MICHAEL J. DOWLING is president and chief executive officer of Northwell Health, New York’s largest health care provider and private employer, with 23 hospitals, more than 665 outpatient locations, $11 billion in annual revenue and 66,000+ employees. One of health care’s most-influential executives, Mr. Dowling has received numerous awards and recognitions, including the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, and his selection as the Grand Marshall of the 2017 St. Patrick’s Day Parade in NYC. He also holds degrees from the Queen’s University Belfast, University College Dublin, and Fordham University. Mr. Dowling currently serves as chair of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement.

Prior to joining Northwell in 1995, he served in New York State government for 12 years as Deputy Secretary for Governor Mario Cuomo, and also served as Director of Health and Human Services. Earlier, he was a professor of social policy and an assistant dean of the Fordham University Graduate School of Social Services. He started his career as a caseworker in the New York City schools.

CHARLES KENNEY is executive editor of the Northwell Series on Health Care Innovation. He is the author of many books including The Best Practice: How the New Quality Movement Is Transforming Medicine (PublicAffairs 2008), which the New York Times described as “the first large-scale history of the quality movement.’’ He is the author of Transforming Health Care: Virginia Mason Medical Center’s Pursuit of the Perfect Patient Experience (CRC Press 2010), for which he was awarded the 2012 Shingo Research and Professional Publication Award. He serves on the faculty of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement.