About Kelly Caldwell
Kelly Caldwell grew up in Fort Wayne, Indiana and attended Purdue University graduating with a degree in Wildlife Science from the school of Agriculture.
Her career began with two different government agencies and then she moved on to a position at a large environmental consulting firm. In 2002, Kelly cofounded AK Environmental, LLC, a consulting firm that provides environmental services, construction and project management, and inspection services to the energy industry. As Vice President of AK, she was responsible for the financial management of the company, human resources, staff management, corporate compliance matters and client relations. Kelly and her business partner successfully took, which started out as a two person company, through exponential growth over thirteen years’ time (from $0.6M to $30M in annual revenue). Since 2010, they maintained a company size averaging over 100 employees and continued revenue growth year after year. AK Environmental was listed on the 50 Fastest Growing Women-Owned Companies in 2010, 2011, and 2012; Inc 500 list in 2010, and Inc 5000 list in 2011 and 2013. Kelly and her business partner were also named one of the Ernst and Young Entrepreneurial Winning Women in 2010.
In March 2014, Kelly and her business partner sold AK to NV5, a publicly traded engineering consulting firm. Kelly held the role of Senior Vice President at NV5 for one year after the sale. Her role was critical to the successful integration of the AK/NV5 financial and operation systems. Kelly is currently using her entrepreneurial experience through serving on boards and working with organizations like Girls on the Run of the Triangle, Wake County SmartStart, and the Women’s Giving Network of Wake County. Last year, she became an angel investor by joining the Triangle Angel Partners and she enjoys learning and investing in new ideas coming out of the RTP area.
Kelly has been living in Holly Springs, NC for the past 11 years with her husband, Pete (also a Boilermaker) and her daughters Sonora (12) and Maya (9).
Her career began with two different government agencies and then she moved on to a position at a large environmental consulting firm. In 2002, Kelly cofounded AK Environmental, LLC, a consulting firm that provides environmental services, construction and project management, and inspection services to the energy industry. As Vice President of AK, she was responsible for the financial management of the company, human resources, staff management, corporate compliance matters and client relations. Kelly and her business partner successfully took, which started out as a two person company, through exponential growth over thirteen years’ time (from $0.6M to $30M in annual revenue). Since 2010, they maintained a company size averaging over 100 employees and continued revenue growth year after year. AK Environmental was listed on the 50 Fastest Growing Women-Owned Companies in 2010, 2011, and 2012; Inc 500 list in 2010, and Inc 5000 list in 2011 and 2013. Kelly and her business partner were also named one of the Ernst and Young Entrepreneurial Winning Women in 2010.
In March 2014, Kelly and her business partner sold AK to NV5, a publicly traded engineering consulting firm. Kelly held the role of Senior Vice President at NV5 for one year after the sale. Her role was critical to the successful integration of the AK/NV5 financial and operation systems. Kelly is currently using her entrepreneurial experience through serving on boards and working with organizations like Girls on the Run of the Triangle, Wake County SmartStart, and the Women’s Giving Network of Wake County. Last year, she became an angel investor by joining the Triangle Angel Partners and she enjoys learning and investing in new ideas coming out of the RTP area.
Kelly has been living in Holly Springs, NC for the past 11 years with her husband, Pete (also a Boilermaker) and her daughters Sonora (12) and Maya (9).
