Michael P. Harrington has been named Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK). Mr. Harrington currently serves as the Associate Chief Financial Officer at the Cleveland Clinic. His appointment concludes a national search to identify a successor for MSK’s current CFO, Michael Gutnick, who will retire after 42 years of exemplary service to MSK.
Mr. Harrington will be responsible for the overall financial integrity of MSK’s integrated system of clinical care, research, and education, which encompasses more than 17,000 employees and features an enhanced capacity to deliver cancer care in the outpatient as well as inpatient settings through the recently opened MSK Nassau in Nassau County and the upcoming launch of the David. H. Koch Center for Cancer Care in New York City. Mr. Harrington will start in his new role on June 10, 2019.
“We are fortunate in having identified in Mike Harrington an individual whose expertise is equaled by his commitment to serving a mission-driven organization like MSK,” said Craig Thompson, MD, President and CEO of MSK. “Mike’s experience at the Cleveland Clinic, specifically his deep understanding of the finances of academic medicine and research, make him an ideal candidate for this role.”
Mr. Harrington joined the Cleveland Clinic in 2007 and is the number-two financial executive at the organization of more than 60,000 employees. He leads a team of more than 400 employees and is responsible for the organization’s financial operations, including corporate accounting, internal/external reporting, revenue and reimbursement, audit, treasury, and disbursements. Mr. Harrington oversees financial planning and analysis, including long-range forecasting, operating and capital budgets, business analysis, and business development. In addition, he is the primary liaison to the operations and performance management team and accountable for the financial activities of academic affairs (research and education), international financial operations, and innovation companies.
“I am honored to join the MSK community and to be taking the reins from Mike Gutnick,” said Mr. Harrington. “MSK has some of the most gifted physicians, scientists, and staff in the world. I am eager to join this stellar team and work with my new colleagues to further enhance MSK’s financial and operational performance and to contribute to the positive impact we make on the patients and families we serve.”
Before joining the Cleveland Clinic in 2007, Mr. Harrington was Vice President of Finance at Parkview Health, an eight-hospital system with 6,000 employees in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Prior to his time at Parkview Health, he held a variety of financial positions — almost all in healthcare.
Mr. Harrington received his bachelor of science degree in accounting from Goldey-Beacom College, in Wilmington, Delaware, in 1991. He earned his master of business administration degree from Creighton University, in Omaha, Nebraska. He is also a certified public accountant.
In 2018, Mr. Gutnick announced his intention to retire after serving at MSK for more than four decades. During his tenure at MSK, Mr. Gutnick has made manifold contributions to the organization and has been an exceptional steward of MSK’s mission and financial health. He also guided MSK through complex financial terrain, and his visionary leadership led to vast improvements for future success through the astute management of the resources necessary to support both the clinical and research enterprise.
“We are fortunate to have benefited from the singular leadership of Mike Gutnick for so many years,” said Dr. Thompson. “His unwavering commitment to MSK has helped us tremendously throughout the years, and MSK is absolutely indebted to Mike for his years of dedication and service.”