Our Team

Les Popiolek is the Chief Executive Officer for Valify and Valify Solutions Group. In addition to serving as Valify’s chief operating officer from 2017 to 2019, Les Popiolek has held prominent roles in healthcare group purchasing for over twenty-five years. Les began his sourcing career with Premier Purchasing Partners, after which he was part of the conceptualization and startup of Texas-based Broadlane GPO and launch of Broadlink, one of the industry’s early B2B eCommerce exchanges. As Broadlane’s chief technology officer, Les created and led a centralized, outsourced national procurement center. Following MedAssets’ acquisition of Broadlane in 2010, Les led the integration of the two companies’ GPO portfolios, totaling $35 billion in annual customer spend. Most recently, Les has served as Chairman and CEO of a GPO startup in the business aviation industry. Les received his Bachelors of Science Degree in Finance from the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Jay McCullough is Chief Customer Officer of Valify, a Dallas, Texas-based technology platform and group purchasing organization dedicated exclusively to purchased services for healthcare. As Chief Customer Officer, he is responsible for all dimensions of client relations including sales, service, project management and financial performance.

Prior to Valify, McCullough served as Vice President of Strategic Accounts for HealthTrust, where he managed a team of account specialists working with hospitals and health systems in utilizing HealthTrust’s portfolio of performance solutions. Previous roles included assignments at Stryker as Director of Commercial Operations–Endo, San Jose, California, Director of National Strategic Contracting, Kalamazoo, Michigan, and National Account Director, Birmingham, Alabama.

McCullough holds a Bachelor of Science in Health Management from Southeast Missouri State University, Cape Girardeau, Missouri. He earned a Master of Business Administration from Samford University, Birmingham, Alabama.

Andy Motz is Assistant Vice President, Custom Contracting and Advisory Services for Valify Solutions Group. His experience includes serving as Chief Procurement Officer for a Midwest health system and over 10 years of Supply Chain consulting with Deloitte and Navigant at academic medical centers, community hospitals, and large IDNs. As a purchased services sourcing consultant, Motz focuses on strategically positioning his clients to negotiate contracts that achieve better pricing, service levels, and quality outcomes. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mathematics from Mount St. Joseph University.

Ben Bailey is the Director of Sourcing Intelligence for Valify, where his responsibilities include Benchmarking Purchased Services through the Pinpoint and Power Benchmarking Programs and supporting the RFP module in the Valify Application. He has over 15 years experience in sourcing, leading the National Sourcing Analytics team at MedAssets and supporting Strategic Programs at Vizient. Ben is a summa cum laude graduate from Columbus State University with a Bachelors in Business Administration. In his spare time he enjoys hobbies such as welding, woodworking, 3d printing and anything with power tools.

Anna Kim is the Director of Client Success for Valify, where her responsibilities include client on-boarding and helping customers to benchmark and track savings in purchased services, mitigate financial risk and reduce the overall cost of operations. She has held various roles within the healthcare industry from managing employer wellness programs to marketing. Kim is a graduate of Boston University with a bachelor’s degree in Human Physiology and King University with her Masters of Business Administration in Corporate Finance.

Shara Smith is the Marketing Director for Valify and Valify Solutions Group, where she leads all aspects of marketing including strategic planning, branding, digital marketing strategy, and event planning and management. Shara joined Valify in September of 2021. Prior to this, Shara held the position of Corporate Executive Director of Business Development and Marketing for one of the largest and fastest growing for profit health systems in the country, where she developed and implemented programs and service lines for 28 hospitals.

Shara began her career in business development and marketing shortly after graduating college, and worked in the promotional marketing industry on both the distributor side and the supplier side before venturing into healthcare as a marketing representative for an imaging company. Shara received her Bachelors of Arts Degree in Journalism from the University of North Texas, and her Masters of Business Administration in Healthcare Management from Western Governors University.

Ryan Taylor is the Director of Engineering for Valify, where he helps guide software, data, and QA engineers in building the Valify product and tools. He has over 10 years of experience in software engineering and product development in the healthcare and fintech industries. Ryan is a graduate of Harding University with a bachelor’s in computer science.