Today, Utah Community Builders, the nonprofit foundation of the Salt Lake Chamber, announced that Joseph Grenny, Chairman of the Board of The Other Side Academy, will be honored with the 7th Annual Utah Community Builder Award. The award recognizes an inspirational individual who has gone above and beyond the call of duty to address critical community needs.
“Aside from masterfully educating individuals on how to develop essential personal and professional skills, Joseph Grenny has gone to extraordinary lengths to lead with purpose and compassion,” said Derek Miller, president and CEO of the Salt Lake Chamber. “It’s because of individuals like Joseph, who seek to help others make a personal change, we can see someone’s full potential unlocked.”
Joseph Grenny, a New York Times bestselling author and co-founder of Crucial Learning, one of the world’s most respected training and organization development firms, has spent decades transforming lives through his work in leadership, self-reliance, service and more. Beyond his contributions to professional development, Joseph has dedicated his career to addressing poverty, breaking circles of hardships, and empowering those who face addiction, homelessness and incarceration.
His visionary leadership at The Other Side Academy, a 2.5-year school for those with long histories of crime, addiction and homelessness, has given thousands a second chance by instilling critical values like integrity, self-discipline, and accountability through vocational and life-changing opportunities. Additionally, as co-founder of Unitus Labs, Joseph has been instrumental in helping over 50 million of the world’s poorest achieve self-reliance.
“In recognizing me, the Salt Lake Chamber is recognizing the soul-stretching work done every day by the hundreds of remarkable people who are The Other Side Academy and The Other Side Village,” said Grenny. “We hope this honor gets the word out to many more whose lives will change as they join us.”
Utah Community Builders engages business leaders to address pressing community issues and to develop and strengthen Utah’s workforce. This reinforces partnerships between business leaders, service providers, academic experts and government agencies on issues affecting Utah’s business community.
Grenny will be formally recognized during the Giant in our City event on April 24, 2025, at the Grand America Hotel, where Lisa Eccles, president and COO of the Geroge S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation, will be honored as the 46th Giant in our City.
For more information on the event, click here.
Honoree bio below:
Joseph Grenny is a New York Times bestselling author of eight books, including leadership, influence and communication classics like Crucial Conversations, Crucial Influence, Crucial Accountability, and Change Anything. His work is used by over two thirds of Forbes Global 2000 companies and is taught by over 20,000 trainers across the world. He is a co-founder of Crucial Learning, one of the world’s most respected training and organization development firms.
He is a co-founder and current board chair of Unitus Labs, an international nonprofit that has helped over 50 million of the world’s poorest to move toward self-reliance. Unitus Labs was instrumental in launching some of the most successful impact investment and related firms in the world, including Unitus Seed Fund (and its successor, Capria), Unitus Equity Fund, Unitus Ventures (and its successor, Patamar), and Unitus Capital. Unitus Capital has provided capital arrangement services of over $4 billion to some of the world’s most successful socially-oriented ventures.
In 2015, he and his colleagues started The Other Side Academy, a 2.5-year school for those with long histories of crime, addiction and homelessness. Students at The Other Side Academy, or TOSA run some of the most admired businesses in Utah, including The Other Side Movers, The Other Side Thrift Boutiques and The Other Side Builders. Over their tenure at TOSA, students not only learn life changing vocational skills, but they also learn life skills like integrity, selflessness, communication and self-discipline.
In 2021, Joseph and leaders of The Other Side Academy co-founded The Other Side Village, a 430-home community for those who are chronically homeless based on principles of self-reliance and peer accountability.
ABOUT THE SALT LAKE CHAMBER
The Salt Lake Chamber is Utah’s largest and longest-standing business association. A statewide chamber of commerce with members in all 29 Utah counties, the Chamber represents the broad interests of the state’s 63,000-plus employers, which employ more than 1.4 million Utahns. This includes thousands of Chamber members and their employees. With roots that date back to 1887, the Chamber stands as the voice of business, supports its members’ success and champion’s community prosperity.
ABOUT THE UTAH COMMUNITY BUILDERS
Utah Community Builders, is the 501(c)(3) nonprofit foundation of the Salt Lake Chamber. Utah Community Builders engages business leaders to address pressing community issues and to develop and strengthen Utah’s workforce. We harness the innovation and efficiency of the private sector to drive real progress on community issues affecting our businesses, workforce, families, and all Utahns.
ABOUT THE UTAH COMMUNITY BUILDER AWARD
The Utah Community Builder Award recognizes an inspirational individual who has gone above and beyond the call of duty to address a crucial community issue.
Past Recipients:
- 2019: Pamela Atkinson, Community Advocate
- 2020: Jane Powers, RN BSN, Clinical Director, Hope Clinic
- 2021: Marvella Cuch, Bus Operator, Utah Transit Authority; Louis Donovan, Store Director, Harmons Grocery; Keri Graybill, Teacher, Granite Park Junior High; Alexis Rose, Registered Nurse, Intermountain Medical Center; Tiffany Silver, Assistant Manager, Sunshine Academy Childcare Center; and Jesse du Toit, Respiratory Therapist, Intermountain Medical Center
- 2022: Aden Batar, Director of Migration and Refugee Services, Catholic Community Services Utah
- 2023: Mary Ann Lee, Artistic Director, University of Utah Children’s Dance Theatre & Tanner Dance Program
- 2024: Carol Hollowell, Executive Director, Switchpoint
