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Health Care 2023: DENNIS MATHEIS
Last year, Matheis became CEO of Sentara, an $11 billion not-for-profit health system with 12 hospitals in Virginia and North Carolina, employing 30,000 workers, including 1,375 physicians. He succeeded Howard P. Kern, who retired after a 40-year career at Sentara. In May, he oversaw the health system’s rebranding from Sentara Healthcare to the shorter Sentara […]
Health Care 2023: MICHAEL J. LUTES
Lutes came aboard as Bon Secours’ Richmond market leader in October 2022, weeks after a New York Times front-page exposé focused on how the Cincinnati-based health system made as much as $100 million annually from a hospital in an economically challenged, predominantly Black East End neighborhood. The windfall was due to the federal 340B program, […]
Retail | Wholesale | Food | Beverage 2023: TRAVIS HILL
Hill presides over Virginia ABC, a state agency that produced $1.4 billion in 2022 revenue, with $622.8 million going to the state general fund. Before becoming CEO in 2018, Hill served four years as the agency’s chief operating officer and previously was a state deputy secretary of agriculture and forestry. In June, reports emerged that […]
Health Care 2023: MARY N. MANNIX
A surgical ICU nurse at the start of her career, Mannix manages a staff of about 2,500 at Augusta Health, one of the largest employers in the Shenandoah Valley. The health system includes the main Fishersville hospital campus and 18 urgent care and family practices and other outpatient facilities. Last year, the system opened a […]
Telecommunications 2023: ERNEST ‘ERNIE’ ORTEGA
Ortega began 2023 by announcing GTT had completed its financial restructuring and was marking “the beginning of an important new chapter” as a “customer-focused managed services provider.” Two weeks later, he revealed the company’s new marketing tagline, “Making exceptional possible.” In 2021, the global provider of managed network and security services sold its infrastructure [...]
Professional Services 2023: JEREMY BLANK
Blank has worked at Big Four global accounting firm Deloitte since 1995, moving from a tax practice partner at the accounting firm to his current market leader position in January 2022. His expertise includes tax research and analysis, tax planning, mergers and acquisitions, tax technology and compliance. In fiscal year 2022, Deloitte reported record revenues […]
Manufacturing 2023: WILLIAM ‘BILLY’ GIFFORD JR.
Gifford became Fortune 500 tobacco product manufacturer Altria’s CEO in 2020, after having served as president and CEO of subsidiary Philip Morris USA and holding other executive posts at Altria for the past 25 years. After four challenging years, during which Altria saw the value of its 35% stake in Juul Labs’ e-cigarette company plummet […]
Retail | Wholesale | Food | Beverage 2023: ELIZABETH ‘LIZA’ MYERS BORCHES
Founded in 1924 by Borches’ great-grandfather, Carter Myers Automotive is Virginia’s fifth largest car sales group; it garnered $933 million in revenue during fiscal year 2022 and employs more than 1,000 people in Virginia. Since 2012, when Borches became CEO, CMA has grown to 23 dealerships. In September 2022, the company purchased Lynchburg’s Craft Automotive […]
Nonprofits | Philanthropy 2023: ELIZABETH A. McCLANAHAN
McClanahan brings a wealth of experiences in law, leadership and higher education to her role as CEO of the Virginia Tech Foundation. A lifelong Virginian and former justice on the Supreme Court of Virginia, her ties to the university go back much further than her current position, which she took up in 2021. She has […]
Retail | Wholesale | Food | Beverage 2023: DENNIS ELLMER
Ellmer launched Priority Auto in 1999 with the acquisition of two dealerships in Chesapeake. By 2023. he grew the business to No. 55 on Automotive News’ list of the top 150 dealer groups in the U.S., based on the 14,447 new vehicles the dealership sold in 2022. In June, auto retail giant Lithia Motors announced […]
2023 Virginia 500: Manufacturing
Bradford “Brad” Beauchamp PRESIDENT AND CEO, CARPENTER, RICHMOND Manmeet S. Bhatia PRESIDENT AND CEO, TMEIC AMERICAS, ROANOKE Howard Broadfoot PRESIDENT AND CEO, ELECTRO-MECHANICAL, BRISTOL Ester Codina CLUSTER PRESIDENT NORTH AMERICA AND MANAGING DIRECTOR, ALFA LAVAL US SALES, RICHMOND Rob Collier PRESIDENT, CHEMTREAT, GLEN ALLEN [...]
Hospitality | Tourism 2023: NEEL DESAI
Desai joined LTD Hospitality Group in 1998 as the second generation of the family-owned hotel development and management company co-founded by Desai’s father in 1983. Perhaps entrepreneurism is in his DNA because Desai and longtime friend Bijal Patel founded S2K Hospitality in 2021 to manage and develop fast-casual restaurants. In May, the partners opened a […]
