AzBusiness March/April 2021

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MARCH // APRIL 2021

$4.95

Wing Commander Brig. Gen. Gregory Kreuder

ARIZONA CORPORATE COUNSEL AWARDS

22

DIVERSE BUSINESS LEADERS

48

LUKE AIR FORCE BASE

73

EAST VALLEY PARTNERSHIP

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Table of Contents 6

Trendsetters

12

Leadership Profile

14 Banking and Finance 22 Arizona Corporate Counsel Awards

Diversity and inclusion is changing the face of Arizona business

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Technology

46

48 Diverse Business Leaders 58 Tourism 62 Healthcare 68

Marketing

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Dining

73 Luke Air Force Base 89 PHX East Valley Partnership

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Lorena Chávez Van Assche personifies the American dream.

She is a first-generation American whose first language is Spanish. She grew up in the border town of Yuma and spent significant time across the border in Ciudad Morelos, Baja California, Mexico.

Now, Chávez Van Assche is a partner at Thorpe Shwer and practices in the areas of business, commercial, lending, and trust Lorena Chávez and estate litigation. She also has experience Van Assche resolving disputes involving business, financial, and employment contracts, restrictive covenants, real estate, commercial leases, and wills and trusts. Like many of the “Diverse Business Leaders to Watch in 2021” who are featured in this issue of Az Business, Chávez Van Assche remains a passionate supporter of the Hispanic community. And, like most influential business leaders in Arizona, she took the challenges of the past year and used them as lessons to become more effective moving forward.

“This past year highlighted our need for flexibility and collective desire for meaningful connection,” Chávez Van Assche says. “Going forward, I will remain flexible with the continued use of video conferencing and remote work. More importantly, I will make sure to be fully present with colleagues and clients to ensure our connection is meaningful.”

Diversity and inclusion has never been more important — and more at the forefront of society — than it is today, following the events of the past year.

In this issue of Az Business, we showcase the Diverse Business Leaders to Watch in 2021, but look forward to the day when it’s simply Business Leaders to Watch in 2021, without the need for distinction.

CONNECT » GUIDE » INSPIRE

MARCH // APRIL 2021

On the cover:

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Wing Commander Brig. Gen. Gregory Kreuder

2

ARIZONA CORPORATE COUNSEL AWARDS

22

DIVERSE BUSINESS LEADERS

48

LUKE AIR FORCE

73

EAST VALLEY PARTNERSHIP

89

Wing Commander Brig. Gen. Gregory Kreuder (Photo by Mike Mertes, AZ Big Media)

AB | March - April 2021

Michael Gossie Editor in chief michael.gossie@azbigmedia.com

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SHOUT-OUTS

President and CEO: Michael Atkinson Publisher: Amy Lindsey Vice president of operations: Audrey Webb

ARIZONA’S LARGEST PUBLIC COMPANY CELEBRATES ITS 100TH ANNIVERSARY At a time of major global change, leading technology solutions provider Avnet is marking the company’s 100th anniversary in 2021, joining an elite group of companies that have reached their centennial. Avnet has spent the last century navigating the complex technology landscape and helping its customers do the same. Throughout the years, Avnet — Arizona’s largest public company —embarked on a continuous transformation alongside the ever-evolving technology market.

Here are some of the key dates in the company’s 100-year history.

1921: Avnet was founded by Charles Avnet, a 33-year-old Russian immigrant.

1979: Avnet opens the U.S. distribution industry’s first Asia stocking location in Tokyo.

1940s: The company opened its first manufacturing facility to assemble state-of-the-art military antennas.

1984: When chip supply began outstripping demand in the 1980s, Avnet revolutionized the industry by centralizing and automating its inventory management in its first megawarehouse in Peabody, Mass.

1955: Avnet was incorporated.

1956: The company opened its second connector assembly plant near Los Angeles.

1959: Avnet goes public on the American Stock Exchange as Avnet Electronics Corp.

1965: Avnet purchased Guild Musical Instruments. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, the company made guitars and counted The Beatles and Richie Havens among its customers.

1968: Avnet landed on the moon for the second time.

1969: Avnet became the first technology distributor to place an order with Intel.

1975: Avnet operated 33 microprocessor demonstration centers, as semiconductor sales were almost triple that of connectors.

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1987: Avnet launches a second mega-warehouse in Chandler, linking the two with a proprietary online transaction processing computer system named “Genesis” in 1988.

1998: Avnet moved its headquarters to Phoenix from New York state.

1999: Avnet opens a distribution center in Singapore and a warehouse in Hong Kong.

2000-2020: Avnet acquired 68 companies, including Premier Farnell, Softweb and Witekio.

2021: Avnet celebrates its 100th anniversary with a continued commitment to furthering today’s ideas into tomorrow’s technologies.

EDITORIAL Editor in chief: Michael Gossie Senior editor: Rebecca L. Rhoades Associate editor: Alyssa Tufts Interns: Kyle Backer | Maya Leachman Contributing writers: Courtney Beller | Kathleen Duffy Kristen Harris | David Ralls | Molly Santa Maria | Erin Thorburn Steven G. Zylstra ART Design director: Bruce Andersen Art director: Mike Mertes MARKETING/EVENTS Marketing & event specialist: Lynette Carrington Digital marketing specialist: Paul Schaum Marketing designer: Heather Barnhill OFFICE Special projects manager: Sara Fregapane Data entry assistant: Stephanie Rivera Database solutions manager: Amanda Bruno AZ BUSINESS MAGAZINE Senior account executives: David Harken | April Rice Account executive: Manessa Ochoa AZ BUSINESS ANGELS AZ BUSINESS LEADERS Director of sales: Sheri Brown AZRE | ARIZONA COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE Director of sales: Ann McSherry EXPERIENCE ARIZONA | PLAY BALL Director of sales: David Ealy RANKING ARIZONA Director of sales: Sheri King Az Business magazine is published bi-monthly by AZ BIG Media, 3101 N. Central Ave. Suite 1070, Phoenix, Arizona 85012, (602) 277-6045. The publisher accepts no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts, photographs or artwork. Submissions will not be returned unless accompanied by a SASE. Single copy price $4.95. Bulk rates available. Copyright 2021 by AZ BIG Media. All rights reserved. No part of this publication can be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from AZ BIG Media.

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TRENDSETTERS OF THE

PHOENIX HAS EVOLVED INTO A HOTBED FOR INNOVATION.

STARTUPS IN METRO PHOENIX AerialSphere: Re-inventing

the way people interact with maps through its 360-degree immersive experience.

Akos: Offers an intuitive and streamlined telemedicine platform which allows patients to virtually connect with healthcare specialists.

Chassi: Customer

Experience Engineering (CXE) company that enables software businesses to optimally deliver value to their customers.

Dealty: Gives users the tools

they need to buy or sell their homes while determining each home’s value, setting a price and putting the property on the market.

Dovly: Has developed a fully automated credit repair platform that helps improve people’s credit scores.

EnPower: Battery technology company focused on developing scalable, engineering-based innovations to unlock the full potential of lithium-ion.

eVisit: Web application that connects primary care providers with their patients by webcam or phone for the remote diagnosis and treatment of most minor medical conditions.

Fullbay: Cloud-based shop management software built specifically for heavy duty repair shops.

Grow Sciences: Specializes in developing elite cannabis strains, which are grown indoors and lab-tested to ensure each is free of mold, mildew and harmful pesticides.

Happy Hired: Connects employers with healthcare workers, who choose the type of job they are looking for and are matched with the roles that suit them best.

HardHats: Construction companies and workers can sign up on the platform to be matched with local jobs.

HomeKey Systems: App enables homeowners to manage projects and home service professionals, track expenses and eliminate paper receipts.

Insurmi: Insurmi’s Violet is the A.I. assistant built to increase revenue, reduce operational costs, and enhance the insurance customer experience.

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To showcase how startups are powering the Valley’s economy, Az Business has compiled a list of startups to watch 2021. Here are 25 of the best start ups in Metro Phoenix, listed in alphabetical order.

Integrate: Empowers marketers to unify their demand marketing channels into a single, powerful SaaS platform that helps them achieve quantifiable business outcomes.

Mindset Medical: Offers a digital health platform that turns data into clinical information for physicians.

Nod Specialists: Delivers healthcare for infectious diseases, kidney disease, and allergy and immunology issues through virtual visits.

Nurseio: This startup serves as a staffing platform that helps nurses find work and get paid on demand.

Persefoni: Venture-backed SaaS company building the best tools for organizations to lower their carbon footprint.

Picmonic: Helps people create, share and explore highly effective audiovisual study cards, called Picmonics “pictorial mnemonics.”

PowerGrow: Greenhouses are made with thermal energy storage applications that improve growing performance while using 95 percent less water than standard outdoor farming.

Qwick: Connects food and beverage professionals who want on-demand work with businesses who need them.

RadiusAI: Technology

features multi-camera tracking, real-time analytics, rapid, and cost effective, edge processing, and customized offers.

Skookii: Helps K-12 school parents manage children’s in-school or out-of-school payments, allowing them to pay for any expense item from the comfort of their homes.

Solera Health: Integrates highly fragmented programs and services into one highaccess, lower cost network to prevent and manage chronic health conditions paid through medical claims.

Steady Install: Offers an online marketplace platform that allows commercial furniture dealers and facilities to hire contract installers on a project-to-project basis.

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TRENDSETTERS

ARIZONA RANKS NO. 3 AMONG BEST STATES FOR LAWYERS

Due to the COVID-19 economic crisis, law firm billings dipped nearly 25 percent in 2020, resulting in layoffs and hiring freezes, so it’s critical for lawyers and law students to know where the job openings will be in 2021.

Testing.org released a study on the Best and Worst States for Lawyers in 2021 using the most recent data from the U.S. Department of Labor and the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The rankings were determined by which states will see the biggest percentage increase in jobs this year.

Jennifer A. Cranston, shareholder, Gallagher & Kennedy: “Law is a service industry, much like the restaurant business. The product can be excellent, but if the service is lousy, you won’t have happy customers, which means no repeat business or referrals.”

Ed Bull, shareholder, Burch & Cracchiolo: “When a task or matter is assigned to you, own it. And when you delegate a task or matter, make sure that both your assignee and you know that they own it.”

HERE WERE KEY FINDINGS: • Arizona ranks No. 3, projecting a 5.5 percent increase to 12,750 jobs for lawyers in 2021.

• The average starting salary for lawyers is $106,330 and an LSAT score of 163 is needed to get into the top law school in the state, Arizona State University.

• Southern states make up three of the top five states in the rankings, with Alabama at No. 1 while North Carolina and South Carolina claim spots four and five, respectively.

Nicole Maroulakos Goodwin, Phoenix managing shareholder, Greenberg Traurig: “Follow through: Without it, the best ideas are just that, ephemeral. Candor.

We can’t be all things, nor do we know it all.

It’s important to exercise your strengths, but also say when something is beyond your expertise.”

LEGAL ADVICE

Arizona’s best attorneys offer professional advice to those entering legal profession

Grady Gammage, Jr., partner, Gammage & Burnham: “Be prepared to cope with a lot of change. And, find your personal style that you are comfortable with. Don’t pretend to be something other than what you are.”

According to a recent study, Arizona is a hot spot for jobs in the legal industry.

Here is professional advice from some of Arizona’s most brilliant legal minds for those graduates looking to build a career in Arizona’s legal profession.

Melissa Ho, shareholder, Polsinelli: “Be open to listening to advice from individuals in all stages of their careers and from all industries. Active listening provides stronger more sincere connections, and you never know when or how that information will become useful to you or a client.”

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Steven D. Pidgeon, co-managing partner, DLA Piper: “Work hard for one. The old adage that calls for working 10,000 hours in the first five years of a profession remains true. Secondly, find a mentor to emulate. I think that mentors were key to what success I have had.”

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5

TRENDSETTERS PHOENIX LEADS ARIZONA CITIES WITH COMPANIES ON

DESK

INC. 5000 LIST

STRETCHES

TO IMPROVE PRODUCTIVITY

Whether you’re working or doing schoolwork at home or at the office, stretching can be a vital part of boosting your productivity and mood. One local yogi, 12-year-old Sienna Stark, is teaching other kids the benefits of the world of yoga through her online platform YogieFlow. Here are some tips from Sienna on how to optimize your workday with some desk stretches.

• Use side-body stretches to help improve posture and increase circulation to the brain, making you more productive.

Sienna Stark

• Release tension in your shoulders and neck with neck rolls to help increase blood flow and relieve stress.

• Use a wrist stretch every few hours to keep your typing skills at their sharpest and lower your risk of carpal tunnel syndrome.

• Stand up and take a forward fold to stretch along the entire body and stretch the hamstrings.

• Take a minute or two to close the eyes and tune into your breath to help calm the mind and relax the body.

5 ARIZONA-BASED STOCKS

IN WHICH TO INVEST

Many people like to keep their money local, shopping at Mom-and-Pop shops and dining at independent restaurants. If you like to keep your money local when it comes to investing, here are five Arizona-based companies with the highest-rated stocks, according to The Motley Fool, along with its ticker symbol.

Microchip Technology: MCHP First Solar: FSLR Republic Services: RSG Southern Copper Corp (USA): SCCO Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold: FCX

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Arizona’s entrepreneurial spirit is reflected in the state’s showing on the most recent Inc. 5000 list. A total of 107 Arizona-based companies made the list. Phoenix is home to 35 companies that made the Inc. 5000 list, followed by Scottsdale with 21. Chandler, Mesa, and Tempe are all home to 12 Inc. 5000 companies. Here are the Phoenix-based companies that made the list, with ranking and three-year growth percentage.

RANK COMPANY

GROWTH

36 Freestar 7,239% 148 Handwrytten 2,572% 759 Printed Mint 627% 893 Real Estate Knowledge Institute 523% 459% 1,004 cloudIT 421% 1,085 Grand Canyon Gas Logs 360% 1,245 Girikon 1,342 Transcend Security Solutions 332% 1,411 Owens Harkey 314% 1,698 Offsite Office Equipment Storage 252% 1,828 A1 Garage Door Service and Repair 233% 222% 1,893 Blue Stone Strategy Group 1,972 Dogtopia Enterprises 214% 2,016 RevolutionParts 210% 205% 2,065 Valenz 2,394 Erus Energy 173% 2,586 Dynamic Wealth Advisors 158% 2,669 Staylisted 152% 2,705 FOR Energy 149% 2,738 Mi-One Brands 146% 145% 2,750 WebPT 2,824 OpenWorks 141% 138% 2,868 North&Co. 3,003 Bayless Integrated Healthcare 131% 3,264 Adopt Technologies 116% 3,364 Ice Now 112% 108% 3,457 P.R.O.S. Corporate Housing 4,014 Bodify 87% 4,095 Picmonic 84% 4,576 BizIQ 68% 4,767 HONZ Technologies 62% 4,774 Moxie Pest Control of Arizona 61% 60% 4,822 AskReply 4,836 Kowalski Construction 59% 4,972 Worldwide Jet Charter 55%

in AZ

We’re proud to be recognized as the #1 SBA lender among credit unions in Arizona1.

We’re also the only Arizona-based credit union designated as an SBA Preferred Lending Partner – which means expert advice and a streamlined decision process.

Now more than ever, we’re here for Arizona’s small business community. Let us know how we can help.

(480) 609-0055 | ArizonaFederal.org/Business Federally Insured by NCUA | Equal Housing Lender 1 As of fiscal year 2020 based on Small Business Administration 7a and 504 loan volume.

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LEADERSHIP PROFILE SIMER MAYO: “We want

to build a place for our people where they can achieve their potential, their dreams, and really achieve what they’ve set in their life to achieve,” says the CEO of Valor Global. (Photo

by Mike Mertes, AZ Big Media)

TRUE VALOR

Simer Mayo builds success on the foundation of 3 pillars — employees, customers, and community

By MICHAEL GOSSIE

S

imer Mayo knows the importance of mentorship.

“When I came to the United States from India 22 years ago, I got a great mentor,” Mayo remembers. “He became my first business partner, taught me about business, taught me about how you can impact a community. And we started this in 2004 from my apartment in Scottsdale — just him and I. And now, here we are.”

Now, Mayo is the CEO of Valor Global, Phoenix’s largest minority-owned business and one of several businesses Mayo manages with his wife, Vicki.

Valor Global hired more than 1,000 employees in 2020 and expects to exceed that job creation number in 2021. The Mayos also made five acquisitions in 2020 to grow their businesses.

Az Business talked with Mayo about his budding empire.

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Az Business: How did your business come to be in 2004?

Simer Mayo: I was a consultant for another company, helping fix people’s computers, networks, and offering technology solutions. I saw that people were always over promising and underserving their customers. So I thought there was a great opportunity to be able to under-promise and over-deliver.

That’s when I started Valor IT to help small and medium businesses with IT problems.

AB: Why did you choose the name “Valor?”

SM: We took the Valor name because of what it stands for. The focus from day one has been we take care of customers.

And then the focus kind of shifted to taking care of our employees, who will take care of our customers, who will

take care of our community. So we have three pillars in the business. Employees, customers, and community. We have values defined for each and everything we do in our business. And not just in Valor, but other businesses, too. If it doesn’t fit in those three core values, we don’t do it.

AB: Valor IT evolved into Valor Global. What is Valor Global’s mission?

SM: Valor Global is a call center company. We are the outsource call center for different organizations. We have four different verticals in Valor: healthcare, telecom, e-commerce, and government sector customers — some state, some city, some education. We have about 3,000 employees now. We are headquartered out of Arizona and have offices in Idaho, Costa Rico, Philippines, and we’re adding Mexico and a couple other countries now.

AB: Is there anything that you’ve learned from the pandemic that is going to make you a stronger business leader moving forward?

SM: Absolutely. The key thing was uncertainty. As leaders, I believe our No. 1 thing — not just for the pandemic, but with everything — is to remove uncertainty for people. Change is going to happen and change is always there. But change impacts people, their families, how they’re going to feed their kids. As leaders, that’s our No. 1 responsibility — to help them with change so they see the change as a positive rather than a negative, especially in the uncertain times we just went through and we’re still in. If we can remove that uncertainty and give them the assurance and a vision of what 2021 and beyond looks like and know that we are there for them, I think that’s a big plus for them.

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BANKING AND FINANCE

VOICES OF LEADERSHIP

in the midst of a crisis

Financial executives offer insights on how they are responding to — and learning from — the COVID-19 pandemic

By KRISTEN HARRIS

A

s the pandemic continues, financial executives worldwide have been summoned to lead corporations through a myriad of risks in unanticipated ways, as only an iota of companies had mitigation plans for pandemics on deck.

Hearing from financial executives during these trying times offers both inspiration and insight, while also emphasizing the importance of financial leadership in the era of modernized finance.

The Metro Phoenix voices are from first-class leaders who were invited to partake in a reflective discussion on what leading during crises entails. These voices come from publicly and privately-owned corporations and across four integral industries; banking, technology, travel, and equity markets.

