From the Corner Office

This week, we speak with Megan Rose, president and CEO of Better Together. Better Together, based in Fort Myers, has served more than 10,000 children across Florida, keeping families intact and out of the state system. And it’s helped nearly 40,000 people, many in ‘second-chance’ life situations, find employment across 24 states. On the episode, Better Together CEO Megan Rose talks about the impor...

Freddy Williams was named CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Lake and Sumter County in 2012, when he was 28-years-old. Four years later he was CEO of the youth-focused nonprofit in Pinellas County. And now he’s at the helm of a Boys & Girls Club operation that stretches through Pinellas, Pasco and Hillsborough counties. On this episode Freddie chats with Business Observer Managing Editor Mar...

Chris founded Aginto, a digital and marketing firm, in 2011. Clients include small and midsize companies in health care, law, industrial sectors and home services. Chris’ amazing never-quit backstory, before Aginto, includes a major life turnaround: He was unemployed, living alone, first in his car, then in a run-down motel in Sarasota with sticky floors. Desperate, he started his business while w...

LaShawn has been the market leader in Tampa for JLL since 2019. Her territory covers Tampa Bay and Central Florida and she oversees more than 40 brokers. A passionate alum of the University of Kansas, LaShawn has been in the Tampa market for some 20 years and the commercial real estate business for 25 years. She’s executed over 350 assignments totaling $5 billion for institutional clients with bot...

Mark Gordon is the Managing Editor of the Business Observer. He has been with the Business Observer since 2005, where he’s written about companies, development, entrepreneurs and how government intersects with business, among other topics. He currently oversees the paper’s coverage from Tampa to Naples, in print and online, overseeing a staff of reporters and photographers, in addition to writing...

Patrick has worked in sales, marketing, training and product development for more than 30 years. He has also been a leader in building teams and creating a sustainable positive corporate culture at both family businesses and large corporations. Brands he's worked for include Procter & Gamble and Stryker Corp. He’s been with Shepherd Insurance, and its predecessor brand in Sarasota, Al Purmot I...

Kim oversees the entrepreneurship center at the State College of Florida, where she works with and guides entrepreneurs, mentors, investors, founders, and aspiring founders. Prior to that Kim worked in branding and marketing for several iconic American brands, including Sears, Kraft Foods and FAO Schwarz, where she had profit and loss responsibility for up to $2 billion. In 2006 she founded her ow...

A sixth-generation Floridian, Kevin founded Tampa-based Golden Road Advisors, a registered investment advisor firm, in 2021. Prior to Golden Road, Kevin was a financial advisor for wealth management companies in the area, including Morgan Keegan and a decade with Raymond James. A proud University of Florida alum, Kevin also helped launch the school’s wealth management studies program and teaches a...

Jennifer has been at the helm of the foundation, which supports and enhances the Sarasota School District’s public education system, since 2015. Prior to joining the foundation Jennifer worked in banking, real estate, fundraising and more.  Business Observer Managing Editor Mark Gordon and Jennifer talked about the mission of the foundation, including its why: ensuring success for students and tea...

John is a Philly guy who has taken to loving his new adopted hometown in Manatee County. He worked in accounting and finance for the Philadelphia Phillies baseball team for 15 years, starting as an intern in the ticketing office and working his way up to director of finance. He and his family relocated to the area in 2020, where he took a position heading up finance and accounting for the Universi...

John started an IT consulting business (now managed service provider, MSP) while a junior at the University of Florida in 2007. He sold that company to CRS in 2015. The Cape Coral-based company works with a host of companies in Southwest Florida on technology and related issues.  Business Observer Managing Editor Mark Gordon and John talked about CRS’ core values — passion, respect, collaboration...

Yvonne is the founder and CEO of Workforce Development Partners, a nonprofit in the Tampa Bay region that connects high school students with trades and other companies. She’s also an entrepreneur, who has started and grown a branding company and talent agency, among other firms, and a dedicated and visible economic development cheerleader for the Tampa Bay region, especially east Hillsborough Coun...

Ron has been a prominent business and health care attorney in Tampa and Florida for more than two decades. He currently oversees Shumaker Advisors, a public policy firm that works with clients in Florida, as well as nationally and globally, on a host of regulatory and government issues. Ron is also known across Tampa Bay and Florida for his diverse civic leadership; he’s currently chair of the Tam...

