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Executive summary:
A not-for-profit hospital system partnered with HCTec to transition from utilizing a large number of contractors for supporting their Epic EHR, to building their own support team comprised of high-quality, permanent-placement roles. By leveraging the high-quality, certified and experienced candidates provided by HCTec, The health system successfully added 25+ Epic and ERP analysts to their existing support team, bolstering gaps and addressing multiple pain-points caused from challenges with locally sourcing the “right” candidates. HCTec’s focus on quality candidates and understanding of the health system’s challenges enhanced operational consistency, ensured cultural fit, and supported their long-term digital transformation goals.
Partner background:
A not-for-profit health system’s vision to light the way toa healthier tomorrow. They host over 12,000 employees, including 1,000 physicians. The health system is anchored by the 1,112-bed flagship hospital in the state, the largest hospital in Oklahoma and the 11th largest in the nation. This health system includes 6 hospitals, 110 clinic locations as well as intensive care units, leading the way in trauma and emergency medicine. In addition, they also have multiple community connect partners. Prior to engaging HCTec for staffing solutions, this health system had utilized HCTec’s Epic consulting services dating back to 2013. As the organization evolved, they identified several gaps within their internal application team and worked with HCTec to fill those roles, ensuring continuity for a dedicated internal Epic application team to ensure continuity, alignment with their mission, and scalable operational success.
Business challenges:
In 2023, the heath system sought to shift away from their reliance on external contractors. Their goal was to build an internal team of Epic-certified professionals who would be fully aligned with their culture and mission. This shift required a strategic hiring approach that could deliver qualified talent while maintaining consistent delivery standards and cultural alignment. This transformation was critical to reducing long-term costs, improving internal ownership, and enhancing the effectiveness of the organization.
Objectives:
HCTec and this not-for-profit health system partnered to:
- Address gaps within their Epic application support team.
- Eliminate reliance on long-term contractors.
- Recruit culturally aligned, experienced professionals from across the U.S.
- Support a broader digital transformation initiative with consistent staffing support.
HCTec’s solution:
HCTec deployed a strategic staffing solution that included:
- Access to a pre-vetted pool of over 15,000 candidates, ensuring high-quality matches.
- A focus on certification, expertise and cultural fit.
- A local HCTec regional vice president of sales (RVP) to maintain in-person engagement and alignment with leadership.
- Ongoing collaboration with the health system’s leadership team, including HR and IT executives.
Implementation:
HCTec’s phased implementation approach included:
- 2022: HCTec consultant began work at the heath system.
- 2023: HCTec engaged with the heath system leadership and began collaboration with their HR recruiter, making six placements to initiate the internal Epic team buildout.
- 2024: Coordinated efforts between the heath system’s account manager and RVP at HCTec led to 18 additional fulltime employment (FTE) placements.
- 2025-Present: Multiple contractors are currently active, and several more new hires are selected to come on board. We continue to support them on any additional full-time needs.
HCTec took an agile and collaborative approach to the health system’s implementation, overcoming hiring and geographic challenges while maintaining resource quality and consistency.
Analysis:
HCTec’s proactive, relationship-driven model and in-depth understanding of the health system’s needs were central to success. The frequent touchpoints, onsite presence, and strategic guidance allowed HCTec to not only meet expectations but exceed them. HCTec’s approach demonstrated that consistent delivery and cultural fit are key differentiators in healthcare staffing.
Conclusion:
HCTec’s strategic staffing solutions empowered the health system to successfully transition from a contractor based EHR model to a fully staffed internal Epic team. The collaboration demonstrates the impact of long-term partnerships, proactive management, and mission-aligned recruiting in advancing healthcare operations through expert application management.
Results:
Fully staffed, fully efficient: HCTec helped the health care organization with the successful placement of 25 permanent FTE Epic analysts, building a team across 45 states to enable a national talent pool. Mission-aligned recruitment: HR and IT leadership reported high satisfaction with HCTec’s ability to maintain staffing consistency by recruiting employees with a strong cultural and technical fit. Successful strategic shift: HCTec’s partnership enabled the health system to strategically shift from contractors to in-house talent, lowering long-term costs and increasing institutional knowledge.
“HCTec understands our organization inside and out. Their consistent delivery and attention at all levels—from recruiting to executive leadership—have been key to our success in building ahigh-performing Epic team.” — Chief HR Officer