DAVID VERINDER

PRESIDENT & CEO, SARASOTA MEMORIAL HEALTH CARE SYSTEM, SARASOTA

Founded in 1925, Sarasota Memorial Health Care System is Sarasota County’s largest employer, with more than 10,000 employees and 2,500 medical staff members and 850-plus volunteers. Verinder has served as CEO since 2014 and has shepherded SMH through the challenges of a pandemic, major hurricanes and a skyrocketing, aging population. The community-owned health system specializes in cardiac, cancer, orthopedic, neurology and rehabilitation care and is ranked among the nation’s best.

EDUCATION: Louisiana State University (BS), Auburn University (MBA)

FIRST JOB: My first job was at a shoe store at age 14. I split my time between school, work and earning the merit badges necessary to become an Eagle Scout. After graduate school, my first job was at an accounting firm that specialized in health issues and government relations, which sparked my interest in health care and made me realize I wanted to work in a field where I could make a difference in other people’s lives.

DREAM ALTERNATE CAREER: I would enjoy being a college professor, where I could help influence and inspire a generation of young people who care.

INDUSTRY TREND: With the growth and potential of artificial intelligence, the future of medicine is limitless. It is critical that health care leaders leverage the power of machine learning and algorithms to automate tasks, analyze medical records and provide insights that support and inform clinical decision-making and accelerate and improve health care delivery.

SOMETHING SURPRISING
“I enjoy listening to classic rock music with my favorite being Def Leppard.”