President, CEO and Founder, Aspen Capital Company
Member, Equipment Leasing and Finance Association
At the age of twenty one, equipped with a bachelor’s degree in business education, business theory and a year of teaching business skills under her belt, Peggy Tomcheck quit her job and moved to Chicago in search of a position to gain hands-on experience that she could bring back to the classroom.
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VISION FOR THE FUTURE: “I believe women have an innate passion and sense of compassion to channel into the workplace that directly impacts an organization’s ability to make a difference in their business niche, their workplace and beyond.” |
Tomcheck landed a position with a small independent leasing company in Oakbrook where she learned the leasing business from the ground up. There, she was responsible for documentation processes, interfacing with customers and arranging transportation for both deployments and lease returns, learning everything from originations to fundings.
In 1984 women in leasing in any position were few and far between; however, Tomcheck was able to use that to her advantage. As a young woman with a great deal of persistence and tenacity, she broke into a male dominated market, moving into a direct lease origination position targeting new customer relationships. Thirty-five years later, she serves as the president and CEO of a successful independent leasing company of her own, Aspen Capital Company.
The Aspen business model integrates proprietary asset tracking and lease accounting software with experienced, customer-focused lease professionals. Tomcheck and her team work to meet ever-changing customer needs through a continual improvement process. Although Aspen doesn’t have the footprint or resources of some larger competitors, Tomcheck takes pride in the company’s nimbleness, internal drive and commitment to leadership to pursue AI and other cutting-edge solutions in this current age of disruption.
“Peggy and I have worked together for over 20 years, and over that time, I’ve witnessed her operate at the highest level of excellence. I’ve also never seen anyone hugged by their customers as much as Peggy has been hugged. She is genuinely concerned that her customers are making the right decision for themselves, not her, consulting with her clients so they can make an informed decision,” says John Turnacliff, president of Golden Gate Equipment Finance. “People who work with Peggy, be they lenders, employees, customers or contractors, know that she operates from a strong moral compass in order to provide a win-win situation for everyone.”
Tomcheck also looks to give back to the community, with Aspen supporting a student scholarship program that has impacted hundreds of students across multiple universities. “The opportunity to plant a seed and pay-it-forward to each recipient makes a difference in the world and is extremely rewarding,” she says.
