Samantha Ratanavipupong wins Inaugural StanfordMed Spark Tank

Samantha Ratanavipupong, a clinical operations manager in the Department of Pediatrics, Divisions of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition, is the winner of the first-ever Stanford Medicine Spark Tank. Spark Tank is a riff on the popular game show “Shark Tank” where entrepreneurs present their innovations to secure funding. Staff from across the School of Medicine were invited to submit proposals. Ratanavipupong’s presentation was titled: “Optimizing wRVU Generation & Clinical Operations Dashboard.”

“Winning the first-ever Stanford Spark Tank is an incredible honor, and it's a privilege to be part of the innovative culture that the School of Medicine represents,” said Ratanavipupong. “I hope this dashboard is just the beginning of what data-driven tools can do for clinical operations across Stanford Medicine.”

Clinical faculty generate revenue through work Relative Value Units (wRVUs), which are a standardized measure of the time, effort, and complexity involved in patient care.  Ratanavipupong says that when the Department of Pediatrics changed its bonus structure, "the need for better visibility into our division's billing patterns became clear."

“Our division's clinical affairs team had access to data, but it lived in separate reports and couldn't be visualized in a way that was actionable. I built this dashboard to change that, pulling from multiple sources to give leadership a comprehensive view of how our faculty are billing, where the gaps are, and where there are opportunities to improve,” said Ratanavipupong. “The result is a tool that goes beyond tracking numbers. For the first time, we can see coding patterns across the division side by side, helping us distinguish whether a gap is a volume problem or a coding intensity issue, and direct education and support where it's needed most.”

Jonathan DeVore, a faculty affairs specialist in the Department of Medicine took second place with "Finding Fortune with FAME - Academic Affairs database” and Cyrus Press, a finance and administrative associate in the Department of Surgery, took third with "Copilot Business Purpose & Expense Tool."

Each presentation was scored based on the following rubric: 

• How meaningful is the problem they're trying to solve? 
• Is the idea innovative or a creative improvement over the current process?  
• Is this a realistic idea/process considering technology, budget and staffing? 
• Could the idea expand to other departments or benefit the School of Medicine? 
• Was the pitch clear, organized, engaging, and persuasive? 

Judges—or “Sparks”—were senior leaders from the School of Medicine Dean's Office, including Michael Hallas, David Ho, Brian Hoffmeister, Victoria Leyton, Terrance Mayes, Archna Mehta, Allen Metzenberg, and Ellen Waxman.

“The inaugural Spark Tank was a tremendous success and was an opportunity for our innovative staff to bring forward ideas to improve the way we work, rethink some of our core functions and propel our missions forward,” said Michael Hallas, Associate Dean and Chief Operating Officer at Stanford School of Medicine. “It was fantastic to see such a broad representation of our departments throughout the School of Medicine and all the great work that is happening to make the School run more effectively. Congratulations to all the presenters and winners!”

Stanford Medicine’s Spark Tank was the brainchild of Stephanie Edelman, Morisa Guy,  and Shahla Haider, DFAs for the Departments of Surgery and Emergency Medicine, Orthopaedic Surgery, and Urology, respectively. They were inspired after they saw a presentation at the Association of Academic Surgical Administrators in 2025 by Jillian Quinn from the University of Colorado Anschutz Department of Surgery, who developed an administrative showcase at her institution. 

"We immediately thought it would be a fabulous, timely initiative to bring to Stanford with all the innovative and problem-solving staff we have,” said Edelman. "We formed a committee, who worked tirelessly for months to make this happen." 

In addition to the founders, the committee was comprised of Erica Dapelo-Garcia (Department of Medicine), Lisa Forneris (Department of Surgery), Kerry Makielski, (Department of Medicine), Mike Propst (Department of Pediatrics).

"We especially want to thank all of the additional staff across these departments who helped make this event a success," said Edelman.

Spark Tank organizers have been collecting feedback from participants and audience members and are hoping to host an even better Spark Tank in 2027.

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