LATROBE, PA – Jonathan R. Petrie, C’05, chief financial officer for UPMC Magee Women’s Hospital and UPMC Mercy, delivered the below convocation address at the 2025 Spring Honors Convocation.
Good afternoon. Thank you, Father Paul, for your warm introduction. Congratulations to the faculty and students on your well- deserved honors.
I am humbled by the invitation to speak to this distinguished group. It has been 20 years since I graduated from Saint Vincent College. Twenty years ago, I was sitting right where you are now. Well, that is not exactly true. This is my first honors convocation. I was joking earlier that it took an invitation from Father Paul for me to be allowed to attend!
I am a 2005 graduate of Saint Vincent College and a proud Bearcat. Twenty years and in some ways, it feels like yesterday. Twenty years ago, I was running around the lacrosse fields without being sore for days. I was hanging out with friends at Sharky’s when I should have been studying. I was cramming for a Dr. Botsko final in Linear Algebra wondering why I chose Engineering as my major. And, 20 years ago, I was building friendships that have lasted to this day. Twenty years ago, if you would have asked me if I thought I would be standing here today, I would have said I am not even sure where I will be working after graduation.
It turns out, the answer happened to be at a local company called Windswept Adventures. It was my first job as a college graduate, and it lasted for 2 months before starting an entry level position with UPMC.
It’s funny what one remembers vividly about their time at college. One memory that I have from here is when we were asked in a business class to complete an exercise outlining our future goals. I pulled my responses from the archives, and I’d like to share them with you in just a few minutes. But first, I will share a little background about me.
I grew up in Murrysville and attended Franklin Regional High School. I have two loving parents who guided and supported me—they are with me in the audience today. Thank you to you both for guiding me through the years and for your patience during my long collegiate journey. One thing, however, that my parents could not define for me was what I wanted to be when I grew up.
I started college majoring in electrical engineering at the University of Pittsburgh Johnstown. In time, I missed the thrill of playing lacrosse, so I transferred to Saint Vincent College to play under Coach Peter Tulk, who is also here in the audience today. I met my new roommate who had transferred from the Naval Academy, and we hit it off immediately. The next few years were a blur of studying and lacrosse. I then transferred to Pitt main to complete my engineering degree. I found that I did not have the passion to continue that path. So, I transferred back to Saint Vincent College to pursue a business degree.
Coach Tulk likes to joke that I am the only player to have played in the lacrosse alumni game and then returned to play varsity for one more season. If that is what gets me into the lacrosse records book, I will take it! But I am so thankful to have had that final season. Lacrosse was a formative experience for me. Thank you, Coach Tulk, for encouraging me to play and for your support.
The reason that I tell you all of this is because sometimes the path is not clear, it’s not defined, and it takes trust and faith to make your own way. It is okay to change course. It’s okay to create a new journey to follow your passion. It is okay to run from boredom.
When I was in college, I didn’t know that I wanted to work in healthcare, but once I started, I embraced the patient-centered mission that we have at UPMC. At UPMC, I have been blessed with a 20-year career and counting with an organization that literally saves hundreds of lives and helps thousands of people every day. My current title is chief financial officer of UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital, UPMC Mercy Hospital, and the UPMC Rehabilitation Institute. I am humbled that I have been entrusted to help run these institutions that are steeped in history.
Magee was founded in 1911 and was one of the first women’s hospitals in the country. For me and my family, we like to joke that it is a family business. My two sons were born there. And it was at Magee that I met my lovely wife and biggest supporter, Jessica, who is also in the audience today. Mercy was founded in 1847 as the first hospital in Pittsburgh and the first Catholic hospital in the entire country.
I believe that the mission of healthcare has parallels to a Benedictine education. There are nuggets of guidance that are meaningful to all such as a desire to do right by others and to cause no harm. My time at UPMC has been more rewarding than I could have ever imagined, and it all began here, on these grounds at Saint Vincent College. So, it was interesting to think back now to those goals that I wrote in a finance class more than 20 years ago. I will share a few of them with you:
Now with the benefit of hindsight my goals would look slightly different today:
Be curious. Be that person who asks questions to the company CEO in a room full of people, even if your voice cracks and your hands are shaking. That has a way of getting people noticed.
Master the Basics. Dress professionally. Be on time. Spell colleagues’ names correctly. Always meet deadlines. These small details show that you care.
Be humble. I used to be the youngest person in the room. That may not be as true now with a little more gray in the beard and a little less hair on the head, but 20 years later, and I still ask questions and listen for answers. I rely on my team for their input, and because of that we have built a culture of trust and honesty.
And finally, work hard. Plant the seeds. Do not expect immediate gratification. It will take time for the seeds to grow. It’s okay to work late. It’s okay to work on the weekend. It’s okay if your manager isn’t aware or doesn’t acknowledge you every time this occurs. I promise you, hard work gets noticed and pays dividends.
These four pieces of advice are not my own. Rather, this represents a recipe for success that I have witnessed over 20 years in the workplace.
The last two principles that I would like to pass on today are ones that I rely on when I encounter a tough situation or a difficult problem at work.
First, always keep a growth mindset. I first learned about this concept through the insightful work of the author Carol Dweck. If you are not familiar with the growth mindset, I encourage you to read Carol’s work. She believes that one's basic qualities, like intelligence and talent, can be developed through dedication, hard work, and learning. It's an understanding that abilities are not fixed traits but can be cultivated over time.
When I left college, I was not an honors graduate. I was a college lacrosse player starting a part time job at a party rental company; yet, through hard work, attention to detail, curiosity, and perseverance, I am fortunate to stand before you today.
And, my final principle to share with you is one that Boniface Wimmer first said 150 years ago: “Forward, always forward, everywhere forward!”
How amazing it is that words written 150 years ago still hold true today. And, while I did not appreciate the power of this phrase when I was a student, time has a way of changing one's perspective. With time, I now better understand why “Forward, always forward, everywhere forward,” is a quote that is dear to Saint Vincent College.
It is a quote that unites us as Saint Vincent College graduates and is one that carries meaning throughout our lives, no matter where we are in our journey. It is a quote that represents perseverance. Your career will be filled with ups and downs, accomplishments and setbacks. However, when facing adversity, remember Boniface Wimmer: never quit and always move forward.
On behalf of myself, my family, my alumni, my peers, and all of those who have trod this road before you, congratulations to the senior class members on your well-deserved honors.
I wish each of you the best of luck in all of your future endeavors. Thank you.
