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PROFILE
Developing leaders: Jim Canfield President of WithersRavenel (Cary, NC), a multidisciplinary consulting firm serving both the private and public sectors.
By LIISA ANDREASSEN Correspondent
A s president of WithersRavenel, Canfield is charged with leading the company and its most valuable resources – its employee-owners. He was initially hired in 1990 to lead the land development group and took over as president in 2013. He says the most exciting thing that’s happened during his time with the company has been its continued growth. Most of that growth can be attributed to adding complementary lines of business and geographic office locations to better serve clients, provide growth opportunities for teammates, and enhance the communities where they work. In 2023, the Triangle Business Journal recognized WithersRavenel as one of the most successful businesses in the region. The company made the prestigious list for the fifth straight year, finishing at No. 43 in 2023. The honor affirms the company’s commitment to quality projects, core values, and client experience. AN ESOP CULTURE DRIVES SUCCESS. WithersRavenel became 100 percent employee-owned in 2019. The primary
impetus for that move had to do with developing a way to transition the company from its two majority owners and founders, Tony Withers and Sam Ravenel, to its employees. It was also closely aligned with their belief in sharing ownership and company culture, which emphasizes that everyone on the team is important to company success. “It’s rewarding to see the growth of teammates and their success as they advance into leadership positions across the organization,” Canfield says. “This new ESOP has led to tremendous growth for us since 2014, and especially over the last four years.” In 2022, the company launched a “focus on innovation.” While innovation can mean many different things, for WithersRavenel, it’s mostly about leveraging technology and being thought leaders to create efficiencies in the way it conducts business, delivers services, and adds value. WithersRavenel wants to help people solve old problems in new ways by leveraging technology. For example, WithersRavenel has developed a web-based tool to avoid sanitary sewer overflows. It’s
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THE ZWEIG LETTER FEBRUARY 12, 2024, ISSUE 1524
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