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Tag: CEO of the Year 2021

Carlos Abisambra’s challenge during the COVID-19 pandemic

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Carlos Abisambra

CEO | Travelers Haven | Denver

Abisambra, 36, became CEO of Travelers Haven two months before the onset of COVID-19 restrictions, which presented him with a multitude of difficult decisions to ensure the sustainability of the Denver-based provider of temporary housing solutions. Among Abisambra’s immediate challenges as CEO: layoffs, reduced pay/hours for some employees, and budget cuts.

Throughout the worst months of COVID, Abisambra stressed transparency, sending out email updates three times a week. He took a pay cut himself amounting to 40% of his salary.

As part of his efforts to support client relationships, Abisambra worked closely with the Travelers’ account support teams to conduct customer outreach to better understand the challenges customers faced during the pandemic.

Thus, Travelers Haven was able to adapt customer care and support strategies, and after a precarious 2020, the 113-employee company has rebounded impressively, growing 36% in the past four months.

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This article is part of ColoradoBiz magazine’s 2021 CEO of the Year feature. Read more about this year’s finalists: 

CARLOS ABISAMBRA | TODD BOWLING | SCOTT FARRELL | MARQUEZ FERNANDEZ | TIFFANY GRUNERT | CRAIG HENDERSON | ROBIN THURSTON | MARTHA WEIDMANN | ASHLEY WILLIAMS

Todd Bowling’s company is a nationally recognized IT solutions provider

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Todd Bowling

President and CEO | Solutions II | Littleton

Solutions II has been around since 1992, and Bowling, 58, has been the company’s CEO for the vast majority of its history – 25 years. The Littleton-based IT services firm boasts six regional offices and clients across all 50 U.S. states.

Under Bowling’s direction, Solutions II has become a nationally recognized IT solutions provider specializing in managed services, IT security, business continuance, virtualization and data lifecycle management.

In January 2019, Bowling led the company’s fourth acquisition, California-based CMI, positioning Solutions II for stronger growth opportunities. As was the case for nearly all business leaders in 2020 and beyond, the COVID-19 pandemic posed a significant challenge for Bowling and Solutions II.

Among his moves, Bowling immediately implemented a work-from-home strategy, and despite the disruption, the firm grew its managed services and security business revenue for the third straight year.

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This article is part of ColoradoBiz magazine’s 2021 CEO of the Year feature. Read more about this year’s finalists: 

CARLOS ABISAMBRA | TODD BOWLING | SCOTT FARRELL | MARQUEZ FERNANDEZ | TIFFANY GRUNERT | CRAIG HENDERSON | ROBIN THURSTON | MARTHA WEIDMANN | ASHLEY WILLIAMS

Scott Farrell leads i2 Construction’s operations in Denver

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Scott Farrell

President | i2 Construction | Parker

Farrell, 47, leads i2 Construction’s operations in Denver. The 40-employee commercial general contractor, founded by Allan Fries in 1999, specializes in creating tenant improvements for technology, law and financial firms. Additional markets include highly detailed and complex labs, medical spaces and pharmaceutical facilities.

Growing up the son of a design-build construction company owner, Farrell was pushing a broom on job sites by age 7 and went on to earn a bachelor of science degree in civil and environmental engineering with a focus in construction management from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.   

Hired as an assistant project manager at i2 Construction in 2000, Farrell was named the firm’s president, succeeding Fries, in 2016. One of his biggest challenges came just two years later when i2 had the opportunity to buy out its parent company.

The buyout required i2 to find a new banker and attorney, along with a team to perform accounting, IT and HR functions – all within 90 days. Farrell also found and moved the company into a new office space, and i2 continued the high-quality tenant improvement work it has become known for. 

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This article is part of ColoradoBiz magazine’s 2021 CEO of the Year feature. Read more about this year’s finalists: 

CARLOS ABISAMBRA | TODD BOWLING | SCOTT FARRELL | MARQUEZ FERNANDEZ | TIFFANY GRUNERT | CRAIG HENDERSON | ROBIN THURSTON | MARTHA WEIDMANN | ASHLEY WILLIAMS

The Dough Bar is thriving under Marquez Fernandez’s leadership

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Marquez Fernandez

The Dough Bar | Fort Collins

In 2018, Marquez and his wife and business partner Ondrea made the decision to move their headquarters from the prohibitively expensive Bay Area of California to Colorado. They also took the opportunity to bring production in-house, retain (rather than the co-packer) they used in California.

