Katina Maier|Chief People & Strategy Officer
Started December 2022 with Confluence Health
At her core, Katina knows its all about people. It’s about who you care for, who you wake up to help, and who you call your family. And even though family comes in all forms – be they blood relatives, friends who become family by choice, or even pets – they’re what makes it all worth it.
Growing up in a multinational family, Katina learned early on the importance of not judging a book by its cover and realizing that each person you encounter needs to be understood, appreciated, and accepted. Her father, orphaned at a young age, found himself building a new life in the United States with his adopted American parents as the Korean War split much of his remaining family on differing sides of geopolitical lines for decades. After her mother married an American soldier, Katina’s mother immigrated to the U.S. from Germany, settling in Washington State. Despite growing up in vastly different cultures, her parents eventually met while in the U.S. Army. After they married, Katina and her sister were born and found themselves living in multiple cultural worlds, from the varying and mixed cultures of their parents to the wholly different culture of the U.S. around them.
Living in a bridge between cultures, Katina began to recognize her own desire to reach out to others – to act as a uniter – and to find the common ground that brings us all together, something reflected in her love of travel even to this day. After putting herself through college, she found herself working in human resources for a healthcare organization where she fell in love with the medical world and its focus on selfless, noble service to support the wellness of others. After taking a job outside healthcare, she couldn’t quite shake a desire to be a part of this industry where someone could make such a life and death difference for others. She knew she wanted to contribute what she could to make things better for people – to be a bridge for others – knowing that it is people that make all the great successes possible.
Now married and raising a son, the importance of family and advocating for those we care about as a leader in healthcare is all the more important. Serving as chief people and strategy officer, she knows that the best successes come when we listen with an intent to understand and strive to smooth the path of those who can change lives with their work. Believing that work should not just be about earning a living but also finding your joy, she strives each day to help others find their passion and support their family, whatever shape those families might take.