Get to Know Us

Rex Burgdorfer has over two decades of investment banking and strategic financial advisory services experience.  He has advised all forms of nonprofit hospital systems on M&A transactions, including academic, community 501(c)3, faith-based, and local government entities.  Rex was previously with Morgan Stanley and holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Rex sits on the faculty of The Governance Institute, the investment committee of Purple Arch Ventures, and lectures at both Notre Dame and Kellogg on microeconomic auction theory and pricing strategies in change-of-control transactions.

Select Publications

• “Partnering to Improve Community Health beyond the Hospital – Good Governance Case Study.” The Governance Institute. July 2024.
• “NASA and SpaceX: Observations for Public Hospitals.” The Governance Institute. May 2024.
• “The Corner Series Podcast – Hospital M&A and Private Equity with Rex Burgdorfer.” McGuireWoods. August 2023.
• “Cross-Market Health System Consolidation in a Challenged Industry.” The Governance Institute. June 2023.
• “Stakeholder Management during the Partnership Process.” The Governance Institute. March 2023.
• “Toxic Individualism and Its Impact on Our Healthcare System.” The Governance Institute. October 2021.
• “What if Trader Joe’s Ran Hospitals?” The Governance Institute. November 2020.
• “Dealmaking in the Sunlight: Navigating Public Hospital M&A.”  McDermott Will & Emery. June 2020.
• “The Growing Role of Attorneys General in Hospital M&A.” Healthcare Law & Compliance Institute. March 2019.
• “Regulatory Implications for Change of Control in Hospital M&A.” The Governance Institute. December 2018.
• “Demonstrating Fairness in a Market Approach to Hospital M&A.” The Governance Institute. September 2018.
• “Valuing the Troubled Hospital.” The Governance Institute. June 2018.
• “Acquisition Currencies in Non-Profit Hospital M&A.” The Governance Institute. March 2018.
• “A Year of Change for Community Hospitals.” The Governance Institute. December 2017.
• “Is Healthcare a Charity, Social Service, or Business? Community Hospital Board Members Contemplate Their Role.” The Governance Institute. September 2017.
• “Membership Substitution Transactions: Why Are They So Misunderstood.” The Bond Buyer. February 2017.
• “Do Hospital Affiliations Risk Becoming the Next Brexit?”  Becker’s Hospital Review. July 2016.
• “Defending the Deal: The Attorney General Review Process in Nonprofit Hospital Conversions.” AHLA Connections. April 2016.
• “What Today’s Hospital Leaders Can Learn from ‘Downton Abbey.’” Becker’s Hospital Review. March 2016.
• “Responding to the HIT Imperative: A Guide for Independent Hospitals.” HFM Magazine. February 2016.
• “The Rise of Hospital Joint Ventures.” Waller Lansden. April 2015.
• “Continuing a Non-Profit Hospital’s Charitable Mission through Mergers and Acquisitions.” The Governance Institute. April 2015.
• “Critical Issues in Hospital Mergers and Acquisitions.” McDermott Will & Emery Special Report. September 2014.
• “The Expanding Range of Strategic Alternatives Available in Hospital System Mergers and Acquisitions.” The Governance Institute. August 2014.
• “Hospital Merger and Acquisition Transactions: A Focus on Retiring Liabilities.” The Governance Institute. October 2013.
• “Hospital and Health System Transactions: 10 Key Legal and Business Issues.” American Law Institute. May 2013.
• “Michigan is a hotbed of acquisition activity.” The Healthcare Investor. November 2012.
• “Current Trends in Hospital Mergers and Acquisitions.” Healthcare Financial Management. March 2012.
• “20 Best Practices for Healthcare M&A.” Becker’s Hospital Review. January 2013.
• “Community Considerations for Hospital Transactions.” The Governance Institute. September 2011.
• “Hospital Consolidation Trends in Today’s Healthcare Environment.” The Governance Institute. Standalone White Paper. Summer 2010.

