In this episode of The RC Executive Lounge Podcast, Willie Brown, Vice President of Revenue Cycle at Sentara Healthcare, shares how ROI-based prioritization, strong leadership teams, and a patient-first mindset guide revenue cycle strategy at a large nonprofit health system.

Willie explains how his organization evaluates initiatives through a clear ROI lens while ensuring alignment with Sentara’s broader strategic vision. He discusses the importance of having a strong next-level leadership team that filters and prioritizes initiatives before they reach the executive level, enabling focus on the work that truly moves outcomes.

The conversation explores how Sentara balances financial discipline with its mission to serve patients, emphasizing that profitability is not the goal — patient impact is. Willie also dives into several operational priorities, including:

• A major charge reconciliation initiative that increased revenue, improved cash flow, reduced denials, and boosted productivity
  

• The cross-functional challenges of driving large initiatives — and how clearly articulating objectives and ROI helped secure buy-in and bandwidth
  

• A strong focus on denials management to ensure appropriate reimbursement from payers
  

Willie shares his perspective on Agentic AI as both a workforce enabler and a career accelerator for revenue cycle professionals, particularly as staffing availability declines. He discusses AI’s potential role in claims authorization and identifying common registration errors, helping teams focus on higher-value work.

The episode closes with leadership insights on building change champions, staying open to feedback, and creating an environment where teams continuously help improve processes and outcomes.

This conversation offers a practical and forward-looking view of how revenue cycle leaders can drive measurable results through clarity, empowerment, and disciplined prioritization.

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=episode1

Download 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=episode1

Download 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=episode1

Evaluate 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=episode1

Evaluate 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=episode1

Subscribe 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 #inhousepaymentplans #patientfinancialengagement #agenticaiinhealthcare #agenticai

In this episode of The RC Executive Lounge Podcast, Blake Evans, System Vice President of Revenue Cycle at Rush University Health System, shares a candid, behind-the-scenes look at how Rush approaches modern revenue cycle leadership.

Blake discusses how he and his team aligned with cross-functional leaders to set clear strategic priorities, consolidated all revenue cycle teams under a unified structure, and built a framework that helps the organization decide what to pursue, what to delay, and what to decline using a practical red–yellow–green model.

He also dives into:

• Enhancing the patient financial experience

• Scaling automation to reduce burden and improve accuracy

• Building a robust denials management program to protect cash

• Leading through a challenging Epic service area consolidation

• Staying disciplined with execution when timelines shift

• Monitoring cash flow daily (“Cash is king”)

• The importance of intentional communication during change

• Why leaders need a strong support crew and true partnerships

This conversation is a masterclass in how to lead revenue cycle transformation with strategic clarity, operational discipline, and cross-functional alignment.

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=episode1

Download 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=episode1

Download 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=episode1

Evaluate 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=episode1

Evaluate 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=episode1

Subscribe 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 #inhousepaymentplans #patientfinancialengagement #agenticaiinhealthcare #agenticai

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