Leadership
Get to know our leadership team and their commitment to our mission, values, and the success of our collective journey.
Laura McCrary, Ed.D
President & CEO
Laura McCrary, Ed.D. is a seasoned healthcare executive with 25 years of experience in the industry. With a commitment to improving healthcare outcomes through innovative solutions, Dr. McCrary has successfully led KONZA National Network through tremendous change and growth over the years.
Dr. McCrary is widely recognized in the industry for her achievements in establishing a successful and financially sustainable Health Information Exchange. She is the founding Executive Director/CEO of the Kansas Health Information Network, now known as KONZA. During her tenure, KONZA has expanded into 11 states and now provides a vast array of analytic and health information exchange solutions to providers, patients and health plans.
Dr. McCrary is passionate about health information technology that improves health outcomes and reduces provider and patient burden. To this end, Dr. McCrary is leading KONZA in the development of new products that focus on improving health access, evaluating healthcare quality and transforming into formats necessary to support value-based payment models, medical research and clinical trials.
Dr. McCrary attended Kansas State University where she earned a bachelor’s degree in education with a focus on history and political science, two master's degrees in learning disabilities and severe emotional disturbance and a doctorate in education administration. She completed post-doctoral work in administration from the University of Kansas. In addition, Dr. McCrary has served as an adjunct professor at Kansas State University and Rockhurst University-Helzberg School of Management, teaching courses in health information technology and quality.
Karla Mills, MBA, MS
Chief Operations Officer
Karla Mills, MBA, MS joined KONZA National Network in 2022 as Chief Operating Officer. As an industry expert, she brings 23 years of experience to the organization in direct patient care and healthcare IT.
Mills is well-known for her successful history of developing innovative teams and individuals by leading corporate expansions with scaled systems and standardized organizational structures. Prior to KONZA, Mills was the Chief Operating Officer and Vice President of Strategic Development for Health Gorilla, where she played a vital role in developing a culture driven by quality and efficiency across all aspects of operations and technology. She boosted corporate growth, financial strength and operational productivity by identifying and bridging gaps involving operational controls, corporate reporting, quality assurance and clinical workflows. Mills also directed and formulated QHIN strategic initiatives while building high-achieving teams and designing frameworks.
Before Health Gorilla, Mills served as the Director of Quality Assurance at CORHIO where she developed and promoted data quality standards and strategy within the fast-paced organization.
Mills holds two master’s degrees in business administration and information systems from the University of Colorado Denver. In addition, she served for six years of active duty in the U.S. Navy.
Jeff Messer
Chief Financial Officer
Jeff Messer joined KONZA National Network as Chief Financial Officer in 2021. With over 35 years of experience in business and finance, including 11 years in the HIE/Healthcare IT industry, Messer brings broad expertise to his role in business administration and finance.
Prior to joining KONZA, Messer served as Chief Financial Officer at Toolwatch, a Software as a Service platform company serving the construction industry. Responsible for finance, accounting and strategic growth planning, he was instrumental in leading the company through a private equity transaction, which included spearheading the search for an investment banking firm and leading the company-side discovery, due diligence and closing process. As the Vice President of Market Development at DispatchHealth, a mobile in-home healthcare provider, he was essential in helping the company as it matured, developing new markets and growth opportunities. Messer also led outreach, marketing and practice transformation efforts for CORHIO, a Colorado-based health information exchange, as their Chief Development Officer.
Messer holds a degree in business administration. He has served on numerous boards, including his current role as Treasurer for the Justice and Mercy Legal Aid Center.
Jody Denson, MPA, PMP
Chief Technology Officer / Vice President of Technology Solutions
Jody Denson, MPA, PMP is a well-recognized technology executive with over 15 years of experience in the field. She joined KONZA National Network in 2013 and has held several leadership positions, including Director of Technology Solutions, Vice President of Technology Solutions and now Chief Technology Officer.
Denson’s expertise and contributions to the healthcare technology industry are widely recognized. She has a successful track record at delivering innovative healthcare technology products that have improved health care coordination, clinical data quality and patient care safety. As the VP of Technology Solutions and CTO of KONZA, Denson is responsible for the development and implementation of KONZA's healthcare information technology products and services, system-wide technology standards and budgets. She leads the work of implementation and development teams, as well as help desk staff, to ensure operational efficiency and the successful delivery of healthcare technology solutions. Additionally, Denson oversees the direct delivery of Kansas Health Information Network products and services related to data integration into the data warehouse and health information exchange.
Denson holds a master's degree in public administration from the University of Missouri - Kansas City and is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP).
Eric Thompson
Chief Information Officer / Chief Information Security Officer / Vice President of Business Intelligence and Analytics
Eric Thompson, MBA has been with KONZA National Network since 2015. He has held several leadership positions for the organization, including Director and Vice President of Business Intelligence and Analytics, Chief Information Officer and Chief Information Security Officer.
With over two decades of experience in the healthcare industry, Thompson has been successful at developing high-quality, data-driven business intelligence to drive better health outcomes. Instrumental in creating the earliest reports from Health Information Exchange data for the Kansas Health Information Network, he implemented the first dashboards for the provider user base. Prior to KONZA, Thompson worked on the population health team for Cerner Corporation where he led client data delivery strategy. Using disparate data sources and various coding languages, he was pivotal in turning healthcare big data into actionable clinical intelligence.
Thompson holds a master’s degree in business administration and management and a certificate in healthcare leadership from Rockhurst University. He studied clinical research at the University of Missouri – Kansas City, where he authored “Value-Based Benefit Design to Improve Medication Adherence for Employees with Anxiety or Depression”.