Women We Admire is pleased to announce The Top 50 Women Leaders of Colorado for 2023. Best known for its stunning natural landscapes, with four natural parks and various mountains, this state provides a low-cost of living, a highly educated workforce, and an excellent quality of life that is increasingly attracting businesses. It’s no wonder that it is already a base for well-known companies including Arrow Electronics, Western Union, and Dish Network. This year’s awardees play a pivotal part in the organizations they serve, helming leadership roles in key industries including education, healthcare, finance, tourism and more. We acknowledge them for the dedication and passion that they exemplify in their every endeavor.
Among this year’s awardees is Ellen Valde, Managing Partner for PwC’s Denver office, who leads a team of over 800 professionals in delivering quality, innovative business solutions to multinational Fortune 50 to Fortune 1000 companies as well as private equity-owned clients around the world. Awardee Heather Pidcoke, Chief Medical Research Officer at Colorado State University, heads the university’s efforts to enhance clinical and translational research support to transition discoveries and applied sciences to human health solutions. Also awarded is Valeria Alberola, Chief Executive Officer at ZOMALAB, who is tasked with overseeing the organization's initiatives including sustainable investments and philanthropic efforts to accelerate progress in the areas of workforce, energy, water, community economic development and early childhood development in Colorado and Chile.
Please join us in celebrating the accomplishments of The Top 50 Women Leaders of Colorado for 2023.
1. Giordana Belenchia
Chief Counsel, Coronary & Renal Denervation, Cardiovascular Portfolio, Medtronic
Giordana Belenchia is Chief Legal Counsel for the Coronary and Renal Denervation business and the Medtronic Global Health Foundation at Medtronic, one of the world’s largest medical device companies with operations in 150 countries. Giordana has a multi-dimensional role leading all business legal matters including regulatory law, M&A transactions, intellectual property, litigation, and healthcare compliance.
Giordana also serves as assistant secretary to the Board of the Medtronic Global Health Foundation, a 501(c)(3), managing their corporate governance matters. With her technical background, Giordana has a particular focus in data-enabled and AI based medical devices and therapies. Giordana brings 15 years of broad experience to the legal profession in the healthcare space, with time spent in multiple businesses and legal functions during her time at Medtronic.
2. Kate Johnson
President & CEO, Lumen
Kate Johnson is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Lumen and a member of its board of directors. A seasoned business technology leader, Kate has a proven track record of driving business and digital transformation success at the world’s top Fortune 100 technology companies. Hyperfocused on moving innovation and shareholder value forward, Kate leads with the strategic and go-to-market skills developed over 20 years as a growth-oriented B2B enterprise technology disruptor.
Kate champions digital innovations that create the best customer experience and solutions. This starts with unlearning old success models and creating an environment that spurs advancement and sets Lumen apart. She joined the company in 2022.
Prior to Lumen, Kate held executive leadership roles at Microsoft, GE Digital, and Oracle, as well as various commercial and technology leadership roles at Red Hat, UBS Investment Bank, and Deloitte Consulting. She earned her undergraduate degree in electrical engineering from Lehigh University, and her MBA from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School. She lives in Denver with her family and serves on the board of directors for UPS since 2020.
3. Ellen Valde
Managing Partner, PwC
Ellen Valde is the Managing Partner for PwC’s Denver office where she leads a team of over 800 professionals in delivering quality, innovative business solutions to multinational Fortune 50 to Fortune 1000 companies as well as private equity-owned clients. She is recognized for driving strategy, business transformation, and scale across diverse industries including consumer products, retail, manufacturing, construction, technology and agribusiness throughout the United States and North America and in Asia, Europe, Australia, South America, and Africa.
Ellen has advised C-suite executives, senior management, audit committees, and board members of PwC’s largest clients as they navigated the financial reporting and control implications of complex and often transformational business issues including multibillion dollar mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, restructuring activities, corporate governance, accessing capital markets, technology and cyber-security readiness and breaches, fraud investigations, enterprise risk management, as well as the sensitivities of FCPA, PCAOB and SEC rules and regulations, and other compliance-related investigations.
Ellen has proven herself to be a pioneer of leadership, mentorship, client service, and community involvement. Her true passion is people development. She was one of the founders of PwC’s women’s networking circles, a program designed to provide access to role models, mentors, and networks across the firm. She is actively involved with recruiting and has served on PwC’s partner admission committee. Among her notable achievements is her recognition as the PwC mentor of the year.
Ellen received an undergraduate degree in accounting with a minor in computer science from the University of Northern Iowa where she graduated summa cum laude. She is a licensed Certified Public Accountant and a Certified Management Accountant. She has been married to her husband Jeff for 34 years and they have two children.
4. Sharon Desmond
SVP of Financial Operations, Technology & Engineering, Comcast
Sharon Desmond serves as Senior Vice President of Financial Operations, Technology & Engineering within the Cable Division Headquarter Finance organization at Comcast. She leads a team that manages the financial and business operations for the teams that develop, build and operate the company's products, systems and network. Sharon joined Comcast in 1995 in the Internal Audit Department and in 2001 joined Comcast Online, their then emerging high-speed data business as controller and was promoted to VP of finance and business operations in 2003.
Sharon has held a variety of financial roles including leading the finance organizations supporting sales & marketing, business units, and strategy. Prior to joining Comcast, she was a manager at Deloitte & Touche in their Audit Practice. She has held staff positions at other accounting firms and private companies. Sharon graduated from Villanova University with an undergraduate degree in accounting.
5. Kasia Iwaniczko Macleod
Regional Vice President of Community & Government Engagement, Cigna
Kasia Iwaniczko MacLeod is the Vice President of Community & Government Engagement for Cigna Mountain States, which includes Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming. Her responsibilities are to expand Cigna's community engagement activities, deepen the company’s community and civic relationships, and develop a philanthropic strategy that deploys local community investments where the need is greatest. In addition to leading the civic relationships, community engagement strategy and deployment, her focus is on evolving employee engagement and volunteerism activities, as well as influencing the business development initiatives.
Iwaniczko MacLeod is known as a visionary community thought leader, successfully cultivating relationships across private, public and nonprofit sectors. Iwaniczko MacLeod brings an authentic, unique and sought-after leadership expertise in developing and executing strategies that align revenue to thoughtful corporate citizenship. Her commitment to the integration of all products and services across a broad market presence, and her focus on expanding the brand, strategic community partnerships, expanded employee engagement and the delivery of business development strategies, helped drive an international financial institution from number 24 to number one in their marketplace.
