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Devon Health Services

Company: Devon Health Services, Inc.
Company Description: Devon Health Services, Inc. is a National Health Care Cost Management Company and Preferred Provider Organization that offers complete healthcare benefit programs customized to meet each client’s specific needs.
Nomination Category: Individual Awards Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Best Executive

Nomination Title: Barbara Grundy Evans, Vice President of Business Services

   1. Tell the story about what this nominee achieved in the past year (up to 500 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:

Barbara Grundy Evans is a company builder that focuses on the company’s core mission, reducing healthcare costs. 2005 was marked by steady activity focused on preparing the company for dramatic growth and aggressive revenue targets in 2006.  She began by creating the Product Development department.  The sole purpose of this department is to watch healthcare market trends, identify and explore opportunities, quickly succeed or fail during a test market phase and then nurture the successes into new product lines, services or companies.  As a result, the company has seen a dramatic growth in the number of opportunities to service clients and generate new revenue streams.  Under her guidance, Product Development has explored over 15 new products and partnerships.  One partnership was officially launched this year with a pharmacy benefit management company.  In the beginning of 2005, she went to Chennai, India to develop, train, and establish a call center to grow new product lines for the company.   In spring 2005, she mobilized a cross-functional sales team to contract physicians for a Medicare Advantage product.  By assigning key project managers who had authority to make decisions and act, she ensured that sufficient physicians would be under contract to achieve Medicare approval.  Medicare approval was secured in October 2005.  In the summer of 2005, she hired a new Managing Director for Business Services.  This new hire’s focus is to assist her in continuing to develop a strategic plan to take the company to the next level, focusing on aligning staff and their compensation with revenue objectives.  Included is the new STARs program, under development, which identifies and provides leadership coaching to the top 20% of performers and financially rewards managers for their departments STAR qualities.  During the fall of 2005, she created a new department, Claims Negotiation, which was designed to handle the negotiation of expensive medical claims for the company’s clients.  Two top performers were spun off from the Network Development team and rewarded with the opportunity to manage a fledgling product that the company anticipates growing to represent over $6 million in revenue in the next 2 years. 

Ms. Evans is currently developing a program that helps contracted providers identify opportunities to participate in clinical trials and pharmaceutical research.  This research can create a significant revenue stream for providers, however, many providers do not know how to get involved.  By developing this program as a benefit for membership, she hopes to help providers offset the rising costs of malpractice insurance, which is forcing many providers out of state. 

In 2005 Ms. Evans captained the brand new company cycling team in the Multiple Sclerosis 150-mile bike tour, raising over $2800 for the worthy cause.  In 2006 she has seven scheduled rides for charity, as well as a children's book drive to support Head Start, planned for the spring.

Ms. Evans is the only woman VP to have started at the entry level at the company, and is dedicated to Devon Health’s success.

   2. List hyperlinks to any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that support the claims made in the section above. IMPORTANT: Begin each link with http://, and enclose each link in square brackets; for example, [http://www.youraddress.com]:

http://www.devonhealth.com/pages/pdf/press_releases/0805promotions.pdf
http://www.devonhealth.com/pages/pdf/press_releases/0805new_hire.pdf
http://www.devonhealth.com/pages/pdf/press_releases/_DIGcycle_032706.pdf

   3. Provide a brief (up to 100 words) biography about the nominee:

Starting at DHS in 1997 in an entry-level position Barbara Grundy Evans was promoted to Assistant Manager of Recruiting in six months.  In 1999, Evans established Client Services, and became the Director of Provider Relations.  In 2002, she was promoted to Vice President of Business Services, overseeing departments she had created or worked in.  Between 2002 and 2005, Evans created Marketing & Public Relations, Product Development, and Business Services Administration and added Hospital Relations to her division.

Evans believes that hiring, retention and development have significant impact on any company's success. 

In 2003, DHS recognized Evans with its Leadership Award.