Santucci to direct tourism marketing

BUSINESS DIGEST

Friday, January 1, 1904

Santucci to direct tourism marketing

The Chattanooga Convention & Visitors Bureau has promotd Dave Santucci to vice president of marketing esponsible for promoting Chattanooga as a leisure and meeting destination and driving tourism in Hamilton County.

Santucci has more than 14 years' experience in the hospitality, marketing, public relations and media fields, "which makes him a great asset to the bureau and the community," said Bob Doak, president of the tourism bureau.

Santucci has been a marketing consultant for the Convention and Visitors Bureau for the past two years. He also served as marketing consultant for the Tennessee Aquarium, Chattanooga Choo Choo and Creative Discovery Museum.

Santucci worked as a CNN producer for seven years and won the Space Communicator and National Headliner Awards and was nominated for the Walter Sullivan and David Perlman Awards. After CNN, Santucci worked as the vice president of marketing for the Georgia Aquarium. He served on the communications boards of the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau, International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions, Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Attractions, and Central Atlanta Progress.

Santucci graduated from Emory University and lives with his wife and two boys in North Chattanooga.

Life Care promotes Hulgan, Sadecki

Steve Sadecki has been promoted to senior vice president and Carol Hulgan has been named vice president of clinical programs for Life Care Centers of America.

Sadecki, formerly vice president of operations for Life Care Home Health, Inc., will oversee 23 home health, hospice and private-duty entities in 10 states in his new role.

Chris Mitchell, chief operating officer for Life Care Centers of America, said Sadecki is "very talented, with great knowledge of the home care profession, and is an admired and respected leader."

Before his most recent position, Sadecki was divisional vice president of the western states for Life Care at Home. His experience includes five years with another nationwide home care company, as well as a background in staffing and recruitment for hospitals in Arizona. A native of Kansas City, Kan., Sadecki earned his bachelor's degree in organizational development from Vanderbilt University in Nashville. He currently resides in Chattanooga.

Hulgan, a 12-year veteran of Life Care Centers, "brings a wealth of knowledge and experience that will directly contribute to the tremendous work by our exceptional clinicians in the field," Mitchell said.

In her role with Life Care Home Health, Hulgan was responsible for implementing the company's business plan, ensuring appropriate clinical management of patients and developing and implementing new service programs.

A registered nurse, Hulgan earned an associate of applied science in nursing degree from Chattanooga State Technical Community College in 1997.

With Life Care, Hulgan has been director of clinical events management, a legal nurse investigator and consultant and director of nursing at Life Care Center of Red Bank. Before that, she was employed by IHS Home Care in a variety of clinical positions.

Hulgan holds certification in health care compliance and is a certified clinical compliance coordinator.

Founded in 1976, Life Care is based in Cleveland, Tenn., and operates or manages more than 220 nursing, post-acute and Alzheimer's centers in 28 states.

Shipley joins Barnett & Co.

Laurie J. Shipley has been named a retirement plan specialist for Barnett & Co., investment counseling firm.

She will provide strategic marketing to 401(k) retirement plans and is the local liaison between the firm and 401(k) plan administrators. Shipley has more than 15 years of business and nonprofit experience in the Chattanooga area, including serving as communications manager for Comcast Corp. She served five years as a Naval officer after earning a bachelor of arts in business administration from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

Founded in 1983, Barnett & Co., is an independent investment counseling firm registered with the Securities & Exchange Commission and headquartered in Chattanooga.

Strauss Company promotes three

The Strauss Co., a commercial general contracting firm, has named Kate Gilbert, Jared Chastain and Michael White as company vice presidents.

Gilbert, vice president of business operations, is a 12-year veteran of the Strauss Co. Gilbert is responsible for overseeing Strauss' day to day operations and will continue to direct human resources and safety.

Chastain, vice president of business development, is responsible for client relations, marketing, preconstruction services and estimating. Chastain has a master's in engineering management and has been with Strauss since 2006.

White, vice president of field operations, will provide oversight of all field operations and the management and direction of superintendents and field personnel. White has more than 18 years of construction experience and has been with Strauss since 2006.

The Strauss Co., started by John Straussberger in 1990, has completed more than $400 million in construction projects throughout the Southeast.

KMT Creative Group adds 3

KMT Creative Group has expanded its professional team with the hiring of three marketing, communications, and project management professionals.

Sam Hall has been hired as an account manager. He has nearly 25 years of experience in account management, most recently in technology sales. He began his career in radio, working on air before moving on to sales and sales management.

Valerie Roy has been hired as a project manager. Before joining KMT, she worked for 10 years in health care, handling marketing and communications, advertising, multimedia campaigns, TV and radio production, collateral materials, and agency relations for a nonprofit hospital.

Julie Van Valkenburg has been hired as a copywriter and public relations strategist. For more than 25 years, she has worked in communications in a broad range of fields, including education, health care, insurance, electric utilities, the arts and philanthropy. She began her career as a reporter, editor and designer with two metropolitan newspapers.

Founded in 2001, KMT Creative Group Inc. is a full-service brand strategy agency that provides a broad range of advertising, marketing and public relations services.

Schoonover joins Capital Financial

Todd Schoonover has been appointed assistant general agent of Capital Financial Group, an agency of Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. (MassMutual). Schoon-over's office is undergoing a physical transformation, almost doubling in size, as well as an increase in staff.

"We are definitely looking to recruit experienced financial services professionals and those looking to change careers," said Schoonover.

One of his key roles with the firm is to find, bring on and develop professionals who will work on financial planning with area businesses and families.

Schoonover is a graduate of University of Tennessee at Chattanooga with a degree in finance. He started his financial services career in Chattanooga before moving to Memphis and then Nashville. Schoonover and his wife, Nickie, have three children and live in East Brainerd.

Business digest is published every Sunday to highlight career moves and promotions of managers of Chattanooga area companies and agencies. Announcements should be send to Business Editor Dave Flessner at dflessner@timesfreepress.com or by calling 757-6340.