Nick Ragone serves as Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing and Communications Officer for Ascension. In this role, he oversees the creation and execution of brand strategy and experience, marketing and advertising, public relations and thought leadership, social media strategy, internal communications for Ascension and its subsidiaries. Beginning in 2016, Mr. Ragone has led the national rebranding of Ascension’s local health systems and sites of care to adopt the unified Ascension name, the largest such undertaking ever in the provider space.

Since joining Ascension as Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing and Communications Officer in 2014, Mr. Ragone has centralized and optimized the marketing and communications approach to support the Mission across more than 2,600 sites of care and more than 150,000 associates. In addition to defining and strengthening the Ascension brand, Mr. Ragone has led the creation of a corporate social responsibility program, developed an industry-leading thought leadership platform, and transformed the marketing model into a digital and data-driven approach that creates a more personal relationship with consumers and patients. In 2021, Mr. Ragone was instrumental in creating the Ascension Charity Classic presented by Emerson, an annual PGA TOUR Champions event played in North St. Louis County with all proceeds benefiting the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater St. Louis, and Marygrove, a residential facility for abused children and teens.

In 2019, Mr. Ragone was appointed to the Missouri State Board of Health and Senior Services by Missouri Governor Mike Parson. The board reviews and advises on the rules and regulations promoted by the Department of Health and Senior Services; and provides comments to the Director of the Department of Health and Senior Services regarding the promulgation of rules and regulations by the Department of Health, formulation of the department’s proposed budget, and planning for and operation of the Department of Health and Senior Services.

In 2022, Mr. Ragone was named a Pinnacle Award winner by Medical Marketing and Media, recognizing him as one of 25 of the industry’s “most venerable marketers, strategists and creators.” In 2021, he was named Healthcare Communicator of the Year by Lawrence Ragan Communications/PR Daily; the St. Louis Business Journal honored Mr. Ragone with a C-Suite Award, given to executives who are making a difference in St. Louis; and he and his wife, Tyan, were recognized by the Catholic Archdiocese of St. Louis with the annual Cardinal Rigali Service Award for their charitable work in the St. Louis community. In 2020, he was included in Forbes magazine’s list of “The World’s Most Influential CMOs” (Chief Marketing Officers). In 2019, he was recognized by Forbes as one of its “50 Game-Changing Marketing Leaders.” In both 2016 and 2017, Mr. Ragone was recognized by PRWeek as one of the 50 most influential marketers and communicators in healthcare. In 2017, 2018 and 2019, the Holmes Report, a leading marketing and communications trade publication, recognized Mr. Ragone on its annual “Influence 100” list, which identifies the 100 most influential marketers and communicators around the globe. In 2007, Mr. Ragone was named to the PRWeek inaugural “40 under 40” most influential list.

In 2015, Mr. Ragone was instrumental in developing Your Move Chess, an after-school chess program for underserved students in the St. Louis region beginning with the Ferguson-Florissant School District, in partnership with the Saint Louis Chess Club. He is also an active fundraiser for St. Louis non-profits Marygrove and Covenant House Missouri, and serves on the board of Project Lead the Way, a leading nonprofit organization that provides transformative learning experience for PreK-12 students and teachers across the U.S. Mr. Ragone is also a Board Member of the United Way of Greater St. Louis, the American Lung Association in Missouri, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater St. Louis, The Concordance Academy, a leadership organization dedicated to reducing reincarceration rates, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, Marian Middle School, and First Tee of St. Louis.

A former Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University, Washington, D.C., Mr. Ragone is the author of four books on American government and presidential leadership.

Mr. Ragone is a graduate of Rutgers University and the Eagleton Institute of Political Science (undergraduate program), and earned a Juris Doctor degree from the Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, D.C. He lives in St. Louis with his wife and two children.