Who We Are

Sand Cherry is a team of seasoned, experienced management consultants and proven industry leaders, bringing real world experience allied with knowledge from top-ranked MBA programs. Our experience gives us a thorough understanding of industry leaders, players, dynamics, and systems — we are ready to “hit the ground running” for your business from day one.

Our consultants are driven by real results. Many of our clients complete large amounts of repeat business — the sustained quality of our work is vital. Sand Cherry is here to be your trusted advisor and to drive measurable results for your business.

What We Do

Our skillset combines strategy, marketing, product and operations expertise to ensure we meet each of our clients’ specific needs. We provide clients with best-in-class business strategies, developing solutions for operational issues and leading major tactical initiatives. Our work touches every facet of our client’s businesses from customer experience to business operations and beyond.

Sand Cherry consultants apply our strategic insights and experience to improve your operations. Our team utilizes data-driven, market-tested approaches that will drive results for your business. We integrate with your team and apply our experience and skill to start making an impact from our first visit.

Our Services

Core Values

Our Work

Our success is based on the dedication and work ethic of our people, the sustained quality of our work and the clear business results we generate for our clients. Sand Cherry sets our own standard — our work aims to outperform alternative solutions at every level. We strive to consistently deliver the highest quality work product for our clients and to demonstrate thought leadership and attention to detail in everything we do.

Our Ethics

We hold ourselves to the highest ethical standard and treat everyone with respect and integrity, regardless of circumstance. Our team members are honest with our clients and one another — we encourage an environment that facilitates clean, clear communication. We show respect for our team members, our clients and ourselves in the work that we do and how we treat each other.

Our Team

Sand Cherry is a business but our team is a family. Our people are our core asset — we value, respect and nurture their abilities and needs each and every day. Sand Cherry cultivates an environment of continuous learning and development. We place a strong emphasis on work-life balance, to ensure a management consulting career is fulfilling for our people. This is reflected by our virtual work environment: our team has autonomy. They write their schedules and we trust they will manage their workload to deliver the quality of work our clients expect.

The Story Behind the Name

The Western Sand Cherry, Prunus besseyi, is a highly resilient flowering shrub native to the Rocky Mountain region, where our consulting practice began. It produces a cherry-shaped fruit, which is commonly enjoyed by songbirds.

The Sand Cherry shrub is recognized for its ability to withstand a wide range of extreme conditions, including drought and freezing temperatures. The cold winters and dry summers in the Rocky Mountains are harsh, and the Sand Cherry shrub must be durable and adaptive to thrive.

Similarly, the value Sand Cherry delivers for our clients is rooted in resilience and an ability to adapt. Our consultants apply considerable experience and insight to successfully develop actionable solutions and drive real results in rapidly evolving competitive environments. It is our experience with a wide variety of complex situations that helps us create the best solution for your business.

Sand Cherry helps your business succeed when marketing products, launching projects, streamlining operations or enhancing your customer experience. We use our depth of knowledge and wealth of experience to deliver the insight you need.

Our consultants provide resources that help you formulate innovative strategies for your business to make an impact and drive business growth. It is our experience that gives us the resilience and adaptability to navigate complex business situations for our clients.

Sand Cherry consultants are an adaptive team, applying our unique experience and functional knowledge to insightfully develop solutions to the complex issues facing your business and its customers. Like the characteristics of our namesake shrub — our durability and readiness to adapt are what Sand Cherry uses to help your business thrive.

Sand Cherry Overview

John Calhoon, Sand Cherry Partner

“Our clients know that our teams own responsibility for outcomes. We’re not here to turn a screw or punch a clock and then move on. It’s about driving real results.”

Meet Our Leadership Team

Robert Wharton

Managing Director

Robert has 25 years of marketing, sales and competitive strategy experience spanning the wireless, telecom, broadband and new media verticals. His more recent work at Sand Cherry has centered on building digital and omni-channel marketing, sales and care capabilities to enable clients to compete effectively in the evolving digital ecosystem. Robert is a Founding Partner of Sand Cherry.

John Calhoon

Managing Director

John has more than two decades’ experience driving strategic and business growth initiatives for leading companies across the telecom, media, broadband and consumer services industries. His experience and expertise span competitive market strategy, product and marketing leadership, customer experience optimization and business performance solutions. John is a Partner at Sand Cherry and Managing Director of Sand Cherry Business Solutions consulting group.

Edric Starbird

Managing Director

Edric leverages deep cross-functional executive experience to ensure that all Sand Cherry engagements deliver tractionable, real-world impact with our clients. In addition to guiding the coordinated efforts of the business as Partner, he is the Managing Director of Sand Cherry’s Data Insights/Data Integrity consulting services, helping clients tackle the daunting challenges of capitalizing on their data in order to incorporate the key intelligence they need to manage and drive their businesses forward.

Audley Webster

Senior Vice President

Audley serves as an Advisor to the Board. He has over 30 years of experience as a senior executive and consultant in the broadband and technology industries, including strategy, business planning, and operating leadership roles at AT&T Broadband, MediaOne Group, US West and Booz Allen and Hamilton.

Carolyn Rumbarger

Senior Vice President

Carolyn has 30 years of experience managing teams in a variety of industries, as well as leading business development strategies, and merger and acquisition programs. She oversees client engagements ranging from large program management teams, to companywide digital transformations and sales channel optimization initiatives; bringing new products to market, and developing change management and learning and development strategies.

Maria Kernen

Vice President

Maria has over 20 years of experience, leading companies through large transformational initiatives. Maria brings a laser-focus on the customer experience, coupled with a mastery of operations and a passion for leading change. She is a creative disruptor, and strategic leader of cross-functional initiatives of all sizes.

Shannon Saviers

Vice President

Shannon has 25 years of product, operational, entrepreneurial, and consulting experience in the technology, media, and telecommunications industries. At Sand Cherry, Shannon has led large digital and operational transformation and integration initiatives for Fortune 500 companies driving market growth, operational optimization and enhanced customer experience.

Jennifer Bartlett

Vice President

Jennifer has over 20 years of experience in the telecom, broadband, and media industries, serving in roles focused on product strategy, product development, and marketing strategy. With Sand Cherry, Jennifer has provided valuable product and marketing expertise on various strategic projects for our clients in the broadband and telecommunications industries.

Duane Dick

Advisor to the Board

Duane is a Founding Partner of Sand Cherry Associates and now serves as an Advisor to the Board. Previously, in addition to leading Sand Cherry, Duane helped clients create effective sales and marketing solutions. Duane also held executive director roles in market and strategic analysis at AT&T, MediaOne and for the United States Air Force.

Lisa Boland

Advisor to the Board

Lisa is a retired Partner who managed the Operations Practice Area of Sand Cherry Associates and now serves as an Advisor to the Board. She is a senior operations executive with over 30 years of cable industry operations, sales and marketing, and general management experience.

Sam Howe

Advisor to the Board

Sam serves as an Advisor to the Board, bringing 30 years experience building substantial growth engines in cable and digital media. Previously, he served as the CEO of Allconnect, CMO at Time Warner Cable, and held roles at Cox Communications, TeleWest (now Liberty Global) and Turner Broadcasting Systems. He is a past Chairman of CTAM, a Vanguard Award winner from the NCTA, and a Cable Pioneers inductee.