What challenges have you and your organization faced during the pandemic, and what has been done to tackle those challenges?

Inherently, this was one of the most essential and thought-provoking questions we were inspired to probe, as corporations continue to encounter the pandemic varyingly.

Christine Nowaczyk, head of corporate banking for BOK Financial in Arizona, emphasized that, “it has been an 14

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unprecedented time for the banking industry as interest rates were essentially cut to zero overnight and the government initiated the CARES Act stimulus to protect the economy from the impact of COVID-19. This included the Small Business Association’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), in which banks were tasked with rolling out vital assistance to businesses, unlike any in history.”

Like many other pandemic realities, the rollout had to be done in real time, amidst changing guidance and with a strong sense of urgency. Sensibly, many U.S. businesses realized first-hand the importance of the CARES Act to their business sustainability in 2020.

Correspondingly, Nowaczyk’s team also had the same challenge many of us faced: Shifting in-office operations remotely at the drop of a dime. Nowaczyk stated that “after transitioning approximately 75 percent of our workforce to a remote environment, we adapted by redeploying teammates corporate-wide to help clients secure this much-needed funding to protect their companies and employees.

We processed thousands of applications totaling over $2 billion in PPP funds.”

Nowaczyk expressed her “sense of pride knowing that our teams were able to be of service to so many, even when faced

with their own personal and logistical challenges as a result of the pandemic.”

The work of BOK Financial and other PPP administrators was far from work done in vein. Many organizations were unhinged by the pandemic. Nationally, 5,460 lenders processed 5,212,128 in PPP loans to businesses totaling $525,012,201,124 in net dollars (per U.S. Small Business Administration PPP Report), which is a financial glimpse of how much we endured in 2020.

As companies continue to endure the pandemic, financial travel executive, Adrian Brown of AeroGuard is challenged to lead amidst continued uncertainty. As one of the largest flight training schools for commercial airline pilots in the world, AeroGaurd has been at the forefront of the impact of COVID-19 with the significant reduction in travel and the well-publicized reduction in short-term demand for airline pilots. Additionally, pandemicrelated visa restrictions have limited the number of students that can begin their studies on site. Brown movingly communicates their sustainability trials: “Maintaining sufficient liquidity together with keeping a safe working environment for our employees and students have been the biggest challenges our organization has faced. In fact, many years ago, we

developed a set of operating principles and safety was at the top of that list. Safety is something we have engrained into the culture of the organization since that time and it has been that culture that has put us in a solid position as we instituted additional health safety protocols in 2020.”

In addition to addressing sustainability and liquidity concerns, other executive voices touched upon their feat of transferring traditional in-office business models remotely, albeit mobilizing thousands of customer-facing “Customer Care Guides” from centralized care centers to working from home, which was accomplished in a very short window of time — a phenomenal accomplishment shared by GoDaddy. Equity Methods, a national consultancy based in Scottsdale, faced challenges related to training new team members and coordinating employee work in a work-from-home environment.

Leadership provided flexibility to new 2020 class members to either train inoffice (with strict social distancing and separation protocols in place) or virtually, depending on the timing of their start date and their individual preference.

Though we often hear of the trials companies worldwide are facing, some businesses have had positive related COVID challenges resulting from increases AB | March - April 2021 15

BANKING AND FINANCE

ADRIAN BROWN

KRISTEN HARRIS

CHRISTINE NOWACZYK

NATHAN O’CONNOR

MOLLY SANTA MARIA

ANN SCOVIL

Chief financial officer AeroGuard Flight Training Center FEI member

Global finance principal KAHARRIS & CO. FEI board member

Head of corporate banking for Arizona BOK Financial FEI sponsor

Executive vice president Equity Methods FEI board member

Credit specialist — corporate banking BOK Financial FEI member

Vice president of internal audit GoDaddy FEI Member

in demand. Charmin, Lysol, and Amazon are just a few business brands that come to mind.

In reflecting on 2020, Nathan O’Connor, executive vice president of Equity Methods said, “Like for so many other industries, it was an uncommon year for the equity compensation industry, too. The volatility in stock markets kept us on our toes, and we found ourselves constantly needing to pivot and adjust to various challenges as they emerged.

Staying agile was key. Looking back, I’m happy we were able to partner with so many companies to help them through what was a very difficult year for everyone.”

How do you keep company culture alive during the pandemic and with many people working from home?

An emerging theme by all of the executives circled around intentionality and flexibility when it pertained to keeping company culture alive. Ann Scovil, vice president of internal audit at GoDaddy, explains how “GoDaddy is a company with strong core values, like joining forces, working fearlessly and our extraordinary focus on the customer and we’ve just doubled-down on it. Our leadership team has also focused on meeting the needs of each employee.

Often that means being even more flexible with work scheduling, being more aware of the health and welfare of a team member’s family, re-allocating work or conceding that certain projects were no longer priorities during a pandemic.”

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Similarly, Equity Methods and BOK Financial’s approaches to maintaining company culture were also proactive and people-centered. Equity Methods rapidly implemented Microsoft Teams to facilitate communications between team members and share information internally. The platform served as a sort of “virtual glue” for the business, keeping team members in sync with each other. A “cameras on during virtual meetings” policy also helped keep collective morale up and created stronger inter-connections between team members. “We also invested in virtual culture-building activities of various kinds throughout the year,” O’Connor shared.

“In a virtual world, the methods you use to create bonding and trust must change.”

Nowaczyk compellingly details BOK’s multifaceted approach to keeping company culture alive: “We’re staying connected with our clients and one another in many different ways, starting with our executive leadership team hosting frequent virtual town hall sessions for employees and our subject-matter experts publishing articles, recording videos and hosting virtual sessions to provide advice to clients. We’ve rolled out new online learning tools to foster employee development and engagement and we’re hosting virtual social events to connect externally and have some fun. Many of our touch points with colleagues and clients are just to check-in and listen empathetically. We’re posting family pictures and recipes on our internal website and encouraging more internal social media to celebrate and support each other. These personal

interactions have been the most meaningful to our culture.”

What most excites you as a finance leader? What is your outlook for 2021?

Scovil’s excitement is inspired by the way finance, accounting, legal, people operations and other back-office functions really came together during the pandemic, realizing how critical we were to one another. “I’m excited to see this new level of cooperation stick in 2021. In the macro and the micro, there is still going to be a lot of change in 2021 but perhaps it will feel a little less frenetic,” she shared.

O’Connor carries this inspiration forward by asserting how this is an incredibly exciting time for the field of finance in general, although he’s quick to caveat that excitement can be a double-edged sword and one person’s excitement can be another’s trepidation.

Nonetheless, O’Connor explains that there’s a high likelihood changes will transpire in our financial markets and regulatory environment in the years to come. “There are a large number of questions that present themselves to financial professionals every day, such as, what are the forces that impact stock prices during the current recession? What does it mean if GDP is declining while equity values are increasing? Questions like these are foundational and speak to the very core of our monetary system and society. Debt-to-GDP levels are high right now, and interest rates are at historic lows.

What does that mean? What really are interest rates, after all? These are just a few

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BANKING AND FINANCE

“Relationships, relationships, relationships! The adage of “it’s not what you know but who you know” that matters.

— Adrian Brown

examples, but finance leaders are looking at questions like these with fresh eyes in this environment.”

Meanwhile, vaccines are fantastic news — an innovation that Brown is equally enthusiastic to see develop. O’Connor contemplates: “If spending in our economy picks up, how will the interplay between consumer spending, increased money supply, and a shaken supply chain impact consumer prices? In other words, will inflationary or deflationary forces dominate in 2021? How will more government stimulus expected in 2021 impact our business?”

Looking forward, in an environment of continued uncertainty, this is an amazing time for finance professionals as they are uniquely qualified and positioned to help the companies navigate through new risks and challenges. “Our companies rely on us as finance professionals to be thinking about these kinds of questions as we look forward in 2021 and 2022,” O’Connor said.

“Helping our company navigate through uncertain financial times is exactly what we are called upon to do in finance; our function is of vital importance during times like this, because we’re the ones looked upon to help the company get a handle on all the moving pieces in the current financial environment around us. No computer or software has that capability, only competent finance leaders.”

From the standpoint of a travel-industry executive, “Our outlook for 2021 is to see a strong recovery of the overall economy when we can control the pandemic,” Brown said. “There is undoubtedly a tremendous amount of pent-up travel demand that we think will be a positive over 2021 and through 2022 for the industry. The 18

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consensus seems to be this will first be seen in leisure travel before business travel. People have experienced Zoom fatigue with only visiting families and vacation locales through technology. A continuing rebound of the travel industry will lead to the increasing need for pilots which is important to our business model.

In the U.S., we have begun the distribution of the vaccine. As penetration increases and more countries control the virus, it will allow us to re-open our enrollment to students from many countries or other parts of the United States.”

What advice do you have to share to others as we navigate 2021?

The recurring concepts from executive voices altogether embraced taking good care of yourself, your community, and your relationships by being mindful, empathetic and inclusive. Concluding the questionnaire, executives expressed their quotable responses as we all seek to progress in the new year: Scovil: “Advice hails from experience, but in these unprecedented times, I don’t have advice to give other than, focus on empathy, listen and learn from others’ struggles and successes and pick one or two ways to make a difference among your teams, colleagues, friends and family.”

Nowaczyk: “Take good care of yourself so that you can better lead others with stamina, positivity and a strategic mindset.

Seek opportunities to incorporate diversity and inclusion in your business and surround yourself with teammates that can succeed in a constantly shifting environment. In the business community, we’re here to serve our clients. Finding new ways to add value to those relationships or adapting to

their current and future needs should be top of mind. We’re expecting the digital transformation to accelerate and business connections through travel and in-person events to remain diminished in the coming year, which will cause us all to think more creatively about how to connect and grow.”

O’Connor: “Focus on maintaining a healthy mind and healthy body. Regardless of what challenges 2021 presents, our companies need us to stay physically and mentally healthy so we can create value and find and implement solutions to whatever new problems present themselves. In today’s work-from-home environment, it’s especially easy to become physically sedentary or socially isolated, but not getting enough physical activity or social interaction is bad for both your body and your mind because they’re connected.

Take care of yourself and encourage your colleagues when you see them struggling in these areas too. A small amount of encouragement goes a long way.”

Brown: “Relationships, relationships, relationships! The adage of “it’s not what you know but who you know” that matters.

I personally have seen it play out in 2020 and taking the time to invest in those relationships in a meaningful way is going to be critical to “getting back to normal” as soon as possible. The business community here in Phoenix is phenomenal, with people always more than willing to help others, even if there is nothing in it for them. This is something to embrace and utilize as much as possible.”

Kristen Harris is the global finance principal at KAHARRIS & CO. and an FEI board member. Molly Santa Maria, credit specialist — corporate banking at BOK Financial and an FEI member, contributed to this report.

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ARIZONA CORPORATE COUNSEL AWARDS

HOUSE RULES Despite abundant challenges, in-house counsel can chart a new path in 2021

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021 will bring a slew of new challenges for inhouse counsel, including those brought on by COVID-19.

Whether it is complying with new state laws, mitigating risk relating to the spread of a deadly virus, or helping further integrate legal departments into global business teams, counsel are going to face never-before-seen issues and should determine how they emerge from this pandemic while charting a new path.

Courtney Beller Law

Vaccines In-house labor and employment counsel are and will continue to grapple with numerous overlapping legal challenges as a result of the pandemic. One example is vaccines — who can be required to get them, who can’t, and whether a company should require them at all. The EEOC clarified that companies can require employees to get the COVID-19 vaccine, subject to certain exceptions for sincerely held religious beliefs and medical issues as addressed by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

Companies will have to make reasonable accommodations for any ADA-qualifying employees; however, whether allowing an employee to forgo the vaccine as an accommodation is reasonable is an issue that will depend on the relevant industry and the employee’s role. Companies will also need to consider the risk of alienating workers with a vaccine requirement and whether they can afford to lose workers if some or all refuse to comply.

Drug policies Another issue in-house labor and employment counsel will have to navigate is recent changes to various state drug laws. In November 2020, for example, Arizona voters passed legislation decriminalizing the use of recreational marijuana. As these laws come into effect, in-house counsel will need to review their drug use and testing policies to consider how, if at all, they need to adapt to the changing legislative landscape.

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ARIZONA CORPORATE COUNSEL AWARDS

Preserving confidentiality With more and more employees working from home, and likely staying there for the foreseeable future, in-house counsel will need to work hand in hand with their company’s Chief Technology Officer to ensure that the legal team is able to provide privileged legal advice and review confidential documents without the benefit of closed door offices. What policies need to be put in place concerning downloading and printing documents? How can counsel confidentially communicate with other employees who may be working from home with spouses and other family members? While business communications are moving at warp speed, inhouse counsel and their technology professionals will need to work together to make sure those communications remain secure.

Significant financial pressures Legal departments have always faced significant financial pressure, even when times were good for the business team.

Now, however, many industries are facing financial shortfalls and budget cutbacks placing an even greater squeeze on legal teams. That may result in a bigger push to settle smaller matters, rather than pursue more aggressive litigation strategies, especially where attorneys’ fees provisions or statutes are not available, or where the other party to a dispute is judgment proof or difficult to collect against.

Although this has been the case for many years, anticipate additional pressure to provide early and detailed litigation budgets and the expectation that outside counsel will stick to those budgets. Outside counsel should price accordingly, rather than setting unrealistically low budgets that wind up getting busted down the road.

Getting to “Yes” Not only will there be pressure to cut legal spend, companies are also going to be asserting additional pressure on legal departments to help them “get to yes” on new business verticals and idea rollouts that will generate revenue. Lawyers, however, are often trained to look solely at risk, finding it easier to discourage new ideas and innovation rather than lay out the options, helping the business team weigh the costs and benefits. Legal teams will face greater pressure to move away from working in silos to becoming a versatile asset for multiple stakeholders.

Growing and fostering cross-functional relationships The legal department is often siloed from business units.

That has only increased as a result of the shift to work from home. However, having strong collaborative relationships with the collective business team is critical to helping make 24

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sound legal decisions that also align with corporate strategic priorities. Counsel also cannot meaningfully evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of a case without understanding whether the facts as pled are even plausible given the way the business operates. Nor can they find relevant documents or information to support a claim or defense without understanding the relevant players. In-house legal departments should make a dedicated effort to create open lines of communication with their business counterparts, ensuring that both legal and business goals are in sync and supported.

Balancing increased pressures and new challenges in the age of coronavirus — while striving to proactively collaborate with business teams — is not going to happen overnight. There are, however, some key steps legal teams can begin to take to navigate the tide and embrace ways to evolve in these times: • Review CDC and state guidance about vaccine availability and weigh whether requiring vaccines is right for the company and its employees. This might include facilitating employee vaccinations for those who want help getting access, even if not required.

• Now is a great time to dust off the company’s employee handbook and make any necessary changes to company drug use policies.

• Create practical and flexible policies to help in-house counsel preserve confidentiality in a work-from-home world.

• Push for concrete litigation and transaction budgets as well as ongoing status reporting to keep a hold on outside legal spend and consider early mediations, when possible, to try and resolve disputes without incurring substantial fees and costs.

• Understand the business team faces significant pressure to increase revenue streams. When there is more than one potential option, lay them out along with the potential risks.

Rather than saying no, help the business team evaluate those risks and pick the best option.

• Proactively reach out to business team leaders, and ask them to facilitate meet and greets with their teams without a preset agenda. Be open and inquisitive about what their teams do and how they do it. Help teams understand how your team can partner with them as a proactive advisor. This will help foster an open door policy, encouraging team members to involve counsel before problems arise.

Courtney Beller serves as Carvana’s senior corporate counsel, litigation where she manages the company’s docket of nationwide litigation and arbitration matters. Before joining Carvana, she served as a director and vice chair of the Business Litigation Practice Group at Fennemore. She litigated cases concerning intellectual property disputes, misappropriation of trade secrets, breach of contract and claims against state and local agencies in Arizona and Nevada. She handled cases for major real estate developers and helped health care clients navigate the ever changing regulatory landscape.

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ACC AWARDS 2021 finalists Lacey J. Bundy Senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary PetSmart

Bundy joined PetSmart in August 2018. Prior to PetSmart, she served for six years as senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary of Express, Inc., a specialty retail apparel company based in Columbus, Ohio. Bundy currently serves on the board of directors of PetSmart Charities and as co-chair of PetSmart’s Diversity Action Council.

TREND TO WATCH: “Competition in retail is fiercer than ever.

Technology has made it easier to bring products and services to market than ever before and to communicate with customers; it has also been relatively easy for start-up direct-to-consumer brands to raise capital.”

José A. Cárdenas Senior vice president and general counsel

Sara Begley Executive vice president, general counsel and chief compliance officer CopperPoint Insurance Companies

Begley joined CopperPoint in 2008 and became general counsel in 2014.

In 2018, she received the Ronald McDonald “Heart of the House” Award, and in 2019 was named one of Arizona’s Most Influential Women in Business by Az Business magazine.

LESSON LEARNED IN 2020:

“CopperPoint’s successful transition to remote work demonstrated that we can deliver effective, efficient, and high-quality legal services virtually while still building and maintaining strong personal relationships with our business partners, clients, and customers. We will leverage the flexibility afforded by this virtual environment when we return to the office.”

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Arizona State University

A 1977 Stanford University Law School graduate, Cárdenas was a partner in the law firm of Lewis & Roca before joining ASU in 2009. He also served as the firm’s managing partner and later as its chairman. He has been recognized for his accomplishments as a lawyer including an “AV/Preeminent Attorney” rating with Martindale-Hubbell and listings in Southwest Super Lawyers and The Best Lawyers in America, and his induction in 2010 to the Maricopa County Bar Association Hall of Fame. He is a member of the American Law Institute and a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation.

Carvana legal department Carvana’s legal department began in mid 2015 with one person and has since expanded into a team of over 35 that supports the company as it went through its initial public offering, increased employees by over 5,000 percent, rapidly expanded to operate a real estate portfolio of more than 100 locations, became the fastest-growing retailer in the history of the United States, and grew revenue by more than 30 percent year-over-year during a difficult and unprecedented 2020.

LESSON LEARNED IN 2020: “When a crisis introduces asymmetrical risk, make the hard decisions earlier and more severely than you believe necessary. Communicate clearly and empathetically with all constituents — customers, employees, business partners, and regulators.”

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ACC AWARDS 2021 finalists

Steve Cook Senior corporate counsel, contracts Nikola Corporation

Nikola Corporation is an American company that has presented a number of zero-emission vehicle concepts since 2016. The company has stated on several occasions that it intends to take some of its concept vehicles into production in the near future. Nikola Corporation is based in Phoenix.

NOTE: Biographical information was unavailable at press time.

