dividuals to grow, challenging them to achieve and be the best they can be. What type of skill set do you possess which make you an effective leader? Open, honest communication. Willingness to listen to others’ opinions. Willingness to face challenges. Tenacity and willingness to change. How can the healthcare industry in the region be improved? Sharing best practices, learning from each other when things go wrong so we don’t all make the same mistakes. Improving the patient experience and developing the next generation of thought leaders in healthcare. What do you do for fun? I enjoy spending time with my husband and my two Chesapeake Bay retrievers. I love to travel and experience different countries and cultures.
James Cody Medical center director, Veterans Administration Health Care Upstate New York. With the organization since: July 1978 Since what year in current position: July 1, 2013 Education: Master of Public Administration with a concentration in health administration, New York University, January 1981; Bachelor of Science in health education, SUNY Cortland, May 1976. Career highlights: Entered the VA system in July 1978 after initially entering federal service with the Department of Agriculture in March 1977. He served as a safety specialist at VAMC Brooklyn. He progressed through positions of increasing complexity and responsibility at the VA central office and then at VA medical centers in Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Md., Lyons, N.J. and Providence, R.I. He was selected to receive the Presidential Rank Award for Meritorious Executives in 2009. Current affiliations: Member, University Hill Corporation Board, Syracuse; president and treasurer, Healthcare Executive Group of Rhode Island; member, Senior Health Care Executive Society of New Jersey; member, DC Hospital Association Planning Committee; advisory committee chairman, Group Health Association HMO, Washington, D.C.; part-time professor, University of Maryland’s health care management program; fellow, American College of Health Care Executives. Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives. Personal: Cody resides in Jamesville with
his wife Lois and their twin daughters.
James Reed Regional president, Excellus BlueCross BlueShield, Central New York region. With the company since: 1996 In current position since: 2009: Senior vice president, marketing and sales; 2015: Regional president, Central New York region. Education: Bachelor of Science in business administration from Le Moyne College, Syracuse; Master of Business Administration from Lemoyne College. Career highlights: Excellus BlueCross BlueShield has provided an opportunity for me to learn and grow both personally and professionally. Current affiliations: Board chairman, MakeA-Wish Foundation of Central New York; board member, Syracuse Stage; board member, CenterState CEO. How do you describe your managerial philosophy or approach? My managerial approach follows that of a coach. I believe one of the most important roles of a manager is to make sure the right people are on the team, each team member has a clearly defined role, and everyone understands how he or she contributes to the organization’s overall success. What type of skill set do you possess which makes you an effective leader? Communication and relationship skills are the most important tools that I utilize to be an effective leader. I believe it is so important for a leader to be able to articulate a vision and have the relationship skills and credibility to inspire others to follow. What do you do for fun? Having three children — aged 16, 14 and 10 — provides me with the opportunity to have all the fun I want! On most weeknights and weekends, you can typically find me either coaching or watching one of my kids’ sporting events — which I consider fun.
Jeremy Klemanski President and CEO, Syracuse Behavioral Health Care. With the organization since? 2004 Since what year in the current position? 2005 Education: Bachelor’s degree from SUNY Institute of Technology-Utica; master’s degree from Syracuse University Whitman School of Management. Career Highlights: Opening a state-of-theart integrated mental health and substance use disorders clinic in Syracuse;
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creating the K.E.E.S. program which gives participants the opportunity to continue their education while pursuing employment and case management and/or counseling services; founding the SBH Training Institute. Current affiliations: NYS Justice Center for the Protection of People with Special Needs advisory council member. Appointed by Gov. Cuomo as chairman of the Police & Investigator Training Committee of the NYSJC. Onondaga County Criminal Justice advisory board member; NYS Association of Alcoholism & Substance Abuse Providers Board, treasurer. How do you describe your managerial philosophy or approach? Find the highest quality people you can and invest in their development as people and as leaders. Collect data and ideas from as many sources as possible to develop short-term, highly executable strategic plans, and execute. Follow the philosophy that the difference between vision and delusion is execution. Encourage group discussion and debate prior to making important decisions. What type of skill set do you possess which make you an effective leader? “Listening to people teaches me far more than talking does. I read constantly. I try to connect people with each other and to different ideas to frame current challenges/opportunities with an eye on future solutions.” How can the healthcare industry in the region be improved? Practicing healthcare that acknowledges the role the brain plays in the function of the rest of the body by treating substance use and mental health disorders as a priority health condition. CNY region has a tremendous opportunity to redesign its currently-fragmented systems of care into regional health systems that could leverage scale and resources to deliver improved health outcomes for our region if people have the courage to take risks and forge new relationships. What do you do for fun? Watch and attend sporting events, and travel with my family as often as I can get away.
Judi L. Brendle Chief nursing officer, Basset Healthcare Network; and chief nursing officer / Vice president clinical support services for Bassett Medical Center. With the organization since: January 2014 Since what year in the current position: January 2014