James Beattie Hudak – 50th Reunion Essay

James Beattie Hudak

190 Stone Mountain Circle

Napa, CA 94558

james.hudak@gmail.com

925-330-8046

Spouse(s): Sally Silvia

Child(ren): Jim (1969); Bill (1971); Jacqueline (1991); Casey (1992); Madeline (1994)

Grandchild(ren): Josie (2007); Lily (2005), Baby due 2018

Education: University of Michigan, MPP (1971)

Career: 10 Years in City govenment 20 Years at Accenture , left as Health Service Managing Partner UnitedHealth Group Corporate CIO , CEO UBH,CAO CRC HealthGroup , CEO Paradigm Outcomes

Avocations: Chair the Advisory Committee to the Ford School Of Public Policy at Michigan, Kids Chance of America Ambassador, golf and wine

College: Morse

I find this essay much harder to write than my 25th. Twenty-five years ago I was starting a second family and in the beginning years of a new career focus. That essay was easy because it was about what I was “doing.”

Last October I stepped down as CEO of a health care company and now have the exalted title of executive chairman. I am still working some, all five of my children are adults and l feel that this part of my life is more about reflecting on what I have done, whether any of it mattered and, for this essay, what role Yale played.

My first 20 years were working for and consulting to government. I worked for three different cities and think I had a meaningful impact on people and the physical environment of these cities. I had the lofty goal of making my age in thousands by my 30th birthday which I just barely accomplished. I then joined a consulting firm, coauthored a book and flew around the world consulting to cities, states and nations. Always hard to know as a consultant whether there was lasting impact, but I hope and believe there was some.

For the last 30 years I have worked in the health care field and in this case know that I have improved the lives of many people who were mentally or physically sick, addicted or catastrophically injured on the job. I have been more personally and financially blessed than I ever imagined.

I love all five of my children unconditionally and support them through all of their trials, tribulations and triumphs. I believe that they love me. Whether I was a good father is even harder to measure than the impact I had as a consultant.

So where does Yale fit in all of this? I think my four years there had a profound impact and I’m grateful for the full scholarship the school provided. I am also grateful now, although not so grateful at the time, that my scholarship required me to work a job for the University. This taught me that nothing came easy. The dreaded distributional requirements also had a big impact. Getting a broad liberal arts education gave me a broader view of the world, an intellectual curiosity and the confidence to master new and different things. And finally, playing football instilled a sense of discipline and teamwork essential for success. As an aside, to say I played is a bit of an exaggeration. Mostly I showed up for practice and as Coach Putnam said, “I made up for my lack of size by being really slow.”

I have been married and divorced twice and just got engaged to Sally Silvia. Did attending an all-male school where women were bused in for mixers contribute to my failed marriages. Certainly, I bear the brunt of responsibility but wonder if things would have been different had I attended a coed school.