Needham, MA - On November 29, 2012, Cora Cheng-Chong of Wellesley was honored with the Marilyn Gustafson Excellence in Management Award.  Leadership of Partners Healthcare Finance and Research Management convened at the Needham Sheraton for their semi-annual retreat, which is capped by the award presentation.

The award was named after Marilyn S. Gustafson, a corporate manager of Decision Support, for her superior management skills and nurturing style of leadership.  The criteria for nomination include teamwork and collaboration, management fundamentals, mentoring and developing staff, and leadership.

When presenting the award to Cheng-Chong, Peter Markell, Executive Vice President for Administration and Finance, commented that she is "focused on teamwork and as a lifelong learner, is interesed in learning from her team as well as sharing her knowledge."  Her nominators recognized her collaboration efforts, her desire to coach individuals, and highlighted that she stressed the importance and effectiveness of teamwork over individual concerns both within and across departments.