senator RocksLETTER FROM M. JOSEPH ROCKS

Chief Executive Officer and Chairman


A Look Back at the last 13 Years...
When I arrived at NHS in 2000, we had 7,000 employees, provided services in 48 Pennsylvania counties, New Jersey, Virginia and the District of Columbia. NHS was also facing a severe financial and leadership crisis. When I assumed my position as CEO, I did not realize that I was ushering in a new chapter in the history of NHS. This required the united efforts of an amazing team of professionals throughout the organization who worked closely with me to develop and execute a financial turnaround plan to address the key issues that threatened our future. Together, we instituted a variety of reforms to create a more solvent, financially secure corporation.

It has become one of the most amazing turnaround stories in nonprofit history. Although I was cautiously optimistic at that point, I had no idea the extent to which we would succeed and then exceed all expectations in the coming years. However, I had faith in the dedicated staff throughout NHS and started to see substantial changes and a real cultural change throughout the early years. Looking back, I continue to be amazed and grateful for the hard work and commitment by so many people to adapt to change, to make hard decisions, and to implement financial strategies to secure our future.

We implemented outcomes measurements and embraced change as an opportunity to meld performance improvement and quality assurance with our commitment to "do the right thing in the right way, always." Since implementing these standards, NHS has been recognized nationally for our commitment to quality and integrity, and I am so proud of a company of individuals who reflect our Core Values on a daily basis.

As I took the helm back then, I could not have predicted the challenges we would face or the hardships we would endure. However, I could also never have predicted how far we would exceed all expectations in rebuilding NHS. In 13 years we have gone from GOOD TO GREAT. We have been recognized as a national leader, we have continued to attract the best talent in our fields, and most importantly we have stayed on mission with an ever increasing awareness of our Core Values.

So where do we go in 2014? NHS employees, the management team, and the Boards of Directors have met every challenge to be the leaders of our industry in this nation. Our embrace of a technological future, a commitment to changing models of care, the drive to lead in the integration of behavioral and physical health care, offering the best administrative supports, and above all, the underlying pledge to support the mission that focuses on the lives of individuals we serve each day, will define our future!

We have the talent, the resources, and the resolve to not just achieve our strategic goals, but to lead this mission of caring and curing for some of the most vulnerable lives in our country. I could never be prouder of all that NHS has accomplished. I remain confident that NHS will succeed even further, by embracing and sharing the true spirit of NHS, our Core Values and our underlying commitment to be the best! This year's annual report reinforces our commitment to technology by highlighting our year-end initiatives and successes completely online. Throughout the report you will see quotes from previous annual reports that show we had hope for a bright future, even in the darkest of times. Please enjoy and take time to reflect on these visions that will continue to lead us into the future.


Sincerely,
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