Week 6

This week's focus was beginning to coordinate the interview portion of the project.  Several weeks ago, I made a list of individuals that my boss suggested would be good people to interview to learn more about the foundation's history.  This week, we decided on the first group of people to be contacted to set up an interview.  All four of the first group to be selected are individuals who played an important role in the beginning of the foundation-- the selling of Henrotin Hospital to Northwestern Memorial Group, the closing of the hospital, the conversion of the foundation from public to private, etc.

The first person I contacted this week was on the board of Henrotin Hospital before it was sold, and is currently the foundation's longest-standing board member.  We have a phone interview set up for next week, so I have been thinking of questions to ask him.  Having never interviewed anyone before, and never met one of the foundation's board members before, I'm a little nervous.  Most of my questions are focused on the first few years of the foundation, because he is the only board member who witnessed the creation of the foundation first-hand.  While I have read some of the minutes for the earliest foundation board meetings, I am hoping he can help clarify and give his own view of the process of decision making that went into starting the foundation.

The other individuals that I plan on contacting soon for an interview include two people who worked for Northwestern Memorial Group and were involved in the purchase of the hospital, and one of the original board members of the foundation who was involved in some of the legal details of the creation of the foundation, but has since resigned. 

I'm looking forward to finally starting the interview process, and hoping it goes well!