Jeff Whiteman
CEO & Cofounder
Third-generation owner, Chairman, President and CEO of Empire Southwest (Empire CAT), the authorized Caterpillar dealer for Arizona, Southeastern California, and Nevada with over 4,000 employees. Has led the Empire organization since 2002.
Chris Zaharis
EVP & Cofounder
More than 25 years in senior leadership at Empire Southwest (Empire CAT), one of the largest Caterpillar dealers in the southwestern United States. BASc in Finance from Brigham Young University and a J.D. from the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law.
Thomas Afshari
Chief Engineer & Cofounder
Inventor of the EHA+ and named inventor on more than 15 issued and pending patents covering Drive-Drive pump architecture, dynamic synchronization control, integrated cooling, and embedded diagnostics. Over 20 years of work across multidisciplinary engineering.