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C-SUITE | 2024 AWARDS B8 HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | SEPTEMBER 2, 2024 E tkin Tekin is the co-founder and CEO of Haven Hot Chicken. He launched his first restaurant during his senior year at Yale, started another company in restaurant tech at 25, and spent seven years at ZX Ventures/AB-InBev honing his corporate skill set. Tekin's primary respon- sibilities at Haven Hot Chicken include growth strategy, business planning, public relations, fundrais- ing and investor relations, and people development. What have been your biggest professional accomplishments over the past year? As CEO of Haven Hot Chicken, I have overseen the company more than double in size over the past year. In August 2023, Haven Hot Chicken had four locations, and as of August 2024, Haven Hot Chicken had nine. As a result of this growth, I have keyed in on leadership development and advancing people within the organization. We have proudly promoted over 20 employees from hourly team members to shift lead, assis- tant general manager, or general manager. Our commitment to and investment in our people is the secret to our success. In what ways are you involved in the community? We are proud to partner with CT Foodshare, Connecticut's food bank, with our signature Great Banana Pudding Drive. For every banana pudding sold, we contribute a meal to CT Foodshare, meet- ing the needs of almost 500,000 food-insecure state residents. On the job Guiding business princi- ple: Be a good employer. Best way to keep your competitive edge: Instill our core values of being humble, rigorous, relentless, positive, joyful, inclusive and focusing on teamwork. Best business decision: Investing in the development and growth of our teams. Worst business decision: ere are no bad decisions, only opportunities to learn. Biggest missed opportunity: No regrets! Goal yet to be achieved: Reaching 100% guest satisfaction; we are currently at 4.6/5 stars. Personal touch in your office: My office is my car, or one of the Haven Hot Chicken store locations. Crispy, crunchy, juicy, spicy, delicious chicken is the personal touch in my office! Etkin Tekin Co-Founder & CEO HAVEN HOT CHICKEN Size of organization: $13M in 2024; 170 employees Education: Yale University, Bachelor's Degree, Anthropology WINNER CATEGORY | CEO, MEDIUM COMPANY, 76-199 EMPLOYEES D rew Andrews, CPA, has dedi- cated his career to public accounting. He is a respected, passionate leader advancing the accounting profession and an active philanthropist. Since 2008, Andrews has been the managing part- ner and CEO of Whittlesey. He is responsible for devel- oping and executing the firm's strategy, focusing on innovation and imple- menting AI and automa- tion to meet the evolving needs of the firm's clients while enhancing compet- itiveness and operational excellence. Additionally, he serves a select client base and mentors others. Under his leadership, Whittlesey has evolved from a local firm with a single office to Connecticut's larg- est independent CPA firm. is growth involved increasing revenue more than fourfold, expanding from one to three offices across two states, and integrat- ing four firms into the organization's culture. is growth positioned Whittlesey as an Inside Public Accounting Top 200 Firm, Inside Public Accounting Best of the Best Firms, and a Top 10 New England Firm. What have been your biggest professional accomplishments over the past year? Over the past year, one of my biggest professional accomplish- ments was having the firm nationally recognized for its financial and operational excellence as one of Inside Public Accounting's Best of the Best Firms for the second consecutive year — positioning us as leaders in the industry. We are the only Connecti- cut and western Massachu- setts-based firm to make this list. is achievement underscores our dedication to continuous improvement and innovation, our team's pursuit of excellence and commitment to our clients, and the trust they put in us each day. In what ways are you involved in the community? My commitment to community service strongly aligns with Whittlesey's core values of giving back to the communities where we live and work. Our firm services over 400 nonprofits, sponsors over 100 events annually and participates in community initiatives. I have served on numerous boards for nonprofit and professional organizations. Drew Andrews Managing Partner & CEO WHITTLESEY Size of organization: $40M; 170 employees Education: Bachelor's Degree, Business Administra- tion, Bryant University WINNER CATEGORY | CEO, MEDIUM COMPANY, 76-199 EMPLOYEES Whittlesey congratulates our CEO Drew Andrews and all the Hartford Business Journal 2024 C-Suite Award recipients. Drew's leadership and pursuit of excellence, has helped our clients successfully navigate compliance, economic, and technological changes to see a better future. ASSURANCE | ADVISORY | TAX | TECHNOLOGY 280 Trumbull St, 24th Floor, Hartford, CT 06103 860.522.3111 | www.WAdvising.com