Colorado Company - Think Bold. Think Bold.Think Different.

From business services to emerging growth companies to innovative technology, Colorado ranks high with national and global success stories.

Think for a moment about what motivates you towards a goal or aspiration. What became of that idea scribbled on a cocktail napkin? Would you start a company by getting a cash advance on your credit card? Would you abandon your dreams of rock stardom to fill a need in healthcare? Could you get out of bed in the morning confident that your last business decision was the best one to guide $25 billion in company assets? Would your idea for a household emergency contact system dominate North America? This year's Rocky Mountain Region winners provide a surprising variety of answers to that age-old question "What makes an entrepreneur, and how do I get it?"

Professional services firm Ernst & Young LLP announced the winners of the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year® Awards 2005 in the Rocky Mountain Region at the annual event in July. All of the award recipients were selected by a panel of independent judges consisting of area leaders from business, academic and civic organizations.

"Entrepreneur Of The Year award recipients embrace the entrepreneurial spirit and determination necessary to achieve success," said Mark Siegel, Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year program director for the Rocky Mountain Region. "Ernst & Young is proud of its history recognizing and supporting these outstanding leaders and their companies."

The Rocky Mountain Region Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year award recipients for 2005 were:

Business Services - James H. Possehl, Chairman and CEO, Republic Financial Corporation (Aurora)
Emerging Growth - C. David Moll, CEO, Webroot Software Inc. (Boulder)
Medical and Health Sciences - Brian Baldwin, Chairman Emeritus, Baxa Corporation (Englewood)
Real Estate and Construction - R. Scot Sellers, Chairman and CEO, Archstone-Smith (Englewood)
Retail and Manufacturing - Barry Perzow, President, CEO, and Co-Founder and Dale Schwartz, Co-Founder, Pharmaca Integrative Pharmacy (Boulder)
Technology - George Heinrichs, President, CEO and Co-Founder; and Stephen Meer, CTO and Co-Founder, Intrado Inc. (Longmont)
Turnaround - Mark A. Hellerstein, Chairman, CEO and President, St. Mary Land & Exploration Company (Denver)

"This year's nominees and winners are all fantastic entrepreneurs. To me, entrepreneurship is synonymous with long-term job creation and the establishment of cutting-edge, highly innovative companies in Colorado," said Jon Nordmark, president and CEO of eBags and a judge of the 2005 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year award. "Entrepreneurship also means persistence and sacrifice-overcoming tremendous personal and financial obstacles. Many of this year's nominees could not be beaten down and have great potential to grow into large companies that will fuel our economy."

Ernst & Young created the "Entrepreneur of the Year" Awards in 1986 to honor those innovative business leaders whose ingenuity and boundless energy have led to sustained, growing business ventures. You may use their products or services every day, and simply take for granted the concept that someone had to sweat blood to realize a vision which (eventually) became a household commodity.

The difficulty is picking just one. This year's finalists are all amazingly innovative companies with truly inspiring stories tell. Perhaps there's a book in that! In the mean time, here are the winners and their short chapters to a very long entrepreneurial story.

James Possehl, Chairman and CEO

There are several categories Ernst & Young has devised in searching for regional entrepreneurs. None of the seven titles is as clearly defined by the award recipient in 2005 as the title of "Business Services", in this case personified by awardee Republic Financial Corporation. A privately held investment company with a long history of completing uncommon, more often mind-numbingly complex deals, Republic was the brainchild of Jim Possehl. He had already spent his early career in various positions with both large and small companies, looking for a challenge he couldn't quite define. "Regardless of the size of the organization in which I worked, I found I had a desire to do something on my own," he recalls. "I wanted to experience both the risks and rewards of my own labors. That desire drove me to take the risk and start out on my own."

