Businesspeople Mix Work, Community Interests

The Business Journal chose these 40 young businesspeople to feature out of nearly 100 nominations received over the past several months from readers and our editorial staff’s own independent research. The purpose of this special report is to shed light on just who are the young businesspeople to watch in our area. They are emerging as leaders in our businesses and organizations, making the decisions that drive our economy. This group of people represents the greatest diversity of industries that the Business Journal has ever featured in its 40 Under 40 reports over the past five years. Dawn Abasta Account Executive LBW Insurance & Financial Services Age: 39 Dawn Abasta was seemingly destined for an insurance career. “I was born in the industry. My dad sold insurance for Mutual of Omaha, so I grew up in the industry,” said Abasta, now an account executive at LBW Insurance & Financial Services in Valencia. Despite having insurance in her blood, so to speak, Abasta explored other careers for a spell. “I had left the industry,” she recalled. “I had kind of gone out on my own. I worked for Apple right after high school. I didn’t really come back to the industry full time until 1994.” Upon her return to insurance, Abasta climbed the corporate ladder at breakneck speed. She began her career at LBW as a receptionist, but her computer skills enabled her to move forward. Before long, Abasta became licensed and was promoted to a commercial lines assistant. Three years later, she became a large account underwriter with a certified insurance service representative (CISR) designation. Then, in 2003, Abasta became a certified insurance counselor, as well as a senior account manager. At this time, Abasta recalled, LBW asked her to join the board of the San Fernando Valley Insurance Agents and Brokers Association. She began as young agent chair, moving on to the executive board. Today, Abasta is president of the San Fernando Valley IBA. She is also relishing the opportunities being an LBW account executive, a position to which she was promoted in June 2007, has given her. Abasta considers that promotion, as well as the chance to head the San Fernando Valley IBA, to be highlights of her career. “Getting promoted to account executive is something I’ve been wanting to do since 1998,” she said. “It took nine years to accomplish.” Now that she’s an account executive, Abasta can build her own book of business, which is currently more than $5.4 million. In addition to all of that, Abasta is active in the Santa Clarita Valley Jaycees and has served in numerous positions, including marketing vice president, executive vice president and individual development vice president, for the organization. The CEO of LBW, Mitzi Like, explained how Abasta has been able to excel. “She manages to handle the large volume of business in our office,” Like said. “She’s very communicative with a number of our clients, whether it’s by e-mail or phone. When she approaches each task or client she’s working on, she works on it as if it were her own, and she does the best job for them, and, ultimately, she gets additional business from them and additional referrals.” Nadra Kareem Tracey Adlai Founder and Organizer The Valley Film Festival Age: 37 The Valley Film Festival was born out of Tracey Adlai needing something to do after deciding that film production was not for her. Making the annual event Valley-centric was due not only to Adlai’s roots but the secession movement then taking place and a realization that even with all the filmmaking taking place within the Valley there was no dedicated outlet to get that work before an audience. “There is so much culture and history that is overlooked and overshadowed by Hollywood,” Adlai said. Now in its eighth year, the festival puts a spotlight on local independent filmmakers who reside in the Valley or film here. The Sherman Oaks Galleria served as the host theatre for the first few years until moving to the El Portal Theatre in the NoHo Arts District. While operating on a smaller scale than other festivals, Adlai’s creation has grown in popularity and creates a sense of community. The festival is Adlai’s way to make a mark in her own way on the place where she grew up, said Paul Hough, a college classmate who has helped out as filmmaker liaison for the festival. “She really is a proud Valley girl, so to speak,” Hough said. An internship led Adlai to fall in love with the area of the city home to New York University. While her parents both had connections with the entertainment industry, there was no pressure from them for Adlai to attend film school. After several years of working in film production, Adlai realized she did not like the work. Starting the festival was a way for her to combine the film school degree with a strong interest in event planning. The festival receives funding from non-profit community partners, corporate sponsorships and private donations. Helped along by a team of volunteers, Adlai still does much of the organizing herself. “She is able to handle so many things at the same time with such a nice way that she gets it done in great style,” Hough said. If part of the festival’s goal is to stir inspiration in fledgling filmmakers, count on Adlai as among those who have been inspired. While in the midst of organizing this year’s festival she has embarked on making a documentary. “Being around filmmakers I have become enthusiastic again and its nice being around people who are fostering and supportive,” Adlai said. — Mark R. Madler Sally J. Aubury Partner, Singer, Lewak, Greenbaum & Goldstein LLP Age: 34 A partner at Singer, Lewak, Greenbaum & Goldstein LLP, by the age of 32 and one of the primary architects behind the launch of the firm’s latest office in Woodland Hills, Sally J. Aubury is as precocious as she is self-effacing, attributing much of her success to the corporate sagacity of her employers. “I think I’ve been successful because of my drive and determination, but I have to give most of the credit to the firm,” the British-born Aubury said. “When I was a manager the partners were always supportive and professional and gave me the support and training that I needed to grow. When I finally became a partner, I continued to get that same level of support. We’re a very forward-thinking firm.” In spite of her youth, Aubury is a veteran of nearly 20 years in the accounting world, a fact that helped ease her transition from the world of British accounting to the American version. “I’d already mastered the technical skills, but there were a few new ones I had to learn,” Aubury said. “In England, I didn’t have any public clients; here I do. It took getting used to the public company rules and the SEC requirements, but the firm was very patient and helpful in my adjustment process.” It didn’t take long for Aubury to rise through the ranks at SLGG, but when she made partner just two years ago, she was immediately faced with a major challenge: opening the firm’s Woodland Hills office. Aubury threw herself into the process with aplomb, handling everything from the office location and meeting the architects, to choosing the furnishings and overseeing the entire move-in process. “She’s a great communicator and resource for her clients and referral sources,” said Ralph Consola, a principal at downtown Los Angeles valuation firm, Marshall & Stevens. “Her clients are all big fans of her and Sally is one of the people I always introduce potential clients to. The hardest thing right now, with the increasing compliance needs, is having an auditor who will honestly tell their client what they need, and Sally is very dedicated to making sure that occurs.” Jeff Weiss Scott Berejikian Co-Founder, CenterPoint M & A; Advisors Age: 39 While the giants of the investment banking industry soak up all the ink with billion dollar IPO launches, the industry isn’t often looked at as a place for the little guy. Yet there’s room in the market for a small firm to prosper, provided its principals are savvy relationship builders, fluent in the many intricacies of the market and, perhaps most importantly, blessed with a prodigious work ethic. Indeed, these qualities are what Scott Berejikian, the co-founder of Woodland Hills-based CenterPoint M & A; Advisors has staked his career on. “Being a small firm means that you don’t have a lot of the resources of larger I-Banking firms, but we turned that into a benefit for ourselves,” Berejikian said. “We created a niche of smaller and middle-market firms that we work with, and at times it’s difficult because we don’t have a huge staff of people to work on transactions. From a time management standpoint, one transaction can be all-consuming with 12 hours days being the norm.” The solution, according to Berejikian, is working on the weekends and developing excellent time management skills. As a result, Centerpoint has emerged to become one of the preeminent investment banks of its size (catering to companies in the $5 million to $50 million range.) Companies such as the National Careers Corporation, Safety Systems, Orde Advertising and Tri-Star, have turned to Centerpoint for a variety of investment banking needs, including conducting all stages of mergers and acquisitions transactions from the early stages of business valuation, to the closing of the deal. Centerpoint has a come a long way in the four years since Berejikian (with his partner, Chris Bandouveris) left his previous position as a vice president of mergers and acquisitions with Northridge-based InterQuest to build his company from the ground up, without an existing book of business. “I was very nervous when we started the firm considering circumstances were far from certain and the first year was pretty bare bones,” Berejikian said. “But by expanding, networking and getting our name out there, by year two, we had more work than we could handle.” This rigorous transaction load hasn’t stopped the firm from giving dual attention to its client roster according to Centerpoint client, Albert Kannos, the president of Honolulu-based, Safety Systems Hawaii Inc. “Scott’s intelligent, analytical and grasps concepts quickly. He knows how to work with clients and gets them to do what things need to be done,” Kannos said. “He’s better than the rest of the competition because he knows when he needs to be tough with a client and when he needs to give. He’s been through it so many times at such a young age.” Jeff Weiss David Brauer CPA,Partner Grobstein, Horwath & Company LLP Age: 34 Some professions are so established and staid that it is truly noteworthy when someone comes up with a true innovation. Almost by definition, accounting may have the most tried-and-true methodologies of them all. Then along comes David Brauer. The 34-year-old CPA made partner at Grobstein, Horwath & Company LLP when, much to the amazement of senior partners, he developed, then presented his firm with a new idea for tracking the nebulous world of entertainment production statements, which are notorious for underreporting of revenues and over-reporting of expenses. “I have been working with my firm to develop a new niche,” a modest Brauer said. “I was fortunate to have a lot of guidance and support from senior partners in the firm.” But according to managing partner, Michael Grobstein, Brauer’s insights are more like those of a person with mid- to late-career knowledge. “It’s really the magnitude of what he has done that’s so impressive,” Grobstein said. “He has developed a material function that will build huge amounts of money for our firm and you just don’t expect that from a 34-year-old guy.” Grobstein knows when he has a good thing going, and plans to keep David Brauer around for a while. “How?” he asks rhetorically. “By paying him lots of money, making him a partner and there is of course