Alumni Spotlight: Peter Adams, MHA, MBA (’21)

Many of the most valuable lessons Peter Adams, MHA, MBA (HPM ’21) has learned in his career have come not from a textbook but from observing experienced leaders, learning to work through difficult problems, and understanding how to influence change within complex organizations. Now, given the opportunity, he is doing that for students who were once where he was.

Adams was recently promoted to Executive Director of the Digital Hospital and Patient Command Center at Allegheny Health Network (AHN). The role brings together patient flow and throughput, transfer center operations, network command center capabilities, emergency preparedness and management, all while using technology and data to improve care delivery. “At its core, the work is about building systems that help patients receive the right care, in the right place, at the right time,” said Adams.

Peter Adams

The focus of the role, according to Adams, is to ensure that AHN works as one unit, moving from site-by-site problem-solving to an integrated network operating model. “My goal is to strengthen network-wide capabilities that improve access, support operational resilience, and create a more connected experience across AHN, he added.

Before his current role, Adams was Director of Strategic Operations and Chief of Staff to AHN President and CEO Mark Sevco (HPM MHA/MBA ’91), and spearheaded the launch of AHN’s administrative fellowship and its extended and summer administrative residency programs. As a student, Adams took part in an extended residency and then accepted a fellowship after graduating, and said expanding opportunities for students and new graduates to grow is extremely important to him.

“The experiences in my administrative residency and fellowship gave me exposure to leaders, projects, and experiences that I never would have encountered otherwise,” he said, adding that both programs accelerated his growth and allowed him to build a network of trusted professionals.

One of AHN’s biggest motivations for starting the programs was to give students and early-career professionals a way to contribute to real work, build relationships and develop the skills they need to lead.

“Health care is not getting any easier, and that means we need strong leadership pipelines,” he said, recalling the uncertainty, ambition and excitement that comes with being at that point in your career. “When we designed the program, we focused on making sure students were not just observing, but contributing to work tied to AHN priorities and real operational challenges.”

Adams is not alone in his enthusiasm for the programs, the potential they offer and the early returns they’ve already seen. Across the network, senior leaders have been eager to invest their time and expertise in helping the residents, fellows and the program grow. The first cohort brought in two fellows, four extended residents and three summer residents; looking ahead, the system wants to bring in another two to three fellows and significantly expand the residency program.

“I am especially proud that these programs have become a network effort rather than something owned by one department,” he said.  “Leaders are excited by the opportunity to work with residents and fellows and are proactively reaching out to ask how they can get involved.”

At AHN, Adams works closely with Sevco, a fellow HPM alum and mentor who influenced how he now thinks about creating access, visibility, and growth opportunities for others.

“I have been fortunate to work with leaders like Mark Sevco who have invested significant time and energy into my development. He sets an excellent example for how to create opportunities for others and identify potential in people before they see it themselves, said Adams, adding that a conversation, connection or opportunity early in a student or recent graduate’s career can completely change its trajectory. “I can point to several mentors, including Mark, who have done that for me.”

Mentoring students, residents and fellows feels like the natural continuation of that cycle for Adams, who says he has benefited from the people who invested their time in him. He now feels responsible for doing the same for others.

After graduating, Adams accepted an administrative fellowship, which he says allowed him to see how a large health care system operates from many perspectives, much of which still informs his work now. Working with leaders in administrative, clinical, quality, fiancé and other functions allowed him to learn to navigate complex systems, influence and lead without a formal mandate or title and collaborate across multiple units, with often competing priorities. “The skills I developed and the networks I built during fellowship helped me continue to grow, take on broader responsibilities, and lead increasingly complex work,” he added.

As his own career continues to grow and evolve, Adams says one of the biggest lessons he carries from his time at Pitt and works to instill in those he mentors is the value and power of curiosity.

“Whether I am working on hospital operations, emergency preparedness, technology, or leadership development, I try to approach challenges with curiosity rather than certainty, he said. “That curiosity shows up today in how I approach complex operational problems such as studying transfer patterns, redesigning communication for systemwide downtime, or building new command center capabilities.”

 

-Mike Friend