Meet Our Leadership Team

Kurt has devoted his entire career to serving in the healthcare industry. He started as a physical therapist before honing his leadership skills as Rehab Manager, Director of Clinical Services, President and Chief Operating Officer. As the CEO of CORA, his goal of helping people and empowering teams to success will not change, only expand. Kurt is active in several professional associations, has been published in trade periodicals and invited as faculty at professional conferences on various health care topics. He completed a fellowship at the University of Pittsburgh Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of business. He holds a master’s degree in Physical Therapy and a bachelor’s degree in Health Sciences, both from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Steve has more than 19 years of accounting and finance experience, operating in several roles at Ernst & Young, LLP, most recently as Senior Manager-Assurance, prior to joining CORA. He received a BS in accounting from the University of Toledo and is a member of the Ohio Society of CPAs. While at Ernst & Young, Steve operated on the engagement teams of multiple publicly traded and private clients while working in several industries, including healthcare. He also serves on the boards of directors of several nonprofit charity organizations in Northwest Ohio and has taught accounting-related continuing education classes.

Javier has been in the physical therapy industry since 1997. He started as a physical therapist with CORA in 2000, where his position has evolved from serving as a companywide leader in workers compensation and multi-market operations to his current role overseeing all existing clinic operations. Javi is a graduate of Florida International University with a BHS in Physical Therapy. He also completed the Stanford University School of Business Executive LEAD Program, Business/Organizational Design, and also earned his certification in OSHA outreach training for general industry from the University of South Florida, as well as a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt Certification.

For more than a decade, Kessem has handled compliance and clinical systems for CORA and now heads up those areas. Prior to CORA, Kessem was the Director of Dadeland Physical Therapy & Sports Medicine, a full-service outpatient physical therapy clinic. Kessem was also a lab instructor at the University of Miami, specializing in orthopedic and therapeutic exercise courses. Kessem is a graduate of the University of Miami with an MS in Physical Therapy.

Ahmad has more than 25 years of experience in the multi-site, education, and services industry. Before joining CORA, Ahmad was an IT Management Consultant at a multi-site dental service organization and the head of technology for an international childcare provider. Ahmad Malik has also served as IT Director for a publicly traded technology service company with an international footprint. He holds a Bachelor’s degree from Western Michigan University, a Master’s of Information Systems from Lawrence Technological University in Michigan, and an MBA from the University of Colorado at Denver. Ahmad also serves on the boards of directors of several nonprofit charitable organizations and schools.

Bill handles all sales and marketing activities and implementation of the company’s growth strategy, including CORA’s strategic alignments and partnerships for sales growth. Prior to working at CORA, he was the Director of Sales and Marketing – Imaging for the Adventist Healthcare System. With more than 25 years of experience in the healthcare industry, Bill has significant experience in ambulatory surgery center development and mergers and acquisitions. Bill has a BS degree from Providence College.