Author: Talk Business & Politics

Talk Business & Politics

Fast 15: Todd Varnadoe

When hired in November 2010 to run an Arvest Bank branch in Jane, Mo., Todd Varnadoe didn’t have much of a track record in the banking industry. Heading a local…

Fast 15: Trenton Moss

Trenton Moss earned a business marketing degree from the University of Missouri in May 2006 — and then didn’t have a clue what he wanted to do next. A brother…

Fast 15: Alexa McGriff

Just two years out of college and two years into her first job, Alexa McGriff has helped ONF grow its number of owners more than 30 percent, to nearly 9,000,…

Forty Under 40: Adam Arroyos

A native of treeless north Texas, Adam Arroyos had always liked trees, and when he came to Fayetteville for a Walmart shareholders meeting in 1994, he fell in love with…

Forty Under 40: Daniel J. Barnes

One the most rewarding parts of Daniel Barnes’ job is McClelland’s longstanding relationship with the University of Arkansas. The two entities have worked on a bevy of projects over the…

Forty Under 40: Chad Betts

Growing up in a rural, medically underserved community in the tip of the Oklahoma panhandle, Chad Betts knew he wanted to be a physician. With an eye on becoming a…

Forty Under 40: Brooke Bisbee

Brooke Bisbee said she’s always been drawn to surgery. She chose the field of podiatry so she could still perform surgery while also having the lifestyle she wanted. Bisbee graduated…

Forty Under 40: Meredith Brunen

Meredith Brunen’s always had a passion for helping students achieve their goals. “I consider myself a perpetual student,” she said. “What better way to give back and take part in…

Forty Under 40: Caroline S. Clarke

Caroline Clarke started with Wal-mart in 1997 as an intern in the real estate and design department. Today, the Little Rock native leads a team of more than 130 associates,…

Forty Under 40: Blair Cromwell

Blair Cromwell has had no less than six title changes at the Bentonville CVB. Her charge also changed recently, thanks to Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. “Now we’re turning…

Forty Under 40: James Robert David

James David was two years into his studies at Georgia State when 9/11 happened. Within a week, he was at Georgia Tech inquiring about its ROTC program, and “within three…

Forty Under 40: Britta Erickson

If you think working at a casino sounds fun, Britta Erickson says you’re right. “We’re the kids who get to draw and paint for a living,” she said. “Our job…

Forty Under 40: Cody Friddle

Cody Friddle cut his teeth, so to speak, in Texas. But his home — and the family business — is in Fort Smith. After earning a biology degree from Baylor…

Forty Under 40: Jamie Gaston

Jamie Gaston always loved taking care of others, which naturally led her into a nursing career. But a special affinity for caring for children drew her to pediatrics and paved…

Forty Under 40: Margaret Gribble

Years of training paid off for Margaret Gribble when her husband’s job brought the couple to Northwest Arkansas in 2009. Fresh from a fellowship in uveitis at the University of…

Forty Under 40: Candice Haines

With one parent a teacher and the other “a longtime Walmart guy,” Candice Haines always thought she’d follow her mom’s path. Haines even spent a year studying elementary education at…

Forty Under 40: Tiphany Hall

Tiphany Hall was promoted to her current job in October 2011 after just six months with the company. She has made her mark quickly. Since then, Hall has connected SVI…

Forty Under 40: Kandice Harshaw

What started out as a part-time job during college turned into a 20-year career at USA Truck for Kandice Harshaw. Shortly after starting there in July 1992, before her freshman…

Forty Under 40: Lance Henry

Lance Henry was a junior at UAMS when a family friend, a plastic surgeon, told Henry that if he could do it over, he would’ve specialized in Mohs micrographic surgery,…

Forty Under 40: Brandon Hill

A job at a grocery store that included the daily duty of taking out the trash made quite an impression on the teenaged Brandon Hill. “I thought, ‘I’m not going…