Iwaniczko MacLeod earned her undergraduate degree in political science from Mesa State College (now Colorado Mesa University) in Grand Junction, Colorado.
6. Christine Rajpal
Vice President of Built Environment, Jacobs
Christine Rajpal is the Vice President of Built Environment atJacobs. She is well respected for her attention to detail and high standard of excellence, along with her management and communication skills. She is instrumental in managing the development of functionally efficient, elegant design solutions while working within budget. Christine is experienced in programming, planning, and all phases of design, construction contract administration and project management. Her areas of expertise also include an in-depth knowledge of building science, sustainable design and construction administration practices. This knowledge is beneficial for facilitating project leadership from early conceptual planning stages through final project delivery.
Christine’s area of specialization is aviation/transportation architecture. She has been a key player in delivering large aviation projects, such as the Denver International Airport Concourse Expansion Program (East) and the Bradley West New Generation Aircraft Gates expansion at LAX, and has been involved with numerous renovation and expansion projects at Denver International Airport. Christine has also been instrumental in executing building design in support of various municipal and commercial clients. With a number of previous years focused on healthcare architecture, her experience also includes projects ranging in size from intimate, community-focused facilities, to large scale, state-of-the-art medical campuses. Christine has extensive experience in project documentation and the use of building information models for design and presentation.
7. Joan Motsinger
Senior Vice President of Sustainability Transformation, Seagate Technology
Joan Motsinger is an accomplished development, operations, supply chain and business excellence leader with over 30 years of experience. She leads various general administrative functions for Seagate while also enabling enterprise-wide improvement and targeted transformation. She has a proven track record of understanding complex operational issues, and developing and implementing sustainable improvements spanning cost, product manufacturing, risk management and product security.
Over the course of her career, Motsinger has developed strong relationships with key suppliers and manufacturers in the storage and electronics industries. Given its commitment to responsibility and sustainability, Seagate is a full member of the Responsible Business Alliance, and Motsinger is currently board of director's chair. She lives in Boulder with her husband and children enjoying the diverse local lifestyle.
8. Maria Silveira
Vice President of Business Transformation, Nutrien
Maria Silveira is the Vice President of Business Transformation at Nutrien. As the world’s largest provider of crop inputs, services and solutions, Nutrien plays a critical role in feeding the future by helping growers to increase food production in a sustainable manner. Maria previously held the positions of VP of global planning & IBP, VP of transportation, distribution & logistics VP of phosphate engineering, technology and capital, as well as senior director of potash commercial for Nutrien.
Maria joined Agrium in 2013 as director of continuous improvement. In late 2016, she was appointed senior director of potash commercial. Previous to Agrium, Maria worked in the petrochemical industry holding several roles in manufacturing, research & technology and product development for over 12 years. Maria has a chemical engineering degree, a master’s degree in polymer engineering and is a certified lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt.
9. Kim Wilmsen
Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer, Arrow Electronics
Kim Brown Wilmsen, Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer of Arrow Electronics, Inc., responsible for managing the company’s global information technology systems and operations. Wilmsen joined Arrow in 2017 as VP of information technology – global infrastructure. She took on the role of vice president and CIO of global components in 2019, after which in 2022 she was named vice president and CIO of global application solutions for all of Arrow’s business groups.
Prior to joining Arrow, Wilmsen was senior vice president and CIO for the Americas at Arcadis, Inc., and previously held roles of increasing responsibility at Bill Barrett Corporation, IHS, Oracle, and Informix. She holds an undergraduate degree in business administration from the University of Missouri.
10. Heather Pidcoke
Chief Medical Research Officer, Colorado State University
Dr. Heather Pidcoke leads the effort to enhance clinical and translational research support in recognition that Colorado State University’s investigators are increasingly engaged in translating discoveries and applied sciences to human health solutions.
Dr. Pidcoke’s research interests include trauma critical care, novel transfusion products and biologics aimed at improving the resuscitation of massively bleeding patients. She was awarded a US Army Commander’s Award for Civilian Service in recognition of her contributions in advancing medical research for military personnel. She also received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy which is the highest honor bestowed by the US Government on science and engineering professionals in the early stages of their independent research careers.
Dr. Pidcoke earned a Doctor of Medicine from Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California, a Doctor of Philosophy and a Master of Science at The University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio.
11. Veronica Castañeda
Vice President and Head of HR Consulting Group, TIAA
Veronica Castañeda is a strategic HR business leader with over 18 years of experience in human resources across multiple industries. She currently serves as the Vice President and Head of the HR Consulting Group for TIAA. Veronica leads and provides oversight to a centralized team of nine HR Business Partners principally responsible for broad HR consulting services to US mid-level and front-line people leaders and associates across TIAA.
Prior to joining TIAA, Veronica served as a senior regional HR business partner with ADP, and before that, as an HR generalist with Beckman Coulter. She graduated from Cal State Fullerton with an undergraduate degree in business administration with an emphasis in human resources.
12. Lisa Relou
Chief of Strategy & Communications, Jeffco Public Schools
Lisa Relou’s work in the field of education started 22 years ago when she worked on a successful school bond campaign. She then went on to lead her own consulting company working directly with school superintendents and their administrations across Colorado to battle declining enrollments and public perception issues and to improve customer service.
In 2006, she was hired by Denver Public Schools (DPS) to create a marketing office for the district. During this time, Lisa worked with schools to create marketing and communications tools that targeted enrollment, student retainment, stakeholder engagement, and investment in the district’s strategic vision and initiatives. In 2010, Lisa left DPS to join TNTP (formerly The New Teacher Project) in order to support the organization’s work toward ending the injustice of educational inequality through national, state, and local efforts related to teacher effectiveness. Lisa also has experience working on the philanthropic side of education, working at Grantmakers for Education as their director of strategies.
Most Recently, Lisa operated her own strategic consulting business - Lisa Relou Consulting. Focusing on the field of education, both in Colorado and around the country. In her role at Jeffco, Lisa manages the district’s strategic initiatives as well as leads their communications team.
13. Marin Stanek
Chief Information Officer & Vice Chancellor for IT, University of Colorado Boulder
Marin Stanek became the first female CIO at CU Boulder on January 1, 2021. Under her leadership, information technology supports the rapidly evolving IT needs of about 35,000 students and 9200 employees supporting the academic and research mission of the campus. Stanek is instrumental in leading decisions for building out and supporting the campus’s IT infrastructure, programs and other services for CU Boulder. Since 2016, she has led OIT’s day-to-day operations as deputy CIO, co-leading comprehensive services for academic technology, research computing, enterprise services, IT operations and infrastructure, and enterprise architecture.
