Lacy Heiberger GB'14
Lacy Heiberger graduated from the Robins School of Business with her MBA in 2014 and is Director of Strategic Planning & Business Development at Virginia Premier Health Plan, Inc. She recently returned to campus to serve as the moderator for the MBA Alumni Society annual Economic Breakfast. As moderator, Lacy directed a panel discussion of the results of the Virginia Council of CEOs Quarterly Economic Outlook Survey. We took this opportunity to catch up with the Charlottesville native to see where the Richmond MBA has taken her and discuss her experience as moderator.
Lacy believes that life will take you where you are meant to be. Starting with how she chose The Richmond MBA program. Lacy was looking for a local program as she moved to Richmond to be with her now, husband. The flexibility and strong local network Richmond offered made the choice simple.
“I really appreciate the friendships I made during my program, including faculty, staff and students. It's a great group of people in general, and I always feel that we are looking out for ways to help one another” Lacy said of her time as an MBA student. “I have also recently met undergraduate students from the Robins School through several events. I really enjoy hearing their aspirations and offering whatever anecdotal career advice I can.”
Healthcare has always been at the forefront of Lacy’s passions. She always knew that she wanted to be involved in healthcare. “It's an industry of miracles. There are constantly breakthroughs, new challenges and new hopes,” Lacy expresses. “I have always had an innate desire to fix things, but I used to be drawn to the individual relationships of providing direct care and now I am more drawn to how I can use my skills to advance population health.”
She began her career in bedside nursing in a Neonatal Intensive Care (NICU), and then moved into a more system-oriented role as a consultant for operational efficiency and patient safety. Finally, she moved into roles related to Business Development. Lacy sees a great deal of opportunity to facilitate collaboration for the advancement of health.
Lacy’s postgraduate experience has met her initial expectations that led her to choose Richmond in the first place. “I have had multiple opportunities come through connections with the Robins School. Everything from moderating the economic forum to trying new workouts to job opportunities.”
Staying connected goes beyond the friendships and into the classroom. “I really enjoyed being part of a group where everyone was dedicated to learning. That, unfortunately, isn't always the case in the working world and for me that shared goal is energizing,” Lacy stated. This dedication to education may account for her desire to moderate last week’s economic forum.
Lacy sought to find connections between the panelists as she prepared for her role as moderator. Since she had not met the panelists prior to the event, she found it important to get as much information beforehand and prepare more questions than might be necessary.
However, there is one role the Richmond MBA did not prepare her for, the role of mom! “I have always been a very meticulous person, and have desired to control as many aspects of my life as possible, until becoming a parent. Not only has it put into a different perspective what matters and what doesn’t, but now I absolutely realize how little control I really have over some things, at least in the short term. That has been a great lesson,” she expresses of parenthood. Lacy is now expecting her second child while juggling her position as Director of Strategic Planning & Business Development at Virginia Premier Health Plan, Inc.
“It definitely hasn't ended up where I thought it would, and I'm not sure where it will take me,” in speaking of her career thus far. We are excited to see where your career aspirations and the Richmond MBA take you!