Samuel C. Cowley

Catharine Ellingsen

Senior vice president, general counsel and secretary

Executive vice president, chief legal officer, chief ethics and compliance officer, and corporate secretary

Insight Enterprises

Prior to joining Insight in 2016, Cowley served as general counsel and vice president, business development of Prestige Brands Holdings, Inc. He also served as executive vice president, business development and general counsel of Matrixx Initiatives, Inc., and executive vice president and general counsel of Swift Transportation Co., Inc. LESSON LEARNED IN 2020: “The pandemic

has reinforced the importance of people. After last year, who is not more appreciative of the time we get to spend with co-workers, relatives and friends?

I’m more cognizant of prioritizing the overall well-being of fellow employees, which is vital to their being productive members of the team.”

Republic Services

Ellingsen is responsible for overseeing the company’s legal affairs and ensuring Republic upholds the highest ethical standards for customers, employees, and shareholders. She oversees legal services, board and corporate governance, ethics and compliance, enterprise risk management, labor relations, corporate security, business continuity, and facilities management. Additionally, Ellingsen is chair of the company’s MOSAIC Council for inclusion and diversity and executive sponsor of the Women of Republic Business Resource Group. Ellingsen has more than 20 years of experience in the recycling and waste services industry.

Joshua Ernst In-house litigation counsel | Salt River Project

Ernst joined SRP’s Agricultural Improvement and Power District in 2017. He manages and collaborates with outside counsel in significant litigation and provides advice to mitigate risk for SRP’s business units.

LESSON LEARNED IN 2020: “It is humbling to work for a critical infrastructure entity such as SRP and to see the effort our employees undertake every day to provide reliable and affordable water and power to central Arizona. Consistent with that effort, the pandemic has taught me to focus on what is most important. Not everything can be a top priority, and I am reminded to do what is necessary to support our mission-critical goals and objectives.”

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ACC AWARDS 2021 finalists Martin Felli Chief legal and administrative officer Blue Yonder

Felli is a busy man, especially since he wears many hats at Blue Yonder. He provides leadership on all legal and compliance matters to ensure the company is always moving forward ethically and with integrity. This includes corporate governance, compliance, litigation and risk management, acquisition activity, commercial transactions, and government affairs. In addition, he oversees the company’s IT group and security organization, which works to ensure customers can engage with Blue Yonder confidently and efficiently.

SOURCE OF PRIDE: “When I get to engage, encourage and motivate associates to

help further their aspirations, that’s what motivates me and gets me excited.”

Isaiah Fields

Shannon Fox Fraser

Dawn Grove

General counsel

Senior vice president and general counsel

Corporate counsel

Axon

HonorHealth

Karsten Manufacturing Corporation

Fields worked for the Arizona Attorney General’s Office (2005-2011) before joining Axon Enterprise (formerly TASER International) as litigation counsel at a time when the company was facing an onslaught of product liability lawsuits. He was named general counsel in July of 2018 and is proud to be a part of Axon’s mission to protect life, capture truth and accelerate justice.

Fraser has served as an in-house attorney at HonorHealth since 2015. She also serves as secretary of the HonorHealth board of directors. In her role, Fraser oversees the full range of legal and business issues facing an integrated healthcare system, including corporate governance, mergers and acquisitions, strategic initiatives, risk management, and labor and employment. She also oversees issues related to the medical LESSON LEARNED IN 2020: “I work with many extraordinarily gifted professionals and the staff, managed care, privacy and compliance, corporate transactions, contracting, pandemic cemented for me the importance intellectual property, litigation, and of never compromising on talent. I am regulatory and accreditation matters. Before extremely proud of how our Legal team joining HonorHealth, Fraser worked for more has stepped up to successfully advise and than 15 years in the Chicago area as in-house support Axon through the risk, ambiguity counsel at Edward Health Services Corp. and uncertainty ushered in by COVID.”

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Grove is Corporate Counsel for Karsten Manufacturing Corporation, parent company of PING (one of the world’s top golf equipment brands) and related subsidiaries. She advised on former President Barack Obama’s U.S. Manufacturing Council and currently chairs Gov. Dou Ducey’s Workforce Arizona Council.

LESSON LEARNED IN 2020: “COVID-19 taught us some hard-fought lessons. I’m grateful we are keeping our employees safe and thus far have lost no lives. I learned the necessity of having Plans B and C ready, so we can adjust Plan A at the speed of life, all with enhanced communication with our teams.”

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ACC AWARDS 2021 finalists

Tim Hartin Senior vice president and chief legal officer TMC HealthCare

Hartin has served as senior vice president and chief legal officer for TMC HealthCare since 2013. He is an experienced general counsel for integrated health care systems, serving as outside counsel and in-house counsel in the health care sector since 1993.

Hartin’s responsibilities include all legal aspects of compliance, contracting, risk management and business operations as well as serving as legal and strategic adviser to the hospital and clinical leadership teams responsible for TMC’s strategic, financial and operational success.

SURPRISING FACT: “During the COVID-19 pandemic, each member of the legal team took shifts helping out in the hospital.”

Harvest Health & Recreation legal department

Leslie Hess

To meet the challenges of providing legal advice in a rapidly evolving and emerging industry over the past year, the Harvest in-house legal team has doubled in size, growing from three to six attorneys. Among other normal day-to-day functions of an in-house legal team, the Harvest legal team has helped the company navigate the treacherous waters of going public on a foreign securities exchange, having to quickly respond to regulatory enforcement and compliance matters, oftentimes with little to no precedent to rely on, and completing mergers and acquisitions in an environment fraught with risk. Since going public in November 2018, the Harvest legal team closed twenty transactions in multiple states totaling more than $500 million.

Hess oversees DDAZ’s legal affairs, federal and state regulatory compliance and organizational risk management. She also leads DDAZ’s government affairs and advocacy initiatives in coordination with the Delta Dental Plans Association. She serves on the board of directors for Arizona Helping Hands and is a founding member of the Cactus Wren Chapter of the National Charity League.

General counsel and chief compliance/risk management officer Delta Dental of Arizona

LESSON LEARNED IN 2020: “Initially, I was struck by the differing attitudes related to government vs. science; the impact on remote work, employee performance and every facet of a business. Over time, I saw attitudes shift and find their center.

It reminded me not to prejudge and to be patient with people.”

Nima Kelly Chief legal officer GoDaddy

Kelly, who announced she will be retiring in 2021, joined GoDaddy in 2002 and became GoDaddy’s general counsel in 2012. Under her leadership, Kelly built a high-performing legal team that took the company public, structured ongoing M&A transactions, including the $1.85 billion acquisition of Host Europe Group, and established corporate governance and public company processes. She has built a diverse legal department, 65 percent of which is comprised of women, and is the executive sponsor of GoDaddy Latinos In Technology. She’s somewhat of a corporate historian in view of her tenure, and often referred to as the “VP of everything.”

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ACC AWARDS 2021 finalists Michael LaClare Associate general counsel Isagenix International

Laclare has practiced law for 19 years, and has served as in-house counsel for the last 13 years. During his career, Laclare has handled numerous commercial litigation matters and other kinds of complex commercial disputes. For Isagenix, he manages litigation and dispute matters, and supervises the company’s Compliance and Corporate Affairs teams.

LESSON LEARNED IN 2020: “One thing the pandemic seems to have done for many is add new layers of stress on top of existing ones. And, I have learned how to better collaborate with my colleagues to help us all actively manage our stress levels in order to maximize our wellbeing and productivity.”

Limelight Networks legal department Limelight’s objective is to accelerate growth across the business. The company competes against well-known industry behemoths, so growth within this industry is difficult to achieve. Limelight’s customer acquisition has accelerated across the globe, its network capacity has almost doubling since the beginning of 2019, and has consistently broken network traffic levels. None of this would have been possible without the effective collaboration and focus on execution of the company’s high-quality Legal team. Their customer service skills and attention to detail are exemplary. To a person, they are the friendliest people, while at the same time are fierce advocates for their one client. This team of forwardthinkers have their fingerprints on all of company successes.

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Luke Air Force Base JAG

Adam Martinez

The 56th Fighter Wing JAG provides a wide variety of legal services to the more than 5,600 Airmen who serve at Luke Air Force Base in the West Valley. The Luke Air Force Base legal team provides legal advice to the Wing’s commander, Brig.

Gen. Gregory Kreuder, and his staff, as well as the base population. Attorneys are available to provide advice on issues of marriage, divorce, adoption, insurance, personal injury, claims, rentals and leases, indebtedness, wills, and estate planning.

The legal office also provides powers of attorney, vehicle license tax forms, and notaries.

Since joining Offerpad, Martinez has completely streamlined the tech startup’s legal operations to match its national status. With fast growth, scale, and complex regulatory matters, the company has heavily relied on Martinez’s expertise and guidance to handle the influx of unique legal issues that come with rapid growth.

Many other national companies will have large, in-house legal teams, but Martinez has fleshed out and delivered processes that scale to the growth of the company while keeping time and resources to a minimum.

By using people, processes, and technology to streamline the legal operations, Martinez has delivered high-value results to the company as he pursues his goal to disrupt traditional big law practices.

(Judge Advocate General)

Head of legal Offerpad

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ACC AWARDS 2021 finalists

McKesson Law Department

Renee Mitchell

The Scottsdale-based legal team supporting RxCrossroads by McKesson includes attorneys and paralegals, some of whom are based in Houston, Atlanta, and Columbia, S.C. As part of the McKesson general counsel organization, the legal team provides day-to-day transactional and regulatory counsel to this complex McKesson business unit that includes two specialty pharmacy programs, medication adherence and access, and third-party logistics services to clients in the pharmaceutical and lifesciences industry.

General counsel

LESSON LEARNED IN 2020: “Our team has always fully embraced

challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic brought business leaders and team members together to brainstorm in a way that we may not have otherwise ever experienced. This taught me to focus more acutely on the business drivers and has made me a better business and legal advisor.”

McKesson’s ICARE principles of integrity, customer-first, accountability, respect, and excellence, but the pandemic reminds us what it means to be there for each other, even when we can’t see each other.”

California Closet Company

Respect has been the driving force behind Mitchell’s legal career — respect for the law, co‑workers, opponents, and for what she has yet to learn. Mitchell’s journey has taken her from the Air Force to law school, and from starting an intellectual property practice as an associate to her current role.

LESSON LEARNED IN 2020: “The novel and ever-changing

John Murphy General counsel and corporate secretary || Nextiva

Murphy was born and raised in Phoenix. Currently he is the general counsel and corporate secretary for Nextiva, where he provides strategic leadership and manages an international team of legal professionals that helps Nextiva better understand, manage and protect against legal risk through simplification, proactive, effective and timely communication, and savvy negotiation.

LESSON LEARNED IN 2020: “When the pandemic started, Nextiva had to nimbly transition to a work-from-home environment. From this environment, I learned how important human connection is to effectively managing a legal department. Although technology helps bridge the gap, connecting in person is something I have an entirely new appreciation for.”

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ACC AWARDS 2021 finalists Catherine Pearson COO and general counsel SpringBoard Healthcare

Pearson is an expert in reducing operational inefficiencies and streamlining workflows to support rapid and sustained growth. She brings 17 years of experience with employment law, litigation, and healthcare regulation. Prior to joining Springboard, Pearson was at SimonMed, where she provided legal and healthcare regulatory counsel, reorganized the corporate structure, and assisted with strategy development.

LESSON LEARNED IN 2020: “The pandemic forced healthcare employers to tailor new policies in a rapidly evolving legal landscape. Voraciously learning, anticipating legislation, and acting proactively enabled Springboard to send nurses to the frontlines. Experienced leadership and transparent communication were the benchmarks of adeptly handling the immense uncertainty. Lives were saved because of informed, decisive action.”

Justin Powell Kristin Paiva General counsel Massage Envy Franchising

Paiva is the general counsel for Massage Envy Franchising, with more than 1,100 franchisees across the country. Prior to taking the position, Paiva was a partner with Thorpe Shwer and an associate with Fennemore, practicing commercial and tort litigation. Paiva has navigated the complex world of national franchising through a series of challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic and its unique impact on the massage and franchise industries.

With operations in nearly every state in the country being impacted in different ways and subject to different governmental orders, Paiva has worked tirelessly to ensure that the brand is protected and successful.

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Chief legal officer

Isagenix International As chief legal officer, Powell advises Isagenix on all matters and strives to ensure the global well-being company leads the industry with its responsible business practices. In addition to managing the legal team, he is responsible for compliance, human resources, and corporate affairs (including the ISA Foundation).

LESSON LEARNED IN 2020: “Humanity connects us all. Many consider

2020 a year of isolation — but we also became more connected than ever to friends and colleagues around the world. Despite different cultures and circumstances, we have common ground with everyone. Now more than ever I am looking forward to connecting in person again.”

Brian Roberts Chief administrative officer, general counsel and secretary Grand Canyon University

Roberts has been serving as Grand Canyon University’s general counsel and secretary since 2012. Roberts is also a director of GCU Community Fund. For nearly 10 years, he was employed by iGo, Inc., a publicly traded developer of electronics accessories, which included serving as general counsel and secretary responsible for all legal functions. Between 1998 and 2003, Roberts was an attorney with the law firm of Snell & Wilmer L.L.P. He received a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and a Juris Doctor from the University of Kansas.

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ACC AWARDS 2021 finalists

Carlos Rojas

Julie Rystad

Timothy Shaffery

Vice president of legal, risk and sustainability

Legal practice group director

Cellular One of Northeastern Arizona

Sprouts Farmers Market

Western Alliance Bank

Chief legal officer

Rojas is a U.S. and Mexican attorney with over 20 years’ experience representing public and private companies. He earned his degrees in law from the Universidad de Monterrey in Mexico and Northwestern University School of Law in Chicago. Since 2012 he has served at Sprouts Farmers Market, a Fortune 500 natural & organic grocer with operations nationwide. During his time at Sprouts he has worked on taking the company public through a very successful IPO and seen growth in revenue from $2 billion to over $6 billion annually.

For the last six years, Rojas has led the company’s sustainability efforts which have received national recognition.

With more than 20 years of experience representing and counseling banks and other types of financial services providers in a broad variety of financial transactions, compliance with financial services laws, licensing and regulatory actions, collection, enforcement actions and bankruptcy, Rystad has built a reputation for being a powerhouse attorney and one of the most trusted resources any organization can have in their back pocket. Rystad leads a team of five that works to support the bank’s lending teams, credit administration and executive management in all areas of commercial finance. Rystad is known around the organization as a respected team member with deep insights and broad experience.

For 21 years Shaffery has guided Cellular One through a challenging, rapidly evolving legal landscape. His extraordinary gift for crafting win-win agreements has been instrumental in making it possible for Cellular One to bring mobile technology and wireless communications service to underserved tribal lands and rural communities throughout the American Southwest.

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LESSON LEARNED IN 2020: “Much of my work over the years depended heavily upon connecting in person to converse and work through complex issues. With the pandemic, as we’ve pivoted to more conference calls, I have honed my ability to utilize good stories and meaningful metaphors to convey concepts, engage listeners, and make progress.”

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ACC AWARDS 2021 finalists

Robert E. Smith

Nicole Stanton

Laura Todd Johnson

Senior vice president and general counsel

Vice President and general counsel

Pinnacle West Capital Corporation and Arizona Public Service Company

Harvest Health & Recreation

Senior vice president for legal affairs and general counsel

Smith is responsible for overseeing all facets of the company’s legal affairs and the corporate secretary function.

LESSON LEARNED IN 2020: “During 2020, attorneys became indispensable business partners — proactively assessing first impression risks and understanding business impacts of new ways of working.

We rethought empowerment, remote work, development, innovation and communication. Putting employees and customer safety first and innovating ways of working allowed us to address employees’ new responsibilities — balancing being full-time teachers, parents and employees. Our perspective and intentionality increased our effectiveness as attorneys, business leaders and caring members of the community.”

Stanton has 20 years of legal experience, first at a large private law firm and now in-house at an emerging company. She has received numerous recognitions throughout her career, including listing in Best Lawyers in America from 2012-2019 and Top 100 Lawyers in Arizona by Az Business magazine.

LESSON LEARNED IN 2020: “The pandemic taught me how productive our team can be even while working remotely. We have built a high level of trust among our team during the pandemic and that will lead to discussions about alternative work arrangements which will further enhance the quality of life of our team even after the pandemic ends.”

University of Arizona

Johnson oversees all litigation involving UArizona. She advises the president, University administrators, and the Arizona Board of Regents on a broad range of legal issues, including institutional governance, intellectual property and licensing, contracts and compliance, regulations, employment matters, charitable giving, athletics, student issues, real estate, and international transactions.

LESSON LEARNED IN 2020: “Facing a

monumental institutional financial crisis while advising on the legal intricacies of antigen, PCR, and antibody testing and epidemiological concerns related to COVID-19 — all while keeping our community’s safety paramount — forged in me a renewed understanding of the power of a personal connection with clients in collectively finding viable solutions.”

Michael Silhasek Corporate counsel Discount Tire

Discount Tire Company is an independent tire and wheel retailer. Discount Tire operates in 36 states in the United States, and is the largest independent tire and wheel retailer in the world. The company is headquartered in Scottsdale.

NOTE: Biographical information on Michael Silhasek was unavailable at press time.

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ACC AWARDS 2021 finalists

Andie Vack

Dawn Valdivia

C. Timothy White

Associate general counsel

Assistant general counsel, L&E (AERO) and chief counsel, L&E Latin America

Executive vice president and general counsel

Banner Health

Vack provides legal guidance on numerous matters, including, physician contractual relationships, physician compensation, physician relations, quality assurance, medical staff privileging and credentialing, risk management, patient care, regulatory and compliance. The Arizona native came to Banner in 2014 from a law firm in Las Vegas, where she specialized in medical malpractice defense and healthcare administrative law.

LESSON LEARNED IN 2020: “With many Banner corporate employees redeployed to help front-line workers and the rapidly and continually changing state of the pandemic, I learned to think and operate more efficiently, focusing my time on system priorities, and providing legal advice with agility and speed so Banner could quickly effectuate necessary change.”

Meritage Homes

Honeywell

White has served as general counsel of Meritage Homes since 2005. White served as outside legal counsel for Meritage Homes from 1991 to 2005, during his time as an attorney at the law firms of Tiffany & Bosco and Greenberg Traurig, where he was the chairman of the Real Estate Department.

White served as a director of Meritage Homes from 1997-2005 and as a director of LESSON LEARNED IN 2020: “The importance of being calm in a crisis. Lawyers generally need Monterey Homes from 1995-1996. White to be the voice of reason during tense business received a bachelor of science in accounting from the University of Arizona and a law situations, but the pandemic raised the bar. degree from the Arizona State University The pandemic created enormous personal College of Law. He is a member of the State stress in addition to work stress. Calm leadership was crucial to leading through this Bar of Arizona. unprecedented and uncertain time.”

