The Los Angeles Business Journal recently recognized UCLA’s Johnese Spisso as CEO of the Year and Mary Osako as a finalist for Executive of the Year.

Selected from among hundreds of nominees, both Spisso, who serves as president of UCLA Health, CEO of the UCLA Hospital System and associate vice chancellor for health sciences, and Osako, UCLA’s inaugural vice chancellor for strategic communications, were honored at the Los Angeles Business Journal’s Women’s Leadership Symposium and Awards June 28. The annual event celebrates achievements by women who have made a difference throughout Los Angeles.

In her roles since 2016, Spisso, a nationally recognized academic health care leader with more than 30 years of experience, oversees the operations of UCLA’s hospitals and clinics and the health system’s regional outreach strategy. She led UCLA’s expansion to provide convenient access to care throughout Southern California, with more than 250 clinics recording more than 3.1 million outpatient visits in 2021. Spisso was presented with the 2023 Vision and Excellence in Healthcare Leadership Award by the Partners in Care Foundation.

A UCLA alumna, Osako started in her role in 2019, overseeing communications, media relations, brand marketing and strategic insights for the university and helping to maintain and enhance UCLA’s reputation as U.S News & World Report’s No. 1–ranked public university. She has more than 20 years of experience leading complex communications efforts at some of the most innovative Fortune 500 companies in the world, including Amazon, Activision Blizzard and Yahoo!. Osako currently serves on the boards of directors for the Hammer Museum and Geffen Playhouse and the board of advisors for Haven Tower Group. She was recognized as one of PRWeek’s 2021 Women of Distinction (formerly the Hall of Femme).