2015 Inductees
Joseph Farrell Jr., Steven Mariano, and Ramola Motwani are the 2015 Inductees to the Huizenga College of Business and Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame
H. Wayne Huizenga College of Business and Entrepreneurship recognizes three accomplished business leaders with induction into the 2015 Entrepreneur and Business Hall of Fame, the college’s highest honor: Joseph Farrell Jr., Steven Mariano, and Ramola Motwani.
The Inductees and Their Accomplishments
Joseph Farrell Jr.
President and Chief Executive Officer
RESOLVE Marine Group, Inc.
RESOLVE Marine Group, Inc., is a leading global marine services provider specializing in vessel emergency response, ship rescue, salvage, maritime training, naval architecture, and marine engineering. With a career spanning more than 45 years in the maritime industry, Farrell has led RESOLVE through tremendous growth over the past 35 years.
He began in the military with the U.S. Navy diving school and served as a U.S. Coast Guard explosives adviser in Vietnam. As a civilian diver at the U.S. Navy's AUTEC base on Andros Island, Bahamas, Farrell spent four years recovering torpedoes after jumping from helicopters in scuba gear. After he resolved what he wanted to do in life, Farrell used income from independent salvage jobs to establish RESOLVE. Undertaking increasingly risky projects has earned RESOLVE the reputation as one of the most recognized salvage companies in the world.
RESOLVE maintains an extensive fleet strategically positioned throughout the world with offices, equipment warehouses, salvage tugs, aircraft, and operations in the United States, United Kingdom, Singapore, Gibraltar, China, Ireland, India, and New Zealand.
Steven Mariano
Entrepreneur
Steven Mariano is an entrepreneur and businessman with more than 25 years of experience in the insurance and insurance services industries. He founded Strategic Outsourcing, Inc. (SOI), and grew the professional staffing company to more than $1 billion in sales. SOI was sold to Union Planters Bank (Regions Bank, NYSE).
Mariano also founded the companies that comprise Patriot National, Inc. (NYSE: PN), an independent, diversified, national provider of workers' compensation and managed care services that includes Patriot Underwriters, a national program administrator; Patriot Risk Services, a 50-state, third-party administrator; and Patriot Care Management, a leading provider of managed care services.
Mariano was a finalist for the prestigious Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award and is very active in the South Florida community. He is a member of the CEO Council of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Alliance and serves as chairman of the Boys & Girls Club of Broward County. He is also involved in numerous other charitable and development organizations.
Ramola Motwani
President and Chief Executive Officer
Merrimac Ventures
Merrimac Ventures is a real estate management, investment, and development company with interests throughout the United States and India. It is a family business that was started 30 years ago by Ramola Motwani and her late husband, Ramesh. The company has owned several hotels on Fort Lauderdale Beach since 1986, and is currently a partner in the Four Seasons Fort Lauderdale Beach and the Gale Boutique Hotel and Residences projects.
A major influence in the development of Fort Lauderdale Beach, Motwani worked with the city, the chamber of commerce, and the convention and visitors bureau, focusing on the vision of building a destination. Today, Motwani manages the family business with her two sons, Dev and Nitin.
The recipient of many awards, including the Chamber Women's Circle of Excellence Award for Hospitality, Motwani is involved in the community. She currently serves on the Broward Workshop and the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association boards. She was also recently inducted into the Travelhost Magazine Hospitality Hall of Fame.
