Lillian Montoya on leadership, change, and the power of course-correcting

A native New Mexican and the first person in her family to attend college, Lillian Montoya began her undergraduate education at The University of New Mexico with plans to attend medical school. Instead, her career took her in a series of unexpected directions - from higher education to early childhood to venture capital, small business, state government, and economic development - before eventually leading her to be the senior vice president of CHRISTUS Health's New Mexico region and the president and CEO of CHRISTUS St. Vincent.

Looking back, Lillian sees those turns not as detours, but as opportunities that gave her the experiences and perspective, she needed to become the leader she is today.

Montoya graduated from UNM with a BA in communications as a presidential scholar and later returned to receive her MBA from the Anderson School of Management, now The James & Gail Ellis School of Business Leadership.

It was during her MBA that she began to shape her leadership philosophy, gaining lessons, and perspectives that would continue to guide her throughout her career.

"I think the most valuable lesson for me has been willing to take professional risks," she said. "Your willingness to be curious and challenge yourself, helps you to learn and grow as a leader and as a colleague."

Rather than viewing a career as a straight path from one position to the next, she believes people should remain open to opportunities, even when those opportunities take them somewhere they never expected to go.

Montoya has worked across a variety of industries and organizations, building experience in areas that might initially seem unrelated to healthcare. Yet each position taught her something about organizations, people, and how change happens.

"I never came into any situation thinking it couldn't be made better, or fixed, or improved, because I consider myself a builder and a fixer," she said.

That mindset eventually opened the door to healthcare leadership. After serving on a hospital board, she was recruited to join the management team, despite not having a traditional healthcare background.

This experience for Montoya reinforced the value of bringing perspectives from outside a particular industry. Because she had not spent her entire career in healthcare, she was able to approach problems without preconceived notions about what could or could not be done.

That perspective has remained central to how she approaches leadership. She believes organizations are strongest when people feel they have a meaningful role in creating change.

"When you take the time to connect with the people and help them become owners in a transformation, you're nurturing a culture," Montoya said.

Montoya describes healthcare as "the hard work of the heart." The work can be demanding, emotional, and difficult, making organizational culture especially important.

"If you can create an environment of joy, respect, engagement for your workforce, they will not only come back for more, but take it beyond," she said.

Throughout her career, mentors have been a vital component in her success and have helped her see possibilities she might not have recognized on her own.

"[Mentors] hold you accountable to your journey, your core values, honoring relationships, all those things that are really important to being a successful professional and just being a good human, honestly," she said. "I've had so many people that have - if they weren't able to open the door - at least pointed me to the door. And I feel a responsibility to do that as well," she said.

Montoya encourages students not to limit themselves to one career path or become too attached to a single definition of success. Instead, she encourages them to explore, take calculated risks, and remain open to what they discover.

"Don't limit yourself because when you expose yourself to a variety of experiences, you start discovering what you don't like," she said. "But you also discover what you really like. Give yourself permission to course correct," she said.

Montoya believe course-correcting isn't a sign that a career has gone off track. It can be how people discover opportunities they never knew existed.

"It's okay to try something new," she said.