2026 Judging Panel
Brandon Eldridge serves as Executive Director of the Pikes Peak Small Business Development Center, where he brings more than 25 years of management and nonprofit leadership experience to support entrepreneurs across the region. A longtime Colorado Springs resident, Brandon is a passionate advocate for small business, economic development, and building a stronger local economy. His background includes extensive work in board governance, strategic planning, community engagement, and cross-sector collaboration. He has served on multiple nonprofit boards, was elected by his peers as an LPP Community Trustee in 2019, and was recognized as a 2020 Colorado Springs Business Journal Rising Star. Brandon is cyber-certified through the SBDC NorthStar program and has completed EDCC 101, strengthening his ability to help businesses navigate cybersecurity, growth, and economic development opportunities.
Janine Ledingham
Larimer County
Janine Ledingham is the Associate Director of Economic Development for Larimer County Economic and Workforce Development (LCEWD). She brings 15 years of experience driving regional economic growth, fostering public-private partnerships, and supporting businesses across Colorado. She has held leadership, business consulting, and training roles with Small Business Development Centers statewide, served as a Director with the Longmont Economic Development Partnership, and worked as Regional Director for Colorado's Manufacturing Extension Partnership, where she championed the needs of primary manufacturers. She also brings corporate insight from her work in the corporate strategy group of a Fortune 500 telecommunications company. A native Coloradan, Janine holds a BA in History from Trinity University and an MBA from the University of Colorado Boulder's Leeds School of Business.
Jill Simonds is the CEO of Savvy, an award-winning value creation firm helping privately held companies scale with confidence and build lasting enterprise value. Through a team of experienced COOs, CMOs, CROs, CEOs, and CFOs, Jill helps growth-stage organizations create immediate momentum, stronger leadership infrastructure, and scalable operational clarity. A four-time business owner with a Master's degree in Organizational Leadership from Colorado State University (2018), she brings deep experience from founder-led companies across B2B and B2C markets. Since 2016, Jill has helped companies improve profit margins, break through new revenue stages, and align leadership teams around the drivers that compound value over time—with a focus on strengthening leadership infrastructure, systems, customer capital, and reputation so businesses become scalable, resilient, and less dependent on their founders.
Karen Gerwitz brings 30 years of experience in international business across the private, public, and nonprofit sectors. As President & CEO of the World Trade Center Denver, she champions Denver's growth as a globally conscious city and leads the organization's development in the Fox Park neighborhood. Her expertise spans business development, strategic growth, and marketing, with overseas experience in Ghana and Austria and sector experience across IT, aerospace, lumber, science, mining, and government. She has coordinated official visits including those of the Emperor and Empress of Japan, the G8 Summit, and the Western Hemisphere Ministerial Summit. Karen holds a BS in International Business and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Colorado.
Komal Goyal is the CEO of 6e Technologies, where she leads enterprise modernization initiatives focused on delivering measurable outcomes through ERP implementation, automation, and digital transformation. Since assuming leadership in 2016, she has scaled the company significantly, supporting Fortune 500 companies and U.S. federal agencies. With over 25 years of experience, Komal specializes in SaaS ERP implementations and the practical application of AI/ML to improve customer experience. She is a member of the Forbes Technology Council and a recognized advocate for women-owned businesses in federal contracting. 6e Technologies holds certifications including 8(a), WOSB, HUBZone, ISO 9001, ISO 20000, ISO 27001, and CMMC Level 1.
Lee Wheeler-Berliner
Managing Director
CWDC Office
Lee Wheeler-Berliner leads the Colorado Workforce Development Council (CWDC) Office as Managing Director, executing strategies to sustain an industry-led talent development system statewide. A collaborator and facilitator, he forges partnerships with industry and public partners to align talent development efforts across Colorado. Lee is a member of the inaugural class of Workforce Fellows for Results for America, a Governor-appointed member of the Business Experiential Learning Commission, and a former member of the State Rehabilitation Council. He holds an MBA with a concentration in social entrepreneurship from Duke University and a BS in psychology from Vanderbilt University. Lee has been with the CWDC since 2014 and volunteers on the NSF ASCEND Engine governance board and the Community Resource Center board of directors.
LeVon Terry is a strategic finance leader with over 20 years of experience helping founders unlock growth and build shareholder value. He is the founder of Capfluent, a boutique advisory firm that partners with overlooked entrepreneurs to scale with clarity, access capital, and maximize equity outcomes. Prior to launching Capfluent, LeVon served as Director of Finance and Portfolio Strategy at a private equity firm, and previously held roles in fintech, investment banking, and institutional asset management. Throughout his career, he has advised early-stage and growth-stage companies on capital formation, strategic finance, financial modeling, investor communications, and go-to-market operations. LeVon is also an active ecosystem builder and thought partner to accelerators, capital providers, and mission-driven founders. He holds a BSc in Economics from the University of Dayton and is based in Denver, Colorado.
Marisela Parraguez
Economic Development Professional
25 years of experience in economic development includes design and development of government programs to support SMEs and promote innovation in start-ups both nationally and internationally. Nearly seven full years of experience working with Colorado businesses at the state and local level, including support to business creation, expansion, and attraction. Long experience designing and administering incentives for businesses in Colorado and throughout Latin America. Master of Public Management from the University of Maryland. Fluent in Spanish (native) and English.
Mary Grothe is a three-time Founder/CEO, CCTW alumna (2021), and second-time CCTW judge. She is the founder of Sunday Salmon, a nonprofit full-service restaurant and mobile food trailer in Castle Rock, CO, dedicated to reducing food insecurity and building community. Sunday Salmon provides high-quality, no-cost meals through community dining, school partnerships, mobile outreach, and meal delivery programs.
Richard Lewis is the Founder and CEO of RTL Networks Inc., an award-winning technology leader with an international presence in the government sector, and Founder and Chairman of the Board of the RTL Foundation. With a multi-decade track record of driving market growth and expansion, Richard has propelled RTL Networks from a basement office to a nationally recognized industry leader with over $200M in total earnings. He is a recipient of E&Y's 2019 Entrepreneur of the Year for the Mountain Desert Region, the Department of Defense's Small Business of the Year in the Pikes Peak Region, and Cisco Systems' Business Partner of the Year in the Public Sector, among other honors. He is also ranked in Black Enterprise Magazine's Top 100 list of largest Black-owned firms in the U.S. and has earned multiple entries in Inc. Magazine's "500" and "5000" listings. Richard holds a BS in Computer Science from the United States Air Force Academy, an MBA from William & Mary, and an MS in Computer Science and Security Systems from Colorado Technical University. He served as an officer in the U.S. Air Force for ten years following graduation.
Stephanie Veck
Strategic Partnerships Lead
American Institutes for Research
Stephanie Veck is a Colorado-based workforce strategist and nationally recognized leader in employer-driven talent solutions. As the founding Project Director of Colorado Companies to Watch (CCTW), she played a pivotal role in elevating second-stage companies and advancing conversations about economic growth and community impact. She now serves as Strategic Partnerships Lead for the American Institutes for Research (AIR), overseeing partnerships and business development in the Employment & Economic Opportunity area. As a Principal Consultant, she partners with employers, intermediaries, and public-sector leaders to align workforce development with labor market demand. Her expertise spans employer engagement, apprenticeship, work-based learning, and building durable talent ecosystems.