Forty Under 40: Chad Clinehens

by Talk Business & Politics ([email protected]) 243 views 

Chad Clinehens, a civil engineer with a bachelor’s degree and MBA from the University of Arkansas, began with ZweigWhite in January.

He spent 14 years before that as a principal with Garver LLC, working from its regional offices in Tulsa and Little Rock.

Clinehens will eventually become CEO of ZweigWhite, a Fayetteville company that provides consulting, research and other business services for architecture, engineering and environmental consulting firms.

The company was founded in 1988 and was a $20 million outfit at its peak before being sold, mismanaged and eventually foreclosed on.

Founder Mark Zweig bought back the company three years ago, and Clinehens, his handpicked successor, will help lead the way back to respectability.

ZweigWhite is once again turning a profit, and is on track to do $5 million in revenue this year. The firm was also just included in Inc. magazine’s annual list of the 5,000 fastest-growing private companies in the country.

“Considering the struggles, we’ve worked ourselves out of a lot of challenges,” Clinehens said.

Clinehens, whose family operated a Fayetteville drug store for almost 60 years, enjoys road and mountain biking, even completing “some pretty awesome” cross-country expeditions.