Career Profiles
For more than 20 years, Aimee Hirsch stood in front of classrooms, educating hundreds of students each year as a public school music teacher. Today, she brings that same passion for teaching and growth to a very different setting: The University of Kansas Health System, where she serves as manager of leadership and organizational development.
Hirsch’s move into health care wasn’t a random career pivot. When she decided it was time for a change, she knew she wanted to stay in a field that made a real difference in her community. That decision became deeply personal after health care professionals at her own organization saved her life in 2017. Giving back to the field that gave her a second chance became her driving motivation.
As one of three managers in leadership and organizational development, within human resources, Hirsch now leads a team focused on workforce development. Her team ensures that employees across the health system have access to the education they need to upskill or reskill and grow in their careers. They also oversee the organization’s career center, which offers individualized guidance to employees at every stage of their professional journey.
In many ways, it’s not so different from teaching. Hirsch admits she worried that leaving education would mean losing the chance to make a lasting impact on her community. Instead, she’s found that impact in a new form: helping employees break down barriers to education so they can reach their goals, build sustainable economic security and find greater satisfaction in their careers.
Hirsch’s role didn’t come with a ready-made playbook. Before her team existed, workforce development efforts were happening across the health system in isolated pockets. Individual departments had developed strong, effective programs, but there was no shared strategy or system-wide approach, and many of those successes weren’t being shared beyond their original teams.
To change that, Hirsch had to start from the ground up, building relationships and learning the day-to-day business of each area within the health system. That groundwork made it possible to inventory existing programs, identify what was working and scale successful initiatives system-wide. Guided by her vice president’s vision of building programs together with and for departments, her approach has been collaborative from the start, which she credits as key to her team’s success.
Hirsch expects workforce development to become an even bigger priority across health care in the years ahead. Engagement survey results and workforce data projections point toward health systems investing more heavily in internal talent pipelines, developing their own employees to fill critical-need roles rather than relying solely on outside hiring.
She also points to two skills she believes will become increasingly essential in health care HR: data storytelling and the ability to use AI effectively. As the field evolves, professionals who can translate data into clear narratives, and who are comfortable leveraging new technology, will be well-positioned to lead the next chapter of workforce development in health care.
For students and career-changers considering a path in health care, Hirsch offers a candid perspective: it’s a busy, fast-moving field, and no two days look the same. She sees that as a strength rather than a drawback, calling it an honor to support the people who take care of patients every day.
Her practical advice for anyone exploring the field: get hands-on exposure before committing to a specific role. Shadowing or volunteering in different hospital or clinic departments can offer a clear, detailed picture of what a job actually requires, helping people make informed decisions about where their skills and interests fit best.