Breaking Barriers and Leading Innovation: A Conversation with Priti Shah, CTO & CPO and Top 50 Women Healthcare Technology Leaders

Question: Can you share a bit about your journey to becoming a CTO and CPO in healthcare technology? What inspired you to pursue this path?

Priti Shah: My journey has been driven by passion, resilience, and a touch of serendipity. From the start, I was captivated by the intersection of technology and healthcare—how innovation can fundamentally enhance and transform lives. Early on, I knew I wanted to play a key role in shaping this evolution. Along the way, I’ve had the privilege of collaborating with remarkable teams and mentors who shared and supported my vision. Stepping into dual roles as CTO and CPO has given me the unique opportunity to bridge technology and product development, ensuring that we’re not just building advanced solutions, but ones that truly address the real needs of our users.

Question: As a woman in a primarily male-driven field, what challenges have you faced, and how have you overcome them?

Priti Shah: As a woman CTO and CPO in a traditional health tech industry, I’ve certainly faced challenges, but each has been an opportunity for growth and change. There have been times when my expertise was questioned, or I was the only woman in the room. I’ve tackled this by ensuring that my work speaks for itself – delivering results, staying ahead of industry trends, and confidently asserting my expertise.

Early in my career, I noticed that decisions were often made in informal settings where women were underrepresented. I made a conscious effort to build strong professional networks, seek mentors, and create opportunities to be part of key conversations. I also mentor other women to help them navigate similar challenges.

Leadership roles come with immense pressure, and as a woman, there’s often an additional expectation to “do it all.” I’ve learned to set boundaries, delegate effectively, and prioritize what truly matters. Through resilience, adaptability, and a strong support network, I’ve remained focused on making meaningful contributions, driving innovation, and paving the way for more women in tech and healthcare leadership.

Question: What does breaking the glass ceiling mean to you, and how do you hope to inspire the next generation of women leaders?

Priti Shah: Breaking the glass ceiling means shattering invisible barriers that have historically limited women from reaching the highest levels of leadership, especially in male-dominated fields like healthcare and technology. It’s about not just earning a seat at the table but also reshaping the table—challenging biases, advocating for diversity, and proving that leadership is about capability, not gender.

For me, breaking the glass ceiling is both a personal and collective mission. It means demonstrating that technical expertise, strategic vision, and leadership are not defined by gender, and it’s about making sure that the challenges I face become stepping stones for the women who come after me.

Breaking the glass ceiling isn’t just about personal achievement; it’s about lifting others as we rise. I want the next generation of women leaders to see no ceiling at all—only limitless potential.

I am committed to actively mentoring women in tech and healthcare, advocating for them in leadership spaces, and ensuring they have opportunities to grow. I hope to inspire the next generation by showing them that it’s possible to lead with authenticity, empathy, and strength. I continue to advocate for workplace policies that enable an optimal work-life balance, equitable pay, and leadership opportunities for women.

Question: Healthcare technology is a complex and rapidly evolving field. What excites you most about the innovations happening right now?

Priti Shah: My vision for the future of healthcare technology centers around creating a more connected, personalized, and equitable healthcare ecosystem where healthcare becomes more accessible, efficient, and individualized, resulting in a system that better meets the needs of patients while reducing costs and improving overall health outcomes.

The integration of cutting-edge technologies will allow us to create a healthcare system that is smarter, more responsive, and more human-centered. 

At Iodine Software, we aim to solve challenges in two critical areas of revenue cycle- clinical documentation integrity and medical necessity. Short falls in either area can have a significant impact on revenue integrity of health systems. Central to our mission is breaking down silos between UM and CDI, creating the right summaries at the right point in time. By taking the most complex patient documentation across the continuum of care, we discern actionable insights that drive meaningful impact that trickle down to patient care, throughput, quality, denial reduction and capturing an accurate reflection of all the care provided during a patient’s hospital stay. 

One of the other exciting aspects of our recent advancements is the improvement in overall efficiency. Our end-users no longer need to sift through the vast sea of the EMR to find critical details. Instead, we have leveraged the cutting-edge technology to curate the most relevant, up to date summaries for users right within their workflow. This empowers clinicians to make timely, informed decisions that enhance patient outcomes and operational performance. 

