Sandra Clarke

Sandra Clarke is executive vice president and chief operating officer at Blue Shield of California, a 4-million-member nonprofit health plan serving the state’s commercial, individual, and government markets. She oversees the company’s financial strategy, actuarial functions, and financial operations. In addition, she leads Enterprise Process Transformation, focused on transforming the member experience while reducing administrative expense. Clarke is also responsible for Corporate Development, where she plays a senior role in devising and enacting Blue Shield’s strategies to support growth and realize the company’s mission to transform health care.

Clarke has demonstrated her ability to improve operations in global businesses, with over 25 years of experience directing worldwide financial organizations in an array of critical industries. Prior to joining Blue Shield in 2018, she served as senior vice president and chief financial officer of Daiichi Sankyo, Inc., the United States subsidiary of Tokyo-based Daiichi Sankyo Co., Ltd., which develops and markets a range of pharmaceuticals. Clarke also held executive finance roles at Philips Healthcare as chief financial officer of its North and South America Commercial Group and at Siemens Water Technologies Group, where she was vice president and controller of Finance.

She actively serves as board member at Altais, a Blue Shield of California subsidiary, and the Plan Investment Fund, a money market mutual fund for Blue Cross Blue Shield companies and affiliates. Clarke also serves the San Francisco Chapter of the CFO Leadership Council Steering Committee and the American Heart Association Bay Area’s Go Red for Women. She is active with the Financial Executives Institute and the CCI Healthcare SFO Executive Group. Clarke recently published her article, “Upcoming Trends and Technological Advancements in the Accounts Payable space,” in CFO Tech Outlook. She is a speaker at the U.S. CFO Network.

Clarke has a master of science in Accounting from Bentley University and a bachelor of science in Finance from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She is pursuing a master of science in Healthcare Law at Seton Hall University School of Law. San Francisco Business Times recently named Clarke as one of The Most Influential Women in Bay Area Business 2019.