Welcome
Developing Emerging Administrative Leaders (DEAL) is a program that takes a multidisciplinary approach in highlighting promising UAB staff members to the essential components of administrative and management positions across UAB including human resources, finance, research, education, and clinical.
Program Overview
Units across UAB and UAB Medicine struggle both to fill administrative leadership roles with qualified candidates and to retain talented staff who see few opportunities for advancement. To address this, the Developing Emerging Administrative Leaders (DEAL) program will prepare current employees for future administrative posts. This, the 10-month program, will combine brief lectures, real-world case studies, and interactive exercises with hands-on projects and group discussions.
By pairing participants with senior administrators from multiple UAB schools for networking, feedback, and mentorship—and offering continued learning opportunities between sessions—DEAL creates a sustainable talent pipeline while investing in our people’s growth and career progression.
The goals of the program:
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Cultivate and prepare internal talent for management and leadership roles across UAB.
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Create a pipeline of future administrative leaders to lead UAB Medicine and UAB clinical and academic units (e.g., service lines, departments, divisions) across various UAB schools.
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Connect participants with administrators at every level to learn insider best practices from established leaders.
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Connect participants to resources, collaborators, and mentors.
The team applies these strategies:
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10-month curriculum with monthly 4-hour sessions (in person)
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Online resources and tools
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Creation of individual development plans
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Small- and large-group interactions
The curriculum includes administrative topics that are commonly found in an academic medical center:
- Finance
- Human Resources
- Research
- Clinical Operations
- Education
- Hot Topics
- Leadership Development
- Space & Facilities Planning
Program Leadership
Susan Coan
Executive Director
UAB Learning & Development
Amber Anderson Grant
O.D. Specialist, DEAL Program Lead
UAB Learning & Development
Cynthia Joiner, PhD, MPH, RN (PI)
Associate Professor & Vice Chair
UAB Department of Medicine
Craig Anderson
Executive Director of Administrative Operations
UAB School of Nursing
Ashley Davis, MBA
JHS Administrative Director II
UAB Department of Cell, Developmental, and Integrative Biology
Rachelle Hall
Director, Finance Shared Service
UAB Heersink School of Medicine
Kim Hazelwood, MBA
Executive Director, Admin. Operations
UAB College of Arts & Sciences
Ryan Outman, MS
Executive Officer of Finance and Administration
Heersink School of Medicine
Shannon Turner
Alumni House Director
Alumni Affairs