Quint Studer

Quinton D. Studer (born 1951), is a Pensacola, Florida philanthropist and businessman best known as the co-owner of the minor league baseball team, the Pensacola Blue Wahoos, and as the CEO and founder of the private health care consulting company, Studer Group. Studer sold 70% of his company to JMI Equity in 2011. He sold Studer Group to Chicago-based Huron Consulting Group for $325 million in January 2015.

Early life and family

Studer was born in 1951 in LaGrange, Illinois to working class parents. He had partial deafness and a speech impediment.^[1][2] He attended University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and eventually earned a master's degree in special education. He worked as a special education teacher for 10 years. ^{[1] [2]} After attending counseling for alcoholism, his work with teens with drug and alcohol problems led to his entry into the healthcare field. ^{[2] [3]}

Studer's wife, Mary P., known as "Rishy", worked at Studer Group. They have 5 children and 6 grandchildren.^[4]

Career

Health care consultant

Studer became vice president of business at Mercy Hospital in Janesville, Wisconsin. He went on to become CEO of a hospital facing bankruptcy, Holy Cross Hospital (Chicago) in Chicago, Illinois. He utilized management techniques of Press Ganey, a patient satisfaction consultant, and of Southwest Airlines, to which he attributed to the financial recovery of the hospital. Hospitals & Health Networks & American Hospital Association named Holy Cross "Great Comeback of the Year."^[2]

Studer began speaking to other hospitals and health care groups about the progress at Holy Cross. He became "a renowned motivational speaker" known for utilizing emotional, personal testimony. ^[5] This resulted in Baptist Health Care naming him president of Baptist Hospital. At Baptist Hospital he again worked to turn around the hospital's finances.^[2] He reported that he felt torn by "the growing demand to spread his gospel of excellence through better leadership and employee satisfaction."^[2] Studer left Baptist Hospital in 2000.^[2]

Studer formed Studer Group, L.L.C., a private health care consulting group based in Gulf Breeze, Florida, in 1999.^[6] Studer Group offers coaching in small and rural partnerships.^[7] Studer Group has 124 employees and a $2 million annual revenue.^[8] Studer Group advertises that it teaches healthcare organizations to utilize a framework of "evidence-based leadership".^[9] Melissa Davis of TheStreet.com reported that when Quint Studer landed troubled Tenet Healthcare as his first big client that he announced a resounding success within 2 years of launching a program that sought 100% patient satisfaction. Davis noted that in an interview with Fast Company that Studer said, "Tenet's work with Studer Group helped drive quarterly earnings on Wall Street to an all-time high." However, Davis reported that aggressive Medicare billing that was possibly illegal and unethical fueled much of the growth. She also noted that Tenet’s nurses were unhappy with Studer’s training and that they complained that Tenet “placed corporate profits ahead of patient care.”^[10]

Studer authored eight books starting with Hardwiring Excellence: Purpose, Worthwhile Work, Making a Difference (September 2003). Seven of Studer's books were self-published by Studer Group Fire Starter Publishing. ^[11]One of Studer's books, Results That Last: Hardwiring Behaviors That Will Take Your Company to the Top, was published by John Wiley & Sons, in 2007.

Studer earned the following awards in his healthcare career: Voluntary Hospital Association Leadership Award (1997), Modern Healthcare Sodexo Marriott Service Excellence Award (1997), Excellence in Risk Management Award by Modern Healthcare Magazine (1999) and USA Today Quality Cup (2000). Inc. Magazine "Master of Business," ^[2] and Modern Healthcare rated him 89th on its "Top 100 Most Powerful" in 2002 .^[12]

Studer sold a portion of his company to JMI Equity in 2011.^[13] However. Kutscher of Modern Healthcare reported that JMI Equity has owned 70% of Studer Group since 2011.^[14] Studer sold Studer Group to Chicago-based Huron Consulting Group for $325 million in January 2015. ^[15]

Business diversification

After forming Studer Group in 2000, he began to diversify his business interests. In 2002, Studer and his wife bought a minor league baseball team, the Pensacola Pelicans that won the league championship in the same year.^[16] They sold the Pensacola Pelicans in 2010.^[17] The Studers bought another minor league baseball team, the Carolina Mudcats, Cincinnati Reds Double-A affiliates in 2010^[18] with a series of complicated steps that involved 5 cities and 5 different minor league teams, and $17 million.^[19] They changed the name of the Carolina Mudcats to Pensacola Blue Wahoos.^[20] Studer contributed about $750,000 of his own money in a campaign that resulted in 55.7% of Pensacola voters approving the maritime park in a 2006 referendum.^[21]

In 2012, Studer estimated that he invested $50 million in downtown Pensacola.^[22]

Philanthropy

Studer and his wife donated $200,000 to the Lacey A. Collier Snoezelen Complex, a facility for sensory disabled children.^[2] They also donated to the Zoo Northwest Florida.^[23] In 2011, they paid for a contest called "Pensacola Business Challenge" that awarded a package valued at $50,000 to "local entrepreneurs wanting to start or expand a business in downtown Pensacola."^[24] The Studers donated $1 million to the University of Wisconsin at Whitewater in 2012.^[25] They are recognized as donors to scholarship programs at the University of West Florida^[26] and the Pensacola State College.^[4] The Studers donated $2.25 million to the Community Maritme Park that includes the Pensacola Bayfront Stadium, home of Pensacola Blue Wahoos.^[5][19]

The Studers founded nonprofit organizations to research and develop businesses that include the Studer Foundation founded in 2013^[27] and the Studer Institute founded in 2014.^[28]

References