New Hires
Diane Donlon, Manager, Health and Welfare Benefits
May 22, 2023–Please join us in welcoming Diane Donlon to VNS Health! Diane joined the Total Rewards team on May 8th as Manager, Health and Welfare Benefits. Diane will oversee the employee health and welfare benefits programs ensuring that they are best in class, with a focus on consistent and effective administration across the organization. Diane comes to VNS Health with over 20 years of experience in Human Resources, specializing in employee benefits. Diane’s experience spans various fields, including health care, higher education, and, most recently, financial services with Apple Savings Bank. Diane is a native of Long Island. She and her husband, Craig have three children, Meghan, Kerry, and Connor. Diane and her family are huge New York Yankees fans. She enjoys gardening, relaxing on the beach, and spoiling her 2 dogs. Welcome to the team, Diane!
Sean Vigilante, Member Communications Specialist
April 12, 2023–Please join us in welcoming Sean Vigilante to VNS Health! Sean has recently joined the Marketing team as a Member Communications Specialist, supporting the Health Plans, and reporting into Sandra Ossé, Associate Director, Member Communications. Sean joins us from Premier Healthcare, where he worked as a collection’s analyst, and The Daily Source, where he volunteered as an editor curating articles on major trends in global poverty, climate change, and human rights. His focus will be collaborating on member materials and mailings for the SelectHealth and MLTC lines of business in addition to leading and providing support on other member communications projects. Welcome to the team, Sean!
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Sharon Braun, Director, HR Business Partner
September 1, 2022–Sharon Braun joins VNS Health with a wealth of HR and Development experience. Having spent over 30 years in the Financial Services industry, she joins us from Capital One Bank. Sharon is a passionate leader and thrives in dynamic settings that demand her ability to be flexible and adaptable. She strives to achieve optimal client satisfaction via a business focused, hands-on, consultative approach. Sharon grew up on Long Island and currently resides in Rockville Centre with her husband Bob. Married for 28 years, they were blessed to raise their two children, Meredith and Joseph, into young professional adults. Now in their free time, they enjoy the outdoors with friends and family, and spoiling their two German Shorthaired Pointers. Please join us in welcoming Sharon as she begins her Director, HR Business Partner position.
Marshall Ellis, Chief Operating Officer, VNS Health Plan Services
August 19, 2022–We are excited to share that Marshall Ellis will join VNS Health as Chief Operating Officer for VNS Health Plan Services. In this new role, Marshall will lead the development and ongoing management of operations for Health Plan Services. He will develop strategic short and long-range goals to cover operations, financial performance, and growth. Marshall joins us with a proven track record in managed care and healthcare operations, program design, new business implementation, client relationship management and leadership development, and is excited to be coming home to NYC for this new role. For the last 7 years, Marshall has been with Centene Corporation, first with their Envolve Management Services Organization (MSO) in New York City, followed by two years in Chicago. At Envolve MSO, he onboarded and oversaw operations for customers in three states, and opened and ran Envolve MSO’s Chicago shared services office. He spent the last two years in Louisiana as
Marie Danieli, Risk Manager, Enterprise Risk Management
July 13, 2022–We are excited to announce that Marie Danieli has joined VNS Health in the position of Risk Manager. Marie holds a Master’s degree in Enterprise Risk Management from Columbia. She has extensive experience both in the field of research and working for not-for-profits, most recently at United Way and the Anti-Defamation League. At VNS Health, Marie will support the Enterprise Risk Management Program, including our annual risk-assessment process. Another notable role for Marie will be to support the roll-out of our Governance Risk & Compliance (GRC) software system, which is scheduled to begin implementation in mid-August. Please join us in welcoming Marie to the VNS Health Team!
Petra Lewis, Senior Accountant, Accounting
June 30, 2022–We are excited to announce that Petra Lewis has joined VNS Health as our new Senior Accountant. Petra comes to VNS Health with several years of accounting experience in both the travel and healthcare industries where she was responsible for monitoring and reconciling program financial data. She will be working with the Behavioral Health division in reviewing and reporting on patient service revenues as well as certain grant-funded programs. Please join us in welcoming Petra to the VNS Health Team!