James Possehl was never one for half-measures. In 1971 he took a $300 advance on his credit card and started to assemble a team that would carry out his vision. He wanted to move finance into new, sometimes wildly diverse realms by using skilled individuals in one area to spur innovative resource allocation in another. He founded the company on expertise in structured finance transactions, distressed commercial debt, aviation, private equity, and equipment lease portfolios. His entrepreneurial approach was to dominate a niche by simply inventing it. "Rather than staying ahead of the competition, we have somewhat avoided the competition. Republic's contrarian approach has afforded us the freedom to define a niche by blending skill sets to create a new and uncommon outcome," he explains. "Our innovation lies in our ability to reinvent ourselves. We systematically look at all the pieces of an opportunity and apply strategic strengths - such as legal expertise or asset management operations - to clean up the ugly parts and make the whole more valuable. We achieve value creation differently each time and each investment is unique."

He took the basic concept of synergy and ran with it. The result: a careful interplay of the company's four Business Groups (Private Equity, Aviation and Portfolio, Special Assets, and Structured Finance). This unusual structure fosters creative problem-solving by holding regular meetings amongst the groups, mining the wealth of diverse perspectives, in a process labeled "Teamstorming." "This tough process requires everyone to participate by challenging their comfort zones, taking personal risks, and expressing their opinions. We have worked to create a safe environment in which all employees can share their opinions and ideas without fear of retribution or persecution."

Unlike many self-starters, Possehl asserts that the human capital in his organization is the deliberate result of corporate culture. Not so much a "birds-of-a-feather" creation, his mission for the company could only be accomplished through the careful marriage of different viewpoints. This marriage has become the bedrock upon which his success is built. "Overall, we tend to hire assertive people-as a result, the interactions will be more likely to be based on honesty, openness, and a willingness to take the risk of expressing a new or unpopular opinion. It is always hard to find good people. Republic can be a difficult place to work; we ask a great deal of our employees. We try to attract employees who will help us raise the bar of success and who will contribute to Republic the day they arrive. It is the excitement of that challenge that either attracts the right people or repels those who are not a good fit in the organization. We make an effort to be very frank and open about our expectations during the interview process. We emphasize the importance of a cultural fit and encourage all candidates to interview us in return."

Jim finds this culture to be the second-most valuable asset for Republic, right behind the staff itself. He's worked just as hard at promoting an environment of camaraderie within the company as he has at assembling a skilled team to begin with. "Republic has made it a priority to look after one another and commit ourselves to not merely making a living, but improving the lives of those around us." Jim takes his human capital seriously, and proud to point out the return on his ideas for staffing and teamwork have paid off handsomely in terms of the overall company portfolio. Although seeming to enter into risky ventures (a promotional products company in Kansas City, a temporary staffing agency in New York, coal plants in West Virginia), he is confident the diversity in investment opportunities is matched by the skill set of his staff. "If you had told me 34 years ago that Republic would be doing the things we're doing today, I would have thought you were having a psychotic break!" he admits. "Our successes have put us in a whole different league of risk than we were in back then. But how we mitigate our risks hasn't really changed. We have the ability to take what looks like a huge financial risk to an outsider and apply our skills and expertise to mitigate that risk to fit within our comfort level. The balance between the risk and the reward is the most important part of the investment equation for Republic."

C. David Moll, CEO

Everyone with a keyboard and a monitor in their lives knows about spam, computer viruses, or worms. Everyone with a passing interest in business or the economy has heard of Bill Gates, Michael Dell, or David Ellison. Only Ernst & Young has distilled these various elements into the year's Entrepreneur of the Year regional winner for the "Emerging Growth" category, recognizing a man and his products as soon to be joining water cooler chat with all of the aforementioned: David Moll and his company's Spy Sweeper spy-ware. A three-time recipient of PC Magazine's Editors' Choice Award, Webroot Spy Sweeper has an installed base of more than six million users. Its large business counterpart, Webroot Spy Sweeper Enterprise, has sold more than 1.75 million licenses of its solution since its launch in June 2004.

