Director of Clinical Documentation Integrity (CDI) Recruiters
Healthcare Headhunters recruits healthcare professionals for employers. No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
This is what we do all day: recruit healthcare professionals.
Hire a CDI director who can turn unclear records into clinically supported queries, accurate DRGs, and useful physician feedback.
No postings. No stacks of resumes. No chasing. You interview a short list.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
Need someone now? Call 305-306-4829.
Get a free talent snapshot · Get a free job description review
What happens next
- We review your role, responsibilities and location.
- Ivan or a senior team member will reach out soon.
- You meet a focused shortlist when qualified candidates fit the agreed search.
- Fees.
- No upfront fee. Pay only if you hire, under the signed agreement.
- Exclusivity.
- Set out in the signed client agreement.
- Confidentiality.
- We agree the brief before outreach. This is not a promise of absolute anonymity.
- No hire.
- No hire means no fee on standard searches.
- CDI Manager
- CDI Program Director
What does an open seat cost you every week?
An open role costs you more than the recruiting fee. Someone covers the work, waits for care, or stops a service. We ask what is falling behind and who is carrying it. Use your own figures to compare the cost of waiting with the cost of hiring.
The seat is costing you every week.
Overtime, diverted patients, a stretched team and a schedule held together by favors.
The posting brought the wrong people.
Applicants arrive, but the person who has done this exact work is employed and not looking.
You are the one chasing.
Screening calls, no-shows and follow-ups land on the desk of someone with a facility to run.
What does this hire really come down to?
Incomplete documentation can affect CMI, DRG assignment, HCC capture, quality reporting, and denial review. You need a leader who can read the chart, challenge unsupported assumptions, and speak with providers about the clinical facts. Healthcare Headhunters recruits permanent CDI leaders on contingency.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
A Director of Clinical Documentation Integrity runs more than a query queue. During a normal week, this leader reviews query and response patterns, audits disputed records, meets with coding and CDI staff, and prepares specialty-specific education. They decide whether a finding needs a query, a coding discussion, or no action because the record lacks clinical support.
Test judgment where clinical evidence meets provider time. Ask how the candidate responds when a physician rejects a query, when denial findings point to documentation gaps, or when query volume rises without stronger response rates. Strong leaders adjust review criteria, education, and escalation paths instead of asking staff to send more queries.
What do we check before you see anyone?
We screen for CCDS from ACDIS or CDIP from AHIMA. The credential shows formal CDI preparation. Your team decides whether either certificate is mandatory for the opening. We ask about an RN or physician clinical background. For RN candidates, ask whether they hold the license your role calls for.
- We explore how they assess indicators, conflicting notes, and disease severity before approving a query.
- We test CMI, DRG, and HCC knowledge with practical questions. For example, we may ask how they separate a documentation opportunity from a diagnosis that the chart does not clinically support.
- We ask how they review query wording and governance. Candidates should explain how they handle leading language, physician escalation, repeat nonresponses, and requests aimed only at a favorable financial outcome.
- We examine work with CDI specialists, coding, case management, quality, and physician advisors. Ask which findings need joint review, who resolves disagreements, and what reports reach leadership.
- We ask for a provider education example. A useful answer names the specialty, the documentation issue, the teaching method, and the measure reviewed afterward.
Where do we find them, and why would they move?
Our search can include CDI specialists ready for broader program ownership and leaders from CDI vendors. Vendor experience may bring exposure to different program models, but you should test internal staff leadership, physician relationships, and accountability after recommendations are adopted.
People may explore a move when their current job is limited to record review, when their reporting role has outgrown the title, or when they want broader physician engagement. We discuss their reasons, contractual obligations, reporting preferences, and interest in the work your program needs.
Which mistakes stall the search?
A common mistake is choosing a coding-focused manager who cannot explain why a query is clinically supported can weaken provider confidence and create disputes over findings. Another is hiring for a credential alone without testing responses to low physician response rates is a mistake. Ask what the candidate changed when education did not improve chart completion.
Leaving decision rights unclear can create confusion. Define ownership for query policy, provider escalation, CDI staffing input, and reporting on DRGs, CMI, denials, and HCCs.
How would we run the search for this opening?
We start with your program structure. We review credentials, work history, and fit through CDI-specific questions. You meet candidates who match the agreed scope. Ask each finalist to explain how they would review a disputed query, resolve a coding disagreement, and evaluate specialty education results.
Define the director’s remit
Tell us which measures matter, where providers resist queries, which teams report to the role, and whether the director will rebuild processes or lead an established team.
Screen for clinical judgment
We ask about query governance, provider education, CMI, DRG, and HCC reporting, plus responses to contested documentation.
Present and close the search
Compare their decisions with your program’s clinical review standards and reporting responsibilities. We coordinate interviews and feedback, then help clarify title, reporting structure, compensation, and start expectations. We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.
