehq.com/claims-denial-management/roi-calculator?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=episode1Evaluate your ROI of increasing patient financial engagement using the ROI calculator: 👉https://arceehq.com/patient-financial-engagement-financing-and-assistance/roi-calculator?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=episode1Subscribe to the RCM Executive Lounge Podcast on your favorite platform: 🎧 Apple:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-rc-executive-lounge/id1834231179🎧 Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/6Pzfp41103XlD2ItpFfbdN🎧 Amazon Music:https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2232884f-10ae-424c-ae65-e21a93b61693/the-rc-executive-lounge🎧 Audible:https://www.audible.com/podcast/The-RC-Executive-Lounge/B0FMZNHLQK?source_code=ASSGB149080119000H&share_location=pdp#HealthcareFinance #RevenueCycle #RCM #HealthcareLeadership #claimdenials #claimsmanagement #aiinhealthcare #healthcarepodcast #healthcareplanning #healthcareinnovation #financialassistance #patientfinancing

In this episode of The RC Executive Lounge, Shawntea “Taya” Gordon, CEO of Atlas & Perpetua Healthcare Consulting, delivers a masterclass on what it really means to lead revenue cycle teams with clarity, intention, and data-driven discipline.

Taya shares a powerful story about transforming payer contracting workflows in just six weeks by grounding every decision in clean, reliable data. She explains how establishing effective data gathering mechanisms, improving data hygiene, and building stronger analytical capabilities creates the foundation for meaningful operational change.

Throughout the conversation, Taya dives deep into denial prevention, emphasizing the urgency of staying ahead of denials to protect cash flow and avoid downstream operational disruption. She also highlights a major gap across many organizations: the lack of a deliberate, data anchored strategy for patient financing and financial assistance.

Looking ahead, Taya discusses why Agentic AI will play a crucial role in helping RCM teams meet growing demands, reduce the burden on overextended staff, and drive more consistent, measurable outcomes. She also shares her views on the importance of conscious policy, transparency, and responsible implementation when integrating new AI-driven capabilities into established workflows.

Whether you’re a revenue cycle executive, a project leader, or an innovator shaping the future of healthcare operations, this episode offers actionable insights on building smarter, cleaner, and more resilient RCM processes, all powered by data.

Learn more about ArceeHQ and our comprehensive AI solutions platform for reducing denials, increasing adoption of patient financing and utilization of financial assistance: 👉 https://arceehq.com?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=episode1Download the free white paper on the play book for reducing claim denials: 👉https://arceehq.com/claims-denial-management/the-executive-guide-to-reducing-claim-denials-with-agentic-ai?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=episode1Download the free white paper on the play book for increasing patient financial engagement: 👉https://arceehq.com/patient-financial-engagement-financing-and-assistance/the-financial-engagement-playbook-agentic-ai-strategies-to-boost-collections-with-compassion?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=episode1Evaluate your ROI of reducing claim denials using the ROI calculator: 👉https://arceehq.com/claims-denial-management/roi-calculator?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=episode1Evaluate your ROI of increasing patient financial engagement using the ROI calculator: 👉https://arceehq.com/patient-financial-engagement-financing-and-assistance/roi-calculator?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=episode1Subscribe to the RCM Executive Lounge Podcast on your favorite platform: 🎧 Apple:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-rc-executive-lounge/id1834231179🎧 Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/6Pzfp41103XlD2ItpFfbdN🎧 Amazon Music:https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2232884f-10ae-424c-ae65-e21a93b61693/the-rc-executive-lounge🎧 Audible:https://www.audible.com/podcast/The-RC-Executive-Lounge/B0FMZNHLQK?source_code=ASSGB149080119000H&share_location=pdp#HealthcareFinance #RevenueCycle #RCM #HealthcareLeadership #claimdenials #claimsmanagement #aiinhealthcare #healthcarepodcast #healthcareplanning #healthcareinnovation #financialassistance #patientfinancing

In this episode of The RC Executive Lounge, Sandy Lood, Vice President of Revenue Cycle at Cottage Health, shares powerful insights on shaping the future of RCM through alignment, collaboration, and transparency.

Sandy discusses how her team focuses on being unified around shared outcomes and building collaborative solutions that drive measurable results. She dives deep into denial prevention, emphasizing the importance of truly understanding denial data to identify what is preventable and to strengthen upstream processes.

As an example of bold leadership, Sandy candidly reflects on an autonomous coding initiative that didn’t go as planned, sharing valuable lessons on risk-taking, resilience, and continuous improvement. She also explores how emerging Agentic AI capabilities can deliver 10x improvements in healthcare operations when thoughtfully implemented.

Throughout the conversation, she underscores the importance of bringing people along the journey, ensuring that every team member feels ownership and belonging as part of organizational transformation.

Whether you’re leading a revenue cycle team, evaluating AI adoption, or striving to create a culture of collaboration and improvement, this episode offers practical and inspiring lessons from a forward-thinking healthcare executive.

Learn more about ArceeHQ and our comprehensive AI solutions platform for reducing denials, increasing adoption of patient financing and utilization of financial assistance: 👉 https://arceehq.com?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=episode1Download the free white paper on the play book for reducing claim denials: 👉https://arceehq.com/claims-denial-management/the-executive-guide-to-reducing-claim-denials-with-agentic-ai?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=episode1Download the free white paper on the play book for increasing patient financial engagement: 👉https://arceehq.com/patient-financial-engagement-financing-and-assistance/the-financial-engagement-playbook-agentic-ai-strategies-to-boost-collections-with-compassion?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=episode1Evaluate your ROI of reducing claim denials using the ROI calculator: 👉https://arceehq.com/claims-denial-management/roi-calculator?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=episode1Evaluate your ROI of increasing patient financial engagement using the ROI calculator: 👉https://arceehq.com/patient-financial-engagement-financing-and-assistance/roi-calculator?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=episode1Subscribe to the RCM Executive Lounge Podcast on your favorite platform: 🎧 Apple:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-rc-executive-lounge/id1834231179🎧 Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/6Pzfp41103XlD2ItpFfbdN🎧 Amazon Music:https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2232884f-10ae-424c-ae65-e21a93b61693/the-rc-executive-lounge🎧 Audible:https://www.audible.com/podcast/The-RC-Executive-Lounge/B0FMZNHLQK?source_code=ASSGB149080119000H&share_location=pdp#HealthcareFinance #RevenueCycle #RCM #HealthcareLeadership #claimdenials #claimsmanagement #aiinhealthcare #healthcarepodcast #healthcareplanning #healthcareinnovation #financialassistance #patientfinancing