 I’m excited about the possibilities and proud to be part of a team that’s shaping the future of healthcare by addressing these critical challenges head-on. 

Question: What is your leadership philosophy, and how do you balance the dual roles of CTO and CPO?

Priti Shah: My leadership philosophy is rooted in trust, empowerment, collaboration, and purpose-driven innovation. I believe that great leadership isn’t about having all the answers—it’s about creating an environment where teams feel inspired, supported, and empowered to solve complex problems. I lead with a user-first mindset, ensuring that both technology and product decisions are guided by real-world impact.

Balancing the responsibilities of both Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and Chief Product Officer (CPO) requires a strategic, integrated approach. Rather than seeing these roles as separate, I view them as complementary forces that must work in harmony to build transformative healthcare solutions. With technology and healthcare evolving rapidly, I emphasize agility—staying ahead of trends while ensuring we remain user-centric, scalable,secure and compliant.

Ultimately, I see my dual role as an opportunity to seamlessly align technology and product strategy, ensuring that we’re not just building innovative solutions, but ones that truly deliver value, improve lives, and drive meaningful change in healthcare.

Question: What advice would you give to aspiring leaders, especially women, who want to make an impact in technology or healthcare?

Priti Shah: For aspiring leaders, particularly women in technology or healthcare, I would just say that your voice, experiences, and insights bring something unique to the table. Embrace your individuality and understand that diversity, especially in leadership roles, can lead to more innovative solutions.

There will be challenges, and at times, the path may feel uncertain. Developing resilience is key. Surround yourself with mentors and peers who uplift and challenge you and always continue to learn and adapt. Confidence grows with experience and self-belief.

I also advocate remaining true to your values and principles. Being an authentic leader will help you connect with your team and stakeholders, making it easier to drive meaningful change.

And lastly, understand not only the technology but also the business side of things—how decisions impact revenue, growth, and overall success. This will allow you to be a more strategic and impactful leader.

Question: Looking ahead, what is your vision for the future of healthcare technology, and how do you see Iodine Software contributing to that future?

Priti Shah: What excites me most about healthcare technology today is its transformative potential to improve patient outcomes, enhance accessibility, and redefine the way care is delivered. We’re at a pivotal moment where advancements in AI, data analytics, and digital health are bridging critical gaps in the industry.

The ability to detect diseases earlier, predict patient risks, and tailor treatments based on individual genetics and health data is revolutionizing care. Telehealth, wearable technology, and remote patient monitoring are making healthcare more accessible and proactive, shifting the focus from reactive treatment to continuous, preventive care.

AI-driven automation is reducing administrative burdens, allowing clinicians to focus on patient care rather than paperwork.

One of the examples is how Iodine leverages the latest technologies to boost the impact of our solutions in the market, such as leveraging GenAI to drive further efficiencies and time savings in the days of our users. For clinical staff members, every second counts and we take pride in utilizing every opportunity to reduce administrative burden amongst clinical staff. While LLMs and GenAI are becoming increasingly common, our innovation team is focused on leveraging the power of LLMs to more accurately capture the meaning of the documentation and use that to increase the specificity and accuracy of predictions, which we already are ahead of the curve with the effectiveness of our machine learning models.

At Iodine, we’re not just using large language models (LLMs); we’re strategically integrating them with other powerful AI technologies like natural language processing (NLP) and classical machine learning models. We carefully select technologies that best solve specific problems and deliver maximum value to our users and clients. Our decade-long experience in AI, coupled with a vast set of clinical data, empowers us to craft advanced machine learning models that work exceptionally well in tandem with LLMs.

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Priti’s journey exemplifies the transformative power of resilience, innovation, and visionary leadership. As she continues to break barriers and drives progress in healthcare technology, she stands as an inspiring role model for women and leaders across industries. We are incredibly proud to have her at the helm of Iodine Software and eagerly anticipate the groundbreaking advancements and impactful changes she will lead in the years to come.

Join us in shaping the future of healthcare technology. Whether you’re a clinician, a technologist or a leader passionate about making a difference, we invite you to explore how Iodine Software is revolutionizing healthcare through cutting-edge AI and clinical intelligence.

Learn more about our mission and join the movement: Contact our team at Iodine Software

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