Bindu Varghese ’00, ’14

CEO, Encompass Health Rehabilitation Hospital of Sugarland

As CEO of Encompass Health Rehabilitation Hospital of Sugarland, Bindu Varghese serves as the administrative officer of the hospital exercising general management of the numerous daily business operations of the hospital. Varghese received both of her degrees from Texas Woman’s University graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Occupational Therapy in 2000 and her MBA in 2014. To enable the hospital to carry out its objectives in the provision of health care and participation in community health programs, Varghese administers, directs and coordinates all activities, overseeing operations and serving as liaison with the medical staff and departments while overseeing the effective utilization of physical and financial resources.

What do you enjoy about your current position/profession? I enjoy the day-to-day interactions that I have with people at my hospital who are from all walks of life. I feel like I learn a lot from them. I also love to be able to assist a fellow co-worker, patient, or family in any way.

What characteristics do you look for when hiring people into your workplace? When looking for worthy candidates, I always look for what type of personality they have. Are they nice, humble, do they appear personable? An individual can have a pristine resume but without the right attitude, they will not be successful. 

What is your favorite TWU memory? My favorite memory of TWU is the comradery that I felt when I was at the Denton campus for my bachelors and the Houston campus for my masters. Everyone has a smile on his or her faces. The faculty and the students all come together and rally one another. It provided me with a great, positive learning experience that I will never forget.

What advice do you have for college students hoping to succeed professionally? The advice that I would give is that struggles and hardships are inevitable. Instead of asking, “why is this happening to me, why did I not get that promotion, why is this so hard?” I would start asking questions that start with what. For example, “what can I learn from this experience, what can I change in order to do better, I didn’t get the promotion so WHAT am I going to do next”? Push through the storm. Do not let hurt, pain, or discouragement be your leading force. You will waste valuable time if do. If a door slams in your face, then crawl through the window.

What makes an effective leader? Be authentic. Just because you are in a leadership position, does not mean you need to have a preconceived notion to behave in a manner of authority. Be yourself but still maintain a level of professionalism. Know your staff and build good rapports with them. I feel that an effective leader has many followers if they don’t seclude themselves by spending most their time in the “ivory tower.” Your staff want to see you frequently. It will make you more relatable to them.

What do you enjoy doing in your free time? I love spending time with my church and my family. This brings so much joy to my soul. And, if my soul is happy, then what I put out in my job will be positive. Secondly, if I do have some downtime from my beautiful family, I enjoy reading with a good cup of coffee.

Page last updated 1:16 PM, July 26, 2022