Webroot Software, a privately held company based in Boulder, Colorado, creates innovative privacy products and services for a huge gamut of users around the world - ranging from enterprises, Internet service providers, government agencies and higher education institutions, to small businesses and individuals. As chief architect of the nascent company's recent growth, David is understandably proud. "Innovation is central to the culture at Webroot. The spyware problem itself is fluid, and that dictates that we move quickly, and think two steps ahead. For us to be successful, we have to be more innovative than those writing spyware and our competition.

"As a result, we have quarterly goals on the number of patents we will file, and we have the fastest software release cycle in the industry. The innovative culture extends far beyond our technology team as well. For example, our marketing group had to figure out how to sell anti-spyware a few years ago when most people didn't know what spyware was. The result was our invention of the Spy Audit (available at www.webroot.com) that gives a computer user a quick check for spyware on their PC in seconds. Today more than 1 million people use Spy Audit every quarter."

David took over the company in 2002, five years after the company started. "I had worked in 'old' economy businesses running a manufacturing facility outside Memphis… I have always been fascinated with technology, especially with the way people and businesses interact with technology. I also loved the excitement of early stage companies. So when Bill Perry, a local Boulder investor and businessman whom I had known for some time, called me and introduced me to the [Webroot] founders, I knew it was a good fit." The company has had five consecutive quarters of 100 percent quarter-to-quarter growth, and in February picked up its first round of external funding: $108 million invested by three Silicon Valley-based venture capital firms.

David is matter-of-fact about ensuring the firm's future growth. "We stayed away from institutional money for a very long time. We believed it was more prudent and better for our business to manage the company well and fund its growth from profit. But it became apparent that the problem was escalating faster than our ability to fund the growth we needed to keep pace. We also needed to expand the business geographically and technologically. There was a very big opportunity and if we didn't go for it, someone else would beat us to it."

As many entrepreneurs over the past 15 years can attest, getting millions out of the

Valley is not a matter of simply turning on the faucet. There was a certain serendipity at work that David recognized. "When we began looking for investors, they understood the scope of the problem and that business opportunity and felt it was worth a substantial investment." He was able to convince the investors that Webroot's savvy was the winning horse to back in the race against spyware-backed crime. "On the consumer side, we compete mostly with free software from small companies, sometimes even individuals with very right-minded views on the fight against spyware… these small companies lack the necessary resources to succeed in today's on-going and increasingly complex battle with spyware," he says. "In our corporate business, we tend to compete with established companies with a heritage in anti-virus software which are just getting into anti-spyware as an afterthought, really, to their virus remedies. As this market grows, we believe only a 'best-of-breed' solution will be able to succeed and any lack of focus will give spyware makers a distinct advantage."

David warns, "We believe that the fight against spyware will get more intense and complex in the near future. Spyware is a business, like any other business, and it is financially motivated. So the perpetrators will go to extreme lengths to succeed and place new spyware in unsuspecting computers. We anticipated this some time ago and began to develop proprietary technologies to research spyware and stay one step ahead of the guys on the other side of this issue." Odd as it may seem, the quiet streets of Boulder may prove to be the frontline of this 21st century battle. David is making sure Webroot is armed and ready.

Brian Baldwin, Founder and Vice Chairman.

Based in Englewood, Baxa celebrates 30 years of international niche domination this year. Hardly a simple feat for a business that was no more than a few mechanical ideas in the head of a frustrated corporate cipher named Brian Baldwin. "I had experience working for other companies and decided I'd be better off being my own boss," he readily admits. "I'm not very well-suited for employment! With one of my fraternity brothers I had already launched several successful business ventures, and I knew that I wanted to do something where I was independent of the usual corporate shackles."

