Podcast
Purpose-driven, people-centered leadership with Gracelyn McDermott
- In this episode, Margaret Rogers, CEO of Pariveda speaks with Gracelyn McDermott, the Vice President of Marketing, Sales, and Business Development for Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic.
About the episode
In this episode, Margaret Rogers, CEO of Pariveda speaks with Gracelyn McDermott, the Vice President of Marketing, Sales, and Business Development for Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic. In this conversation, they chat about how Gracelyn’s mission for equity shows up in daily leadership, a behind-the-scenes moment from leading through the pandemic that shaped how she shows up now, and what it takes to scale in underserved communities without losing the why.
Episode outline
00:07 Welcome, guest introduction, key conversation themes
01:54 Why value based care energizes Gracelyn
03:07 Gracelyn’s uncommon path into healthcare
06:24 Barbados roots and an equity lens
11:38 Leadership lessons during the pandemic
16:02 Inclusion and empathy at Kaiser Permanente
18:46 From project manager to empathy-focused leader
25:51 Integrating equity into business strategies
28:38 Mission first with “members in the middle”
30:40 Lightning round
33:49 What’s next for Gracelyn
Episode links
Vehicles for change – https://www.vehiclesforchange.org/
March of Dimes – https://www.marchofdimes.org/
Heroines of Washington – https://www.prlog.org/13083019-march-of-dimes-celebrates-25th-anniversary-of-heroines-of-washington-awards-announces-finalists.html
Adjacent to Study Mentioned: “Women and Black adults wait longer to be seen in the ER for chest pain” – https://www.heart.org/en/news/2022/05/04/women-and-black-adults-wait-longer-to-be-seen-in-the-er-for-chest-pain
About the guest
Gracelyn A. McDermott is an innovative and diverse executive with over 20 years’ experience in project, program, sales, and account management. In her current role as the Vice President of Marketing Sales and Business Development at Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic States, Gracelyn provides leadership in the development and execution of market and business strategies that deliver predictable and sustainable growth in membership, revenue, and margin. Overall, she is responsible for the retention and growth of Commercial insurance accounts (small and large) and collaborates with the National team to support the Federal Employee Benefits Health Plan (FEBHP) and local Government Programs (ACA, Medicare, and Medicaid).
Gracelyn’s awards and accolades
- Heroines of Washington Finalist, March of Dimes, 2025
- Diverse Leaders Award, Washington Business Journal, 2025
- Daily Record, Top 100 Women, 2022 and 2025
- The Girl Scouts of Central Maryland, Distinguished Woman Honoree, 2022
- Mount St. Mary’s University, Dean’s Circle of Excellence Award, 2017
Connect with Graclyn on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/gracelynmcdermott/
About the Doing Good by Doing Better podcast
Hosted by Margaret Rogers, CEO of Pariveda, the Doing Good by Doing Better podcast highlights founders, executives, and innovators who share hard lessons, bold ideas, and real strategies for purpose-driven growth.
Every conversation offers practical insights you can use to solve forward. In each episode you’ll meet leaders who prove that being impact-driven and achieving meaningful success are not mutually exclusive.
Follow Doing Good by Doing Better on Apple Podcasts or Spotify and join us every other week as we keep learning how to do good by doing better.
INSIGHTS
Resource
