The Most Powerful Business Leaders in Arizona for 2025 includes Pam Kehaly, president and CEO, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona. Meet her here.
Pam Kehaly, president and CEO, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona
Background: Kehaly is the president and CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona, where she leads the state’s largest locally based health insurer. With decades of experience in the healthcare industry, she is known for driving innovation, improving care access and championing community health initiatives. Under her leadership, AZ Blue focuses on affordability, quality and whole-person wellness to improve the health of all Arizonans.
Leadership style: “I don’t believe customer satisfaction can ever exceed employee satisfaction. If your employees are miserable or don’t understand how their work fits into the bigger picture, it will affect your outcomes and customer interactions. So, my focus as a leader is on employee engagement and purpose. We’re a healthcare company — we help people manage their health, which is their most valuable asset. That’s meaningful work. We start every meeting with a ‘mission moment,’ sharing a story about a member we’ve helped. We also tie employee bonuses to outcomes that improve public health in Arizona—like lowering suicide rates or reducing opioid deaths. Everyone contributes, whether through their daily work or volunteering. When people feel purpose and see how they fit into the mission, it drives powerful results.”
Evolution of leadership style: “Over the past five years, agility and speed have become more important. During COVID, we had to pivot fast. I spoke with a doctor who had a 12-month plan to launch telehealth. When the pandemic hit, they did it in two weeks. That showed me how quickly we can move when needed—and in today’s tech-driven world, we have to.”
Defining moment: “One of the most meaningful was launching our Prosano clinics. Historically, we’ve been a health insurance company, but now we also deliver care. We employ primary care doctors across Maricopa County and Tucson. The tension between insurance companies and healthcare providers has always been a challenge — controls are put in place to catch bad actors, but they frustrate the majority who are doing the right thing. By integrating care and insurance under one roof, we eliminate that tension. Our Prosano clinics have 30% lower costs, 24% fewer ER visits, and 20% fewer hospitalizations compared to similar populations. It’s been a career highlight to to be able to roll these out and see these results.”