The result? Brian started Baxa Corporation in 1975 with a product designed specifically for the precise delivery of oral medications. He now holds more than 30 US and international patents which power Baxa's core competency: manufacturing and marketing devices for mixing, handling, and dispensing fluid medications, including oral unit-dosing, IV admixture, and syringe infusion. Brian has overseen an annual growth rate of roughly 20%, doubling the business every 5 years. Such a growth rate is a tribute Brian's unique brand of entrepreneurship - deal in the present with focus and energy, let the road ahead reveal itself as time passes. "We will probably continue to grow, but possibly at a slower rate. The problem… is the longevity of mature product lines that are great cash cows, but have reached such a large share of the market there is no more growth room. I don't like to predict the future - I prefer to react to the present and leap on all the opportunities we can with all the resources we can muster.

"I think an entrepreneur is someone who believes they can walk on water, plus have the ability to get out of trouble, [someone who] is very creative when put into a position of 'stark terror and desperation.'" No stranger to adversity, Brian reflects on some of the hurdles that he has surmounted in taking Baxa to the top of the medication delivery market. "In 1978, our supplier of oral syringes in Denmark was going to be sold or closed, as they were not profitable. We arranged financing to buy to buy it; I moved with my wife to Denmark, got them profitable. In '93 Baxa was sued for patent infringement by a large business that dominated the automated compounder market. We found a way to win the case and finance the legal fees - and survived again."

Brian, like all self-starters, recognizes that the energy he has pumped into Baxa over the years led to success only because he utilized others' talents as well. Entrepreneurs, particularly those who are technically inventive as well as success-driven, tend towards megalomania (Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, or Victor Frankenstein, anyone?). Teamwork led to their most innovative idea to date - reconfiguring technology already used for a syringe-filling pump to create an automated compounder for parenteral nutrition solutions. "That technology leapfrog," Brian proudly points out, "led to the first - and still the only - automated device that can handle the accuracy required for very small volumes and the speed for large volumes of customized solutions given by IV."

And then there are his sons, Jeff and Greg. "These two are ideally suited for their roles and have great respect for each other. Jeff is a talented analyst and technologist, the quiet thinker. Greg is our spiritual leader, loquacious and a wonderful communicator

In 1990 we had a huge software problem that was stopping our entry into the IV solution compounding market. Jeff, after graduating in Biomedical Engineering from Tulane and a stint in the Peace Corps, agreed to spend the summer studying the software problem before going on to graduate school. He rewrote the software, became a hero in Baxa and never left. In 1993, my VP of Sales and Marketing had a debilitating stroke. Greg had been working in Boston in the telecom industry for 10 years in sales and marketing positions. He had finished his MBA, was married with 3 small children and earning much more than we could afford. He convinced his wife to make the move, saying he wanted the chance to work with his Dad for up to 5 years to help him out. Well, his contribution was so great that I moved him into the CEO position in '97."

Working hard, focusing on the now, and utilizing the talent around you may seem like a trite formula. Brian's advice for today's entrepreneurs? "Just do it! Too many want to do it but never start the ignition. Fear of failure is a show stopper. That's the test to determine whether you will or will not be an entrepreneur. Also, remember that any business you start should be treated just like a potted plant. They each have a natural growth rate. Don't try to grow it too fast or too slow. Just like a plant that gets too much or too little water or fertilizer will die, so will your business. Also, any business you have that ceases to grow will soon die. Remember, keep your life balanced. Family is important."

R. Scot Sellers, Chairman and CEO

A national leader in apartment investment and operation, Archstone-Smith manages a staggering portfolio of high-rise and garden apartment communities. With a strong presence in highly desirable neighborhoods from metropolitan New York City, Boston, and Washington DC., to southeast Florida, Chicago, and Seattle, the company is today the third-largest real estate investment trust (REIT) in the country. It is no surprise that the firm is valued at a market capitalization close to $12.6 billion. What is surprising is that this impressive array of properties is the work of its current CEO and Chairman, R. Scot Sellers.

