Elizabeth Johnson

If I had to boil it down to one sentence:

My success comes from your ability to combine strong business instincts with genuine care for people—and to turn both experience and adversity into leadership.

And I think there’s another quality underneath all of that: I have a pretty strong belief that people can become better than they currently are. I apply that philosophy to the people i lead, but I’ve also applied it to myself throughout my life.

That may be one of the biggest reasons I’ve continued to grow.

Keep going. Success isn’t always about being the smartest person in the room; often it’s about being the person who can absorb a setback, learn from it, adjust, and show up again.

If I could sit down with a young woman who was just starting her career in healthcare administration, I’d probably tell her: bring your whole self to the table—and don’t apologize for taking up space at it.

I’ve learned that leadership isn’t about being the loudest person in the room or having all the answers. It’s about knowing how to read a room, knowing how to read people, and knowing when to speak up. It’s about having enough confidence to say, “I can figure this out,” even when you don’t have the answer yet.

My career has taken me through different experiences, including sales and very client-facing roles, and those experiences taught me something I still carry with me every day: people remember how you make them feel. You can know every policy, understand every spreadsheet, and run the most efficient operation in the world—but if people don’t trust you, don’t feel heard, or don’t feel valued, you’re missing something important.

So learn the business. Learn the numbers. Learn the systems. Be organized. Be curious. Ask questions—even the ones you’re afraid might make you look like you don’t know something. I promise you, pretending to know everything will take you much further backward than admitting you have something to learn.

And advocate for yourself. This one is huge.

Don’t sit quietly waiting for someone to notice how hard you work. Tell people what you want. Raise your hand for the project. Apply for the promotion. Ask for the seat at the table. And when you accomplish something, own it. There is a difference between being arrogant and recognizing your own value.

I also want young women to understand that being compassionate doesn’t make you weak, and being strong doesn’t mean you have to become hard. You can be both. Some of the strongest leaders I know are the ones who can hold people accountable while still making them feel supported.

And don’t be afraid of failure. I’ve had experiences that didn’t go the way I wanted them to, but I’ve learned to look at those moments as part of the story—not the end of it. Sometimes the door that closes is the one that forces you to realize you were meant to build your own door.

Most importantly, don’t climb the ladder and pull it up behind you.

If you get into a position where you can open a door for another woman, open it. If you can mentor someone, mentor them. If you see someone struggling with confidence, remind them of what you see in them. I believe deeply in positive reinforcement and in bringing out the best in people—and I’ve seen firsthand what can happen when someone simply believes in you at the right moment.

My biggest advice would be: stay curious, stay authentic, work your tail off, and don’t lose your personality along the way.

You don’t have to fit somebody else’s idea of what a leader looks like. Figure out who you are as a leader—and then become really, really good at being her.

And when you finally get that seat at the table?

Pull up another chair.

I think one of the biggest challenges in healthcare administration today is balancing the business realities of healthcare with the human reason we’re here in the first place. We’re dealing with financial pressures, staffing challenges, rapid technological change, and increasingly high expectations from patients and the communities we serve.

But I also see tremendous opportunity in that change. I think there is a real need for leaders who can bring people together, embrace innovation, and still keep the human element at the center of everything they do.

My background has really prepared me for that. I’ve worked in client-facing and sales environments, and now in healthcare and nonprofit administration, so I understand both the operational side and the importance of relationships. I’ve learned that you can have the best systems in the world, but if your people don’t feel supported and your clients don’t feel heard, you’re missing something important.

For me, the opportunity is to create a clinical enviroment that is efficient and forward-thinking without losing compassion. I want people to feel that they are part of something meaningful, that their contributions matter, and that we’re all working toward the same goal. I think that combination of strong operations, technology, relationship-building, and people-centered leadership is where healthcare has tremendous potential right now.

The values that matter most to me, both personally and professionally, are authenticity, connection, growth, resilience, compassion, and purpose.

I believe in being genuine and showing up as my authentic self. I’ve never wanted to simply fit into a box or be defined by someone else’s expectations. I value the freedom to grow, evolve, and become the best version of myself while staying true to who I am.

People are at the center of so much of what I do. I genuinely care about how people feel, how they are treated, and whether they feel valued and supported. As a leader, I believe my role is not just to manage people, but to recognize their strengths, encourage their growth, and create an environment where they feel empowered to succeed.

I also value hard work, accountability, and excellence. I take pride in doing things well and finding ways to make things better, more organized, and more effective. At the same time, I never want efficiency or results to come at the expense of the human element.

Resilience is another value that has shaped me tremendously. My life and my career have not always followed a straight line, but I’ve learned to adapt, learn from challenges, and keep moving forward. I believe some of our greatest growth comes from the moments that force us to stretch beyond what we thought we could handle.

Above all, I want my life and my work to have purpose. I want to know that what I’m doing matters and that I’m making a positive impact. Whether that means helping an organization succeed, advocating for the people I serve, mentoring someone who needs encouragement, or simply making someone’s day a little better, I want to leave people and situations better than I found them.

At the end of the day, I measure success by more than accomplishments. I measure it by the relationships I’ve built, the people I’ve helped, the obstacles I’ve overcome, and the positive difference I’ve been able to make along the way.