Her priorities include providing a fluid and adaptable academic and student experience, enabling research competitiveness, and delivering core IT infrastructure and enterprise IT service for business effectiveness. Marin partners with IT professionals across campus and also works closely with other CU campuses and the CU System administration in support of ensuring that technology is a differentiator for advancing the university’s mission for the state of Colorado, nationally and globally.
A native of Colorado, Stanek earned an undergraduate degree in international political economics at Colorado College and master’s and doctoral degrees in educational leadership and policy analysis at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
14. Andrea Baldrica
Chief Sales Officer, HUB International
Andrea Baldrica is a proven thought leader with over 20 years of experience, as both a personal contributor and leader of high-performance teams. In her current role as Chief Sales Officer for HUB International, Andrea is responsible for new revenue generation for HUB Colorado and as such, leads the entire sales force for Colorado. HUB is the 5th largest Insurance brokerage in the world specializing in property & casualty insurance, personal lines, employee benefits and retirement plans. Andrea creates and executes sales strategies that drive consistent, strong organic growth results. Andrea is skilled at managing P&Ls, creating and strengthening executive level relationships, and developing teammates to become high performers.
In addition, Andrea continues to participate at HUB as a personal contributor, specializing in employee benefits with an emphasis on multinational employers, government contractors, global benefits, municipalities and nonprofit organizations. Andrea has a strong background in developing innovative and sustainable employee benefits that include self-funding and captive financial arrangements, onsite clinics, Rx management, as well as other proprietary cost-saving programs.
Andrea is based in Colorado Springs, where she was born and raised. She is active in the community serving on several nonprofit boards. She is a frequent speaker at community events on topics regarding health care costs, industry innovations, and leadership. She loves to travel and cook with her husband, kids and dogs.
15. Valeria Alberola
Chief Executive Officer, ZOMALAB
Valeria Alberola serves as the Chief Executive Officer of ZOMALAB, the family office of Ben and Lucy Ana Walton. As CEO, she leads and oversees the family office’s initiatives, including sustainable investments globally and philanthropic efforts to accelerate progress in the areas of workforce, energy, water, community economic development and early childhood development in Colorado and Chile.
Valeria brings over 25 years of international experience in investment banking, corporate finance, operations and strategic management consulting. Prior to joining ZOMALAB, she was the CFO of Bridge Education Group, an international education company, where she helped scale the organization to 10 locations in the USA and Latin America to serve over 3,000 students annually. Previously, she was a partner at Q Advisors, a Denver and San-Francisco-based investment banking firm, where she executed over $800 million in private and public transactions, including mergers and acquisitions and debt and equity financings for technology and telecommunications clients in the USA and internationally. Prior to Q Advisors, Valeria was the director of business development for VeloCom, an international telecommunications company, where she was involved in acquisition and capital raising activities exceeding $2 billion. Prior to VeloCom, Valeria was a strategic management consultant with McKinsey & Company in Santiago, Chile, and an equity analyst with Citigroup in São Paulo, Brazil.
Valeria received an undergraduate degree in economics and business administration from the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile and an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, where she was a Fulbright scholar. She is fluent in four languages, including Spanish, French and Portuguese.
16. Kaylin Goldstein
EVP & Head of Planning, Leo Burnett
Kaylin Goldstein helps the world’s most storied brands make their mark on culture and partners with challengers seeking to swim against the tide. She currently serves as an Executive Vice President and Head of Planning for Leo Burnett. Her career highlights include The Lost Class for Change the Ref, American Express’s Small Business Saturday and Kraft Mac and Cheese’s World’s Largest Blind Taste Test.
Not only has Kaylin helped her clients take home Effies, Cannes Lions, Clios and Jay Chiat Awards, but she herself won Ad Age’s Strategic Planner of the Year award. In her roles, Kaylin oversees a department of 40+ of the brightest minds in the business and leads strategy across multiple brands (CPG, Retail, Tech, Health & Wellness). Prior to Leo Burnett, she spent over a decade at Crispin Porter + Bogusky in Miami and Boulder. A cultural anthropologist by training, Kaylin combines her deep understanding of human behavior with an insatiable curiosity about emerging ideas, trends, platforms and technologies.
17. Kirsten Lynch
Chief Executive Officer, Vail Resorts
Kirsten Lynch is the current Chief Executive Officer of Vail Resorts. Kirsten has an extensive background in marketing, having previously served as the chief marketing officer for PepsiCo's Quaker Division and as VP of marketing for Kraft Foods.
Prior to their work in the food and beverage industry, Kirsten held a position as marketing and sales zone manager for Ford Motor Company. Kirsten has a proven track record of success in marketing and sales, and they bring this expertise to their role as CEO of Vail Resorts. Lynch attended Washington University in St. Louis - Olin Business School, where she earned her MBA.
18. Connie Savor Price
Chief Medical Officer, Denver Health
Connie Savor Price is the Chief Medical Officer at Denver Health and a Professor of Medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Prior to becoming the CMO, she served as the chief of infectious diseases and the medical director of infection control and prevention at Denver Health for 13 years. Dr. Price is board-certified in internal medicine, infectious diseases, and medical microbiology. Her research and clinical interest focus in healthcare epidemiology and methods to prevent and rapidly detect emerging and antimicrobial resistant infections.
Dr. Price has a track record of successful federal funding as a principal investigator from the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Defense, and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. She has published >75 manuscripts and delivered >175 lectures on the prevention of healthcare associated infectious diseases and related topics. She is active in the Infectious Diseases Society of America, served in an elected position on the board of directors of the Society of Healthcare Epidemiology of America, and as past chair of the American Society for Microbiology section on Healthcare Epidemiology. Dr. Price was the physician representative on the inaugural Colorado Healthcare Associated Infections advisory committee for public reporting of healthcare associated infections for Colorado. She has recognized expertise in outbreak management and has served as a consultant to public health authorities around the world on control of emerging infections, specifically MERS and SARS, as well as Ebola preparedness.
19. Kathryn Jacobs
Managing Director, Accenture
Kathryn Jacobs is a Managing Director at Accenture, the largest publicly traded professional services company in the world. She is highly regarded as one of the company’s global experts in the Natural Resources sector, and she helps address some of the boldest challenges facing the world today. Kathryn leads the Natural Resources Industry Consulting in North America, a diverse set of industries all with a vital role in a sustainable and net-zero future.
