Mr. Gierlinger drives cultural transformation across Northwell Health with a customer-obsessed mindset, bringing a unique perspective as a former executive with the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company and as a patient who has battled Guillain-Barré syndrome. He recruited Michelin-starred culinary talent, transforming hospital food and upgrading kitchens systemwide in the process. As a result of this initiative, the health system’s food quality now averages in the 90th percentile, with seven hospitals at the 94th percentile or higher, a benchmark no other health system in the nation has achieved. The American Culinary Federation honored Northwell with its prestigious “Culinary Excellence Award.” Mr. Gierlinger also launched a novel “Customer Effort Pulse Survey,” the first in healthcare to holistically measure effort in addition to loyalty and satisfaction. In addition, he spearheaded patient and customer experience integration efforts between Northwell and newly acquired Danbury, Conn.-based Nuvance Health. He has reached the milestone of educating more than 4,000 physicians and advanced healthcare providers via a course focused on elevating provider communication and empathy skills. Northwell has earned recognition from Time Magazine as one of the “TIME100 Companies,” Fortune Magazine as one of the “Best Workplaces in Healthcare” and one of the “100 Best Companies to Work For,” and as one of Fast Company’s “Most Innovative Companies.” Mr. Gierlinger serves as an executive board member of The Beryl Institute and a founding council member of the Institute of Innovation.