Jordan Shields has been with Juniper since 2011 and has 25 years of experience advising not-for-profit hospitals and universities on strategic and financial issues. Prior to Juniper, Jordan was a member of the health system advisory groups at Navigant and Ernst & Young.

Jordan holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management, where he was named Top Student in Health Industry Management by the faculty. He earned his BA from Bowdoin College where he was awarded Honors in Economics for his work measuring the impact of tax exemptions on not-for-profit organizations.

Select Publications

• “Band-Aid Station or Tertiary Center? The Impact of Consolidation on Community Hospital Services.” The Governance Institute. September 2024.
• “A Glimmer of Hope for Rural Obstetrics.” The Governance Institute. October 2023.
• “Post-COVID-19 Future of U.S. Health Care.” Trustee, American Hospital Association. November 2021.
• “Toxic Individualism and Its Impact on Our Healthcare System.” The Governance Institute. October 2021.
• “Post-Pandemic Provider Realignment 2.0: If the Past 12 Months Taught Us Anything.” The Governance Institute. May 2021.
• “What if Trader Joe’s Ran Hospitals?” The Governance Institute. November 2020.
• “Provider Realignment Post-Pandemic.” The Governance Institute. June 2020.
• “Assessing Hospital Preparedness for COVID-19 by Affiliation Status.” Juniper Advisory. May 2020.
• “Public Hospitals and Partnerships.” Trustee, American Hospital Association. February 2018.
• “Navigating Successful Health System Integration.” Trustee, American Hospital Association. September 2016.
• “Do Hospital Affiliations Risk Becoming the Next Brexit?” Becker’s Hospital Review. July 2016.
• “3 Compensation Structures for a More Successful Transaction.” Becker’s Hospital Review. November 2015.
• “The Expanding Range of Strategic Alternatives Available in Hospital System Mergers and Acquisitions.” The Governance Institute. August 2014.
• “Protecting Corporate Value in Affiliation Transactions.” Healthcare Financial Management. April 2014.
• “Developing a Hospital Transaction Strategy and Process.”  Juniper Advisory/McDermott Will & Emery White Paper.  October 2013.
• “Parallel Paths to Realignment: Consolidation in Commercial Banking Offers a Glimpse of Health Care’s Future.”  Trustee, American Hospital Association. October 2013.
• “Is Bigger Always Better? Exploring the Risks of Health System Mega-Mergers.”  Becker’s Hospital Review.  March 2013.
• “Current Trends in Hospital Mergers and Acquisitions.”  Healthcare Financial Management.  March 2012.
• “Protecting Corporate Value during an Ownership Transition.”  The Governance Institute.  January 2012.
• “Community Considerations for Hospital Transactions.”  The Governance Institute.  September 2011.
• “Consolidation Transactions: Will They Make a Comeback?”  The Governance Institute.  July 2011.

Brent McDonald has over 25 years of experience leading development, strategy, investment banking and legal teams to accomplish the strategic goals of national, regional, and community-based healthcare organizations. He was previously Head of Healthcare Strategic Advisory at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, with responsibility for all not-for-profit healthcare M&A coverage at the firm. Prior to joining BofAML, Brent led the Acquisition & Development department at Tenet Healthcare Corporation, serving as a key member of Tenet’s executive team, advising on strategic direction and responsible for execution of the company’s strategic transactions. Earlier in his career, Brent practiced law at Norton Rose Fulbright with an active practice in healthcare, tax, non-profit, private equity and corporate M&A law.

Brent earned a B.B.A. (Accounting) from Baylor University, a J.D. from Baylor School of Law and an LL.M. (Taxation) from New York University School of Law. He also completed the Harvard Business School Executive Education Program in Managing Healthcare Delivery.

Select Publications

• “Is your Health System Team Ready for What’s Next? A Recession or More Malaise?” Juniper Advisory. August 2023
• “Hospital Mergers, Acquisitions and Partnerships: Perspectives and Execution Strategies.” Louisiana Hospital Association. August 2022.

Farley Reardon joins Juniper from Lifepoint Health in Nashville where he was Vice President of Strategic Growth and Development. He has over 25 years of corporate development and capital markets experience.