She prides herself on orchestrating all parts of Accenture to activate the best ideas and solutions for her clients. Kathryn owns the Global P&L and leads a team of 350+ spread across 8 countries for one of Accenture’s key client relationships. She has served as executive sponsor for several key global initiatives with the World Economic Forum, MIT, and most recently sponsored a start-up investment through an Accenture Ventures program.
She is also passionate about creating a path for others to thrive in their careers, helping to build the next generation of leaders. In 2023 she took on a coaching role for Accenture’s Leadership Development Program which each year brings together the top 2% of future, global leaders at Accenture.
Kathryn also has a thirst for adventure and deep sense of curiosity by creating new challenges as a way of life. She believes experiencing culture and geography through the immediacy of adventure is both exhilarating and expansive, informing her leadership and ability to integrate disparate client needs and initiatives with meaning and purpose through a global lens. She received a dual undergraduate degree in science and business management from The University of Queensland, Australia and went on to obtain a master’s of technology and innovation management.
20. Deanna Bratter
VP & Global Head of Sustainability, Crocs
Deanna Bratter is a Vice President and Global Head of Sustainability for Crocs. She is responsible for driving the company toward its aggressive goal of achieving net zero by 2030, and enhancing commitments and impacts across environmental sustainability, social responsibility and corporate governance (ESG).
Bratter joined Crocs from Danone North America, where she was VP of sustainable development. In that role, she led the organization's strategy and progress to addressing climate change, advancing responsible sourcing, restoring natural ecosystems, improving sustainable packaging, and supporting people and communities. Prior to Danone North America, Bratter led corporate sustainability for WhiteWave Foods and was charged with the company's sustainability initiatives, annual CSR and ESG reporting, and helping to create a values-driven culture.
Bratter is a graduate of the University of South Florida and has completed sustainability certification programs at the University of Denver and Harvard Business School.
21. Tamara Tranter
Chief Development Officer, USA Hockey
Tami Tranter joined The USA Hockey Foundation staff as senior director of development in May 2017, and was promoted to Chief Development Officer in 2021. She leads all aspects of fundraising for The USA Hockey Foundation, including raising funds, supervising the day-to-day operations of the foundation, The USAHF staff, developing a comprehensive fundraising plan and growing cultivation and stewardship events. In her decade-plus in fundraising roles, she has helped raise over $30 million in current and planned gifts.
Prior to her arrival at USA Hockey, Tami was the senior director for the USA Volleyball Foundation under the direction of CEO Doug Beal, the director of development for the Colorado School of Mines Foundation and served in the same capacity at Wayne State (Mich.) University in the School of Business Administration. Tranter was also an associate athletic director at Wayne State and served as WSU's athletics chief of staff.
Tranter holds her undergraduate degree in finance and master's degree in kinesiology, and was a part of the PhD program at Michigan State in the Eli Broad School of Management. She was a dual sport athlete during college, playing both volleyball and basketball, and coached both of those sports at the college level. Tranter is a graduate of the TEAM USA Leadership Program through Northwestern University’s School of Business Nonprofit Management Program.
22. Kim Spahn
Vice President of Operations, American Concrete Pipe Association
Kim Spahn is accomplished as a leader in partnership with association stakeholders to position the concrete pipe industry to gain market share for its members. Kim excels in strategic planning with expert skills in cultivating operational and team excellence and executive experience with planning and managing Association and Foundation budgets. Spahn drives success in 7 strategic committees that are the foundation of the association's success, mission, and vision. She works alongside a board of directors to develop teams and execute national and local strategies for growing market share of concrete pipe.
Kim leads a team of state directors in close coordination with their local and regional boards to set direction and implement initiatives that promote the increased regional use of concrete pipe. She has grown state association affiliations and their operations to establish strategic plans and support both members and staff in reaching their goals in their local markets.
Spahn also serves as the President of the Research and Education Foundation. She is responsible for managing the foundation's budget including fundraising and management of research contracts that will further the industry to meet the strategic plan. Kim works alongside stakeholders to develop and implement educational programs that educate both internal member employees as well as external specifiers and elected officials alike. She evaluates the need and strategizes the funding and implementation for educational and scholarships selection of individuals to attend ACPA seminars and schools that foster knowledge of all types of pipes under her management.
23. Reagan Pena
Police Chief of Staff, City of Aurora
Reagan Peña is the Police Chief of Staff for the Aurora Police Department, providing specialized support by implementing the initiatives and directives of the chief of police and overseeing the Public Information Office and the Community Relations Section. Reagan was named Chief of Staff in 2022.
An Arizona native, Reagan earned her bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Arizona. In 2003, she joined the League City Police Department in the greater Houston area and served for 14 years achieving Master Peace Officer certification. Her experience includes public affairs, community engagement, recruiting, public safety hiring, and investigations. While serving as a public information officer in League City, Reagan was selected as Region 6 director of the National Information Officers Association and was recognized by the Texas Association of Municipal Information Officers for her recruiting and community outreach roles.
In 2017, Reagan began an investigations firm specializing in public safety background hiring process and criminal defense investigations. In 2019, a premier national private security firm recruited her to manage a $68 million public transportation contract. She was responsible for 300+ armed security professionals, client satisfaction, risk management, and contract profits and compliance. Under her leadership, she successfully negotiated contract changes and developed a pilot program of unarmed customer service ambassadors. At the height of calls for law enforcement reform, Reagan was called back to public service as a Public Safety Media Relations Manager with the city of Aurora Communications and Marketing Department. She served on the Chief’s Executive leadership team.
Reagan’s focus on collaboration has led her to work with various industries and stakeholders, from public sectors such as healthcare and education to nonprofit organizations and private businesses, to accomplish common goals. No matter what role she fills, Reagan’s goal is simple: To empower organizations and people to succeed. She believes people and relationships matter and knows fostering a positive, growth-oriented culture is essential to successfully implementing a company’s strategy and mission.
24. Angie Goldberg
Chief Growth Officer , Ardent Mills
As the first person to hold the position of Chief Growth Officer at Ardent Mills, Angie Goldberg’s role is to further drive the company’s mission of enhancing the quality of life and standard of health. As a key strategic addition to the leadership team, Angie is a driver of delivering consistent value to customers, all part of the organization’s plan for long-term, diverse and sustainable growth.
