Executive Compensation at Novant Heath (2024)

Novant Health is a non-profit, tax-exempt 501 (c) (3) based in Winston Salem, North Carolina. An integrated healthcare provider, Novant Health has 21 medical centers medical centers and more than 900 care centers in  North Carolina and South Carolina.

It is important to note Novant Health has dozens of related/affiliated 501 (c) (3)’s, taxable partnerships, corporations, and trusts that are listed on Schedule R of the Form 990.  This post addresses the executive compensation at only Novant Health, Inc,, and not the related/affiliated organizations including the specific hospitals, physician clinics, imaging centers, etc.  However, there are employees whose responsibilities overlap with other affiliated organizations. When this is the case, compensation may also come from related organizations (and this is noted below).

Key financial information to know includes:

• $6.5 billion in revenue was reported in 2024, most of which came from net patient revenue ($5 billion), corporate support ($514 million), pharmacy ($455 million), other program revenue  including physician services ($279 million), and investment income and gains ($182 million).
• Expenses totaled $6.2 billion (including $198 million in depreciation) with the largest expenses reported to be compensation ($3.2 billion), other fees and services ($640 million), pharmaceuticals ($597 million), shared services and other expenses ($471 million), medical supplies ($461 million), and office expenses ($424 million).
• Net assets were $3.7 billion at the beginning of the year.  After adjusting for excess revenue ($350 million), and unrealized gains on investments, net assets ($172 million) would be $4.2 billion, but Novant did a -$3.4 billion adjustment to net assets (primarily for overhead intracompany expense allocations), leaving $900 million in net assets at year-end.

Novant Health, Inc is the parent organization of the system that comprises many separate organizations that collectively employ more than 43,000 people including 2,100 physicians.  The parent organization, Novant Health, Inc employed 33,786 individuals in 2024 who were compensated $3.2 billion, which equates to an average compensation of $95,000.  The 25 most highly compensated employees of Novant Health, the parent organization were reported to be:

• $8,150,937:  Carl Armato, Trustee/President/CEO
• $3,332,017:  James Dean Swindle, EVP
• $3,041,190:  Howard Homesley, Orthopaedist
• $2,477,807:  John Gizdic, EVP
• $2,152,664:  Derek Bernstein, Orthopaedist
• $2,118,560:  John Marcel, Orthopaedist
• $2,118,253:  David Duval, Former SVP, Marketing and Communications
• $2,064,352:  Pamela Oliver, EVP
• $2,039,351:  Rashid Janjua, Neurosurgeon
• $2,025,143:  Denise Mihal, EVP
• $1,934,787:  Frank Emory, Jr, EVP
• $1,620,829:  Kimberly Henderson, EVP
• $1,485,598:  Onyeke Nchege, EVP
• $1,299,330:  Geoffrey Gardiner, CFO (to 4/28/24)
• $1,175,156:   Alice Pope, EVP, CFO (beg 4/29/24)
• $1,080,980:  Sanjay Gupta, EVP
• $1,071,824:  Chere Gregory, Former Key Employee (left 12/31/21)
• $1,065,171:  Jesse Cureton, Former Key Employee (left 4/27/23)
• $1,039,660:  Thomas Jenike, Former Key Employee (left 12/31/21)
• $1,002,363:  Scott Myers, Former Key Employee (left 12/31/21)
• $   833,136:  Laurie Whalen, Former Key Employee (left 12/31/21)
• $   657,359:  Allison Greear, Former Key Employee (left 12/31/21)
• $   650,924:  Kathryn Langford, Former Key Employee (left 12/31/21)
• $   629,875:  Shelbourn Stevens, Former Key Employee (left 12/31/21)
• $   607,537:  Jonathan Applebaum, Former Key Employee (left 12/31/21)

The 25 employees listed above received $46 million in compensation in 2024.  Notable is that 10 of the employees listed above are former employees, most of whom left in 2021.  17 of the 25 (68%) are male while 8 of the 25 (32%) are female.

The most highly compensated employee is the long time president and CEO, Carl Armato, who received more than $8 million in 2024 and $49 million from 2014-2024:

Carl Armato:  Total Compensation 2014-2024:  $49 million

• 2024:  $8,150,937
• 2023:  $7,026,721
• 2022:  $5,341,778
• 2021:  $4,473,377
• 2020:  $4,058,658
• 2019:  $4,127,320
• 2018:  $3,553,284
• 2017:  $3,416,233
• 2016:  $3,426,419
• 2015:  $2,938,639
• 2014:  $2,690,475

Novant Health paid for first class or charter travel, companion travel, health or social club dues or initiation fees, and provided housing allowance or a residence for personal use, and discretionary spending accounts.  To read more about these expenses and Supplemental Executive Retirement Plans (SERP), see the Form 990, Schedule J, Part III, Supplemental Information.

593 independent contractors received more than $100,000 in compensation.The five (5) most highly compensated were reported to be:

• $126 million:  RJ Leeper Construction, of Charlotte, NC for construction
• $ 60 million:  Vannoy Construction, of Jefferson, NC for construction
• $ 53 million:  AYA Healthcare, of Dallas, TX for staffing services
• $ 53 million:  McKinsey and Company, of Philadelphia, PA for consulting services
• $ 40 million:  EPIC Systems, of Milwaukee, WI for IT consulting services

As illustrated above, the large independent contractors were primarily for construction but it is interesting to note Novant Heath paid McKinsey more than $50 million for consulting.  Novant’s long time CEO, Carl Armato is a CPA and received more than $8 million in 2024 to manage Novant so the question begs:  what did Novant need McKinsey for?

To read the IRS Form 990 (2024), click here.