CEO of the year finalists.

• Author: Caley, Nora
• Position: CEO of the YEAR

Most of ColoradoBiz magazine's 2016 CEO of the Year finalists had the same humble response when they were told of the award: "I should not be on this list." The 2016 finalists are a diverse group, not only in the companies they lead and their backgrounds, but their leadership styles. Some simply expressed that everyone else on the list was more worthy of the distinction, but it turns out many of this year's leaders have much in common. Here are this year's finalists:

LARRY A. MIZEL MDC Holdings Inc.

Larry A. Mizel may be better known for his philanthropic work than as chairman and CEO of MDC Holdings, the parent company of Richmond American Homes. He is involved with the Mizel Arts and Culture Center (The MACC), National Jewish Health, the Allied Jewish Federation and is co-founder of the Counterterrorism Education Learning Lab (The CELL).

Mizel moved to Denver in the '60s and earned his J.D. degree from the University of Denver-College of Law. According to its annual report, 30 percent of home sale revenues for MDC Holdings--a 1,200-person company--came from Colorado in 2015. Home sates improved, the result of a $43,600 increase in the average selling price to $420,900, mostly due to the homebuilder's shift to higher-priced communities.

RYAN E. ROSS Urban Leadership Foundation of Colorado

When Ryan E. Ross became CEO of the Urban Leadership Foundation of Colorado in 2015, he had previously served as program director. Still, there are always some surprises when leading a nonprofit. "The biggest surprise is the truth behind the org chart," he says. "I had to make sure I understand all of those roles before looking to fill those with volunteers or staff to understand every aspect of what we do and what our needs are holistically."

Ross had previously served as Dean of Student Development and Retention at the Community College of Denver (CCD). In January 2015, the Colorado Black Chamber of Commerce Foundation changed its name to the Urban Leadership Foundation of Colorado with the mission to prepare the next generation of leaders.

JACK KOO Rise Broadband

Jack Koo's background in finance and telecommunications and his 25 years of experience come in handy. "Our ability to close the digital divide by providing high-speed internet to rural and suburban communities is directly tied to favorably negotiating and maintaining access to capital," he says. "Telecommunications is a very capital-intensive business and my finance experience directly supports [our] considerable financial capabilities, fueling the company's high growth and profitability."

Koo says the most exciting trend in his industry is fixed wireless technology, with innovations around Long-Term Evolution, or LTE. "We're seeing the ability to provide 10 times faster speeds and 10 times more capacity in our network [that results in improved service] to our customers in rural and underserved areas," he says. "It's really gratifying to see Google and AT&T talk about deploying fixed wireless service after 10 years of us beating the drum."

NANCY PHILLIPS ViaWest

When college graduates ask Nancy Phillips for advice, she says, "The most successful leaders are willing to split off from the pack and blaze new trails."

In 1999, Phillips, originally from Toronto, co-founded ViaWest, which runs data centers in several western states. She assumed the CEO role in 2012, and in 2014 the Calgary, Alberta, Canada-based telecommunication company Shaw Communications acquired ViaWest, still based in Greenwood Village.

The Shaw acquisition has been a big change, but Phillips says employees were prepared. "In the face of change, my job is to communicate clearly and transparently across the organization about what is changing and why," she says. "In this case, Shaw viewed ViaWest as a growth-oriented acquisition--meaning our employees were not negatively impacted. It's been a terrific acquisition across the board, for our shareholders, our clients and for all of our employees."

JOHN HICKENLOOPER Governor, Colorado

John Hickenlooper has accrued some major career changes over the years--from geologist to restaurant owner to mayor of Denver, and finally, governor. The...