Executive Director | Dubuque, IA

Atlantic Health Strategies™; Dubuque (IA); On-site; USD 130,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Salary: $130,000–$170,000 annually

On-site, contract-to-hire

Performance incentives

Job summary

Bridgewater Recovery in Dubuque, Iowa, seeks an experienced Executive Director to lead the startup and ongoing operations for IOP, PHP, detox, and residential services. You will ensure regulatory compliance, financial performance, and exceptional client care while developing leaders and teams.

The role covers pre-opening planning, staffing, policy implementation, licensure readiness, and go-live execution, with close collaboration across clinical, medical, nursing, admissions, and operations.

Qualifications

• Master's degree required or equivalent in a healthcare-related field.
• Minimum 5 years of progressive behavioral health leadership experience.
• Minimum 3 years of executive leadership experience.
• Experience launching a new treatment facility or start-up healthcare operation preferred.
• Experience with licensure, accreditation readiness, and payer environments preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead pre-opening planning and execution, including hiring, onboarding, policy implementation, and go-live readiness.
• Oversee programming across IOP, PHP, detox, and residential treatment.
• Develop operating systems, reporting structures, workflows, and accountability processes.
• Manage facility financials, budgeting, labor, census growth, and operational efficiency.
• Monitor KPIs and support payer strategy, reimbursement and census development.
• Recruit and develop a high-performing leadership team across clinical, medical, nursing, admissions, operations, compliance, and administrative functions.
• Provide direct supervision and coaching to department leaders.
• Collaborate with Medical Director and Clinical leadership to ensure high-quality, evidence-based care.
• Ensure regulatory compliance and licensing readiness; maintain survey readiness.
• Represent Bridgewater Recovery in community, referral networks, and payer environments.

Skills

Executive leadership

Strategic planning

Operational leadership

Team leadership

Healthcare administration

Education

Master's degree in Healthcare Administration, Business Administration, Public Health, Behavioral Health Administration, Social Work, Counseling, Psychology, or related field

Job description

Bridgewater Recovery is a behavioral health organization developing a substance use treatment program focused on expanding access to high-quality IOP, PHP, detox, and residential treatment services in Dubuque, Iowa. The program is being built to serve individuals who need a higher level of care, with a focus on clinical quality, operational discipline, strong culture, and long-term sustainability.

The Opportunity

About Bridgewater Recovery

Bridgewater Recovery is a behavioral health organization developing a substance use treatment program focused on expanding access to high-quality IOP, PHP, detox, and residential treatment services in Dubuque, Iowa. The program is being built to serve individuals who need a higher level of care, with a focus on clinical quality, operational discipline, strong culture, and long-term sustainability.

Bridgewater Recovery is seeking an experienced Executive Director to serve as the senior operational leader for its Dubuque, Iowa facility. This is a high-impact leadership role responsible for translating vision into execution during the facility's launch and ongoing operations, spanning IOP, PHP, detox, and residential levels of care. The Executive Director ensures regulatory compliance, financial performance, and exceptional client care while developing the leaders and teams that make it all possible.

What You’ll Do

• Lead pre-opening planning and execution, including hiring, onboarding, policy implementation, licensure readiness, and operational go-live preparation
• Help stand up programming across IOP, PHP, detox, and residential treatment
• Develop operating systems, reporting structures, workflows, and accountability processes across departments
• Oversee facility-level financial performance, budgeting, labor management, census growth, and operational efficiency
• Monitor key performance indicators and support payer strategy, reimbursement awareness, referral growth, and census development
• Recruit, build, and lead a high-performing leadership team across clinical, medical, nursing, admissions, operations, compliance, and administrative functions
• Provide direct supervision, coaching, and support to department leaders
• Work closely with the Medical Director, Clinical Director, nursing leadership, and treatment team to support high-quality, evidence-based care
• Ensure compliance with applicable state, federal, payer, and accreditation requirements, maintaining survey and licensing readiness
• Represent Bridgewater Recovery in the community, referral network, payer environment, and broader behavioral health market

Requirements

What You Bring

• Master's degree in Healthcare Administration, Business Administration, Public Health, Behavioral Health Administration, Social Work, Counseling, Psychology, or a related field
• 5+ years of progressive behavioral health leadership experience
• 3+ years of executive leadership experience
• Experience launching a new treatment facility or leading a start-up healthcare operation preferred
• Experience with ASAM levels of care, including 3.5 residential and 3.7 detox, preferred
• Experience with state licensure, accreditation readiness, Joint Commission, CARF, or similar standards preferred
• Experience working with Medicaid MCOs, commercial payers, utilization review, and reimbursement-driven operations preferred
• Prior leadership experience in a high-growth or multi-site behavioral health organization preferred

Benefits

Compensation and Schedule

• Salary: $130,000 - $170,000 annually, commensurate with experience
• Performance Incentives: Additional performance-based incentives tied to census growth, financial performance, operational execution, compliance, and quality outcomes
• Schedule: Full-time | On-site | Contract to start, transitioning to employee at facility launch

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

Bridgewater Recovery is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any other protected status in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local laws.

EEO is the Law: http://www.dol.gov/ofccp/regs/compliance/posters/pdf/eeopost.pdf