UnityPoint Health Leadership

As President and CEO of UnityPoint Health, Clay Holderman, MBA, oversees a $4.6 billion health system with a combined network of 20 regional hospitals, 19 community hospitals, nearly 440 clinics, 14 home health locations, 7 affiliated community mental health centers and 4 accredited UnityPoint Health colleges.

An industry leader in the Midwest, the organization spans across Iowa, western Illinois and southern Wisconsin in metropolitan and rural areas with a team of more than 34,000 healthcare professionals. Dedicated to supporting the health and wellness of its communities, UnityPoint Health delivers high-quality, low-cost, patient-centered care through an easier and more personal approach.

Prior to joining UnityPoint Health, Holderman held the role of Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Presbyterian Healthcare Services, a $4.8 billion integrated payor-provider health system in New Mexico. There, he led the development of two de-novo hospitals and was instrumental in driving growth for the system. He led significant initiatives in clinical service line implementation, labor and supply chain cost management, ambulatory site of service shift to lower total cost of care and new business development and acquisitions. He also contributed to work addressing social determinants of health to help reduce disparities in health outcomes and the cost of care for the state's most vulnerable populations.

During the SARS-CoV2 pandemic, Holderman served the State of New Mexico as the Health System Advisor. He's also held executive leadership roles in both investor-owned and not-for-profit health systems, including multiple Hospital Chief Executive Officer roles for LifePoint Hospitals and Ardent Health.

Carpenter has served as Chief Strategy Officer since October 2021. Previously, he held the positions of Chief Financial Officer from 2017 to early 2021 and Regional Chief Financial Officer and Chief Strategy Officer for UnityPoint Health – Waterloo and Dubuque. All told, he's been with the health system for more than 26 years in numerous roles.

Carpenter has a bachelor's degree from the University of Iowa and a master's degree from St. Ambrose University. His professional memberships include the Healthcare Finance Management Association.

D'Andre Carpenter, DNP, RN serves as enterprise Chief Nursing Officer, Senior Vice President of UnityPoint Health. In this role, he manages system nursing priorities and leads enterprise-wide initiatives to ensure safety, quality and exceptional patient experience in alignment with the organization's strategic direction.

Previously, Dr. Carpenter held senior executive roles at Jefferson Health/Thomas Jefferson University, including Enterprise Senior Vice President & Associate Chief Nurse Executive Officer and Senior Vice President & Chief Nursing Informatics Officer. Prior to Jefferson Health, he served in executive nursing informatics roles at Baylor Scott & White Health and Virginia Commonwealth University Health.

Dr. Carpenter received his Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree from Old Dominion University and is a Registered Nurse. He holds a Master of Science in Nursing degree from Virginia Commonwealth University School of Nursing and an Executive Master of Science, Information Systems Management degree (MS-ISM) from Virginia Commonwealth University School of Business. Additionally, he holds undergraduate degrees in both nursing and computer science. Dr. Carpenter is an active member of the Health Management Academy Technology Fellows Program Board and the AvaSure Nursing Advisory Board.

Eklund serves as Chief Compliance Officer for UnityPoint Health, leading the compliance, privacy, internal audit and enterprise risk management programs for the organization. She previously held the role of Vice President/Chief Compliance Officer for UnityPoint Clinic, a senior affiliate of UnityPoint Health, where she led the compliance, privacy, information security, risk management and provider contracting teams. Before joining UnityPoint Health, she served as the Chief Compliance and Privacy Officer for Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare in Florida.

She holds a Doctor of Jurisprudence degree (JD) from Northern Illinois University and is certified in Healthcare Privacy Compliance (CHPC), Healthcare Compliance (CHC) and professional coding (CPC). She is also a member of the Compliance Publications Editorial Board for the American Health Lawyers Association, and a long-standing member of the Health Care Compliance Association.

Sue Erickson serves as Chief Operating Officer, Senior Vice President of UnityPoint Health with responsibility for systemwide hospital and clinic operations.

Previously, Erickson served as President & CEO of UnityPoint Health – Meriter in Madison, Wisconsin, a role she assumed in 2018. She joined that organization in 1989 as a lab technician and held various leadership positions in the lab and home care services before serving in executive roles as Vice President of Professional Services and Chief Operating Officer. Her many professional accomplishments include leading the integration efforts between Meriter Hospital and UnityPoint Health, as well as leading and implementing the health system’s Joint Operating Agreement with UW Health. She is most proud of expanding child and adolescent psychiatry access and resources to the community.

Erickson received her B.S. in medical technology from the University of Iowa and her MBA from Edgewood College. As a dedicated community leader, she has served on several board and committees. Her noteworthy contributions include serving as chair of the Wisconsin chapter of the American Diabetes Association for six years, as well as serving on the Monona Chamber of Commerce. She is an active member of the Wisconsin Hospital Association.

Gillingham became Chief Human Resources Officer of UnityPoint Health in October 2021.

