As executive vice president and chief operating officer for Point32Health, Katie Catlender oversees enterprise operations, technology, service and experience, driving efforts to improve affordability, enhance member outcomes and modernize the health care experience. Her role spans many of the organization's core capabilities, providing a unique vantage point on how strategy, operations and innovation come together to deliver value for members, providers and communities. In this conversation, she shares her perspective on the future of member experience, the responsible use of technology and AI and what it takes to lead through transformation in today's health care landscape.

In any industry, a positive customer experience is essential to long-term success. At our organization, how do you define a great member experience and what elements are essential to achieving it?

Katie Catlender: A great member experience means health care feels easier, not harder.

The health care system can be complex, and our responsibility is to remove as much of that complexity as possible. Whether someone is checking a benefit, searching for a provider, managing an ongoing condition or navigating a new diagnosis, they should be able to get answers and support without feeling like they're on their own.

We talk a lot about technology, AI and digital capabilities to deliver on experience, and the best technology is often invisible. It helps us anticipate needs and supports members to get where they need to go faster, with less effort, while allowing our teams to focus on the moments that require human expertise and empathy. 

A great example is our continued investment in digital experiences that make it easier for members to find and navigate care, understand their benefits and access support through the channels that work best for them. And at the same time we’re focusing equally on digital and data exchange improvements with our providers. Consumers rely on both their health plan and the providers they see and we believe the more we partner with providers, the better the experience for our shared members/patients is. We're bringing together technology, data and service operations to create a more connected experience, rather than requiring members to start over every time they engage with us, and at times, not have to engage at all.

Ultimately, if our members spend less time navigating the health care system and more time focusing on their health, then we're succeeding.

As consumer expectations shift toward more personalized care options, how are we evolving as a health plan to keep up? 

KC: Members compare us to the best experiences they have anywhere. They expect information that's relevant, support that's timely and interactions that fit seamlessly into their lives. Every person has different needs at different times. Most companies still personalize within channels. Best-in-class companies personalize across the entire relationship, and that’s how we’re evolving and anticipating the needs of those we support and serve.

How we get there is through listening carefully to feedback, removing unnecessary complexity and using data, insights and technology to better understand needs and reduce frustration before it occurs. Personalization isn't about adding more features. It's about us taking control of ways we can help each member feel understood and making it easier for them to get the care, information and support they need. The definition of personalization has evolved significantly. We don’t think about personalization as custom communications or daunting to achieve. We think about it as anticipating needs and reducing effort across the entire customer journey. It’s all about how we use our expertise and data responsibly to create experiences that are more relevant, proactive and human.

Across the industry, there are barriers to accessing and navigating care. What are you and your team doing to create a more seamless experience for members seeking care?

KC: We see it as a privilege to do all we can to connect the dots for the members we serve. That's why we're taking a more integrated approach across Point32Health. When we make decisions, we ask a simple question: Will this make it easier for members to get the care, information or support they need?

One of the biggest challenges in health care is that the experience can feel fragmented and members/patients are often the ones who must thread the needle across their providers, their health plan and the pharmacy. Members don't think about departments, systems or organizational boundaries, and they shouldn’t have to. They simply expect us to help them get the care and support they need. 

That means simplifying processes, improving how information moves across our organization and reducing unnecessary handoffs. It also means investing in partnership with our provider community in interoperability and data-sharing capabilities that help create a more connected health care experience with the member in the middle and focused on affordability and care outcomes. When information can move more effectively between health plans, providers, pharmacies and members, people spend less time tracking down answers and more time focused on their care.

Most importantly, we're listening closely to members so we're solving the issues that have the greatest impact on their experience.

Our goal is simple: spend less time asking members to navigate our organization and more time ensuring our organization works for them. 

With the prevalence of AI and digital tools, how can health plans strike the right balance between digital convenience and maintaining a human connection in care delivery?

KC: I don't view this as an either-or choice. The best experiences combine both. Technology should make it easier for members to get answers, complete routine tasks and access information when and where they need it. At the same time, health care is deeply personal. There are moments when people need empathy, reassurance and a trusted human connection.

Our responsibility is to use technology where it adds value and empower our people to focus on the moments where they can make the greatest difference. For example, we're using AI and digital tools to help reduce administrative work and enable teams to access information more quickly so that the response time for a member, for instance, is substantially faster. When routine tasks take less time, our colleagues can focus more of their energy on solving complex problems, answering questions and supporting members through important health care decisions.

AI should never be implemented simply because it's available. It should be applied where it can meaningfully improve the member experience, increase access to information, reduce administrative burden or help our colleagues spend more time serving members. If technology can simplify a process or help someone get the right answer faster, that's a win. It creates more capacity for meaningful human interactions where they matter most.

The future of health care isn't human versus digital. It's human plus digital. The organizations that succeed will use technology to remove friction while creating more capacity for empathy, expertise and personal connection.

It's a challenging time to be in health care. As a leader, what principles guide your decision-making during times of uncertainty or change?

KC: Health care is facing significant disruption, but our purpose hasn't changed. Every decision we make starts with the same question: How will this improve the experience, outcomes and affordability of care for the people we serve? 

During periods of uncertainty, I focus on what we can control. That means keeping members at the center of every decision, being transparent about where we're making progress and where we need to improve and balancing today's priorities with the investments needed for tomorrow.

I also believe people do their best work when they have clarity. They deserve to understand where we're headed, why we're making certain decisions and how their work contributes to something larger than themselves.

The most successful organizations through periods of change are the ones that can balance today's performance with tomorrow's transformation. We need to deliver for members today while building the capabilities they'll expect from us in the future. 

What gives me confidence is our people. Every day, I see teams working across functions to solve problems, support one another and remain focused on what matters most. That commitment to our members is what enables us to navigate change and continue moving forward. 

As we look ahead, I believe the organizations that lead the future of health care won't be those with the most technology. They'll be the ones that use it to create trust, remove friction and make every interaction easier for the people they serve. That's the future we're building toward at Point32Health.