AArete adds vice presidents Jeff Berger and Danielle Smith

AArete, a Chicago-headquartered management consulting firm, has hired Jeff Berger as vice president for strategy and corporate development and Danielle Smith, MD as vice president for clinical intelligence.

In his new role, Berger will lead the firm’s corporate development initiatives, including M&A strategy, due diligence, and post-merger integration.

He brings more than 20 years of experience in strategy, corporate development, and operational excellence. Berger joins from consulting firm Protiviti, where he spent the last two decades and most recently served as director for account management and client experience. Before that, he was director and chief of staff for global industry and strategic account management.

Berger has an MBA from the University of Chicago and a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Indiana University.

In her new role, Smith will help expand AArete’s clinical intelligence capabilities across several solution areas.

She has more than 20 years of experience in healthcare and managed care, with expertise spanning clinical operations, medical management, utilization management, clinical policy, and government-sponsored healthcare programs.

Smith was previously vice president at Redwood Management Inc., national medical director for clinical policy at Molina Healthcare, and program medical director/chief hospitalist at Sound Physicians.

She has an MD from the Medical College of Wisconsin, an MBA from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.

“Jeff and Danielle will be great additions to the leadership of our growing firm,” said Loren Trimble, chief executive officer of AArete. “Their appointments reinforce our commitment to serving clients at the highest level with healthcare innovation as we position the firm for continued success.”