ACC’s new CEO, Timothy W. Attebery, MBA, FACHE, has been on the job for nearly a month. But he’s been an ACC member for many years and brings more than 30 years of health system and cardiovascular service line leadership.

Attebery talked with Cardiology about his leadership philosophy, vision for the future of the College and more.

Congratulations! How does your experience as a health systems leader help you as ACC’s CEO?

I’m honored to take on this role. This is truly my dream job and I’m eager to start work on the big things ahead. My previous roles provide a great body of experience to draw on. I’ve served as the CEO of three different cardiovascular specialty groups, and as a health system cardiovascular service line leader.

Most recently I served as the CEO of a large, tertiary referral center and teaching hospital – the leading cardiovascular hospital in its region. Its cardiovascular program included advanced tomographic imaging, the Pritikin intensive cardiac rehab program, advanced electrophysiology (EP) services, a robust structural heart program, advanced peripheral vascular interventions, one of the top carotid artery stent programs in the U.S., and a large cardiovascular research program.

I’ve been very fortunate to lead many innovative and progressive programs within the cardiovascular space over the past 30 years. My first group, in Evansville, IN, submitted one of the first applications to the federal government for a gain-sharing program. We were also one of the first groups to operate a free-standing outpatient cath lab.

"We must stay relevant and be open to change. We can’t transform our industry unless we ourselves are open to being transformed. We must help our members deliver more value to their patients, to their organizations and to their communities."

During my career in cardiovascular services, I’ve led the expansion of interventional services; development of EP services, mobile imaging services, private nuclear pharmacy, and regional STEMI programs; co-management agreements with hospitals; integration of cardiovascular groups within hospitals; and more. I was active in the Cardiology Leadership Alliance which transitioned into MedAxiom. I’ve also been very active in federal and state advocacy efforts.

I know what it takes to operate a cardiovascular enterprise whether as a private group, integrated group or large hospital with a big cardiovascular service line. I’m comfortable working collaboratively with cardiologists, cardiovascular surgeons, vascular surgeons and other cardiovascular-focused providers. I’m also very familiar with the major device, equipment and pharmaceutical companies in our space. I feel well equipped for this role and I’m thankful for the opportunity.

What are your priorities as CEO of the College?

First, I want to learn the internal operations and get to know ACC’s staff. Next, we’ll develop an execution plan for the ACC’s new five-year Strategic Plan.

We need to develop more innovative resources and solutions to serve our members and broaden our scope of services to meet an ever-changing health care landscape. This is not limited to the U.S. The entire world is grappling with the challenge of providing high-quality cardiovascular care in an efficient manner.

We must leverage existing knowledge and competencies, while also developing new and innovative solutions for our diverse members, regardless of where they’re practicing and delivering services. We also need to strengthen our relationships with sister organizations representing the “house of cardiology.”

I’m committed to working in an honest and collaborative fashion with all organizations who share ACC’s mission and vision. Additionally, we should continue to grow and hone our digital strategy, improving on our digital platform and online services. We must ensure our service delivery is second to none. We must respect and welcome the diversity of our members and be an organization that values diversity and inclusion.

ACC is about to launch its next Strategic Plan (2019-2023). What element is most compelling?

Expanding our offerings to include more nonclinical support to our members. The College is the trusted source for scientific and clinical resources. We need an equally strong suite of nonclinical support services.

As the “professional home” of cardiovascular professionals, we must ensure this home provides everything they need to be successful. I’ll work closely with the Board and senior leadership to pursue opportunities and innovative options for enhancing our scope of services through new relationships.

How do you envision the College being different five years from now?

ACC must have a dual focus to achieve the big vision to which we’ve committed. We must continue to build on our core, that is, the science of cardiology to provide the rich education, quality benchmarking and clinical services for which the College is known globally. Simultaneously, we must stimulate progress and explore the frontier.

These two concepts are captured in two phrases I’ve used in early discussions with the Board and senior leadership. The first is: Preserve the Core, Stimulate Progress. This is based on research from Porras and Collins, the co-authors of Good to Great and Built to Last. The second is: Protect the Fortress, Explore the Frontier.

Our core services are the fortress that we must preserve. However, our members want and need more. We must explore the frontier on behalf of our busy members and provide a structured and organized way to deliver more value. I hope in five years the ACC will have achieved these two broad imperatives.

What is your leadership style? How does this inform how you will work in concert with ACC’s members and member leaders?

I subscribe to an authentic, servant-leadership model. Every employee and every job at the ACC is important. I’m one member of the team and every team member, including me, is responsible and accountable for fulfilling their role. I’m here to serve both the organization and its customers. I enjoy building relationships both internally and externally. This means I must be visible and approachable.

I’m also a disciple of Patrick Lencioni and Simon Sinek. These highly recognized business authors encourage leaders to set the right tone, use clarity to keep the focus, over-communicate the goals, and emphasize “why” the organization exists before talking about what we do and how we do it.

I strongly support the dyad relationship with the physician-leader of the organization: the ACC President. We’re committed to providing united leadership of the College internally and externally.

I’m fully committed to always keeping the diverse voices of members and customers in everything we do at ACC. To do this, I must maintain a close working relationship with our members and member leaders, one focused on collaboration and trust.

I must be visible, ask questions and then listen! The ACC exists to serve its members and the organizations they represent. Everything we do must be about fulfilling our Mission, achieving our Vision and serving our members.

What do you want to make better for members and ultimately their patients?

I’ve learned that organizations are very similar to people. You’re either growing, learning and expanding your horizons, or you’re shrinking and declining.

What keeps me up at night is making sure the ACC continues to move in a positive direction, that we continue to grow and develop the right blend of services that our members need to be successful. We must stay relevant. We must be open to change. We can’t transform our industry unless we ourselves are open to being transformed.

My personal vision is we will substantially improve our members’ collective ability to provide high quality, evidence-based cardiovascular care in a safe and equitable environment in a manner that reflects the most efficient use of all resources at the lowest possible cost.

Essentially, I’d like to help our members deliver more value to their patients, to the organizations they are part of, and to their local communities.

Our members face a lot of opportunities and threats. The ACC should be there, as a trusted partner at their side, helping them to successfully seize the opportunities and address the challenges.

Clinical Topics: Arrhythmias and Clinical EP, Invasive Cardiovascular Angiography and Intervention, Implantable Devices, SCD/Ventricular Arrhythmias, Atrial Fibrillation/Supraventricular Arrhythmias

Keywords: ACC Publications, Cardiology Magazine, Tertiary Care Centers, Federal Government, Hospitals, Teaching, Carotid Artery, Common, Stents, Pharmaceutical Preparations, Electrophysiology

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