always a non-competition agreement, right?” Brauer’s idea, in a nutshell, is said to give media companies unprecedented data in so-called royalty and participations examinations. “I’m very honored by this,” said David Brauer. “It’s very humbling to receive such a prestigious award.” He has advice for young professionals who want to achieved the success his colleagues laud him for having achieved at such a young age. “I believe in having a strong work ethic, mentoring the younger generation behind me and taking direction from the generation above mine,” he said. In addition to long hours at the office, Brauer spends much of his time doing good deeds in the community, including volunteering for the board of directors and supporting Pacific Lodge Youth Services, which operates a home for boys who without intervention would be heading to prison. Brauer, a New Jersey transplant who has lived in the Los Angeles area since 2000, says there is something special about the local business community. “I really like the feeling of community you’ve got in the Valley,” he said. “Everyone has everyone else in mind. Plus it’s exciting to be in the entertainment industry. I like being in a business where the commodity is intellectual property.” Thom Senzee Rudy Cedillos Vice President/Senior Relationship Manager Alliance Bank Age: 36 Rudy Cedillos is a local standard bearer representing the evolution of the job of senior account managers into that of relationship managers. Among the legions of San Fernando Valley financial-sector executives, Cedillos has a reputation for bringing noteworthy substance to the 21st Century model of customer relationship management,a model based on, you guessed it, cultivating relationships. Ironically, he says simple, perhaps even old-fashioned principles are needed to turn the less up-close-and-personal discipline of account management into genuine relationship management. “I try to always be respectful of others, maintain a positive attitude and assist others when I can, both personally and professionally,” Cedillos said. “I’m also a very good listener.” He says that approach has helped to achieve professional goals ” and earn the respect of my colleagues, customers and bosses alike.” That combination of optimism, good listening skills and respect for people, says one customer, is Rudy Cedillos’ secret to success in his roles as vice president of Alliance Bank’s San Fernando Valley Regional Banking Center, and as a person. “Rudy has been extremely helpful to me as well as to my organization, Chabad of the Valley,” says Rabbi Joshua B. Gordon. “I know that I am not alone when I say I feel great and very confident dealing with Rudy.” Cedillos has a philosophy about doing business in his community, whether as a company or an individual that generates the kind of confidence expressed by Rabbi Gordon. “To me, a good corporate citizen is someone who you can count on, who you can depend on and who you can trust to do the right thing,” he said. Cedillos says doing the right thing for the community and the bank that employs him is crucial. “I try to do my job the best I can while also looking out for the bank and protecting the bank’s interests at all times, says Cedillos. “I also think charity and giving back to the community is important.” But, says Cedillos, the Valley gives him a lot too. “The San Fernando Valley is so dynamic and diverse There is a tremendous amount of business that takes place here in the Valley making it such a great place to work for a young banker like me,” He says it’s increasingly rare to find people who grew up in the Valley, as he did, who are staying in the Valley, and plan to raise their kids here as well. In his spare time Rudy Cedillos plays softball and volunteers for local charities. He and his wife are expecting their first child,a boy,in April. Thom Senzee Shannah Compton Financial Services Professional SLC Insurance Services Inc. Age: 30 Shannah Compton of SLC Insurance Services Inc. has a lofty goal. Her mission is to make life insurance and financial planning appealing to the 25- to 40-year-old demographic. In light of her goal, Compton has launched an e-mail newsletter called Financial Strategies for Women Empowering Wealth Strategies for the Everyday Woman. The newsletter is distributed to 600 young professional women throughout the United States. Compton believes it helped her become a 2007 Stevie Award “women in business” finalist for best entrepreneur. “To even be a finalist is quite a rigorous process,” she said. “Also, last year, I qualified for the Million Dollar Roundtable. It’s a premier association of financial professionals and it requires that you’ve achieved a high level of commission sales.” Those weren’t Compton’s only achievements last year. In 2007, she was a featured speaker at the National Association of Health Underwriters’ National Convention. The appearance led to her receiving a spot on the association’s New Agent Task Force. This year, Compton looks forward to the launch of her new program, “The Road to Riches.” It will aim to provide young adults with financial outlook analyses and road maps for the future. Compton believes she can inspire young adults by speaking of financial issues in a positive light rather than a negative one. “I think that the terms insurance and retirement and financial planning have such a negative stigma,” she said. “I think young people really want to learn how they can create a financial foundation.” Prior to working in the financial services industry, Compton ran a student film festival at Indiana University for five years. Upon returning to California, during the dot.com boom, Compton worked for Jerry Bruckheimer’s Z.com. “I was brought on to try and build their outreach to the young demographic. I did that and then the dot.com industry fell apart,” Compton recalled. Recovering quickly from the collapse, Compton worked at a mortgage company as a marketing manager. She later began her own mortgage and real estate company, but, in 2006, when she received her MBA, she began working at SLC Insurance Services Inc., a company owned by her father, Stanley L. Compton. “I joined him primarily to eventually take over his business,” she said. “Right now, we just work as partners. We’re both overachievers. We always want to win and do the best.” Compton considers the move to her father’s company to be the most significant of her career. “When I started working with my dad, I was finally able to bring together all of my skills,” she said. “I was always good at marketing. I was always good at sales. I was able to marry everything together.” Nadra Kareem Jason Crawford Economic Development and Marketing Manager City of Santa Clarita Age: 32 Thanks to Jason Crawford, a growing portion of what might otherwise be called runaway production is being retained in the suburban back lot of Santa Clarita. “I’ve been able to show some success in increasing the amount of filming in the past few years here,” said Crawford, who is the city’s economic development and marketing manager. “We started the Film Office from the ground up, and have been recognized by the California Economic Development Partnership as the best economic development program in the state.” Santa Clarita’s film and television production program was taken over from the local chamber of commerce as a means of growing the city’s job base. It is the centerpiece of the city’s economic development program. As a result, film permits are being issued in ever-increasing numbers. “When the city decided it was going to take over the permitting process from L.A. County, we wanted a film guy who also knew about economic development, not a government guy who kind of knew the film business,” said Ken Striplin, deputy city manager. “We got the best of both worlds in Jason.” In fact, Crawford, who has a film degree from CalArts, already had experience working for the City of Santa Clarita before being put in charge of economic development and marketing there. “I think they were looking for a film guy who could really shake things up,” Crawford said. “I was given the chance to take ownership of the program, and that’s been key to the success we’ve had.” More production in the city has translated into greater use of local resources in the business community. “Jason goes on site to be there for the production crew, suggesting solutions , local solutions , to their needs, anticipating their needs, as they arise and even before they arise.” Crawford says his first moves were simple: “We looked at what the productions were facing in other cities in their permit process and made it cheaper and faster,” he said. “We’re not trying to generate permit revenue, we’re trying to stimulate economic growth.” Crawford loves to travel when he can. The Greek Isles, southern Italy and Hawaii are his favorite destinations. But his real passion is for his volunteer work with the Al Mann Biomedical Foundation, which does research to find new ways of treating age-old diseases, such as diabetes. The foundation is also involved in improving the lives of the visual- and hearing-impaired by pioneering new scientific approaches to blindness and deafness. Thom Senzee Jeanna Crawford President and Co-Publisher Inside SCV Magazine Age: 31 Where does a beautiful, sophisticated model land after traveling the globe and wowing fashion writers, designers and photographers from Milan to Tokyo once she decides to launch her own glossy magazine? Publisher Jeanna Crawford landed on terra firma in Santa Clarita. Inside SCV Magazine is a thoroughbred monthly that has given the burgeoning Santa Clarita Valley an augmented sense of place, as well as a popular medium for advertisers to reach local consumers. “I think I’m a small-town girl at heart,” said Crawford, who was born and raised in Santa Clarita. “Even though, Santa Clarita is not really a small town any more, I love everything about it. Whatever it is, if it’s in SCV, I’m down for it.” Apparently, the community feels the same way about Crawford. At 31, she was the youngest person to ever be selected Santa Clarita Woman of the Year. Locals say there are dozens of reasons she deserved the honor. “Jeanna Crawford is truly one of Santa Clarita’s finest,” said the city’s mayor, Bob Kellar. “Her exemplary work for nonprofits, as well as for the local business community, is unparalleled.” Crawford says the success of her magazine has let her do what she loves most: volunteer. Her myriad community service activities include the creation of several local charity events, two of which are the annual Heart of the West day, which supports Carousel Ranch Equestrian therapy center, and the Crawford-Fleming Breast Cancer Awareness Golf Tournament. Other nonprofit organizations and charitable events that benefit from Jeanna Crawford’s seemingly endless appetite for volunteering are The Optimists of Santa Clarita Valley, Boys and Girls Club and something called Bras for a Cause, which also supports breast cancer awareness. But don’t think Crawford is just an ex-model socialite who supports charity. Her magazine is unique among regional lifestyle pubs in that its publisher explicitly works to include perspectives that represent all members of the community it serves. “It’s beautifully laid out and full of substantive content,” she says. “And, most importantly, it’s not just for one class of reader. We really include everyone. We want it to really reflect the Santa Clarita Valley.” So what’s next for Jeanna Crawford? That’s anyone’s guess, and they are guessing. “We are so proud of all she’s accomplished at such a young age. We can’t wait to see what she does next,” said Mayor Kellar. Thom Senzee Matt Crowley Principal, Crowley Corporate Legal Strategy Age: 39 Matt Crowley is living the life he chose long ago. “I knew in high school I wanted to be a lawyer. I liked