Farley joined Lifepoint in 2008 and lead numerous acute care and ancillary transactions with renowned academic medical centers, national faith-based health systems, and regional and community-based health systems, both public and private, in the forms of joint ventures, acquisitions and divestitures. During his time at Lifepoint, the company transitioned from a community-based hospital operating company to a diversified healthcare delivery network comprised of more than 60 community hospital campuses, more than 60 rehabilitation and behavioral health hospitals and 250 additional sites of care, including managed acute rehabilitation units, outpatient centers and post-acute care facilities.

Prior to Lifepoint, he was in the institutional fixed income departments of Robert W. Baird & Co., Morgan Keegan & Co., J.C. Bradford & Co., and others.

He holds an MBA from Vanderbilt University’s Owen Graduate School of Management.

Casey Webb has more than a decade of transaction advisory experience within the healthcare industry, focusing primarily on hospital and health system partnerships. Her experience spans the hospital industry, including secular not-for-profit, religious, public, academic, taxable and other specialty hospitals.

Casey was previously with Huron Consulting Group, where she was a founding member of Huron’s investment banking unit.  She graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Finance (honors) from DePaul University, with minors in accounting and economics.

Select Publications

• “A Glimmer of Hope for Rural Obstetrics.” The Governance Institute. October 2023.
• “Assessing Independence & Strategic Options for Higher Education Institutions.” Juniper Advisory. August 2022.
• “Toxic Individualism and Its Impact on Our Healthcare System.” The Governance Institute. October 2021.

Chris Benson joined Juniper after nearly 25 years at the Mayo Clinic, beginning as an Administrative Fellow and ending as Vice Chair of domestic and international provider relations. This included growing the Mayo Clinic Care Network from inception to over 35 nonprofit health systems in the United States and 11 global members across Mexico, India, China, Korea, Singapore, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates.

He has an unparalleled understanding of how organizations in the hospital industry can create value together short of change of control transactions.  His experience at Mayo included emphasis on clinical operations, quality improvement, cultural development and strategic collaborations.

Chris is a native of Iowa and earned a Master of Health Administration at The University of Iowa.

Select Publications

• “Partnering to Improve Community Health beyond the Hospital – Good Governance Case Study.” The Governance Institute. July 2024.
• “NASA and SpaceX: Observations for Public Hospitals.” The Governance Institute. May 2024.
• “Transforming Governance: From Surviving to Thriving.” Trustee, American Hospital Association. September 2023.

Adam Davis has over ten years of healthcare experience. At Juniper, he leads and supports a variety of M&A transactions for both not-for-profit and for-profit clients that have a range of strategic needs. He was previously an Associate Director at Fitch Ratings, focusing on primarily health system, hospital and senior living credits, with a secondary concentration in Higher Education. He was responsible for monitoring outstanding ratings and assigning new ratings to bond issues for a portfolio of credits, while also contributing to various research pieces.

Prior to joining Fitch Ratings, Adam was an Associate at Cain Brothers, an investment bank based in New York focused on the healthcare industry. While at Cain Brothers, Adam fulfilled and led a variety of analytical functions for tax-exempt and taxable bond financings that funded new capital projects, debt restructurings, and/or acquisitions within both the hospital and senior living sectors. His background in credit assists Juniper’s assessment of clients’ financial situations, capital spending capabilities and overall valuations.

Prior to Cain Brothers, Adam was a Credit Analyst at Moody’s Investors Service, focusing on a portfolio of not-for-profit health systems and hospitals, while also publishing various pieces on topics such as trends in healthcare mergers and acquisitions.

Adam earned a BA in Government and Economics at Bowdoin College and an MBA from the Baruch College – Mt. Sinai School of Medicine program in New York.