As part of the senior leadership team, Angie oversees innovation, research, quality and technical services, marketing, sales, corporate development and emerging nutrition. Goldberg joined Ardent Mills from Dawn Foods, where she spent more than eight years, most recently as chief transformation officer and chief marketing officer. Previously, Goldberg spent more than nine years at Barilla, where she managed the company’s growing pasta business to achieve market share leadership.
Angie currently serves on the board of trustees of the Grain Foods Foundation. She holds an MBA in management strategy and marketing from Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and an undergraduate degree in accounting from Indiana University.
25. Maria Pardee
Chief Commercial Officer, TELUS International
Having joined the company in 2021, Maria Pardee brings more than 25 years of leadership experience in technology and transformation, specializing in global integration and infrastructure managed services to TELUS International. She currently serves as their Chief Commercial Officer.
Prior to TELUS International, for eight years, she served as SVP and general manager at DXC Technology, leading the digital workplace and mobility business with a focus on the transformation of employee and customer experience through innovation. Additionally, she was a partner at KPMG, a CIO at British Telecom and a VP at AMS/CGI.
Maria holds a master’s degree in telecommunications and an undergraduate degree in international affairs, both from the University of Colorado Boulder. She is also committed to women in STEM as well as community initiatives supporting education, inclusion and political activism. As a Colorado native, she enjoys all that the mountains have to offer including hiking, skiing and fishing with family.
26. Gillian McKnight-Tutein
Interim Provost & VP of Academic Affairs, Community College of Denver
Dr. Gillian (Dr. G) McKnight-Tutein is currently the interim Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs at Community College of Denver. As the chief academic officer, and a member of the president’s Executive Council, she provides vision and leads all academic divisions on the Auraria and Lowry campuses, and the Advanced Manufacturing Center.
McKnight-Tutein has served on AACC’s Commission on Student Success, Colorado Department of Higher Education’s General Education Council, and the Colorado Community College System’s VP Council. She is the recipient of several awards, including the 2022 Bernice Joseph Leadership Award.
Dr. G, a Caribbean immigrant, is a first-generation high school and college graduate. She earned an associate degree from the College of Boca Raton, an undergraduate degree in psychology from Florida International University, a master’s degree in human resources development administration from Barry University, and a doctorate in instructional technology and distance education from Nova Southeastern University.
27. Sarah Beckman
Vice President of Power Market, Ulteig
In her 11 years at Ulteig, Sarah Beckman has used her collaborative leadership style to help achieve her vision of a sustainable future while inspiring all she leads, including other women in STEM fields. She has a strong background in utility and renewable sectors, focusing much of her recent career on power delivery in the transmission, distribution and substation engineering fields. Eighteen years ago, she began her career as a civil/structural engineer and has continued to grow her expertise and leadership ability, breaking through in the engineering, power, consulting, and electric utility industries, all of which are traditionally male-dominated fields.
Six months ago, Sarah was promoted to a newly created position, Vice President of Ulteig’s Power Market. Uniquely equipped to take on the role, Sarah’s leadership and expertise is key to Ulteig’s plans for growth across all sectors. In addition to her new duties, which include ensuring efficient project execution, expanding and diversifying Ulteig’s client base, and creating customized client solutions, Sarah continues to support Ulteig’s largest client, whose orders quadrupled under her leadership.
Sarah is the type of leader who inspires others to do their best, considers her team’s success as fundamental to her own, and drives results with optimism and enthusiasm. She loves to make connections, bringing people together whose paths may not otherwise cross, all with the end goal of a sustainable future. She is a senior member, the vice chair of the Denver Section, and the founding chair of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Women in Engineering Denver chapter affinity group. She also gives back to her industry and within her community by mentoring fellow female engineers.
28. Meg Dubray
VP and Global Director of Government Relations, Qualtrics
Meg Dubray is the Vice President and Global Director of Government Relations for Qualtrics. In her role, she manages all lobbyist and consultant activities in the state, local, federal and international space. Meg oversees all policy, legislative, executive order activities on behalf of the company and was responsible for 5x growth of the GR practice within Qualtrics.
Dubray has worked in government relations and political communications across North America, for state, local and federal governments, experience that helped her fine-tune her ability to build relationships with elected officials and the media, handle multiple clients and react with precision and speed. She also served as the deputy communications director for Colorado House of Representatives Majority Office under Speaker Mark Ferrandino. There, she handled the media relations and press for 37 members in the House majority. She got her start interning in both CNN and Time Warner’s public relations department and Inside CNN’s marketing department.
Dubray has been active in many local nonprofits. Her philanthropic work has included serving on the board of directors for the Denver Children’s Home, Colorado’s first nonprofit organization, on the Urban Nights Committee and as a Centennial member for ONE Colorado.
29. Whitney Heaps
Chief of Staff, Unreasonable
Whitney Heaps is Chief of Staff at Unreasonable Group. Unreasonable is building the world's most trusted community of growth-stage entrepreneurs, institutions, and investors profitably solving our most pressing global challenges. In her role, she advises and supports Unreasonable's executive leadership team across all things people and operational while overseeing the human resources function of the company.
Whitney has over 10 years of experience across a variety of social and environmental sectors including education, health care, conservation and entrepreneurship. She has nearly 8 years of experience in providing social and environmental entrepreneurship ecosystem support serving as an operational leader at Unreasonable. Whitney holds an undergraduate degree from Lake Forest College and double master’s degrees in business administration and environmental policy from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey.
30. Marilee Clark
VP of Sales Learning & Development of The Vomela Companies
An inspirational, persuasive, and creative problem solver with over 30 years of experience in sales, Marilee Hutton is part executive, part coach and part client whisperer. Throughout her career she has established herself as a results-driven, dynamic business and sales leader, with a history of growing strong, sustainable revenues and driving profits. Marilee is also coaching the next generation of sales leaders to further explosive business growth using her strengths in teaching, intuition, and collaboration. With her positive, motivating mentality, she ignites the passion in everyone around her, catapulting businesses, teams, and individuals forward.
Marilee’s expansive career began in sales, but quickly grew into more. Over the years, Marilee thrived in an ever-evolving sales role at C2 Imaging (Vomela affiliate), a full service, specialty print graphics company and commercial printer that brings brands to life. From sales lead to general manager at C2 Imaging, Marilee eventually managed a $6 million manufacturing facility of digital large and small format printing company with fifty-five employees. Marilee’s passion for learning everything she could about industry trends and business solutions led to her innovating the sales process for the $300M organization across their 21 U.S. locations.