His vision sounded logical enough: "Be in long-term growth markets, in the best neighborhoods, in the best locations, close to jobs and shopping and provide a notably higher level of service to customers." Scot started in the apartment industry in 1981 with the Lincoln Property Company, where he spent 12 years pursuing what at the time was the conventional approach to the apartment business and to sourcing capital for it. All that changed. "Our industry as a whole is very reluctant to innovate, because it is risky, with uncertain outcomes," he recalls. "I heard about an individual named Bill Sanders in 1992 who was trying to bring public company principles to the real estate industry, which I felt made tremendous sense. I contacted Bill through a friend, and after several interviews, he was willing to hire me. They allowed me to take over Property Trust of America, the predecessor company to Archstone-Smith, after a couple of years."

He immediately began transforming the company's definition of assets, through aggressive property disposition and capital recycling. By 1994 he had a management team in place that would enact his ultimate goal - "to sell all of our existing assets and completely reposition our portfolio to protected markets (those with highly desirable neighborhoods, limited competition and land upon which to build new housing, expensive single-family home prices and strong, diversified economies). We took tremendous heat for this over the years. Even so, we stuck to it and by executing this plan created an excellent long-term platform for the company." As of March 31, 2005, Archstone-Smith owned or had an ownership positioning 231 communities, representing 79,023 units (including those under construction.

Of course, such growth wasn't always guaranteed. Scot was confident his long-term goals would be realized, but real estate as an industry often falls prey to short-term boom-and-bust cycles that can prove crippling. "Back in 1999, our industry and our company was very much out of favor with investors (remember the technology boom?), and our stock was trading at around $19 per share - dramatically less than the value of the assets we owned. We responded to this challenge by selling a significant number of our 'non-core' assets and using the capital to fund the largest common share repurchase in our history - nearly $555 million through February 2001 - which ultimately created tremendous value for our shareholders, especially given the fact that our stock is trading at $40 per share six years later."

The real secret seems to be Scot's adherence to technology and scientific method, using precise guidelines for channeling innovation as it appears within the company. He views technology as a tool for improving customer service and reducing operating costs. In 2002, Archstone-Smith completed the rollout of its Lease Rent Optimizer (LRO) program, the first revenue management program designed for the apartment industry. In search of best practices, Scot studied the ways in which highly customer-motivated companies such as Marriott and Hertz approached their customer base. New technologies or techniques are implemented in a scaled-down fashion, so that management can compare performance at those "enhanced" properties vs. those that are not testing the new idea.

This approach limits the downside and allows management to tweak new ideas before taking them nation-wide. "Like so many other things we have pioneered, I believe that sophisticated revenue management software, like LRO, will become an industry standard in the next several years," Scot enthuses. "We are very proud to have brought LRO to the industry, and are pleased that other companies are beginning to adopt this platform."

Scot's real strength is derived from faith and family. "I always tell my kids that the two things people cite as their greatest regrets later on in life is that they wished they spent more time with their families, and they wish they would've tried more things, taken more risks. Our family talks about living our lives so we don't have these two regrets. One of the fun things I just did with my 13-year-old son, Ross, was to go down in a cage to watch great white sharks eat fish; it was great! My focus for my life is to be obedient to God, and pursue whatever He has for me with integrity and conviction. He has blessed me far beyond what I could've imagined, or deserve. It is a great blessing to run this company. On both the personal side and business side, we take intelligent, calculated risks, and have lots of fun doing it. The objective is to grow, get better and have fun in the process."

Barry Perzow, Co-Founder, President, CEO, Chairman
Dale Schwartz, Co-Founder, Vice Chairman

How often have you been standing in the medication aisle of your local supermarket, trying to figure out if (or which) aspirin, or over-the-counter antacid, or mass-produced vitamin can help with your ongoing aches and pains? You walk away confident only in the fact that the pimply 15-year-old stocking the shelf or manning the counter won't have much to add to your debate. Enter Pharmaca's co-founders, Barry Perzow and Dale Schwartz. They envisioned a chain of stores whose straight-forward mission would be to help their customers achieve optimum health, vitality and wellness - through traditional prescription services, complementary and natural remedies, or a personalized blend of both.

