Leanese Ramos
Owner, RCollaborative: Age 36
Leanese and Gio Ramos had a decision to make.
She was working in their church, in a marketing and communications role, while he was working for a local utility when he was suddenly laid off. Both people of faith, they talked to their pastor about what to do.
“He said, ‘definitely look for another job — but in the meantime, do you have any skills that are immediately marketable that you can monetize?’” she recalled. “And we did — we had all this knowledge for marketing and content creation.”
So, in 2019, they launched RCollaborative, a strategic marketing and content creation agency. In the first year alone, while Leanese was pregnant, they built a six-figure enterprise, and have grown exponentially from there.
“The operational backbone, the discipline, and the strategic structure … came from her,” Gio said in nominating his wife for 40 Under Forty. “Her strength is operational clarity. She brings structure where others bring ideas. She creates frameworks because she refuses to let businesses operate in chaos.”
Both see the enterprise as an example of solid teamwork.
“We own this business as a couple, and everything we do is through the lens of our faith to make decisions for our clients,” she said. “And we’ve also built a business around our strengths as a couple. You have to identify your strengths; you have to be able to create your own roles and not step on each other’s toes, and that has helped in our growth.”
In working for clients ranging from mom-and-pop restaurants to a multiple-location gym, Ramos said she most enjoys the personal connection with clients. “I get the most joy from having conversations with somebody, identifying with them, and figuring out what their issues are.”
She’s also still very active in Restoration City Church in Springfield — she directs its online campus, a program she helped build from the ground up — as well as serving as vice president of the Ad Club of Western Massachusetts and on the Greater Holyoke Chamber of Commerce’s membership committee.
She also co-created Una Noche en Puerto Rico in collaboration with MGM Springfield, Explore Western Mass, the Latino Economic Development Council, and the Springfield Puerto Rican Parade Committee.
Summing all this up, she said, “I want people to know I am someone who deeply cares about the community we call home, which is why we are so involved in these different things outside of our business. And I live my life through the lens of my faith, putting family first and building something significant from that.”
—Joseph Bednar