business, liked negotiating, liked international stuff,” Crowley said, thinking that being an attorney was the best way to incorporate each of those interests. Crowley spent eight years with a large firm in the Bay Area; then left to ride the dot.com bubble for three years. He came south to work for Technicolor where he spent a year-and-a-half as in-house counsel, and then went out on his own in 2006, founding Crowley Corporate Legal Strategy. He performs transitional legal services: providing securities, advising startups and handling mergers and acquisitions. “The Valley has a million lawyers or so it seems sometimes but there is no one quite like Matt Crowley,” Rick Newberger, managing director of Vanguard Media, wrote in nominating Crowley, adding “He is a one-man bridge between the business and legal worlds, and a wise, accessible and personable one at that. Being that bridge requires adept skills.” One of his strengths is that he is practical. “I know when to leave well enough alone. I know not to polish the apple too much. The simple solution may well be the best solution. Another may be more elegant but more expensive,” Crowley said. He is active in the in the business community through his work with the San Fernando Valley Bar Association and the Los Angeles Venture Association. “My goal is to be helpful,” he said, and for the Bar he does that by being on the board of trustees and is the chair of their membership and marketing committee. Crowley is the chair of the LAVA marketing committee also. He began a publicity campaign that has advanced the group in the Valley. “I really like the Valley and want other people to like it too,” he said. The Woodland Hills resident decompresses at the end of the day by playing with his two-and-a-half-year old son Dylan. Television helps too. “I go right to TiVo and see what comedies it has recorded for me,” he said. James Hames Jim Davis Manager Pentastar Aviation Age: 34 In his two stints with Pentastar Aviation, Jim Davis has been involved with just about every service offered by the company. But it’s his second go-round with Pentastar that Davis makes his mark in the San Fernando Valley. As manager of the company’s fixed-base operation at Van Nuys Airport, Davis oversees the daily operation of Pentastar’s first location outside of its home in Michigan. He supervises a staff of 12 and acts as the company’s representative in the Valley. In the workforce, it is up to each person to make their own breaks, and taking the position in Van Nuys was Davis’s way of doing that. “I think regarding any professional development, it’s challenging being able to take a step in a direction you may not be familiar with,” Davis said. An Army veteran, Davis began his career with Pentastar after leaving the service. He worked in charter sales, flight operations and line services while attending college to earn a degree in aviation management. In 2005, Davis took a sales position with Air Routing International, a firm with which Pentastar contracted services. In April 2007, he returned to Pentastar to take the Van Nuys job. Davis’s background, education and the national and international contacts he made while with Air Routing combined to make him the best candidate, said Bob Sarazin, vice president of FBO services. “He digs in and does his homework,” Sarazin said. While their FBO services consistently rank high on lists published by aviation industry publication, another of Davis’s roles is to promote the Pentastar brand and reputation in the highly competitive environment of the world’s busiest general aviation airport. Because the company owns aircraft itself and has been a customer at other FBOs, there is a better understanding of the needs of a flight crew, Davis said. Pentastar has joined the San Fernando Valley Aviation-Aerospace Collaborative to encourage high school students to pursue careers in aviation. Mark R. Madler William Fikhman Owner iSold It Age: 23 The entrepreneurial spirit in William Fikhman has taken him from selling stress balls and artwork to operating a dog walking service. Today Fikhman oversees two locations of the iSold It franchise stores that help people sell items on the online auction site eBay and plans on opening more to serve the San Fernando Valley and Ventura County. Fikhman describes himself as someone who likes to stay busy. Even as he manages the two iSold It franchises with brothers Mike and George, Fikhman attends California State University at Northridge where he majors in accounting and business. “I like the satisfaction of achievement,” he said. Fikhman credits visibility along high-traffic areas in Agoura Hills and Tarzana, word of mouth from satisfied customers and media attention about its unique concept for the success of the stores. In 2006 when sales from the two locations combined for more than $1 million Fikhman was featured in Entrepreneur’s Start Up magazine as one of “7 Entrepreneurs Who’ve Hit It Big before their 25th Birthdays.” The initial plan of Fikhman and his brothers was to operate between five and 10 locations. While they have not reached those numbers quite yet, that remains their intent. They may need buy existing stores to get there, Fikhman said. International sales, which the stores began offering last year, have been a boost because of the undervalued U.S. dollar. Domestically, an economic downturn can mean more business. “When people need money they start selling their luxuries,” Fikhman said. Having been working at some type of job since age 10, most of what Fikhman learned about business has been trial and error. As a middle man between buyers and sellers, he’s developed an expertise in working out conflict and changing a bad situation into a good one. It’s how to hear what is not being said and understand people better,” Fikhman said. An understanding of how to better connect potential customers with the stores led Fikhman to redesign marketing materials to rely more on graphics and visuals than on text. Another lesson learned was to hire the best people because they become the face of the company through their interaction with the public. “Sometime good people are worth paying more if you have to,” Fikhman said. Mark R. Madler Scott Firestone Area President Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Age: 37 At age 37, Scott Firestone has managed to become an area president of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., the fourth largest insurance brokerage and risk management services firm in the world. Firestone became head of Gallagher’s office in Glendale in 2001, when the company acquired a smaller firm he co-owned called MDM. Firestone considers the transition to be the turning point of his career. “I’m the poster child because, here I am, I merge a company, and now I’m running the largest office in the company,” Firestone told the business journal last year. Since his move to Gallagher, Firestone has noticed the advantages he can now provide clients. “Once you’re part of a bigger team, there are more resources to pull upon,” he said. “I can tell you unequivocally that the services that my clients have available to them are unparalleled to what I could provide them at my other firm. We have lawyers on staff. We have actuaries on staff. We have engineers on staff, and what’s interesting about our business is what you pay us is the same thing you pay that small agent without the same resources.” Before his rise in the brokerage industry, Firestone worked on the carrier side for Hartford Insurance Company. He believes the experience gave him an edge. “Working with all these various brokers in the Los Angeles area, it (was) just so easy to differentiate the quality and how these people are serving their customers, so when I was fortunate enough to go on that side, I had a head start,” he said. A married father of three and an alumnus of Southern Utah University, Firestone has played a part in Gallagher’s growth. The company, headquartered in Itasca, Ill., employs more than 8,000 people and has operations in the United States, Great Britain, Australia and Bermuda. In an eight-month period last year, Gallagher made an estimated dozen acquisitions. Firestone believes that executives can grow companies if they follow a simple rule. “Create an environment people want to be part of,” he said. Nadra Kareem Tamar Galatzan Deputy L.A. City Attorney/Board Member Los Angeles Unified School District Age: 38 In addition to a recently won post on the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education that most would consider a full-time job, Tamar Galatzan is also a deputy city attorney. It is a job about which she is passionate, as she has demonstrated time and again in the neighborhood prosecutor’s office. That is where the “broken-window” theory (a theory that says if a broken window goes un-repaired, criminals see a green light for malfeasance) of community safety reigns. “Find something that you care about,the environment, business development, education, or your neighborhood,and get involved,” Galatzan says. That attitude, say friends, is what makes her an ideal public servant. “I remember, as a prosecutor, there was this senior [citizen] who was a homebound packrat,” says political consultant Samantha Stevens, who has been friends with Galatzan since college, when they were both volunteers for different university chapters of the National Organization for Women. “Whereas a lot of politicians would shy away from such a thorny issue,an issue which encompasses so many other issues, such as city codes, personal freedom, crime, neighborhood safety,Tamar solved the problem.” Stevens says one of Galatzan’s greatest gifts is her ability to bring talented people to bear on a problem. ” And she won’t give up,” Stevens said. “If you’re not available on this day or that day, she’ll keep trying until she has the right resources in one room.” For Galaztan, however, public service is as much a personal matter as it is a professional endeavor. According to friends and colleagues, she works to support several community groups, such as the Women’s Care Cottage. Last year, Tamar Galatzan defeated District 3 school board member, John Lauritzen, as part of a growing reform movement in public education in California. Galatzan’s determination to shake up the status quo at LAUSD made her a natural for nomination in this year’s 40 Under 40 lineup. “This generation of political leaders is the first that will be expected to tackle the monumental problems of the 21st Century,” Galatzan said. She believes the key for America to compete in the New Economy is cultivating the minds of young people with better education. That, says Galatzan, is good for kids and for business. “Above all, we are confronted with the challenges of the global economy. From my perspective, the ability of the next generation,and the one after,to compete in this environment begins with our schools. We cannot turn out an excellent workforce without providing our young people with an excellent education.” Galatzan is also a great believer and proponent of mentoring and internships. She says they put her on track to the achievements she has attained and that mentoring helps young people distinguish themselves. Galatzan says being honored by the San Fernando Valley Business Journal as one of the 40 most influential businesspeople in the region means a lot. “I’m honored to be included with such a distinguished group,” she said. “The honorees represent a cross-section of people who are involved and engaged in the community in so many different ways.” Thom Senzee Laura Gallardo Director of Public Affairs Kaiser Permanente Age: 38 As a student at Arizona State University, Laura Gallardo devised a career plan: Within 20 years, she would be a public relations executive. Today, the Kaiser Permanente director of public affairs has achieved her