Erin Silk has been at the helm of the EDC since June 2023. She held other titles with the organization before that promotion, including COO and vice president of business development services. Prior to joining the EDC, Erin was CEO of Venice Main Street Inc., a community revitalization organization in south Sarasota County.  Business Observer Managing Editor Mark Gordon and Erin talked about her p...

Seth is a dermatologist by trade but also has a variety of other pieces to his career: He founded a research practice, CenExcel, and also owns multiple commercial real estate properties in north Tampa, where he’s developing a medical hub. Seth is also a philanthropist, having donated significantly to Hillel Academy in Tampa, where two buildings are named after him.  Business Observer Managing Edit...

Franceen Gonzales has more than 35 years experience in the amusement park and leisure and entertainment industry. She was named president of Legoland Florida Resort in Polk County in June. Prior to Legoland, Franceen was an executive for WhiteWater West, Great Wolf Resorts and Six Flags.   Business Observer Managing Editor Mark Gordon and Franceen talked about how she went from wanting to become a...

This week we speak with Josh and Alan Bomstein. Alan Bomstein is the founder of Clearwater-based Creative Contractors, which he launched, a bit by accident, he says in 1974. His son Josh Bomstein was recently named CEO of the company. With about $190 million in revenue, the company’s portfolio of notable projects includes the Clearwater Marine Aquarium, BayCare corporate headquarters and the Kirkl...

This week, we speak with Bill Daubmann, CEO and founder of MY Shower Door. Bill founded Fort Myers-based MY Shower Door in 2003, and the company has since grown to nearly 200 employees with a presence in Florida and recently North Carolina. Prior to that Bill was in the closet design and installation business, and prior to that he was a professional hockey referee. Business Observer Managing Edito...

Beck is the co-founder of 3D Cloud, a virtual reality and augmented reality software firm that works with furniture retailers, kitchen cabinet manufacturers and others. He previously founded another tech company that transaction processing giant NCR acquired in 2003. He was also a senior executive with Catalina Marketing in St. Petersburg for five years.   Business Observer Managing Editor Mark Go...

Veronica was named executive director of the Manatee Community Foundation in August 2023. Prior to that role she was a senior vice president and COO of the Gulf Coast Community Foundation. And before that she worked in human resources in health care, including managing 1,300 employees at Blake Medical Center in Bradenton.   Business Observer Managing Editor Mark Gordon and Veronica talked about so...

Dr. Larry R. Thompson became president of Ringling College of Art and Design in July 1999. As the head of this pre-eminent art and design college, he is transforming the way people think about art and design and why businesses must infuse creativity to thrive. A lawyer and an educator, Thompson served as Special Assistant to the President of The Ohio State University, President/CEO of Flint Cultur...

Robert Hensley has been president and CEO of Integrity Employee Leasing since 2021. The company handles back-office services for small and mid-sized businesses, from payroll processing and workers’ compensation coverage to timekeeping and employee benefits management. The Charlotte County company has clients with employees in 20 states. Prior to Integrity, Robert was a franchisee for First Watch i...

Erin Duggan is president and CEO of Visit Sarasota County, a position she was appointed to after 18 years with the organization. Prior to being named CEO, Duggan was public relations manager, brand director and vice president.   Together, Business Observer Managing Editor Mark Gordon and Erin talk about her leadership lessons working in several different positions at VSC, what she learned from her...

Ian Black has been in the commercial real estate industry for some 60 years, first in his native Northern Ireland and, since 1982, Sarasota. He founded his own company in 2003, and Ian Black Real Estate over the past 20 years has worked on, brokered and played a key part in several prominent Sarasota projects, especially downtown and in the Rosemary district. Ian is also on multiple civic and nonp...

Paul Sohl is CEO of the Florida High Tech Corridor Council, an economic development initiative of the University of Central Florida, the University of South Florida and the University of Florida. Paul oversees The Corridor Council’s portfolio of programs supporting research, marketing, workforce and entrepreneurship. Sohl joined The Corridor Council in June 2020, following more than three decades...