Most Influential Women in Arizona 2019

A sold-out crowd of more than 600 people packed the Arizona Biltmore, A Waldorf Astoria Resort Thursday night as Az Business and AZRE magazines celebrated and honored the publications’ lists of the Most Influential Women in Arizona for 2019.

“What makes the Most Influential Women program so special is that you cannot make up your amazing stories,” said AZ Big Media Editor in Chief Michael Gossie. “We’ve honored governors, senators, supreme court justices, college presidents, Olympic gold medalists, the first American woman to fly in combat and more women who have been the ‘first’ than we can count.”

In addition to honoring all 50 of the Most Influential Women in Arizona for 2019, six spotlight awards were presented to recognize outstanding achievement. The spotlight award winners were:

Rising Star: Michele Washington, associate at Snell & Wilmer

Visionary: Angela Olea, founder and CEO of Assisted Living Locators

Trailblazer: Julie Giese, president of ISM Raceway

Community Champion: Toni Morales Broberg, president of AT&T Arizona

Innovator: Corey Saba Basha, senior vice president at Wells Fargo Commercial Banking

Outstanding Achievement in Leadership: Monica Garnes, president of Fry’s Food Stores

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Here are the women who were honored Thursday:

The Most Influential Women in Commercial Real Estate for 2019

Lori Aune  – Director of Operations, ARCHSOL Architects

Lisa Buelna – Director of Business Development, hardison/downey

Lindsey Carlson – Vice President, Greater Phoenix, Colliers International

Frances J. Haynes – Partner, Lewis Roca Rothgerber Christie

Jill Hegardt – Vice President of Entitlements, DMB Associates

Bettina Hunt – Leasing Manager, Healthcare Trust of America

Teri Jones – President of the Building Group, Sundt Construction

Susan LaGanke – Southwest Area Leader, Cushman & Wakefield

Karyn MacVean – Broker, Keyser Aerospace Team

Kristine Newman – Senior Vice President, McCarthy Building Companies

Denise Nunez – Senior Vice President, NAI Horizon

Kim Shapiro Poole – Vice President – Business Development, Skanska USA

The Most Influential Women in Arizona Business for 2019

Alison Abramson – Vice President, Commercial Banking, BBVA

Sara Begley  – Executive Vice President, CopperPoint Insurance Companies

Bridget Binsbacher – President, Cactus League, Vice Mayor, City of Peoria

Jodi R. Bohr – Shareholder, Gallagher & Kennedy

Leah Brown, MD – Board Certified Orthopedic Surgeon, Steward Orthopedic & Sports Medicine Center

Bernadine Burnette – President, Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation

Eboni Chaffee, Ph.D – Director of Market Growth & Digital Transformation, Intel

Bridget Cooney – Retail Banking Group Manager, National Bank of Arizona

Julie DiCicco – Senior Director, Freedom Financial Network 

Marisa Felker – Franchise Finance Division Leader, Washington Federal

Monica Garnes – President, Fry’s Food Stores

Julie Giese – President, ISM Raceway

Caryn Gose – Economic Development Project Manager, SRP

Martha Gulati, MD – Physician Executive Director, Banner – University Medicine Heart Institute

Trish Gulbranson – Founder and CEO, Derma Health Skin & Laser

Sharon Hwang – COO, Greater Phoenix Economic Council

Jessica Jarvi – SVP and Deputy General Counsel, Western Alliance Bancorporation

Tonya K. MacBeth – Shareholder, Burch & Cracchiolo

Martha McSally – United States Senator, State of Arizona

Bobbi Magdaleno – Executive Director, Government & Community Engagement, Arizona State University

Jennifer Mannino – CEO, IDD Group

Toni Morales Broberg – State President, AT&T

Sara B. Nance – Partner, Wallace Plese + Dreher

Christina Oh – CEO, Abrazo West Campus

Angela Olea – Founder and CEO, Assisted Living Locators

Jessica Pacheco – Vice President – External Affairs, APS

Amy Patel – Tax Partner, Deloitte

Kristy Peters – Shareholder, Littler

Corey Saba Basha – SVP of Innovation & Technology, Wells Fargo

Calline Sanchez – Tucson Site Leader, IBM Worldwide System Lab Services

Laura Sixkiller – Partner, DLA Piper

Marnee Spierer, MD – Chief of Staff & Chief of Radiation Oncology, Cancer Treatment Centers of America, Phoenix

Michelle Swann – Partner, Radix Law

Regina Van Buren, MD – Medical Director, Sonora Quest Laboratories

Jaime Vinck – CEO, Sierra Tucson

Michele N. Washington – Associate, Snell & Wilmer

Cynthia Wetmore, MD – Director of the Center for Cancer, Phoenix Children’s Hospital

Cathleen Yu – Partner and Phoenix Business Law Group Chair, Quarles & Brady

The title sponsor for the Most Influential Women in Arizona recognition dinner was Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona. Premier sponsors were Assisted Living Locators, hardison/downey and Molina Fine Jewelers.

To select the best and brightest women to recognize, the editorial team at AZ Big Media compiled a list of more than 2,000 women from every facet of Arizona’s business landscape — banking, law, healthcare, bioscience, real estate, technology, manufacturing, retail, tourism, energy, accounting and nonprofits. Once that list was compiled, it was narrowed down to 150 women. A selection committee then voted for the 38 women who were honored in Az Business and 12 women who were honored in AZRE.