goal, but she no longer lives by a master plan. “Early in my profession, I thought there was some sort of formula you could follow for success now I know that it is embracing each and every opportunity that presents itself and making the most of each day,” she stated. “I live very passionately in the moment. The rest works itself out.” In her current role, Gallardo oversees public affairs for the Santa Clarita and Antelope Valley service areas of Kaiser Permanente. She will soon also oversee public affairs for Kaiser’s new Panorama City Medical Center, opening imminently. She has about a half-dozen staffers reporting to her. Health care has been a focus throughout Gallardo’s career. At ASU, she studied public programs. “My passion has always been healthcare,” she said. “I think there’s nothing more important than one’s health.” As an account supervisor for international public relations firm Porter Novelli, where she was previously employed, Gallardo worked on health care accounts. “Prior to that, I was in Chicago, working for an association management firm on health care accounts, working with groups like the Society of Gynecologic Oncologists,” Gallardo said. “My first job was running public relations for a drug and alcohol rehab in Chicago.” Gallardo attributes her success at Kaiser to receiving fantastic opportunities and having amazing mentors during the course of her professional life. Because of her background, Gallardo knows the right questions to ask, according to Dennis Benton, executive director of Kaiser’s Panorama City Medical Center. Benton went on to applaud Gallardo for her innovativeness, “especially in how to communicate both to our patients and to our staff.” Asked what a typical day for her looks like, Gallardo said that no two days are the same. “It’s multifaceted and relative to the audience,” she said. “The people that we work with are everyone from the media to elected officials, community-based organizations, charitable groups, our internal audience and patients.” Gallardo enjoys this aspect of her work as well as contributing to community health. “One of the things I like most about working for Kaiser Permanente is we’re a nonprofit organization,” she said. “Beyond providing care to our patients, we also support the overall health of the community.” Nadra Kareem Josh Gertler President, Consensus Planning Group Age: 36 As Los Angeles struggles with accommodating housing and other necessities of its residents while also maintaining a quality of life, the Consensus Planning Group finds itself on the front lines. Heading the company is Josh Gertler, the son of its founder who brings to the president’s position extensive experience in strategic communications. In the Valley, Consensus Planning is involved with major shopping centers, big box stores, master planned communities, high-density mixed-use projects, and environmentally contaminated properties. When a client hires Consensus, Gertler and his team put a controversial project or complex issue into a broader scope to make it more acceptable to the public officials who approve it and the people living with that decision. “We try to turn down the noise oftentimes created by some people who would stir up anxiety and emotion,” Gertler said. A Valley resident, Gertler worked for two other global public relations firms before joining Consensus Planning seven years ago. The firm’s core offering is an integrated communications program that takes into account community issues, political issues, and media issues confronting a situation, Gertler said. When Regency Centers wanted to build a Kohl’s store in Granada Hills, the developer turned to Consensus to smooth the way. Enrique Legaspi, vice president, regional officer for Regency Centers, said it can be an emotional time when trying to get entitlements in an urban environment. Consensus worked deliberately and diligently to get the political, community and business support for the project, Legaspi said. “We prevailed and we got the entitlements,” Legaspi said. Motivating Gertler is the satisfaction he gets from helping clients work their way of vexing situations by calling upon the specialties and skills of the employees at Consensus. Looking at the larger picture as the father of young children, Gertler said he wants to create a viable area with housing and economic development that his children will want to stay. Mark R. Madler Tal Grinblat Shareholder, Lewitt, Hackman, Shapiro, Marshall & Harlan Age: 35 If Tal Grinblat wasn’t doing what he’s doing now, he could envision himself with the United Nations or the State Department. The Taft High School graduate went to University of California at Santa Barbara as a political science major. But he went into law. “I decided on law because I thought I could make a difference,” Grinblat said. “I wanted to make laws and change laws, and make laws better.” The young attorney went to work for the national firm of Arter & Hadden before joining the Encino firm of Lewitt, Hackman, Shapiro, Marshall and Harlan in 2004. He became a shareholder in January of last year. He practices exclusively in the areas of franchise and distribution law, trademarks and copyrights, where he represents national franchises in fast food, yoga, and car audio among other industries. He also represents the country’s leading skateboard manufacturer. Grinblat is the incoming chair of the California State Bar’s Franchise Law Committee. He will be the youngest ever in that position, which will have him meeting with government regulators in Sacramento. He has been widely published, with articles in the Franchise Law Journal, and both the Los Angeles and San Fernando Valley Business Journals. He’s a member of the California, Los Angeles and San Fernando Valley Bar Associations. His drive to accomplish is fueled by family. He has two kids, aged 4 and 10 months, which he said is “why I work.” James Hames Alex Guerrero Executive Vice President Tower General Contractors Age: 39 “If this had been 10 years ago and it was called the 30 Under 30, I would not even have been considered, much less nominated.” That was a humble Alex Guerrero’s response to being asked how he felt about being nominated for this award. “This might be too personal, but 10 years ago it took a friend sitting me down and basically kicking my [butt] to get me to wake up to what is important in life,” Guerrero said. “Ten years ago, I already had plenty of material and career success; I had a big shiny German car. But I was miserable.” Alex Guerrero is even more successful in business today than he was 10 years ago. He is executive vice president at Tower General Contractors in Sun Valley, having taken the number two job at Los Angeles County’s largest minority-owned contracting firm in 2003. Since then, Tower has moved to the forefront of the region’s construction business. In fact, Tower was ranked by the Business Journals as the fourth fastest-growing company in the San Fernando Valley and fifth in all of Los Angeles. He has directed several of California’s recent high-profile healthcare and government construction projects including the new UCLA Astronomy Center, plus major units at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center in Burrbank. But his personal contributions are what prompted Guerrero’s boss, Tower’s president, Nato Flores, to nominate him. “This is a man who can’t seem to give enough,” Flores said. “He’s involved in so many organizations and actually does the hands-on stuff to help their causes.” Those causes include Women Advancing the Valley through Economic Empowerment; GreySave, which supports adoption for unwanted former racing greyhound dogs; amd Primary Purpose, which supports recovering addicts. According to Flores, Guerrero’s home is a nonstop venue for fundraisers and mixers supporting local causes. “Ten years ago, someone said, ‘Alex, you’re a taker not a giver. Until you become a giver, you’ll never be happy,'” recalls Guerrero. “He was right. But the funny thing is not only did I find out how good it feels to give and get others to give, but I also found out the more you give, the more stuff just comes to you.” According to Guerrero, that paradox guides him in business and in his personal life. The result, he says, is that frequently personal rewards intersect with business success in unexpected ways. Currently, his company is building a new museum and educational center in Downey for the Space Shuttle Columbia and her crew, who perished upon reentry in 2002. While working to make the museum a reality, Guerrero has become close to some of the Columbia crew’s family members, an experience he counts as priceless. Thom Senzee Max Haghighi CEO, Co-Founder, Syndicated Insurance Agency LLC Age: 39 For Max Haghighi, the rigors of running his own company are nothing compared to the challenges he’s already overcome. Indeed, the CEO and co-founder of Tarzana-based, Syndicated Insurance Agency LLC, traces his ability to overcome difficult obstacles to the first major challenge of his life: fleeing the turmoil of the Iranian revolution. “Having to run away from a revolution at an early age made me grow up fast. I learned that whatever needs to get done, needs to get done or you don’t survive,” Haghighi said. “I didn’t speak a word of English when I came to America but I knew I had to learn it within six months or I couldn’t survive. I learned that whatever I wanted to do was achievable. I know it’s a clich & #233; but that’s what the country was based on: if you put in the effort, time and hard work you can be whoever and whatever you want to be.” Of course, success wasn’t a foregone conclusion, first Haghighi had to figure out what he wanted to do. Initially apathetic to the idea of working in insurance, a job working in a call center for Blue Cross led to a sales job at the company. Once Haghighi had his first experience in sales, he knew that he’d found his calling. “I tried it out and fell in love with it. As much bad press as the industry gets, I felt like I was helping people,” Hagighi said. “People would come in without insurance or plans that were expensive for them and I’d figure a way to make it work. When I realized how much I enjoyed it, the next logical step was forming my own agency.” Pairing with a partner he’d met at Blue Cross, Haghighi opened up Syndicated in 2004 and his business took off immediately, producing a 144 percent growth in its second year, 88 percent growth in year three, and last year, a still-robust 60 percent growth rate. Haghighi attributes much of his success to the relationships he’s built in the Valley, where he belongs to several different chambers of commerce, serves as a charter member of the San Fernando Valley Jaycees and on the board of directors for the Devonshire Police Activity League Supporters. Fellow Jaycee, Victoria Bourdas, who handles community relations for Northridge Skateland, affirms that Haghighi is a galvanizing, energetic force in the community. “When Max commits to something he puts forth a tremendous effort and becomes so passionate about his projects and organizations that you want to get involved too. He’s personable, charismatic and his enthusiasm is infectious,” Bourdas said. Jeff Weiss Jill Jackson CEO Dessert Alert Inc. Age: 39 When Jill Jackson was a little girl learning to bake from her grandmother, never in her wildest dreams did she ever think that she would turn her hobby into a profession. But when her career as a social worker started to wear on her to the point where she began dreading going into work, the CEO of Santa Clarita-based, Dessert Alert Inc., decided to take the great plunge and launch a career in the world of specially made desserts aimed at the world of high-end corporate gift giving. “If you’d told me that I would’ve ended up doing this, I wouldn’t have believed you, Jackson said. “Doing