As Barry puts it, "I truly enjoy seeing a business idea turn into a real thing that carries meaning for consumers. Pharmaca was born from the idea that health doesn't have to be prescribed in the same old-fashioned and often insensitive ways. Seeing consumers pick up prescription medication, multi-vitamins, an organic chocolate bar and credible advice, all in the same place, is when innovation becomes really meaningful." Dale agrees: "The best part for me was taking the idea of a pharmacy, turning it on its head, and then having both investors and customers really appreciate the value of the Pharmaca vision."

Two thinkers with wildly different backgrounds but an eerily shared mind-set, the two men recognized each other's talents early on and joined forces. Dale had extensive experience in the formation and financing of various companies. His specialty was the bleeding edge of bio-tech - as CEO of Infigen, for example, he had the inside scoop on commercializing cloning and genomic technology. Barry had many years of broad retail experience and a serious passion for natural foods and the grocery business. "Well, there was this short stint in my 20's when I thought I'd be a rock-n-roll star with my group Barry and the Deans," he recalls, "but then I went on to co-found a natural retail chain of stores called Capers Natural Foods Markets in Canada. Later, after significantly growing that business, we merged with Alfalfas Markets in Colorado. Pharmaca grew from our idea that we could do a better job of providing more options for health, and in a more nurturing environment, than what was otherwise available."

Not just another crunchy-granola psychic medium hanging a shingle from their front porch, Pharmaca uses conventional and complementary medical services guided by professional knowledge and scientific research. Dale points out the heart of their competitive strategy. "I think our professional staff provides us with a huge advantage over traditional pharmacies. The fact that we employ trained and certified compounding pharmacists, estheticians, naturopaths and nutritionists means that we can offer better, more credible health advice. In addition, our commitment to quality health alternatives means customers can trust what they buy in our stores." The demographics of Pharmaca's current locations in the West and Pacific Northwest (Mill Valley, Seattle, Portland, Santa Fe, for example), not to mention Boulder and North Boulder, would seem to mean a receptive, built-in customer base. Can this idea fly elsewhere? Not even a consideration, says Barry. "Dale and I have always said that entrepreneurs are contrarians. When everyone else is saying that something can't happen, we just look at each other, get to work and figure out how we can make Pharmaca succeed. Call us crazy, but we didn't view this as a "risk" as the need for better health care options is so huge. We knew we could fill a gap with our new concept. We're not just doling out prescriptions; we also provide sound advice on a wide range of questions, delivered in a caring environment. To me, there is real value in providing a source of calm for folks who aren't feeling well."

Of course, basing their customer service on generating "warm fuzzies" wasn't the launch pad they were hoping to possess. The original concept to develop stores in existing family-owned pharmacies proved popular in those markets, but fairly limiting to growth nationally. Barry found their business plan pushing up against the old axiom "Assume nothing." They simply engaged their entrepreneurial spirit and adapted. "We're now examining our new store sites with a more seasoned eye" Dale states. "We're working to balance the neighborhood pharmacy feel with the conveniences that today's consumer needs, like ample parking. Our Santa Fe store, for example, was a completely new store, but has performed incredibly well. This will open up a much wider universe for future store locations." Again and again, it is their mutual respect for each other's strengths, their collaborative spirit, that has made Pharmaca such a phenomenal success. As Barry puts it, "I think we'd have to be saints to agree on everything that happens in our Pharmaca operations, but I will say that we really bring complementary strengths to the table. I have a lot of ideas about retailing, merchandising and branding and Dale is strong in a wide array of financial and organizational skills key to running a successful business. By acknowledging each other's strengths and weaknesses, we usually can come to a consensus that works best for our company."

