Director – Client Partner, Ophthalmology

Knack RCM; Northern (KY); Hybrid; USD 180,000 - 250,000; Full time

Job summary

Knack RCM is seeking an experienced Director – Client Partner (Ophthalmology) to serve as a strategic partner for ophthalmology and eye-care clients. This role combines ophthalmology domain expertise with healthcare RCM knowledge, executive-level client management, and commercial acumen.

The ideal candidate will link clients with Operations to improve revenue performance, enhance service delivery, and expand client relationships.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or higher in a relevant field.
• 10+ years in healthcare RCM, client management, outsourcing, or related services.
• Experience supporting ophthalmology, optometry, eye-care, or related specialty practices.
• Proven experience managing strategic or enterprise healthcare client relationships.
• Strong understanding of end-to-end healthcare RCM operations.
• Experience leading MBRs/QBRs and executive governance.
• Ability to drive account growth, cross-sell, upsell, or scope expansion.
• Strong understanding of RCM KPIs and financial performance.

Responsibilities

• Own strategic relationships with senior client stakeholders and act as the primary executive contact.
• Lead MBRs, QBRs, and executive governance meetings.
• Translate performance into insights, recommendations, and improvement plans.
• Identify opportunities for revenue leakage reduction and growth opportunities.
• Manage escalations to maintain client confidence and satisfaction.
• Develop client engagement and retention strategies.
• Understand ophthalmology workflows and reimbursement considerations.

Skills

Executive Relationship Management

Ophthalmology Domain

Healthcare RCM

Client Governance

Account Growth

Transformation & Automation

Strategic Planning

Negotiation

Education

Bachelor's degree in Healthcare Administration, Business, Finance, or related field

Job description

Position Overview

We are seeking an experienced Director – Client Partner (Ophthalmology) to serve as a strategic partner to our ophthalmology and eye-care clients. This is a true Client Partner role, requiring a strong combination of ophthalmology domain expertise, healthcare RCM knowledge, executive-level client management, operational understanding, and commercial acumen.

The ideal candidate will act as the critical link between the client and internal Operations, proactively identifying opportunities to improve revenue performance, enhance service delivery, mitigate risks, and expand the client relationship. The individual should be equally comfortable discussing ophthalmology workflows and reimbursement challenges with a client executive, reviewing RCM KPIs with Operations, and identifying opportunities for account growth and transformation.

Key Responsibilities

Client Partnership & Executive Relationship Management

• Own strategic relationships with senior client stakeholders and serve as the primary executive point of contact.
• Establish trusted-advisor relationships and develop a deep understanding of the client's business, operational priorities, financial objectives, and growth plans.
• Lead Monthly Business Reviews (MBRs), Quarterly Business Reviews (QBRs) and executive governance meetings.
• Translate operational and financial performance into clear business insights, recommendations, and actionable improvement plans.
• Manage escalations effectively while maintaining strong client confidence and satisfaction.
• Develop and execute client engagement and retention strategies.

Ophthalmology & Eye-Care Expertise

• Apply strong knowledge of ophthalmology, optometry, and eye-care practice workflows to client discussions and RCM strategy.
• Understand specialty-specific billing and reimbursement considerations across professional and facility-based services.
• Demonstrate familiarity with ophthalmology procedures, diagnostic testing, surgical services, injections/drug billing, modifiers, global periods, medical necessity, and payer-specific requirements.
• Partner with Operations and coding/billing teams to identify specialty-specific revenue leakage, compliance risks, and process opportunities.

Healthcare RCM & Operational Leadership

• Maintain strong end-to-end understanding of the healthcare revenue cycle, including eligibility and benefits verification, authorization and referrals, coding and charge capture, claims submission, denial management, A/R management, payment posting, and patient and insurance collections.
• Monitor and interpret key RCM metrics, including A/R, aging, denial rates, clean claim rates, collections, productivity, quality, turnaround time, and other account KPIs.
• Partner with Operations leaders to develop corrective actions and performance improvement initiatives.
• Challenge existing processes and identify opportunities to improve revenue realization, productivity, quality, and cost-to-serve.