something like this was a dream. The transition came around 2003 when I was burnt out from social work and was baking a lot to relieve stress. Then one day I had the epiphany that I should quit my job and just bake.” Originally started out of Jackson’s old Burbank home, as the business grew Jackson moved to Santa Clarita and eventually opened up a commercial kitchen. A re-branding after about a year in business also proved instrumental to the firm’s growth. “We hired a marketing company that did everything from magazine advertisements to billboards. We got a website and I got a radio show and things started to take off,” Jackson said. “The new brand was more elegant and was an instant success at helping us market to the upscale corporate clientele that we were hoping to target.” Of course, if you’re in the world of dessert, the bottom line is having a quality product and according to Dessert Alert’s customers (and from the looks of its website), Jackson has crafted a unique and delicious array of products. “Jill is one of the most motivated, hard-working dedicated people I know,” Jenny Ketchepaw, the Santa Clarita Branch Manager of Telesis Community Credit Union, said. “Her talent and entrepreneurial skills are showcased by the incredible success of her growing business. Jill is amazing at everything she does, from how she treats people to how she runs her business. She takes pride in her work and it’s evident by her large following. Jill’s desserts are unique, delicious and inspire others.” As for the future, Jackson launched a national expansion plan just six weeks ago, hiring a president and chief operating officer to aid her in her efforts to grow the business. Jeff Weiss Randall A. Kobata Principal, Lee & Associates-LA North/Ventura Inc. Age: 30 The adage “persistence pays off” has been the backbone of Randall Kobata’s professional career. “If you put your head down and work as hard as you can, you will reap the rewards and benefit of that hard work,” said Kobata. As a principal at commercial real estate firm Lee & Associates, Kobata is a part-owner of the company. The success of the firm as a whole is tied in with his success at selling and leasing property. It was a position he achieved after only 18 months at Lee because Kobata epitomizes the ideals of what a principal should be. His largest deals in 2007 included a $7 million, 56,000-square-foot multi-tenant investment sale in Chatsworth; and a 50,000-square-foot industrial park worth $6.3 million. In 2004 Kobata was named Associate of the Year, and the next year his achievement as a top performer had him named to the President’s Circle of Excellence. Mike Tingus, a managing principal at Lee, said that with his great talent and ability to service clients, Kobata is a rising star at the firm. Getting into real estate, however, was a fluke for Kobata, who majored in political science at the University of Colorado and had plans to attend law school. An internship at CB Richard Ellis changed those plans. Kobata found he enjoyed the highs and lows of completing a deal. He later was offered a full-time job with the company, focusing on the West San Fernando Valley and the Conejo Valley markets. “I liked the idea of essentially of being your own boss and being accountable to yourself only,” Kobata said. Tingus hired Kobata away from CB Richard Ellis in 2004. Working in the large corporate structure was an environment that did not allow Kobata to go after every selling opportunity within different markets, so coming to Lee was a breath of fresh air, Tingus said. “I was confident he would be able to get jump started quickly,” Tingus said. At Lee, Kobata specializes in the sale and leasing of industrial and commercial properties throughout the West San Fernando Valley and East Ventura County markets. At the firm Kobata has established in the eyes of his colleagues a strong work ethic. As a shareholder, he exercises an entrepreneurial and self-starting spirit. “In a commission based industry we are here to generate income for ourselves and our company and give a service to the customer,” Kobata said. Mark R. Madler Peggy Korecko Senior Business Systems Analyst, Walt Disney Consumer Products Age: 38 While the position Peggy Korecko holds at Disney Consumer Products is tech heavy, it was her people skills that landed her the job. “I picked up on the other stuff okay,” Korecko said. That may be an understatement. For nearly three years she has been a senior business systems analyst working on the consumer products group Web site. In 2006, she received the Above and Beyond Award for her efforts. A native of Ohio, Korecko began as a temp on the help desk and was later hired full time before being promoted to her current position. The types of recurring problems she dealt with resetting a password, for instance were easy for her to pick up and learn on the job. As a business systems analyst she continues to provide support albeit at a higher level, Korecko said. Licensees making products for Disney have access to the Web site where they can get design suggestions and approvals. Before online access was available, a licensee incurred additional time and expense by having to send items overnight delivery. Continuous troubleshooting and improvements to the Web site to make it more efficient and faster is a big part of what Korecko does. “Our business is growing here,” Korecko said. “We don’t have more people to work with but we get more requests. We are trying to maximize how we do our work.” Outside of her technical duties, Korecko does volunteer work with Disney, an activity that led her to meet with members of the Burbank Jaycees. She is now the president of that group. The volunteer work keeps Korecko busy and gives her an opportunity to meet new people and experience new activities. It also helped her build a network of friends after her move from the Midwest. From lunches with co-workers of different nationalities, Korecko created the informal Flavor of the Month program to visit the variety of ethnic restaurants Los Angeles offers. Mark R. Madler Aaron Levinson Executive Director The Executives of the Jewish Home for the Aging Age: 37 It is said if you love what you do, you will never work a day in your life. If the adage is true, 40 Under 40 nominee, Aaron Levinson has yet to know the meaning of the word work. “Like many people, I’ve learned how satisfying it is to give back,” said Levinson, who is executive director of The Executives of the Jewish Home for the Aging. “To do it professionally is really great because you get paid to do something you love , not fantastically , but you can make a living.” Levinson grew up in a family where service to the community and volunteering were mandatory activities. He quickly learned that giving of his time and energy to those who are less fortunate than he was, made him happy. But being honored for doing what comes so naturally, taking care of society’s most vulnerable, is not something Levinson expected. “I was really surprised , pleasantly surprised , but surprised nevertheless, and it’s really an honor.” Indeed, Levinson has always worked in the non-profit world , the past two and half years at The Executives of the Jewish Home for the Aging (formerly known as the Valley Jewish Business Leaders organization). Previously, he worked as executive director of a synagogue, and for the Anti-Defamation League. It is that experience and Levinson’s personal traits that have colleagues singing his praises. “Aaron has done a spectacular job with our group,” says The Executives president, Fred Gaines. ” We’ve been around for 20 years, and we just had our two most successful years.” The Executives is the fundraising support organization of the Jewish Home, and is well known for its signature Circle of Life gala fundraiser. Gaines credits innovative fundraising ideas brought forth by Levinson for the organization’s record-breaking years. “We raised almost $600,000 at the last one,” he said. “That makes close to $1.5 million for the last two years.” Last year’s Circle of Life honored noted business leader and police commissioner, Alan Skobin. One innovation for the event was its venue: the newly reconstructed Westfield Topanga Shopping Center. “We had the whole place to ourselves before the public had seen the remodel,” Gaines said. “That was Aaron’s and Dennis Zine’s idea.” Councilman Zine was Gaines’ predecessor as The Executives’ president. The hardest thing about Levinson’s job, he says, is the fact that people are less interested in old people , at first. “It’s not a sexy cause like kids, AIDS or the environment,” he said. “There’s a lot of good competition for the same dollars, and the same board members, and the same volunteers.” Levinson points out one of the current issues facing non-profit professionals in the near future: the ascension of his own generation as heirs of their parents’ money. “There’s about to be a big transfer of wealth from the Baby Boomers to Generation X,” explains Levinson. “People have , I think wrongly , said we’re not as giving. I think we just have to be more creative in the way we approach this generation.” He thinks he has found the ingredients necessary to involve and motivate fellow Gen-Xers: less black tie; more fun; and complete straight forwardness. Thom Senzee Christopher Lorefice Regional Supply Chain Manager-West Region Aramark Uniform Services Age: 30 The clich & #233; claims that variety is the spice of life and in Chris Lorefice’s case that old maxim may actually be apt. Indeed, the regional supply chain manager , west regions for Aramark Uniform Services, maintains that having to accomplish a diverse daily slate of tasks is one of the chief sources of fulfillment in his professional life. “When I was graduating college, I knew that I didn’t want to do investment banking or financial services. I’d had internships in those fields and they put me to sleep,” Lorefice said. “I needed something that was varied and in a generalist sort of role. I wanted a job that touched on a lot of areas and initially that’s why I was drawn to Aramark.” Joining the Burbank branch of the Philadelphia-based firm in June 2000, Lorefice has risen rapidly through the company ranks, serving as everything from Merchandise Control Manager to Production Supervisor to Sales Representative, Group Supply Chain Manager to Supply Chain Process Manager and finally his current position where he oversees 33 facilities across the western region of the United States, a post that requires him to manage supply chain operations, lead cost reductions, and streamline efficiencies. According to Lorefice, his most proud professional accomplishment thus far has been the creation of a national program that standardized the way the firm sells new accounts. “They put me in charge of a team and we developed a process that led us to be able to provide better customer service to our clients,” Lorefice said. “We hired 50 people around the country to specifically focus on bringing new customers into Aramark and we’ve had a great deal of success since implementing the program. I loved being able to come up with something tangible that the entire company now uses.” Lorefice’s hard work and determination haven’t gone unnoticed by his superiors, as his boss Mike Griffiths, Aramark’s senior director of supply chain management, speaks highly of his youthful employee. “He’s mature beyond his years and he’s got a very solid business sense,” Griffiths said. Chris has great insight into the future and he’s able to think long range while still getting results in the short term. He’s just a stellar example of the kind of employee everyone would like to have.” Jeff Weiss Heidi Mankoff Senior Loan Consultant Metrocities Mortgage Age: 31 While a surprising number of unscrupulous mortgage brokers here and around the country were winking