MARK O’BRYANT

PRESIDENT & CEO, TALLAHASSEE MEMORIAL HEALTHCARE, TALLAHASSEE

O’Bryant’s first choice of career was writing fiction and teaching American literature at the college level, but he says he opted for a path that would provide a slightly higher standard of living.

He has led Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare, the parent company of the 772-bed Tallahassee Memorial Hospital, since 2003, making it one of the state’s most progressive. The system focuses on the development of a patient and family-centered care model. O’Bryant has restructured the organization around eight clinical service lines to address patient needs. He has also coordinated the development and implementation of a metrics-driven strategic plan with the goal of making the community the healthiest in the nation.

“Overall quality of life is made up of a number of foundational components,” he says. “Quality of health is one of those — you can’t have a high quality of life without having a high quality of health. And that’s what we do.”

O’Bryant, who has a bachelor’s degree from Brigham Young and a master’s and an MBA from Georgia State, has served as chairman of the Greater Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce.