How Did I Get Here?

Bernard Tyson

Chairman and chief executive officer, Kaiser Permanente
  • Education
  • Vallejo High School, class of 1977, Vallejo, Calif.
  • Golden Gate University, class of 1982 (B.A.), class of 1984 (MBA), San Francisco
  • Work Experience
  • 1981–83
    Administrative analyst, Vallejo General Hospital
  • 1987–92
    Assistant administrator, Kaiser Permanente Medical Center San Francisco
  • 1992–93
    CEO, Kaiser Foundation Hospital Santa Rosa
  • 1993–99
    Vice president, senior vice president, division president for central east division, Kaiser Permanente
  • 1999–2006
    SVP, chief operating officer for regions outside California; SVP, brand strategy, Kaiser Permanente
  • 2006–10
    Executive VP, health plan and hospital operations, Kaiser Permanente
  • 2010–13
    President and COO, Kaiser Permanente
  • 2013–14
    CEO, Kaiser Permanente
  • 2014–Present
    Chairman and CEO, Kaiser Permanente
  • Life Lessons
  • “My role is significant but not the most important in the organization.”
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  • “No one is promised the end of today.”
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  • “Drink black coffee. My uncle told me it impresses people and puts the fear of God in them.”
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  • “My mom was sick from diabetes, so we were in hospitals a lot, and I decided I wanted to run my own.”
  • “I got my MBA in health service administration and got to see the hospital worldview. Everything happens there, from birth to death. You see all the emotions.”
  • Working as assistant administrator, 1987
  • “We had a very aggressive growth plan outside of California and almost went bankrupt: We grew too fast.”
  • Had open-heart surgery in 2000
  • “I still do hospital visits, and I can tell how well it’s run in a couple minutes: How clean are the floors? How does the staff respond? What’s the vibe?”
  • Speaking at the 2014 NAACP Legal Defense & Education Fund Annual Gala, which commemorated the 60th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education
  • Elementary school portrait, age 12
  • “I did my first internship at the hospital I grew up in with my mom, and they hired me.”
  • “I thought I had arrived—I never thought it would only last for a year.”
  • “I learned how to lead by selling and influencing, as opposed to having complete control.”
  • “Our new CEO needed someone to develop the brand and strategy. It was the first time I understood the difference between leading with vision and leading with organizational authority.”
  • At the White House Summit on Cybersecurity and Consumer Protection, 2015