Select Publications

• “Why a health system’s growth strategy should include a build-versus-buy analysis.” Healthcare Financial Management. October 2024.
• “Health System Growth Strategies: Considerations for Buying vs. Building Assets.” The Governance Institute. September 2024.
• “Is your Health System Team Ready for What’s Next? A Recession or More Malaise?” Juniper Advisory. August 2023.
• “Cross-Market Health System Consolidation in a Challenged Industry.” The Governance Institute. June 2023.
• “Assessing Hospital Financial Viability in a Period of Economic Disruption.” The Governance Institute. November 2022.
• “Hospital Mergers, Acquisitions and Partnerships: Perspectives and Execution Strategies.” Louisiana Hospital Association. August 2022.
• “Health Systems’ Financials Look Very Different in 2022.” Juniper Advisory. August 2022.

Jamie Burgdorfer has concentrated on domestic and international M&A assignments his entire career. He has further specialized in merger work for the healthcare industry since 1992. Prior to forming Juniper, he co-led the M&A group of John Nuveen & Co. and was a member of Citigroup’s mergers and acquisitions department and the corporate finance group at A.G. Becker. Jamie is a member of the Faculty of The Governance Institute.

Jamie holds an MBA from the University of Michigan.

Dave Gordon’s entire investment banking advisory experience has been concentrated in the healthcare services industry. Prior to forming Juniper, he co-led the M&A groups of Ponder & Co. and John Nuveen & Co. Previously, he managed the healthcare services group at Piper Jaffray.

Dave holds an MBA from the University of Notre Dame.

Ansley Geary is a Certified Public Accountant with expertise in accounting and financial analysis. Ansley has years of experience in public accounting and financial analysis, previously at Ernst & Young where she supervised and provided audit services to multinational public and private companies. At Juniper Advisory, Ansley supports all aspects of the firm’s transactions with a focus on financial and data analysis. She is based out of Nashville, Tennessee.

Ansley earned her Bachelor of Business Administration, Accounting, and her Master of Accountancy from the University of Georgia.

Nina Leutz has over four years of healthcare strategy consulting experience working with leading healthcare payers and providers. As an Associate at Juniper Advisory, she supports the firm’s transactions from end to end, including data and financial analysis as well as pitchbook and management presentation development.

Prior to Juniper, she was a Senior Associate in the Strategy and Business Transformation group at Kaufman Hall, where she focused on assisting executives from hospitals, health systems, and health payers nationwide address complex problems in order to grow their business.

Nina earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Science-Business from the University of Notre Dame.

Joseph Cerisano graduated from Georgetown University with his Master of Finance. During his time there, Joseph participated in case competitions, worked as a graduate teaching assistant, and led a team of consultants for a venture capital firm based in Palo Alto and a fintech startup based in London. Prior to joining Juniper, Joseph worked as an M&A Investment Banking Summer Analyst at BGX Advisory.

Joseph earned a B.S. from Arizona State University where he majored in Marketing with a minor in Technological Entrepreneurship and Management.

Alex Norton will focus on analytics and transaction execution for Juniper’s health system M&A clients. Previously he was with The Edgewater Funds, a private equity firm affiliate of Lazard asset management in which he focused on the healthcare industry.

He holds a BA in economics and history from The University of Chicago, where he was a member of the Trott Business Program through The University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

Angela Adams oversees administration and manages the day-to-day office operations at Juniper. In this role, she supports Juniper’s hospital clients at all phases of the advisory process. Additionally, she provides logistical assistance to the full Juniper team. Prior to joining the firm, Angela managed the office operations for a software development company. She also has additional experience supporting C-suite professionals.

Angela holds a BA from Northern Illinois University.

Edward Davis has assisted Juniper with all its financial and tax affairs since the inception of the Firm. His lifetime of experience as a Certified Public Accountant includes partnership in one of the “Final Four” U.S. public accounting firms where he specialized in accounting and tax solutions for mid-sized businesses. He also has extensive industry experience as a financial and tax executive and business owner.

Edward holds a BA degree in business administration from Texas Christian University.

Setina Hinojosa-Hanna manages marketing and communications strategies at Juniper.  She has an extensive background in digital and creative fields specializing in enhancing brand visibility and engagement.  Prior to Juniper, Setina worked for Girl Scouts promoting growth, equity, and inclusion.