and nudging sub-prime borrowers into home loans on which they were destined to default, San Fernando Valley broker, Heidi Mankoff, was resisting the wild-west atmosphere that permeated her industry until 2006. Instead, she did what she has always done for her clients with less-than-perfect credit: She shepherded them through the process of rebuilding their credit and helped them to find ways to alleviate some of their financial burdens so that when the time was right, they could take out a mortgage on terms they could handle , over the long haul. “She’ll fix the problem instead of getting around it,” explained Ray Calnan, owner of Charity Alliance Realty. “Sometimes that means waiting six months or a year.” That measured approach has helped Mankoff fair much better than many others in her industry in terms of putting lenders and qualified borrowers together regionally and nationwide. “Over the last eight years, I don’t know of a single client who has gone into foreclosure,” Mankoff said. “But, I’ve certainly had my share of clients who have come to me with a foreclosure from someone else.” Colleagues say Mankoff takes responsibility for how her actions as a businessperson directly and indirectly impact society. Real estate broker Calnan believes that if more mortgage brokers acted like Mankoff the sub-prime meltdown could have been averted. With no sub-prime lending crisis, it’s doubtful the current talk of a looming recession would have evolved as it has. But Mankoff is modest about her business practices. “I am humbled by the fact that this is the biggest loan most people will ever pay for in their lives,” she said. “If I were giving advice to a young person getting into this business now it would be to remember what they’re really doing is building relationships. ” In addition to membership in numerous business and professional organizations including as president of the San Fernando Valley Jaycees, Mankoff is also a Rotarian and has headed up one of the Valley’s Relay For Life events which occur annually in communities across America to support cancer treatment and research. As Calnan puts it “She’s a selfless person who spends a ton of time just helping out clients, the business community and the social community in the Valley.” Thom Senzee Joshua Mann Executive Director Antelope Valley Board of Trade Age: 25 As the executive director of the Antelope Valley Board of Trade, Joshua Mann carries out the policies of its members to improve the business climate. While giving back to the community, Mann can also fulfill his career aspirations. “The position is meant to be a stepping stone for someone looking for a greater role in public policy and working for local or state government,” said Mann, a Lancaster native. The interest in public service and the recognition of the attributes needed as head of the BOT public speaking, writing, general politicking – began for Mann during an internship for a state legislator while in high school. After graduating, he attended California State University Monterey Bay where he earned a degree in business administration. Mann then immediately transitioned into working at the school’s foundation, overseeing a new student residential housing complex and supervising a staff of 12 resident advisors. After two years, Mann returned to the Antelope Valley as the director of development for the Desert Christian Schools, one of the state’s largest private school systems. He oversaw the district’s fundraising and marketing. Mann came to the Board of Trade in July 2007. Lew Stults, a family friend and BOT director, recommended that Mann take the executive director position. No other candidate could match Mann’s enthusiasm, Stults said. He did his homework in knowing what the function of the organization was and made a list of what his priorities would be if hired, he added. “He’s task oriented,” Stults said. “Give him a job and boom it’s done.” The BOT directors set policy and projects and Mann’s job is to carry them out. He also acts as business manager and spokesman, appearing at public events. In the months since starting, Mann has started a program to increase membership and streamlined business operations. Mark R. Madler Stephen Masterson Partner-in-Charge Grant Thornton LLP Age: 38 Stephen Masterson is partner-in-charge at the business services firm of Grant Thornton in Woodland Hills, which covers a region from the San Fernando Valley through Santa Barbara County. For his elevation to that position, where he is responsible for running and managing all aspects of the office and its client services audit, tax and advisory he credits lessons he learned growing up in a small town on a farm in Alabama. “It was 1,000 acres with cotton, cattle and horses,” Masterson said. “And my parents instilled two things into me; a deep and committed work ethic and going to college to get a degree.” The things that makes his firm thrive and him advance within it are essentially the same things, he said. “You need extremely technical competence,” he said, referencing the accounting and financial services Grant Thornton provides. “You have to be extremely good at managing all the different personalities,” Masterson said, noting that includes people both inside and outside the office. The task he said “is to bring it all together.” The Manhattan Beach resident is looking to relocate with his wife closer, and hopefully within, the area he services. “My wife is opposite to me,” Masterson said, adding that she, and her work with rescuing animals, helps ” balance me out, reminding me about what’s important.” The University of Alabama graduate got a job with the now-defunct Arthur Anderson in Nashville just out of college, working there for 11 years. When the firm went under, he went west to Grant Thornton where he oversaw the western region of the firm’s Business Advisory Service, covering Seattle to San Diego, Albuquerque to Alberta, and out to Honolulu. Masterson will soon be joining Pacific Capital Bancorp in Santa Barbara as executive vice president and chief financial officer. In his current position, he is active in the business community, participating in the Association for Corporate Growth, VICA, the California Society of CPAs, the Riordan Leadership Development Program, Business for Social Responsibility, and others. He is a licensed CPA in Arizona, California, Georgia and Nevada. James Hames Rose Megian Vice President of Operations System Configuration/Vice President of Membership Accounting and Eligibility Health Net of California Age: 38 Rose Megian launched a career in health care management at the impressive age of 24. Now 38 and Health Net’s vice president of Operations System Configuration, Megian attributes her early foray into management to her inclination to take the initiative. “I started taking lead roles,” she remembered. “I would basically ask if I could take over.” Just weeks ago, Megian was given more responsibilities at Health Net. In addition to her current duties, she is now Health Net of California’s vice president of Membership Accounting and Eligibility, bringing the total of staffers she oversees to nearly 600. “It’s been pretty interesting,” said Megian, who has also worked for PacifiCare, of her new role. “I think, for me, because of the fact that I like change, and I like to learn more and become more well-rounded, I believe I’m enjoying the position.” Health Net of California President Stephen Lynch called Megian’s new role a “huge job.” And if Lynch’s description of her professional attributions is on point, there’s little doubt that Megian is up to the task. “I think that what Rose brings to the table is an attitude of getting things done and doing so in a really collaborative way,” Lynch said. “Rose takes the approach that things can be worked out. People really trust her and really count on her. What she brings is a fantastic attitude and a good problem-solving set of skills.” Asked what the challenges of her position are, Megian cited working with different personality types. “Your management style may not be appropriate for some of your people,” she said. When that’s the case, Megian tries to adopt a style more suitable for her subordinates. Many of Megian’s challenges are now behind her, though. At present, she feels she’s exactly where she wants to be career-wise. “All my hard work kind of paid off,” she said. “I’m on the right path at the right time in my career.” She hopes one day to head a Health Net division. “The reason why I took this role of vice president is because I wanted to become well-rounded, have experiences in different functional areas,” she said. For those who seek to embark on a similar career path, Megian advised never getting discouraged and developing persistence, diligence and team player skills. “You need to put all of your personal interests aside and make sure what you’re doing is meeting the company objectives and company goals. That’s basically I have done for most of my career,” she said. Nadra Kareem Patrick Parhami Vice President Wells Fargo San Fernando Valley Community Bank Age: 35 It is basic service that makes Patrick Parhami successful, he said. “We take care of the customer and they come back. We help clients get what they want.” That’s not a complicated plan. In banking, where a working teller machine is all most people want from their branch, at Parhami’s Studio City Wells Fargo branch where he is vice president, he has put a bank employee outside by the ATM to ask customers if they’re getting all the service they may need. That kind of detail has increased his branch’s sales by 40 percent in each of the last four years. In nominating Parhami, Vince Liuzzi, Wells Fargo San Fernando Valley Community Bank regional president, said “Sustained growth like this is only achieved by having a consistently strong leader.” Since Parhami became manager, his team of 36 bankers has consistently been recognized as top performers his tellers see 20 percent more customers during a day than the entire region’s average. Getting that high volume of traffic coming through the door, and beyond the ATM outside, is from the philosophy the Studio City team employs. “I love helping clients,” he said. “I introduced that philosophy to my team, and they’re so good, it makes me successful,” Parhami said. He is also a successful fundraiser, being the top earner for the Jewish Home for the Aging for the past four years. His other civic activities include serving as a board member of the Studio City Business Improvement District and he’s active with the Studio City Chamber of Commerce. He and his team have volunteered for the Studio City Holiday parade, City of Hope Walk for Breast Cancer, the Los Angeles Alzheimer’s Association Memory Walk and AIDS Walk Los Angeles. If he wasn’t in banking, Parhami said he’d be using his law degree he earned from Southwestern Law School, practicing entertainment and business law. Parhami is a member of the California Bar Association and a resident of Tarzana. James Hames Dr. Christian Raigosa Physician, Kaiser Permanente Age: 36 The physician-in-charge of Kaiser Permanente’s new Mission Hills Medical Offices will be Dr. Christian Raigosa. Scheduled to open in early 2009, the new facility will focus on providing care to the Latino community. Raigosa, a family medicine and urgent care doctor, seems uniquely suited for the role, as he has lent his medical expertise to the Latino population by appearing on Spanish language radio to discuss health and safety issues. Now, however, Raigosa serves Kaiser’s patients in the Santa Clarita Valley. He credits mentorship with helping him attain his current level of success. “Mentors have played a significant role in modeling my professional development and accomplishments,” he stated. “They have taught me the importance of dedication and determination in my endeavors