Director of Healthcare

The SouthState story is one of steady growth, deep community roots, and an unwavering commitment to helping our customers move forward. Since our beginnings in the 1930s to becoming a trusted financial partner across the South and beyond - we are known for combining personal relationships with forward-thinking solutions.

We are committed to helping our team members find their success while maintaining the integrity of our values: building trust, fostering lasting relationships and pursuing excellence. At SouthState, individual contributions are recognized, potential is cultivated and team members are inspired to achieve their greater purpose. Your future begins here!

Duties & Responsibilities

• Define and execute the national healthcare lending strategy, including target subsectors, sponsor and borrower coverage priorities, market positioning, risk appetite alignment, and coordinated go-to-market plans for the new specialized vertical.
• Build and lead the healthcare team as the vertical grows by defining the organizational structure and staffing plan; identifying priority roles and required capabilities; partnering with Human Resources and senior leadership to source, recruit, interview, select, and onboard experienced healthcare bankers and support professionals; establishing clear responsibilities and performance expectations; and developing, mentoring, and retaining team members to support national growth, disciplined execution, and portfolio management.
• Build and maintain a national healthcare ecosystem of private equity sponsors, operating executives, advisors, institutional investors, attorneys, accounting firms, and other centers of influence to strengthen the Bank’s market presence and generate qualified referrals.
• Originate healthcare lending opportunities through deep relationships with private equity sponsors, C-suite executives, institutional investors, referral partners, and other centers of influence, focusing on middle-market healthcare companies and sponsor-backed portfolio companies.
• Lead healthcare-specific underwriting and diligence in partnership with Risk Management, Underwriting, and Portfolio Management by evaluating historical performance and forward projections, reimbursement and payor mix, regulatory and compliance considerations, provider and referral concentration, labor dynamics, revenue-cycle performance, acquisition strategy, quality-of-earnings considerations, and other key operating and credit risks; structure and negotiate senior, leveraged, asset-based, first-lien, first-out, and other credit solutions with appropriate pricing, covenants, documentation, and risk-adjusted returns.
• Lead transaction execution from initial screening through closing, coordinating Credit, Loan Operations, Treasury Management, Advisory, Capital Markets, Risk Management, internal and external counsel, sponsors, and borrowers; manage terms negotiation, conditions precedent, and post-close deliverables.
• Oversee ongoing portfolio performance and periodic reviews in partnership with Credit Risk and Portfolio Management, including financial and operating trends, covenant compliance, acquisition integration, liquidity, reimbursement developments, collateral where applicable, documentation exceptions, and risk remediation.
• It is the responsibility of this role to take ownership of all tasks and challenges that they encounter in the operation of their assigned position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Qualifications

Education Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in business, finance, economics, accounting, or a related field is required. Completion of a formal bank credit training program or equivalent credit experience is required; an MBA or advanced finance or accounting credentials is preferred.

Minimum Experience

• Minimum of 10 years of corporate banking, healthcare finance, sponsor finance, leveraged finance, or capital markets experience, including substantial responsibility for healthcare client origination, credit analysis, loan structuring, negotiation, execution, and portfolio oversight. Demonstrated experience building or scaling healthcare coverage and developing relationships with private equity sponsors and middle-market healthcare companies is strongly preferred.

Licenses & Certifications

• In-depth knowledge of: commercial lending, corporate finance, treasury management, capital markets, risk management, applicable Federal and State lending regulations, and Bank credit policies and procedures. Relevant securities licenses or other professional certifications may be beneficial but not required unless applicable to assigned activities.

Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities

• Strong relationship management, consultative selling, negotiation, and executive-level communication skills, with the ability to translate complex healthcare business models into clear credit and commercial narratives.
• Deep understanding of the healthcare industry and its key subsectors, including reimbursement and payor dynamics, regulatory considerations, provider economics, revenue-cycle performance, labor pressures, and acquisition-driven growth models.
• Demonstrated ability to originate and execute sponsor-backed and direct healthcare transactions, including senior secured, leveraged, asset-based, first-lien, and first-out structures.
• Ability to develop a national coverage strategy, coordinate multidisciplinary deal teams, expand relationships across lending and ancillary products, and recruit, mentor, and develop talent as the vertical grows.

Physical Demands and Work Environment

Physical Demands

• Ability to communicate in person, on the phone, and through electronic channels

• Ability to use a computer on a frequent basis, including typing and sustained attention to a monitor
• Ability to sit, walk, and/or stand for extended periods of time

• Ability to bend and reach

Work Environment

• Office: If the position reports to a physical Company location, the setting will be a typical office environment.
• Remote or hybrid:For remote or hybrid positions, a secure and distraction-free setting is required, with a reliable internet connection (cable or fiber preferred, mobile hotspots not acceptable). Hybrid positions will report to a physical Company location, as directed by the manager, and that setting will be a typical office environment.

Equal Opportunity Employer, including disabled/veterans.