Setina holds a BA in Marketing and Management from Oklahoma State University.

George Brown led Portland’s eight-hospital Legacy Health for nine years where he oversaw record growth, increasing net revenue by $1 billion during his tenure.  As CEO, Brown expanded into health insurance, developed the system’s urgent care offerings, led the addition of Randall Children’s Hospital and partnered with other Portland health systems to create the Unity Center for Behavioral Health.  Additionally, Brown oversaw Legacy’s efforts to address homelessness, leading a group of five other Portland health organizations to fund a new clinic, mental health and addiction services, employment assistance and build 379 units of housing.

During his time at Legacy, the system grew to eight hospitals from six, achieved the largest market share in northwest Oregon and expanded its workforce by 40 percent to 12,000 employees, including significant medical staff growth. Brown’s tenure at Legacy was marked by high physician satisfaction and patient quality outcomes. Legacy also added 20 urgent care clinics under the Legacy-GoHealth banner.

Brown came to Legacy from MultiCare Health System in Tacoma, where he served as COO, after a long career as a gastroenterologist and service in the military. He received his medical degree from Boston University School of Medicine, a year after he became a First Lieutenant in the U.S. Army. He retired from active-duty service as Brigadier General.

Brown is the Board Chair of the Marshfield Clinic Health System, one of the largest private, multispecialty group practices in the United States, and previously served on the PacificSource Health Plans, which serves members in Montana, Idaho, Washington and Oregon.  He is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians and a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society and the American College of Healthcare Executives.

Ray Grady is an accomplished administrator experienced in the governance, management, and education of healthcare professionals.  He is a strategic and operations-oriented leader who served most of his career with NorthShore University HealthSystem where he was CEO of the flagship Evanston Hospital. He has also served as Chief Administrative Officer at Aurora Health Care located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Most recently, he served as the CEO of Methodist Hospitals which serves the Gary/Merrillville market in Northwest Indiana. In these roles, Ray built a track record of leading change, building alliances, and driving results. Most recently, he serves as President and CEO of Franciscan Health Olympia Fields SSC market.

His experience in integrated health systems, community hospitals and safety net hospitals has earned him recognition for partnering with community stakeholders, clinical professionals, and regulatory agencies. He has experience in building quality and diversity into the strategic plans of healthcare organizations.

Ray has served on the boards of the American Hospital Association, the Illinois and Indiana Hospital Associations and the Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education.  He has also served on hospital boards in Illinois and Ohio while those organizations were undertaking merger and acquisition discussions.

Mike Hemsley was most recently Deputy General Counsel for Trinity Health, one of the largest health systems in the US; consisting of 20 non-profit Regional Health Ministries operating more than 90 hospitals as well as sub-acute health care facilities and businesses across the continuum of care in 21 states. Prior to its 2014 merger into Trinity, Mr. Hemsley served as Executive Vice President and General Counsel for Catholic Health East, a similarly structured multi-state health care system. His practice involved him deeply in the structuring and execution of over 20 corporate health system strategic corporate acquisitions and divestitures as well as in system governance authorities and relationships.

For several years he also served as CHE’s Corporate Compliance Officer providing oversight and guidance to Regional Compliance Officers and Boards across its regional subsidiaries. Prior to joining CHE, Mr. Hemsley spent more than 20 years in private practice, last as a partner and Chair of the Health Law Department at Wolf, Block, LLP.

Hemsley serves on the board of Saint Joseph’s University  (SJU) in Philadelphia, PA.   Prior to  its 2022 merger into SJU he served on the Board of the University of the Sciences as its Vice Chair, Chair of its Governance and Trustee Committee, and of its Strategic Partnering Steering Committee.

