Tamara Smith is an action-oriented visionary, leader and motivator. As Associate Vice President of Strategic Implementation for Health Equity & Community Engagement at Humana, Inc., Tamara leads, develops and oversees the implementation of enterprise strategies supporting the Health Equity Organization’s mission and strategic goals. She is a change-agent, responsible for building an innovative strategic framework designed to support all lines of business in achieving health equity priorities, effectively positioning health equity as a key culture and business driver across the Humana enterprise. Given the crucial role that external community engagement plays in advancing health equity, she also is a strategic thought leader, partnering with key internal and external stakeholders to implement community, diversity, health equity and inclusion strategies— positioning Humana as an industry leader in the broader healthcare community by driving health outcomes through high profile corporate, private and public partnerships.

Prior to joining Humana, Tamara served as Vice President of Community Engagement & Social Determinants of Health Strategy, Sr. Director of Strategy, Business Performance & Compliance and as Director of Community Benefit at Novant Health. Throughout her tenure, Tamara has led the charge to focus on health equity for all, through defining and capturing impact through data analysis and creative storytelling. In addition to her success at Novant Health, Tamara has over 19 years of experience across multiple healthcare sectors, including public health, corporate health and higher education.

Tamara is driven by her core belief in “the power of the person,” which is what drives her personal mission in life to empower each person to create a world where health equity is not simply something we discuss conceptually, but is a world our communities actually experience. She strives to exhibit and fulfill this passion through her leadership and involvement through her work and in the community. Tamara serves as a member of the Board of Directors for the Charlotte Ballet and served on the Board of the Center for Exceptional Children, the Renaissance West Community Initiatives Development Committee, as Vice Chair of the Winston Salem Urban League, Chair of Girls on the Run Triad, and member of the Institute for Dismantling Racism. She was named national Top 100 Under 50 by Diversity MBA Magazine, and selected for Leadership Winston Salem, Leadership Charlotte, was a Novant Health Leadership Academy Fellow. Tamara has also been selected on a number of occasions as a national speaker for National Health Summits, Healthcare and Diversity Conferences and the World Healthcare Congress.
Tamara earned her Bachelor of Science in Health & Exercise Science from Wake Forest University and earned a Master of Science in Healthcare Management & Promotion from Nebraska Methodist College.

She currently lives in Charlotte, N.C. and in her free time, she loves to travel and laugh with her husband and 2 sons, sharing the gift of new experiences and being a self-proclaimed foodie.