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Reader Survey Results: Quitting CHIME

May 13, 2017 News 1 Comment

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At a CIO’s request, I asked former and current CHIME members who have either quit or thought it to explain why.


I was once a CIO member years ago. Great networking and exchange of ideas. I became vendor, and after several years, pulled out. It became a pay-to-play with diminishing value. Let me tell you, even the sponsor companies don’t like it much.


It’s become a mini-me of HIMSS.


Vendors are running the show and there is no sense of working to better the industry.


CHIMe used to be an exclusive group of of IT executives and limited number of foundation members (vendors and consultants). Now it’s a mini-HIMSS dominated by vendors, with limited value for all participants. I’m not sure what CHIME’s mission is any more.


Way more time spent with the Foundation members than with fellow CIOs.


It has become so vendor-heavy and the membership drive now allows most anyone to join.


As a CHIME Foundation member for 12 years, I am disgusted with the direction both CHIME and HIMSS are going. It has become a”Russ Branzell “let’s look as much like HIMSS as we can” show. Quantity is more important than being a true CIO venue, having invited people as far down as the director level. I talk to a lot of CIOs who are no longer attending CHIME because of their new focus on money rather than collaboration. As a vendor, I no longer get the same value and am paying a lot more money for decreased value. I still feel I have to belong, just like HIMSS, because absence in noted more than presence.


Just like HIMSS, all about collecting vendor money and less about colleagues teaching and learning from each other. It is overwhelming being a CIO and have to deal with eight vendor staff to each one of us.


As long as CHIME works to keep the vendor contacts at the highest executive levels (Carl, Judy, etc.) it is fine. Complete openness and transparency is needed to give confidence that it exists to serve its members and not enrich its leaders though lucrative associations and spin-off ventures.


I’ve been involved in HIMSS and CHIME for many years, but have limited participation due to the vendor involvement. This has changed the focus for both organizations from members to vendors.


The move away from being a CIO-focused organization to having a variety of members, especially vendor firms.


It has taken on the same mentality as HIMSS — expand the focus to more vendors and non-CIO types. I attended HIMSS for the education sessions and the focus moved away from them. I attended CHIME for networking and CIO sessions to learn what others were doing. Sorry to say this has grown so much it does not work any more. It does not matter to me anyway because I have retired. There is a group of CIOs that formed HISEA. I could not join because a competitor CIO was already a member and that rules out many. But the concept was centered on presentations of great new ideas for other CIOs.


They are selling access to us. It felt a bit more subtle in the past, but is not that way and feels far more commercial.


I don’t like the Fall Forum. Too many vendors, the focus groups are a waste. It is clearly a business, not a professional society. Too bad.


Seeing declining value from participation year to year.


I was booted from CHIME after being a long-time member because I became employed by a healthcare vendor instead of a healthcare provider. I understand the rules, but there are plenty of old timers who are still members even after they went to work on the vendor side because their company has the massive funds to become a CHIME foundation member. So two reasons why I wouldn’t rejoin CHIME even it they would let me: 1) CHIME negates your years of healthcare provider experience once you go to work for a vendor, and 2) they purposefully exclude many vendors from the foundation by charging a huge amount of money for that privilege. I think that CHIME has done great work in the past, but I hate to see it become so commercialized and HIMSS-like.


The leadership seems more committed to growing members and expanding rather than serving the needs of the current membership.


Not providing value.


Insufficient value from membership.


I am considering it. The Fall Forum was the highlight of the year for networking with fellow CIOs and the Foundation firms. The last event I went to, the experience had dramatically changed. Now vendors have booths and instead of one or two people from a Foundation firm, there are MANY. Likewise on the CIO side. There are associate members that may number greater than the number of actual CIOs in attendance. This has moved from a very effective, intimate industry leader gathering to a mini-HIMSS. And who needs that? CHIME is clearly focused on growing revenue, just like HIMSS. I hope HIMSS selects a new leader that can actually save HIMSS from itself and that CHIME leadership watches closely and learns.



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Currently there is "1 comment" on this Article:

  1. I get that CHIME has to make money, but the question is how much is enough. I think the Associate Membership is a good idea, as we should be growing the crop of next generation CIOs, but there should be separate educational sessions for seasoned CIOs and Associates, with some limited joint sessions.

    As for Foundation Firm members, I agree with some of the other comments about being a long term member. I do think if you pass your CHCIO exam, you should be able to retain membership as long as you can prove you maintain competence.







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