Mr. Hemsley is a member of the American Health Lawyers Association, the Pennsylvania Bar Association and the District of Columbia Bar Association. A certified healthcare compliance professional, Mr. Hemsley is a member of the Health Care Compliance Association where he served as a board member and officer. A lecturer and author, he was a principal drafter of Corporate Responsibility and Corporate Compliance: A Resource for Health Care Boards of Directors, and two subsequent companion Healthcare Board Educational Resource publications, each sponsored by the American Health Lawyers Association and the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Mr. Hemsley has also served as a member of the adjunct faculty at his alma mater St. Joseph’s University, Philadelphia, PA., received a Master of Arts in Legislative Affairs from The George Washington University, Washington, D.C., and his law degree from Villanova University School of Law.

John Kosanovich is a healthcare CEO with over 40 years of leadership and consulting experience. He spent 20 years (1995-2015) as CEO of Watertown Regional Medical Center in Watertown WI leading it thru an organizational transformation. John has focused his career on developing strategies and innovative ways to enhance the value of the organizations and communities he serves. He has served on the Boards of the Wisconsin Hospital Association (WHA), Rural Wisconsin Hospital Cooperative and Voluntary Hospitals of America (VHA).

John holds an MBA from the University of Wisconsin and is a Life Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE). Born and raised in WI, he currently resides in FL.

With expertise in strategy, growth, risk, governance, and turnaround work, Karen Teitelbaum is a nationally recognized leader in ensuring corporate progress and market development through operational excellence and transformation of care.

Current boards include Surgical Solutions, a portfolio company of Grupo Vitalmex, S.A., providing sterile processing solutions (Member, Commercial and Operating Committee), Ingenovis Health, a portfolio of forward-thinking staffing healthcare companies (Chair, Risk and Compliance Committee), Alliance Physical Therapy Partners, a national leading physical therapy services network (Member, Compensation and Compliance Committees), and Towne Park, a tech enabled, multi-service hospitality company, focused on delivering exceptional experiences.

In her past board work in women’s health, she served as the Executive Chair of the Board and past Chair, Compensation Committee and member, Quality Committee of a growth-oriented company transforming women’s health services.

As a Senior Advisor to Juniper Advisory, Karen provides counsel to firm clients contemplating nonprofit healthcare mergers or acquisitions.

An advocate for utilizing technology to improve healthcare delivery, Karen is a board member at MATTER, a global healthcare startup incubator and corporate innovation accelerator (Member, Nominating and Governance Committee). She previously served as a mentor with Creative Destruction Lab, a global organization delivering an objectives-based program for scalable, seed-stage, science- and technology-based companies.

An early career entrepreneur, after purchasing a rehabilitation services firm, Karen grew the company into the largest of its kind in Chicago before selling it to a publicly traded firm. Following the sale, Karen held increasingly responsible positions in health-related companies.

As the immediate past President/Chief Executive Officer of Sinai Chicago, a private safety net healthcare system with over $1 billion in revenues, Karen oversaw a successful turnaround of financial, philanthropic, and operational performance.  She drove year-over-year improvement profitability, taking the organization from a loss of $42 million to a profit of $32.6 million, improved EBIDA from a negative $14.8 million to a positive $55.6 million and increased philanthropy six-fold to $13.5 million. Karen previously served as Executive Vice President/Chief Operating Officer.

Karen has been an active participant in legislative policy-making agendas, working with both Senate and Congress.  She is a past Chair of the Illinois Health and Hospital Association Board (Past Chair, Finance Committee, Member, Executive, Governance, and Health Equity Committees). Karen also served as a board member of America’s Essential Hospitals (Member, Governance Committee). She is a Visiting Lecturer at Kenya Methodist University in Nairobi.

Awards include “One of 10 Business Leaders to Watch” by the Chicago Tribune, twice named to Crain’s Chicago Business “Notable Women in Chicago Healthcare” list, the Weizmann Institute “Women of Science” award, and a recipient of the National Medical Fellowship “Leadership in Healthcare” award.  She is a member of The Chicago Network, Women Corporate Directors, the Commercial Club of Chicago, the Economic Club of Chicago, and Kellogg Executive Women’s Network.

Karen holds an MBA from Northwestern University, J.L. Kellogg School of Management. She is a frequently requested national speaker, world traveler, avid bicyclist, and cook.  She resides in Chicago, Illinois.