Paul Sanford

Executive Vice President, Chief Strategy Acceleration Officer The Cigna Group

Last Reviewed: October 1, 2026

Executive Summary

Paul Sanford returned to The Cigna Group in 2026 as Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Acceleration Officer, a newly created role focused on turning strategy into results by leading the company’s change agenda and coordinating priorities across the business. He spent more than two decades at Cigna from 2001, most recently as Executive Vice President of Operations, where he created the Enterprise Shared Services Organization, before leaving in 2024 for advisory work. The Cigna Group ranked No. 14 on the 2026 Fortune 500.

Career Highlights

• Executive Vice President, Chief Strategy Acceleration Officer of The Cigna Group since 2026.
• Executive Vice President, Operations, a newly created role, from September 2021 until 2024.
• Led improvement work after the 2018 combination with Express Scripts.
• Joined Cigna in 2001.

Professional Journey

Sanford earned a Bachelor of Arts in economics at SUNY Stony Brook and an MBA at the University of Connecticut School of Business. He held network operations and managed care roles at Prudential Healthcare, Aetna and Scripps Health.

He joined Cigna in 2001 as Assistant Vice President of its Program Management Office and later held leadership roles in provider contracting, network management and IT, leading changes after the 2018 combination with Express Scripts. In September 2021 Cigna named him Executive Vice President, Operations, a newly created role overseeing customer service operations, health care provider services and operational effectiveness; in it he created the Enterprise Shared Services Organization.

He left in 2024, did advisory work in health care, and rejoined in 2026 as Chief Strategy Acceleration Officer. He serves on the board of the Center for Independent Living.

Education

University of Connecticut School of Business

MBA

State University of New York at Stony Brook

Bachelor of Arts, Economics