Valdivia has been with Honeywell since 2014 and provides counsel and helps drive compliance in all facets of workplace issues globally with a focus in the U.S., Latin America, and Puerto Rico. She also advises on U.S. immigration law and led the company’s harassment prevention program.

Peter Witty Senior vice president, general counsel and secretary Cable One

Prior to Cable One, Witty served as general counsel for the Gas Technology Institute, division counsel for Abbott Nutrition International and Abbott Molecular, and as an associate for Latham & Watkins. Witty also served as an officer and helicopter pilot in the 101st Airborne Division where he participated in Operation Desert Storm.

LESSON LEARNED IN 2020: “Humility. The need to continually show grace and gratitude to those who made our team and company function so well throughout the pandemic.

Our associates rose above and beyond to take care of our customers and one another throughout this crisis – truly living our company motto: ‘Stronger together.’”

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TECHNOLOGY

OUT OF THIS WORLD Here’s how Arizona leads the way in aerospace and defense

A

Steven G. Zylstra Technology

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mong the many industries in Arizona’s diverse and thriving technology ecosystem, aerospace and defense is the most tenured, stable and successful. During WWII, Arizona began establishing military bases and they are now spread throughout the state. In fact, the government owns more land than the private sector in Arizona and U.S. military bases contribute more than $11 billion annually to the state’s economy, according to the Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA).

Not surprisingly, Arizona’s growth in the aerospace and defense sector coincided with the growth of the state’s military bases.

It all began largely because of Arizona’s immaculate weather and clear skies yearround, making it a perfect place for military training and equipment testing. As the military established facilities here, the big defense prime contractors also moved to Arizona to be close to the customers they were supporting. This in turn, prompted the contractors’ own suppliers to move here as

well. Eventually, our state became home to one of the largest hubs for aerospace and defense technology in the world.

Today, Arizona proudly hosts major U.S. manufacturers, including Raytheon Technologies, Honeywell Aerospace, Northrop Grumman, Boeing and General Dynamics — all of which have large facilities and even headquarters in the Phoenix and Tucson areas. Arizona is also currently home to more than 1,300 aerospace and defense industry suppliers.

These manufacturers and suppliers continue to support the commercial aerospace industry, each branch of the U.S. military and the prominent bases in the state today, including Luke Air Force Base, Davis Monthan Air Force Base, U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground and U.S. Army Fort Huachuca.

According to the ACA, Arizona is also one of the top destinations in the nation for aerospace and defense

talent. The state ranks seventh in overall sector employment and fifth in its manufacturing-specific employment, as well as hosts nearly 58,000 industry workers.

One of the reasons for Arizona’s sustained success in the sector is the technology ecosystem’s ability to innovate across critical key technologies, including 3D printing and Industry 4.0 capabilities.

In recent years, Arizona’s technology industry has invested a significant amount of money and research into the development of real-use applications for 3D printing to help manufacturers build lighter but strong aircraft and military vehicle components.

One example is Arizona State University’s partnering with a host of private 3D printing and manufacturing companies in 2017 to launch the Manufacturing Research and Innovation Hub, the Southwest’s largest additive manufacturing research center. The center boasts $2 million in cutting-edge plastic, polymer and metal 3D printing equipment.

These efforts are contributing to the evolution of the industry from a model focused on building prototypes to one that uses 3D printing as a valid alternative to many traditional manufacturing processes.

Arizona also has multiple organizations developing Industry 4.0 technologies, which include 5G, IoT (Internet of Things) and advanced automation — all designed to make manufacturing facilities more efficient and lower development and production costs. Benchmark Electronics recently opened its advanced electronics engineering and manufacturing facility in Phoenix, which produces solutions for high-reliability and high-speed electronic systems for aerospace and defense among other sectors. This facility is playing a major role in growing our state’s Industry 4.0 and advanced manufacturing capabilities.

The economic development and technology association community in Arizona is also stepping up to attract to our state more aerospace and defense business ranging from startups to industry leaders.

The Arizona Technology Council supports

a CEO Network in Tucson that includes nearly every key aerospace and defense supplier in the area. During its more than 12 years in existence, the group has been dedicated to improving the political and economic climate for the industry. The Council also hosts the annual Arizona Aerospace, Defense and Manufacturing Conference, which brings together leaders from around the state to discuss key trends and technology developments here. And the Council also supports an Additive Manufacturing Committee.

In addition, the ACA worked closely with Gov. Doug Ducey to develop the AZSkyTech program, established to position the state as the premier place in the world to responsibly test, deploy and advance unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) technology and policy. UAS and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) development and testing is a rapidly growing subsector, and the state is deploying as many incentives as possible to drive it. Ft. Huachuca is home to the Army’s primary testing facilities and range for UAS’s.

Arizona has built a strong aerospace and defense community during the past eight decades. We’ve kept an impressive lead due to the fact that we continue to innovate and invest in technology and talent to support the industry’s continued growth.

Aerospace and defense will continue to drive our state’s technology ecosystem for many years to come.

It’s also important to congratulate Luke Air Force Base on its own 80-year anniversary. The base was completed in 1941 during WWII and continues to be one of the nation’s premier U.S. Air Force training and tactical command centers.

Luke AFB is a primary site for pilot flight training on the F-35 Lightning II. The leaders and individual military members at Luke deserve our endless praise and support for keeping our nation safe. The technology community also thanks them for playing a key role in driving the aerospace and defense industry success in Arizona.

Steven G. Zylstra is president and CEO of the Arizona Technology Council.

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20 DIVERSE BUSINESS LEADERS TO WATCH IN 2021

THE BUSINESS CASE

for diversity How diversity and inclusion is good for people, good for business, and becoming integral to culture and success

By KYLE BACKER

B

usinesses have long failed to reflect the diversity of the surrounding community within their ranks and the customers they serve. In doing so, studies show these businesses do a disservice to both their bottom line and the future growth of the company.

Some, however, understand that clients and potential employees are increasingly looking at the diversity of a company to help make decisions on with whom to work.

The value of diversity Latasha Causey is the vice president of human resources for Bell Bank’s South Region markets. Part of her role is to expand the diversity and outreach efforts of the bank. Causey believes that folks typically have a narrow idea of diversity.

“To most people, diversity just means race,” says Causey.

“Diversity really means you bring something different to the table, whether that’s your upbringing and background, your experiences, or age.”

But just accepting employees with differences in a company doesn’t capture the value of diversity. Organizations are more innovative when they synthesize multiple viewpoints stemming from the variety of life experiences represented within the company.

“Diversity is not just acknowledging and understanding our differences, but truly valuing those differences we bring to the table, learning from those differences, and harnessing the product of the differences to benefit the organization and our community,” says Leonardo Loo, Phoenix office managing partner of Quarles and Brady. The law firm has won numerous diversity awards, including Arizona Diversity Council’s Corporate DiversityFIRST award and the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Award.

For Trevor Wilde, CEO of Wilde Wealth Management Group, focusing on diversity and inclusion is the right thing to do. But

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it’s also good business. “It feels weird to think about diversity in terms of promoting the bottom line, because that wasn’t the focus, but I do believe it does. Employee turnover is incredibly costly to any business, especially (in financial advising). Our clients don’t like to see turnover,” says Wilde.

As the CEO and founder of BestCompaniesAZ, Denise Gredler spends her days elevating the best companies in Arizona through local and national award programs.

“Based on our experience working closely with so many of these quality inclusive award-winning companies, we have learned first-hand that a focus on inclusion at every level of the organization, starting with the CEO and board, leads to better overall company performance, increased innovation, an enhanced ability to address customer needs, talent attraction, higher employee engagement, lower employee turnover rates, and strengthened communities,” says Gredler.

5 steps to get you started Understanding the value of diversity is only the beginning.

To create an organizational culture that values and implements the diverse viewpoints of the company takes effort.

Here are five steps leaders can take to get started on creating a diverse and inclusive workplace.

1. Educate your leaders and invest in meaningful diversity training.

One of the first things that leaders can do is educate themselves about the importance of diversity and inclusion. Causey recommends attending a bias training. “All of us have biases and if we don’t know about them, that will hold us back. Attending a

LATASHA CAUSEY

DENISE GREDLER

LEONARDO LOO

TREVOR WILDE

training will help you overcome those biases,” says Causey.

It’s important that others in leadership are also on board.

“You can’t just outsource diversity efforts to a committee and expect to see meaningful effects. Leadership has to be involved at every step of the process or else it becomes another check-the-box exercise that I don’t think succeeds in the long term,” says Loo. 2. Listen to employees and create a vision.

While it’s crucial for leaders to buy in, they should also listen to employees to create an inclusive vision of what diversity means to the organization.

“Have simple conversations. If you are the CEO, executive team leader, or the person over HR, be humble enough to hear from your employees. If you don’t listen, you don’t learn, and you already have everything figured out, then it’s not going to be successful,” says Causey.

Wilde believes that talking with employees about their vision creates a solid foundation to build on. “Spend more time with the team members on what the purpose of a diversity and inclusion council is and make sure there’s a heart-felt purpose for the members to be on it.”

3. Form a diversity and inclusion council.

While it’s important to have conversations about the importance of diversity and inclusion before forming a council, don’t get stuck on perfection and be open to change.

“We had conversations about [forming a diversity and inclusion council] for two years. Whether you’re running the business or an employee, everybody is busy. My biggest piece

of advice is just getting started. Ours isn’t perfect, but we’re doing it and actively having discussions that frame how we’re making decisions,” says Wilde.

4. Support specific initiatives.

Once the council has been formed, it’s important to take action to develop and promote diversity in the workplace. These initiatives should come organically from the council and can take many forms.

“We have formalized policies around hiring diverse attorneys.

There are diverse attorney business resource groups, a women’s forum, and a diverse mentor program. We also host writing internships for diverse students from ASU and the University of Arizona. Many of these students are first generation college graduates and law school students who don’t have any familiarity with the legal industry,” says Loo. During one of Wilde Wealth’s diversity and inclusion council meetings, an employee pitched the idea to create a scholarship to attract diverse students to the field of financial services.

“We’re in an industry where the people are typically 50-year-old white men. We’re in the final stages of formalizing a $20,000 scholarship with ASU for students typically not represented in the field,” says Wilde.

5. Hold each other accountable.

Ideas don’t do anyone any good if they don’t translate into action.

“Define success and what that looks like. Track your progress otherwise it becomes too nebulous, and that’s unsustainable. If no one is accountable your efforts are destined to fall short of your goals,” says Loo. AB | March - April 2021 49

20 DIVERSE BUSINESS LEADERS TO WATCH IN 2021

MIGUEL BRAVO Manager, strategic partnerships | APS Raised in Tucson after immigrating from Mexico, Bravo has more than 20 years of civic involvement in diverse communities. His expertise spans economic development, customer service, and community engagement. He currently leads community engagement and impact strategies for APS.

IVY BANKS Associate vice provost University of Arizona Ivy Banks serves as the associate vice provost for diversity and inclusion at the University of Arizona.

In her current role, Banks leads campus diversity and inclusion initiatives. Banks has received numerous awards, including the Martin Luther King Jr. Legacy Award.

Lesson learned in 2020: “I learned to lead through the lens of trauma informed leadership. Centering my leadership and management style around empathy, compassion, safety, and empowerment were essential to ensuring everyone felt respected and valued. The meaningful connections established from that leadership shift strengthened the team through the crises and will serve as the foundation for trust-building as I move forward.”

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Lesson learned in 2020: “Maintaining strong relationships and trust is everything. Teammates, customers and community partners value an authentic, trusted relationship, especially during difficult times.

I’m more grateful, aware of everyday opportunities I once took for granted to listen, connect and be of service to others to build a strong foundation for the future.”

RACHEL M. BOND, MD, FACC Medical director, Women’s Heart Health Dignity Health

JAMIE BOGGS Interim vice president of athletics

CHARLES W. BROWN JR.

Grand Canyon University

Managing attorney

Boggs drives the overall operations for GCU athletics and was instrumental in GCU’s successful transition from NCAA Division II to Division I classification. Boggs was recently appointed to serve on the NCAA’s Division I Council.

The Law Office of Charles Brown, PLLC

Lesson learned in 2020: “In times of significant challenge when circumstances can create chaos, a leader’s responsibility is to create calm and a clear direction. It is important to lean on your culture, which, for us is one of collaboration, continuous improvement, community and Christian leadership (service, humility, gratitude). Teams excel when they feel they can contribute and their strengths are creatively utilized and recognized.”

Charles Brown is the managing attorney of The Law Office of Charles Brown and handles civil litigation, commercial litigation, and family law matters. He is an Arizona native and has practiced law here since 2015. Prior to becoming an attorney, he served in the U.S. Air Force for eight years.

Lesson learned in 2020: “I think the pandemic has helped underscore that the keys to effective leadership are empathy and flexibility.

You have to be able to respect the lives of others and to not be so married to your idea that you can’t appreciate the need to adapt to new circumstances.”

Dr. Bond is a faculty physician at the Dignity Health Medical Group Cardiology – Mercy Gilbert. She specializes in women’s cardiovascular health and prevention.

Her goal is to ensure women get the care they need from a trustworthy medical partner to help improve their overall health.

Lesson learned in 2020: “With a year like 2020, leaders can easily fall into the traps of waiting for a situation to rectify itself.

Instead, we must act in a timely, transparent, and interactive fashion, recognizing that mistakes are inevitable, but that responding productively to missteps, always wins in the end.”

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20 DIVERSE BUSINESS LEADERS TO WATCH IN 2021

LATASHA CAUSEY Vice president of human resources | Bell Bank Causey has oversight of human resources activities, culture and diversity efforts for Bell Bank. She is very active in the community, serving on the Teach for America, Valley of the Sun United Way, ASU Alumni Association and Phoenix Workforce Commission board of directors.

Lesson learned in 2020: “2020 was a rollercoaster of a year, from a pandemic to social injustices, from highs to lows, to hope and inspiration. As a leader, it reiterated the importance of patience, understanding, listening and educating. As a leader of color, this year stressed the importance of having difficult and uncomfortable conversations about race even when you don’t want to.”

LUPE CAMARGO Financial planner Perspective Financial Services In addition to her role at Perspective Financial Services, Camargo has also held management positions with US West and Honeywell.

Camargo is chair of Girl Scouts–Arizona Cactus-Pine Council and served as chair for Friends of Tempe Library.

She is a first-generation American and Arizona native.

Lesson learned in 2020: “During difficult times, we need to show compassion, listen to what others are experiencing, and be agile enough to adapt to what is needed. We need to stay connected to those important to us and communicate often.

It’s also so critical we create an environment where others feel they belong.”

HECTOR J. DIAZ Partner | Quarles & Brady Diaz is a partner at Quarles & Brady, practicing in the areas of white collar and complex criminal matters. Previously, Diaz worked with the Maricopa County public defender’s office, handling major felony matters. He’s a fellow in The Leadership Council on Legal Diversity and former member of Los Abogados.

Lesson learned in 2020: “There is no question that 2020 impacted the legal community, as it did with all other sectors. Regardless, the practice of law continued and the wheels of justice, while slowed by the pandemic, could not be stopped. Being open to new business and technology trends, even if incredibly uncomfortable at first, is a survival must.”

IVAN O. GARCIA Business relationship manager | Chase With more than 18 years of experience in financial services, Garcia delivers an array of banking solutions to boost small business growth. He represents JPMorgan Chase on the board of the Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

Lesson learned in 2020: “My family grew closer as my mother fought off COVID. I helped clients seek PPP loans to keep their businesses alive. I strived for a deeper understanding of systemic racism to help stop it. These events taught me that leaders can’t prevent life’s challenges, but we can grow through them.”

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LIONEL EVANS Investment advisor representative Wilde Wealth Management Group A U.S. Navy veteran, Evans is an investment advisor representative at Wilde Wealth Management Group.

He holds the Series 7 and 63 securities registrations, long-term care, and Arizona insurance licenses.

Evans was a long-time volunteer youth football coach and is currently active in the Wilde for Arizona community outreach program.

Lesson learned in 2020: “The challenges of 2020 taught me to always have an attitude of gratitude and to be deliberate and intentional about making this world a better place for all humanity.”

VICKI MAYO CEO and founder The TouchPoint Solution Mayo is a self-made serial entrepreneur and the business powerhouse behind The TouchPoint Solution, for which she invented a patentpending technology that alleviates stress in 30 seconds. She also owns and is on the leadership teams of GMI, a technology solutions company and Valor Global, an industry-leading customer care company, both headquartered in Phoenix.

LARRY HOFER Vice president of people services

Lesson learned in 2020: “I believe it is our greatest obligation to humanity to help others. It’s not about money, it’s about how we can make an impact on society.”

Cox Communications As vice president of people services for Cox Communications’ Southwest region, Hofer provides human resources leadership and strategic direction for more than 4,800 employees in Arizona and Nevada. Over the years, Hofer has helped transform the culture, resulting in Cox receiving Best Places to Work recognition in both states.

Lesson learned in 2020: “Compassion and Patience.

Everyone is dealing with crisis differently so there’s no room for perfection. Stay true to your values. This will help you move mountains during chaos. Don’t bounce back but bounce forward.

Don’t look back but reimagine what we can do differently and better.”

TIMOTHY OVERTON Partner Dickinson Wright

SPENCER A. ISOM Director of business development and government affairs

LUCY RAY Vice president of commercial real estate

West-MEC

Alliance Bank of Arizona

Having served as city and town manager for two Arizona communities, Isom has brought his experience to the Western Maricopa Education Center. He has a doctorate in education policy and administration from the University of Minnesota and a master’s in public administration from the University of Cincinnati.

Ray provides financing solutions for clients in markets in the western U.S. She is active in ULI Arizona and currently serves on the board of Valley of the Sun United Way’s Women United Leadership Group.

Lesson learned in 2020: Isom believes 2020 demonstrated it is a mistake to simply hope for a return to how things were. Instead, he plans to inventory lessons learned and work toward a new, more collaborative and inclusive future. He suggests how we approach business, education, and each other should be forever changed.

Lesson learned in 2020: “People will step up if you let them. It was amazing to see colleagues at all levels take on ownership and a ‘whatever it takes’ attitude when navigating through the unprecedented challenges of 2020. Every individual worked their hardest to meet the needs of our clients and expectations of our shareholders.”

Overton is a partner with the law firm of Dickinson Wright’s Phoenix office, focusing on complex commercial disputes and litigation. He is also a featured speaker, consultant and trainer on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI). Overton consults with businesses to create, institute, and improve DEI policies, practices, and culture.

Lesson learned in 2020: “2020 taught that being inclusive will help us succeed no matter the challenge, including a worldwide pandemic and racial discord. When we value everyone’s perspectives, we’ll better understand challenging issues and how to address them, and the results will be better both for morale and for the bottom line.”

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20 DIVERSE BUSINESS LEADERS TO WATCH IN 2021

MARVINA THOMAS CEO | 420 Skincare and 420 Medibles The former registered nurse began her canna-business journey learning to make soap blending CBD oil with beautifying Egyptian ingredients. Later, Thomas created THC treats to help others heal naturally without opioids. The social entrepreneur channels a percentage of her profits to help fight addiction and homelessness.

