Business Fortune
A generation ago, many healthcare providers saw billing, coding, and reimbursement as unavoidable administrative burdens. Time, money, and energy were taken away from the primary goal of care by complicated regulations, manual workflows, and siloed systems, which frequently led to delayed reimbursements, rejected claims, and overworked employees. Labs, imaging facilities, and pharmacies found it difficult to survive as diagnostics grew in a world where viability was increasingly defined by speed, compliance, and scalability.
A new generation of healthcare-tech companies entered this market intending to rethink the way money moves through healthcare, not as a necessary evil but as a crucial enabler of high-quality, sustainable medicine. XiFin is one of them. XiFin, which has its roots in revenue cycle management, has gradually expanded its ambition from billing and accounts receivable to a single, AI-powered infrastructure that connects data across labs, providers, and payors as well as clinical processes and financial systems.
In an exclusive interview with Business Fortune, we speak with Niki Wallace, XiFin’s Chief People Officer, to explore how this transformation is not just technological but deeply human. Because when a company commits to ‘doing good,’ its success ultimately depends on the people who believe in that mission.
Interview Highlights
How has XiFin’s mission evolved over the years, and in what ways has that evolution impacted the role of Chief People Officer (CPO)?
XiFin’s mission has evolved from being purely a healthcare software company focused on delivering efficiency and financial performance to becoming a comprehensive technology partner that empowers healthcare organizations to achieve both clinical and financial excellence. Over time, XiFin has expanded beyond traditional revenue cycle management to develop an integrated suite of AI-driven, automated solutions designed to bring precision, speed, and transparency to financial operations.
Today, XiFin leverages advanced automation and AI to help customers eliminate manual bottlenecks, improve claim accuracy, and reduce time-to-reimbursement. These innovations enable diagnostic laboratories, imaging centers, pharmacies, and medical device companies to use data and analytics to inform decisions across the revenue cycle.
XiFin has also expanded its digital ecosystem through secure portals and API-based connectivity, enabling customers to easily integrate with complementary systems, including EHRs, LIS, pharmacy management, and patient engagement platforms. This level of interoperability simplifies collaboration between providers, payors, and patients – delivering the seamless data exchange and transparency that modern healthcare demands.
The company’s guiding principle, THE POWER TO DO GOOD®, reflects this evolution. XiFin’s mission is no longer confined to improving billing efficiency – it’s about empowering providers to focus on care delivery while ensuring that the financial infrastructure supporting that care is resilient, accurate, and sustainable.
For Niki Wallace, this evolution has redefined what it means to be a Chief People Officer. Her role is now that of a strategic catalyst for aligning people and purpose.
As XiFin continues to innovate, Niki’s focus extends beyond talent acquisition and retention to cultivate a workforce that is deeply passionate about healthcare innovation and fluent in the technologies driving it. Her team prioritizes learning, adaptability, and cross-functional collaboration, ensuring employees have the skills and mindset to thrive in an AI-enabled, data-driven environment.
Under her leadership, XiFin’s People team plays a critical role in preparing the organization for its next stage of growth by embedding the company’s mission at every level of the employee experience. Through targeted development programs, continuous learning initiatives, and a focus on shared purpose, Niki ensures that employees understand how their work contributes not only to XiFin’s success but also to the success of its customers and the advancement of patient care.
By connecting every employee’s role to XiFin’s mission, Niki fosters a culture of accountability, empathy, and innovation – one where people see themselves not just as employees of a technology company, but as enablers of the greater good in healthcare.
From an operational standpoint, how do you structure teams, processes, and culture internally to ensure XiFin can scale effectively and keep pace with its growth?
XiFin’s HR organization operates under a Center of Excellence (CoE) model. This allows the company to scale effectively while maintaining high standards of compliance and operational excellence. Dedicated HR business partners are embedded within key functions – including Engineering, Product Development, and Client Services – to ensure close alignment with each team’s goals and challenges.
Specialized groups oversee centralized HR functions, such as HRIS, compensation and benefits, and learning and development. This structure ensures expertise is shared across the organization. HR serves as both a strategic advisor and an operational backbone.
Technology plays an essential role. The team leverages AI and automation to streamline repetitive tasks, such as talent sourcing, onboarding, data management, and reporting. This enables HR professionals to focus on higher-value tasks, such as coaching leaders, developing skills, and shaping the organizational culture.
