It hasn’t even been a full month since my first day as the CEO (feels longer doesn’t it?). I want to take this opportunity to thank each of you for welcoming me to the URAC family and helping me as I come on board. Although the daily work can sometimes distract from the bigger purpose, URAC gives each of us the opportunity to improve the healthcare for people across the nation and for our loved ones.

As I have mentioned, one of the reasons I came to URAC is what I see as our special role as an independent third-party accrediting organization with a national audience. Being independent, and not selling consulting services, gives us a credibility many other groups do not have and is one of the reasons consumers and government agencies trust our work. We will protect that trust. We will also be working on improving how we communicate the unique value that URAC brings to the groups we work with and why accreditation with URAC is much more than just a certificate on the wall.

I’m thankful to be joining the great leadership team and I promise you we are working to make a bigger impact in healthcare and make this a better place to work. One of the phrases you may have heard from me is that “I have a bias toward action.” I think our biggest mistakes are often the risks we don’t take. We will expand some programs, launch some others, and maybe even retire a few, while we share our expertise and craft an updated version of URAC. If you have ideas on how we can make things better, let me know. I believe our brightest days are ahead of us and I’m glad we are on this team together.