Nashville Business Breakfast
Founded in 2007, the Nashville Business Breakfast is a quarterly networking event, presented by Lipscomb University and the Nashville Business Journal, with a news-conference-style format, featuring business leaders with local economic impact. With an average attendance of more than 600 metro area professionals, the event provides an opportunity to connect with peers and hear a pertinent discussion with a business leader in the community.
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Fahad Tahir
President and CEO of Ascension Saint Thomas
George Shinn Center
Fahad Tahir serves as President and CEO of Ascension Saint Thomas, a leading health system encompassing 18 hospitals and more than 300 sites of care, including medical practices and specialty facilities across Middle Tennessee. As the leader of the region’s only faith-based, nonprofit health system, he focuses on creating a culture of trust and collaboration with physicians, care teams, colleagues, health plans, and other key stakeholders.
Previously, Fahad was Chief Strategy Officer, driving service line expansion, capital investments, and partnerships to enhance access to care. Before that, he served as President and CEO of Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital Midtown and West, integrating both hospitals, spearheading a campus master plan investment, and advancing recognized clinical programs and service lines. He also led the Ascension Saint Thomas Medical Partners physician network, overseeing one of the region’s largest medical groups.
Earlier, Fahad held leadership roles in Washington, D.C., and Milwaukee, earning three CMS Innovation awards. He holds a Master’s from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, an MBA from Loyola University Chicago, and a Finance degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Fahad is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and serves on multiple healthcare and nonprofit boards, including United Way of Greater Nashville, American Heart Association, Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce, Catholic Health Association, Tennessee Hospital Association, and the Nashville Health Care Council.
The Nashville Business Breakfast has hosted notable local leaders, such as:
- Mark Chaffin, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA)
- Senator William H. Frist, MD, former U.S. Senate Majority Leader
- Lynsi Snyder-Ellingson, Owner and President of In-N-Out Burger
- Freddie O'Connell, Mayor, Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County
- Jennifer Turner, President and CEO, Tennessee Performing Arts Center
- Deana Ivey, President and CEO, Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp
- Burke Nihill, President and CEO of the Tennessee Titans
- Doug Kreulen, President and CEO Metropolitan, Nashville Airport Authority
- Holly Sullivan, VP of World Wide Economic Development, Amazon
- Colin V. Reed, Chairman of the Board & Chief Executive Officer, Ryman Hospitalities Properties
- Seth Bernstein, President and CEO, AllianceBernstein
- Michael Burcham, President and CEO, Nashville Entrepreneur Center
- Bill Carpenter, CEO, LifePoint Hospitals
- John Cooper, Mayor, Metro Nashville and Davidson County
- Mitch Edgeworth, CEO, Vanderbilt University Hospital and Clinics
- Gary Garfield, CEO, Bridgestone Americas
- Randy Goodman, CEO, Sony Music Nashville
- Cordia Harrington, CEO, The Bakery Companies
- Bill Haslam, Governor, State of Tennessee
- John Ingram, Chairman, Ingram Industries
- Milton Johnson, Chairman and CEO, HCA
- Bill Lee, Governor, State of Tennessee
- David Poile, President of Hockey Operations and General Manager, Nashville Predators
- Greg Sandfort, CEO, Tractor Supply Company
- Butch Spyridon, President, Nashville Convention & Visitors Bureau
- Jonathan Tisch, Chairman and CEO, Loews Corporation
- Sarah Trahern, CEO, Country Music Association
- H. Beecher Hicks, III, President & CEO of the National Museum of African American Music
- Mitch Edgeworth, Division President, HCA Healthcare TriStar Division
- Barry Vandevier, Chief Operating Officer at Asurion
- Tony Giarratana, President at Giarratana LLC
- Erik A. Moses, President of Nashville Superspeedway
- Tim Adams, President and CEO Ascension Saint Thomas Ministry Market Executive, Ascension Tennessee
- Mimi Vaughn, Board Chair, President and Chief Executive Officer, Genesco
- Paolo Ferrari, Executive Chairman, Bridgestone Americas
- Julie Felss Massino, President and CEO, Cracker Barrel
Speakers listed with titles at the time of their NBB appearance.