People & Places

DR. ANNE C. BEAL

“My mother was a single mom, so I grew up without health insurance,” says Dr.

Anne C. Beal, newly appointed president of Aetna Foundation, the philanthropic arm of health insurer Aetna (No. 48 in The DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity®). “I remember even as young as 10 having a real understanding of, if I got sick, what

it might mean financially to my family.”

That’s what drove Beal to healthcare, first as a pediatrician delivering services to children living in homeless shelters and then as a researcher with interests in racial/ethnic disparities and quality care for children.

Previously, she was assistant vice president of The Commonwealth Fund’s program to improve healthcare quality for low-income patients.

“You can’t look at the healthcare system that’s not functioning … not providing good quality and say, ‘Despite that background, we want to focus on vulnerable patient populations to address disparities.’ You have to say: ‘How’s the healthcare system doing in general?’ Then ‘How’s the healthcare system doing in particular for vulnerable patients?’” Beal explains.

Beal, who also is the author of “The Black Parenting Book: Caring for Our Children in the First Five Years,” joined Aetna Foundation because its longstanding commitment to addressing disparities is so closely aligned with her values.

Aetna and Aetna Foundation have contributed more than $359 million in grants and sponsorships and coordinated millions of employee volunteer hours since 1980.

Beal would like to focus on improved care for patients who have two or three chronic conditions and see different specialists. “How do we make sure those providers are talking to each other? It’s a huge problem right now,” she says. “It also makes sense to look at pockets of healthcare excellence in the United States and ask, ‘How can we do that and replicate it across the country? How do we make that available to more patients?’” —By Gail Zoppo

Dr. Anne C. Beal Aetna Foundation

DONNA M. GRIFFIN

In previous positions at Chubb Corp., Donna M. Griffin was responsible for the insurance company’s global operations and processes. Today, she has an even more critical role for the company’s future: chief diversity officer.

Griffin, whose title also includes senior vice president, is a 25-year Chubb employee. In her new position, where she reports directly to CEO, Chairman and President John Finnegan, she gets to do what she likes best—work with people.

“My heart and soul went into the people part of it,” she says. “I always played big in the diversity space and was one of the first women leaders here ... I’ve been a role model for women coming up.”

Griffin grew up in Rhode Island and intended to become a teacher. But when she graduated from college, there was an oversupply of teachers and a friend suggested the insurance industry. She learned on the job and benefited, she says, from her ability to implement changes.

A past member of Chubb’s Gay Lesbian Employee Network and the founding corporate sponsor of the company’s Black Employee Network, she also has served on the Women’s Development Council and has been involved in many outside activities for women, including the advisory board for the Rutgers Institute for Women’s Leadership.

The employee groups are critical for the company, she says, as recruitment sources and for use in marketing initiatives.

“We leverage their knowledge and expertise with market segments that we might be successful in. We have 10 employee groups, and 20 percent of our employee population participates in them,” she says.

Griffin believes her knowledge of the company, her access to senior leaders and her deep commitment to Chubb’s values of cultural inclusion will serve her well in what she sees as her final assignment for the company before retiring.