The transition itself would turn out to be tough. Expenses added up much quicker than expected due to unforeseen repairs and costs. The company was forced to borrow funds to keep operating.

Fast-forward a couple years and the Dough Bar, billed as “a healthy alternative to the average donut,” is thriving under the 36-year-old Marquez’s leadership. Sales were up 75% over the first quarter of 2020. With 42 employees, Dough Bar boasts three retail storefronts and plans to open another three in the coming months.

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This article is part of ColoradoBiz magazine’s 2021 CEO of the Year feature. Read more about this year’s finalists: 

CARLOS ABISAMBRA | TODD BOWLING | SCOTT FARRELL | MARQUEZ FERNANDEZ | TIFFANY GRUNERT | CRAIG HENDERSON | ROBIN THURSTON | MARTHA WEIDMANN | ASHLEY WILLIAMS

Tiffany Grunert’s dedication to protecting animals

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Tiffany Grunert

President And CEO | Morris Animal Foundation | Denver

Morris Animal Foundation is the largest nonprofit foundation in the world dedicated to funding studies to improve and protect the health of companion animals and wildlife. But when Tiffany Grunert came aboard in 2017, the organization was a veritable revolving door of leadership and staff.

When the CEO left in 2018, Grunert, 46, stepped in as acting president/CEO, and after a national search, her CEO role became permanent. Amid the turmoil, the foundation under Grunert still achieved all program goals and exceeded revenue goals, ultimately completing a five-year strategic plan in 2 ½ years.

“Under Tiffany’s leadership, earned revenue increased 40%, enabling the expansion of the Golden Retriever Lifetime Study and the development of a $1 million fund to support Australian wildlife affected by wildfires,” wrote a staffer with the 52-employee foundation who nominated Grunert for this CEO of the Year award. “Now, Tiffany is leading the development of a new community science program that will put the foundation in the driver’s seat to direct impactful outcomes for dogs and cats.”

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This article is part of ColoradoBiz magazine’s 2021 CEO of the Year feature. Read more about this year’s finalists: 

CARLOS ABISAMBRA | TODD BOWLING | SCOTT FARRELL | MARQUEZ FERNANDEZ | TIFFANY GRUNERT | CRAIG HENDERSON | ROBIN THURSTON | MARTHA WEIDMANN | ASHLEY WILLIAMS

Craig Henderson has become a go-to source as a cannabis expert

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Craig Henderson

CEO | Extract Labs | Lafayette

Henderson, 38, was working as a senior sales engineer for a CO2 extraction equipment manufacturer when the recreational marijuana industry was born.

An Army veteran with a master’s degree in mechanical engineering, his interest in the medicinal application of cannabis stemmed partly from his deployment in Iraq as he noted the benefits CBD could have for fellow veterans. From his garage in 2016, he began extracting hemp into an oil, and soon thereafter, Extract Labs was born.

Today, the 45-employee maker of CBD products is thriving, having nearly doubled revenues from 2018 to 2019; Henderson has become a go-to source as a cannabis expert.

One of Extract Labs’ biggest challenges has been keeping up with its own growth. The company is rapidly outgrowing the two buildings it leased in Boulder 18 months ago, so in the coming months it plans to purchase a larger building that can accommodate all operations. 

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This article is part of ColoradoBiz magazine’s 2021 CEO of the Year feature. Read more about this year’s finalists: 

CARLOS ABISAMBRA | TODD BOWLING | SCOTT FARRELL | MARQUEZ FERNANDEZ | TIFFANY GRUNERT | CRAIG HENDERSON | ROBIN THURSTON | MARTHA WEIDMANN | ASHLEY WILLIAMS

Robin Thurston is a relentless visionary

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Robin Thurston

Chairman and CEO | Outside Inc. | Boulder

It was a busy year even by the relentless visionary Robin Thurston’s standards. In February 2021, his Pocket Outdoor Media, the world’s leading creator of active lifestyle content and experiences, made several acquisitions, including Outside magazine, OutsideTV, AthleteReg and others, rebranding as Outside Inc. and significantly expanding the scope of its audience and range of services provided.