Where this search connects
Revenue Cycle, Reimbursement & HIM
SpecialtyHospitals & Health Systems
SettingPhysician Groups & Specialty Practices
SettingAmbulatory Surgery Centers & Surgical Hospitals
SettingHome Health & Hospice
SettingVP of Revenue Cycle
Related roleDirector of Revenue Cycle
Related roleDirector of Patient Financial Services (PFS / CBO)
Related roleDirector of Patient Access
Related roleNational median annual wage. SOC 11-9111, Medical and Health Services Managers.
BLS reports Medical and Health Services Managers as one occupation. It does not publish a separate estimate for Director of Clinical Documentation Integrity (CDI), its setting or its engagement terms.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS, 2025-05, released 2026-05-15. View source. See the full guide.
Open roles
Not ready to start a search?
Get a free talent snapshot
We tell you where qualified Director of Clinical Documentation Integrity (CDI) are working in your area and what it takes to move them. No fee. No obligation.
Get a free job description review
Paste or upload the JD. We flag unclear scope, requirements and terms that may put strong candidates off. No fee. No obligation.
Do we need an RN or physician for this position?
An RN or physician background is a key screen because the director must assess clinical indicators and discuss records credibly with providers. We ask how the candidate used that judgment in query review and education, not merely whether they hold a clinical title.
Should CCDS or CDIP be mandatory?
CCDS or CDIP is a stated credential preference and gives you a consistent comparison point. Your organization decides whether one certificate is mandatory. We screen candidates against the choice you make for this search.
How do we assess CMI, DRG, and HCC experience?
Ask what measures the candidate monitored, who received the findings, and what action followed. Strong answers connect a finding to compliant query review, coding collaboration, provider education, or denial analysis. They do not claim every metric improves through more queries.
Can someone from a CDI vendor succeed internally?
Vendor experience can transfer when it includes responsibility for query policy and staff performance. Test whether the person has led internal staff, handled provider escalation, owned policy decisions, and remained accountable after recommendations moved into practice. Advisory exposure alone may not show readiness for daily program leadership.
Do you recruit interim CDI directors?
We arrange locum tenens, travel and contract coverage on request. Credentialing, licensing and malpractice coverage are confirmed per engagement before anyone starts.
What should you send us about this role?
Send us the role, where the person will work and what needs to change with this hire. We will ask about the work, not just the title. Share any license or schedule limits that could rule someone out before we begin the search.
If you need a CDI director, tell us where the record breaks down and who must change it. We will begin with the clinical, credential, reporting, and leadership questions that shape your search.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire. We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.
What happens next
- We review your role, responsibilities and location.
- Ivan or a senior team member will reach out soon.
- You meet a focused shortlist when qualified candidates fit the agreed search.
- Fees.
- No upfront fee. Pay only if you hire, under the signed agreement.
- Exclusivity.
- Set out in the signed client agreement.
- Confidentiality.
- We agree the brief before outreach. This is not a promise of absolute anonymity.
- No hire.
- No hire means no fee on standard searches.
Which other positions in this family should you consider?
What do you get at each step of the search?
Our process for every search: calibrate the seat with you, map the market, research the real people, reach out to each one personally, qualify them in live conversation, then hand you a short list with a written brief on each person and support through the offer.
Search Calibration
You get an agreed brief: the work, reporting line, credentials, schedule, and offer you can make.
Market Mapping
You get a search aimed at relevant backgrounds, including people working now who have not applied.
Professional Contact Intelligence
We check appropriate ways to reach the people identified for your search. You do not have to chase them yourself.
Persistent Personalized Outreach
We explain your actual job and follow up with people who may consider a conversation.
Live Candidate Qualification
You see people we have spoken with about the work, interest, and practical fit, not an unread resume pile.
Candidate Intelligence and Process Support
You get a written brief and support through interviews and offer discussions. You make the hiring decision.
How long will it take to see a short list?
That depends on the job, schedule, available people, and what your employer can offer. We discuss those constraints before outreach and update you as candidates respond. We do not promise a fixed shortlist date. We check the job brief before arranging interviews. Tell us which parts of the role you can change.
What if a candidate receives a counteroffer?
We ask why the person wants to move and discuss competing decisions before an offer. A counteroffer can still change their choice. Keep the duties and offer clear rather than assuming more money settles every concern. Tell us early if parts of your offer cannot change, so the candidate hears it from us first.
What are the replacement terms?
We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement. Ask us to walk through those terms before you sign, so you know how a replacement would work for your opening and who would start it.
What do we not do in a standard permanent search?
We do not bill standard contingency search by the hour or simply repost your job. Temporary coverage is a separate arrangement. Any retainer or different engagement must be agreed, not assumed. Tell us early if you need coverage while the permanent search runs.