Shawn Marie Pearson
Shawn Marie Pearson and her siblings were raised in poverty by a mother who suffered from untreated mental illness. Thanks to her gift of intelligence, Pearson was able to travel outside her neighborhood to explore the performing arts and enter a math/science magnet program. As Pearson prepared to enter college, her mother died from cancer, […]
Simer Mayo
Simer Mayo earned his master’s degree at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, worked as an IT consultant for a couple of years and co-founded Valor Global in 2004 with his wife, Vicky Mayo. Valor Global is a call center and technology company based in Phoenix, Arizona, with nearly 50% growth in the last two years. […]
Skyler Badenoch
Skyler Badenoch joined Hope for Haiti as the nonprofit’s CEO in 2017 and quickly moved to modernize the organization, integrating strategic change and innovation into the culture. Badenoch helped lead the organization through its first rebranding in 30 years and diversify revenue streams by accepting cryptocurrency donations, building a metaverse with a Haitian education theme […]
Sonnie Linebarger
Sonnie Linebarger has seen questionable culture in action, and it left an impression. “I was raised up in an organization that put the spotlight on the star student, whoever was doing the best at the time,” said Linebarger, the chief operating officer of Bristol Hospice. “There wasn’t coaching on how to improve what you were […]
Stephanie Kinsey
Some leaders fear change or resist it, but the IT industry is constantly changing, and Stephanie Kinsey leans into it. “One thing that never changes with IT is that it is continually changing,” said the CEO and CFO of Total Networks. “As a technology industry leader, I need to embrace change. By challenging myself and […]
Stephanie Riel
Stephanie Riel started what is now RielDeal Marketing at the age of 22, before she even finished college. Between school and internships, she created her first LLC and took on marketing consulting work to support small businesses and startups with their storytelling. She continued building the business while working full time in the corporate world. […]
Susan Smederovac-Wilcox
Susan Smederovac-Wilcox starts each day with an hour of learning and research. The topics usually consist of food trends, fashion, technology, sports nutrition and business. It’s how she stays relevant in her role as CEO of the Herb Box Restaurants and Events. “Remaining relevant is like going up a down escalator,” she said. “There is […]
Vahan V. Oganesyan
Every step of his career adds up to the spot where he is now, said Vahan V. Oganesyan, who is eager to do more to see where the path leads next. “Each step you take, lessons learned, or bridge crossed adds up to set you up for your next step forward,” the president and COO […]
Troy Swope
Troy Swope refers to himself as an accidental environmentalist. Footprint co-founders Swope and Yoke Chung met while at Intel. While there, they noticed that plastic residue in packaging was damaging computer wafers during shipping. They wondered if that was also happening with food coming home from the grocery store wrapped in plastic. Concerned about the […]
Trisheana Barzar Hunter
Trisheana Barzar Hunter has overcome immense adversity and challenges in her own life, and now she works to help others do the same as a transformational life coach and owner of Moving Mountains Coaching LLC. Hunter spent a significant part of her elementary and high school years learning to live with a severe and rare […]