Continuing growth and success is a lock for these gentlemen, because they are so confident in their current approach: educating the public, keeping employees who care. "In order to attract new employees, we try to get involved in professional organizations and prove that Pharmaca has a different view on health," says Barry. Dale adds, "For example, our commitment to compounding (a way to create personalized prescriptions and dosages) has attracted pharmacists who view this as a superior way to treat their patients. In addition, we really promote ongoing education. Pharmaca pays for a portion of continuing education for employees and provides ongoing training." Barry puts it this way. "It's amazing to see mainstream folks come into the store saying,"I've heard glucosamine can help my knees." In the past, this person might just suffer through their pain with aspirin or eventually succumb to surgery. Now, the options for health are wide open, and when our customers realize that what we offer is not as "far out" as they once thought, that's a really exciting moment for us. Look, there are so many aging Boomers in this country, and they don't view wholistic medicine as weird and woo-woo any more. They want to take control, as much as they can, of their own health. East. West. It's really now (sorry for the pun) integrated!"

George Heinrichs, CEO, and Stephen Meer, CTO

With its beautiful views, quiet homes, and happy neighbors, Longmont, CO. is considered by many to be a billboard for pastoral living. Yet set amongst the carefully manicured lawns and mom-and-pop shops is a company thoroughly enmeshed in chaos and mayhem, monitoring horrors most of us encounter maybe once or twice in our lifetimes. Intrado Inc. provides the core of the nation's 9-1-1 network, as well as cutting-edge technology to communications service providers and public safety organizations. Repeatedly chosen for Deloitte & Touche's Colorado Fast 50, as well as recognized by Inc. Magazine as one of its prestigious "Inc. 500", its no surprise that the company was started by two former sheriff's deputies.

George Heinrichs (now CEO) and Stephen Meer (now CTO) first met at an EMT training class for ambulance personnel. Both quickly realized that their unique blend of personal experience, technical skills, and goals for improving the nation's response to public safety meant a partnership destined for success. "Intrado was a consulting shell until 1985," Stephen points out, "but after we became a full time venture our plans centered around delivering products to public safety and that is what we have continued to do." The result? Both have played a vital role in helping to define and build the nation's emergency communications network. As a widely-recognized expert in emergency communications, George has testified before the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives on numerous telecommunications issues, and has been influential in decisions to implement 9-1-1 standards for wireless communications and other emerging technologies.

Stephen has made groundbreaking contributions to public safety and telecommunications including development of the first nationwide 9-1-1 data network; design and implementation of the first enhanced 9-1-1 system using the Advanced Intelligence Network; and application of satellite communications for delivery of 9-1-1 data to public safety agencies. "Intrado will continue to play a major role in shaping the future of emergency communications," promises Stephen. "Some of these services include our 911Plus (r) suite of personalized 9-1-1 services that allow you to include more specific information in your 9-1-1 profile, V9-1-1 Mobility Service which offers E9-1-1 call delivery to VoIP subscribers, and our Intelligent Emergency Network that enables the 9-1-1 network to support new data types like video and facilitates interagency collaboration between public safety agencies."

The very nature of their business strongly influences the approach they take. Creating and maintaining the channels by which citizens' lives often hang in the balance means never deploying "first-draft" concepts. Stephen relates the formula that has put 800 employees into five offices in less than 10 years. "We don't believe that entrepreneurs are risk-takers. In fact, successful entrepreneurs typically have a clear understanding of the risks and rewards of a transaction or opportunity and thoughtfully weigh both before proceeding. Intrado's core competencies means working closely with state and federal government agencies, which does not change the risk profile but rather the timing of growth given the length of the decision making and approval process in these agencies."

Regardless, growth has been a hallmark of the business. "In 1993, we saw an opportunity to establish longer-term relationships with our telecommunications customers and developed a model whereby local exchange carriers could outsource their 9-1-1 data management functions to Intrado," relates Stephen. This approach meant a heady increase in both exposure and financial stability. "Implementing this model of long-term contracts with well-established customers and a predictable long-term revenue stream was a milestone for Intrado. In 1994, Intrado signed its first outsourcing contract with Ameritech, followed quickly by Bell South and USWest (Qwest)."

