One look at Richard Van Staten tells you he’s someone who has seen a lot in life. Sit down and talk with him and you’ll find out that’s an understatement. Ever since his youth Richard has always made resilience his key attribute, starting as a young man in the hardscrabble outskirts of Philadelphia, Hartford, and Detroit. Determined not to let his difficulties define him, Richard was able to make his way out of that world and not only survive but thrive in a world where you only get what you’re willing to grind for. Getting into (and out of) various scrapes only tells a small part of the story. Richard was also an entrepreneur from the start: mowing lawns, throwing newspapers, backbreaking fieldwork, and any variant of odd-jobs as a youngster. There was no job too small or too tough for Richard Van Staten. When his friends were dropping out of life, he stepped up, eventually making his way from bouncing at a club in his late teens, to 10-key data entry, to becoming director of Electronic Data Systems’ Medicaid Eligibility program in the state of Texas at just the age of 24. It wasn’t always easy, but accomplishing the toughest tasks in the most difficult environments never is. From there, managing information systems and interfacing between public and private entities became his specialty. The projects got bigger and complexity not for the lighthearted, but Richard always kept the same principles at hand: be the best at what you do, deliver, and you’ll never go hungry. After executing and dozens of major projects and modernizations in addition to putting many others that were troubled back on track all over the country over the course of more than a decade. This included many that were first of their kind such as significant government programs in Iowa, Texas, and Michigan and leading mergers and acquisitions in California, and technical projects in Washington, D.C., to name a few, he settled in Michigan as Senior Director of an IT division with oversight of clinical and business applications serving over 10,000 doctors. Henry Ford Health Systems, a nonprofit managed care provider, entrusted Richard with the tech that keeps their 100,000+ annual patients taken care of by over 30,000 employees. He then continued his modernization efforts for state governments as a leader with oversight of dozens of technologies in short-time frames. For a solutions-oriented tech expert like Richard, the biggest challenges are always the most enticing ones. Richard Van Staten has earned a number of accolades throughout his career, including a Stevie Award IT Executive of the Year, Executive of the Year, and ComputerWorld Premier 100 Technology Leaders Award. But trophies and titles aren’t what drives him. Creating real, actionable paths to profitability for businesses and tech clients large and small are what he does best, and he’s never slowed down. His own companies like Quantam and Van Staten and Associates bring his undeniable skill to the worlds consulting and market penetration, and he also makes time to share his thoughts with fascinating guests on his podcast, Evolve. He also serves as a mentor, helping guide numerous up-and-coming minds in the business sphere. At the end of the day, Richard Van Staten still has the heart of that kid who made his name on the streets of Philly. Turning around problems has gone from a matter of survival to a thriving set of businesses. It’s been quite a journey, but with the drive to upend expectations and deliver results for any problem in his way, it was only a matter of time before he made it to the top of the high-end project and program management field and award winning Chief Executive Officer. For his roster of satisfied clients and partner organizations, that hard-forged spirit has paid off in droves.