# Giovanni Colella

> Giovanni Colella is a San Francisco-based entrepreneur who co-founded Castlight Health and served as its founding CEO from 2008 to 2017. His career also includes founding and executive roles at RelayHealth, OODA Health, Brightline and Vanna Health. In June 2026 he became Vanna’s executive chairman.

- **Role:** Co-Founder and Executive Chairman of the Board at Vanna Health
- **Organizations:** Castlight Health, RelayHealth, McKesson, OODA Health, Brightline, Vanna Health, SanLuca, Boston Consulting Group, Sapient, SAI
- **Education:** MD, University of Milan, MBA, Columbia Business School
- **Known for:** Built RelayHealth before its 2006 acquisition by McKesson., Led Castlight as CEO from its founding in 2008 until 2017, including its 2014 IPO., Co-founded OODA Health, which Cedar acquired for $425 million in 2021.

## Career timeline

- **1984** — Arrived in the United States from Italy.
- **2000-2006** — Founder, president and CEO of RelayHealth; McKesson acquired the company in 2006.
- **2008** — Co-founded Castlight Health with Todd Park and Bryan Roberts; became founding CEO.
- **2014** — Led Castlight through its initial public offering.
- **2017** — Became Castlight executive chairman in April; co-founded OODA Health that year.
- **2019** — Co-founded Brightline.
- **2021** — Cedar acquired OODA Health; co-founded Vanna Health.
- **2026** — Moved from Vanna CEO to executive chairman on June 8.

## Achievements

- Built RelayHealth before its 2006 acquisition by McKesson.
- Led Castlight as CEO from its founding in 2008 until 2017, including its 2014 IPO.
- Co-founded OODA Health, which Cedar acquired for $425 million in 2021.
- Included in Fast Company’s Most Creative People in Business list in 2011.

## Latest updates

- **2026-06** — Vanna Health named Liz Kwo CEO and Colella executive chairman, retaining responsibilities in strategy, partnerships and governance.
- **2026-04** — Published the Substack essay “Stop. You Don’t Know Them.” on April 28.

## Links

- Website: https://giovannicolella336816.substack.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/giocolella

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/giovanni-colella
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-26