Gillingham formerly served as Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer at Beaumont Health, Michigan's largest healthcare system. There, he was responsible for all human resource functions, including HR strategy and operations, total rewards, talent management, labor relations, employee health and safety and diversity, equity and inclusion. He previously held senior HR leadership positions at OhioHealth Corporation, Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac), Quest Diagnostics and Walmart.

Gillingham has a bachelor's degree in Organizational Communications from Missouri State University and a master's in Human Resource Development from Villanova University. He also completed leadership programs at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth and the Harvard Business School.

Joiner became Chief Diversity Officer in February of 2022. He formerly served as the interim system Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Consultant for UnityPoint Health, leading the System DEI Council to design and implement a DEI framework and approach for the organization.

He's been part of UnityPoint Health since 2015. During his time in our Quad Cities region, Joiner held the role of Diversity and Community Impact Officer for UnityPoint Health – Trinity, where he and his team made significant strides in DEI programming and community events, such as advancing culturally sensitive care guides and creative partnerships like "Medicine in the Barbershop" along with a lengthy list of significant accomplishments.

He received his master's degree in organizational management and bachelor of science degree in business administration from Ashford. He was selected for McKinsey's Black Leadership Academy program in 2021 and was a Race Against Racism Nominee by the Quad Cities YWCA in 2020. Joiner also had a long-standing involvement in the Quad Cities community through various boards and committees.

Kizer became the Chief Legal Officer for UnityPoint Health in the fall of 2021. He brings a wealth of experience from his 25 years of experience as a health care and transactional attorney specializing in corporate strategy, governance, compliance and mergers and acquisitions.

Kizer most recently served as Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer at BayCare Health System in Florida. There, he was responsible for all legal operations across the health system's business units and helped drive growth from $1.7 to $4.8 billion.

He earned his law degree from Drake University Law School, obtained a Master's in management information systems from Nova Southeastern University and received his bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Florida.

McKinney serves as Chief Marketing and Communications Officer, Senior Vice President and is responsible for UnityPoint Health's enterprise-wide brand and communication strategy. She provides lead counsel for C-Suite executive communication and issues management, as well as oversees editorial communications strategy, creative services and system-wide brand and service line marketing efforts for nine regions across a 3-state footprint. Prior to this role, she served as Vice President of Brand, Marketing and Communications, building a multi-faceted team to align and infuse the organization's brand identity, tone and positioning across all markets.

Before joining UnityPoint Health, she spent over a decade as a marketing leader for Target Corporation, where she led the development of an in-house strategic partnership division and managed a team responsible for experiential marketing and publicity, including support of Target's legacy corporate partnership with St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. McKinney also owned a full-service brand and communications agency with clients in healthcare, retail, sports/entertainment and law.

McKinney has a bachelor's degree in Journalism and Mass Communications from the University of Iowa.

Smith serves as Chief Information Officer, Senior Vice President. She held the role of Vice President, Chief Information Officer from 2016 to early 2021, where she was responsible for a centralized Information Technology Department across the entire system. She is passionate about creating an environment where team members can do their best work and providing business process-enabling technology solutions to the customers she serves.

She holds a bachelor's degree in management information systems from Iowa State University and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Iowa. Smith is also a member of the Health Information Management Systems Society (HIMSS) and the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME). Additionally, she serves on the board of the Technology Association of Iowa.

Smith has been recognized in Becker's CIOs to Know, Becker's Women CIOs to Know, Health Data Management's Most Powerful Women in Healthcare IT and was named CIO of the Year in 2018 by the Technology Association of Iowa.

Dr. Williams is Chief Clinical Officer, Senior Vice President of UnityPoint Health. He previously served in affiliate executive roles as President and Chief Executive Officer of UnityPoint Clinic and President and Chief Executive Officer of UnityPoint at Home.

Dr. Williams is residency trained and board certified in pediatrics and has more than 20 years of clinical experience. He received his Doctor of Medicine degree from Creighton University in Omaha, NE, and completed his pediatric residency at Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland, OR. He is a member of the American Association for Physician Leadership, a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and a licensed physician and surgeon in the state of Iowa. Dr. Williams is also a graduate of the UnityPoint Health Physician Leadership Academy, the American College of Physician Executives, Physician Leadership Development Program and a Certified Physician Executive. In 2017, he completed his Master of Medical Management program at Carnegie Mellon University.

James Arnett started as President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for UnityPoint Health – Meriter in June 2022. Arnett moved to the CEO position from within Meriter, where he held the Chief Operating Officer (COO) position. Arnett has worked at Meriter for 20 years and started his career in Human Resources.

Arnett is a Wisconsin native and received a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Human Resource Management from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, as well as a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) with an emphasis in healthcare administration from Concordia University.

Pam Delagardelle began her career in healthcare as a nurse in 1983. She successfully moved up through the ranks in healthcare from Director of Patient Care, to Managed Care Facilitator, to Clinical Integration Coordinator, and eventually to CEO. She also served as an Assistant Professor at Allen College in Waterloo. Under Pam’s leadership, the hospitals and systems she’s managed have won numerous awards for safety, patient care and patient satisfaction.

