Understanding the Gap: Selecting the Right EBO Vendor for Your Hospital

Mar 26, 2025

As hospital leaders strive to build and sustain positive brand awareness, high-quality clinical care is a necessity. But what happens before and after the clinical experience as patients interact with billing and administrative staff? Every touch point with patients is an opportunity to reinforce consistent messaging and leave a favorable impression. 

 

That’s why it’s so important to think carefully when selecting an extended business office (EBO) vendor for revenue cycle management. The right hospital EBO vendor is one that not only provides unparalleled business services but also drives operational success and patient engagement. These revenue cycle vendors go beyond service delivery to ensure cultural and community alignment that ultimately elevates the hospital brand. 

 

Selecting an EBO vendor that checks all the boxes—and we mean all—is not only possible; it’s also an important part of ensuring a positive patient experience.

 

What is the Role of an EBO Vendor for Hospitals?

A hospital EBO vendor plays an important role in performing core functions of the healthcare revenue cycle such as self-pay billing, early out collections, patient access scheduling support, and patient engagement. Many hospitals rely on an extended business office to fill short- and long-term staffing gaps and help meet strategic goals such as improving financial outcomes, streamlining operations, reducing costs, and improving patient access and satisfaction. Selecting an EBO vendor to augment or replace internal teams helps organizations focus on providing high-quality care.

The Importance of Cultural and Community Alignment in Vendor Selection

While many hospital EBO vendors are well-versed in the nuances of hospital revenue cycle management, not all may align with an organization’s mission, communication style, and values. 

Why is this an important distinction when thinking about the extended business office? 

 

When selecting an EBO vendor, cultural alignment helps hospitals ensure a consistent and high-quality patient experience. Misalignment between the hospital and extended business office can lead to operational inefficiencies, patient dissatisfaction, and reputational damage, all of which can undermine a superior clinical experience. Therefore, selecting an EBO vendor must go beyond simply examining that vendor’s ability to meet key financial performance metrics to include its understanding and respect for the community it serves. 

 

What are the questions every hospital leader should ask of potential revenue cycle vendors? What can this hospital EBO vendor do not only to improve the revenue cycle but also to enhance patient engagement? How will the extended business office foster trust and help raise positive brand awareness?  

Other Key Considerations When Selecting an EBO Vendor

When selecting an EBO vendor, hospital leaders must also consider the following:

 

  • Compliance. Does the hospital EBO vendor have robust compliance measures in place to stay ahead of regulatory changes, adapt to new medical debt trends, and protect patient data?
  • Expertise and experience. Does the hospital EBO vendor have a proven track record in healthcare revenue cycle management and patient engagement? A vendor with extensive experience in the healthcare industry can navigate complex billing, insurance claims, and patient collections efficiently while maintaining empathy and professionalism. Look for vendors who provide references, case studies, and testimonials that demonstrate their ability to handle high volumes and adapt to regulatory changes.
  • EHR-specific expertise. Does the hospital EBO vendor have experience with your hospital’s EHR? The vendor you choose must be proficient in navigating and integrating with your hospital’s EHR software to ensure seamless data exchange and efficient management of patient accounts.
  • Patient-focused approach. Does the hospital EBO vendor prioritize compassionate communication and transparent billing practices that align with the hospital’s values and patient care ethos? How does the hospital EBO vendor train its employees to communicate with empathy and respect? How does it hold employees accountable to demonstrate integrity and patient centricity?
  • Technology and flexibility. Does the hospital EBO vendor provide modern, tech-enabled solutions such as payment portals and automated collection tools to increase efficiency and give patients what they want and need thereby giving the hospital a competitive advantage?

Building a Collaborative, Successful EBO Partnership

Hospital leaders can foster a strong, collaborative relationship with their extended business office by taking these steps:

  1. Align on patient care principles, patient outcomes, and community impact. Ensure the hospital EBO vendor understands expectations and the role it plays in elevating the hospital’s brand.
  2. Open the lines of communication. Conduct weekly or monthly meetings with the hospital EBO vendor to review performance and identify strategies for improvement. Also consider inviting members of the extended business office to internal team meetings to strengthen teamwork and alliance. 
  3. Share goals. Discuss specific key performance indicators to which the organization will hold the hospital EBO vendor accountable as well as strategic goals with which the hospital EBO vendor can help and how. Focus on creating a consultative relationship in which the hospital EBO vendor serves as a partner rather than service provider.

 

Selecting an EBO vendor is an important step in driving better financial outcomes, reducing delinquencies, and improving the overall patient experience. While it’s tempting to focus solely on financial key performance indicators, overlooking the hospital EBO vendor’s cultural fit and community alignment can be devastating in the long run. The goal is to partner with a revenue cycle vendor that truly serves as an extension of your clinical and financial teams to reap maximum rewards and return on investment.  

