Company with Castle Pines leadership wins prestigious award
NexGen employees accepting ColoradoBiz’s Top Company award. (Left to right): Clayt Reynolds, president and CFO; Julie Dahl, executive assistant; Charlie McNeil, chairman and CEO; Travis McNeil, president; Matt Bernstein, vice president; and Ryan McNeil, vice president.
ColoradoBiz Magazine held its 35th annual “Top Company” awards dinner in September, awarding NexGen Resources Corporation the coveted award in the energy category.
NexGen is a privately owned, family-structure business with 16 employees in its DTC office and hundreds of other colleagues under the various operating companies. Its portfolio consists of NexGen Resources (energy), NexGen Oil and Gas, NexGen Properties (commercial real estate), Proceed Finance (financing for dental implants) and Oregen (dental implant surgeries).
Travis McNeil, resident in The Village at Castle Pines and president and co-owner of NexGen Properties, attended and accepted the award on behalf of the company. McNeil said he is proud of the recognition but added that all of NexGen’s diversified businesses should be considered in the win.
“It’s all of the teammates at NexGen who really earned this award because of their dedication and commitment to what they do to make all of our companies the successes that they are today,” said McNeil.
ColoradoBiz Magazine awards are based on financial performance, outstanding achievement and community involvement.
The history of NexGen started with McNeil’s father, Charlie, in their home basement in Colorado Springs in 1993. “My mom was his secretary in the early days, with my father using me and my siblings’ college education savings to start the company,” said McNeil.
Today, McNeil and his brother Ryan – who is vice president of land – work alongside their father in the business. NexGen also employs brother-in-law, Clayt Reynolds, who is a president and CFO. “It has been a wonderful experience to grow a business with family,” added McNeil.
Community involvement is one criteria on which ColoradoBiz’s editorial board bases its awards. NexGen has been generous in giving back to the community. The company gave a large endowment to Colorado School of Mines for the McNeil Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.
Another Castle Pines resident, Roger Falk, is vice president of exploration for NexGen Oil and Gas. Falk, a geologist who helped launch the oil and gas company for NexGen 12 years ago, explained that the company has accomplished long-term partnerships with other companies where, together,
they explore and market hydrocarbons. “Through these relationships we can keep our headcount low and accomplish the same goals,” explained Falk.
“The thing that makes us stand out from our competitors is how well we treat our people,” said McNeil’s father, Charlie, who is the NexGen owner and CEO. “We have a very low turnover and allow the business to grow and flourish around people, and that’s been the key to NexGen’s success for 38 years.”
Other contributions include serving on the Denver Area Council’s Boy Scouts of America, the Foundation at Craig Hospital, Children’s Diabetes Foundation, and donating to various scholarships.
According to the ColoradoBiz website, there were hundreds of applications for the Top Company competition. In addition to the energy category, ColoradoBiz Magazine gave awards to 12 other industries.
“There is a sense of accomplishment knowing that the risk we are taking in investing is growing the economy andbenefiting the communities that we serve,” concluded McNeil.
By Hollen Wheeler; photos courtesy of NexGen Resources