KHALA STANFIELD Director of organizational performance City of Glendale Stanfield oversees the development and implementation of organizational strategy to drive performance improvements for the city.

She brings 22 years of public service experience in analysis and strategic planning.

Stanfield serves as a board member for ASU’s Alumni Chapter and the National Forum for Black Public Administrators – Central Arizona Chapter.

Lesson learned in 2020: “First, leaders must remain engaged and proactive.

When challenges occur, it is essential to have a backup plan already in place.

Second, employees are our most valuable resource and will stay dedicated if you show they are valued by the organization and emphasize how their contributions positively impact the customers.”

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Lesson learned in 2020: “The importance of remaining adaptable to capitalize on opportunities or adjust to changes impacting operations. Staying grateful and focused continues to grow our success as COVID brought operational challenges along with an increased demand for 420 Skincare products, which allowed our THC edible line expansion in time for recreational marijuana.”

MAYRA J. URIBE Regional banking district manager | Wells Fargo Uribe oversees consumer and retail banking operations for the Las Avenidas district. She is responsible for 130 employees and eight banking branches in the Phoenix area.

Lesson learned in 2020: “Maintaining a positive and resilient attitude, and reassuring my team that they were capable of overcoming adversity was essential. Instinctively, I’ve always taken chances and frequently venture into unknown territory — 2020 was unknown territory. I now stop and listen more carefully to better understand others’ beliefs and world views. 2020 helped strengthen my character and talents to hopefully help ‘grow’ others.”

KEN UDENZE Managing partner | Deloitte Udenze is the managing partner of Deloitte’s Arizona practice, leading a team of professionals in Phoenix and Gilbert that provide audit, tax, consulting, and risk and financial advisory services to companies across a wide array of industries, including refining, utilities, transportation, and real estate.

Lesson learned in 2020: “It all comes down to how we choose to react to the challenges we face. As a result of last year, I am now even more cognizant that there are still positive things happening in our communities that we all should be proud of. I choose to focus on those and channel that positivity into the way I lead our Arizona practice.”

COREY WOODS Mayor | City of Tempe Woods was elected mayor of the City of Tempe in March 2020. In his professional career, he is the chief of staff at ASU Preparatory Academy. Woods served as a council member for the City of Tempe from July 2008 through July 2016.

Lesson learned in 2020: “Challenges present opportunity. It is necessary to have all perspectives at the table to better understand what those opportunities are and how we can shape solutions. This is a simple concept, but it can be difficult. Proactive communication is a must. Do not be afraid to explain your vision.”

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20 DIVERSE BUSINESS LEADERS TO WATCH IN 2021

How Arizona companies can create a

DIVERSE, EQUITABLE AND INCLUSIVE WORKPLACE

L

ast summer’s protests reignited a movement for racial equality in America. But the call for change didn’t stop on the streets of our nation’s cities and towns; it also took center stage inside company C-suites and corporate boardrooms.

Creating a diverse and inclusive workforce has been on the minds of business leaders for some time, but their progress in achieving this goal has been slow, at best.

Consider the facts: In the United States, 68 percent of C-level executives are White men and 18 percent are White women, compared to 10 percent and 4 percent of men and women of color, respectively, according to a study by McKinsey.

The same study revealed that women make up just 20 percent of corporate leadership teams, with more than a third of U.S. companies lacking a single female in an executive leadership role.

And a Gender Diversity Index released last summer noted that women occupy 22.6 percent of company board seats in the Russell 3000 Index. That’s a 6.5 percent increase in board seats during the past four years, and diversity among companies’ rank-and-file employees is moving in the right direction, too.

Why the senior management teams do not resemble their firms’ larger workforces is the same reason it has been difficult to achieve diversity on corporate boards: Most of the board members are White men.

When they retire, they tap their circles of influence for a potential replacement with people who look like them.

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Kathleen Duffy Workforce

For its part, Arizona is faring better than other parts of the nation — at least when it comes to board seats held by women — as one of six states with 20 percent overall female representation based on data from the Gender Diversity Index.

Yet there is still much work to be done to make today’s companies look more like America’s general population.

To start, employers must undergo a sea change in how they view diversity, equity and inclusion. That is, they must not only look the part by representing a broad range of workers from different backgrounds, but also create a culture where diverse opinions, styles and experiences are welcomed and appreciated.

There must be a commitment to diversity at every touchpoint — from how they speak to existing employees to the way they recruit new ones. This includes revamping job descriptions to eliminate potential bias and use gender-neutral language to attract candidates who are a cultural addition instead of a cultural fit (as the latter could be perceived as hiring more of the same). It also requires looking for discrepancies in pay for open positions and among team members, and then

adjusting salaries accordingly; embrace diversity through training.

But diversity isn’t just about hiring new staff; companies also must work harder to keep existing talent in place.

That means creating a sense of belonging and developing policies, procedures and practices to keep employees motivated and happy. It’s about opening lines of communication among staff at every level of the organization, conducting “stay” vs. “exit” interviews to keep morale and productivity high, and even changing benefits to improve overall staff retention.

The way a company “lives” diversity and inclusion also must be reflected externally through branding, marketing and how it gives back to the community.

If this sounds like a lot of effort, it is, but the benefits will be immense. A 2017 study by Boston Consulting Group found that diverse teams help drive innovation and grow revenue at their companies by up to 19 percent. In another study, McKinsey noted that companies ranking highest for ethnic and cultural diversity were 36 percent more profitable than their less diverse peers.

Conversely, failure to embrace diversity can have adverse effects, particularly when it comes to recruiting younger candidates, who place a premium on working in a diverse and inclusive workplace.

Kathleen Duffy is president and CEO of Duffy Group, Inc., a Phoenix-based recruitment firm that has been sourcing and hiring candidates nationally and internationally for 30 years.

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TOURISM

They’ve got

game(ing) Tribal communities showcase culture, invest in people, drive development through hospitality

By ALISON BAILIN BATZ

I

n 1988, the U.S. Congress passed the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA), paving the way for the country’s Native American communities to operate casino-style gaming on tribal lands.

Among the many benefits to tribes was economic selfsufficiency and the financial resources to invest in infrastructure and social services programs for tribal members.

“With IGRA’s passage, tribal leadership across Indian Country recognized the tremendous impact revenue from tribal gaming would have on our communities,” said Robert Miguel, chairman of the

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Ak-Chin Indian Community and first vice president of the Intertribal Council of Arizona. “Arizona’s tribes signed their first gaming compact with the state nearly 30 years ago, further establishing our tribal sovereignty and giving us the financial resources to grow and strengthen our tribes’ infrastructure. This economic opportunity continues today as a source pride for tribal members.”

Today, there are 24 Class III casinos and dozens of hospitality enterprises on tribal land statewide. Here is a look at how several successfully lift up their communities through sound business practices as well as how they showcase their proud cultures:

Harrah’s Ak-Chin Casino Harrah’s Ak-Chin Casino is Arizona’s first and only tribal casino to have an international management partner, Caesars Entertainment. As the largest employer in Pinal County, Harrah’s Ak-Chin employs nearly 1,000 people, tribal and non-tribal. Through Harrah’s Development System, members of the Ak-Chin Indian Community are integrated into key areas of the casino operation, with the goal of long-term employment opportunities. A recently completed multi-million-dollar renovation expanded its hotel, dining experiences and added a spa and fitness center as well as The Events Center at Harrah’s Ak-Chin. A central element to the renovation was a focus on the tribe’s rich history. Throughout the property, guests will see Native American-inspired artwork and design elements that highlight the culture and traditions of the Ak-Chin Indian Community. Woven baskets created by Ak-Chin Indian Community members as well as artwork created by other Native American artists is seen throughout the property. In addition, photography and sculptures fill the walls and guest areas throughout the property that reflect the rich history and pays tribute to the Community’s deep agricultural roots.

Sheraton Grand at Wild Horse Pass

Sheraton Grand at Wild Horse Pass As trusted caretakers of the Gila River Indian Community’s storied history, Sheraton Grand at Wild Horse Pass fosters a passion for philanthropy that benefits the Community whenever possible. The resort allows meetings booked the opportunity to give back to the Community. If a group is interested, the resort’s cultural concierge meets with the planner to pick a philanthropic program. The resort team also volunteers regularly in the Community through organizing toy drives, serving Thanksgiving dinners, hosting educational programs, holding raffles and more. The architecture, design, art and legends of the Akimel O’otham (Pima) and Pee Posh (Maricopa) tribes are celebrated in every detail imaginable. Traditional native roundhouse (Olas’ki) design is represented in the domed lobbies of the main resort, the Whirlwind Golf clubhouse and Aji Spa. All main entrances to the resort, spa and golf club face east to welcome the rising sun, as is the tradition of the Pima and Maricopa people. At Kai, the resort’s signature restaurant, chef Ryan Swanson incorporates the essence of the Pima and Maricopa tribes into the menu through native ingredients and techniques.

Aji Spa features treatments designed by Pima and Maricopa caretakers using ingredients sourced from the ancient tribal lands that surround the spa. Gila River Hotels & Casinos Wild Horse Pass is also just blocks (step, really) away, not only offering live table poker, video poker, blackjack, table games and slots, but also myriad support to the Tribe.

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TOURISM We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort Owned and operated by the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation, the spectacular new 166,341-square-foot We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort boasts state-of-the-art gaming, a variety of specialty fine and casual dining restaurants, live entertainment, and luxurious accommodations at the adjoining AAA Four Diamond hotel. Elements of earth, fire, water, animals and basket-weaving that are important to the tribe are incorporated throughout the resort — starting in the atrium, where the ceiling replicates a desert tortoise shell and the largest blue circle and chandelier represent Montezuma’s Well, the origin of the Yavapai people. Other culturally inspired architectural nuances include the blue path in the terrazzo floor design that represents the Verde River, the center and outer columns that showcase Yavapai basketry, other floor areas that reflect patterns of nature, and the LED light in the signature Center Bar that depicts an eagle’s wing. Everything the casino resort does benefits the 889 members that call the reservation home, from funding fire and police departments; supporting family, senior and community health services; encouraging economic, cultural and community development; hosting community events; and providing job training, educational resources and childcare.

Casino Arizona and Talking Stick Resort

We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort Casino Arizona and Talking Stick Resort The opening of Casino Arizona and its sister property, Talking Stick Resort marked an investment for the future of its owner and operators: the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community. Each property also serves as a reflection of the Community’s rich culture and history. Designed with culture in mind, both properties are home to extensive art collections. Historic artifacts are also prominently featured including jewelry, pottery and baskets. The O’odham (Pima) and Piipaash (Maricopa) tribes which make up the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community are known for their intricate baskets and pottery which are shown at both properties. Talking Stick Resort has a cultural center specifically designated to display both. Beyond some of the historic art, the resort is also home to an extensive contemporary Native American art collection. It is considered to be the largest contemporary collection outside of a museum. Further, Talking Stick Resort’s entire décor features nods to the Community from the rich blue lighting and carpeting that represent the tribe referred to as the water people. Basket weave designs have also been incorporated throughout the resort. Casino Arizona and Talking Stick Resort do not just showcase the culture of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, each are also a resource for education and career development. The Pathways to Success program enables Community members to work with mentors to establish and achieve career and education goals while working at the properties.

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HEALTHCARE

VIRTUAL IS NOW A REALITY In the wake of COVID, the future of telehealth is brighter than ever with AI, convenience and cost savings

By ALYSSA TUFTS

A

ccessibility, cost savings and technological capabilities propelled telehealth into the spotlight due to COVID-19 and ushered in a new landscape for healthcare. Today, virtual health is no longer an add-on, but a key service.

Although virtual care — or telehealth — has been offered for some time, the adoption and use of telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic was incredibly high. A 2020 consumer survey found the pandemic doubled the number of people who have used telehealth, from 39.4 percent pre-COVID-19 to 79.5 percent post-quarantine.

It’s undeniable that trends in healthcare have permanently shifted towards telehealth becoming a key aspect of care. James Roxburgh, CEO of Banner Telehealth, says Banner’s offerings cover the continuum of care — ambulatory, clinic and acute settings — which have been instrumental in its delivery of care during COVID-19.

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“We’ve implemented a strong response to COVID-19 in an ambulatory setting,” Roxburgh says. “We’ve had over 97,000 ambulatory visits in nine months in 2020, and in the acute setting, we provided 9,800 visits in 2020. We created the foundation in 2020 for Banner Telehealth, so whether it’s providing care in or outside a Banner facility, it’s a matter of connecting the dots and it’s a very simple process, which is what I call telehealth 2.0 — we want to take our programs to the next level.”

Bill Goodwin, CEO of MeMD, says COVID-19 accelerated the already existing elements of virtual care and put them immediately on the forefront. “The future of telehealth is great because people want care delivered in the way they want it and they want to do a lot of it virtually,” he says.

In addition, Goodwin says virtual care will help alleviate an predicted shortage of 55,000 primary care doctors in the U.S. by 2030, which means people could be waiting four or five weeks to see a primary care doctor if they’re not an established patient.

With a virtual visit, Goodwin says, people can get the care they need much faster.

The pandemic’s silver lining Although more people have learned about virtual care options and have seen the benefits — from convenience to cost efficiency — the rapid adoption of telemedicine could have taken much longer if not for the strain COVID-19 put on the healthcare system.

“Patients historically have been hesitant to schedule telehealth appointments,” says Khalid Al-Maskari, CEO of HiMS (Health Information Management Systems), which provides integrated artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled electronic health record solutions. “Prior to COVID-19, telehealth was perceived as being a lesser form of healthcare. But new tools, apps and services are connecting patients to their providers in a way that’s easier and faster than ever before. If COVID-19 didn’t happen, telehealth would still be seen as a fringe service rather than a key pillar of care.”

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HEALTHCARE

KHALID AL-MASKARI

DR. KISHLAY ANAND

Justin Bayless, CEO of Bayless Integrated Healthcare, an integrated primary care and behavioral health practice, says by the end of April 2020, Bayless saw adoption from both patients and providers and tremendous growth in their virtual service delivery, and provider and patient satisfaction increased. “We describe virtual care as a full ecosystem of services across the spectrum of what Bayless offers in an integrated approach,” he says.

A May 2020 survey by McKinsey & Company showed 76 percent of respondents were highly or moderately likely to use telehealth going forward, and 74 percent of users reported high satisfaction.

“Our technology is getting more sophisticated and growing exponentially,” Bayless says. “We’re going to have a system that is going to drive off of technology first in the not too distant future, and the pandemic has pushed that adoption forward.”

Dr. Kishlay Anand, founder and CEO of Akos, a Phoenix-based telemedicine company that provides services for businesses and patients, says telehealth is popularizing a hybrid approach to telehealth and in-person care. “In the future, I think people’s receptiveness to telehealth will continue to increase.

Virtual care was seen as less-desirable before COVID-19, but now it’s a key element of modern healthcare,” Dr. Anand 64

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JUSTIN BAYLESS

DR. DAVID BERG

BILL GOODWIN

JAMES ROXBURGH

low cost,” says Dr. Anand. “As the world transitions to virtual care, businesses that quickly adopt telehealth will be ahead of the curve, as more employees begin to expect this service.”

“The main takeaway for businesses is that telehealth has now shifted from an ‘add-on’ form of care to a core function Telehealth benefits employers and of health plans,” says Al-Maskari. “It’s employees becoming increasingly less optional for More employers are seeing the businesses to exclude telehealth services tremendous cost savings and efficiency of from their benefits offerings.” including virtual health offerings in their This shift is a positive direction for the insurance plans. healthcare industry, not only for employees “Employers are seeing the need to or individuals who have more access to have an increased focus on employees’ physical well-being and mental well-being,” quality care that’s more convenient, but also for businesses, who can save money by Goodwin says. “So when a company looks providing telehealth options. at health and wellness, they’re looking “Health insurance, for the most part, has at the cost and employee engagement. become unaffordable for most businesses By providing mental and physical care in America, and if it is affordable, it’s virtually, they can control costs more and only for the high-wage earners in their they can drive employee engagement, so businesses,” says Dr. David Berg, president you’ll see more employers adopt virtual and co-founder of Redirect Health, an strategies as part of their overall benefit affordable business, individual and family plan.” plan insurance provider. “The cost of The 2021 Large Employers’ Health healthcare insurance is the biggest reason Care Strategy and Plan Design Survey revealed more than half of all respondents why so many people don’t have access to it. Even if they have insurance, they can’t planned to implement more virtual care solutions in 2021, while 80 percent believe afford to take time off work, or afford the co-pays, out-of-pocket cost or other costs. telehealth will significantly impact care With telehealth, an employer’s health plan delivery in the future — up from 64 is less expensive, so the cost per person percent in 2019. can go down dramatically with the use of “It’s becoming increasingly common the appropriate technology and workflows for businesses to add telehealth to their to match with it.” existing plans due to its simplicity and says. “The pandemic showed patients and physicians that telehealth was not only viable, but that it was also a convenient and more affordable option. It broke down barriers to care access that in-person healthcare was unable to address.”

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AB | March - April 2021 65

HEALTHCARE “Now, people can use their cell phone and be able to get the help they need, specifically mental help.”

— Justin Bayless

In addition, mental health has become a larger aspect of virtual care. Given the unprecedented events in 2020, more people than ever were struggling with mental conditions. “The need out there is so much greater,” Dr. Berg says. “I think employers that don’t offer mental health options in their health plan are at a huge disadvantage versus the ones who do.

Telehealth allows people to communicate with mental health professionals at a lower cost, so it does not become the barrier to treatment.”

Technology and AI revolutionize capabilities The advancement of technology has unlocked limitless potential for the future of telehealth. Goodwin says AI provides patients with a preferred way to consume care at their convenience. “AI won’t make the decision on care, AI will augment what the provider does and help them be more effective.”

A challenge that comes with this advanced technology is data silos, which Dr. Anand says AI is finally solving. “AI makes it possible to pull data from multiple sources and put it all in one place, making better patient care possible. Having data across several locations makes it harder for physicians to provide quality care because they don’t have access to the patient’s full 66

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diagnostic report … If a provider can see that a patient was diagnosed with X in the past, that provider will then know to look out for Y, or to not prescribe Z.” Al-Maskari says AI is a key reason why large-scale telehealth deployment was possible in such a compressed time frame at the onset of COVID-19.

“Not only has COVID-19 launched telehealth to the forefront of care, but it also shifted the healthcare market to be less transactional and more proactive. To promote this proactive care experience, AI is essential for automating administrative functions, checking in with patients and prioritizing workflow.

“With AI taking care of the day-today operations, providers can see more patients virtually,” Al-Maskari says.

“This allows for physicians and staff to focus on their patients rather than data aggregation. The easiest way to think about the AI shift is as a partnership: to partner with thousands of patients at once, you need smarter, more automated systems.

