Bios
Jim Kupel - Managing Principal
Jim Kupel is the managing principal and co-founder of Crescendo Consulting Group. Currently, he also serves as the Program Manager for the Yale New Haven Health System - Center for Healthcare Solutions' Background Check Division. With more than 25 years of consulting experience, Jim has successfully managed a full range of assignments in program management, enterprise and business-line development, strategic planning, research, consumer engagement leadership and development, social media, facilitation, and public affairs. He is skilled at presenting technical and abstract concepts in a clear, concise, and detailed manner. He has conducted hundreds of measurably successful engagements for clients in the public, non-profit and private sectors. Clients with multi-disciplinary programs that would otherwise require a diverse group of experts often select Jim for his encompassing subject-matter and industry knowledge.
As a nationally requested speaker, Jim's presentations have focused on planning, marketing, customer relationship management, strategy, market research, and collaboration to groups both large and small. The National Business Coalition on Health, American Society for Health Care Marketing, Institute of Management Accountants, and the annual meeting of the American Marketing Association's Health Care Marketing Division are among the groups to whom he has spoken.
Jim was co-founder and president of Commonwealth Marketing and Development. He was also director of the Growth Management Consulting Division at Baker Newman & Noyes, one of the largest professional services firms in New England (with historical roots in KPMG Peat Marwick and Ernst & Young).
He has written numerous articles and two books and has been a columnist for Maine's largest daily paper, the Portland Press Herald. He has a BA in philosophy and English from the Honors College of the University of Oregon. Currently, he is on the board of directors from Camp Ketcha.
Beth Austin - Principal
Beth Austin is a principal and co-founder of Crescendo Consulting Group. She has a demonstrated talent for solving a variety of communication challenges within organizations. She currently focuses her practice largely on healthcare and credit union clients, as well as projects focused on social or health-related issues.
Her unique combination of communications, research, and social marketing expertise has made her a leading expert on healthcare quality communications and consumer engagement. Her skill set is ideal for developing and implementing programs that effect positive behavior change on a range of social issues including health, financial, or environmental topics.
Beth has successfully led broad-scale communication campaigns using social media, websites, and traditional media channels to successfully elicit consumer behavior change. Utilizing social media to influence consumer behavior is a particular area of her expertise and she recently co-authored a paper for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation regarding a social media pilot project targeted to individuals with select chronic health conditions. She is also a skilled focus group moderator and has conducted consumer groups regarding website usability for performance measurement and public reporting websites, perceptions of the Patient Centered Medical Home, attitudes and awareness about issues in healthcare quality, and other health-focused issues.
She is a frequent international speaker on a variety of health, financial, and communication topics and recently presented on the subject of social media on a panel of national experts in San Francisco, CA. She has authored numerous papers and is a contributing blogger for national websites such as e-patients.net and kevinmd.com.
She graduated summa cum laude from the University of Maine with a BA in English/creative writing and an MA in communications. She currently volunteers for a number of community organizations and served as a stakeholder reviewer for the National Institute of Health's Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) inaugural grant funding cycle in 2012.
Scott Good - Senior Consultant
Scott Good has over 20 years experience in providing consulting services in quantitative and qualitative marketing research, strategic planning, new business development, manufacturing management, and international strategic alliance development. Scott is skilled at streamlining decision processes and maximizing the value of market opportunities for clients. He has successfully worked with healthcare facilities, insurance companies, financial institutions, food and beverage manufacturers, distribution companies, biotechnology businesses, public sector agencies (local, state, federal, and international), non-profits, and firms in other sectors.
Before joining Crescendo Consulting Group, Scott served as President of New Mission Consulting - a small marketing research firm working with biotechnology entrepreneurs and non-profit organizations seeking to develop international business partners. Scott also served as executive director of a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) in Maryland and Adjunct Professor in the University of Maryland system. Subsequently, he became skilled at working directly with private sector companies and with government leaders in the US and abroad to provide marketing research and analysis services.
Scott is a frequent public speaker on various healthcare topics and has authored publications on eating disorders and related issues. He has also agreed to author a series of articles for national publication on the topic of religious freedom in China. He earned his BA degree in Economics from New College and MS degree in Industrial Administration from Carnegie Mellon University.
Amy Sandler- Senior Healthcare Consultant
Amy Sandler is a senior-level healthcare marketing professional with experience in a broad spectrum of areas including marketing strategy, revenue production, physician relations, case mix management, and census building.
In addition to her consulting work at Crescendo Consulting Group, Amy has served as the chief marketing officer at Hamad Medical Corporation, a 2,500-bed, seven-hospital system in Doha, Qatar; a community hospital based in Rochester, New Hampshire; and a not-for-profit healthcare organization in Portland, Maine that includes multiple healthcare centers and insurance products. Through her career she has managed numerous, award-winning marketing campaigns that have led to service line growth, superior physician relations, increased program referrals, and improved community awareness.
Amy is also an experienced focus group moderator and has conducted consumer discussions on a wide range of topics including obstetrics, oncology, preventive care, and primary care. She is a frequent public speaker who has prepared presentations for a myriad of audiences including large physician groups, medical associations, and professional medical practice manager associations.
Amy has been recognized by the New England Society of Health Communications (NESHCO) for awards in nine different healthcare marketing categories. She graduated cum laude from the University of Rhode Island with a BA in psychology.
Heidi Wurpel - Communications & Research Consultant
Heidi Wurpel is a communications and research consultant for Crescendo Consulting Group. Her strong background in marketing communications, project management, event planning, and public relations allows her to fulfill numerous roles at Crescendo.
Prior to joining Crescendo, Heidi was the marketing coordinator for the H.E. Murdock Corporation. There she developed advertising and public relations campaigns and executed the internal and external marketing programs and events for Day's Jewelers, a retail chain of jewelry stores. Prior to her employment with H.E. Murdock, Heidi was the sales manager at the Twin City Times of Auburn, Maine.
She graduated summa cum laude from the University of Maine, Honors College with a B.A. in Journalism and a concentration in Advertising and an M.B.A. from the University of Southern Maine.