Charu Raheja
CEO, TriageLogic, Jacksonville
Raheja founded this health care company and has been CEO for 16 years. TriageLogic specializes in remote patient monitoring and nurse telehealth solutions to help health care organizations efficiently manage patient care. The TriageLogic group serves over 22,000 physicians and covers more than 40 million lives nationwide, Raheja says. She’s on the local American Heart Association board and volunteers as a patient facilitator for a stroke survivor group at Baptist Hospital.
EDUCATION: University of Florida (BS), New York University (M.Phil., Ph.D.)
WHAT I’VE LEARNED: Perseverance fuels success. At 16, I left Brazil for the USA, speaking no English. Within 6 months I joined Model U.N., presenting in class. Despite a tough job market in college, I pursued a Ph.D. in finance. Fifteen years ago, I left academia to start a groundbreaking health care business. Facing skepticism, we pioneered nurses working from home. Today we’re a top Florida company, a testament to resilience and vision.
MENTOR: Throughout my journey, mentors have played a crucial role. One standout figure is Steven Reinemund, former CEO of Pepsi, who led me to Florida. As dean of Wake Forest’s business school, he probed my true desires and urged me to pursue them wholeheartedly. His lesson resonates: support others in their pursuits, even if it means parting ways.
MOTIVATIONAL MANTRA: 'Be Yourself, Everyone Else is Already Taken.' I had brain surgery in 2014 and lost much of my memory and who I was. I was at a retreat trying to recover. I was dancing and trying to free myself when I saw a little girl holding this sign. I remembered who I was at that moment and I know I can do great things by being truthful to myself.
