Leadership at Lewis

Jenny Brewster has served as Director of Contract Management at Lewis since 2012. She is responsible for timely and accurate customer billing and revenue recognition, as well as collecting cash within contractual terms. Brewster works as a business partner with the operational and corporate teams to provide excellent customer service.

In 2015, Brewster was recognized as VIP Woman of the Year by the National Association of Professional Women for outstanding performance and dedication to her profession. In 2017 she received the Lewis Leadership Award for her visionary guidance and exceptional management.

Brewster played an integral role in two major software implementations at Lewis and built a strong team of financial and technology professionals to support the company’s growth. Before joining Lewis, she worked at The Sutherland Group in account management.

As a leader, Brewster values transparency and believes in being open and honest with her team. She appreciates the fact that people throughout the Lewis organization have integrity and are responsible and trustworthy.

Brewster earned her bachelor’s degree in business administration from Medaille University.

“Acting with integrity means being responsible and trustworthy. Without these traits as a foundation, I feel being respectful, inclusive and improvement minded would be a challenge.”

JoAnn Zaccardo has served in Human Resources and Benefits at Lewis since 2016. She is responsible for the administration, coordination, and compliance of the human resource and benefit functions. Zaccardo provides leadership, strategic direction, and planning to facilitate efficient operations for Lewis.

Zaccardo has worked in human resources for most of her career, starting out as a foreign exchange clerk for the Eastman Kodak Company. From there, she worked at the Al Sigl Center and the Epilepsy Foundation in Rochester.

At Lewis, Zaccardo led the initiative to move the majority of human resource documents from paper copies to an electronic system. She is passionate about continuous improvement, which aligns well with the Lewis mantra to “always strives to do better.”

Outside of work, Zaccardo enjoys spending time with her family. Zaccardo earned her bachelor’s degree in human resource management from St. John Fisher College.

“I appreciate that Lewis is inclusive and improvement minded. One is impossible without the other.”

Steve Polozie has served as General Counsel and Vice President at Lewis since joining the company in 2015. In this role, Polozie oversees all legal matters involving Lewis and its affiliates with the goal of delivering clear, business-minded solutions for complex challenges.

In 2019, Polozie was recognized by the Rochester Business Journal as a Corporate Counsel Award Honoree. Throughout his career he has delivered practical answers to an array of complex strategic, commercial, and legal questions for the companies he has served. Polozie worked for the U.S. government before transitioning to corporate law as general counsel for a national player in commercial landscaping.

Polozie believes respect is critical when interacting with individuals and teams in a business environment; mutual respect can bridge differences and facilitate personal and professional development.

“A big part of respect is taking the time to listen. Listening is the key to understanding, and understanding is the key to identifying and pursuing opportunities, improvements, and even innovations for the team.”

Polozie earned a bachelor’s degree from McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, and a Juris Doctor from Northwestern University School of Law in Chicago, Illinois.

Tiffany Passmore is Director of Risk Management, a position she has held since joining Lewis in 2018. In this role, she is responsible for insurance and claims management, corporate training and compliance, and risk mitigation.

Before joining Lewis, Passmore served in several risk and safety management roles at companies including Rochester Regional Health and The Flanders Group, where she helped increase profitability while improving safety and compliance.

Passmore is a firm believer in honoring commitments. She appreciates the integrity of Lewis employees and the closely held value of “doing the right thing.”

Outside of work, Passmore loves camping with her three children. Passmore earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Pittsburgh and her master’s degree in human resource training and development from Indiana State University.

“Following through on your word builds trust and credibility and demonstrates respect.”

Jeff Kyles is Vice President of Finance for Lewis. In this role, Kyles is responsible for all aspects of financial planning and analysis, treasury, including the oversight of the company’s investment portfolio, contract management services, and administration of the Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP).

Prior to joining Lewis in 2019, Kyles worked in accounting for PwC, Eastman Kodak, and Bausch + Lomb. He also held leadership positions at Bonduelle, ITT, and Carrier. For ITT, Kyles led a team that split the company’s global accounting function into three separate public companies, then created a new accounting ledger for ITT’s legacy company.

Outside of work, Kyles enjoys spending time with his wife and children. He spent 15 years as a college football referee and has visited 34 countries. Kyles is also the Vice Chairman of the Rochester Chapter of the American Red Cross.

As a leader, Kyles values critical thinking because it enables people to course-correct when necessary and work towards organizational goals.

“I am always willing to help team members find ways to develop new competencies, and, perhaps most importantly, be able to look inwardly and identify areas that I need to improve - and then act on them.”

Kyles earned his bachelor’s degree and MBA from St. John Fisher University in Rochester, New York.

Steve Powell is Director of Marketing & Business Development for Lewis. In this role, he oversees the company’s marketing strategy, brand development, and growth into new geographic markets and customer accounts.

In addition to his business development expertise, Powell has an extensive background in business-to-business and business-to-consumer marketing and new technology introduction. He has led domestic and international initiatives throughout his career, successfully heading significant growth strategies for ACI Worldwide and Eastman Kodak.

As a leader, Powell believes it’s important to recognize teams and individuals for their contributions to the organization’s success. He appreciates how Lewis leaders and employees are constantly focused on continuous improvement.

Powell holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial management from Purdue University. He and his wife enjoy cycling, boating, and time with family and friends.

“Recognizing people for their achievements demonstrates a ‘we, not me’ principle that helps people feel valued.”

