Cynthia Morel, Manager of Performance and Compliance for the Educational Technologies Group, has always had a personal commitment to the fields of healthcare and education. This dedication drew her to her role with Weill Cornell Medicine nearly five years ago, and informs her daily work improving operations and implementing projects that support teaching and learning at the College. Cynthia recently became a triple-Cornell alumni when she earned her MBA/MS in Healthcare Leadership from WCM, graduating in the inaugural class of this rigorous program. Read more about Cynthia's professional journey.
How long have been with WCM?
About 4.5 years.
You started with the ITS PMO, right?
I did, I started with the ITS PMO (Project Management Office), and from the beginning I have been dedicated to the Educational Technologies Group (ETG).
What did you do before you joined ITS, and what drew you here?
I spent six years at Columbia working at the Center for Cardiovascular Behavioral Health, that’s where I was introduced to the world of project management. I helped with the logistics of their research activities, and I was a research coordinator for some time. I also doubled up and helped with their operational tasks. For example, they received a grant to renovate the research facility and I became appointed as project manager to manage the renovation in collaboration with capital planning.
It sounds like you have an interest in working in healthcare.
I do! It’s always followed me. I’ve always wanted to help people. Healthcare and education have always been two things that have been really, really prominent in my life. My mother drilled education into us. So, after Columbia I tried to step away from healthcare and I worked for a little bit with the charter school Success Academy as their business operations manager, and just tried to explore to see if that’s what I wanted to do. But then I was recruited, Cornell called me back. I picked up a contract assignment for the Office of External Affairs. It was supposed to be a temporary assignment but I started having a lot of fun helping them do some analysis within their shop for operational efficiencies, and also was able to identify a technical solution that they could use for their comms team. While I was there, I left for Fordham because they gave me an offer I couldn’t refuse working for their PMO, but they were not organized. It helped me appreciate a good work environment and great managers. Once I realized that Fordham wasn’t going to be a good fit for me, a headhunter contacted me about an opportunity at WCM – they didn’t say it was WCM but I just knew it was! And she organized the interview with MaryAnn and I loved her from the moment we had our first meeting. And she brought me on. I will never forget, she stressed the importance of being flexible and I was like, “why does she keep saying that, this is not ballet class,” and then I realized! I started working on ETG projects and I realized what she meant by being flexible. You really, really have to be open minded, and stay continuously open to trying knew tools and techniques to help manage projects.
What is your current role in ITS?
My title is Manager of Performance and Compliance for ETG. I would describe it to be: my job is to support ETG and help them improve operational efficiencies and be able to improve the quality of the work that we perform, and also increase the amount of work that we could accomplish. All while having a little fun.
What are some examples of projects you’ve been working on to improve ITS for the WCM community?
These go in two buckets I think. Some are projects that fall under ETG – for example, we’re trying to rebuild what we refer to as the FNAR tool, it’s the functional anatomy tool that students use to access brain images. We are also in the middle of implementing a new medical school admissions software program. One of the other things we’re doing is trying to create centralized database of students and alumni of Cornell. We have a lot of different programs and a lot of the data is siloed and sometimes there is a need to see all the data across the programs and that doesn’t exist. That’s a point near and dear to my heart, I’m a triple-alumni from Cornell, my recent Masters was a dual degree! It’s really fascinating to be working for the org – you get to see under the hood. From the outside you have these visions, and you don’t realize that there are separate campuses and systems that don’t really work in concert together and there are so many challenges surrounding that. So being part of a project that’s trying to bring those programs together is fun, and needed.
Speaking of being a triple alumni. . . you and I have chatted recently about the experience you just had in the inaugural class of the WCM Executive MBA/MS in Healthcare Leadership. What was that like, and what made you pursue your MA?
Getting my Masters was always a dream of mine. I thought I was going to be a physician and started as pre-med in undergrad, but once I realized that a career in medicine was not what I was interested in, and that I was born to be a business-women, I knew I wanted an MBA.
I have an ill parent, he’s stable right now, but I had to put my career on pause when I helped care for him and help stabilize his life, and it took me a number of years before I could get back to my education goals. When I was finally ready I was working at Weill Cornell with academic leaders, and in discussions about my career moves, they let me know that Cornell was kicking off a new program and they thought it would be a great fit for me, given that I worked for the medical school as a project manager. So that’s how I first heard about the program, and I went to an information session. I'd had my eye on Columbia’s EMBA program for a long time, and I applied to Fordham as well, but when I realized that the Cornell MBA had the Masters in Healthcare Leadership I said “oh my goodness this is really what I’ve been about.” I kept trying to run away from healthcare but it keeps pulling me back! Arun, when he was here leading the PMO, told me to brace myself, but also said it would be a life changing experience for the better, and it really was. It was brutal, and physically taxing, but it really informed the type of leader that I want to be and emulate, and the type of leader I’ve seen at Weill Cornell.
I learned a lot about myself, the concept of being aware of your current skill sets, areas where you can improve, how to continue to grow, how important it is to build relationships and put people first, the importance of collaboration – there is nothing more powerful that diversity of thought to push each other to bring out the best in us.
What’s your favorite part of your job?
We work through very complicated projects, and we collaborate, at least within ETG – we have really strong relationships that let us strategize and be able to do things almost on the fly. We really don’t have the benefit of time, it’s just the nature of the work we do.
Have you seen those relationships grow to allow you to get to a point where you can make fast decisions together?
Absolutely, it’s taken time to develop and learn the different work styles that we have, and play to each other’s strengths, and share – share in the good and the bad. We have a lot of fun doing it. We have a bunch of comedians on the team.
Who are some women you admire and why?
Yoon Kang, the new Senior Associate Dean for Education. She truly got her hands dirty so to speak when we worked on the Oasis implementation project - which is our medical school scheduling, grading and calendaring tool. She really collaborated with us. We established a partnership that allowed us to overcome a number of challenges along the way. We couldn’t have done that if she hadn’t been an incredible leader and human being.
Sarah Smith, the Director of Media Relations and Social Media in External Affairs. She is also an incredibly brilliant women who treats everyone with respect and gives everyone opportunities to develop and grow. I loved working with her over at External Affairs.
And of course, MaryAnn Dalagin, a former manager in the PMO. She has always been like a shining light. She’s extremely knowledgeable, she’s built incredible relationships with people all over the organization and is always willing to lend an ear and brainstorm with you.
All of these women have family obligations, they have all have children. But there is something really remarkable about how they get their work done, and it’s by keeping in mind that we are all people. I respect that and admire that.