Hospitality | Tourism 2023: RITA D. McCLENNY
As head of the state’s tourism agency since 2012, McClenny has seen the industry through ups and downs. In the wake of the pandemic, she helped secure federal dollars to assist statewide tourism rebound. In 2021, 102 million visitors spent $25.2 billion in Virginia, according to a study released by the agency last fall, still […]
Manufacturing 2023: M. SCOTT CULBRETH
Culbreth began working for cabinets manufacturer American Woodmark in 2014 as chief financial officer and was named president and CEO in 2020. The company’s cabinet brands include American Woodmark, Shenandoah Cabinetry, Timberlake Cabinetry and Waypoint Living Spaces. In April, American Woodmark reported its net sales increased 11.3% year-over-year in fiscal 2023 to $2.06 billion. Last [&he[...]
Manufacturing 2023: JONATHAN JENKINS
In 1976, Culpeper Wood Preservers started from a single location in Culpeper. Today, the company is a leading manufacturer of pressure-treated lumber products for the residential, commercial, industrial and marine markets, with 17 locations around the East Coast and in Indiana and Tennessee. A 1990 East Carolina University graduate who was recruited by the Chicago […]
Professional Services 2023: KRISTEN CAVALLO
The Martin Agency’s CEO since 2017, Cavallo was named global head of MullenLowe Group in November 2022 and now holds both jobs, overseeing 13 companies with 4,000 employees worldwide. She previously was president and chief strategy and growth officer of MullenLowe U.S. before leading Martin. Cavallo was named Ad Age’s Executive of the Year in […]
Professional Services 2023: RUTH ‘PAIGE’ CLAY
Clay joined the human resources and operations firm, one of Marsh McLennan’s global businesses, in 2011 and uses her expertise in talent assessment and development, organizational design and strategy creation to serve clients in Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee and the Carolinas. Prior to working at Mercer, Clay was senior vice president of global human resources for […]
2023 Virginia 500: Federal Contractors | Technology
Craig P. Abod PRESIDENT AND FOUNDER, CARAHSOFT TECHNOLOGY, RESTON Reggie Aggarwal FOUNDER AND CEO, CVENT, McLEAN Mahfuz Ahmed CHAIRMAN AND CEO, DEXIAN, McLEAN Ryan Angold CEO, ADS, VIRGINIA BEACH Tom Arseneault PRESIDENT AND CEO, BAE SYSTEMS INC., FALLS CHURCH Greg Baroni FOUNDER AND CEO, […]
Health Care 2023: ANTHONY ‘TONY’ BAKER
Baker leads Fortune 500 pharma manufacturer Merck’s vaccine operations in Elkton, managing hundreds of scientists, engineers who support the manufacturing, validation and process development of medicines to protect people from disease. Before Merck, Baker spent seven years at Biopharm Project Solutions. Baker joined Merck in 2008 as a process engineer and held engineering management jobs [&h[...]
Manufacturing 2023: BRIAN D. PALIOTTI
In January, Paliotti took over as Afton Chemical’s president, succeeding Gina Harm, who retired at the end of 2022. A subsidiary of Richmond-based NewMarket, Afton Chemical produces and sells petroleum additives. Paliotti has worked for NewMarket since 2008, most recently as its vice president and chief financial officer. He previously worked in finance roles for […]
Real Estate 2023: TIMOTHY A. FAULKNER
Named CEO of Breeden in January 2022, Faulkner oversees a real estate development and property management company founded more than 60 years ago by Chairman Ramon W. Breeden Jr. Faulkner previously served as chief operating officer and president of property management for Breeden, which has about 425 employees in Virginia. This year, the company’s Breeden […]
Arts | Entertainment | Sports 2023: CLAY CAMPBELL
For Campbell, the past year has been a chance to celebrate milestones — both NASCAR and Martinsville Speedway marked their 75th anniversaries in the second half of 2022. Owned by NASCAR, Martinsville Speedway hosts NASCAR Cup Series races every spring and fall. Campbell’s grandfather, H. Clay Earles, built the paperclip-shaped speedway in 1947, and Campbell […]
Education 2023: MAJ. GEN. DONDI E. COSTIN (U.S. AIR FORCE, RET.)
A retired 32-year Air Force veteran who served as the branch’s chief of chaplains at the Pentagon, Costin became president of Liberty, one of the nation’s largest Christian universities, in August. Costin, who received master’s degrees in counseling and religion from Liberty, retired from the Air Force in 2018 to become president of Charleston Southern […]
Federal Contractors | Technology 2023: CRAIG P. ABOD
As president of Carahsoft, the privately owned IT and cybersecurity solutions provider, Abod prefers staying out of the media spotlight. It’s enough that everyone in the government contracting industry knows him. A University of Maryland alumnus who founded Carahsoft in 2004, Abod previously worked for DLT Solutions and Falcon Systems. Carahsoft landed at No. 47 […]