Partners
Bob Whitener, MPA
Owner & Chief Executive Officer
Enrolled Squaxin Island Tribal Member
As owner and managing member of The Whitener Group, Bob Whitener has over 30 years of experience working with tribal governments and enterprises within Indian Country. Bob has a Bachelor's degree with an emphasis on business management and a Masters of Public Administration.
Bob served as the CEO/Board President for Island Enterprises Inc. (IEI) for over 8 years. IEI is the economic development corporation for the Squaxin Island Tribe. At IEI, Bob handled all aspects of the corporation from its incorporation to its growth to nearly 100 million dollars in gross sales and 10 million dollars in net revenues. IEI created, acquired & managed a variety of tribal, state and international corporations. During his tenure at IEI, he created the Skookum Creek Tobacco Co. and quickly achieved profitability despite many roadblocks including state and private opposition.
Bob also has a deep understanding of the relationship between tribal economic activities and governance. Prior to creating IEI, Bob served for over 6 years as the Executive Director of the Squaxin Island Tribe. This entailed the management of the Tribe’s governmental programs, management of over 100 staff members and providing policy guidance to the Tribal Council.
In addition to having run tribal corporations and government; he has extensive experience in the areas of natural resources management, finance administration, human resources systems, tribal-state compact negotiations, policy development, and federal negotiations. Bob is an enrolled member of the Squaxin Island Tribe.
Enrolled Squaxin Island Tribal Member
As owner and managing member of The Whitener Group, Bob Whitener has over 30 years of experience working with tribal governments and enterprises within Indian Country. Bob has a Bachelor's degree with an emphasis on business management and a Masters of Public Administration.
Bob served as the CEO/Board President for Island Enterprises Inc. (IEI) for over 8 years. IEI is the economic development corporation for the Squaxin Island Tribe. At IEI, Bob handled all aspects of the corporation from its incorporation to its growth to nearly 100 million dollars in gross sales and 10 million dollars in net revenues. IEI created, acquired & managed a variety of tribal, state and international corporations. During his tenure at IEI, he created the Skookum Creek Tobacco Co. and quickly achieved profitability despite many roadblocks including state and private opposition.
Bob also has a deep understanding of the relationship between tribal economic activities and governance. Prior to creating IEI, Bob served for over 6 years as the Executive Director of the Squaxin Island Tribe. This entailed the management of the Tribe’s governmental programs, management of over 100 staff members and providing policy guidance to the Tribal Council.
In addition to having run tribal corporations and government; he has extensive experience in the areas of natural resources management, finance administration, human resources systems, tribal-state compact negotiations, policy development, and federal negotiations. Bob is an enrolled member of the Squaxin Island Tribe.
Ron Whitener, JD
Owner & Director of Tribal Law & Justice Consulting
Enrolled Squaxin Island Tribal Member
Ron Whitener is a founding member of The Whitener Group. His legal expertise is invaluable to the businesses and the clients we serve.
In 1994, Ron graduated from the University of Washington Law School and was hired as the first in-house legal counsel for the Squaxin Island Tribe. In that capacity, Ron advised the Squaxin Island Tribal Council, departments and economic enterprises on issues related to treaty rights, tribal governance, Indian health, and economic development. In 2000, Ron was asked to join the faculty of the University of Washington Law School where he headed the Indian Law Clinic, which later became the Tribal Court Public Defense Clinic. During this time, Ron was accepted into the Order of the Coif, Order of Barristers and, in 2009, he was awarded the Shanara Gilbert Emerging Clinician of the Year from the American Association of Law Schools. In 2011, Ron was named a Champion of Change by President Barack Obama for his work on providing public defense in tribal courts.
In addition to his clinical work, Ron also served as an Associate Justice on the Northwest Indian Court of Appeals and as the Chief Judge for the Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Indian Reservation. Ron is currently a judge with the Tulalip Tribes.
In addition to representing thousands of Native American clients in criminal and juvenile cases, Ron also was funded by the MacArthur Foundation to develop public defense resources for juveniles involved in tribal justice systems, including developing model juvenile codes and methods for providing legal representation using video conferencing.
