EMBA Women’s Leadership Luncheon Addresses Changing Landscape of Healthcare Industry

• April 15th, 2015
• in EMBA Alumni Network

On March 11, a panel of leaders in the healthcare industry addressed the Culverhouse College of Commerce Executive MBA Women’s Leadership Luncheon at the Summit Club in downtown Birmingham. The panel moderator was Beckie Crawford (TEMBA 2013), Vice President of Finance for Southern Medical Health Systems. The panelists included Dr. Anne-Laura Cook, Ambulatory Network Consultant/Hospitalist, Baptist Health System; Vanessa Pettway (TEMBA 2015), Region Operations Manager, Otsuka America Pharmaceutical; and Dr. Lisa Mani (MBA 2006) Physician-Consultant in Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

The panel discussion centered around the implementation of the Affordable Care Act and its impact across the healthcare industry.  In addition, the speakers addressed advanced innovations and new business models as methods for businesses to adapt in a very volatile market. The panel engaged the audience in a discussion on the “triple aim” of healthcare reform: decrease costs, improve outcomes and improve the patient experience. Finally, questions from the audience spurred the dialogue into many areas.

Audience members included alumni, prospective students, members of the Women’s Exchange, leaders from various industries and members of the EMBA staff. “This was a really great topic and the discussion comes at an opportune moment for everyone working in various sectors of the healthcare industry. It was very insightful,” said Joshua Meeks (TEMBA 2012), Director of Network Operations with Cigna-HealthSpring.

Founded in 2011, the Women’s Leadership Luncheon is an annual event established by the Culverhouse College of Commerce Executive MBA Program at the University of Alabama to bring professional women together to network and discuss business and leadership issues.

For more information on the Executive MBA Program or to schedule an interview or attend an upcoming event, please contact Cheryl Altemara at caltemara@cba.ua.edu of 205.348.4501.

EMBA Elite Spotlight: Wyman Hamilton & Scott Goldberg

• May 16th, 2014
• in EMBA Elite Spotlight Series

This month, our EMBA Elite Spotlight is Scott Goldberg and Wyman Hamilton, both members of the Culverhouse College of Commerce Tuscaloosa Executive MBA class of 2013. After meeting in the program, the pair combined Wyman’s expertise in senior living with Scott’s in entrepreneurship to found Atlas Senior Living.

With over ten years of experience in the field, Wyman has been passionate about serving senior citizens since high school. He received his BS in Health Administration from Auburn University. During his tenure with Brookdale Senior Living, he was responsible for the management and operation of 35 communities in Alabama, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Mississippi. His experiences led him to write a book about leadership style and inspiration, which reveals the importance of cooperation, enthusiasm, and originality to Wyman. This enthusiasm and originality prospered after Wyman’s experience in the Manderson Executive MBA Program.

“The program gave me the tools and confidence to branch out from corporate America and become an entrepreneur,” said Wyman.

Scott received his BS from Mississippi State University. After graduating, he became Senior Director of Texas Sandwich Investors, LLC, which owned the rights to develop 100 Lenny’s Sub Shops in North Texas. Scott also served as the company’s CEO & Managing Partner for four years. Before Atlas Senior Living, Scott left Texas Sandwich Investors to found GoldOne Group. Given his entrepreneurial background, Scott has the expertise to help make Atlas a success. According to Scott, “We will always implement key business strategies from past experiences, but what excites me the most (is that) this business, compared to others, significantly allows me a role in positively impacting lives.”

Atlas Senior Living aims to provide outstanding service to its residents by utilizing Wyman and Scott’s unique problem solving and management strategies. A quote from the Atlas Senior Living blog perfectly describes their notion of collaborative management: “The best solution to most problems comes from those closest to them.” As the blog explains, their style of leadership requires attention and respect for their residents, employees, and clients. Instead of delegating or demanding, the Atlas managerial staff utilizes the familiarity of those with the most exposure to problem to help get to the source of their issues. This gives residents and employees influence while creating an inclusive environment and ridding the community of conflict.

Atlas Senior Living will be opening their first community, Madison Heights, this September in Evans, Georgia. Madison Heights will be the first all memory care community in the area, tailored to the needs of residents with memory diseases such as Alzheimer’s or dementia. Atlas is also planning to begin construction on another new community this fall in Lexington, Kentucky. In addition to residential housing management, Atlas Senior Living also provides consulting services and mock surveys, which will help spread their resident-centered, collaborative management model to the rest of the industry.

To find out more about Atlas Senior Living, check out their blog and website.
For more information about the Executive MBA Program at The University of Alabama, contact Cheryl Altemara at caltemara@cba.ua.edu or 205.348.4501.