With 580 employees, Outside Inc. now boasts some 40 brands, including publications like Women’s Running, Yoga Journal, SKI, Backpacker, Climbing, and Pinkbike, trail-mapping services like Gaia GPS and Trailforks, and events such as Roll Massif and the Warren Miller Film Tour.

Thurston, who earned a master’s in finance from the University of Colorado Denver, previously ran a consumer genetics company, Helix, in Silicon Valley before returning to his home state of Colorado. Before Helix, he co-founded and built MapMyFitness into one of the world’s largest open fitness tracking platforms. Following the acquisition of MapMyFitness by Under Armour, he joined the company and served as chief digital officer, where he led the overall strategic direction of the company’s Connected Fitness and eCommerce business.

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This article is part of ColoradoBiz magazine’s 2021 CEO of the Year feature. Read more about this year’s finalists: 

CARLOS ABISAMBRA | TODD BOWLING | SCOTT FARRELL | MARQUEZ FERNANDEZ | TIFFANY GRUNERT | CRAIG HENDERSON | ROBIN THURSTON | MARTHA WEIDMANN | ASHLEY WILLIAMS

Martha Weidmann’s mission to support local art communities

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Martha Weidmann

CEO | NINE dot ARTS | Denver

With a mission to support local art communities in and beyond Denver, NINE dot ARTS has executed more than 800 commercial real estate projects in 35 states and five countries.

Led by CEO and co-founder Weidmann, NINE dot ARTS aims to advocate for equitable art opportunities in industries like hospitality, corporate and mixed-use developments.

Weidmann, along with co-founder and chief curator Molly Casey, previously worked together as art consultants before launching NINE dot ARTS in 2009.

COVID-19 has presented particular challenges for the 22-employee company. Because many of NINE dot ARTS’ curation projects take place in gathering areas such as hotels and corporate offices, Weidmann had to pivot to continue placemaking in a safe and responsible manner.

Noting the decrease in opportunities for local artists to create and display their work during the peak of the pandemic, Weidmann launched an artist microgrant program called Andrà Tutto Bene, which provided funds for 30 artists around the world.

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This article is part of ColoradoBiz magazine’s 2021 CEO of the Year feature. Read more about this year’s finalists: 

CARLOS ABISAMBRA | TODD BOWLING | SCOTT FARRELL | MARQUEZ FERNANDEZ | TIFFANY GRUNERT | CRAIG HENDERSON | ROBIN THURSTON | MARTHA WEIDMANN | ASHLEY WILLIAMS

Ashley Williams is dedicated to elevating rural health care

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Ashley Williams

CEO | Innova Emergency Medical Associates | Denver

Since 2014, Williams has been at the helm of Innova Emergency Medical Associates, a company dedicated to elevating rural health care. Founded in 2011, the firm has grown more than tenfold since Williams arrived. It now provides emergency department physician staffing to 10 hospitals and organizations in five states. 

With more than 20 years of health-care business experience, Williams is involved in all levels of the company, whose departments are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In her role, Williams oversees all corporate operations, including negotiating partner, payer and vendor contracts.

As a company that staffs emergency departments around the country, Innova’s biggest challenge has involved COVID-19 and striving to keep the firm’s 130 employees safe, healthy and prepared. Williams makes a point to know each and every employee on top of managing business relationships with 10 hospitals and organizations for staffing. 

In response to COVID-19, Innova met a number of new partners to provide staff with PPE, developed protocols for care of staff and patients in the setting of a completely new disease process and created backup plans to ensure that staffing would never
be interrupted. 

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This article is part of ColoradoBiz magazine’s 2021 CEO of the Year feature. Read more about this year’s finalists: 

CARLOS ABISAMBRA | TODD BOWLING | SCOTT FARRELL | MARQUEZ FERNANDEZ | TIFFANY GRUNERT | CRAIG HENDERSON | ROBIN THURSTON | MARTHA WEIDMANN | ASHLEY WILLIAMS