Leadership, Planning and Evaluation

Abstract Leadership, Planning, and Evaluation The senior leadership of the City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center (COHCCC) is composed of highly qualified members who bring their respective strengths and unique backgrounds to drive the progress of the center. It is led by Steven T. Rosen, MD, Director, Larry Kwak, MD, PhD, Deputy Director, and nine Associate Directors in the domains of Basic Sciences, Clinical Sciences, Population Sciences, Health Equity, Community Outreach and Engagement, Informatics and Computational Biology, Education and Training, Shared Resources, and Administration. With their distinct qualifications, members have worked individually or in collaboration to expand the center, reach new milestones, and further benefit our community. COHCCC leadership has a wide array of advisory input to assist in planning for the Center's next steps and evaluating the outcomes of Center programs and policy implementation. Internal advisors include Program and Shared Resource leaders, oversight committees, and the chairs of clinical and research departments, all of whom contribute to shaping our future direction through internal evaluation processes. Our External Advisory Board continues to play a significant role in reviewing our strategic plans and advising on our course of action. We have responded to their recommendations and by virtue of their guidance have 1) integrated the faculty and the shared / genomic resources of TGen within the COHCCC membership, 2) restructured and enhanced our Mass Spectrometry Shared Resource, 3) established the Department of Diabetes and Cancer Metabolism, and 4) initiated the Integrated Drug Development Venture to accelerate translation of scientific discoveries to first-in-human trials. External relationships are also fostered by Community Outreach & Engagement, which has established partnerships between the scientific community and organizations that support minority engagement. Strategic planning is critical to the development of future programs that advance COHCCC priorities, detailing how we will execute our unwavering commitment to drive paradigm shifts to more effectively prevent, diagnose, and treat cancer. Because of the innovative structure of our institution as a stand-alone cancer center, we are uniquely positioned to realize breakthrough advances in basic science, clinical trials, and patient care. COHCCC engages in a 5-year strategic planning process involving many collaborating partners, including COHCCC faculty, staff, patients, and stakeholders, each providing crucial input and valuable feedback. The approach includes data collection and analysis, multiple interviews with key parties, and an iterative review and approval process of the final deliverable. A new plan was launched in October 2021 with an emphasis on 1) Precision Medicine, 2) Cellular Therapeutics, 3) Health Equity, and 4) Clinical Networks. Performance and progress of the stated goals within the plan are tracked and catalogued on an ongoing basis.