BY: ROSEMARY SCOTT
New York-based end-to-end fertility network Kindbody has undergone shifts in its leadership and financial landscape over the last year. On March 19, the company announced the appointment of six new executives onto its leadership team in an effort to support what the company called its “next stage of growth.”
In the same press release, the company also announced expansion plans that include opening clinics in four cities: Charlotte, NC, Miami, FL, Newport Beach, CA and San Diego, CA.
Of the new appointments, three were hired for previously existing roles, while the other three will be the first to hold their respective titles. Here’s the details on each new player, including who they’re replacing and how they fit in Kindbody’s strategy.
New People in Existing Roles
Scott Bruckner, Chief Financial Officer (CFO)
Bruckner was able to get a head start on his role compared to the other new hires, as he left his role as CFO of Fluid Truck, a technology-based sharing platform, to start at Kindbody in June 2023. The role of CFO has been vacant since Debbie Markowitz, former Kindbody CFO, left the role in November 2020 after a little under two years at the company. Markowitz is now CFO at Spring Health.
Haleigh Tebben, Chief Revenue Officer (CRO)
Tebben most recently served as Chief Commercial Officer at Brightline after leaving her role as CRO at Collective Health. Tebben is replacing Taryn Branca, former Kindbody CRO, who left the company in February and is now Chief Commercial Officer at Airvet, an employee benefit service for pets.
Jason Barritt, Chief Scientific Officer (CSO)
The appointment of a new CSO may seem like déjà vu, as it comes only a few months after Kindbody announced Alison Bartolucci, Ph.D., HCLD, had been hired for the position. However, Kindbody Spokesperson Margaret Ryan told Inside Reproductive Health that Bartolucci accepted a promotion from her employer, First Fertility, instead of taking on the role at Kindbody.
For his part, Barritt brings relevant experience to the role, as he served over 10 years as CDO and Lab Director at Southern California Reproductive Center in Beverly Hills, CA.
Dr. Angie Beltsos’s title had been CEO, Clinical, and is now Chief Executive Physician (CEP). Kindbody explained to Inside Reproductive Health how Dr. Beltsos’ role interfaces with other medical leadership roles in the company. She leads clinical strategy across Kindbody national fertility clinic network. Dr. Beltsos is responsible for establishing and implementing superior clinical standards and patient care at Kindbody clinics to yield exceptional outcomes and high, patient satisfaction levels. As CEP, Dr. Beltsos provides strategic leadership to the Chief Medical Officers to ensure the execution of consistent clinical care and safety. Kindbody’s four Chief Medical Officers cover the following:
Dr. Lynn Westphal, Chief Medical Officer, Lead CMO, Medicine + Research
Dr. Amber Cooper, CMO, Genomics + Lab Operations
Dr. Roohi Jeelani, Chief Growth Officer
Dr. Kristin Bendikson, CMO, Clinical Development”
Newly-Created Roles
Gina Bruzzichesi, Chief Operating Officer (COO)
Bruzzichesi has a background in human resources and previously served as COO at Aspen Dental Management. Prior to that role, she held positions at CLEAR, WeWork and Avis. In her early career, Bruzzichesi worked as an employment attorney.
Tim Springer, Chief Compliance Officer (CCO)
Prior to his role at Kindbody, Springer oversaw healthcare ethics and compliance programs at One Medical. Before that role, he ran financial services global anti-fraud programs at MetLife and John Hancock.
Matt Slepian, Chief Accounting Officer (CAO)
Though Slepian’s role as Chief Accounting Officer (CAO) sounds similar to the CFO role filled by Bruckner, Ryan told Inside Reproductive Health that Slepian’s role is “focused specifically on managing the company’s accounting functions, including audits, compliance and accounts receivable and payable.”
In contrast, Bruckner “oversees the company’s financial strategy and operations and plays a critical role in scaling the finance, accounting, and revenue cycle management teams to support the [c]ompany’s rapid growth,” Ryan stated. Slepian brings over 25 years of finance experience to Kindbody, and most recently served as CAO at Casa Systems.
What Happens Next
These new appointments are the latest in a series of changes Kindbody has made to its leadership team.
In September, Kindbody president Gregory Poulos stepped down from his role and now works as a strategic advisor for the company. No replacement for this position has been announced. Two months later, Bloomberg reported that Kindbody is paying a search firm $750,000 to replace CEO Annbeth Eschbach, citing sources familiar with the matter.
Kindbody Spokesperson Margaret Ryan confirmed Eschbach will be leaving the company in a statement to Inside Reproductive Health.
“Annbeth and the Board have been working together to develop a succession plan which ensures that Kindbody remains responsive to its employees, patients and all stakeholders.”
Kate Krejci, current Vice President of Operations at The Fertility Partners, left her role as GVP, Growth Operations at Kindbody in October after working at the company for about two years. Prior to her role at Kindbody, she was Vice President of Operations at Vios, which Kindbody acquired in 2022.
Krejci told Inside Reproductive Health that when she left, Kindbody was still trying to clearly define the responsibilities of each team following the acquisition. Krejci said she’s hopeful the new additions to the leadership team will help make expectations and strategy for each team more clear.
“I think there needed to be more guidance and expertise making those decisions and driving that change,” Krejci said. “I'm hopeful that it's the right direction for the organization to really bring expertise at a high level to drive each of those departments independently.”
Though Krejci left before many of the new hires started their roles, she did spend time working with Scott Bruckner, CFO, and called him a “really good fit” for the role.
Kindbody told Inside Reproductive Health it hopes these new players will help the company reach its goals of continued growth.
“The expansion of our leadership team ensures we have the right leadership and dedicated resources in place to continue our focus on excellent patient experience and delivering successful outcomes for every patient and employer we serve,” Kindbody stated.
The content and themes expressed within the article are that of the news. The advertiser does not have editorial control over the content of this article, and Inside Reproductive Health maintains full editorial independence. The views and opinions expressed in this article do not represent the views of the Advertiser or of Inside Reproductive Health.