Culturally, XiFin emphasizes a customer excellence mindset, treating employees as internal customers. Niki’s team ensures that every employee has the tools, systems, and development opportunities needed to perform at their best. This philosophy has become a cornerstone of XiFin’s ability to grow efficiently while maintaining the agility and innovation expected of a leader in healthcare technology.
Looking ahead to the next three to five years, what major trends in healthcare diagnostics and revenue cycle management do you believe XiFin must prepare for (related to your role as Chief People Officer)?
The most transformative trend shaping both healthcare and the workforce is the rise of AI and automation – not as replacements for people, but as enablers of more meaningful work. For XiFin, which operates at the intersection of technology and healthcare reimbursement, AI will continue to streamline revenue cycle processes, improve accuracy, and accelerate reimbursement for providers.
From an HR perspective, this evolution requires a parallel transformation in skills and culture. Niki’s team is implementing a comprehensive AI learning and upskilling strategy to help employees embrace these technologies and expand their capacity for innovation within existing staffing models.
What energizes Niki most is the growing alignment of purpose and performance, largely driven by a new generation that demands authenticity, accountability, and measurable impact from their employers. Recognizing that Gen Z views purpose as a catalyst for innovation, Niki has championed the integration of XiFin’s mission, THE POWER TO DO GOOD, into every facet of leadership and talent development. Niki strives to ensure that each employee, whether just starting out or leading teams, can connect their daily contributions to real progress in the healthcare ecosystem. This alignment between values and value creation enables XiFin to attract, develop, and empower purpose-driven talent ready to make an impact.
As CPO, what guiding philosophy drives your approach to aligning XiFin’s talent strategy with the company’s innovation agenda and long-term growth trajectory?
At the core of Niki’s leadership is the belief that when people feel connected to one another and to a purpose, they bring their authentic selves and do their best work. In the six years since Niki joined XiFin, the HR function has evolved from a tactical supporter to a proactive, collaborative discipline that functions as a strategic partner aligned with the business strategy.
This transformation aligns closely with XiFin’s innovation agenda. HR is embedded in product development discussions, customer experience initiatives, and digital transformation projects. This enables Niki’s team to anticipate workforce needs, identify emerging skills, and build learning structures that foster innovation at scale.
Most importantly, Niki connects talent strategy to XiFin’s core mission by ensuring every role has a clear line of sight to impact. When employees understand how their work contributes to enabling better healthcare, engagement, and innovation follows.
How have HR leaders and the CPO’s roles changed or are changing?
The CPO role has undergone a fundamental transformation – from enforcing policy to architecting culture and performance. Traditionally, HR was seen as a regulator of policies and conduct, focused on compliance, conflict resolution, and enforcement. Today, it operates as a strategic partner responsible for aligning talent with business strategy and shaping the employee experience from start to finish. HR now works closely with business leaders to define what excellence looks like across roles and departments, emphasizing clarity, accountability, and continuous feedback.
Niki highlights HR’s dual responsibility: empowering employees and supporting managers. Her team ensures both groups have access to the resources, training, and communication channels they need to succeed. At XiFin, the HR function is directly connected to customer experience – because when employees are engaged, they build better solutions, ultimately delivering stronger outcomes for customers.
With AI, automation, and data analytics becoming central to modern organizations, how are these technologies reshaping workforce planning and skills development within XiFin’s organizational structure?
AI, automation, and data analytics are transforming how XiFin approaches workforce planning, learning, and performance management. Within HR, analytics inform strategic decisions around staffing models, talent forecasting, and employee engagement. Predictive insights help identify capability gaps before they become barriers to innovation.
In Learning & Development, AI enables the creation of “snackable” and adaptive learning experiences – modular content that’s tailored to the learner’s role, pace, and preferred format. These microlearning modules align with XiFin’s emphasis on continuous education and on-demand access to knowledge.
Data analytics also enhance XiFin’s ability to evaluate talent objectively. Performance metrics, behavioral assessments, and growth indicators help identify potential leaders and map personalized career development pathways.
About | Niki Wallace
Niki Wallace has spent her career in the life sciences and healthcare industries, leading HR teams through transformation and growth. Before joining XiFin in 2019, Niki spent over fifteen years in increasingly senior HR leadership roles at ResMed, where she served as Director and HR Integration Leader for the Healthcare Informatics division and later as Director of Learning and Development for North America.
Niki joined XiFin as Vice President of Human Resources and was quickly promoted to Chief People Officer. She has helped guide the company through growth and cultural evolution. Her leadership has shaped XiFin’s people strategy into a strategic engine that fuels innovation, engagement, and performance across the organization.
