Meet the Apis Hive

Working as a hive is an essential piece of the Apis business model. We have gathered an exceptional team of professionals who are truly advocates for the small business owner and entrepreneur. We take our business seriously but believe that having fun together makes us perform even better. The depth of experience and education in our staff enables us to offer our small business clients the correct services for their particular situation.

  Suzy Schutz - President and Co-Owner, SBFO™, Certified QuickBooks® Pro Advisor

Over the past 22 years Suzy has established herself in the bookkeeping and accounting industry.  In 1997 after 8 years in the field, she founded her first private accounting and bookkeeping practice. Based on that experience, she partnered with Nancy Barnett to create Apis Business Solutions, LLC in August 2008. She is very passionate about useful and accurate information in a way that matches the needs and style of the individual business owner.  Suzy believes integrity is vital to building the trust with our clients. Her dream is to standardize the bookkeeping industry through the development and certification of the Small Business Financial Officer (SBFO®) position and by the way of example with Apis Business Solutions enabling business owners to be confident that their bookkeeping and accounting professionals are competent and qualified. Suzy teaches financial business classes at the SBDC (Small Business Development Center) Metro Denver and at Apis as well. She and her husband Richard have three grown sons and two granddaughters.  In her spare time, she enjoys music, theater, gardening, cooking, traveling, as well as learning and teaching new things.

  Nancy Barnett - Vice-President and Co-Owner, SPHR, SBDC Consultant, NxLevel Certified Instructor

Nancy has 25 years experience in corporate training, human resources, and vocational business training. Nancy’s passion is helping business owners start or improve their businesses by understanding all the components to build a strong business foundation.  She takes great pleasure in helping owners with strategic planning and business plan development.  She spent ten years at National Education College in California, as a teacher, Business Department Chairperson and Director of Education, as well as 14 years with AAA Colorado as Director of Corporate Training before joining Suzy to create Apis Business Solutions. She is a trainer and consultant at the SBDC (Small Business Development Center) Metro Denver, the North Metro SBDC, Broomfield Resource Center and the Mi Casa Resource Center focusing on small business development and start-ups.) She also designs and manages the business training delivered through Apis. She and her husband David have four grown children and eight grandchildren.  In her free time, she enjoys genealogy and collecting and selling antiques.

 Christine Barkley, SBFO™ (Small Business Financial Officer), PHR (Professional in Human Resource

Christine has over 15 years of experience in accounting and bookkeeping. She is also certified as a Professional in Human Resources (PHR) and is proficient in payroll as well. Not only is Christine proficient in all accounting procedures, including multi-jurisdictional sales tax; she has successfully completed company-wide system implementations and conversions. She is an expert in accounting procedural writing. She has successfully converted payroll systems in Intuit, Paychex, Ceridian, ADP, ProBusiness and PeopleSoft.  Finding solutions is her biggest joy. and more importantly she is a "doer." The word can't  is NOT in her vocabulary.  No problem is too big or too small.  She is comfortable with many systems including QuickBooks Premier & Pro Accounting, Soloman, MAS90, Peachtreeand MC2 Anywhere. She has performed in various industries such as: IT Technology, cable, medical, internet marketing, hotels & restaurants. In 2008 she obtained her B.A. for Regis University in Organizational Development..

She is the proud Mom of three teenage daughters and is committed to being actively involved in their various activities.

Rosy McDonough, SBFO™, Senior Accountant

Before joining the Apis Team as an SBFO™ and Senior Accountant, Rosy spent 4 years as a business consultant and Associate Director for the Denver Metro Small Business Development Center. She also owned her own successful business for more than 10 years. She is experienced in accounting, QuickBooks, financial analysis, strategic planning, loan packaging and business plan development. This expertise alone makes her a great asset to our team and our clients. However, there is more...she is an experienced business trainer and facilitator, which is a great asset as we teach accounting, business planning, and other business subjects to small business owners and entrepreneurs at the Denver Metro Small Business Development Center (SBDC), the North Metro SBDC, Broomfield Resource Center and the Mi Casa Resource Center.  She also speaks three languages-English, Spanish & Mandarin. She received a MBA in Finance & International Business.

When she is not busy taking care of Apis clients, her attention is centered on her husband and two little girls. She is active in the Denver Business Community and volunteers her time to help others succeed.

