University of Minnesota Athletics
Pictured above from left to right: Jeremy Moser (Men’s Swimming & Diving), Whitney Holm (Rowing), Tiffany Huber (Women’s Tennis), Dr. Penny Wheeler, Michael Hurt (Men’s Basketball), Jessica Lee (Women’s Golf), Christine Portillo (Women’s Golf)
Penny Wheeler joins Leadership U in Speaker Series for Athletic Department Staff and Student-Athletes
10/30/2019 9:25:00 AM | Leadership U
On October 8, the University of Minnesota Athletics Department kicked off it's annual Leadership U Speaker Series event. Administration, coaches, staff, and student-athletes were fortunate enough to hear from President and CEO of Allina Health, Dr. Penny Wheeler. The speaking engagement was an hour long question and answer session facilitated by Leadership U Consultant, David Plummer.
Dr. Wheeler considers herself a "triple Gopher"- meaning she completed her undergraduate degree, medical degree, and residency at the University of Minnesota. A native of Minnesota, Dr. Wheeler grew up a Gopher fan, eventually following her father's footsteps to attend the University of Minnesota. Her father was a member of the Gopher football team.
During the speaking engagement, Dr. Wheeler gave insight on her leadership philosophy and her years of leadership experience through stories and lessons she learned during her professional career. Transitioning from an individual role as a physician to a leader of thousands of employees that look to you to set the vision, expectations, and give clarity was not easy. Dr. Wheeler joked she went from "having to know how to deal with a complex hysterectomy with a lymph node dissection to not knowing how to run [her] email account." Through a wide variety of experiences and stretching herself, Dr. Wheeler has learned that "clarity is kindness" and speaks highly of the "zone of productive tension." The zone of productive tension has guided her to hold others accountable and set clear expectations and goals as well as challenge herself and others in a respectable manner.
Before transitioning into a leadership role at Allina Health, Dr. Wheeler served patients at Women's Health Consultants in Minneapolis, was the president of Abbott Northwestern Hospital's medical staff, chaired the Allina Health Quality Committee, and served on the Allina Health Board of Directors. She has presented nationally on Allina Health's process and success in quality advancement and outcome-based quality models. In 2012, Dr. Wheeler was awarded Outstanding Health Care Executive, largely due to her care collaboratives and dedication to making an impact on community health. In 2015, Dr. Wheeler was named president and chief executive officer of Allina Health- a not-for-profit health care system that cares for patients through 90+ clinics, 12 hospitals, 15 pharmacies, specialty care centers and medical services, and has over 28,000 employees. She has been recognized various times throughout her career due to her care collaborative and dedication to making an impact on community health. Most recently, Modern Healthcare magazine recognized her as one of the top 50 most influential clinical executives.
Dr. Wheeler considers herself a "triple Gopher"- meaning she completed her undergraduate degree, medical degree, and residency at the University of Minnesota. A native of Minnesota, Dr. Wheeler grew up a Gopher fan, eventually following her father's footsteps to attend the University of Minnesota. Her father was a member of the Gopher football team.
During the speaking engagement, Dr. Wheeler gave insight on her leadership philosophy and her years of leadership experience through stories and lessons she learned during her professional career. Transitioning from an individual role as a physician to a leader of thousands of employees that look to you to set the vision, expectations, and give clarity was not easy. Dr. Wheeler joked she went from "having to know how to deal with a complex hysterectomy with a lymph node dissection to not knowing how to run [her] email account." Through a wide variety of experiences and stretching herself, Dr. Wheeler has learned that "clarity is kindness" and speaks highly of the "zone of productive tension." The zone of productive tension has guided her to hold others accountable and set clear expectations and goals as well as challenge herself and others in a respectable manner.
Before transitioning into a leadership role at Allina Health, Dr. Wheeler served patients at Women's Health Consultants in Minneapolis, was the president of Abbott Northwestern Hospital's medical staff, chaired the Allina Health Quality Committee, and served on the Allina Health Board of Directors. She has presented nationally on Allina Health's process and success in quality advancement and outcome-based quality models. In 2012, Dr. Wheeler was awarded Outstanding Health Care Executive, largely due to her care collaboratives and dedication to making an impact on community health. In 2015, Dr. Wheeler was named president and chief executive officer of Allina Health- a not-for-profit health care system that cares for patients through 90+ clinics, 12 hospitals, 15 pharmacies, specialty care centers and medical services, and has over 28,000 employees. She has been recognized various times throughout her career due to her care collaborative and dedication to making an impact on community health. Most recently, Modern Healthcare magazine recognized her as one of the top 50 most influential clinical executives.
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Thursday, May 11
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Speaker Series - Kamal Mohamed
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