Leaders highlight employee value at Idaho CEO of Influence event

Smart leaders know that building a solid team around them goes well beyond just hiring those candidates thought to be the right people for the job.

Solid personnel moves also require trusting those hired by properly delegating duties assigned to match their strengths and skills, while allowing employees to operate and perform the tasks they were hired to accomplish.

Such sentiment was on full display, provided by a host of business leaders during the 16th annual CEO of Influence awards ceremony hosted by Idaho Business Review on May 7 at Boise Centre.

The annual affair paid tribute to 21 leaders from across the state and from a variety of industries. Since the program’s inception in 2011, IBR has honored a total of 210 outstanding leaders from throughout the Gem State.

Along with paying tribute to this year’s crop of stellar leaders, IBR also recognized Rebecca Hupp, director of Boise Airport (BOI), with the prestigious IBR Link of Distinction award, an honor the publication established a mere three years prior.

“What makes this award even more special is that it comes from the community we serve every day,” Hupp told the more than 200 attendees who gathered for the event. “This award really belongs to our entire team.”

Honorees for each award category are selected based on criteria focusing on leadership, growth, vision, innovation and a strong commitment to community. In 2023, local developer Tommy Ahlquist was selected as the inaugural Link of Distinction recipient.

To receive the select honor, candidates must have previously been named a CEO of Influence award winner and must hold a professional title of CEO or equivalent.

Hupp, who began her tenure leading BOI in 2012, was named a CEO of Influence honoree in 2020. As the newest Link of Distinction honoree, she was recognized for using her leadership skills to help make the facility one of the nation’s most prominent origin and destination airstrips where passenger travel numbers continue to soar annually.

Under her leadership, BOI has seen a 76% increase in passenger travel over the past decade, including a record-setting 5.2 million passengers moving through the terminal in 2025.

“Airports are incredibly complex organizations. We operate 24-hours a day, every day of the year,” she said. “That requires precision, resilience, adaptability and an extraordinary level of coordination. None of that happens based on a single individual.”

First-year CEO winner Tressa McLaughlin, who for more than three decades has helped transform SOLV into a widely-recognized leader in the arena of branded merchandise, also shared her wisdom of zeroing in on the value of those who support her, and all others heading up organizations.

“As leaders we spend a lot of time thinking about how to make things better, how to influence outcomes, how to grow people, and to leave things stronger than when we found them,” she said. “That is the work and that is a privilege.”

Sharing what she called a “family tradition” started by her youngest son, she told the audience that birthday celebrations in her home involve asking one simple question: “What did I learn this year?”

With her own birthday approaching, she spoke of some of the many lessons she has learned and how to apply them within leadership roles. Her message included the concept that “family grows roots,” people can “always get better” and laughter fosters meaningful relationships.

“As CEOs, the conversations we have every single day, the way we listen more than we talk, and the way we show up for our people are what help build trust,” she said. “Trust is what moves everything forward. No matter how far we go in our careers and in our lives, we all need people to help us reach higher and higher. Be the leader who leans in regardless of your title.”

That same people-first approach was also highlighted by David McFadyen, CEO and president of Saint Alphonsus Health System. Along with his many duties overseeing a true nonstop operation that functions 24-hours a day, seven days a week, he also finds time in busy schedule to serve on the board of the Boise Metro Chamber of Commerce, and on the board of ambassadors for the Boise State University College of Health Sciences.

“One thing I love about this award is that it talks about influence,” McFadyen said. “For us as CEOs, it’s not the work we do as individuals, but our teams, the community partners we work with.”

In her busy role overseeing the Idaho Botanical Garden, Executive Director Erin Anderson stressed how the life of a CEO is “far more involved” than anyone can ever prepare you for.

It “looks different from the outside than it does from the inside,” Anderson said. “It goes beyond the 9 to 5. It’s the first thing you think about when you wake up in the morning, and the last thing you think about when you go to sleep. It shapes how you carry yourself and how you show up every single day.”

Nominations for next year’s CEO award winners can be submitted year-round by visiting the IBR website at idahobusinessreview.com.