Mary McDowell, BizKeeper (Full-Charge Bookkeeper)

Mary understands small business because she comes from an entrepreneurial family.  She learned from her father about the importance of financial management and has endeavored to bring good financial management to other small business owners. She has over 7 years of accounting and bookkeeping experience. She is proficient in accounts receivable, accounts payable, payroll administration, cash allocations, bank statement & credit card reconciliations, invoicing and purchase orders, debt collection, statistical reporting and sales tax. She is proficient in QuickBooks both in the Windows and Mac environments. Her previous industry experience includes, but is not limited to: Construction, Real Estate, Property Management, Marketing & Printing Services, Medical Facilities, Education, Software Sales and County Offices. Mary completed her B.A. in Business Administration at Azusa Pacific University.

 Kendra Larson, BizKeeper (Full-Charge Bookkeeper) and Administrative Assistant

Kendra is another one of those people who gets excited about "organizing all those numbers and putting them in their proper place". That turns out to be a key skill for a great bookkeeper. Kendra is currently pursuing her Bachelor's of Science in Business Administration. She says "She loves numbers and finances, but taxes drive her a little nuts!" That sounds like something we can all relate to.  She has worked with many different industries, including travel, sales, semiconductor and other professional services.

Kendra spent the first 19 years of her life as a member of a 4th generation family living in the White Mountains of Arizona, which has the same elevation as the Denver area. Her next 19 years were spent in the Phoenix, AZ. When her husband decided to start his own contracting business, they decided to head to Colorado where he had gone to college. So in March of 2011 they eagerly packed everything up and moved to Denver. Both feel like they have returned home again!

Kendra loves life best when she can balance her bookkeeping duties with her hobbies outside of work. And hobbies she has...She loves outdoor activities, such as camping, hiking, fishing, horseback riding and snowmobiling.  She also loves to play the violin; keep her pets smiling, and is finally getting back into the yoga scene.

. Dick Hanna, BizKeeper (Full-Charge Bookkeeper)

Dick genuinely likes mucking around in the numbers conundrum that many business owners fear. It challenges him and he relishes challenge. He says "It makes me smarter and I like getter smarter. That helps my clients too--there's nothing wrong with a sharp-as-a-tack professional doing your gnarly bookkeeping work."

Everyone from your second grade teacher to your grad school professor has given you the same hard-to-follow advice: do what you love and love what you do. As a graphic designer and marketing professional for over 15 years, Dick has always loved being a vital partner in helping businesses grow and reach their sales and marketing goals. As a bookkeeper Dick continues to help business owners reach their goals and enjoy the peace of mind that comes from knowing that while they may be in business for themselves, they are NOT in business by themselves.

Dick's career as a businessman and artist give him a broad base of experience and a unique set of competencies. Operating his independent graphic design business Studio One Design for over a decade, he was able to combine a passion for creativity with practical problem-solving skills to produce successful marketing communications for clients in a wide variety of technical, industrial, manufacturing, retail and non-profit organizations. He is also a Colorado Notary Public.

Jacque Drinkwine, BizKeeper (Full-Charge Bookkeeper)

​Jacque has over 22 years of accounting and bookkeeping experience.  She is competent in all full-charge bookkeeping duties. She is proficient in QuickBooks Pro and Premier, Enterprise, Property Ware, Rent Manager and several others. She is comfortable working with various payroll systems. We don't know for sure, but we think "detailed" might be her middle name. She has worked in various industries including property management, landscaping, medical services, including medical billing and large equipment sales. She has worked in and with small business for most of her bookkeeping career.  She has an Associate Degree in Accounting, a Medical Coding & Billing Certification and is a current Colorado Notary.

   Tracy H. Morrissey - HR Consultant for Apis Business Solutions, LLC

Tracy's expertise in Human Resources allows us to bring a much needed service to our small business clients. Through her company. HR Choice, she is able to provide vital services to any company as they navigate the challenges involved in employee management. Tracy joined HR Choice full-time as Chief Operations Officer in March, 2011 after having served as a part-time consultant and HR Choice Board member since 2001. Prior to joining HR Choice full time, Tracey held a variety of leadership positions in Marketing, Sales, Business Development, Customer Operations and Talent Management at TW Telecom, Time Warner Communications, US West and PB Loco.  In addition to her full time career as a telecommunications executive, Tracy provided HR consulting and training for many of HR Choice's clients and led the firm's business development efforts. Her extensive experience working in and with start-ups, small, and large corporate businesses uniquely prepares her to understand and appreciate the broad challenges and opportunities impacting HR Choice's clients. Tracy holds a BS in Business Administration from Regis University and an M.B.A. from the University of Phoenix.