H. Montgomery Martin was born in Memphis in 1955. After graduating from Memphis University School, he attended Auburn University from 1973-1978, where he earned a degree in Building Science before moving back to Memphis in 1978 to work for Clark and Clark, which was the predecessor to MCDR. He worked as an estimator and project manager eventually rising within the company to Principal and Vice-President. In 1995, he left MCDR to form Montgomery Martin Contractors, LLC (MMC). It had always been his vision to create a service oriented, client-focused company that could provide high quality construction services for a competitive cost. 

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Chairman Circle Investors not only work to make sure that Memphis has a thriving economy, they also benefit from building strong business networks with one another.

[Read more…] about B2b SpotLight: Linkous Construction and Varsity Spirit

“The only thing I said I’d never do was banking because my mother was a banker, one of the very first women to be made a bank officer in her company,” Susan Stephenson once told a reporter.

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Michael Ugwueke is president and chief executive officer of Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare System in Memphis, Tennessee, a faith-based mission driven system that is comprised of six acute care hospitals that includes Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital, five Urgent Care Centers, Home Health, Hospice and over 50 owned physician practices.   Michael oversees a workforce of over 13,000 Associates, 2,500 affiliated physicians and numerous volunteers.  Together, they provide care to 1.2 million people in the Mid-South.

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John Dobbs is Chief Executive Officer of Dobbs Equity Partners, LLC, a company that makes private equity investments in existing and start-up operating companies. The Dobbs family has been leading businesses in Memphis since the 1920s. It all started with Dobbs Ford car dealerships and Hull-Dobbs House restaurants. John builds on that legacy; his firm owns companies in many industries including medical device, hospitality, automotive, trucking, and specialty business services.

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Gary Rosenfeld is the Chief Executive Officer of the Memphis Area Transit Authority (MATA). Rosenfeld’s main focus is to rebuild the transit system into a world class mass transit provider while implementing new transit innovations.

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Harry Pratt, III is President and Chief Executive Officer of Allen & Hoshall, a full-service architectural-engineering firm with over 105 years of experience in the Mid-South.

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Alfred Washington is owner and chief executive officer of Top Notch Security, Inc., one of the fastest growing security companies in the U.S., providing professional security guards for industrial, commercial, residential, government and executive protection services to clients globally.

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David Andrews is the Principal and Chief Executive Officer of City Enterprises, LLC. City Enterprises is the managing company of several owned businesses, many auto-related, including City Auto Sales, Chief Automotive Group, Pace Financial, City Auto Finance, and Dealers Auto Auction Group. He launched City Auto Sales over 35 years ago. Since then, he has grown the business to seven auction sites, multiple franchise & used car showrooms, eight City Auto Finance branches, and a nationwide forwarding company.

City Enterprises, LLC managed companies employ more than 850 people. Andrews says his employees are like family. He believes in rewarding employees who work hard with performance-based pay.  Andrews points out, they take care of customers, just like they take care of their employees, and if they are doing their job right, customers should feel like buying a car is fun.

He is constantly seeking ways to improve and expand his business model and he continuously adjusts his goals and challenges his managers to reach these goals.

“The ability to operate and manage a business is truly a gift,” Andrews says. “I have never considered going to work as work. The relationships that we build are part of the fabric of our lives. There are so many ways to enjoy your profession such as working with your team and developing a business from concept to a successful operation. Another important aspect of building a business is that it allows for the creation of many jobs for employees to support their families.”

He says City Enterprises, LLC is focused on making a difference: for their employees, customers, and their communities. At the end of the day, he hopes he made a difference.

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Anthony Clark is the Managing Partner of Dixon Hughes Goodman LLP for the Memphis, Dallas, and Los Angeles offices. Dixon Hughes Goodman LLP is the largest certified public accounting firm headquartered in the Southern U.S. and the 17th largest in the United States.

With more than 30 years of public accounting experience, Clark has served both for-profit and not-for-profit organizations. His primary focus at DHG is hospitality, including hotels, resorts, and management companies. Hospitality companies seek his guidance on potential property acquisitions, strategic growth plans, and operational accounting practices.

After graduating from Ole Miss in 1983, the Ripley, Mississippi, native moved to Memphis, and began his career as a CPA at Rhea & Ivy, one of the oldest public accounting firms in Memphis. He was Chief Manager of Rhea & Ivy, P.L.C. when it joined DHG in 2008.

