ARIZONA COMPANIES
PRIVATE COMPANIES RANKED BY NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES
Top 10 BASHAS’ FAMILY OF STORES 22402 S. Basha Road, Chandler, 85248 // 480-895-5369 // bashes. com EMPLOYEES 8,525 PRINCIPAL Edward Bashas III, chairman HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Ashley Shick, director of communications and public affairs; Elva Vivas, director of finance, planning and treasury PETSMART INC. 19601 N. 27th Ave., Phoenix, 85027 // 623-580-6100 // petsmart.com EMPLOYEES 3,356 PRINCIPAL Michael J. Massey, president and CEO HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Paulette Dodson, senior vice president, general counsel and secretary; Daphne Smith, senior vice president, digital SONORA QUEST LABORATORIES 1255 W. Washington St., Tempe, 85281 // 602-685-5000 // SonoraQuest.com EMPLOYEES 3,300 PRINCIPAL David Dexter, president and CEO HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Joyce Santis, chief operating officer
MARKETING EXEC GOT MILK
ANN OCANA CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER BY HAL MATTERN
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When Ann Ocana was a marketing student at the University of Arizona’s Eller College of Management, her goal was to get into brand management. She also wanted to move to Phoenix, which wasn’t exactly a hotbed of the brand-management industry. Then the milk gods smiled on Ocana. The McClelland family, which runs Phoenix-based Shamrock Foods Co. and is a supporter of the business school (McClelland Hall is named after them), offered Ocana a job when she graduated in 1993, and she has been affiliated with the company ever since. “I was given a career opportunity of a lifetime,” she says. Shamrock didn’t even have a marketing department at the time, so Ocana was, in a way, working with a clean slate. She led the team that built the Shamrock Farms brand from the ground up—and introduced the company’s “spokescow,” Roxie. Ocana facilitated the development of a long-term strategic plan for Shamrock Co., establishing a brand platform and initial marketing infrastructure for the company’s food service business. She also led the restructuring of the Shamrock Foods brand portfolio sold to restaurants and chefs. At the time, dairy products such as milk were considered commodities. Then Shamrock developed single-serving bottles in 1998, “and milk
became a beverage rather than a commodity,” Ocana says. When she relocated to another city in 2002, Ocana left the company and became a marketing consultant. But she really didn’t leave—Shamrock was one of her clients, so she continued to be a part of the company’s introduction of new products, including Rockin’ Refuel, a protein beverage made with milk and aimed at athletes and active people. Active within the dairy industry, Ocana led the marketing and business strategy for Dairy Management Inc., the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy, the Milk Processor Education Program (MilkPEP) and the Independent Marketing Alliance. She played a critical role in the joint initiative between MilkPEP and DMI called the Milk Revitalization Alliance, which tackled challenges and opportunities to revitalize the industry. One of the primary initiatives Ocana helped lead was the Great American Milk Drive—a national program that helps deliver milk to hungry families. Involved with the MilkPEP board for nearly 20 years, Ocana currently serves on the brand committee that launched the new “Milk Life” campaign. She rejoined Shamrock 18 months ago as chief marketing officer when “the McClelland family asked me to come home,” she says. “It’s an amazing company. I am privileged to work there.”
FOX RESTAURANT CONCEPTS 4455 E. Camelback Road, Suite B100, Phoenix, 85018 // 480-9056920 // foxrc.com EMPLOYEES 2,500 PRINCIPAL Sam Fox, founder HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Leezie Kim, vice president, general counsel SHAMROCK FOODS CO. 3900 E. Camelback Road, Suite 300, Phoenix, 85018 // 602-2726721 // shamrockfoods.com EMPLOYEES 2,148 PRINCIPAL Norman McClelland, chairman HIGHEST-RANKING WOMEN Ann Ocana, chief marketing officer; Monica McCombs, chief supply chain officer DISCOUNT TIRE 20225 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, 85255 // 480-606-6000 // discounttire. com AZ EMPLOYEES 2,032 PRINCIPAL Bruce Halle, founder and chairman of the board HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN no designee EARNHARDT AUTO CENTERS 7300 W. Orchard Lane, Chandler, 85226 // 480-783-4620 // earnhardt.com EMPLOYEES 1,966 PRINCIPAL Hal J. Earnhardt III, president HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Robbyn McDowell, chief financial officer TROON GOLF LLC 15044 N. Scottsdale Road, Suite 300, Scottsdale, 85252 // 480-606-1000 // troongolf.com EMPLOYEES 1,826 PRINCIPAL Dana Garmany, chairman and CEO HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Ruth Engle, executive vice president and chief financial officer CHAPMAN AUTOMOTIVE GROUP P.O. Box 12375, Tempe, 85284 // 480-970-0740 // chapmanchoice.com EMPLOYEES 1,735 PRINCIPAL Eddie Davault, CEO HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Kristine Barber, controllerww P.F. CHANG’S CHINA BISTRO, INC. 7676 E. Pinnacle Peak Road, Scottsdale, 85255 // 480-8883000 // pfchangs.com EMPLOYEES 1,643 PRINCIPAL Michael Osanloo, CEO HIGHEST-RANKING WOMAN Allison Schulder, vice president, finance
WHO’S WHO IN BUSINESS // 2016
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