Senior Vice President/Chief Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer
Advocate Health
Fernando Little is the Senior Vice President & Chief Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Officer for Advocate Health. In this role, he leads and enterprise strategy that fosters diversity, equity, inclusion, culturally competent care, inclusive purchasing and language access for all patients, teammates, and communities. His work also includes developing, implementing, and monitoring programs and processes to sustain an inclusive culture across the enterprise. Fernando holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Appalachian State University and a master’s in organizational leadership from Pfeiffer University. Fernando earned the Certification in Organizational Inclusion and Diversity designation from Michigan State University. Fernando was recognized as one of the Top 100 Diversity Officers in 2021 by US National Diversity Council and in 2022 Atrium Health was named the number one company for women and diverse managers by Diversity MBA. He was also recognized by Becker’s Hospital Review as a Top 40 Diversity & Inclusion Executive to Know. In the community, Fernando serves on the Board of Directors for the United Way of North Carolina, the McCrory YMCA, and the Board of Advisors for the Beaver College of Health Sciences at Appalachian State University. In the diversity, equity, and inclusion space he serves on the North Carolina Hospital Association’s Health Equity Committee and the Andrea Harris Task Force commissioned by Governor Roy Cooper to address heath, race, environmental, and social justice. Fernando serves on several national CDO roundtables and is often invited to speak, moderate, and facilitate important discussions related to diversity, equity, and inclusion. He is married to Tiffany Little, EdD and is the proud dad of two teenage sons – Camren and Chandler. He enjoys attending his sons’ basketball games, mentoring youth and young professionals, vacationing at Disney World and hanging out at the Great Wolf Lodge with his family. They are also avid Carolina Panther fans! Fernando is also a trained pianist and serves as the Director of Music and Arts at St. Mark’s United Methodist Church
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Tuesday, March 25, 2025
9:00am – 10:30am CT