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October 2023 » thefivestar.com 33 October 2023 C O V E R S T O R Y Brennan notes that the company has never relied on outside funding and has never hired a business development or sales team. "At PhoenixTeam," Brennan explains, "every partner is a practitioner, and we sell by word of mouth and our outstanding performance." A Commitment to People P hoenixTeam's emphasis on authen- ticity and human connection harkens back to when T3 (the founders) first met. The lead Partner on that original LGY account back in 2001 was Ann Hopkins, Tela's mother. Ann was a management consultant extraordinaire and civil rights advocate. "She taught by example to be a leader, take care of each other, and to chal- lenge the status quo," Mathias said. In her landmark U.S. Supreme Court case, Price Waterhouse v. Hopkins, the Supreme Court recognized that Price Waterhouse had denied her partnership and discriminated against her based on sex stereotypes. Within her practice, Ann taught five guiding principles: have fun, learn a few things, deliver a quality product that is perceived as a quality product, teach a few things, and make money. PhoenixTeam has taken these guiding principles as its foundation and continues to evolve them. "We are committed to people, lifelong learning, service, diversity, and wellness," Mathias said. In the spirit of that philos- ophy, in 2018, Phoenix started covering 100% healthcare for its team members and their families, and now also pays for mental health services. "Our team members deserve to come to work with less stress, and we know healthcare is at the top of the list. Our desire is to do what we can, what is in our control, to reduce external stress so our team members have fewer things to worry about and wake up ready to crush the day," said Melanie Lewis, PhoenixTeam Partner. When asked what qualities of Phoe- nixTeam allow it to attract and retain top-tier industry talent, Peter Read, Man- aging Practitioner, puts it simply: "Lead- ership … I know darn well I can text or cold call any of the partners or managing partners to talk personally and profession- ally. They have helped me flourish into a strong leader and have put me in positions where I am able to succeed based on my skills. They continue to invest in people both emotionally and financially. You will not get that anywhere else."