Alex Karydi, Director, Behavioral Health Product Development
June 23, 2022–We are excited to announce that Alex Karydi has joined the VNS Health team as Director, Behavioral Health Product Development! Alex Karydi, LMFT (she/her/they/them), is a provider with over a decade of experience in the treatment of substance use disorders and suicide prevention. Alex is a certified addiction counselor and a NYS licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. Fluent in French and English, Alex holds a Ph.D. in Marriage and Family Therapy from Northcentral University and a Ph.D. in Clinical Sexology from the American Academy of Clinical Sexology. Before joining VNS Health, Alex was the States and Communities Initiative Director with the Suicide Prevention Resource Center project. She has previously held roles as the Director of Project 2025 at the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, a nationwide initiative to reduce the U.S.’s annual rate of suicide by 20 percent by 2025, and at Callen-Lorde Community Health Center’s Certified Community Behavioral Health
Lauren Gigner, Manager, Talent & Learning
June 16, 2022–We are pleased to announce that, as of June 6, Lauren Gigner has joined VNS Health as a Manager, Talent & Learning. Lauren will be instrumental in the launch of the new Leading People & Culture program, as well as other new talent programs and processes. Lauren is passionate about helping people discover a path that taps into their authenticity and purpose. With over ten years of international learning and development experience, Lauren has worked with organizations to coach individuals and teams at all levels. Lauren believes in harnessing the power of individual and team strengths to help others take positive and productive action leading to more effective relationships and results. Lauren has experience at multiple financial institutions where she has been instrumental in designing and delivering talent programs to increase self-awareness, connection, and growth. Lauren gets her energy from brainstorming and learning from other’s diverse experience and perspectives, and is
Matthew Brinsmead, HR Specialist, Employee Relations
June 9, 2022–We are happy to announce that, as of May 31st, Matthew Brinsmead has joined VNS Health as an HR Specialist in Employee Relations. Matthew brings with him four years of progressive human resources, labor relations, and EEO experience within the Nassau County government. He is passionate about fostering work environments that enable employees to focus on providing optimal services for clients and that empower managers to help employees and teams reach their full operational potentials. To that end, Matthew believes that a robust employee relations and investigations program should be paramount to every organization. Matthew obtained his B.A. in Political Science from the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill. In his free time he enjoys spending time with friends and family, reading, playing guitar, exercising, and being outdoors. He also spends his free time (though these days he rarely enjoys it) rooting for several New York sports teams. Matthew
Claudia Velez, HR Generalist, Human Resources
June 9, 2022–We are pleased to announce that, effective June 6th, Claudia Velez has joined VNS Health as an HR Generalist, reporting to Pat Fierro, Human Resources Director. Claudia brings over eight years of human resources and business operations experience, and has worked for such impactful organizations as Citigroup and US Bank. Throughout her career, Claudia has touched a variety of areas within human resources, including employee relations, compliance, and HR reporting, as well as effectively cross-collaborating with Centers of Excellence for compensation, diversity, employment law, and talent acquisition. Claudia’s skill set, strong focus on employee experience, and previous experience of supporting Citigroup’s call center will ensure she provides impact in her new role supporting the CCSS. Please join us in extending a warm welcome to Claudia!
Kenneth Chang, Corporate Counsel, Legal Department
April 28, 2022–We are excited to welcome Kenneth Chang to the VNSNY Legal Department as Corporate Counsel. Kenneth, who officially started on March 21st, will provide legal services across the VNSNY enterprise in support of Corporate, Provider, and CHOICE operations. He brings extensive health law experience to VNSNY as a former Legal Fellow at Providence Hospital and a former Grants and Contracts Counsel for the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health. More recently, Kenneth served as a Contracts Attorney for the Children’s National Medical Center in Washington DC, where he concentrated on commercial and research contracts necessary for hospital operations and healthcare research. Outside of work, Kenneth enjoys playing basketball and hockey and is a big fan of Boston sports teams, since that was the city that first welcomed him when he moved to the U.S. from Korea.