 

Connect with us to learn how Revenue Enterprises enhances patient experience by aligning with your core values through comprehensive and compassionate financial engagement.

Karie Bostwick

VP of People and Compliance

As VP of People and Compliance at Revenue Enterprises, Karie Bostwick oversees People functions including recruiting, training, onboarding, engagement and satisfaction. Additionally, she is responsible for compliance training, oversight and monitoring.

Karie has a long history of working in the revenue cycle support industry. Her skills span leadership, operations start up, policies and procedures development, operations workflow, budgeting and client management.

She is passionate about the experience of our people, patients and the Healthcare clients we serve and believes that a team of diverse, talented and motivated individuals working together toward a common goal can make a difference.

Robert Sterett

VP of Information Technology

As a transformational leader Robert Sterett has leveraged his 20 years of experience to build effective service lines and exceptional teams. In his role as VP of Information Technology at Revenue Enterprises, Robert excels at taking a unique, balanced, and strategic approach to technology leadership with people first for the best possible outcome. Using his experience from engineering, project management and service line management he takes a multi-faceted approach to ensure the right people are in the correct position coupled with the best technology to meet or exceed all expectations from security to compliance and business continuity.

Robert’s leadership style lends itself to building long term relationships and has consistently been a relied upon strength in many organizations. Over Robert’s time as an IT operational and project leader, he has spent significant time in both hands-on technology facing roles and client centric management roles to bring the best solutions that strive to meet the business and client needs.

Focusing heavily on his personal development skills and opportunities, Robert continues to foster coaching and mentorship relationships everywhere in his life, and the lives around him.

Douglas Dunbar

VP of Sales & Marketing

As VP of Sales and Marketing for Revenue Enterprises, Douglas Dunbar leads with a passion for building strategic partnerships, nurturing relationships, and upholding customer service excellence. In his role, Doug focuses on marketing and brand strategy, sales team leadership, and working closely with members of the management team to best serve company goals.

Doug has over 28 years of National sales and marketing call/contact center leadership, with 10 years of service specifically at Revenue Enterprises. Currently, Doug serves as part of Wyoming HFMA Chapter leadership and has held various roles in Colorado HFMA Chapter leadership for over 9 years.

In his spare time, Doug is very family oriented. Additionally, he loves traveling, cycling, golfing, fishing, hunting, and boating.

Kris Brumley, MBA

President & COO

As President & COO of Revenue Enterprises, Kris Brumley is a collaborative partner within the executive team and a leader for operational functions across the organization. Kris productively shares vision, drives innovation, and supports those around her in a way that elevates them and fosters continuous improvement and results. She has helped create a supportive environment for clients resulting in 98% client retention and a 65% NPS score for all clients and 75% for top clients by revenue.

Kris possesses an MBA in data analytics and has twenty-five years of experience in the healthcare industry, with 19 specifically in revenue cycle. She brings a wealth of customer service experience to her role and has worn many hats at Revenue Enterprises including Director of Business Development, EBO Division Director, and VP of Client Experience Management.

In her personal life, Kris is as busy outside of work as inside. She values spending time with her family, and enjoys fishing, hiking, traveling and interior decorating and design.

Timothy (Tim) Brainerd

CEO

As CEO of Revenue Enterprises for almost 20 years, Tim Brainerd leads by example. He promotes a shared vision and stewards a culture of Integrity, Passion, and Respect. He has assembled and empowered high-performing talent and teams to support customers, facilitate strategic planning and manage the capital of the company. Under his leadership, Revenue Enterprises has doubled in size three times over the past fifteen years while maintaining a culture of caring and gratefulness.

Tim has close to four decades of revenue cycle experience, including nineteen years with RSI
Enterprises. He has been a past president of Colorado Chapter of the HFMA and a presenting speaker on the topic of Leadership. He is a fifteen-year member of Vistage International, the world’s largest CEO coaching and peer advisory organization for small and midsize business leaders.

Raised in the Midwest, Tim values humble principles like being respectful, caring, passionate, self-reliant, and most importantly grateful. His most important lesson and the lesson he hopes to pass on in all relationships is living the Golden Rule–do unto others as you would have them do unto you. He is intentional in his choices and believes in making decisions, taking action, being accountable, and loving your neighbors.

Whenever possible, Tim spends his time with his wife of nearly forty years, his adult children, and his grandchildren. His hobbies include fishing, golfing, traveling as well as game nights and sharing great food with his family.