Another area of Ron's work is assisting tribes and Native American organizations to develop systems regulating research proposed by outsiders to be conducted in their communities. Ron has been funded by the National Institutes of Health to assist tribes in assessing their health priorities, training tribal staff in research methods and developing systems to review and oversee research projects.
Now with the creation of the Whitener Group, Ron is available to assist tribes, Native American organizations and businesses with the development of their economic development initiatives, tribal court development including cutting-edge systems implementing traditional values, and research program development.
Enrolled Squaxin Island Tribal Member
Ron Whitener is a founding member of The Whitener Group. His legal expertise is invaluable to the businesses and the clients we serve.
In 1994, Ron graduated from the University of Washington Law School and was hired as the first in-house legal counsel for the Squaxin Island Tribe. In that capacity, Ron advised the Squaxin Island Tribal Council, departments and economic enterprises on issues related to treaty rights, tribal governance, Indian health, and economic development. In 2000, Ron was asked to join the faculty of the University of Washington Law School where he headed the Indian Law Clinic, which later became the Tribal Court Public Defense Clinic. During this time, Ron was accepted into the Order of the Coif, Order of Barristers and, in 2009, he was awarded the Shanara Gilbert Emerging Clinician of the Year from the American Association of Law Schools. In 2011, Ron was named a Champion of Change by President Barack Obama for his work on providing public defense in tribal courts.
In addition to his clinical work, Ron also served as an Associate Justice on the Northwest Indian Court of Appeals and as the Chief Judge for the Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Indian Reservation. Ron is currently a judge with the Tulalip Tribes.
In addition to representing thousands of Native American clients in criminal and juvenile cases, Ron also was funded by the MacArthur Foundation to develop public defense resources for juveniles involved in tribal justice systems, including developing model juvenile codes and methods for providing legal representation using video conferencing.
Another area of Ron's work is assisting tribes and Native American organizations to develop systems regulating research proposed by outsiders to be conducted in their communities. Ron has been funded by the National Institutes of Health to assist tribes in assessing their health priorities, training tribal staff in research methods and developing systems to review and oversee research projects.
Now with the creation of the Whitener Group, Ron is available to assist tribes, Native American organizations and businesses with the development of their economic development initiatives, tribal court development including cutting-edge systems implementing traditional values, and research program development.
Jennifer Whitener Ulrich, MBA
Owner & Corporate Operations Officer
Jennifer Whitener Ulrich is a primary consultant with TWG. She uses her background in business to work directly with clients, but she also uses these skills in her role as the Operations & Marketing Director for The Whitener Group itself.
Jennifer has her MBA in Sustainable Business and is passionate about economic development in Indian Country. Jennifer was instrumental in the development of Squaxin Island Tribe’s Ta-Qwo-Ma Business Center - which was created to assist tribal entrepreneurs and to build the private sector economy of the Tribe. As the former Business Development Director for Island Enterprises (IEI), the economic development corp. for Squaxin Island Tribe, Jennifer was in charge of marketing and advertising for IEI’s eight diverse businesses. She was also responsible for researching, writing and implementing business plans for many of the tribally owned corporations.
Jennifer has owned her own businesses and loves bringing that experience to Indian Country. In addition to her consulting work, Jennifer’s passions are food based business development, facilitating business planning classes for entrepreneurs, and warm weather!
Jennifer Whitener Ulrich is a primary consultant with TWG. She uses her background in business to work directly with clients, but she also uses these skills in her role as the Operations & Marketing Director for The Whitener Group itself.
Jennifer has her MBA in Sustainable Business and is passionate about economic development in Indian Country. Jennifer was instrumental in the development of Squaxin Island Tribe’s Ta-Qwo-Ma Business Center - which was created to assist tribal entrepreneurs and to build the private sector economy of the Tribe. As the former Business Development Director for Island Enterprises (IEI), the economic development corp. for Squaxin Island Tribe, Jennifer was in charge of marketing and advertising for IEI’s eight diverse businesses. She was also responsible for researching, writing and implementing business plans for many of the tribally owned corporations.
Jennifer has owned her own businesses and loves bringing that experience to Indian Country. In addition to her consulting work, Jennifer’s passions are food based business development, facilitating business planning classes for entrepreneurs, and warm weather!