Tim Marion has served as Controller for Lewis since joining the company in 2020. He is responsible for overseeing financial reporting, accounts payable, expense management, business compliance, and payroll processes.

Over the years, Marion has been recognized for multiple accomplishments in his field. At Deloitte, partners selected him to participate in the national leadership development program, which prepared him to work with Deloitte’s top clients. Earlier in his career, Marion won the St. John Fisher Accounting Alumni Rising Star Award.

Outside of work, Marion enjoys spending time with his family and recently started running half marathons at national parks.

Marion believes in leading by example. “It is critical as leaders to be able to lead from the front to set the tone for our teams to rally around.” He believes integrity is the foundation of the company’s “Job Done Right” mantra and the key to maintaining credibility with customers.

Huntley Hedrick has served as Vice President of Technology at Lewis, joining the company in 2020. Hedrick is responsible for implementing and maintaining the organization’s current technology systems and planning the adoption of future technologies. He also leads the cybersecurity and data protection programs.

Throughout his career, Hedrick has worked for large corporations building advanced IT processes and tools. He led a major project at Bausch + Lomb, constructing multiple global networks and a data center. Before joining Lewis, Hedrick spent several years with Xerox and Ultralife.

In his spare time, Hedrick participates in endurance motorcycle races and coaches a travel soccer team. Hedrick earned his bachelor’s degree from the Rochester Institute of Technology where he was a member of the Division 1 volleyball team and played in a Final Four.

“As a leader, the critical first step is earning the trust and respect of your team.”

Laurel Yartz serves as the Director of Human Resources for Lewis. In this role, Yartz leads the Human Resources Business Partner and Talent Acquisition teams, is instrumental in the development and implementation of Human Resource strategies across the company, and supports employees’ needs throughout their tenure at Lewis.

Before joining Lewis, Yartz served in several senior leadership positions in Human Resources with Fortune 500 and private equity companies, including CooperVision, Corning Incorporated, Thermo Fisher Scientific, and Carestream Health. During the past two decades, she has led domestic and international strategic initiatives to help build culturally dynamic and diverse workforces through talent acquisition, development, retention, and succession planning.

Yartz earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from California State University and an MBA from the University of Rochester’s William E. Simon School of Business. She holds certification in Lean Six Sigma, Green Belt, and is a certified trainer in Development Dimensions International (DDI), Zenger-Miller (Achieve Global), and OSHA #501.

As a Human Resources leader, Yartz believes that an empowered team is a successful team and credits the Lewis culture for continuously empowering its employees to make decisions that are best for their customers and community.

“People power success. Success powers results. Results power people.”

Heather Steranka serves as the Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DE&I) for Lewis. In this role, Steranka is responsible for Lewis’ DE&I initiatives and champions the company’s commitment to providing an inclusive and equitable culture for its employees, customers and community partners.

A Certified Diversity Professional (CDP) with more than 20 years of inclusive leadership and diversity management experience, Steranka previously worked with Nestlé USA, the YWCA Greater Cleveland, Cleveland State University, and Berlitz Languages. During her tenure with these organizations, Steranka developed DE&I curriculum and training modules to increase workforce learning and engagement, improve retention, and create a cultural climate that promotes inclusivity across diverse stakeholder groups.

Steranka earned a bachelor’s degree from Ohio State University and a master’s degree from Cleveland State University. She is also certified as a Qualified Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) and Intercultural Conflict Style (ICS) Inventory Administrator, and a Development Dimensions International (DDI) Facilitator.

Passionate about facilitating authentic connections, Steranka cites INCLUSIVE and RESPECTFUL as her favorite Lewis operating principles as both are essential for creating and maintaining a culture where everyone feels included and valued.

“We may be different from one another regarding race, ethnicity, gender, culture, sexual orientation, national origin, or ability —but each of us brings something unique and special to the table. As an organization, when everyone feels included and respected, we are stronger, more innovative, and more resilient together.”

Outside of Lewis, Steranka is a published author. Combining her lifelong love of foreign languages and lands, Steranka wrote and illustrated the children’s book “Becky Says WOOF!” in 2019 to introduce children to other countries and cultures through the travels of Becky and her canine companions.

Alaina Zieglar serves as the Director of Safety and Human Performance for Lewis. In this role, Zieglar is responsible for overseeing the continuous development of Lewis’ total safety culture by coordinating, administering, and implementing comprehensive safety and training programs, including Human Performance tools and best-in-class policies and procedures.

Zieglar is a Certified Safety Professional (CSP) with more than 18 years of experience in employee safety, human performance, quality assurance, and continuous process improvement. Recognized for her leadership in developing and leading environmental health and safety (EHS) programs across a 21,000 employee enterprise, Zieglar has successfully spearheaded behavior-based safety initiatives within distributed workforces in multiple industries.

Zieglar earned a Bachelor of Science in Safety and Environmental Engineering Technology, is a member of the American Society of Safety Engineers, and holds professional certifications in Health, Safety, Emergency Response, and Human Performance Improvement Training.

A strong proponent of cross-functional leadership and team building, Zieglar believes in engaging and empowering team members at all levels. As a leader, she strives to serve as a positive role model by approaching challenges and opportunities with an improvement-minded attitude.

“When we adopt the position of “always learning, always improving,” we not only advance the objectives of our organization—we champion the successes of our team.”

An outdoor enthusiast and avid explorer, Zieglar has taken part in fishing expeditions in Alaska and Panama, enjoys turkey hunting in her home state of Pennsylvania, has traveled in Europe (Budapest ranks as her favorite city at night), and worked briefly in China.