Executive Search
for Health Departments
Health department leadership transitions require clarity, discretion, and a search process built around the realities of public health.
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We partner with local, county, regional, state, and territorial health departments to recruit leaders who can strengthen teams, navigate complexity, and serve communities well.
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Whether you are preparing for a Health Director transition, filling a senior leadership vacancy, or struggling to find qualified candidates for a critical role, we help you move forward with structure, insight, and confidence.
When the Right Leader Matters Most
A vacancy in a health department can affect far more than the org chart. It can create uncertainty, slow essential initiatives, increase pressure on existing staff, and raise questions for boards, elected officials, community partners, and the public.
Health departments often come to us when:
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A long-serving Health Director or senior leader is retiring.
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A key role has been difficult to fill through traditional posting.
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Internal capacity is stretched and the search needs focused attention.
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A board, county leader, HR team, or search committee needs a structured process.
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The health department needs help defining the role before recruitment begins.
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The position requires both public health credibility and strong operational leadership.
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A previous search did not produce the right candidate pool.
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Confidentiality, stakeholder alignment, or timing makes the search more sensitive.
This is where a thoughtful search partner can help create momentum without rushing the decision.
We Understand Health Departments
As the saying goes, “If you’ve seen one health department ... you’ve seen one health department.”
Health departments operate in complex settings. That is why our search process begins with context. We take time to understand your governance structure, community priorities, funding environment, workforce capacity, accreditation readiness, and the leadership expectations attached to the role before beginning the search process.
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The right candidate needs more than the required credentials. They need sound judgment, communication skills, political and community awareness, operational discipline, and the ability to lead through both stability and uncertainty.
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Our work is shaped by that context.
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We help health departments think beyond “Who meets the minimum qualifications?” and toward the more important question: Who is prepared to lead this organization, at this moment, in this community?
Leadership and Hard-to-Fill Searches
The Public Health Network supports executive, senior-level, and specialized searches across health departments, including:
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Executive and Senior Leadership
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Health Directors
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Deputy Directors
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Public Health Administrators
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Division Directors
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Section Directors and Administrators
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Operational and Program Leadership
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Finance and Operations
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Nursing and Clinical Services
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Workforce and Organizational Development
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Communications and Community Engagement
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Program Directors and Managers
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Specialized Public Health Roles
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Epidemiology and Data
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Strategy, Policy, and Planning
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Emergency Preparedness
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Specialized roles requiring certification or unique skillsets
Each search is tailored to the health department’s structure, community context, timeline, and decision-making process.
A Search Partner With a Public Health Lens
The Public Health Network brings applied public health experience and recruitment expertise to every engagement. We understand how public health roles are structured, how funding and governance shape decisions, and why leadership fit matters across the organization and community.
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Our approach helps health departments:
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Clarify the leadership need before recruitment begins.
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Develop a position profile that reflects the real opportunity.
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Engage candidates who may not be actively applying.
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Evaluate candidates beyond their resume.
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Support boards, HR leaders, hiring managers, and search committees through key decisions.
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Maintain a candidate experience that reflects the professionalism of your health department.
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Move from vacancy to selection with a process that is organized, transparent, and grounded in public health realities.​​​
Support for Boards, HR, and Hiring Teams
Every health department search has its own decision-making structure. Some are led by a board of health. Others involve county administration, HR, executive leadership, or a formal search committee.
We adapt the process to fit your organization’s structure while helping the right people stay aligned around the role, candidate criteria, timeline, communication, and final selection.
The goal is not simply to generate applicants. It is to give your team the structure, capacity, and sector insight needed to move from vacancy to selection with clarity and confidence. ​
From Search to Selection
Every engagement begins with understanding the role, health department, decision-making process, and what the next leader will need to accomplish.
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From there, we help shape the position profile, develop the recruitment strategy, conduct targeted outreach, assess candidates, support interviews, and guide your health department through selection, offer, and onboarding.
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For a closer look at the full process, explore our Executive Search approach.​​