I have the extreme pleasure of working daily with Rick Pirozak at UCARI, Inc. Rick started as a consultant to support our funding efforts in July 2023, then quickly proved his mettle as a full-fledged fractional COO supporting me as CEO of UCARI, Inc. He immediately made an impact on me personally and professionally. Rick's 'slow down, to speed up' mantra resonated with me, as our firm's efforts were diffuse, and we relied more upon working harder and not necessarily smarter. As a result, my product and service vision for the firm was struggling to move forward. By pulling our Executive Leadership Team (ELT) together on a weekly basis and also through orchestrating and facilitating strategic offsite meetings Rick got all firm functions to row the boat in the same direction, getting us aligned on 1-, 3- and 5-year goals and weekly priorities to achieve them. He partnered with department heads to codify, identify and address shortcomings in our SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures.) He then used his personal network to source and onboard other 'A'-player resources to assist: a fractional CFO and a fractional CMO. He led our first-ever AOP (Annual Operating Plan) initiative to establish better financial rigor and establish an operating budget for fiscal 2024. And finally, he continues to lead our Digital Strategy by working closely with our web and Amazon channel partners to bolster our platform and messaging to support our 2024 goals.

But more important than WHAT Rick does is HOW he does what he does. With an infectious personality and witty sense of humor; by staying calm, cool, and collected under pressure; and by adopting a tough-love, no B.S. communication style, Rick instills in himself, me, and others at the firm a sense of 'team, we CAN and we WILL do this...and have fun along the way!' Though no task is too small for Rick, he understands the importance of setting boundaries, delegating while providing guidance, holding people accountable, and showing everyone 'what good looks like' if needed: he is a true 'servant leader.'

I was so impressed with Rick's contributions to our firm throughout 2023, that when I decided to pivot my own career in March 2024 towards other endeavors, I gladly turned to Rick to take the reins of UCARI, Inc. as our new, Interim CEO. I have no doubt whatsoever that Rick will take our firm to new heights of success, and do so in a manner that perpetuates a winning and collaborative culture that Rick has been so instrumental in establishing. 

I heartily endorse Rick Pirozak for any CxO-level role and would gladly speak to any prospective client of Rick's 1-1 to sing his praises. Thanks, Rick, for all you do! 

- Bertha Burruezo, Chief Strategy Officer and former Chief Executive Officer, UCARI, Inc.