Everybody says contact center leaders and CMOs should collaborate. So, they set up a meeting. And the next thing you know…

• Marketing generates insights about consumer behavior that operations teams never see.
• Operations uncovers patient access challenges, from scheduling bottlenecks to referral delays, that marketing isn’t aware of.

Ugh.

Michael Shepherd, vice president of marketing and communications at Franciscan Health, was tired of this disconnect. That’s why he partnered with Mitchell Holdwick, director of consumer transformation at Innovaccer, to build a framework that turns marketing insights into actionable intelligence for contact centers, not just dashboards, but real-time guidance teams can use to improve access, scheduling, and referral flow.

“We were sitting on this wealth of consumer data, but it wasn’t reaching the teams who could actually use it,” Shepherd says.

For the past three years, they’ve worked together to change that. And at #HCCT26 in Atlanta, June 3–5, they’ll share how they brought together insights from the EHR, third-party consumer data, marketing campaigns, and patient access interactions, all surfaced in ways frontline teams can act on immediately.

By combining these data sources with AI-driven workflows and intelligent support for agents, Franciscan Health has been able to move beyond reactive call handling toward a more proactive access model.

Because of this work, the organization has driven more than $25 million in total value, generated 39,000 additional annualized PCP visits, and improved call performance across common access use cases such as appointment scheduling, referral intake, and eligibility questions.

“The engagement center team evolved from being purely reactionary to much more proactive,” Holdwick says. “They’re better equipped to guide patients through scheduling and referrals using consumer-focused data and real-time support.”

The presenters will discuss three topics: 

1. How to move insights from data to action. This includes the technology infrastructure, governance processes and communication channels that make integration work.
2. Examples of collaboration between previously siloed departments. “The first few meetings between us and the contact center were translation sessions,” Shepherd says. “We had to learn each other’s languages.” 
3. Metrics that prove the business impact. The data shows improved patient satisfaction, reduced call handling time for common inquiries and increased conversion rates from inquiry to scheduled appointment.

For contact center leaders frustrated by conversations with the CMO that never go anywhere, this session offers a practical blueprint — one that uses shared intelligence and AI-enabled workflows to improve access and organizational performance.

“The real win isn’t just better metrics,” Shepherd says. “It’s that we’re operating as one organization focused on what patients need, rather than two separate functions each doing our own thing.” 

Register now for #HCCT26 in Atlanta, June 3-5.