Account Growth & Commercial Development

• Identify opportunities to expand existing client relationships and grow account revenue.
• Understand client business needs and connect them to additional RCM services, technology, analytics, automation, and other solutions.
• Support proposals, solution discussions, scope expansions, and commercial negotiations.
• Maintain working knowledge of SOWs, SLAs, pricing models, staffing commitments, contractual obligations, and account profitability.
• Partner with Sales/Business Development teams on cross-sell, upsell, renewals, and new business opportunities.

Transformation, Automation & Innovation

• Proactively identify opportunities for workflow redesign, automation, analytics, and AI-enabled solutions.
• Evaluate opportunities to improve collections, reduce denials, increase productivity, improve quality, and reduce overall cost-to-serve.
• Build business cases and communicate the expected operational and financial impact of transformation initiatives.
• Drive adoption of innovative solutions while ensuring alignment with client objectives and RCM best practices.

Transition & New Business Support

• Support new client implementations, transitions, migrations, and scope expansions.
• Partner with transition, implementation, technology, and Operations teams to ensure smooth onboarding and stabilization.
• Establish governance, KPIs, operating rhythms, and escalation mechanisms during transition and post-go-live periods.
• Proactively identify transition risks and ensure timely mitigation.

Risk, Compliance & Governance

• Identify early warning signals related to A/R, denials, quality, staffing, productivity, compliance, financial performance, or client satisfaction.
• Develop and drive mitigation plans before issues become significant client escalations.
• Ensure adherence to HIPAA, healthcare documentation, billing accuracy, data privacy, and RCM compliance requirements.
• Promote a culture of accountability, transparency, and continuous improvement.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Healthcare Administration, Business, Finance, or a related field; advanced degree is a plus.
• 10+ years of experience in healthcare RCM, client management, healthcare outsourcing, or related services.
• Significant experience supporting ophthalmology, optometry, eye-care, or closely related specialty practices.
• Demonstrated experience managing strategic or enterprise healthcare client relationships.
• Strong understanding of end-to-end healthcare RCM operations.
• Proven experience leading MBRs/QBRs and executive-level client governance.
• Demonstrated ability to identify and drive account growth, cross-sell, upsell, or scope expansion.
• Strong understanding of RCM financial and operational KPIs.
• Experience supporting transitions, implementations, and new business opportunities.
• Working knowledge of SOWs, SLAs, pricing, staffing models, and account-level financial performance.
• Strong executive communication, presentation, negotiation, and relationship-management skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with ophthalmology physician groups, ambulatory surgery centers, multi-specialty practices, or large eye-care organizations.
• Knowledge of ophthalmology coding, including CPT/HCPCS, ICD-10-CM, modifiers, global surgical periods, injections/drug billing, and payer reimbursement policies.
• Experience working with U.S. healthcare providers, payers, and RCM outsourcing organizations.
• Experience with RCM transformation, automation, analytics, AI, or technology-enabled services.
• MBA, MHA, or other relevant advanced degree.
• Relevant healthcare/RCM certifications are a plus.

Core Competencies

• Strategic Client Partnership
• Ophthalmology Domain Expertise
• Healthcare RCM Expertise
• Executive Presence & Communication
• Account Growth & Commercial Acumen
• Operational & Financial Acumen
• Problem Solving & Risk Management
• Transformation & Innovation
• Negotiation & Influencing
• Cross-Functional Leadership
• Client Retention & Relationship Management

What Success Looks Like

Success in this role will be measured not only by operational performance but by the ability to build and grow strategic client relationships. The successful Client Partner will:

• Establish credibility as a trusted advisor to ophthalmology clients.
• Improve client satisfaction, retention, and overall relationship health.
• Drive measurable improvements in RCM performance and financial outcomes.
• Identify and convert opportunities for account expansion and incremental revenue.
• Anticipate risks and resolve issues before they become escalations.
• Successfully support transitions, new business, and scope expansions.
• Bring forward innovative opportunities involving automation, analytics, and AI.
• Create a strong partnership between the client, Operations, and internal support functions.

Role details

• Location: United States (Remote)
• Employment type: Full Time
• Experience: 10+ years in healthcare RCM, client management or healthcare services
• Compensation: Competitive, commensurate with experience