After starting his career at a Fortune 500 organization and working as a leader for a small government contractor, Brad Hettenhausen found his passion was fueling a small organization with a winning culture. When he met the owners of GadellNet Consulting Services, he said it was an instant connection.
GadellNet Consulting Services focuses on executing as the premier IT provider in each of its markets, attracting and maintaining relationships with forward-looking high-performing organizations. The firm leverages its growth as a vehicle to build strong organizations and invest in communities, employees and the environment while embarking on a journey to bring impactful and relevant technology services, consulting and solutions to market.
Hettenhausen was hired as the 16th employee of the company and has led the formation and launch of the consulting services practice and hired the first dedicated resources for account management. In 2016, Hettenhausen developed and initiated a new product focused on cybersecurity. He was promoted from the chief information officer and president to the CEO role in 2022.
Over the last seven years, Hettenhausen has built business connections in St. Louis and Denver as part of the Vistage business community and the Young Presidents’ Organization. He has also grown the firm from a 16-person St. Louis break-fix shop to a team of nearly 175 full-service technology consultancy experts supporting clients across five states.
With Hettenhausen at the helm, the company was named as one of the INC.’s Best Workplaces, Best Places to Work in Indiana, and St. Louis Business Journal’s Best Places to Work.
“He has developed a new generation of leaders in GadellNet’s business, and he serves as a model for leading and executing in a high-performance business,” said his staff. “He possesses a rare blend of strategic acumen and genuine care for the well-being of our employees, creating a workplace that feels more like a second home than an office.”
As a leader, Hettenhausen said he has a constant focus on growth and learning, paired with optimism and persistence. “A strong growth mindset drives resiliency in the face of setbacks and struggles that are inevitable on the path to leadership and success,” he said. “Early in my career, I found myself thinking about the future and expecting my challenges to be fewer and easier; now, I’m confident that future struggles will be more challenging but I’m also confident that I’ll be able to handle everything.”