Like many self-starters, both men are quick to highlight the contributions of their staff as the key to the company's success. "We hire great talent in the first place and they in turn attract others like them. We like the fact that our mission is centered around helping people and that we are focused on work worth doing. The people who come to Intrado are attracted by the mission and the chance to do good work and those people tend to grow roots once they get here."

Mark Hellerstein, Chairman, CEO, and President

It was an exciting time for the country at the turn of the century - 19th to 20th, that is. The thundering tide rolling over the West to capture much flashier fortunes in Colorado silver and California gold had ebbed, and the mining industry was finding new wealth in more pedestrian (but useful) ores. Chester Congdon of Duluth, Minnesota made a small fortune developing iron and copper mines, cementing his belief in the true wealth of tangible assets. The stock market held no allure for him. He and like-minded mining industry associates bought some Louisiana coastal lands on an educated hunch. The St. Mary's Parish Land Company was incorporated in 1908. After years of perseverance and exploration, they came across some of the richest oil fields ever discovered.

Enter Mark Hellerstein, 84 years later. The company headquarters had moved to Denver as they explored new reserves in the Rockies and mid-continent to stay alive and competitive. With Chester's grandson Tom aware of the irony but approving nonetheless, Mark took the company public via an IPO of common stock in 1992. Since then the company has provided shareholders with a 19% compounded return, going from 20 employees and $29 million in revenue to 256 staffers and revenue north of $433 million. Not bad for a CPA from Arthur Andersen.

"Although my expertise was in GAAP accounting, my passion was to create financial reporting, budget / planning systems and incentive compensation plans that helped management run the business better," recalls Mark. "This allowed me to rise from controller to treasurer to CFO at several companies. After the industry cratered in 1986, I was fortunate to find a CFO position for a small mining company, CoCa Mines, which was an affiliate of St. Mary." Mark's talents were recognized early on by Tom Congdon, and he proved himself in those rough-and-tumble years before the capital was flowing from the IPO.

"St. Mary was one of the first companies to look for oil and gas opportunities in Russia," says Mark. They were given the production license number "001" in the depressed former Soviet Union. The hurdles they faced were mountainous and varied: …"[we were] redesigning compressors to fit Russian rail cars… I arrived for my first visit one week after the Gorbechev coup." There were fiscal and financial challenges unique not only to the industry, but to world history. "Always new 'taxes' from excess profits to export tariffs," Mark notes with chagrin, "and we were the first company to obtain financing from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development for an oil and gas project in Russia. We were partners with George Anderman who took the lead and wanted to plant the first successful U.S. flag in Russia. When new taxes were damaging to project economics and delayed funding, Anderman and St. Mary stayed the course while other companies abandoned their projects. We persisted through everything they threw at us and eventually were rewarded with an exemption from an onerous export tariff. That facilitated our funding and eventually led to one of the few Russian ventures that made money. In the end, it was persistence, passion, attention to detail and expertise that made the project work."

Mark humbly points to the staff at St. Mary as the real find - forget the oil. "We provide a work environment which is very open to ideas and disagreements and one where a person's good ideas will be tested. We encourage growth from within and offer continuing education and tuition reimbursements as well as technical cross training meetings. We have almost no turnover in a very competitive market place. When I look back at St. Mary's success, I have to pinch myself to remind me that it is real. We have always taken one step at a time and have remained disciplined. Obviously, good oil and gas prices and luck along the way don't hurt. Most importantly, our people have successfully embraced our goals and have driven our performance. As a financial person heading up a highly scientific and technical business, I learned very quickly that St. Mary's success would be driven by the competence, passion and attention to detail from each of the various disciplines… from geoscience to land to drilling engineering to completion engineering to production and reservoir engineering … to land administration and financial expertise. My modest contribution is to recognize the importance of each phase of the business and to help define a framework of values. In other words, I help define the framework and then get out of the way to allow our talented teams to be entrepreneurial."