Meet the 2025 Mountain West finalists

Sam is the President & CEO of Brandlive.

Brandlive is bringing YouTube and streaming into the enterprise. With a patented cloud-based studio and innovative creative and production tools, Brandlive helps the world’s biggest companies create engaging, high-impact content for webinars, town halls and marketing events.

Gary is the CEO and Board Member of Career Certified.

Career Certified makes purpose attainable. From pre-licensing, post-licensing, exam prep and continuing education coursework to tools for the entire lifecycle of a professional’s career, the company pairs an easy-to-use platform and flexible learning options with a deep understanding of students’ needs conducive to guiding them to career freedom.

Travis is the CEO of Distributor Wire & Cable.

DWC specializes in the distribution of wire and cable products, serving wholesale electrical distributors. In addition to supplying high-quality products, DWC offers value-added services such as custom cut lengths, striping, dyeing, paralleling and modifications compliant with the National Electric Code. The company also provides expert support in customer service, logistics optimization, product selection, transparent pricing and efficient order processing, ensuring a seamless experience for its clients.

Ryan is the CEO of Honey Smoked Fish Holdings, LLC.

Originally founded in 2001 in Denver, Honey Smoked Fish has grown to become a premier national seafood business selling unique smoked salmon products across retail, mass, club and foodservice channels. The company provides succulent smoked salmon products, including portions, dips and a snacking line, that are fully cooked, convenient and high in protein. The company differentiates itself by utilizing fresh, never-frozen raw materials and an artisanal small-batch smoking process.

Sree is the Group CEO of iLink Digital.

iLink Digital, established in 2002, is a global leader in digital transformation, specializing in data engineering, generative artificial intelligence, cloud operations, business applications and robotic process automation consulting. The company holds ISO 9001 and CMMI Level 3 accreditations, reflecting its commitment to quality and process excellence.

Don is the President & CEO of Johnson Storage & Moving Co. Holdings, LLC.

Johnson's is a diversified logistics business headquartered in Centennial, Colorado. Johnson’s offers consumers and businesses a wide array of goods and services, including office and industrial relocations, domestic and international freight forwarding, supply chain logistics and office furniture.

Brian is the CEO of Kestra Medical Technologies, Inc.

Kestra Medical Technologies is a wearable medical device and digital health care company that helps protect patients with diagnostic and therapeutic technologies that are intuitive, intelligent and mobile.

Kestra innovations empower providers and patients to collaborate toward better care and improved outcomes.

Kestra’s mission is to provide innovative, intuitive medical technologies to protect and support at-risk patients.

John is the CEO of King Energy.

Based in Durango, Colorado, King Energy is the leader in multitenant solar. The company installs, owns, and operates large solar and battery systems on commercial and industrial buildings nationwide.

King Energy’s model is simple: it rents the roof from the property owner with an easy, no-strings-attached lease, then it sells the solar energy to the tenants at a discount to their retail cost of electricity, earning money between the discounted energy price and the amortized cost of the system. The company takes care of all the logistics, operations and finance. Landlords earn additional rent, and tenants save money on their electricity bills.

Scott is the Founder and CEO of Kingbee Vans.

Kingbee Vans was created in 2021 to fill the gaps in traditional fleet procurement, offering work-ready vans with multiple term lengths and financing options delivered to customers in 48 states in just two to four weeks. Kingbee’s extensive inventory of available vehicles, combined with its in-house upfitting and wrap shops, enables the company to quickly get vehicles into customers’ fleets while exercising complete control over quality, communication and support. With customers in industries ranging from home services to delivery, Kingbee’s innovative model is transforming the way fleets procure their revenue-generating assets.

Clifton is the President & CEO of NEI Electric Power Engineering, Inc.

NEI specializes in high-voltage electrical infrastructure and provides essential consulting services for designing, optimizing and maintaining systems used in power generation, transmission and distribution. This focus is becoming increasingly important due to global trends such as decarbonization, the integration of renewable energy, and the electrification of vehicles and heavy industry. NEI’s expertise in these areas plays a crucial role in facilitating the transition to new energy sources, enhancing energy security and supporting development goals.

Josh is the CEO of NetDocuments.

