People on the Move: Promotions, hirings and awards from Harrell’s, WorkWave and more

Employee-owned Harrell’s named Steve Mercuri of the West Turf team as its 2021 Sales Professional of the Year. The Sales Professional of the Year (SPOTY) is the most prestigious award a territory manager can achieve at Harrell’s.

In addition to performance, the nine nominees were evaluated on more than fourteen leadership areas within the company’s core values and its four pillars: humility, gratitude, intentionality and accountability.

Mercuri joined the Harrell’s family in October 2015 and has proven his commitment to his customers, fellow sales representatives and family.

Managing one of the most fast-paced and competitive territories in the West, Harrell’s said Mercuri not only understands how to manage sales that are constantly shifting, but also how to best serve his customers and make time to foster strong relationships. He is a territory manager in Los Angeles, Calif., and throughout his 27 years in the turf industry, he has never missed an opportunity to help everyone he works with to be successful.

WorkWave has expanded its board of directors with the appointment of three recognized industry leaders: Sheryl Hoskins, Sejal Pietrzak and Eric Palmer.

Expanding the existing WorkWave board of directors from four members to seven not only reflects the company’s continued growth during a period of increased investment and acquisition, but it also speaks to WorkWave’s ongoing commitment to fostering a diverse culture and mix of experience, backgrounds and geographies, according to the company.

Hoskins has nearly two decades of experience leading and growing SaaS businesses in various industries, including healthcare, government, event registration and hospitality. She has managed teams all over the world, spending the first half of her career in Fortune 15 companies and most recently was the CEO of Upserve, which was acquired by Lightspeed Commerce in 2020. Hoskins holds a degree in electrical engineering, an MBA in marketing and is a U.S. Army veteran.

Pietrzak has held executive leadership positions for fast-paced, global enterprise software companies across all stages of growth and value creation for the past two decades. Most recently, she was the CEO of DealerSocket, a leading SaaS provider to the automotive industry, which was acquired by Solera in 2021. Pietrzak has an MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a bachelor’s degree in International Relations from The College of William & Mary in Virginia.

Palmer is a serial C-level executive and company growth strategy advisor with extensive experience in operations and finance, software, service and SaaS businesses. He has orchestrated multiple private equity financings, venture capital investments, IPOs, private and public debt financings, acquisitions, roll-ups and other strategic initiatives.

Hoskins, Pietrzak, and Palmer join the existing members of the WorkWave board of directors: Darren Roos, chairperson of the WorkWave board, CEO of IFS; Johannes Reichel, partner at EQT; Naveen Wadhera, co-head of TA Associate’s European Technology Group; and Stewart Lynn, partner at Serent Capital.

Craig Ruppert, founder and chief executive of Ruppert Cos., was inducted into the 2021 Laureate class inducted into the Washington Business Hall of Fame by Junior Achievement of Greater Washington.

This year’s class of distinguished honorees was celebrated for their professional and philanthropic contributions to the quality of life in Greater Washington through the private sector economy. Ruppert was inducted alongside three additional 2021 Hall of Fame Laureates.

The 2021 Hall of Fame was a hybrid experience dedicated to connecting the best in business to inspire the next in business through a full day of programming. The virtual experience included a Town Hall moderated by Leon Harris of NBC4, a series of master class presentations led by business and community leaders and a virtual Laureate Induction Ceremony. VIP attendees gathered to personally congratulate the 2021 Laureates at a Laureate Celebration Reception at La Vie located at the District Wharf. More than $1.25 million was raised to support Junior Achievement’s work to prepare young people to be future-ready.

Since its founding in 1988, more than 125 Laureates have been inducted into the Washington Business Hall of Fame. Laureates are selected for consistently demonstrating excellence in business, visionary leadership and an ongoing commitment to community engagement.

The Davey Tree Expert Co. promoted Don Roppolo to director of arborist training within the Davey Institute.

Roppolo joined Davey as a crew leader in 2008 through The Care of Trees acquisition after starting his career in arboriculture with the Morton Arboretum in Illinois. After holding various positions from foreman to regional trainer, he joined the recruiting team in 2011 as a recruiter trainer. In 2016, he was promoted to manager of arboricultural training for the education and training department.

Roppolo is the past president of the Illinois Arborist Association and past president of the Society of Commercial Arboriculture. He is an International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) Certified Arborist and holds ISA Tree Risk Assessment Qualification, Certified Tree Worker Climber Specialist and Certified Tree Worker Aerial Lift Specialist certifications. He earned a bachelor’s degree in agriculture with an emphasis in urban forestry and a master’s degree in natural resources with a concentration in urban forestry from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.

Joseph Huling, the national service and warranty manager for Takeuchi-U.S., is now also overseeing the company’s Technical Service Training Department. Huling joined Takeuchi in 2017 as a regional service manager before being promoted to national service and warranty manager in early 2020.

In his expanded role as national service and training manager, Huling will support the company’s corporate sales efforts by providing product, training and support for Takeuchi’s dealers and distributors, as well as for customers who own and operate Takeuchi equipment.

Huling’s responsibilities include developing curriculums, improving training methods, scheduling training, managing the technical training team and ensuring that the new Takeuchi Global University continues to grow and improve. He will also create a structure and foundation that will help Takeuchi offer advanced training courses in the future.