Spotlight on Alumni
Beth Bortz, '07
President & CEO
Virginia Center for Health Innovation
Richmond
What is new and exciting with you now or since your LEAD VIRGINIA class year?
This January, I was named President and CEO of the new Virginia Center for Health Innovation. It is a non-profit, multi-stakeholder initiative dedicated to accelerating the adoption of value-driven models of wellness and healthcare. Through its very structure and board composition, VCHI recognizes that purchasers, insurers, providers, and consumers all have to be collaboratively engaged in ensuring that better value is achieved in health care spending. The Center will achieve its mission by focusing on four core services: conducting benchmark research, convening and educating stakeholders, overseeing demonstration research, and spreading information on proven models of value-driven wellness and health care through the creation of a Virginia Health Innovation Network. For me personally, it is an amazing opportunity to be leading a ground breaking team focused on achieving better value in health care and securing a competitive edge for Virginia.
How did your LEAD VIRGINIA experience help to shape you as a leader?
LEAD VIRGINIA was instrumental in getting me to think outside the traditional health care silos where I had spent the majority of my professional career. In my many conversations with my classmates from the corporate sector, I realized that their engagement was the vital missing piece to reforming health care. I began to advocate strongly for their involvement and to seek their engagement. Their perspectives and insights helped me craft a vision for a different kind of partnership that doesn’t exist anywhere else at a statewide level.
Since LEAD VIRGINIA, how have you put social capital to work?
The Virginia Center for Health Innovation might not exist without the considerable support I received from my LEAD VIRGINIA friends. Several classmates helped me establish the relationships I needed to build a true multi-stakeholder, non-traditional partnership. From providing sound legal and business advice, to testing messaging outside the health care sector, to educating me in the fundamentals of economic development, my LEAD VIRGINIA relationships provided the social capital necessary to move this initiative forward from a “gleam in the eye” to a very promising reality.
What is something that LEAD VIRGINIA inspired you to do that you were not doing before your class year?
I’d like to say picking up my tennis racket again, since several LEAD VIRGINIA friends keep pestering me to do so. But regrettably that’s still on the backburner, in the wake of all the new career risk-tasking LEAD VIRGINIA inspired. Instead, I would have to say that LEAD VIRGINIA inspired me to think bigger and to realize that the people I know ARE the game changers, if only we accept the responsibility to take action.
Carl Mitchell, '10
Associate Director of Development
Virginia Tech’s College of Engineering
Blacksburg
What is new and exciting with you now or since your LEAD VIRGINIA class year?
After 12 years and 3 months of participating in business, community, economic and workforce development throughout the Commonwealth, I recently started a new job as an Associate Director of Development for Virginia Tech’s College of Engineering. In addition, One Care of SWVA, the not for profit consortium of almost 30 SWVA Substance Abuse Coalitions and community based organizations that I manage, published and distributed what is now a nationally recognized Blueprint for Substance Abuse and Misuse Prevention, Treatment and Control! I am very hopeful that the goals and objectives outlined in the Blueprint, will lead to significant reductions in the prescription drug abuse and addiction issue that is tremendously hindering business and workforce development efforts locally, regionally and statewide.
How did your LEAD VIRGINIA experience help to shape you as a leader?
The experience sincerely provided me with a plethora of new perceptions and examples to drawn upon during my decision making process. Because of the LEAD VA experience, I consistently seek to bring together a larger set of perspectives that deliberately allows me to broaden my personal viewpoints before settling on a final plan of action.
Since LEAD VIRGINIA, how have you put your social capital to work?
The past 18 months have been considerably difficult for me, both personally and professionally, as I experienced the full impact of the negative partisan politics currently being played out in the Commonwealth, especially its rural regions. Having a network of individuals to call upon, who have seen how incredibly important it is for us rise above the pettiness being played out, was instrumental in my ability to weather those personal and professional attacks, when those who could and should have risen and provided support did not.
What is something that LEAD VIRGINIA inspired you to do that you were not doing before your class year?
LEAD VIRGINIA, inspired me to seek and provide broader solutions to the business, community, economic and workforce development challenges in rural regions of the Commonwealth. It also rekindled a confidence to speak out against the personal injustices I witness, thus inspiring the personal exploration of potentially seeking a local elected position.
