NEW VICE PRESIDENT READY TO MOVE SCHOOL OF MEDICINE FORWARD

John Deeley Has a Clear Vision for

the Future
   

he opportunity to contribute to the growth of an important, complicated institution lured John Deeley from New York to the University of Miami School of Medicine this winter. As the new vice president for administration, operations, and planning, Deeley brings more than 25 years of experience in academic medicine to the medical school. It’s a career he loves because of the knowledge that society benefits from everything a medical center is able to accomplish.

“I’m proud to be part of the team that supports the mission of the school, the goals of the dean, and the pursuits of the faculty,” says Deeley, who was vice dean for administration at the New York University School of Medicine prior to coming to UM. “Discovery happens at all levels. Being involved in it gets me up in the morning and keeps me moving.”

Building a cohesive organizational team that will move the school forward is Deeley’s No. 1 mission. Moving up is critical, he says, because it will enable the school to keep attracting the best people. “If you can show that you’re on a growth curve, that you’re taking some risks, that you’re going to build it, then they will come,” Deeley says. “You have to raise a lot of money to do that—we’re putting together the plans now to show just what it will take.”

This vision for growth comes, of course, at a time of significant financial challenge for the University. “It was clear we needed additional business expertise to help,” says John G. Clarkson, M.D., senior vice president for medical affairs and dean of the School of Medicine. The school offered the new position to Deeley, Clarkson says, because “in tough situations he’s made a huge difference.”

At NYU Deeley developed a ten-year plan to grow while eliminating a huge budget deficit. He presided over substantial construction and renovation and the hiring of a new leadership team. Before being recruited to New York, he spent 20 years at Harvard Medical School, most recently as administrative dean for finance and business.

Deeley talks forcefully about the importance of a strong basic science operation with a strong link to clinicians. He will lead new strategic thinking about the administration of the research enterprise to ensure that translational research is having the greatest possible impact on the delivery of health care.

Creating the most effective administration for the entire school is foremost on Deeley’s mind. “We have a commitment to manage the school in a way that addresses its uniqueness, that responds to its needs,” Deeley says. “This is an enormously complicated organization with lots of risk and lots of challenges.

“Moving it forward is a real adventure and it’s great to be part of that.”