and have instilled the positive attitudes required to succeed.” While he didn’t disclose what his setbacks have been, Raigosa believes that success arrives after a series of failures. “I carry this attitude and mental disposition into all professional and nonprofessional pursuits and have found it to be quite instrumental in shaping my positive mindset,” he said. An endurance athlete, in addition to being a doctor, Raigosa served as event physician for Kaiser Permanente’s recent Los Angeles Triathlon. He also served in this capacity for the Ford Ironman Triathlon Championship in Kona, Hawaii. He considers training and completing his first Ironman Triathlon to be the highlight of his career. “That event gave me unparalleled confidence in pursuing any other professional and nonprofessional ambition,” he said. “While the event took place over the span of one day, the six months of training and the challenge of balancing my work, family and this lifelong goal have underscored how I define success in all avenues of my life.” Despite Raigosa’s success thus far, the physician still has his fair share of challenges. “The most significant challenge is defining a life-balance to my professional pursuits. Being married with a young child, I’ve come to realize that my professional ambitions are really secondary to my role as a father and husband,” he said. “This can be quite challenging especially when your profession imposes significant time pressures. Finding the balance, especially with my concomitant athletic pursuits, has always been the most challenging aspect of my profession.” Nadra Kareem David Rand Attorney Manatt, Phelps & Phillips Age: 31 Sometimes the stars align in a way that bring business interests, community needs, and personal passion together in one place and one person to shake up the status quo. Sherman Oaks is one such place and Attorney David Rand is the person. “Neighborhood councils have sometimes suffered from the image of being hostile to business,” says Jill Barad, president of the Sherman Oaks Neighborhood Council and founder of the Valley Alliance of Neighborhood Councils. “I appointed David as chair of Land Use not only because he is very bright and very knowledgeable about the subject, but he is also very fair, and he looks at each issue, each project without bias.” In fact, in his post as an attorney at the law firm of Manatt Phelps and Phillips, Rand is actually one of Los Angeles’ most authoritative specialists on the topic of land-use issues. Barad credits him with the relatively smooth process of neighborhood council’s approval (with conditions) of a major expansion of a private school in the area. “Neighborhood councils have gotten a bad rap as being unfriendly to business,” says Rand. “I like to think I bring a more moderate, pro-business approach to the process.” That’s not to say businesses wanting to expand or build in Sherman Oaks gets a free pass from the local neighborhood council under Rand’s wing. “It’s important to have an open mind, but it’s mandatory that everyone gets equal respect and consideration,” he said. “I do feel our council is a good group that is sophisticated and pretty well balanced.” Jill Barad says Rand has brought a new level of professionalism to the job of Land Use Committee chair, and done so by spending enough time on the volunteer position to make it akin to having a part-time job. “I also work with him on the San Fernando Valley Legal Foundation, where he is now the grants chair,” she said. “I just got this thorough report from him about grants and grant requests that is so professional and well-researched.” Barad says that kind of time-commitment is what makes Rand a “rising star.” “And he doesn’t do it just as a resume builder, he really does it because he cares; he’s passionate about it,” she said. In addition to his service to the community and volunteering for local charities, Rand also is a regular contributor to the California Majority Report (camajorityreport.com), Sacramento’s own version of Politico.com or other policy “wonk” Web sites. Thom Senzee Sarah Richardson Marketing Director Westfield Topanga & Promenade Age: 26 It’s a matter of being in the right spot for Sarah Richardson. She had planned to get a job working with the police and was taking forensic psychology at California State University at San Marcos, in the San Diego area. But a job at mall developer and operator Westfield Group in management led from one thing to another and another. She advanced when another employee left for maternity leave. Later as a co-marketing director, the job’s full contingent of tasks fell to her when the other co-director left the company. After working with six Westfield properties in three-and-a-half years two in San Diego and four in Los Angeles she is now the Marketing Director for Westfield Topanga & Promenade in Canoga Park and Woodland Hills, which is the right spot for her right now, she said. Richardson handles virtually everything a customer may encounter at the two mall sites that isn’t retail: the Playtown kids’ play area, coat and package check, and all collateral printing from directories to barricades to banners to posters. Interior open spaces are advertising revenue spaces that her office must sell. Plus, she manages both facilities’ mystery shopper programs. And that $700 million mixed use development soon under way dubbed The Village at Westfield Topanga that is nestled between the two malls, she’s the marketing point-person for that too, where her job is to “sell the mall to the media and community,” she said. Richardson’s marketing post makes her responsible for the dozens and dozens of events at the mall itself and in the community at-large. “We have a very aggressive event schedule,” Richardson said. She’s active in local organizations, including the One Generation senior activity center, the Multiple Sclerosis Society, the Valley Cultural Center and the West Valley Boys and Girls Club. “There’s never a dull moment,” Richardson said. James Hames Daniel Rogerson Vice President of Relationship Management Citibank, South San Fernando Valley region Age: 37 As Vice President of Relationship Management for Citibank’s South San Fernando Valley region, Daniel Rogerson has ranked first in asset production among all Commercial Business Group relationship managers in North America for three consecutive years. He’s also led the nation in business lending in recent years. As if that weren’t enough, Citibank recently added him to its Entertainment Finance Group, which works on film deals. Rogerson has been with Citibank for 12 years. However, he started out at Nations Bank in Washington, D.C., moving West in 1996 to work for Glendale Federal. Initially his focus was retail, but then he transitioned into business banking and worked his way up. During this period he also had to weather a couple of mergers. Glendale Federal merged with California Federal. Then, Citibank acquired Cal Fed. While the mergers weren’t easy, they helped Rogerson become adaptable. This trait, along with being proactive and community-focused, factored into his current success. “I guess it’s just building a network and having strong ties with the community, with referral sources and getting to know the companies in my area and really just taking the time to find out what the needs are and try to meet their needs,” he said. “A lot of business I get now comes from existing customers.” Despite the large number of referrals he receives, Rogerson still strives to go out on as many calls as he can and appear before as many customers as he can to build up contacts. “The more people you know, the more opportunities you’re going to have to look at,” he explained. Kurt Tisdale, Citibank’s National Director of Staffing and Recruiting for the U.S. Business Banking Group told the Business Journal that Rogerson not only has a knack for drawing customers into the bank but working with them on an ongoing basis as well. Rogerson also believes that being based in the Valley has been a benefit. “The Valley is the best area to work,” he told the Business Journal last year. “It has the highest concentration of small-to-medium sized businesses virtually in the whole country.” Nadra Kareem Sandra Romo Branch Manager Sun Valley Branch Water and Power Community Credit Union Age: 33 Sandra Romo was selling clothes 12 years ago when she helped a customer make a purchase, nothing particularly out-of-the-ordinary, no heroic services rendered, Romo thought. But Romo’s baseline measurement for good customer service reached the superlative level for that clothing customer. That customer was a human resources manager for the Water and Power Community Credit Union and she was pleased enough with the personal attention she received to ask Romo to come on board. She started as a teller in the Sunset branch then worked in phone services, then in the customer service department as Member Services Representative. Romo then became an assistant manager at that Sunset branch. In 2005, she became a manager at the Sun Valley branch. The credit union finances hundreds of cars a month, and at Romo’s branch she said many of the customers require help securing their financial futures, often by simply helping her members establish credit. “Many are new to the country or the area,” she said. Much like helping that retail customer with her wardrobe, Romo said she “really likes helping people.” Robin Elhabr, of Water and Power Community Credit Union’s branch marketing and business development, nominated Romo for that reason. “Not only does Sandra work endless hours making sure her staff and members are happy, she also ensures that local independent car dealers are getting their needs met as well,” Elhabr said. “It makes me feel good to help them,” Romo said. Elhabr said “While some may see the auto dealer industry as intimidating place for a woman, Sandra demands and earns respect of the managers and salespeople.” Romo said her longterm goal is to work herself up to the director of banking position, a big vision but attainable goal for the one-time teller. Romo, a resident of Glendale and a Los Angeles native, said she goes running to de-stress, and takes short trips to Santa Barbara and San Diego. She graduated from Cal State Univeristy-Northridge. James Hames Wendy Saunders Executive Director Mid Valley Family YMCA Age: 33 To obtain a clear assessment of how vital a presence Wendy Saunders is to the Mid Valley YMCA, one only needs to talk to Flip Smith, the owner of Flip’s Tires and a member of the YMCA’s board of directors for the last 32 years. “The YMCA is a handful. It’s hard for people who aren’t involved with it to understand how tough it is to run and the breadth of programs that have to be coordinated,” Smith said. “I’ve been through a lot executive directors, I think I’ve helped hire eight of them and Wendy is probably the best of the bunch. She’s a tireless worker, her management skills are excellent and she’s built an incredible unit over there. Not to mention the fact that she’s got them in the black for the first time that I can remember.” According to Saunders, the secret to her managerial success is simple: hard-work, determination and integrity. “I have very high standards and my goal is to continually improve what I’m working on,” Saunders said. “Working in the non-profit industry requires a lot of time and hard work and sacrifice just to do the things that we’ve done. Of course, having the right team of people working together and keeping them motivated and focused is always key.” Overseeing an annual budget of $2.5 million, 60 employees and 200 volunteers is certainly no easy task in and of itself, but Saunders finds herself continually pushing forward, always trying to raise more funds for the Y, as well as striving to initiate a new capital improvement project for the 50-year old