TERESA MATSUI SANDERS

Teresa is the founder of InnWorks, a hospitality management and consulting firm. Over the course of 20+ years in the industry, Teresa has created new businesses and financed start-ups and ongoing operating entities with public and private equity offerings. Under her leadership, the InnWorks team of seasoned hospitality professionals has restored profitability at distressed hotels, established policies, controls and operating consistency, and developed a loyal and diverse workforce. These accomplishments have come during times of extreme financial hardship due to major economic downturns, changes in regulatory environments, and localized market saturation. She is also the creative force behind a number of new hotel projects.

Teresa's accomplishments are grounded in a unique ability to forge meaningful connections with diverse constituencies. She is adept at synthesizing inputs from disparate sources into a cohesive, creative vision, then developing practical plans for execution.

In 2010, Teresa created Pinewell Group to provide strategic HR and operational assistance to emerging and transitioning businesses. She is a passionate small business advocate, particularly of minority- and family-owned enterprises.

Teresa serves as a Director of Matsui Nursery, the world’s largest commercial orchid producer, and Director of the Matsui Foundation, a private non-profit organization that awards college scholarships to students from Monterey County, California. In addition, she serves on the Advisory Board of Americas Best Value Inn, the fastest-growing hotel chain in the U.S. in recent years, and on the Advisory Council for Shaw-Lundquist Associates, Inc., the nation's largest Asian-owned contracting firm. She is also a kitchen volunteer and member of the Finance Committee of Open Arms of Minnesota.

Teresa earned her undergraduate degree from Harvard University and her MBA from the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University.