The human capital problem in healthcare

Healthcare runs on its leadership talent, and the labor market for that talent does not behave like other industries. A great CFO from outside healthcare can spend a year ramping up on cost-report mechanics, DSH, 340B, payor mix, and reimbursement before they are actually running the function. A CMO without health plan operating experience cannot credibly lead utilization management or delegated risk. The mismatch between leadership need and leadership supply is the most expensive problem most healthcare organizations are quietly carrying.

Carson Kolb, Inc. exists to solve that specific problem.

How the firm works

The firm was founded in 1998 by Matthew Kolb and Sally Kolb and has spent over twenty-five years inside healthcare executive search. Carson Kolb operates as a certified Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) and a registered federal contractor (UEI GN2PQ235MP13, CAGE 9JQS1), with NAICS classifications across executive search, staffing services, and management consulting.

Every engagement runs through an eight-step research-driven methodology built around the idea that misaligned searches start at step zero, when the search committee has not yet aligned on what they actually need.

Step 1: Profile. Develop a full understanding of the organization, including culture, structure, goals, and leadership priorities. Discussions with key stakeholders clarify expectations and performance objectives so the opportunity is represented accurately to candidates.

Step 2: Assessment and Review. Before launching the search, evaluate the factors that may impact success ... compensation positioning, market dynamics, reporting structure, and geography. Provide straightforward guidance to position the role competitively.

Step 3: Identification of Candidates. Conduct a national or targeted regional search using the firm's proprietary database, professional network, and direct outreach. Surface both visible and passive talent whose leadership approach aligns with the role.

Step 4: Candidate Screening and Evaluation. Each candidate completes a structured evaluation including initial screening and in-depth interviews focused on experience, leadership style, and organizational fit. Only candidates who meet the criteria advance.

Step 5: Presentation of Candidates. Deliver a clear, comparative slate of candidates both verbally and in writing, highlighting strengths, accomplishments, and alignment to support informed decision-making.

Step 6: References and Verification of Credentials. Verify required degrees, licenses, and certifications. Conduct multiple reference interviews to confirm leadership effectiveness and professional impact.

Step 7: Communication and Negotiation. Serve as an intermediary, supporting communication and providing counsel throughout compensation, benefits, relocation, and onboarding discussions to achieve a mutually beneficial agreement.

Step 8: Post Placement. For one full year following placement, stay connected with both client and candidate to support integration and confirm ongoing success. This step is uncommon in executive search and exists because retention is the only honest measure of search quality.

Where Carson Kolb specializes

The firm's practice areas reflect the operating segments where leadership requirements are structurally specialized:

Hospitals and health systems for CEOs, CFOs, CMOs, COOs, and service-line leadership where capital structure, reimbursement, and clinical operations meet.
Managed care (health plans, MSOs, IPAs, ACOs) for CMOs, regional medical directors, medical management, utilization management, member services, and provider services leadership.
Medical groups for physician executive leadership, group practice administration, and the leadership transitions that drive group performance.
Academic medicine for chairs, deans, residency program directors, and Chief Medical Officers at organizations balancing clinical, research, and education missions.
Health plans for the full executive layer including CMO, CFO, Chief Compliance Officer, Chief Quality Officer, Chief Medical Information Executive, pharmacy leadership, and informatics.
Life sciences at the intersection of biotech, pharma, devices, and diagnostics, where leadership thrives on technical complexity and policy fluency.
Healthcare information technology for organizations where security, compliance, and clinical integration share the same roadmap.
Federal and government healthcare including VA, DoD Military Health System, IHS, and HHS components, supported by the firm's WOSB certification and federal contractor registration.

Two offices, national and regional reach

Carson Kolb operates from two offices:

Franklin, Tennessee ... 231 Public Square, Suite 300, Franklin, TN 37064 ... 615.861.8925
San Clemente, California ... 501 N El Camino Real, Suite 200, San Clemente, CA 92672 ... 949.612.2544

The Tennessee office anchors the national and Eastern U.S. practice; the California office anchors Western U.S. and Pacific-time client work. Searches are conducted nationally and on a targeted regional basis depending on the client's leadership market.

The 95% number

Over 95% of Carson Kolb engagements come from repeat clients and referrals. That is not a marketing line. It is a structural reality of how the firm sustains its book of business: the placements work, the clients call back, and the candidates the firm recruited yesterday become the hiring executives the firm serves tomorrow. The firm does not run on cold outbound and does not need to.

Intentional positioning, broader access

Carson Kolb maintains an expansive, largely unrestricted candidate pool, which is meaningful in executive search where most firms accept off-limits agreements with their largest clients that quietly remove half the qualified talent from any given search. Carson Kolb's positioning preserves access to the broadest possible candidate pool for the majority of engagements, which compounds into better search outcomes especially in sub-specialties where the qualified universe is already small.

Women-Owned Small Business and federal contractor credentials

Carson Kolb is a certified Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) and a registered federal contractor with active SAM.gov registration (UEI GN2PQ235MP13, CAGE 9JQS1). For federal healthcare buyers and for any organization with supplier diversity requirements, that combination of healthcare specialization plus WOSB plus federal-contracting readiness is uncommon and meaningful.