Change Together

About JW Collaborative

Strategic facilitation and human-centered co-design for mission-driven organizations navigating complexity

JW Collaborative is a strategic consulting and facilitation partner that helps mission-driven organizations navigate complexity with clarity, care, and deep respect for the people involved.

We work with leaders and teams at pivotal moments—when clarity, alignment, and shared direction are essential to what comes next. Our approach integrates strategic facilitation, human-centered co-design, and expert advisory to help organizations turn complexity into clarity and misalignment into momentum.

We're built for organizations where:

  • Complexity is real and entrenched

  • Alignment is critical but elusive

  • Traditional approaches aren't working

  • What's next needs to be co-created with care

Whether you're shaping strategy, engaging stakeholders, or navigating transition—we help you create durable, people-centered change.

 

Who We Are

 

JW Collaborative was founded by Joel Worthington, a strategic advisor, facilitator, and human-centered design leader who leads all client engagements and strategic direction for the firm.

Joel brings a unique blend of strategic design, systems thinking, and expert facilitation to every partnership—helping organizations think better together and translate insight into action.

Experience & Approach

Joel's career spans 20 years working inside and alongside complex, mission-driven healthcare organizations—including strategic roles at BlueCross BlueShield Association and HDR, and through founding JW Collaborative.

He has led strategic planning, facilitation, and human-centered co-design engagements with organizations including University of Chicago Medicine, MD Anderson Cancer Center, American Medical Association, Lurie Children's Hospital, Saint Luke's Health System, Medical University of South Carolina, Hawaii Medical Service Association, and others—helping them navigate pivotal moments when complexity, stakeholder alignment, and shared direction were essential.

While their missions vary, what they share is complexity—and the need to align diverse voices around shared purpose and practical action.

 
 

What Sets This Approach Apart

It's not just expertise—it's how Joel shows up.

Leaders describe him as thoughtful, curious, and calming—someone who listens deeply, reflects honestly, and helps people surface what matters most. He has a unique ability to hold complexity without getting overwhelmed by it, and to help others do the same.

His approach creates:

  • Space for honest conversation (not just polite agreement)

  • Questions that unlock clarity (not just confirm assumptions)

  • Processes that move groups from tension to alignment

  • Strategies that people own (not just endorse)

 

Education & Background

Joel holds a Master of Design Methods from the IIT Institute of Design and a Master of Health Services Administration from the University of Kansas Medical Center.

His early career in healthcare strategy, leadership, and operations provided a strong foundation for understanding systems—while his design education deepened his ability to center people in how those systems evolve.

 

Our Network: The Collaborative

While Joel leads all client engagements, JW Collaborative draws on a trusted network of experts in healthcare strategy, design, transformation, and facilitation to expand capacity and deliver comprehensive results when needed.

Our collaborative model means:

  • You always work directly with Joel as your strategic partner and lead

  • Additional expertise is brought in thoughtfully based on engagement needs

  • Network collaborators are vetted partners with deep domain expertise

  • You get the right team for your specific challenge

This approach ensures you receive personalized leadership and strategic continuity—with the flexibility to scale support when beneficial.

 

How We Work With You

Our engagements are designed around your specific context, challenges, and goals. We don't deliver templates—we co-create solutions that fit your reality.

Typical engagement models:

  • Single strategic engagements — Facilitation, planning, or advisory for a specific initiative

  • Ongoing partnerships — Sustained advisory and thought partnership as strategy evolves

  • Custom combinations — Blended support across facilitation, advisory, and coaching

Every engagement begins with a discovery conversation to ensure alignment, clarity, and mutual fit.

 

Leadership That Reflects Our Values

At JW Collaborative, we believe the best work happens when leaders show up with humility, care, and commitment to the communities they serve. Joel lives this through active community leadership and service in his South Side Chicago neighborhood.

  • Board Member and Leadership Cohort Facilitator, KAM Isaiah Israel congregation (South Side Chicago)

  • Head Coach, Hyde Park Kenwood Legends youth baseball league

  • Community Advocate, expanded youth sports programming in Hyde Park

  • Top Fundraiser, Chicago Marathon - Greater Chicago Food Depository

This same approach—trust, development, shared purpose—shapes how we partner with clients. The facilitation style that builds youth teams and community organizations is the same one we bring to mission-driven institutions navigating complexity.

 

Professional Affiliations

Joel maintains active membership in professional organizations that advance healthcare leadership and mission-driven consulting:

  • American College of Healthcare Executives

  • Society for Healthcare Strategy and Market Development, a professional membership group of the American Hospital Association

  • Association of Consultants to Nonprofits

 

What Our Clients Say

“There was a buzz in the air throughout and after the retreat. I haven’t seen this level of engagement before. It was a truly special event.”
— Neda Laiteerapong, MD, Section Chief of General Internal Medicine, UChicago Medicine
“Joel’s ability to pose thought-provoking and relevant inquiries helped foster a deeper understanding of complex issues and encouraged collaborative problem solving. ”
— Lauri Mills, Director, Consumer Experience at BlueCross BlueShield Association
“[Joel is] everything you want in an advisor - empathetic yet steadfast in his viewpoint, approaches challenges as the glass being half full, and he’s easy going which makes tough issues easier to navigate.”
— Minni Marwaha, VP Core Innovation, Advocate Aurora Health
“[Joel’s] work was outstanding, moving, and inspiring. We have implemented many of his observations with great success, and are working towards a second partnership.”
— Morsal Tahouni, MD, ED Medical Director, Medical University of South Carolina

Organizations We’ve Served

JW Collaborative has partnered with organizations including:

  • UChicago Medicine / The University of Chicago

  • Medical University of South Carolina

  • Saint Luke's Health System (Kansas City)

  • Rush University

  • Hawaii Medical Service Association

  • American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA)

  • Center for Care Innovations

 

Let's Explore Working Together

If you're navigating complexity, misalignment, or a pivotal moment that requires strategic facilitation, advisory support, or coaching—we'd love to talk.

Schedule a Discovery Call

Or reach out to Joel directly at joel@jwcollaborative.com