This model allows patients to access more comprehensive information about their health than they ever had access to before.”

Looking forward in 2021 Roxburgh says telehealth will continue to evolve in 2021 towards a value-based

system. “It will look at the patient as a whole throughout the continuum of care so that we look at maximizing their care in a way that looks to improve efficiency of care in a value-based world.”

Al-Maskari says mobile healthcare is also changing the healthcare delivery model. “Doctors are more commonly communicating both internally with clinical staff and externally with patients via text message, and this is something the healthcare industry will see more of as we progress through 2021.”

As healthcare continues to evolve and offer more virtual healthcare options, Bayless says it’s giving people access to care they wouldn’t otherwise have. “I think it’s an equalizer,” he says. “For example, Bayless serves many low-income communities in Arizona and we know how difficult it is for them to make it to a doctor’s appointment.

Poverty brings stressors and barriers and getting to an appointment may not be as important as other things.

“Now, people can use their cell phone and be able to get the help they need, specifically mental help,” Bayless says. “I’m excited and positive about what the future can bring for more people to access care, especially the things that are most important for their overall health, which starts with primary care and mental health services.”

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MARKETING

3 WAYS TO OPTIMIZE A TIGHT MARKETING BUDGET

M

arketing is an essential component of business success, but when funds are tight, it can be challenging to decide how to spend marketing dollars effectively. Thankfully, there are many ways to increase brand awareness without spending too much — or even spending nothing at all. Here are just three ideas to get you started.

Google My Business With 3.5 billion searches a day, Google is your company’s best friend. With Google My Business (or GMB) listings, you can share important information about your business that will compel users to visit your website, call your store, make an appointment and more.

If you’re not already familiar with GMB, the listing appears in a box on the right side of the screen when a user searches for a business. Typically, the GMB listing includes customer reviews, photos and basic attributes such as your hours of business, services, address, phone number and website URL. You can also promote special offers, incentives and events. Because GMB listings can get more than quadruple as many impressions as your website, this should be one of your top priorities as a marketer. And perhaps the best part?

The basic GMB listing is totally free.

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David Ralls Marketing

Let’s get social Social media is a powerful tool.

With the use of ads, targeted posts, messaging and hashtags, you can reach your target audience with just a few clicks. Challenge yourself by sharing the story of why you started your business or post educational content surrounding your product. Social media is also a platform on which people like to interact, so consider utilizing the different question, poll and quiz features that can make people feel like they have a more personal relationship with your brand. Like GMB posts, it is totally free for you to share content on any social platform. If you decide to deploy social media ads, though, there will be associated costs.

Make your website work for you Before you’ve prioritized (and optimized) your GMB listing or started sharing compelling content on social channels, you need to make sure your website is a well-oiled machine because that’s where you will be directing people to in order to learn more about you and ideally make a purchase. One important component of a converting website is SEO, or search engine optimization. You want to make sure that users who perform a search online will be directed to your website. Blogs are a great way to drive traffic to your website when they are tied to topics or keywords that users are searching for. In addition, blogs can be repurposed for media opportunities and social media content. A reputable advertising agency can help you determine the best strategy for optimal website performance.

However you decide to share your company’s story, it’s important you are truly connecting with consumers. Once they trust and believe in your brand, they are much more likely to be brand advocates and recommend you to others.

David Ralls is the president of Commit Agency, a brand definition, consumer experience and influence agency that believes moments make brands. When brands deliver memorable experiences that truly connect with consumers, conversations take place that in turn amplify brands’ influence.

DINING

FRENCH REVOLUTION FRANCINE brings a new take on classic French Mediterranean cuisine to Scottsdale

By MICHAEL GOSSIE

F

RANCINE is the perfect restaurant.

And here’s why.

Restaurant reviewers and writers are often treated to some of the most creative and delicious culinary concepts imaginable.

As is the case with most restaurants, if you try multiple dishes — even if most of them knock it out of the park in the deliciousness department — at least one of them is bound to be underwhelming.

And THAT’S what sets FRANCINE apart. You could throw a dart at the menu and you’re going to experience the best meal you’ve ever had. Every meal at FRANCINE is a celebration. No exceptions.

From top to bottom, the menu is filled with amazing dish after amazing dish, all

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prepared to perfection, and all making you want to jump on Instagram and sing the praises of FRANCINE’s French-inspired Mediterranean cuisine.

What makes FRANCINE even more memorable is the plant-filled dining room that features floor-to-ceiling windows, unique artwork, a rustic fireplace, a marble bar, and it all sits within the luxury wing of Scottsdale Fashion Square. So not only is the food perfect, the people-watching is next-level, too.

FRANCINE was created by well-known and respected restauranteur Laurent Halasz, who was raised in the South of France amidst the bounty of simple and soulful cuisine. FRANCINE is a spirited and loving homage to Halasz’s days spent

in the sun and amongst gatherings and around beautiful meals hosted by his mother, Francine Halasz.

“Everything on my mother’s table was fresh, seasonal, and full of flavor,” says Halasz, “and that is exactly what FRANCINE offers our guests.”

Some of the most popular dishes at FRANCINE include the zucchini carpaccio, steak tartar, Salad Nicoise, ratatouille tart, poulet roti, mushroom and taleggio pizza, bone marrow pasta, and seared duck a la provencal.

If you’re looking for specifics to guide you on your first visit to FRANCINE, here are a few cannot-miss dishes.

• Start with the crispy calamari ($18) with zucchini and lemon aoili, which will be the best take on calamari you’ve ever had; or the grilled octopus ($24) with romesco, chorizo verde, and frisee.

• The salmon carpaccio ($22) with avocado, pine nut and dill, paired with Ayvalik olive oil from Turkey and a 2018 Albert Bichot Macon Villages wine, personifies the brilliance of FRANCINE’s menu.

• Another popular dish to discover is the Mediterranean Branzino ($35) with tomato sauce vierge and panisse paired with Aguilar Hojiblanca olive oil from Spain and a 2018 Vermentino di Sardegna, Pala ‘I Fiori’ wine.

• An amazing take on French classics are the steak frites with shallot-tarragon bernaise and fine herbs ($36) and the L’Agneu ($44) — rack of lamb, gnocchi, cauliflower and pine nuts pesto.

Halasz opened FRANCINE in the midst of the global pandemic and it’s a testament to its culinary excellence that the restaurant has already become the goto place for discerning Valley foodies who revel in FRANCINE’s new take on classic French Mediterranean cuisine.

Vive la France, especially when it comes to FRANCINE in Scottsdale.

FRANCINE Restaurant LOCATION: Located in the luxury wing at Scottsdale Fashion Square at 4710 N. Goldwater Blvd., Scottsdale Reservations: 480-690-6180 Online: francinerestaurant.com

3603 East Indian School Road, Suite A, Phoenix S.E. Corner of 36th St. & Indian School in the Gaslight Square Brunch Sat & Sun 9am - 3pm (Brunch Drink Specials) Dinner Wed - Fri 4pm - 9pm • Closed Mon & Tues

602.626.5050 | themarketbyjennifers.com 602.579.5327 | jenniferscatering.com

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Luke Air Force Base celebrates its 80th anniversary with an eye on growth and increasing its economic impact

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LUKE AIR FORCE BASE 80TH ANNIVERSARY

PARTNERS IN TIME

By ERIN THORBURN

H

is educational credentials and military assignments are as extensive as they are diverse. Luke Air Force Base Brig. Gen. Gregory Kreuder, commander of the 56th Fighter Wing holds several master’s degrees, has received seven major awards and decorations, and has served in posts across the globe — from South Korea to Iraq, and nearly everywhere in between. His experience, dedication and commitment help reflect what makes Luke AFB a local economic driver, a national security stronghold and revered fixture of the West Valley — and state.

In honor and celebration of Luke AFBs’ with their local communities to ensure our 80th anniversary, Az Business and Brig. Gen. airmen and families are welcome and their Kreuder discuss what makes the base an mission can continue over the long term. asset to the West Valley and Greater Phoenix.

Luke is right in the middle of a rapidlyexpanding area of the West Valley, yet has Az Business: What is unique about Luke maintained an incredibly strong relationship AFB and its place within the West Valley? with its community. In fact, it’s the best Brig. Gen. Gregory Kreuder: I am grateful relationship I have seen in my military career. the Air Force has given me opportunities This is primarily due to the positive and to serve throughout the U.S. and in several proactive engagement of our local elected locations in the Far East, Europe and officials, city staff, civic leaders and others the Middle East. Wherever they are in that see the value of Luke Air Force Base the world, our air bases must build and and its mission to train the world’s greatest maintain strong, positive relationships fighter pilots and combat-ready airmen.

80 YEARS OF HISTORY 1918: During an 18-day period in which he flew only eight days, 2nd Lt. Frank Luke, Jr., a Phoenix native, destroys 18 enemy aircraft, becoming the first aviator awarded the Medal of Honor.

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1941: In March, Del Webb Construction Company breaks ground on Litchfield Park Air Base. In June, the base is renamed Luke Field for 2nd Lt Frank Luke, Jr.

1941

1945: During World War II, Luke Field was the largest fighter training base in the Army Air Forces, graduating more than 12,000 fighter pilots and earning the nickname, “Home of the Fighter Pilot.”

1945

Here’s why Luke Air Force Base’s brigadier general says the 80-year relationship between the military facility and the surrounding communities is something special Brig. Gen. Gregory Kreuder

AB: In addition to a fifth squadron, how will the newly redesigned course for F-16 Fighting Falcon crew chiefs and the 372nd Training Squadron, Detachment 12, add to the existing role Luke AFB plays in producing combat-ready pilots and crew chiefs?

GK: The 372nd TRS, Det. 12, plays a critical role in producing combat-ready crew chiefs at Luke AFB. In July 2020, the Air Force introduced a newly redesigned course for F-16 Fighting Falcon crew chiefs going through technical training called Right Time Training (RTT).

After completing technical training at Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas, F-16 crew chiefs will now proceed directly to their first duty station to attend RTT with the 372nd Training Squadron, Detachment 12, which saves the Air Force money by cutting travel to additional duty stations.

The six-week F-16 Right Time Training course allows airmen to learn basic flightline maintenance operations. The course features intensive instructor-led, hands-on training to familiarize the airmen with location-specific maintenance operations. With a small class size of up to

1951: In response to need for fighter aircrews generated by Korean

1951 Conflict, Luke is removed from the inactive list and designated as

Luke Air Force Base, part of the Air Training Command (ATC) under the reorganized United States Air Force.

1953

1957

1953: The 3600th Air Demonstration Team is officially established at Luke and is known as the United States Air Force Thunderbirds. The squadron operated F-84G Thunderjets, as the aircraft had to be able to show how good training made a typical aircraft easy to handle.

five students, instructors can offer students a more personal experience. Smaller class sizes lead to better, faster and tailored training to the aircraft they are working on.

AB: How is Luke AFB an asset to the local community and the state?

GK: Luke’s total economic impact in the State of Arizona is about $2.4 billion annually. So, we clearly have a positive economic impact. But, I think there’s something else that makes Luke an asset to our surrounding communities and Arizona.

Our airmen have all sworn to defend

1957: Luke AFB joins the supersonic age when the F-100 Super Sabre is assigned to the installation.

1958: The base was transferred from Air Training Command to Tactical Air Command.

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LUKE AIR FORCE BASE 80TH ANNIVERSARY

the Constitution of the United States and decided to be a part of something larger than themselves. All the feedback we receive shows our local communities are proud to have Luke airmen and their families living amongst them throughout the West Valley.

Our family members are equally valuable to the community. They not only provide our Airmen the emotional and mental support required to execute the mission, but many also provide financial stability for their family in the form of employment outside the base. I am confident you will find our military spouses and dependents bring the same motivation, determination and skill to their civilian workplace as our airmen do at Luke. This has proven to be an invaluable asset to businesses throughout the West Valley and Arizona as a whole.

AB: Aside from its impressive eight decades of longevity, what makes Luke AFB and its 80th Anniversary significant?

GK: It’s rare to find a long-standing, strong partnership of 80 years nowadays.

The importance of our surrounding community is indescribable and immeasurable. The support is not only felt by our Airmen, but is also tangible in every interaction we have with the citizens of the West Valley.

For example, the city of Glendale has shown its commitment to our military

1964: Luke continues its tradition of providing fighter training for allied nations when an F-104 program for German air force pilots and an F-5 program for pilots from other nations begins.

members and the Luke AFB mission time and time again. One way we see this partnership directly is the major consideration in ensuring that any economic development surrounding the base is compatible with Luke’s mission.

That partnership extends beyond our host city Glendale to surrounding communities and stakeholders, as can be seen in the Luke AFB Targeted Growth Management Plan.

Focusing on a study area based on a 20-minute drive from the base, the Plan looks at four key areas: education, workforce and economic development, housing and transportation and outlines specific steps all stakeholders can take to support Luke and its service members.

Luke is a major economic engine for the entire West Valley, allowing cities to attract businesses that can play a role in the direct supply chain to the base and those that cater to service members and their families.

We also attract businesses with our highlytrained workforce, which includes service members who have separated from the military.

Luke is a unique asset for economic development. Recently, the base hosted corporate officials from Red Bull’s home office in Austria. This “meet-the-neighbor” day was a chance for base leadership and corporate partners to learn more about each other and discover possible

1971

partnerships in the community.

Luke AFB values the partnership with Glendale and the entire West Valley and the opportunity to grow together.

AB: What gives you pride about being the leader of Luke AFB? GK: Thanks to the outstanding relationship we enjoy with the West Valley and the State of Arizona, Luke Air Force Base and its mission will continue to grow over the next decade. We are looking for ways to further integrate with our local community and make it even easier for our airmen to get on- and off-base quickly to get to local businesses and enjoy all the benefits of living in the West Valley.

Regarding our mission, we are innovating at all levels at Luke and on the Barry M. Goldwater Military Training Range in Southern Arizona, as we find better ways to train the next generation of fighter pilots and ensure our airmen remain combat-ready and can defend our Nation far into the future. However, although we have the most advanced aircraft and technology in the world right here at Luke, it is our airmen that remain our greatest weapon and asymmetric advantage over any adversary. I am incredibly grateful for the outstanding support Luke and our airmen receive from our local communities and the State of Arizona.

1974: The first of the “Superfighters,” the F-15 Eagle, is assigned to the base.

1971: The base receives the F-4C Phantom II and assumes its role as the main provider of fighter pilots for Tactical Air Command and fighter forces worldwide.

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1974

1982

1982: The F-16 Fighting Falcon comes to Luke and fighter pilots begin training in the new F-16 aircraft Feb. 2, 1983.

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LUKE AIR FORCE BASE 80TH ANNIVERSARY

SOARING ECONOMY The influence of Luke Air Force Base goes far beyond its multi-billion-dollar economic impact

By ERIN THORBURN

M

6,900 active duty and reserve airmen, as well as civilian employees. In 2012, the Department of Defense (DoD) designated Luke AFB as the training home of 144 new F-35A Lightning II fighter jets. According to a recent report by the Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG), this mission expansion will cause population on the base to grow from 16,663 to nearly 24,000 people by 2026. Luke’s population is not only a key local and state economic driver, but it also helps support valuable employment opportunities and entices businesses near and far to relocate to Arizona.

any people living in the West Valley have their ears well-attuned to the rumblings of F-16s and F-35s. Sometimes, you can see their fly-bys, too, from different Valley vantage points.

For those fortunate enough to hear and/or spot Luke Air Force Base aircraft, it leaves quite an impact. As Luke AFB celebrates its 80th anniversary, the military base continues to evolve and impact the Greater Phoenix region in more ways than ever, particularly by fueling a healthy economy — with even greater economic impact expected in the years to come. And that’s saying a lot since Luke AFB already boasts and annual economic impact of $2.4 billion — the equivalent of hosting five Super Bowls each year (pre-pandemic).

In addition to housing some of the nation’s most prized fighter jets, Luke Air Force Base is home to upwards of

1987

1991: A decision to make Luke AFB the service’s primary F-16 training base leads to the reassignment of the F-15 and four years later, in 1995, the F-15E is reassigned.

1987: The reserve function at Luke changes when the 302nd Special Operations Squadron deactivates its helicopter function and the 944th Tactical Fighter Group is activated to fly the F-16C/D. 80

Basic training (in Luke’s economic impact) According to the same MAG report, by 2026, defense spending at Luke AFB will result in 13,900 jobs, $820 million in compensation and a $1.5 billion increase in gross regional product to the study

AB | March - April 2021

1996

1994: The first female fighter pilot in USAF history, 1st Lt Jeannie M. Flynn, completes F-15E basic course with the 555th Fighter Squadron.

1991

1994

area. In turn, this will generate nearly $4 billion that will be added into the region’s economy, according to Chris Camacho, president and CEO of the Greater Phoenix Economic Council (GPEC).

“Luke Air Force Base has — and will continue to be — a significant economic driver for not only the West Valley and Greater Phoenix, but Arizona as a whole,” Camacho says. “The ramp-up of the F-35 program will bring 2,324 new personnel to the base, along with 4,717 dependents.”

With this exponential growth, also comes direct spending by the Air Force, including major defense contractors such as Lockheed Martin and Boeing — both with facilities in the West Valley — and from local businesses that provide support services.

“According to MAG’s Targeted Management Growth Plan (TGMP),” Camacho says, “at full buildout of the F-35

1994: After 24 years at Luke, the 58th Fighter Wing is replaced when the 56th Fighter Wing, one of the most highly decorated units in USAF history, is reassigned from scheduled-to-close MacDill AFB, Florida, to Luke AFB.

1996: President Bill Clinton visits Luke, the first presidential visitor since President Gerald Ford visited the base in 1974.

7,041

LUKE AFB MISSION EXPANSION

TOTAL POPULATON INCREASE

16,663

EXISTING BASE POPULATION

144 NEW

F35A LIGHTNING II AIRCRAFT

program, six percent of the study area’s labor force will be related to the defense industry. And, five percent of Arizona’s zip codes have a higher concentration of defense contracts than the national average, with one zip code in the study area being 32 percent higher.”

“Additionally,” adds Glendale Mayor Jerry Weiers, “base personnel contribute to the local economy by spending money on housing, education, food, cars, entertainment and much more. That support of local businesses helps the West Valley specifically, and the entire state, to draw and attract even more employers to Arizona.”

To help bolster further economic development, the West Valley received a growth planning grant from the federal government, managed by MAG, working with local stakeholders. The plan focuses on four targeted areas: housing and

2000

2,324

4,717

NEW PERSONAL

DEPENDENTS

transportation, economic development, workforce development and education.

Saluting skilled labor of Luke personnel One thing that sources for this story unanimously agree upon and stress is the significance that the addition of skilled labor from the personnel separating from Luke AFB and transitioning into the local civilian workforce. And the statistics reinforce the point.

