MINNEAPOLIS, Nov. 3, 2014 – Brandon Sawalich, senior vice president at Starkey Hearing Technologies, was named the winner of the Emerging Leader Award at the 2014 Leaders in Health Care ceremony Oct. 29. The ceremony, hosted by Minnesota Business magazine, drew hundreds of medical professionals from across Minnesota to celebrate industry leaders and companies. The Emerging Leader Award is given to a health care professional under the age of 40 who has already demonstrated remarkable achievements.
“I am honored and humbled to receive the Emerging Leader in Health Care Award,” Sawalich said. “Leadership is easier when you surround yourself with the best and brightest and allow them do their jobs. I work with a great group of people who make me better and the Starkey Hearing team stronger every day.”
Sawalich is a passionate, forward-thinking advocate for hearing health in Minnesota, the greater United States and the global community. As a 20-year employee of Starkey Hearing Technologies, he has built expertise in nearly all aspects of sales and marketing in the hearing industry. Earlier this year the company unveiled Halo™, a Made for iPhone® hearing aid. Sawalich led the effort to educate Starkey’s audiologist customers on the technology, personally hosting 31 training sessions across the country, as well as oversaw the national advertising campaign to educate the general public on the new technology.
Philanthropy plays an instrumental role in Sawalich’s corporate outlook and his personal life. He is a longtime supporter of Special Olympics Minnesota and was elected to its Board of Directors in April. He has also served on the Board of Directors for the International Hearing Foundation since 2012. Additionally, he is an active participant in the Starkey Hearing Foundation, which fits more than 150,000 hearing aids annually to children and adults during more than 65 missions all over the world. As a member of President Clinton’s Global Initiative, the foundation has pledged to fit more than one million hearing aids to people in need this decade.
Sawalich began his career at Starkey Hearing Technologies at the age of 19 in the global hearing provider’s hearing aid repair lab and held several roles within the company before being named senior vice president in 2010. Today, Sawalich oversees the company’s market development, leading a team of more than 350 customer-facing professionals in sales, marketing and customer relations.
About Starkey® Hearing Technologies
Starkey Hearing Technologies is a privately held, global hearing technology company headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. The company is recognized for its innovative design, development and distribution of comprehensive digital hearing systems. Founded in 1967, Starkey Hearing Technologies currently employs more than 3,600 people, operates 21 facilities and conducts business in more than 100 markets worldwide. The company develops, manufactures and distributes hearing aids via three distinct brands – Audibel, NuEar and its original brand, Starkey. For more information, visit https://www.starkey.com or the Starkey Expo Page on AudiologyOnline.
