Leading the way: Oak Trace resident pioneered healthcare innovation
A Career Without a Map: How Anna Marie Hajek Led the Way
Somewhere over the Atlantic, the cabin lights dimmed as the plane pushed toward London. Below, the ocean stretched into darkness. At home, Joe Hajek, recently retired early from the Veterans Administration, managed dinner, homework and bedtime with their two young sons, holding steady in a role few men occupied at the time while Anna crossed time zones for work that was steadily reshaping her career.
In her bag, she carried notes for meetings that would influence the direction of a growing company. In her mind, she carried something else, a piece of advice from a CEO who had watched her sit quietly in rooms where she belonged.
Just open your mouth.
So she did. And everything changed.
Anna Marie Hajek never built her career around a neatly mapped plan. She built it by stepping forward when opportunity appeared and trusting her ability to rise to the moment. Over more than four decades in healthcare and insurance, that instinct carried her into spaces where few women stood, and into decisions that shaped systems far beyond a single organization.
Early on, Anna knew she loved science, even at a time when many women were guided toward more traditional paths. She studied laboratory medicine, earning a degree in biology with a minor in chemistry, followed by specialized training in medical technology. Her work in hospital laboratories gave her a deep understanding of the human body and sparked a lifelong commitment to learning and teaching.
Finding her voice
At home, Anna and Joe built a partnership that made her career possible in ways that were quietly ahead of its time.
“I was teaching medical students and other healthcare professionals and realized I loved it,” Anna recalls. “That led me to pursue my master’s in health professions education.”
After earning her degree through the University of Illinois College of Medicine, she moved into education at Triton College, developing and teaching programs for healthcare professionals. The work was meaningful, but it was not her final destination.
A former classmate later introduced her to MMI Companies Inc., a medical malpractice insurance firm operating at the intersection of medicine, law, education, and risk management. Anna stepped into the field without a road map, but with a perspective that quickly proved valuable.
At a time when most insurance models focused on response to claims rather than prevention of harm, she helped shape a culture centered on patient safety.
Her rise was steady. She advanced to executive vice president, helping guide the company through rapid growth that extended internationally. MMI expanded its reach, bringing its integrated approach to patient safety and risk management to healthcare systems abroad.
Then came a defining moment.
In 1992, the CEO and board made the decision to take the company public on the New York Stock Exchange. For a company that had started small, it was a bold step designed to support continued expansion.
Anna was at the center of it.
Alongside the CEO and CFO, she joined the road show team, traveling across the United States and internationally to present the company to investors.
“It was a marvelous opportunity,” Anna says. “When you do this, a road show is the way to get investors interested in buying the stock. I had never worked with bankers and investors before. I had only worked with healthcare people. I did not speak financial.”
But she learned by doing what she had always done, stepping forward.
City by city, meeting by meeting, they told the story of MMI not just as an insurance company, but as an organization committed to improving patient safety while reducing the cost of healthcare and mitigating claims of medical negligence.
They asked investors to believe in that vision.
And they did.
“We were successful,” Anna says. “We went public in 1993. It took us a year.”
On June 24, 1993, they stood in the dining room of the New York Stock Exchange, marking the completion of the Initial Public Offering for MMI Companies, Inc. The road show team stood together: Rick Becker, chairman and CEO, Paul Orzech, executive vice president and CFO, and Anna, executive vice president and president of the Healthcare Services Group.
For Anna, the moment carried meaning beyond the business milestone. In the early 1990s, it was rare for a woman to be part of a leadership team taking a company public, rarer still to play a central role in making it happen.
“It was a wonderful and powerful moment for me,” she says, “to be part of this team and celebrate our opening day on the New York Stock Exchange.”
In boardrooms and investor meetings, she was often the only woman. Over time, she was no longer quiet.
She opened her mouth. And people listened.
Building something that lasts
In 2000, when MMI was sold, Anna reached another turning point. Rather than stepping away, she stepped forward again. Alongside the former CEO of MMI, she co-founded Clarity Group Inc., a company focused on advancing patient safety and healthcare risk management.
It extended the work she had already been doing, now with the opportunity to help shape it from the ground up.
Clarity Group became an enduring presence in the industry, influencing how healthcare organizations approach safety, accountability, and improvement. It also became part of her family’s story, with both of her sons continuing work connected to what she helped build.
Leadership that opens doors
Anna’s leadership has always been grounded in intention. She recognizes talent, creates space for others, and understands that progress happens when more voices are included, not fewer.
Supported by forward thinking colleagues and a family that embraced a different structure for its time, she built a career defined not only by achievement, but by impact.
She opened doors, then made sure others could walk through them.
A new chapter at Oak Trace
After decades of forward momentum, retirement arrived quietly during the pandemic. For Anna and Joe, it was less an ending than a transition.
They chose to move to Oak Trace, drawn to its approach to planning for the future. As a Life Plan Community, it offered something Anna valued deeply, the ability to look ahead with clarity and intention.
They moved into independent living after carefully evaluating the full continuum of care. With her healthcare background, Anna approached the decision with both expertise and perspective, ensuring the next chapter was as thoughtfully considered as the ones before it.
From the beginning, they found connection. Others were navigating similar decisions, asking similar questions, and building a shared sense of possibility. What could have felt like a transition instead felt like forward movement.
Today, Anna is fully engaged in life at Oak Trace. She sings in the chorus, serves in resident leadership roles, and continues to build relationships and contribute meaningfully to community life.
The pace is different. The purpose is not.
A legacy of possibility
Anna measures her life not just by titles, but by the doors she has opened and the systems she has helped improve. She built a career in spaces where few women stood, spoke when it mattered, and helped shape safer approaches to patient care.
That sense of purpose continues to guide her as she connects, contributes, and leads in new ways.
Her advice is simple.
Speak up. Step forward. Say ‘yes.’
Because sometimes the most meaningful journeys are the ones never planned.
Oak Trace Senior Living
Oak Trace senior living community in Downers Grove, Illinois, is set on more than 40 acres of meticulously landscaped grounds featuring gardens, walking paths, ponds and abundant green space. As a Life Plan Community, formerly known as a CCRC, Oak Trace offers a full continuum of care: including independent living, assisted living, memory care, rehabilitation and skilled nursing. Oak Trace is owned by Lifespace, a not-for-profit organization with nearly 50 years of experience in senior living. To learn more about Oak Trace, visit OakTraceSeniorLiving.com.