NetDocuments enables legal professionals to do their best work with an intelligent document management system (DMS) that goes beyond getting organized and brings to life seamless artificial intelligence (AI), powerful workflows and smarter experiences. The No. 1 trusted cloud-native DMS for more than 25 years, NetDocuments delivers tools to make work easier throughout the document lifecycle — from award-winning automation and AI to email management, search, collaboration, document bundling, advanced security and more. The platform also integrates with more than 150 other technologies, including Microsoft 365, Docusign and practice management systems, making it a core solution that meets users wherever they work.

Curtis is the Founder & CEO of Nursa.

Nursa is a nationwide platform that exists to put a nurse at the bedside of every patient in need quickly and safely, removing the financial strain and operational gaps of traditional staffing methods. Nursa’s real-time technology enables hospitals, health systems, skilled nursing facilities and community organizations to easily secure qualified, local nursing talent for per diem shifts. Founded in 2019 and built on the bedrock granite of Lake Bonneville in Salt Lake City, Nursa is trusted by a growing community of more than 1,500 facilities and 100,000 nurses nationwide and is accredited by The Joint Commission.

Hemanshu (HP) is the Principal/Owner & CEO of Olson Kundig.

Now in its sixth decade of practice, Olson Kundig is a collaborative design practice whose work includes private and multifamily residential, hospitality projects, commercial and mixed-use design (including wineries and sports facilities), cultural and museum projects, exhibition design, places of worship, interior design, product design and landscape design. With offices in Seattle, New York City and Chicago, the firm and its team of more than 350 work with clients around the world.

Bruno is the Co-founder + CEO of Pura.

Pura is passionate about creating spaces and places where people want to be, and the company does it by designing the best fragrance experiences enjoyed through the power of smart technology. Pura creates tech-forward fragrance diffusers for every space within the home, via the Pura Plus, Pura 4 and Pura Mini, as well as the Pura Car Pro, for on-the-go scenting. Pura’s marketplace is unlike any other, featuring luxury fragrances, developed by master perfumers, created in partnership with brands like NEST New York, LAFCO, Disney, Studio McGee, Capri Blue and Anthropologie. The Pura app empowers users to experience scent how they want it, when they want it and where they want it. The company’s ideas are big and its pursuits lofty, grounded in a very simple truth — life is better when it smells good.

Jason is the Founder & CEO of Revant Optics.

The eyewear industry is on the brink of transformation and Revant Optics is leading the way. What started as a premium replacement lens company — offering high-quality, precision-cut lenses for brands like Oakley and Ray-Ban — has evolved into a category-defining direct-to-consumer business that extends the life of eyewear while reducing plastic waste. The company’s innovative approach provides customers with a cost-effective, sustainable alternative to replacing their entire frames.

Richard is the CEO of Sphere Renewables LLC.

Sphere Renewables is one of the largest wind energy supply chain firms in the US. Sphere has two manufacturing facilities in Colorado and is supported by strategic global partners. Sphere provides quick turnaround local manufacturing solutions for the US wind and solar industries. Key products include fiberglass covers, LV cables, transport equipment, commissioning and construction trailers, repower upfit kits, and steel tools and fabrications.

Dallen is the CEO and Co-Founder of Tava Health.

Tava Health offers a platform that addresses challenges facing both patients and providers in the behavioral health care system. The platform tackles key barriers on both sides of the therapeutic relationship.

For patients seeking mental health support, Tava Health simplifies the process of finding appropriate care. The platform handles provider discovery, appointment scheduling and care coordination, creating a straightforward pathway to behavioral health services.

On the provider side, Tava Health addresses administrative burden. By automating documentation, insurance verification, billing procedures and other paperwork tasks, the platform frees clinicians from administrative responsibilities. This allows mental health professionals to focus more time on delivering personalized care to their patients.

Matt is the CEO of Waystar.

Waystar’s mission-critical, cloud-based platform streamlines the end-to-end health care payments workflow — from pre-service patient identification and access to post-service collections — while delivering hundreds of new enhancements each quarter that drive new efficiencies, greater accuracy and meaningful ROI. Providers of all types and sizes across the continuum of care, including physician practices, clinics, surgical centers, laboratories, and large hospitals and health systems, use Waystar’s software daily. It serves approximately 30,000 clients, representing more than one million distinct providers, including 16 of 20 institutions on the U.S. News Best Hospitals Honor Roll.