building. While that task might sound reasonably pedestrian, it was just a decade ago that the Y was in danger of closure. Ultimately, Saunders believes in her work because of the impact she’s able to have in the community. “When I get tired, I think about what the community would be without the Y. Our programs help bring families together and allow children after-school supervision so their parents can work,” Saunders said. “I love being able to improve the quality of life for those that are underserved.” Jeff Weiss Jason Shapiro COO Prescriptive Music Age: 36 Jason Shapiro once swung baseball bats for a living. Now, as Chief Operating Officer of Prescriptive Music he gets others to swing. Woodland Hills-based Prescriptive Music provides a custom music soundscape to restaurants, stores, hotels, doctors’ offices and other businesses. He is responsible for the strategic direction of the company, calculating its growth. The firm grew by 200 percent in 2006 and the company reached the $2 million level in 2007. Not bad for a guy who came aboard in 2005 when his friend, Allen Klevens, was looking for an investor. Shapiro, after nine years in the mortgage business working for himself and others, became the “finance guy, the manager,” he said, but not because he knew anything about music. “I know about singing in the shower,” Shapiro said. And he knows about teams. When he played baseball at University of California, Davis, he was captain for three of his four years, before playing two years of minor league ball in the Chicago White Sox system. “It’s about teamwork. I got the most out of my teams,” Shapiro said. His contemporary parallel to the locker room, for the customized music atmosphere business, is that “if you get the people right and the team right, at the right time and the right place” you can satisfy the customer, he said. “And our clients know how much we care,” Shapiro said. He balances his work life with his family life, golf, softball and exercise. Born in Culver City and raised in Tarzana, he lives in West Hills. Shapiro said his immediate goal is to turn the $2 million company into a $5 million dollar company by adding “many, many hospitality groups” to their lineup. His long-term goal is to make Prescriptive Music an $8-$10 million company making a success by good use of hits, again. James Hames Stephen Siegel CEO The Siegel Group Age: 36 Stephen Siegel said he “didn’t have a plan,” he just figured out a way to support himself. He has. Siegel has leveraged his ninth grade education and job at McDonald’s into a $200 million company that Inc. magazine labeled one of the country’s 500 Fastest Growing in 2007. He went from “buying then refurbishing cars and selling them; to buying and refurbishing businesses and selling those; to buying and refurbishing buildings and selling those.” Siegel said. At the end of January of this year he bought a hotel/casino in Las Vegas. His Siegel Suites company is the largest flexible-state apartment provider in the Las Vegas area. Flexible-state rentals are a means by which the operator of apartment units supplies furniture and pays utilities and tenants can pay weekly. His Studio City-based Siegel Group firm is the umbrella company that all his other endeavors fall under, which also includes auto collision repair shops and several property management companies that handle his apartment buildings. His newest project, refurbishing and growing the 110-room Gold Spike Hotel and Casino in downtown Las Vegas, is his newest model for the future. Siegel said he expects to leverage his Siegel Group onto the Strip. “I get bored pretty easily,” he said. “Most people look at me and think I’m crazy.” He travels back and forth between homes and offices in Las Vegas and Studio City, keeping his three dogs in the latter place since Las Vegas is one of the few places “hotter than the Valley.” Although he unwinds by fishing and working out and taking some short trips, “I like what I do,” he said, so he doesn’t look for reasons not to do it. James Hames Darnell Tyler Director of Real Estate Planning and Community Relations Development, NBC Universal Age: 38 Large movie studios also have large real estate investments that someone must manage. As director of real estate planning and community relations at NBC Universal, Darnell Tyler oversees a mammoth enterprise. “I’m proud to be involved in probably the largest single real estate investment in the San Fernando Valley, the Universal City Vision Plan,” Tyler said. As it unfolds, the project, which includes a massive retail element, is being anticipated by a host of business, labor, and government officials as a new and powerful engine to drive the region’s economy. “This is a project that will bring entertainment industry jobs, much needed transportation improvements and housing to a mature job center,” Tyler said. But in addition to the glamour of steering the Universal City Vision Plan, Tyler is responsible for NBC Universal’s relationship with its neighbors. To both functions, he brings a set of values he has cultivated as a military man, a weatherman and a family man. “Passion, integrity, persistence and teamwork,” Tyler says are his core professional values. “Passion because working in entertainment every day on the job brings me a different challenge and that challenge keeps me motivated. Integrity, because it seems as though that is something that’s been lost in corporate America.” Tyler says persistence is vital in business because nothing worthwhile comes easy, and accomplishments through teamwork offer each member of the team a feeling like no other. Darnell Tyler’s civic activities and volunteer efforts are too long to list, but include serving on the boards of the Toluca Lake Chamber, the East Valley Family YMCA, Valley Industry and Commerce Association, Campo de Cahuenga Historical Memorial Association, and Los Angeles Headquarters Association. “I’m on the event committees for the Hollywood/LA Beautification Team, March of Dimes,” Tyler adds. “I’ve been the presenting sponsor of the East Valley YMCA golf tournament which is the most successful YMCA golf tournament in Southern California.” Before coming to NBC Universal, Tyler worked for the National Weather Service at Los Angeles International Airport, and spent several years in the US Air Force doing Presidential Support in Washington DC. “I’ve been married for 18 years to my wife Debbie who works for her father, Larry Hibbler, president of Simi Valley Ford and I have a future doctor, Breanna, attending Spelman College,” Tyler said. Thom Senzee Dustin White Founder and CEO Capital Network Leasing Corp. Age: 32 Building and growing a company is exciting to Dustin White. As founder and CEO of Capital Network Leasing, White has done just that. Started while White, a Valley native, was a student at Pepperdine University, CapNet provides funding for equipment leases for large to small companies in 35 industries. White did spend some time working for an insurance broker in Encino but a preference for business-to-business sales led to focusing on CapNet. His entrepreneurial talents got the best of him, White said, and he couldn’t resist growing the company. White employs a sales force of more than 70 from new offices in Burbank. It also has locations in Orange County and Arizona. When David Schaefer first met White, there were only 10 employees. White has done a tremendous job of building CapNet by bringing vision, thinking strategically and valuing relationships, said Schaefer, of Orion First Financial, LLC. “You go into his organization and you see that,” Schaefer said. “He has influenced the company and his stamp is on his company.” CapNet landed as No. 1 on the Business Journal’s fastest growing private companies list in 2007, and was recognized as one of the best companies to work for by the Los Angeles Business Journal. White credits the hiring of Blake Johnson as president as a step that played a part in the company growth. With Johnson focusing on the sales staff, White shifted his direction on overall strategies and marketing CapNet as the type of organization it wanted to be. That passion and energy impressed Schaefer. “I like people like that,” Schaefer said. “I see a bit of me when I was a young guy.” While the company started by offering equipment leases, it has branched out with other services such as working capital and credit cards so that it can be a full-service firm for businesses that want to grow. Because the sales staff spends so much time in the office, White created a culture where they can thrive. Their ranks are filled with former college athletes because they exhibit qualities – perseverance, dedication to hard work, and a long-term determination to win- needed to succeed in sales. “I want to ensure that they say they are glad to work at Capital Network,” White said. Mark R. Madler Mimi Williams Office Manager/Director of Nursing Northridge Facial Plastic Surgery Age: 37 The dearth of nurses nationwide has long been one of health care’s most pressing issues. Mimi Williams, director of nursing and office manager for Northridge Facial Plastic Surgery, has done her part to combat the problem by recruiting, training and placing nurses in the medical facilities that need them. “I have been involved in training new graduates and acting as a ‘preceptor’ to them over the years,” Williams stated. “I have contacts with several nurses and consultants.” Angela Giacobbe of ANG Public Relations & Marketing in Westlake Village nominated Williams for the Business Journal’s 40 under 40 award, in part, because of Williams’ efforts to counteract the nursing shortage. “It’s so hard to find good nurses,” Giacobbe said. “She’s really helped with trying to get nurses, networking nurses and trying to get nurses placed.” Williams began her nursing career at Northridge Hospital Medical Center in 1991. Since 1998, she has served as director of nursing for several outpatient ambulatory surgery centers, but it was at Northridge Hospital, where she was employed until 2004, that she met Dr. Marc Kerner and Dr. Ronald Accomazzo of Northridge Facial. Working in private practice has its benefits as far as Williams is concerned. “I very much like the hands-on nursing and enjoy taking care of patients and seeing them all the way through their surgical procedure and/or illness,” she stated. “This is why I enjoy working for a private practice and surgical facility. I am the one the patient can count on and call to get their questions answered. At the hospital, there is less continuity of care. Once the patient leaves the hospital you don’t have any contact with them unless they are re-admitted.” Giacobbe knows firsthand how important providing quality patient care is to Williams. “I’ve worked with Mimi now for five or six years. I do marketing for a doctor that she works for,” Giacobbe explained. “She is by far outstanding. Not only is she great at what she does from a clinical perspective. She has a tender, caring side as well. Everyone she touches is inspired by her because she’s just so sweet to everybody.” Williams believes that those individuals who enter the nursing profession because of financial reasons rather than to provide care undermine it. Such nurses may dampen day-to-day interactions with patients by failing to answer questions from patients or adequately explain procedures to them. “It definitely impacts patient care,” Williams said. A native of the San Fernando Valley who grew up in Granada Hills, Williams said she is motivated to find caring nurses because she spent her childhood in and out of hospitals as a result of suffering from a heart condition. “When I was 10-years-old, I was a patient at St. Vincent’s,” Williams recalled. “I had open heart surgery. I got great nursing care there. That’s what really motivated me to become a nurse myself.” Nadra Kareem