Sierra Vista Company Ranks In Top 5 Fastest Growing In State

Sierra Vista Company Ranks In Top 5 Fastest Growing In State

By Terri Jo Neff |

A Sierra Vista-based company which started with just one government contract in 2017 has been named to Inc. Magazine’s 5000 fastest growing private companies in America, ranking in the top five in Arizona and number 158 nationwide with more than 3,200 percent growth the last three years.

Nemean Solutions provides a variety of services to the U.S. military, as well as state and federal agencies in support of America’s Defense, Intelligence, and Aerospace sectors. It ranks #5 of the 154 honorees based in Arizona, with those companies accounting for $18.5 billion in total revenue and more than 12,000 jobs, according to the magazine.

The company’s three-year growth also ranked #4 of the 120 businesses nationwide in the Government Services industry to make the 5,000 list in 2022. They far outpaced their Arizona competitors MO Studio (ranked 2,088) and Vector Solutions (ranked 4,743).

Nemean Solutions was founded by Craig Mount and Simon Ortiz in Mount’s kitchen in Sierra Vista with plans to offer intelligence contracting at the U.S. Army’s Fort Huachuca. Today it employs nearly 80 full-timers and dozens of part-timers as a certified SBA 8a Native Hawaiian-Owned and veteran-operated company.

Mount, a former Sierra Vista city councilmember, told AZ Free News he and Ortiz started the company with $5,000. It then took six months for the two former U.S. Army members to get all the clearances necessary to work at secured military installations before receiving about $80,000 in contracts.

Two year later, Nemean Solutions had its SBA 8a certification which allows the company to receive sole source service contracts of up to $100 million per award. Today, Mount serves as president and Ortiz as CEO of the company which could end the year with more than $8 million in revenue.

“We want to thank our partners at Ho’okahua Hawaiian Foundation, our fantastic mentors at Trideum Corporation, our amazing banking team at Bank of America -Chris Patty, Christa Williams and Edward Spenceley- for putting the fuel into the machine, the ever patient Kelly McBride and her outstanding team at Global Dynamic Consulting, Inc. keeping the wheels on, and all our amazing industry teaming partners,” Mount said.

But most of all, he acknowledged “the Pride of Nemean” as he calls the company’s “incredible employees and their families who dedicate their professional time, energy, talent and experience to deliver Unbreakable Values and Superior Solutions to our nation’s military in fourteen states.”

Ortiz also gave credit to two Sierra Vista business development experts for their support over the years with Nemean Solutions’ growth.

“Mark Schmidt and his team at the Cochise College Small Business Development Center have been amazing in championing for Sierra Vista’s small business community and for us at Nemean,” Ortiz told AZ Free News. “Also, we would be remiss in not giving credit to Mignonne Hollis of the Arizona Regional Economic Development Foundation for helping us establish our headquarters in Sierra Vista.”

Nemean Solutions is a key Cybersecurity services provider for U.S. Army 7th Signal Command (Theater), U.S. Army NETCOM, U.S. Army CSLA, and the U.S. Air Force, offering Risk Management Framework support services and Cyber Electromagnetic Activities Subject Matter Support and Emerging Threat for U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force commands.

It also employs expert Administrative and Project Management Professionals to support critical missions for the U.S. Army including the Intelligence Center or Excellence, U.S. Army Mission Command Center of Excellence, and Army Research Office.

Other Nemean Solutions employees are experts in Military Support, Military Intelligence and Intelligence Operations Support, providing critical mission support for the U.S. Army Intelligence Center of Excellence, U.S. Army Maneuver Center of Excellence, U.S. Army Fires Center of Excellence, U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence, and U.S. Naval Special Warfare Command.

And the company currently provides vital Information Technology Services for U.S. Army CECOM, U.S. Army NETCOM, and the U.S. Navy through a leadership team which has over a decade of Department of Defense Joint Live, Virtual, and Constructive Modeling & Simulation and Experimentation Support.

In addition to the recent recognition by INC. Magazine, Nemean Solutions was the recipient of the 2022 SBA Arizona Small Business Development Center’s Success Award, the 2021 and 2020 HIRE VETS Platinum Medallion awards from the U.S. Department of Labor, and the 2021 SBA SBDC Arizona Veteran-Owned Congressional Business Economic Impact Success Story.

Healthcare Staff Shortages In Arizona Further Impacted By Dearth Of Recruiters

Healthcare Staff Shortages In Arizona Further Impacted By Dearth Of Recruiters

By Terri Jo Neff |

There has been much media coverage in recent months about Arizona’s nursing shortage. This summer, Phoenix-based Banner Health confirmed it was down nearly 1,400 nursing professionals at its 30 hospitals and associated medical offices across the country.

But even the prestigious Mayo Clinic—recognized as the top hospital in the United States for 2020-2021 by U.S. News & World Report—has learned that staffing issues extend far beyond the nursing ranks and into nearly every department.

As of Sunday, more than 375 jobs were advertised on the Mayo Clinic’s website. And those are only the company’s open positions in Arizona.

The reality of employment challenges facing Arizona’s medical community is forcing changes in how to attract medical professionals who may be looking to change jobs. And one hospital in Cochise County has found a creative way to garner the attention of prospective employees.

Canyon Vista Medica Center in Sierra Vista opened in 2015 as Cochise County’s only Level 3 trauma medical facility. Last week it released a recruitment video touting the wonderful work environment, although much of the video is spent showcasing Sierra Vista and Cochise County.

The video available on Facebook and LinkedIn draws attention to “the wonderful sceneries and opportunities” the region has to offer, according to CVMC spokeswoman Alexis Ramanjulu.

“Like all industries we have to be creative in how we attract new employees,” Ramanjulu explained to AZ Free News. “We hope by showcasing the place our business and healthcare heroes call home will attract medical professionals to our hospital and our part of the country.”

Such efforts are necessary despite the fact Gov. Doug Ducey announced $25 million to bolster hospital frontline staffing in November 2020, followed a few weeks later by another $60 million to address nursing shortages. The December funding pledge was matched by Ducey last month, but it could take weeks, if not months, to get that money into the hands of hospital administrators.

In the meantime, some smaller healthcare providers and medical offices have begun targeting workers at those larger companies in Arizona that are threatening to suspend or even fire medical professional for noncompliance of stringent COVID-19 vaccination mandates.

Yet hiring efforts across the state are not coming close to addressing the widespread staffing shortage. Part of the problem, according to one hospital administrator, is that such outreach efforts are often conducted by trained recruiters, which are also in short supply in Arizona.

Among those recently advertising for experienced recruiters in Arizona, are St. Luke’s Hospital (Tempe), Northwest Healthcare (Tucson), and Banner Health, which is Arizona’s largest employer.

Other companies with recruiter openings are Yavapai Regional Medical Center (Prescott), Envita Medical Center (Scottsdale), Mountain Vista Medical Center (Mesa), Northern Arizona Healthcare Corp. (Flagstaff), SpringBoard Healthcare (Phoenix), Havasu Regional Medical Center (Sacate), Tenet Healthcare (Phoenix), LifePoint Health (Lake Havasu City), Steward Health Care (Arizona City), and IASIS Healthcare (Mesa).

WATCH THE CVMC RECRUITING VIDEO: