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Hiring a Revenue Cycle Manager: Job Description, Pay and More

icon of revenue cycle for patient-provider journey

Revenue Cycle Managers (RCMs) are becoming an essential role that more healthcare facilities are relying on to reduce friction in their patients’ experiences. To allow physicians to focus on the health of their patients, it’s common to hire an RCM to manage billing and reimbursements.

Let’s examine the role of a revenue manager, what to include in a job description, and skills to identify to help you secure a top revenue cycle manager for your healthcare organization.

What Is a Revenue Cycle Manager and Why Do You Need One?

The role of an RCM improves patient relations and optimizes cash flow. Healthcare revenue cycles can be complex so any errors could delay or halt reimbursements from insurers and patients. Because of this, a revenue cycle manager’s scope of responsibility encompasses all administrative and clinical functions that contribute to capturing, managing, and collecting revenue.

To avoid hiccups of any sort, these professionals are typically involved in every financial transaction that occurs throughout all stages of the patient-provider journey—even from the moment a patient schedules their first appointment.


Related: How to Offer Stability to Your Permanent Healthcare Staff


What To Include in a Revenue Cycle Manager Job Description

When creating a job description for an RCM, identify exactly where they will be needed and what tools they’ll need to succeed within your facility. Many stages occur throughout a typical provider revenue cycle, but the steps will differ based on the healthcare specialty and services.

To be as specific as possible, take the following into consideration.

Stages of the healthcare revenue cycle that RCMs typically oversee:

  • Patient registration: gathering billable information and verifying insurance eligibility
  • Charge capture: recording the services and procedures provided to the patient
  • Claim submission: preparing and submitting claims to insurance providers
  • Payment posting: recording the payments received from patients and insurers
  • Accounts receivable management: following up on unpaid claims and managing denials or appeals
  • Patient billing and collection: generating statements and collecting patient payments

Day-to-day tasks:

  • Supervising the stages of the revenue cycle and ensuring compliance
  • Analyzing revenue data to remove friction points
  • Communicating with insurance providers
  • Training staff involved in revenue cycle functions
  • Optimizing the use of technology and automation to reduce errors and improve customer relations

Revenue Cycle Manager Skills

Revenue cycle managers require a strong skillset to manage the various aspects of their role. A mix of hard and soft skills to look for in RCM candidates include:

  • Proficiency in using healthcare information systems and billing software
  • In-depth knowledge of healthcare billing and reimbursement processes
  • Analytical and critical thinking
  • Financial management expertise
  • Strong ability to problem-solve
  • Adaptable to change
  • Attention to detail
  • Communication
  • Organization

Related: Do You Have a Skills Gap at your Organization?


Revenue Cycle Manager Education & Qualifications

There aren’t formal requirements to become an RCM, but many employers prefer candidates with an associate or bachelor’s degree in healthcare administration, finance, or another related field. Along with education, many employers seek candidates with experience in a healthcare setting, especially prior experience in healthcare billing or financial management. And given the level of management, some employers may prefer individuals with supervisor experience.

Job Outlook & Pay

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) considers Revenue Cycle Managers a part of a broader category of medical and health services managers but anticipates growth for these positions to grow 28% over the coming decade. The median annual wage for these highly skilled professionals is $104,830.

Ready To Hire Your Next Revenue Cycle Manager?

The role of an RCM is about more than cutting costs in the revenue cycle— it’s about strategically removing billing roadblocks and upholding the processes and policies of healthcare facility operations. To stay on top of the demand and hire top candidates in this field, hiring managers are encouraged to be strategic to attract top talent. If you need some help getting started, reach out to our team of experts to get started on connecting you with qualified candidates!

Hiring a Revenue Cycle Manager?