A Funder's Approach to Developing the Next Generation of Community Clinic Leaders and Lessons Learned

Blue Shield of California Foundation has made substantial investments to cultivate emerging leaders to strengthen the community clinics field. This investment in leadership development is an outgrowth of the Foundation's ongoing commitment to the clinics field, the broader healthcare safety net and the successful implementation of healthcare reform. A program officer will discuss the Foundation's approach to leadership supports across its healthcare portfolio (this session is part of a broader panel discussion, “The Pipeline Promise: Cultivating the Next Generation of Health Leaders”). She will highlight the Foundation's signature leadership program, the Clinic Leadership Institute (CLI), which aims to move emerging clinic leaders into executive positions. Since 2008, the Foundation has partnered with the Center for the Health Professions at the University of California, San Francisco to design and implement CLI, which to date is a five year, $10 million program. CLI utilizes a variety of methods and learning modalities (e.g., individualized learning plans, didactic instruction, peer networking) through a core program and an alumni component. The session will also include a brief description of two additional programs that have evolved out of CLI: an executive team program that supports leadership development among senior clinic teams (e.g., “C-suite” positions) as well as a mentoring program for new CEOs and CFOs to ensure their successful transition into new roles. She will reflect on what the Foundation has learned from these investments and implications for their work moving forward, as well as others' work in developing strong leaders in the field.