Clay Holderman Named AVIA CEO

Chicago—AVIA announced that veteran health care executive Clay Holderman will join the organization as its chief executive officer. Most recently, Holderman served as the president and CEO of UnityPoint Health, a $4.5 billion health system in the Midwest consisting of 17 hospitals, a pioneering home health services division, a specialty pharmacy division and a venture capital fund.

As a digital transformation partner for health systems, AVIA empowers health care leaders with the strategic insights, proven tools and expert guidance needed to drive better clinical outcomes, operational efficiencies and financial performance. Through AVIA’s two-sided Network, health systems gain access to results-driven consulting and collaborative solutions to tackle the industry’s most pressing challenges with confidence.

“Clay has an exceptional track record in leading and transforming health care organizations and driving meaningful results,” said Eric Langshur, co-Founder and executive chair of AVIA. “His deep understanding of health systems, and his expertise, vision and leadership will be instrumental in advancing AVIA’s mission, making a positive impact on both our team and the organizations we serve. He is uniquely qualified to lead AVIA into our next chapter.”

Holderman has more than two decades of executive leadership in for-profit, nonprofit, integrated provider-owned health plans and private equity, having roles such as executive vice president and chief operating officer of Presbyterian Health Services, regarded as one of the largest and most integrated provider-led health plans in the nation with more than 800,000 members across Medicare Advantage, Medicaid and commercial insurers. He has extensive experience leading initiatives that improve health outcomes and organizational effectiveness. For the past year, he has served as an advisor to private equity firms, including Buckhead Investment Partners of Atlanta and Three Trees Capital Partners of Minnesota.

“Working on the provider side of the equation for the last 30 years and its dynamic landscape, AVIA’s collaborative model is a game changer for health systems—uniting stakeholders across the ecosystem to tackle challenges like care model transformation and AI acceleration,” said Holderman. “I’m excited to help build on AVIA’s strengths and look forward to working with the team to continue advancing innovations like AVIA Nexus, which brings health care systems, partners and providers together to provide powerful solutions.”

Current CEO Linda Finkel announced her retirement in November 2024, and will work with Holderman for a transition period. Under the 10 years of Finkel’s leadership, the AVIA Network has grown from four health care clients to include more than 50 leading health systems from across the country that rely on AVIA support and market-driven collaborations, such as its Medicaid Transformation, Digital Front Door and National Generative AI Strategic Collaboratives. In addition, AVIA Marketplace has grown into a resource for more than 65,000 health care leaders across 1,100 health systems, sharing insights across 16 categories from more than 5,000 digital health companies. The AVIA Venture Forum has facilitated 17 direct investments and supported the efforts of 16 health systems efforts to structure their investment teams, invest in digital health and diversify their revenue during her tenure.

AVIA will launch its newest innovation platform at ViVE—AVIA Nexus, which leverages AVIA’s Network of partners to solve health care business challenges, including connected care across facilities and regulatory preparedness in a new environment.