DHG recently launched new branding that is future-focused and places an emphasis on creating the ultimate client experience. “We want our brand to resonate and emotionally connect with our clients, prospects and people.  A connection that is supported by a modern, fresh, sophisticated visual approach,” Clark says. “I tell our team, that it’s not always about having an answer. Often, it’s about having all of the right questions that lead you to THE answer.”

When he’s not working, he enjoys spending time with his wife, five children, and his grandson. And while he doesn’t get to do it as often as he would like, the sports enthusiast enjoys golfing and duck hunting.

One of his guiding principles is “You can’t change without changing” and when it comes to marketing the Bluff City, he says “We need to learn how to be cheerleaders for Memphis. We have a lot to be thankful for, and a lot to be proud of, and I think we need to learn how to articulate that clearer and louder.”

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Tina Walker is the Chief Operating Officer of Patriot Bank. It’s a position she started in September 2019, after working in the Shelby County Trustee’s office for 27 years. The transition from public sector to banking was a natural one: Her first job after graduating from Union University was working in a small bank in Jackson, Tennessee. Now with an extensive track record in leadership and management within the financial services industry, Walker is a key member of Patriot Bank’s management team.

Patriot Bank will celebrate its 20th anniversary in 2021. Their 8 branches are spread throughout Shelby and Tipton Counties. The newest branch opened in the heart of Raleigh last month, across from the new Raleigh Springs Civic Center. Walker says the Raleigh location is “positioned beautifully for people to have access to our services. We feel like there is a niche there.” She described joy in watching development take off around the new Raleigh branch. She sees that growth each day, on her drive to the bank’s corporate headquarters in Barretville.

Patriot Bank prides itself on providing “downhome banking the way it should be.” While it promises fast, friendly personal service, Walker says “community service is at the heart of what we do at Patriot Bank. We want to be more than a bank. We want to be a partner, know our customers’ names, schools, churches, and non-profits. We are there for the community.” In short, Patriot wants to be a good neighbor and financial partner.

Walker describes herself as a lifelong learner who loves to travel and is looking forward to pairing research of her ancestry with a trip to England, Scotland, and Ireland as soon as pandemic-related travel restrictions ease. Her favorite stress reliever is playing a round of golf with close friends. Walker is a deacon at Second Presbyterian Church and is head of the stewardship committee. She attributes her success to the great opportunities provided to her and great mentors. “Networking is an equipping type of thing,” she said. “We need strong support systems so we can succeed, and we need to empower other people.” Her guiding principle “is to try to always do the right thing. My hope is that I would empower others to do the right thing and pour into their life that which is rich and meaningful.”

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Jimmy He is the President of Standard Elevator Systems, a company he founded in Memphis in 2007. In the beginning, his company supplied only one customer and employed two people — himself and his assistant. They designed one type of elevator traction machine. Fast forward to today, his company employs more than 100 people in five countries – China, India, Brazil, Poland, and the US. 35 of those employees work here in Memphis at his world headquarters.

Standard Elevator Systems strives to be a one-stop-shop for contractors, offering leading elevator solutions. The company is technology driven: 85% of orders go through their system without a human touch. Contractors can use the company’s website to enter specifications and get designs within minutes. That’s work which may take their competitors a week to produce. From historic buildings to brand new hospitals, to 100-story buildings in Manhattan, every structure is unique, meaning the elevators they design, and build are all highly customized.

He attended college in China and completed his MBA at the University of Chicago. A job offer from ThyssenKrupp brought him to Memphis in 2004. After working as a strategy manager for three years, he decided to start his own elevator company. Staying in Memphis made sense from a convenience standpoint. He had the workforce he needed with a reasonable cost of living, access to a strong logistics network, and the support of his local customers. Memphis is also where he met and married his wife 14 years ago. They have 7-year-old twins, a boy and a girl. Asked what he most likes about Memphis He says, “the people. They are genuine and very sincere.”

Outside of work He enjoys golfing, skiing, and reading. Pre-pandemic, He and his family also traveled frequently. He says it’s important to be exposed to different cultures to gain more open perspectives. He is also the President of Mid-South Chinese Chamber of Commerce and the Chairman of the Board, Greater Memphis United Chinese Association. Memphis has a very tightknit Chinese community of around 10,000 people. He is honored to serve the community and is always seeking opportunities to give back. He says the US is his second motherland and he appreciates all the opportunities he was offered while living here for the past 20+ years. But He says, “ultimately it doesn’t matter where you are from, because the US is the land of opportunity.”

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