“Annually, 600-plus personnel separate from Luke AFB,” says Sintra Hoffman, president and CEO of WESTMARC. “These separations are due to retirement or plans for next career steps. Either way, these individuals bring a minimum of four years of experience in their field.”

The careers for which Hoffman refers include engineering, finance, law, healthcare, and more. All of these

2001: Terrorist attacks in New York and Washington result in the highest level of force protection at Luke, launching 27 combat air patrol missions over Phoenix.

2000: Luke produces its 50,000th fighter training graduate since 1941 as 1st Lt. Joshua G. Padgett completes the basic course with the 62nd Fighter Squadron.

2001

2011: It is announced that the F-35 Lightning II will replace the F-16 as the primary training aircraft at Luke.

2011

23,704

TOTAL BASE POPULATION BY 2026

professions directly align with the targeted industries in the West Valley Pipeline Workforce strategy.

Approximately 90 percent of the defenserelated jobs created in the region by the projected expansion of the Luke Air Force Base will be in Glendale, Surprise, Goodyear and Avondale, according to the Maricopa Association of Governments.

“We’re finding many in-demand jobs seek employees with a skill set that is transferable from military positions,” Camacho says. “There are many possibilities because of the evolving ecosystem of job opportunities in Greater Phoenix. Pipeline AZ (pipelineaz.com) has skills-matching technology and virtual hiring fairs that pair incoming job seekers to real-time openings and coaches them through the transition. This includes dedicated tools for the military to help lattice their skills

2013: The Air Force announces that Luke AFB will house a total of 144 F-35A Lightning IIs.

2013

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LUKE AIR FORCE BASE 80TH ANNIVERSARY projected to be available to qualifying military families (Rank E-5 and above). The report explains that nearby West Valley homes are also priced appropriately for military personnel of all ranks (and their partners and families).

Furthermore, the TGMP states that, “Vacant residential units contribute to the bulk of housing supply, annually Chris Camacho Sintra Hoffman Eric Orsborn Jerry Weiers contributing an average 83 percent of the overall housing supply in the study area.” to in-demand jobs and find new career Wingman perks and privileges “Housing is more affordable than other opportunities that might not have been For as much money as Luke AFB pumps parts of Maricopa County,” Hoffman says. originally thought of.” into the economy and promotes economic “The West Valley is also rich with education Weiers, who has found great privilege development (directly and indirectly), the in working with active duty service local landscape does its part to provide a place opportunities, ranging from high-performing members as well as veterans, highlights for military families to thrive (whether active, K-12 school districts to community college and university options.” another program that helps link separated veteran or separating family members).

“Educational opportunities range from personnel from Luke.

“Buckeye and the West Valley provide the community college level to post-graduate “One of the most exciting things many benefits to former active Luke AFB studies, with Arizona State University, happening not only at Luke but throughout personnel,” says Eric Orsborn, mayor of the Department of Defense is the ‘Skill Buckeye. “Many prefer to remain living close University of Arizona, Grand Canyon University and Midwestern University, as Bridge’ program,” he says. to the military facility for access to Phoenix examples,” Weiers adds. “The West Valley is Under Sky Bridge, military members and medical services. Buckeye provides these benefits, as well as a relatively low cost also home to an array of tech schools, including who are separating from service, may Universal Technical Institute, proving more of living, affordable housing, recreational leave active duty 180 days in advance to post-service training opportunities.” opportunities and a great quality of life.

In participate in internship programs with Beyond the job opportunities, housing, addition to these offerings, Greater Phoenix, prospective employers. These service education and other perks available to Luke the West Valley and specifically Buckeye members continue to be paid by the personnel and their families, are a host of offer a wonderful place to raise a family and military as part of the program, as they entertainment, recreation, sports and other provide endless opportunities for career transition to new careers. diversions. And, as the base continues to growth and investment into one of the In addition to the population of Luke’s grow and the economy prospers, even more fastest-growing regions in the United States.” military personnel who remain in the Valley offerings for military personnel and their And homes will be needed. Luke’s to enter the civilian workforce, their family families are likely to come to fruition. projected growth — in the next six years members are also contributing — and “I remember going out to Luke Air Force alone — will necessitate 1,713 housing units. adding value — to the local labor market.

Base as a young boy,” Weiers says. “I was And, most — 90 percent — of Luke AFB “Family members possess skills and mesmerized by the aircraft and the entire credentials that add to our local workforce, personnel prefer to live off base.

According to the Luke Air Force Base operation, and I am extremely proud that it thus positioning this region to capture Targeted Growth Management Plan released has grown into the world’s largest Air Force companies seeking to locate in the Phoenix in June 2020, ample off-base housing is base right here in Glendale.” metro area,” Hoffman says.

2015

2015: Luke Air Force Base ushers in a new era as it officially changes its mission to include training for F-35 Lightning II fighter jets.

2020: Luke Air Force base honors Arizona’s front line coronavirus workers with an impressive 50-minute flyover that covers the Valley.

2016

2016: Luke Air Force Base celebrates its 75th anniversary by presenting the “75 Years of Airpower” airshow, which attracts more than 150,000 spectators.

2020: The Senate authorizes $5.3 billion for 60 F-35 Joint Strike Fighter aircraft, which means Luke AFB will build a fifth squadron.

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LUKE AIR FORCE BASE 80TH ANNIVERSARY

A LOOK AT

THE 56TH FIGHTER WING —

LUKE AIR FORCE BASE THE HISTORY: Luke Air Force Base is named for the World War I flying ace and Phoenix native Lieutenant Frank Luke Jr., the first aviator to receive the Medal of Honor. Lieutenant Luke scored 18 aerial victories, 14 against German observation balloons, before being killed at the age of 21 on Sept. 29, 1918.

MISSION: The 56th Fighter Wing’s mission is to train the world’s greatest fighter pilots and combat ready airmen. As part of Air Education and Training Command, and home to 26 squadrons with both F-16 Fighting Falcon and F-35A Lightning II aircraft, the 56th Fighter Wing is the largest fighter wing in the Air Force.

LUKE AFB ECONOMIC IMPACT

The 56th Fighter Wing includes four groups; 26 squadrons; a $200 million budget; $10 billion in F-15, F-16, and F35A aircraft; and services 102,000 medical beneficiaries.

Here is Luke AFB’s economic impact on Arizona: DIRECT:

INDIRECT:

INDUCED:

$974

$761

$697

MILLION

MILLION

MILLION

TOTAL ECONOMIC IMPACT IN ARIZONA:

$2.4 BILLION

LUKE AFB PERSONNEL ACTIVE DUTY:

4,300 RESERVE:

1,300 CIVILIAN:

1,300 TRAINING CENTER Since 1941, Luke AFB has graduated more than 61,00 pilots.

105

F-35 pilots annually

188

F-16 pilots annually

79

Intel specialists annually

98

F-35 maintainers annually

39

nurses annually

8

medical lab technicians annually

16 critical care/Emergency Trauma Fellowship annually

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LEADERSHIP Wing Commander: Brig. Gen. Gregory Kreuder Background: Brig. Gen. Kreuder commissioned in 1995 as a distinguished graduate of officer training school. His fighter assignments include duties as an instructor pilot, flight examiner, weapons officer, operations officer, squadron commander, vice wing commander, and air operations center commander. He is a command pilot with more than 2,700 hours in the F-16 Fighting Falcon, including 350 combat hours.

Vice Wing Commander: Col. Luke Casper

THE JETS

Luke AFB trains 75% of the world’s F-35 pilots.

F-35A Lightning II: Home to 94 F-35s F-16 Fighting Falcon: Home to 77 F-16s

Background: Col. Casper earned his commission from the United States Air Force Academy in 2001 with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering. He has flown the F-16 world-wide to include sorties in defense of the Republic of Korea and combat missions in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He has served as squadron commander and combatant command division chief.

Command Chief: Chief Master Sgt. Daniel Weimer Background: Chief Weimer entered the Air Force in March of 1993 and began his career as a weapons systems apprentice on AC-130 Gunships in August of 1993. In 1996, he cross trained as an MH-53 helicopter aerial gunner. After two tours in the MH53, Chief Weimer spent six years as a combat aviation advisor, training foreign militaries in helicopter operations.

ADDITIONAL COMMAND:

The 56th Fighter Wing oversees the Gila Bend Air Force Auxiliary Field and is steward of the 1.7 million-acre Barry M. Goldwater Military Training Range.

PARTNERS IN TRAINING

UNITED STATES

NORWAY

NETHERLANDS

ITALY

SINGAPORE

AUSTRALIA

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LUKE AIR FORCE BASE 80TH ANNIVERSARY

COURSE FOR

THE FUTURE Redesigned training for F-16 Fighting Falcon helps Luke AFB produce combat-ready crew chiefs

By ERIN THORBURN

I

n July 2020, the U.S. Air Force introduced a newly redesigned course for F-16 Fighting Falcon crew chiefs going through technical training at Luke Air Force Base. The 372nd Training Squadron, Detachment 12, plays a critical role in producing combat-ready crew chiefs at Luke Air Force Base by providing Right Time Training (RTT).

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TOP GUNS: Staff Sgt. Darion

Hubbard (far left), 372nd Training Squadron F-16 Fighting Falcon crew chief instructor, and his F-16 Right Time Training class at Luke Air Force Base. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Brooke Moeder)

The RTT class is a new initiative to provide small group, instructor-led hands-on training for F-16 crew chiefs after they compete technical training.

“Before RTT, new airmen traveled to Holloman AFB for their hands-on training first, then to their permanent duty station where they lost time for in-processing and specific airframe training,” says Brig. Gen. Gregory Kreuder. “This led to a gap in time performing their new jobs. Now, within 45 days of in-processing into their unit, they go to RTT then right back to their units.”

According to Kreuder, upon completion of RTT, airmen from Detachment 12 (the largest training detachment in the Air Force), are ready to “hit the ground running.”

Essentially, they are fully equipped and able to operate on the flight line and generate sorties daily.

Luke AFB Staff Sergeant Darion Hubbard, F-16 FTD Instructor 372 TRS/Detachment 12, provides further insight into the benefits and nuances of the new redesigned program.

Az Business: How does the newly redesigned course for F-16 Fighting Falcon crew chiefs going through technical training and the 372nd Training Squadron, Detachment 12, play a critical role in producing combat-ready crew chiefs?

Staff Sergeant Darion Hubbard: This course was redesigned in an effort to ensure that new F-16 crew chiefs were more effective for mission roles assigned to their respective units upon the completion of this course. Prior to RTT, crew chiefs went through a course known as HOT (Hands-on Training)

Luke AFB Staff Sergeant Darion Hubbard that included a few objectives that were unnecessary. And, new crew chiefs weren’t going to be performing these tasks when they would first arrive to their flight line units.

In the redesigned RTT course, these objectives were removed and other objectives were reviewed and improved in the rewrite and validation process of the RTT course. RTT also heavily reduces a significant amount of lost time for in-processing and other tasks associated with gaining a new airman in a unit.

AB: What makes Luke AFB unique and well-positioned for these types of training programs?

DH: Luke has been home to training both enlisted airmen, officers and partner nations for decades and has always been known as a highly-valued training hub. At Luke, the aviation community focuses on providing training to airmen and aviators while avoiding the uncertainty of weather conditions that would disrupt the training process that’s critical to providing combat-ready airmen.

Although many other bases will endure these stressors while

simultaneously executing training, the environment at Luke is set perfectly for continuously improved training programs to be exercised and validated in the most effective way possible. This is how and why the first RTT class taught at Luke was critical to the course validation process and was one of the first few taught worldwide for a program that would affect all U.S. F-16 units.

The Detachment 12 at Luke AFB has, through this process, also become a valued contributor in setting the new standard for new F-16 crew chiefs Air Force wide.

AB: The new process saves the Air Force money by cutting an additional duty station from the process and allowing the airmen to focus on flight line operations.

Can you explain how and why this is beneficial?

DH: In the HOT training process, airmen would complete their instructional training at Sheppard AFB, Texas, then perform temporary duty at Holloman AFB, before being assigned and transferred to their designated duty station. With the cost of traveling to Holloman and incurring daily costs for the span of a month or so, then traveling to their next duty station being cut out, the Air Force ultimately will reduce the overall cost put into producing combat-ready crew chiefs.

Airmen will now depart Sheppard AFB, travel directly to their first duty station, and begin the RTT course after their completion of initial maintenance orientation. After airmen complete the six week RTT course, they will then be returned to their respective units with no lost time in between training. This means that the newly gained knowledge is more effectively retained due to the continuation of performing their duties.

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2021

ALL ROADS LEAD EAST

The economic momentum of the PHX East Valley hasn’t been slowed by the pandemic as it continues to attract and grow innovative companies

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PHX EAST VALLEY PARTNERSHIP

GROWING

AND GLOWING

The economic momentum of the PHX East Valley hasn’t been dimmed by the pandemic as it continues to attract innovative companies

By ERIN THORBURN

T

he time just after sunrise and before sunset is referred to as the “golden hour.” Its name derives from the brilliant shadows and colors that appear just as night comes and right as darkness disappears. Light always illuminates the landscape, sometimes in magnificent ways — even after the darker moments. You could say that PHX East Valley is now in one of its more brilliant golden hours. Despite the darkness surrounding the pandemic, the East Valley region continues to grow, expand, and celebrate economic success.

From a new, 101,000-square-foot CVS Health office in Chandler to the Boeing Company’s manufacturing of the Apache Longbow helicopter in Mesa (now employing more than 4,500 people) and the arrival of Northrop Grumman’s Galaxy 30 (G-30) spacecraft and 633,000-square-foot Launch Vehicles Division Headquarters in Chandler, PHX East Valley’s cities, towns and Native American communities are shining brighter than ever.

This little light of mine, why (now) let it shine?

What is it that makes this the time and space for economic development to flourish throughout the PHX East Valley — even amidst a global pandemic?

“It’s due to the fact that the region’s economy has diversified away from historical growth areas that led to boom and bust cycles,” says Micah Miranda, economic development director for the City of Chandler, “to an economy that produces goods and services for export.”

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Additionally, according to William J. Jabjiniak, economic development director for the City of Mesa, it’s also because of a robust workforce, infrastructure and available land.

“PHX East Valley communities, especially Mesa, have invested in all forms of infrastructure in addition to having the right regulatory and tax environment to attract a wide variety of companies,” Jabjiniak says. “With substantial population growth already occurring and having a reasonable cost of living, these key drivers will allow us to be one of those places that not only survive the pandemic, but thrive because of it.”

Statistically, the East Valley boasts 9,514,480 square feet of current development and approximately 31,874,178 square feet of shovel-ready property, with 4.9 percent corporate income tax and 4.5 percent individual income tax.

Major growth “We have a positive outlook for 2021 as Arizona ranked in the top three fastest-growing states, and Maricopa County was named the top U.S. county in attracting talent,” Jabjiniak says.

“Arizona gained an estimated 129,558 people between July 1, 2019, and July 1, 2020, according to the data released December 22 from the U.S. Census Bureau. These indicators prove that we will continue to see an influx of capital and growth.”

PHX East Valley not only continues to attract talent, but also has an existing skilled labor pool ready to feed a diverse and comprehensive portfolio of industries. Technology, aviation,

aerospace and defense, autonomous vehicles, advanced manufacturing, tourism, financial services, higher education, biosciences and healthcare — as major industries in the PHX East Valley — continue to prosper and expand because of a solid, reliable talent base.

“We expect industrial — both manufacturing and logistics — life sciences, cold storage, in addition to data centers, to continue to surge in the Phoenix-Mesa metropolitan area,” Jabjiniak says.

“Mesa has evolved into a cutting-edge hub of innovation and home to some of the most forward-thinking industries, such as medical devices and aerospace and defense. We expect to continue to attract and grow companies like Dexcom that currently employ more than 1,000 in high-quality jobs.”

Additionally, aerospace and defense and aviation are growing at exponential rates, with Northrop Grumman’s recent investment and expansion throughout Greater Phoenix, Able Aerospace’s continued growth, as well as Boeing’s construction of a new onestory, 155,000 square-foot facility on its Mesa campus.

Fanning the flame Of course, the ongoing breadth of economic development in and of itself is attracting innovative companies to PHX East Valley.

“Clarivate has doubled in size in the last 12 months,” says Mike Morhardt, executive vice president of commercial performance and operations for Clarivate. “We wanted the ability to be able to invest in a location that would grow with us. And Chandler delivered on that. We also looked at where other companies were going and what types of organizations were in that area.”

And for Dexcom, another company that relocated to the PHX East Valley (from San Diego), geography and logistics added to the reasons for planting a manufacturing facility in Mesa.

“Dexcom was attracted to the Phoenix area, and specifically Mesa, because of the business attractiveness of the state, the city, and the regional area, and the geographical closeness to San Diego,” says Jim Kasselmann, senior director and general manager of Dexcom. “It was advantageous to have it close to San Diego, because of all of the support that’s available there.”

Talent pool But, by-and-large it’s the talent for which companies like Clarivate and Dexcom were lured to the PHX East Valley.

“Obviously, we were looking for talent — a population of talent — and that talent primarily aligned to sales, inside sales, customer service, quote to cash, accounts receivable, a lot of different functions,” Morhardt says. “We were also looking for that talent to have a certain level of education, and in some cases, language skills.”

For companies like Clarivate, a global leader in insight and analytics to accelerate innovation, scientific and academic research are a significant aspect of the business. Similarly, Dexcom, a continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) system that AB | March - April 2021 93

PHX EAST VALLEY PARTNERSHIP

JIM BLETZER

WILLIAM J. JABJINIAK

JIM KASSELMANN

eliminates the need for finger sticks, also benefits from close proximity to research-based higher education resources.

“We are well connected with Arizona State University’s biomedical engineering school,” Kasselmann says. “We had interns from there that we have hired right out of the university as engineers. One of the other aspects of ASU that I’m definitely interested in pursuing through our engineering staff here is with the polytechnic group.”

In addition to ASU and the Polytechnic Campus, PHX East Valley has the Maricopa Community College District with 10 individually accredited colleges and an annual student population of upwards of 200,000.

Of course, there is even more to attract companies and talent

MICAH MIRANDA

MIKE MORHARDT

to the warm glow of a growing PHX East Valley.

“Access to high-quality K- 20 education opportunities, a talented workforce and spirit of cooperation between neighboring communities are but a few attributes that make the East Valley attractive,” Miranda says.

“Arizona knows how to do hospitality and I think the East Valley is very welcoming,” adds Jabjiniak. “It is not as ‘institutional’ as communities in the East. For being the 35th largest city in the country, it is easier to get access to city-elected officials, state-elected officials, and C-level executives. People work together to get things done as there is a collaborative spirit here that I think is genuinely different from other more established markets.”

RELOCATIONS AND EXPANSIONS From aerospace and defense to healthcare and entertainment, innovative businesses are flocking to PHX East Valley cities. Just what are the secret weapons that are bringing new and expanding companies, along with thousands of jobs, to the region? Jim Bletzer, senior vice president of sales at Bright Health Plan, says it’s the cultural significance, diverse talent pool and quality of life.

