Martin Hamlette leads the strategic direction and execution of U.S. ESG activities that increase access, promote innovation, and improve population health through Novartis’ 10 year, $50+ million Beacon of Hope initiative within the Global Health & Sustainability unit. In collaboration with the National Medical Association (NMA), Thurgood Marshall College Fund, 26 Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and other organizations, Beacon of Hope aims to eliminate the root causes of disparity in health and education.
As a thought leader within the healthcare industry, his perspectives are often highlighted. In 2021, he was appointed to a COVID-19 advisory council of the Rockefeller Foundation. And in 2019, as a featured panelist at the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, he addressed the economic and social inequities that impact positive health outcomes.
Previously, he led a 7-year period of sustained growth and expansion as the Executive Director of the NMA. Founded in 1895, the NMA is the oldest and largest national professional and scientific organization representing the interests of 50,000 African American physicians and the culturally diverse patients they serve. Under his direction in July 2021, the NMA signed onto the original Beacon of Hope pledge to create greater diversity, equity and inclusion across the research and development ecosystem.
He holds a B.A. in economics from Howard University, a J.D. from the University of Dayton School of Law, and a M.H.A. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Gillings School of Global Public Health.
He enjoys spending time with family and volunteering with civic organizations in the Washington, DC area.
