L. Ben Lytle
L. Ben Lytle is Chairman of
Univita, LLC, whose mission is to empower individuals to live
independently in their homes regardless of age or health status. He
was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of AXIA Health Management,
LLC until its sale to Healthways, Inc. in December, 2006. Mr. Lytle
and his son Hugh founded Axia, and have partnered again to build
Univita.
Previously, Mr. Lytle was Chairman and CEO of Anthem, Inc. which
acquired WellPoint, Inc. (NYSE) in 2004 and assumed the WellPoint
name, becoming the nation's largest health plan. In 1976, Mr. Lytle
joined Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Indiana with revenues of $1
billion. He rose through the executive ranks to become COO in
1982 and CEO in 1989. Under Mr. Lytle's leadership, BCBS of Indiana
was transformed through a series of mergers and acquisitions of
other Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies to form Anthem, a $16B
revenue Fortune 500 company. During this same time period, he
created, took public, and sold Acordia, Inc. (NYSE) as an Anthem
subsidiary, which became the world's 7th largest insurance broker.
Mr. Lytle retired as CEO of Anthem in 1999, continued as Chairman
until 2004; and chaired the Strategic Planning Committee in
2004-2006 until he retired Chairman Emeritus from the
Anthem/WellPoint Board.
Mr. Lytle has served on ten public company boards of directors
and twice that number of private companies. He currently serves on
Duke Realty (NYSE), Healthways, Inc. (NASDAQ), the Genstar Private
Equity Advisory Board, and is a member of the Board of Trustees of
the Kronos Institute for Aging.
Mr. Lytle attributes his success to loving, principled parents,
four strong mentors who guided his career, good health, and a high
energy level. Born on a ranch in Texas, he rose through managerial
ranks in information technology with several companies while
working his way through an undergraduate degree at East Texas State
University (now Texas A&M), and a law degree at Indiana
University at Indianapolis. By nature an entrepreneur with
social interests, he developed a passion for building
businesses. He is a devoted family man with three adult
children and six grandchildren, all close by in Phoenix,
Arizona. He is a lifelong athlete and fitness buff and
competes in Sprint triathlons. He and his family are world
travelers, and he speaks conversational Italian.
Mr. Lytle has a passion for mentoring young people, having guest
lectured at universities most of his career. He is an executive in
residence at the University Of Arizona School Of Business. He was
also the recipient of the University of Arizona's 2004 Executive of
the Year Award. His son and business partner, Hugh Lytle, honored
his father with the creation of the L. Ben Lytle Leadership series
at Butler University, where Hugh earned his MBA.