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Meet Our Team#

Need business support or help navigating the City organization? The City is committed to a healthy economy that is vibrant, resilient and integrated with the community's social and environmental fabric.

How can we help? We collaborate. We convene. We are a funding agency. We can help build relationships.

The Economic Health Office exists to connect your business with:

  • Business retention/expansion expertise
  • Partner organizations
  • Targeted industry clusters
  • Construction projects business support
  • Multicultural Business & Entrepreneurship Center
  • Talent sector partnerships 
  • Business data analytics 
  • Small business support 

SeonAh Kendall, Economic Health Director#

SeonAh Kendall

Focus Areas 

 - Business retention and expansion expertise 

 - Innovation and business support 

 - Workforce and talent initiatives 

 - Regional partnerships 

 - Targeted industry clusters 

 - Business and data analytics 

SeonAh Kendall, CPA is the City of Fort Collins Director of Economic Health. During SeonAh’s tenure at the City, she has assisted in the development of the City’s business assistance policy framework, Broadband business plan and Connexion branding, industry cluster competitive process and more. SeonAh serves on the International Economic Development Council (IEDC) Board of Directors, IEDC Economic Development Research Partnership (EDRP), co-chair of Metro Denver Economic Development Council’s Front Range Economic Collaborative, and Innosphere Executive Board Member.

Contact SeonAh

Shannon Hein, Economic Health Manager#

Shannon Hein

Focus Areas 

 - Entrepreneur and small business support 

 - Multicultural Business and Entrepreneur Center 

 - For Fort Collins 

 - Partner organizations 

Shannon is the Small Business Program Manager, overseeing small business engagement and the Multicultural Business and Entrepreneur Center. She currently supports committee work for the Economic Development Council of Colorado (EDCC) and is the EDCC Board of Directors Northeast Regional Representative. Shannon proudly supports small businesses regularly, but especially on Thursdays which she has self-declared, Merch Day Thursdays, donning small business t-shirts and sharing about it on Instagram. 

Contact Shannon

Jillian Fresa, Economic Health Manager#

Jillian Fresa

Focus Areas 

 - Business retention and expansion expertise 

 - Site selection and attraction  

 - Workforce and talent initiatives  

 - Industry sector partnerships 

Jillian Fresa is originally from Virginia, where she began her career in economic development. She’s been with the City of Fort Collins since 2019 and supports the Economic Health Office’s business retention, expansion, and attraction efforts. Jillian participates in workforce and talent initiatives, serving on the Larimer County Workforce Development Board and the NoCo Works Steering Committee. 

Pronouns: She/Her 

Contact Jillian

Michael Bussmann, Lead Business Specialist#

Michael Bussmann

Focus Areas 

 - Business support during City construction 

 - Development Review support 

 - Downtown General Improvement District (GID) 

Michael is the Business Liaison for Capital Projects and focuses on pre-project engagement and driving the mutual understanding of City infrastructure requirements, and the operational needs of the business community. Before joining the city, Michael built his career in retail management and operations for multiple national and international companies.

Contact Michael

Edgar Ramos, Sr. Bilingual Business Connector#

Edgar Ramos

Focus Areas 

 - Multicultural Business and Entrepreneur Center (MBEC) consultant 

 - English and Spanish 

Edgar specializes in helping businesses navigate government processes and find resources for entrepreneurs to overcome barriers. In addition, Edgar supports the initiative of the NoCo Latino Chamber of Commerce as an advisor. As business owner himself, Edgar understands the hard work that is entrepreneurship. 

Contact Edgar

Katie Geiger, Sr. Economic Specialist#

Katie Geiger

Focus Areas 

 - Business retention and expansion 

 - Site selection and attraction 

 - Business data analytics and requests 

Katie is originally from Tennessee where she graduated with her degree in Social Work and worked in refugee and immigration services. Since joining the Economic Health Office, she has supported small business programs, business retention and expansion work, and economic data analytics and research.  

Pronouns: She/Her 

Contact Katie

Tommy Meritt, Bilingual Business Connector#

Tommy Meritt

Focus Areas 

 - Multicultural Business and Entrepreneur Center (MBEC) consultant 

 - MBEC marketing and outreach 

 - Spanish, English, Portuguese 

Tommy specializes in helping entrepreneurs establish, grow, and launch their business. Originally from Buenos Aires Argentina, his international background and experience in sales and digital marketing, allows him to assist small businesses in growing their brand and also navigating government processes.

Contact Tommy

Ashley Kailburn, Sr. Economic Specialist#

Ashley Kailburn

Focus Areas 

 - Business retention and expansion 

 - Site selection and attraction 

 - Business data requests 

Ashley has an extensive 15-year background in customer service, has a holistic view of our business community’s customer experience, and is passionate about collaborating in a meaningful way to build trusted partnerships. She assists in projects and programs related to oversight and development of business retention, expansion, small business, and primary employer programs across the City.  

Contact Ashley

Kat Hart, Sr. Economic Specialist#

Kat Hart

Focus Areas

 - Process improvement and standardization 

 - AEDO certification 

 - Business programs support 

 - Special projects 

Kat is a Norther Colorado native who has focused over a decade of her career on small business support and program development, focusing on startup concerns and marketing strategy. She has joined the Economic Health team to lead the AEDO certification process for the City and assist with process improvement for large and small business initiatives.  

Pronouns: She/Her 

Contact Kat

Leisha Talley, Business Connector#

Leisha Talley

Focus Areas 

 - Multicultural Business and Entrepreneur Center (MBEC) consultant  

 - Small business grant administration  

- Operational efficiency and loss prevention 

- Innovation, maker, and creative sectors 

Leisha facilitates access to resources and empowers a diverse range of entrepreneurs, enabling them to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to actualize business ideation, thrive through volatility, and strategize for resilience. With a background in natural resource science education, carbon management, and sustainability accounting, she can help businesses identify areas for optimization, navigate applicable environmental policies, realize cost savings through mitigating externalities, and enhance brand value through responsible corporate practices. 

Contact Leisha

Erin Sporer, Business Support III#

Erin Sporer

Focus Areas 

- Administrative Support 

- Customer Service 

 - Department Efficiency 

Erin was born and raised in the Northern Colorado region, where she graduated summa cum laude from the University of Northern Colorado with a degree in Recreation, Tourism, and Hospitality. Erin has been employed with locally owned businesses since the start of her professional career and has a wealth of experience in customer service.  

Contact Erin