Pam earned her Bachelor’s Degree of Science in Nursing from Mount Mercy in 1984. She earned her Master’s Degree of Science in Nursing Administration from the University of Iowa in 1997, with an emphasis on hospital and business administration. She was the recipient of the Mount Mercy University Distinguished Service Award in 2012 and a participant in the Success Follows alumni outcomes project.

Pam has served on numerous professional and community boards as a member and chair, including the Iowa Hospital Association, Iowa Hospital Education and Research Foundation Board, and HealthNet Connect Board. She has served Holy Family Parish in many capacities, including new church committee chair and capital campaign chair, Sacristan, Liturgist and Volunteer, and has served on the Saint Edward’s School Board of Education. She is a member of Sigma Theta Tau Nursing Honor Society, Kappa Xi Chapter.

Pam is married, has five children, and lives with her husband, Rick, in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

Robert J. Erickson has served as President and CEO of the Quad Cities/Muscatine region since 2019. He was drawn into health care early in his career as a clinician in acute rehabilitation settings and has a strong belief that health care is a true vocational calling to serve others. He has stayed committed to that basic principle throughout his career as a leader.

Prior to joining UnityPoint Health, Erickson was most recently President of Amita Saint Joseph Medical Center in Joliet, Illinois. Prior to his time there, he served as CEO at St. Joseph Medical Center in Kansas City, Missouri following his role as president and CEO at St. Francis Health in Topeka, Kansas. He also served as the regional COO for Aspirus, Inc. with accountabilities in Wisconsin and Michigan.

Passionate about community involvement, Erickson has served on the boards of many non-profit organizations throughout his career including as a Trustee for the University of St. Francis. He has served as a Board member for numerous Boys and Girls Clubs throughout the country as well as the American Red Cross. He has a long history as a Rotarian and has been active in different State Hospital Associations.

Erickson earned his bachelor’s degree in speech pathology and audiology from Marquette University in Milwaukee and a master’s degree in speech and hearing science from Arizona State University. He pursued a Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology before making a career change to health care administration. In 2010, Marquette University College of Health Sciences honored him as their Distinguished Alumnus of the Year.

Leah Glasgo was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for UnityPoint Health – Fort Dodge in January 2019. In addition to her Fort Dodge leadership responsibilities, Leah currently serves as interim President and CEO for UnityPoint Health – Sioux City. Leah began her career at UnityPoint Health in 2013 as the Vice President of Rural Development for the Fort Dodge and Sioux City Regions. She then became the Vice President of Clinical Operations for UnityPoint Health – Sioux City and was promoted to the role of Chief Operating Officer and held that position for three years. Prior to joining UnityPoint Health, Leah served as President and CEO of Stewart Memorial Community Hospital in Lake City, Iowa.

Leah began her career as a nurse receiving her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, Nebraska. She went on to receive her Master of Science in Healthcare Administration from Des Moines University. Leah serves on the Iowa Hospital Association Board of Directors, the Fort Dodge Growth Alliance Board and the AFES Board (Athletics for Education and Success).

Michelle Niermann is a healthcare leader with extensive experience in healthcare system operations, strategic planning and organizational development. She currently serves as President & Chief Executive Officer for UnityPoint Health – Cedar Rapids. Before being named to her current position in 2019, Niermann served as Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer with responsibility for all major clinical, professional and support services. Niermann has spent the entirety of her professional career at UnityPoint Health – Cedar Rapids, joining St. Luke’s as an Administrative Fellow in 1994.

Niermann holds a BA from Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois and an MA in hospital and healthcare administration from the University of Iowa. She is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE). Niermann was named the Corridor Business Journal’s Most Influential Leader in 2021.

Niermann currently serves as a board member for several community organizations. She is a Past-President of both ACHE of Iowa and the University of Iowa Health Management and Policy Department Alumni Board and has had the privilege of mentoring many rising healthcare administrators.

Joining UnityPoint Health - Des Moines in 1996, Stark is an Iowa native. He currently serves as President and Chief Executive Officer for UnityPoint Health - Des Moines. He received his undergraduate degree from Iowa State University in Management and his Master's in Healthcare Administration from the University of Iowa.

Stark is a Fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives, serves on the American Heart Association Board, the Iowa Hospital Association Board, Greater Des Moines Partnership Board, Principal Charity Classic Board, Iowa Public Television Foundation Board, a member of Rotary and is a graduate of the Greater Des Moines Leadership Institute.

Chad Wolbers is the President and CEO of UnityPoint Health – Dubuque. Chad is a seasoned healthcare administrator with over 22 years of experience leading hospitals and healthcare systems in various roles.

Chad earned his Master of Health Administration degree from the University of Iowa and a Bachelor of Science degree in biology from Truman State University. Additionally, Chad is a Dubuque native and he and his wife, Dr. Regan Wolbers reside in Dubuque with their three children Kenna, Josie, and Gavin, and their puppy, Sully.