Other companies tout the region’s vast educational resources, transportation system and municipal, business and community leaders who work together for a common goal. For whatever their reasons, here are some of the recent and notable PHX East Valley relocations and expansions

// Able Aerospace, Mesa

// Dexcom, Mesa

// M OOG Space and Defense, Gilbert

// Adhere Health, Gilbert

// Dignity Health, Chandler

// Morsch Machine, Chandler

// Amazon, Chandler, Mesa, Tempe

// Dignity Health/Kindred Healthcare, Gilbert

// N orthrop Grumman, Chandler, Gilbert

// ArmorWorks, Chandler

// D ignity Health/Phoenix Children’s Hospital, Gilbert

// Offerpad, Chandler

// AT&T, Mesa

// Door Dash, Tempe

// Open Door, Tempe

// Banner Ocotillo Medical Center, Chandler

// Fountain Hills Medical Center, Fountain Hills

// Park University, Gilbert

// B D Peripheral Intervention, Tempe

// Gila River Hotels and Casinos, Gila River

// Root Insurance, Chandler

// Bright Health Plan, Tempe

// Silicon Valley Bank, Tempe

// CarMax, Tempe

// ( HEROS) Helicopter Engine Repair and Overhaul Service, Chandler

// CAVU Aerospace, Mesa

// Insight, Chandler

// T oyota Financial Services, Chandler

// Clarivate Analytics, Chandler

// Isola, Chandler

// Urbix Resources, Mesa

// Commercial Metals Company, Mesa

// JP Morgan Chase, Tempe

// WageWorks, Mesa

// CVS Health, Chandler

// Marwest Enterprises, Mesa

// Zovio, Chandler

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// T imes Microwave Systems, Mesa

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PHX EAST VALLEY PARTNERSHIP

LIFT OFF! Northrop Grumman fuels the PHX East Valley aerospace, defense and aviation sectors, and brings job opportunities and economic growth

TAKING OFF: In December,

Northrop Grumman in Chandler was awarded a production contract for 19 GQM-163A “Coyote” supersonic sea-skimming target (SSST) vehicles.

The $57 million award could be worth up to $250 million with options for an additional 84 target vehicles. (Photo courtesy of Northrop Grumman)

By ERIN THORBURN

T

o say the PHX East Valley is the proverbial “mothership” of aviation, defense and aerospace is an understatement.

Collectively, the aerospace and defense industries account for 9,300 employment opportunities — most of which are located in Chandler, Gilbert and Mesa. Additionally, the East Valley is ranked No. 1 for aerospace manufacturing attractiveness, No. 2 for largest employment in space and defense manufacturing, and No. 4 for largest employment in aviation and aerospace manufacturing.

Dotting the PHX East Valley, are approximately 50 aviation, defense and aerospace companies. Among an impressive A-to-W list (starting with Able Aerospace and ending with Wiremasters) is Boeing, Cessna, KinetX, Inc., Lockheed Martin, and … one of the motherships — Northrop Grumman, which is making waves for its ongoing investment and expansion in the region.

Expanding its satellite engineering and manufacturing facility in Gilbert, Northrop Grumman’s expansion will double the production capacity of high-quality space hardware and add

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approximately 200 jobs. This comes on the heels of the opening of Northrop Grumman’s 633,000-square-foot Launch Vehicles Division headquarters in Chandler. The company also operates an Armament Systems operation in Mesa.

As it continues to grow, Northrop Grumman is solving some of the toughest problems in space, aeronautics, defense and cyberspace for domestic and international customers, while also making a positive and measurable impact in the PHX East Valley and the state.

Space, land, air cyber and sea pioneers In addition to being recognized for designing, developing and manufacturing some of the world’s most advanced, sophisticated and state-of-the-art spacecraft, Northrop Grumman also innovates and curates in the areas of air, cyber, land, and sea — producing battlefield combat vehicles, submarine systems, advanced electronic warfare and more.

“The expansion of our manufacturing operations in Gilbert

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PHX EAST VALLEY PARTNERSHIP has allowed us to meet increased customer demand for highquality, flight-proven satellites, including several sciences and environmental spacecraft for NASA and other domestic customers,” says Scott Lehr, vice president and general manager for Northrop Grumman’s Launch and Missile Defense Systems Space Sector.

“In Chandler,” Lehr adds, “Northrop Grumman manufactures its Antares rocket, which has been used to send vital supplies to the astronauts on the International Space Station aboard the company’s Cygnus spacecraft. We also support our nation’s missile defense programs by developing, manufacturing and providing launch services for several target programs.”

While Northrop Grumman goes to work tackling the complex needs of aeronautics, defense and cyberspace, the company also has a significant economic impact within the PHX East Valley (and beyond).

“Northrop Grumman’s large presence in the East Valley provides many benefits to Arizona’s communities and the state, specifically attracting a highly-educated workforce and increasing the median household income — which in Gilbert is $98,963, as of 2020,” says Brigette Peterson, mayor of Gilbert. “With an increase in expendable income, the East Valley and Arizona reap the benefits that Northrop Grumman employees continuously inject into the economy.”

According to Lehr, Northrop Grumman employs more than 3,000 people across the state of Arizona — and that number is growing).

“We currently have more than 100 active, open positions in Arizona,” Lehr says. “From entry-level technicians to engineers and people with financial skills. We also seek dozens of secret and top-secret cleared systems, electrical and software engineers for a variety of programs across the state.”

Talent and give and take So what is it exactly, that makes the PHX East Valley perfectly positioned to house and grow aerospace dynamos such as Northrop Grumman (aside from a rich history in cultivating the aviation, defense, aerospace industries)?

“A major contributing factor is the highly educated talent pool from higher education institutions and nationally recognized K-12 school districts that support a strong STEM-focused talent pipeline,” Peterson says. “44.1 percent of Gilbert residents hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, which outpaces the national average of 33.1 percent. Gilbert is home to two higher education institutions, Park University and the University of Arizona, and is located close to Arizona State University’s Polytechnic campus and Chandler-Gilbert Community College.”

Additionally, Peterson points out that within a 30-minute commute of Gilbert, approximately 70 percent of the Phoenix Metropolitan area’s high-tech workforce can be accessed — all of which is pivotal in providing talent to propel advancements in aerospace, aviation and defense.

And, while the PHX East Valley supplies a steady flow of skilled labor for companies like Northrop Grumman, they, in turn, reinvest into the region (in more ways than one).

“Northrop Grumman’s continued investment in Gilbert and the East Valley supports the continued growth of high-wage STEM occupations in a variety of industries,” Peterson says.

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SCOTT LEHR

BRIGETTE PETERSON

Community impact In fact, according to Lehr, Northrop Grumman employees are active members of the community, and in addition to supporting STEM outreach initiatives, many volunteer their time to local charities.

“Northrop Grumman provides more than $100,000 in local donations to veteran, STEM, and environmental charitable organizations in Arizona,” Lehr says, “in addition to direct engagement and support of Chamber of Commerce and advocacy groups.”

In addition to Northrop Grumman, companies like GoDaddy, Lockheed Martin, Silent Aire, Deloitte, Footprint, and MOOG Space and Defense are helping to strengthen STEM in the PHX East Valley. And STEM anchors like Intel, Honeywell Aerospace, Apple, The Boeing Company, Iridium Communications Inc, and Able Aerospace Services (A Textron Company) are taking STEM efforts in the PHX East Valley to a whole new level of excellence, according to Peterson.

Beyond its contributions through business operations, Northrop Grumman also prides itself on its corporate citizenship and community involvement. The company leads and contributes to a number of educational initiatives to help foster the next generation of science, technology, engineering and math talent.

“More broadly, and across our locations globally, we focus heavily on environmental sustainability through the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, the use of renewable energy, water-use reduction and solid waste diversion,” Lehr says. “The stewardship is echoed through our employees and we are proud of their dedicated involvement in their communities and of our company’s track record as a good corporate citizen.”

New, exciting horizons As Northrop Grumman continues to broaden its PHX East Valley horizons, what can we expect in terms of future developments?

“It’s an exciting time to be part of Northrop Grumman,” Lehr says. “Our work is critical, our employees are mission essential, and the systems we provide are foundational to connecting and protecting our world. As our programs continue to grow, so does our need for talented employees.”

And, while the PHX East Valley continues to supply the talent, Northrop Grumman’s growth and diverse opportunities undoubtedly will attract companies and industries of similar caliber.

“Continued investments by companies like Northrop Grumman help bring awareness to the tremendous opportunities in this region for educated talent,” Peterson says. “We offer a low cost of doing business, a business-friendly environment, and an unbeatable quality of life.”

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PHX EAST VALLEY PARTNERSHIP

DRIVING INNOVATION

Waymo initiative helps replace the public’s concerns with curiosity about autonomous vehicles in PHX East Valley

KEVIN HARTKE

AMANDA VENTURA ZINK

By ERIN THORBURN

W

hen you think about a selfdriving vehicle, what comes to mind? Artificial intelligence on four wheels? A mobile machine with a mind of its own? An unpredictable road hazard? While many people think more positively about autonomous vehicles (and for good reason), there are some whose concerns range from the curious to the catastrophic. For this very reason, Waymo developed an ingenious interactive program for residents of the PHX East 100

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Valley to help better convey the perks, plusses and overall essence of autonomous vehicles.

As the first and only company to operate fully autonomous rides for members of the public, Waymo created the “Let’s Talk Autonomous Driving” initiative.

Formerly “Let’s Talk Self-Driving,” (est. 2017), Waymo dropped the more misconstrued term “self-driving” in favor of “autonomous.” It’s one example of the many ways Waymo continues to remain

vigilant in its pursuit to educate the public and highlight the more positive and plentiful aspects of autonomous vehicles.

Putting the public in the driver’s seat “Public trust is key to the success of autonomous driving technology,” explains Amanda Ventura-Zink, Waymo’s public affairs manager. “It’s human nature to be apprehensive about the unknown. To help address this, Waymo created the world’s first public education initiative around

for Senior Living, Red Means Stop, AAA, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, and PHX East Valley Partnership.

Additionally, Let’s Talk Autonomous Driving supports local partners’ annual events and shared messaging through its blog, social media, public outreach and events. This includes partnering with Mothers Against Drunk Driving’s (MADD) “Tie One On for Safety Campaign.” And, as part of the initiative, a self-guided virtual road-safety curriculum was developed for high school students.

Green lighting greater safety awareness One thing that Waymo has and continues to include in its commitment to educate the public is safety awareness. A recent story in Discover revealed that not a single Waymo vehicle (to date) has been involved in a serious incident.

“Waymo has been dedicated and committed to transparency and to safety,” says Kevin Hartke, mayor of Chandler.

“That’s been an important factor in building community trust for us. And they have tested millions and millions of miles on public roads, and a large portion of that driving has been in Chandler and the surrounding East Valley. They’ve worked with our public safety department to literally rewrite the book in terms of how to respond to incidents. And, it’s become a national model.”

Part of how Waymo is helping increase the public’s understanding of autonomous vehicle safety is listening to — and dispelling — common, but often unmitigated fears.

For example, the distinction between “self-driving” and “autonomous.”

“This is a seemingly small but autonomous vehicles with ‘Let’s Talk important change to help better Autonomous Driving.’” inform the public about what Waymo’s Ventura-Zink further elaborates that technology is and how it is unique from this public education opportunity brings other technologies people may be familiar together a diverse set of communities and with,” Ventura-Zink says. “We’re hopeful interests — all of whom share a belief that fully autonomous driving technology that consistency will help differentiate the fully autonomous technology has the potential to save lives, improve Waymo is developing from driver-assist independence and create new mobility technologies (sometimes erroneously options. Locally, Let’s Talk Autonomous Driving partners on education efforts with referred to as ‘self-driving’ technologies) that require oversight from licensed nonprofits and organizations, including Foundation for Blind Children, Foundation human drivers for safe operation.”

Driving the local economy upward and onward Since its inception in 2009, Waymo’s autonomous-driving technology has put in upwards of 20 million miles on real roads — many of which are nestled in the East Valley. And, because of Waymo’s local presence, several PHX East Valley communities and the region at large have benefited economically.

“We have hundreds of trained vehicle operators and autonomousdriving operations teams housed in our 60,000-square-foot full-service center in Chandler and our 85,000-squarefoot technical service center in Mesa,” Ventura-Zink says. “Because actual mobility can have such a large impact on economic mobility, we also believe better transportation will open up economic opportunity to millions of people through access to employment and other services.”

“I know that beyond the direct impact of their being an employer, they have put Chandler and the East Valley on the map around the world as a location for autonomous vehicles,” Hartke adds. “That certainly helps our overall profile and look.

So, when people want to know about us or are looking for more information, we pop up on the grid.”

Beyond the economic fruits Waymo delivers to the region and state, the company also takes great care in offering additional community benefits. During COVID-19, Waymo parcelled out some of its local fleet vehicles to facilitate charitable donations. These vehicles were used to help donate delivery services to several partner organizations (United Food Bank, Valley of the Sun United Way, ICAN: Positive Programs for Youth, and AZCEND, among others). Supplies, including food, personal protective equipment, learning equipment, and family activity kits were driven to schools, food banks, organizations and homes for those in need.

“PHX East Valley is an innovationminded region that shares our vision of improving mobility for all,” Ventura-Zink says. “The support of the community and government in the East Valley has allowed us to continue to grow and thrive to further advance the services we can offer.”

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PHX EAST VALLEY PARTNERSHIP

Meet the PHX East Valley’s

MOVERS AND SHAKERS

By ERIN THORBURN

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part, they each have unique and dynamic leadership skills. Together, these PHX East Valley leaders embody the experience, ingenuity, and drive indicative of what makes the region a top incubator for talent, economic development, and continued growth.

Meet some of the movers, shakers, and dream makers of the PHX East Valley.

DENNY BARNEY

GAIL BARNEY

President and CEO PHX East Valley Partnership

Mayor Town of Queen Creek

Who better to serve as the president and CEO of PHX East Valley Partnership than a sixth-generation resident? Prior to his current role, Denny Barney was a local business owner, served on the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors and was a member of the PHX East Valley Partnership’s board of directors. “When the opportunity came to step into the president’s role of the Partnership, it seemed like a natural transition for me to give back to the community I love,” Barney says. Barney fully embraces the growth and development of the region for which he’s had a front-row seat all his life. “The truth is that a burgeoning region like the PHX East Valley is only as good as its people,” he says.

“This is certainly true at the Partnership, where our members and stakeholders make the magic happen. I enjoy watching them and working alongside them to seize opportunities and address some of our region’s most pressing issues.”

You could say that Queen Creek Mayor Gail Barney was destined to be in his current role. “I have lived in this fantastic community for nearly my entire life,” Barney says. “My family moved to Queen Creek when I was six months old and started farming.” Because Queen Creek is a relatively young community within PHX East Valley (incorporated in 1989), Barney has enjoyed being able to build and foster lasting partnerships as part of his leadership role. “We are still developing quite a bit of our infrastructure,” he says. “We have made dramatic strides, particularly in the last five years with five fire stations, continued investment in our roadways and we are in the midst of developing the Queen Creek Police Department.”

FUN FACT: “In the desert Southwest, it’s natural for people to learn Spanish as a second language. I took a different route by becoming fluent in Japanese so that I could communicate with people in their language as a missionary in Japan.”

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FUN FACT: “Now that I retired from farming, I start my day with a 5 a.m.

CrossFit class.”

JOHN GILES Mayor | City of Mesa Born and raised in Mesa, Mayor John Giles, who once managed and owned his own law firm for upwards of 25 years, uses his leadership skills to help encourage community-wide resolutions. “I really enjoy convening people to better understand issues, and then working together to solve problems,” Giles says. Among several initiatives he’s helping to spearhead — such as continuing to meet the needs of Mesa’s pandemic-related health crisis needs — Giles looks forward to stepping up efforts in reducing the community’s carbon footprint in 2021 (and moving forward). “We hear the phrase ‘carbon neutrality’ as an aspiration for the world’s responsible governments and businesses,” he says. “I want to lay out a plan and explore what action Mesa can take to become carbon neutral.”

FUN FACT: “Maybe it is not a secret that I have a big family, but I am especially proud of my eight grandchildren. Thankfully, they live close by, so I am blessed with the opportunity to be involved in their lives.”

KEVIN HARTKE Mayor | City of Chandler Before he was the mayor of Chandler, Kevin Hartke was a pastor in a local church. “I quickly fell in love with the community, and that compelled me beyond the walls of the church to start serving,” Hartke says.

Now, Hartke uses his leadership skills to help balance listening to the needs of his community as well as those surrounding Chandler. “We have a great sense of place that draws new visitors and enriches the lives of our residents,” he says. “And, I’d say that the quality of life is provided through friendly neighborhoods, award-winning schools, unique shopping opportunities, recreation and entertainment experiences.”

FUN FACT: “This past year, we bought a 100-year-old Forest Service Cabin South of Flagstaff. I must’ve picked and packed and processed hundreds of pounds of berries, Arizona black walnuts, and wild grapes.

It’s been a fun new thing for me, whether it’s making wine, jams, or jellies.”

BRIGETTE PETERSON Mayor | Town of Gilbert Before she was mayor of Gilbert, Brigette Peterson immersed herself in community volunteerism. From there, she completed a leadership program through the Gilbert Chamber of Commerce Foundation program, later becoming planning commissioner, council member and now, mayor. “Everything is a first for me as mayor, and creating the State of the Town is one thing that I’m looking forward to,” Peterson says. “I’m very excited to be mayor as we officially open our Public Safety Training Facility this spring.” While Peterson has had to embrace her new role amidst a global pandemic, she remains optimistic about what lies ahead for Gilbert and surrounding communities. “I’m excited to use the role of mayor to serve my community, the East Valley, and region in many different ways.”

FUN FACT: “I help organize the Town of Gilbert employee four-wheeling group made up of past and present employees. The group is under the Gilbert Wellness program and provides an outlet for employees to get outdoors and build camaraderie.”

COREY WOODS Mayor | City of Tempe Mayor Corey Woods’ political career may very well have been inspired by dinner table discussions involving foreign and domestic public policy. “It instilled in me a feeling that I needed to find ways to give back to my community,” Woods says. “Given my interests and love of both public speaking and public policy, public service became a natural fit.” His interests have now transitioned into strong advocacy in human services and homelessness, repurposing local attractions, and attracting new businesses to Tempe.

“I am eager to see my new ‘Hometown for All’ initiative get off the ground, now that we have secured approval from the whole City Council,” he says. “It is very important to me that Tempe has housing options for everyone who would like to live in our community, regardless of income level.”

FUN FACT: “If I do say so myself, I am a pretty good cook and really enjoy creating Southern desserts like sweet potato pie, pound cake and peach cobbler.”

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