Part of Marilee’s ongoing success is her ability to inspire, motivate and coach those around her. In 2018, Marilee moved from C2 Imaging into a broader scale and learning development leadership role with Vomela. In this role, Marilee utilizes her Predictive Index training and oversees the onboarding, development and continued education of the national sales team. She also hosts a weekly meeting of the minds called The Breakfast Club, a national sales meeting where 70+ reps from across the nation join to share ideas and materials.
No matter her role, Marilee is as equally curious as she is confident, and thoughtfully creates a culture where everyone, no matter their role, feels seen, heard, and valued. This cohesive, kind team mentality has led to the success of both businesses and individuals, including several multi-million-dollar sales reps. With a knack for identifying both the fine details and the larger picture, Marilee helps people see what they haven’t yet recognized in themselves, teaching them the tools to lead a more fulfilled life while making a positive impact on the world around them.
31. Iswari Natarajan
President, St. Mary’s Academy
Iswari Natarajan is a true visionary leader in the field of education. Her remarkable career path has taken her from engineer to teacher, principal, and now President of St. Mary’s Academy. She has an impressive record of accomplishments, making her a great source of inspiration for SMA's students, faculty, and staff. She believes that creating a vibrant, supportive school community is essential for students to thrive.
Iswari understands the importance of fostering relationships between students, teachers, families, and administrators to create an environment where everyone can grow and learn. By providing opportunities for collaboration and communication among all stakeholders, she hopes to create a sense of belonging where everyone can make meaningful contributions to SMA. As a leader, female engineer, and person of color, Iswari comes with valuable experience, knowledge, cultural awareness, and a different point of view which assumes importance for each undertaking. Her leadership qualities, ability to devise person-centric solutions, fundraising capabilities and successful experience in executing large-scale educational projects have made her an inspiration to many.
Iswari has been an integral part of the SMA community since 2012 when she joined as a teacher and chair of the mathematics department at the high school. Throughout her time, she demonstrated her passion for education and her commitment to helping students reach their potential. In 2018, she was promoted to high school principal. Further, she was promoted to assistant head of school in early 2022, and VP of academic affairs later that same year.
Before entering the educational arena, Iswari had a career in electrical and computer engineering and research. She holds an undergraduate degree in electrical and electronics engineering from the Birla Institute of Technology and Science in India and an MS in engineering from the University of Maryland. She also holds a diploma in educational leadership and administration from Montessori Casa International. She is the recipient of a 2015 Outstanding Educator/Mentor Award from Stanford University, a 2017 Outstanding Colorado Educator Award from CU Boulder, and a 2022 Outstanding Educator and Teacher of Influence Award from Carleton College. In 2018, IBM recognized Iswari as a Global Women Leader, and invited her to present a keynote about leadership. She has been featured in numerous articles for her work in STEM education and has been a presenter at the National Coalition of Girls’ Schools Global Forum and Advanced Placement conferences.
32. Colleen McGarity
Vice President of People Operations, CyberGRX
As Vice President of People Operations at CyberGRX, Colleen McGarity has cultivated a premiere employer brand in the Denver market, focusing on a highly engaged culture, best in class engagement score while also expanding the workforce from 50 to nearly 200 over the last 4 years. She leads a team that focuses on employer branding, talent acquisition and management, benefits administration, performance management. She established a growing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion program, increasing both gender and racial diversity by 300%. Under Colleen's leadership, CyberGRX has been recognized as a top place to work by Denver Post, Inc. Magazine and Built in Colorado several times over.
Colleen has 15 years of experience in various aspects of human resources, most recently leading people operations with several Denver-based startups. She specializes in building strategic people functions from the ground up, transforming culture and employer brand beyond the status quo of your traditional human resource organizations. As a Denver resident for over a decade and when not working, she can be found spending time with her dog, cheering on Clemson football, skiing, hiking and enjoying all the wonderful things Colorado has to offer. Colleen was also a founding leadership member for ChickTech Denver, with the goal of introducing more young women to STEM and increasing gender diversity in the technical community.
33. Heather Frick
Chief Marketing Officer, Assent Compliance
Heather Frick is a passionate people leader and coach with more than 20 years of experience leading innovative SaaS marketing teams. She currently serves as the Chief Marketing Officer of Assent Compliance.
As a data-driven marketer with deep experience in driving GTM strategies for B2B and B2C brands across multiple industries, Heather brings a fresh perspective to Assent’s marketing strategies and programs. Her commitment to authenticity, transparency, results orientation, and fun help her build effective teams with a common purpose that align with Assent’s broader goals. When not leading a world-class marketing organization, Heather enjoys spending time outdoors in Colorado with her family and friends.
34. Megan Smith
Chief Executive Officer, Symbia Logistics
Megan Smith is a seasoned, third-party logistics executive who has made the business of buying and successfully, integrating strategic businesses a mission-critical part of her growth strategy. As an award-winning CEO and advocate for advancing women in the industry, she currently oversees a workforce of over 1,000 employees and a network of 22 warehouses across the US. Leadership, communication, and an eye on the future are keys to her success as a pioneer in the supply chain industry. She currently serves as Chief Executive Officer of Symbia Logistics.
35. Leah Fitz
Vice President of Finance, AirDNA
Leah Fitz is the Vice President of Finance at AirDNA, a leading provider and pioneer of global short-term rental data solutions headquartered in Denver. Fitz joined AirDNA in 2022 shortly after the company entered into its strategic partnership with Alpine Investors, a people-driven private equity firm specializing in software and services investments. At AirDNA, Fitz leads the finance and accounting functions to enable them to effectively scale in proportion to the growth of the business. She works closely with the CEO and other members of the executive leadership team to develop and execute on AirDNA's financial strategy and ultimately ensure sustainable enterprise value creation.
Fitz has broad professional experience in SaaS and finance, having previously held roles in corporate finance, financial reporting, technical accounting, and investor relations. She also has extensive experience with IPOs and most recently helped take her previous company, Ping Identity, public in 2019. Fitz started her career in the Capital Markets and Accounting Advisory Services group at PwC, earned a Master of Accountancy degree from the University of Denver, and is a licensed CPA in the state of Colorado.
36. Katina Lundberg
Chief People Officer, Choozle
Katina Lundberg, PHR has over 20 years of human resources experience with 15 years in leadership roles. She has a history of proven results with building high performing teams, talent acquisition, workforce planning, redesigning total rewards programs, DEI initiatives, employee relations and advancing of values and engagement programs.
