Kate Lerner, MA, CPPM

Associate Principal

Health Management Associates

St. Paul, MN

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A collaborative and engaging health and human services executive, Kate Lerner helps clients optimize operations in ways that translate to improved outcomes for vulnerable populations and the health and human services professionals who support them. With more than 15 years of experience working in county and state departments and nonprofits, Kate brings comprehensive knowledge of the health and human services sector. Her deep policy and operations experience spans social services, housing support, employment and economic assistance, public health, community corrections, and veterans services programs.

Kate also has experience designing and implementing integrated human services delivery approaches. Her skills include strategic planning and implementation, performance measurement and management, stakeholder engagement, public policy, program development and analysis, and project management.

Before joining Health Management Associates, Kate was director of operations for Dakota County’s Community Services Administration Department. She coordinated administrative operations and strategic management across six departments, ensuring the division’s strategic vision was effectively translated into operational practice. This included oversight responsibility for strategic planning and performance measurement initiatives, grant, contract and vendor management operations and budget-planning and management functions. In addition to providing project management, she oversaw data analysis and evaluation, as well as community engagement and collective impact initiatives.

Kate’s strategic planning experience includes leading large-scale planning processes, defining five-year objectives and long-term priorities, key performance indicators, annual workplans and priority projects. With Dakota County, Kate steered the division’s initiative to operationalize a coordinated approach to strategic management and performance measurement. She also led a complex, multi-year pilot program to redesign the division’s health and human services program delivery and funding models to support integrated, person-centered services and flexible benefits.

During her tenure at the Minnesota Department of Human Services, Kate was appointed public programs implementation director. In this role she successfully led the final phases of design, testing and statewide implementation of a new eligibility system for Minnesota’s publicly-funded health care programs under the Affordable Care Act.

An excellent communicator, Kate leverages her broad understanding of the health and human services sector to provide straightforward explanations of complicated topics. She is trained in the “Art of Hosting,” a set of community and stakeholder engagement tools and methods. From leading trainings to facilitating strategic planning meetings, Kate utilizes these skills to develop meaningful relationships and deliver results.

Kate has a master’s degree in work, community and family education from the University of Minnesota as well as a bachelor’s degree in psychology from St. Olaf College. She is a certified professional project manager.