Biography of Robert Finch

Robert Finch Human Resources Management Robert Finch has broad experience in state government, healthcare, and human resources management. He has 15 years of executive experience in healthcare, including several key positions throughout his career.

Finch is also a man of the cloth. He joined Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Stephens, Georgia, at the age of nine and was ordained as a deacon in 1988. Reverend Finch served as a deacon at Mt.

Zion until relocating to Jacksonville, Florida, in 1996, where he connected with Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church and also served in the deacon’s ministry. He has experienced many meaningful milestones in his life, but one of the most significant was his acceptance of his call to preach the Gospel in 2009. He is most grateful for the guidance of Rev. Abraham Mosley, senior pastor of Mt. Pleasant Missionary Baptist Church, who served as his mentor in ministry. Finch faithfully served as an associate pastor under Rev. Mosley until accepting the call to serve Billups Grove Baptist Church in Athens, Georgia, on October 12, 2019.

Finch’s Career in Healthcare Robert Finch, Georgia, spent four years as Vice President, Human Resources & Organizational Development, with Coffee Regional Medical Center in Douglas. His responsibilities and achievements included managing a talented team of benefits, performance management, compensation, recruitment, and employee relations specialists; developing a policy to reduce Time to Fill to reflect industry standards; successfully managing 401k and 457b retirement plans conversions; managing 12 million self-insured benefits plans and achieving a $240,000 reduction in stop-loss premiums via cycle audit; as well as lowering the health plan’s prescription cost t by updating formulary and PBM selection. He was also the executive lead for Diversity & Inclusion Initiatives, completely redesigning the employee recognition program and PRN and PTO policies.

Finch also served as the Interim Executive Director at Mercy Health Center in Athens, Georgia, where he was responsible for strategic planning, facilities management, HR, donor management, and fiscal accountability.

As Vice President of Human Resources & Chief Diversity Officer at Piedmont Athens Regional Medical Center in Athens for four years, he managed compensation, compliance, benefits, recruitment, EAP, Employee Health, Employee Relations, Learning and Development, performance management, and Chaplain Services. Finch reduced voluntary turnover from 20.1% to 13.3% through cycle audits, which included reviewing pay practices, administering appropriate market adjustments, and effective conflict management.

He began his career in healthcare as a Consultant for Statewide Healthcare, Inc., and was responsible for expanding the company’s footprint to include Albany, Athens, Columbus, and Macon by collaborating with local leaders. Finch conducted a training series on regulatory compliance issues for employees in the areas of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Diversity in Hiring and Recruitment, the Immigration and Reform Act of 1986, and the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Additionally, he developed an action plan for company-wide hiring and recruitment, resulting in a fully operational staff across all service areas. Finch generated $2.3M in revenue and expanded the home healthcare participant network by designing a patient-enrollment marketing campaign.

Beyond His Healthcare Career Robert Finch held the position of Coordinator for Corporate and Diversity Outreach at the Charlotte School of Law in North Carolina. He was responsible for recruiting minority faculty and students. He increased enrollment by 30% through a targeted minority outreach plan that focused on recruiting at HBCUs. He also drafted a proposal to host the Law School Diversity Professionals Conference, highlighting employment opportunities at Charlotte Law for minority faculty and staff. By expanding the Alternative Admissions Model Program for Legal Education (AAMPLE), he improved minority student enrollment by 10 percent annually. In addition, he reduced student reliance on federal loans by initiating a corporate outreach strategy aligned with Charlotte Law’s 90/10 platform, generating corporate-subsidized legal education opportunities and increasing corporate enrollment through strategic partnerships with community organizations.

He served as the President & CEO of the Boys & Girls Club of Athens, managing a team of 56 employees and volunteers. Finch partnered with the Athens Housing Authority and Athens-Clarke County Unified Government to expand programming to every public housing location in the city. Within a two-year period, enrollment doubled, weekend programming was implemented, academic catch-up was offered at each location, and $3 million in funding was secured through the Athens-Clarke County Mayor and Commission.

Finch was also the Chief of Staff to Georgia’s Senate Majority Leader and an aide to the Senate Judiciary Committee in Atlanta, Georgia.

He was an Adjunct Instructor at Athens Technical College, teaching HR Management, Leadership, Compensation, Performance Management, Principles of Management, Organizational Behavior, and Business Ethics.

Professional Affiliations​ ​ Finch’s affiliations have included serving on the Athens-Clarke County Mayor’s Task Force on Diversity and Athens-Clarke County Unified Government SPLOST Evaluation Team. He is a former board member and Vice Chair of the Family Connections-Community in Schools. He is a former Board Chair, American Red Cross, Northeast Georgia Chapter, and of the Business Management Advisory Board, Athens Technical College. He is also a former board member of the Foodbank of Northwest Georgia, Athens Rotary International, Mercy Health Center, and Law School Diversity Professionals Conference.

Other affiliations include Athens Kiwanis Club, Athens Area Human Relations Council Academic Scholarship Sponsor, Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, and Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity, Delta Psi Boule.

A History of Giving Back Robert Finch has served the Athens Area Human Relations Council for 24 consecutive years, providing scholarships to college-bound students.

Education Robert Finch, Georgia, earned his B.S. degree in Criminal Justice and Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Albany State University as a Regents Award Recipient. He received his Doctor of Law degree from the Florida Coastal School of Law, where he matriculated as a Governor’s Scholar.

He holds the SHRM Certified Professional (SHRM-CP) credential and is certified as an AAMC Healthcare Diversity Executive.