Katina is the Chief People Officer at Choozle and leads all aspects of the company's human resources, finance and operation teams. Choozle provides a digital advertising software platform that leverages detailed consumer data to power programmatic advertising campaigns across multi channels. In her role, Katina drives the people's strategy to alignment with the strategic business objectives, all while promoting a People First Culture and empowering employees to achieve their full potential. Under her leadership, Choozle has earned recognition as a best place to work through Built In Colorado, Outside’s Best Places, Ad Age Best Places, Denver Post and Inc 5000. Katina also serves as a board member for Khesed Wellness, a nonprofit organization that provides affordable outpatient mental health therapy to the underinsured.
Katina earned an undergraduate degree in business administration from Western Colorado University. She is PHR, CSPS, and Human Resource Ethics certified.
37. Veena Dandapani
Chief Client Services Officer, Pagaya
Veena Dandapani is the current Chief Client Services Officer at Pagaya. Veena has also held the position of SVP and global head of products at Western Union and board member at Academy 360. Dandapani has over 10 years of experience in vice president level positions in various companies. In their previous role at Catholic Health Initiatives, they were responsible for leading the strategic planning, innovation program, investment portfolio, project management office, demand management, and capital planning for a $100M portfolio. Dandapani has a proven track record in leading product strategy, design, development, and launch across digital-retail channels.
Ms. Dandapani has a master’s degree in computer science from Western Michigan University, an undergraduate degree in electronics engineering from the University of Madras, and is certified by the Project Management Institute as a Project Management Professional. Veena also has a certification from Stanford University in senior executive leadership.
38. Melinda Mathews
Head of Business Development, NA & APAC, Fivetran
Melinda Mathews is the Head of Business Development for North America and APAC for Fivetran. Fivetran fully automated connectors sync data from cloud applications, databases, event logs and more into a data warehouse. Their integrations are built for analysts who need data centralized but don’t want to spend time maintaining their own pipelines or ETL systems. Melida is responsible for leading both the outbound and inbound teams under their commercial and enterprise segmentation within North America and APAC.
Prior to joining Fivetran, Melinda held leadership roles at Pavilion, ServiceSource, and Agility Recovery. She graduated from The University of Kansas with an undergraduate degree in architecture.
39. Melanie Ryan Meador
Chief Executive Officer and President, Redeam
Melanie Ryan Meador is a travel industry veteran and business transformation specialist having spent 25+ years in hospitality and online travel prior to joining Redeam in June 2018. Melanie’s travel industry roots began when she worked for Sunburst Hospitality as director of revenue management and transient sales, where she pioneered the corporate adoption of online technology “firsts” that led the company to experience exponential revenue growth in just three years. She then went on to serve as VP of strategic accounts and business development at Orbitz Worldwide, where she led a high-performing global strategic sales and account team.
Melanie, a member of HEDNA (Hotel Electronic Distribution Network Association) for 12 years, was an eight-year board member before being elected the national president for two consecutive two-year terms. Melanie also previously served as chief strategy officer at FORTRUST, a Tier III colocation data center, and chief revenue officer of BankRate, where she led a business transformation that resulted in the company’s acquisition. Melanie takes great pride in serving as a strategic advisor to several companies. Melanie is also the co-founder of the Meadors Masters Foundation, a 501c3 nonprofit organization focused on providing humanitarian support to those in need in Colorado. Melanie has an undergraduate degree in marketing and organizational leadership from Colorado State University.
40. Lucinda Hanover
Founding Partner & CEO, Lumeri
Lucinda is a Founding Partner and Chief Executive Officer of Lumeri, a business consulting firm, helping Fortune 500 companies deliver when the stakes are high and the challenges complex. As CEO, Lucinda oversees the direction, strategy, and operations of the firm, promoting a culture that ignites the best in each person, while solidifying the coherence of the team to better serve Lumeri’s clients.
For 30 years, from North America, South America, United Kingdom, Europe, Asia, Oceania, to the Middle East, Lucinda has helped leaders fulfill their most pressing strategic initiatives and break new ground for themselves, their organizations, and industries. Lumeri has pioneered Execution Certainty™, an approach to building an integrated pathway for shared focus and success by highlighting what is most critical to achieve together, providing executives with heightened clarity and confidence.
Lucinda is passionate about the empowerment of female leaders and amplifying their contribution in business. She is a trusted adviser to key executives in the diversity arena and has designed and led specialized programs to crack the code on the advancement of women. Lucinda is an avid philanthropist. She is a volunteer and an investor, with a number of local, national, and worldwide organizations and serves on various nonprofit boards.
41. Lauren Kolodrubetz
Executive Director of Marketplace Diversity Solutions, TEKsystems
Lauren Kolodrubetz has spent the past 10 years with TEKsystems, Global Technology Services Company, in a variety of recruiting, sales, and leadership roles while always focusing on servicing customers and helping them transform. Today, Lauren leads TEKsystems’ strategy to help customers build more diverse and inclusive technology workforces - Marketplace Diversity Solutions. Whether organizations are looking to hire more diverse candidates, renovate their culture to build a greater sense of belonging, or diversify their supplier roster, her team focuses on innovative approaches to fast-track diversity, equity and inclusion goals.
Lauren is passionate about building a better tomorrow by creating opportunities in technology careers. After growing up on the east coast in Maryland and North Carolina, Lauren has spent the past 5 years living in Colorado with her husband, daughter, and dogs where she takes advantage of the year-round music and outdoor activities.
42. Jessica Murison
Chief Operating Officer and Co-Founder, Water for Generations
As a humanitarian, Jessica Murison has worked in the global health sector for almost a decade both in and out of the WASH sector. Her background includes managing the monitoring and evaluation department of a small nonprofit organization in international healthcare, program management for a water, sanitation and hygiene education organization, and grant management for a large nonprofit in Colorado. Jessica is passionate about global health issues, especially as it pertains to women and children. She earned her master’s degree from the prestigious Josef Korbel School of International Studies with a degree in international and intercultural communications, concurrent with a graduate certificate in global health affairs.
Although her work took her all over the globe, she continued to come back to Malawi year after year. Over those years, her work included conducting assessments in Lilongwe, Blantyre, Tengani and Mzuzu, collaborating with partners and government officials, business development and administrative tasks. Aside from her work, Jessica is the director of communications for the Colorado Public Health Association, president of the board of directors for the United Nations Association of Denver, a Rotary International member, and can be found enthusiastically enjoying the Colorado outdoors with her dog Sahara.
