Case Study: Serbia’s Leading Private Hospital Group appoints a non-medical COO with Stanton Chase healthcare executive search

Serbia’s Leading Private Hospital Group hires a COO for 1,700 staff and 40+ specialties with Stanton Chase

The leading private hospital group in Serbia required a new Chief Operating Officer to manage its multi-site operations following an acquisition, but faced a unique challenge. There were no directly comparable private healthcare institutions in the local market from which to source a ready-made candidate, necessitating a search outside the healthcare sector. They engaged the executive search firm Stanton Chase to conduct a healthcare executive search for this critical role.

Stanton Chase implemented a dual-track search strategy, targeting both senior leaders seeking larger mandates and CEOs of smaller organizations open to an industry change. They identified and placed the CEO of a Serbian insurance company into the COO role. This candidate brought the required experience in managing large, regulated, multi-site operations, successfully transitioning into the healthcare sector to lead the hospital group's operational development and profitability.