Gerardo Ramirez, M.B.A.
Vice President of Administrative Services Candidate
Gerardo is proud to be the son of immigrants and a first-generation college graduate from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, where he earned a BS in Industrial Engineering. He also holds an MBA from Western Governors University and has over 25 years in leadership experience in academia and healthcare. Gerardo was most recently the Assistant Dean and Executive Director of Academic Affairs at Cedars-Sinai, where he was a key member of the academic leadership team responsible for the Office of the Dean, Strategic Initiatives, Facilities Planning and Operations, and administration of various medical education departments with annual budgets of over $40M for operations, $15M in capital, and $10M in endowments. He also previously held various leadership roles for companies like Amgen Inc., Health Net, and Kaiser Permanente.
Gerardo’s has demonstrated exemplary fiscal leadership and resource optimization, repeatedly exceeded financial performance targets for 15 consecutive years through strategic fiscal planning and by implementing targeted process improvement strategies. He successfully spearheaded, negotiated, and implemented a $3M shift in administrative expenses to support direct student services and medical resident training stipends. As a champion for diversity, he implemented programs that significantly increased the percentage of underrepresented minority students and scholarships for underrepresented medical students. Gerardo was also recognized three consecutive years, for attainment of high employee satisfaction and engagement scores - among highest 20% of all managers. He directed the development and execution of a 5-year academic space master plan, overseeing more than $100M in new construction for research and education facilities. Gerardo’s commitment to operational efficiency were also demonstrated through his implementation of a comprehensive facility management system to streamline the tracking of space, equipment, and work orders, enhancing overall operational efficiency.
Gerardo has a passion for education and for over 30 years has volunteered hundreds of hours mentoring and tutoring middle school and high school students from under-served communities. He is a “servant leader” who is highly collegial, and customers describe him as a “problem solver” who brings “original ideas” and a “humanistic touch”. Colleagues and collaborators describe him as a “deeply principled and dedicated administrative leader”, “great at building strong relationships with teams and looking at the big picture”, “his professionalism and collegiality, manifested by his processes, made each initiative a positive and community-building experience for its constituencies”.