43. McKenzie Perez
Vice President of People Operations, Maxwell
As the Vice President of People Operations for Maxwell Financial Labs, McKenzie Perez, EdD combines her passion for fine-tuning the engine that runs the most successful businesses – its workforce – with experience and expertise in all aspects of human resources management to raise the “people potential." McKenzie continually employs creative global HR, strategies, processes, and programs devised to take organizational performance to that proverbial next level.
With over 20 years of experience in human resources and organizational development, McKenzie has worked with industries ranging from fintech, law, property management, education, SaaS technology, bath and beauty, and franchising supporting large multinational corporate cultures to start-up and entrepreneurial teams. With a passion for education and a desire to build up the next generation of leaders, Dr. Perez has taught at various universities in an effort to increase business knowledge and passion among higher education students.
McKenzie successfully completed her Educational Doctorate in organizational leadership and business, through Argosy University, in 2015. Originally from California, she earned her master’s and bachelor’s degrees in business administration management from Argosy University and California State University, respectively.
44. Crystal Stranger
Partner and Chief Operating Officer, Cleer.tax
Crystal Stranger is a Partner and COO at Cleer.tax. With over 20 years of finance, accounting, and leadership experience, she enjoys helping teams stay focused on growth while performing realistic risk assessments. A frequent speaker for tax professionals, she also is a resource for publications ranging from the NY Times to Money Magazine.
Previously, Stranger was a remote senior supervisor at Taxes for Expats and before that a tax and business consultant at 1st Tax. Earlier in her career she worked with Shelley Weiser Bookkeeping as a tax preparer.
45. Audra Brehm
CEO & Founder, Brehm Media
Audra Brehm is a speaker and influential leader in utilizing social media marketing as a sales funnel for brands and creators. She is the CEO and Founder of Brehm Media, based in Denver, Colorado. Brehm Media is a family-oriented, result-driven social media marketing agency that continuously exceeds customers’ expectations. Their actions are a direct reflection of the core values their clients live by. They bring a long history of success in brand awareness, content creation, email marketing, and paid advertising. Brehm Media provides a tailored program to the individual needs of each client.
Throughout her career, Audra has advocated for small to mid-sized businesses to have a voice in the noisy digital landscape. After the birth of her second child, the busy mom of two realized it was time to turn her passion and expertise into a digital marketing agency that could focus specifically on helping smaller companies find success.
46. Kimberly Stern
Executive Director of Social and Digital Media, Colorado State University
With more than 15 years of experience in strategic digital communications, Kimberly Stern leads Colorado State University’s award-winning Social and Digital Media team. Her exceptional team deploys data-informed decisions to elevate the brand and reputation of CSU through the university’s owned social media channels. Her team are resident experts and strategic partners for multimedia needs - everything from photo shoots, video concept development, TikTok consultations and more. Stern helped create a distinct voice for the institution that fans have come to trust and engage. She savors the challenge of blending the art and science of creating innovative and impactful digital content. Under her leadership, CSU’s social media presence has blossomed into an internationally recognized powerhouse. The CSU Social and Digital Media team won a Webby Award (aka "Oscars of the Internet") and is a multi-time Shorty Awards honoree (honoring the best in social media) and has been honored with several Telly Awards for fantastic digital work. In 2023, Colorado State was named to Volt Magazine’s 10 Best Higher Ed Social Media Accounts.
Stern is a long-time member of PRSA Colorado and co-organizer of the chapter’s annual Shadow Week experience pairing professional members with local university students interested in PR, marketing, and communications. She was recognized as an outstanding young leader and named to BizWest’s 40 Under Forty and PRSA Colorado’s Mentor of the Year. She is a CSU Ram through and through earning her undergraduate journalism degree and MBA from Colorado State.
47. Sarah Anderson
Vice President of Product Management, Imagine Learning
Sarah Anderson considers herself a cartographer for software solutions. She currently serves as the Vice President of Product Management with Imagine Learning. With more than a decade of experience in both SaaS and eCommerce, she helps bring the sketch to life by drafting a map of the known world, getting in the right vehicle, leading the crew, and identifying tools to explore the edges of what is possible. She has a passion for driving alignment across organizations and is considered one of the world’s best planners and process nerds. She considers the known world captivating, but not so much as the frontier.
48. Jenny Dingus
Senior Vice President of Global Sales, Clio
Jenny Dingus is the Senior Vice President of Global Sales at Clio. With more than a decade of B2B tech sales leadership experience, Jenny is known for creating an electric team culture across global workforces and driving transformative strategies centered around customer success. At Clio, Jenny is focusing on revenue growth by increasing market share, driving new and existing customer growth, and scaling its world class Sales team.
As a member of CHIEF, Jenny is a champion for elevating women in tech leadership, and brings this same passion to life outside of her work. When she’s not trekking outdoors with her kids or cheering on the Georgia Bulldogs, Jenny can be found soaring at 30,000 ft to her next travel destination.
49. Cheryl Vanvoorhees
Executive Vice President of Operations, Optiv
Cheryl VanVoorhees has more than 20 years of sales, operations and leadership experience in the information technology and cybersecurity industries. As Executive Vice President and Head of Operations for Optiv, VanVoorhees is responsible for driving scale for Optiv that enables growth while leading core operations, services and sales support functions.
VanVoorhees is recognized as a strategy-driven executive with expertise in leading and managing high performing teams, developing new talent and executing critically important business initiatives. She has a track record of using her business acumen in the areas of change management, operations and systems improvement and operational excellence to make organizations more data and process focused.
VanVoorhees came to Optiv from Avnet Technology Solutions, where she managed inside sales teams, led strategic growth initiatives, ran a high potential talent development program and led integration efforts for acquisitions. She earned an undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Colorado Boulder and serves on multiple advisory councils for key industry companies.
50. Penny Ashley-Lawrence
EVP & Chief Customer Officer, Workiva
As EVP and Chief Customer Officer, Penny Ashley-Lawrence ensures customers and partners achieve business outcomes using the Workiva platform. She oversees the customer success, services, support, operations, and enablement teams, creating best in class experience and satisfaction for Workiva customers.
Penny brings more than 20 years of experience selling, marketing, and managing teams, while cultivating relationships with clients and vendors. She has worked extensively in online marketing channels including finance, and spent a large portion of her career working in the SaaS industry.
Prior to joining Workiva, Penny held several customer success leadership roles at LogMein and Citrix. She received her undergraduate degree from East Carolina University. She is an avid hiker and retired marathon runner and triathlete.