Kay Livingston Ash, Chief Executive Officer

Kay has served as CEO since founding The Ash Group. With responsibility for long-term strategic planning and development, she has played a major role in securing the firm's reputation as a market leader and has established international strategic relationships that have contributed to the growth of the company.

Kay brings more than 25 years of staffing industry experience and leadership to her position. Previously, she held a progression of top-line positions with Manpower. Her last role was Vice President and General Manager.

Kay holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Colorado State University. Contact Kay.

Leslie Braunstein, Chief Operating Officer

Leslie is an accomplished management and operational leader with over 18 years of experience. She plays a major role in directing the firm's management, vision and strategy.

Before joining The Ash Group, Leslie founded, built and managed Symmetry Resources, a highly successful staffing and placement firm focused on technology and executive placement. She has also held leadership positions in companies ranging in size from small to Fortune 500. Leslie holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Pennsylvania. Contact Leslie.

About the people who have inspired us

Brad Feld

Brad has been an early stage investor and entrepreneur since 1987. Prior to co-founding Foundry Group, he co-founded Mobius Venture Capital and, prior to that, founded Intensity Ventures. Brad is also a co-founder of TechStars.

In addition to his investing efforts, Brad has been active with several non-profit organizations and currently is chair of the National Center for Women & Information Technology, co-chair of Startup Colorado, and on the board of UP Global. Brad is a nationally recognized speaker on the topics of venture capital investing and entrepreneurship and writes the widely read blogs Feld Thoughts, Startup Revolution, and Ask the VC.

Brad holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in Management Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Brad is also an avid art collector and long-distance runner. He has completed 23 marathons as part of his mission to finish a marathon in each of the 50 states.

Steve Fitzgerald

Steve is currently the Vice President of the Organizational Effectiveness Practice at Avaya, a privately held, global communications technology giant headquartered in Basking Ridge, NJ. Prior to that, Steve was the SVP, Human Resources, at Vail Resorts, where he led the HR function at one of the premier hospitality companies in the world.

Prior to the most recent roles, Steve led Global Talent Management at Sun Microsystems, an activity that includes leadership development, recruiting, selection, global inclusion and diversity, succession planning, and a variety of other functions. Steve came to Sun as part of Sun’s acquisition of StorageTek, a transaction in which he was intimately involved. While with StorageTek, Steve was the Sr. Director of Organizational Learning and Effectiveness, led most of the talent management activities and did a considerable amount of merger and acquisition work to boot. StorageTek topped FORTUNE Magazine’s Most Admired list for four consecutive years prior to being acquired by Sun, and had the top ranking in the Employee Talent category in 2004 and 2005.

Steve started his career at Ford Motor Company, where he held a wide variety of roles during his 14 year tenure with the firm, including labor relations, start-ups, strategy and operating (non-HR) roles. He holds bachelor's and master's degrees from Michigan State University. Steve is active athletically, participating in cycling, hockey, skiing, flyfishing and a variety of other outdoor pursuits as the seasons change. He is also the owner and principal artist of FireStorm Clayworks, an art pottery focused on hand-thrown, raku-fired pieces. He lives just outside of Boulder, Colorado, with his wife Diana and teenage sons Ryan and Sean.

Dave Keith

With acumen earned from decades of management experience, Dave contributed guidance on broad matters of importance to the business. His resume is lengthy and includes sales and managerial positions at several major companies, including serving as a Senior Vice President at a global Fortune 200 staffing company and Operations Manager for Unisys. Dave earned a B.S. and an M.A. in Business Education from Murray State University in Kentucky.