Kurtis is an Arizona native, spending most of his life in the Valley of the Sun and Yuma. During school, Kurtis was involved in 4H and his family farm, while also playing competitive tennis. A graduate of Arizona State University, Kurtis earned his Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice after enjoying four years of Sun Devil college life in Tempe.

Following college, Kurtis worked for financial institutions and insurance companies in fraud prevention roles before transitioning to Human Resources. Kurtis’ business acumen comes from over 25 years of leadership experience in various HR roles in the insurance, public utility, and construction industries. In his previous roles, Kurtis led HR for several organizations in unionized and non-union settings across multiple geographies. Kurtis is a true HR generalist but has a particular passion for talent acquisition, succession planning, performance management, employee engagement, and community & labor relations. For more on Kurtis’ professional background, check out his LinkedIn profile.

On a personal note, Kurtis met his wife Jennifer while working together at State Farm Insurance. They’ve been married for 25 years and have two children. Their daughter Taytem just graduated from ASU with a Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice and hopes to become a probation officer while also pursuing her Master’s degree at ASU. Their son Tommy is currently a sophomore at ASU studying Sports Law. Family is always first with Kurtis in all that he does. Having lost his dad when he was just 16, Kurtis maintains his father’s passion for people. Donald Strauel recognized everyone as a friend and demanded that everyone be always treated with dignity and respect, and Kurtis is proud to do the same.

Kurtis loves to travel, read, swim, and run. He’s been to all 50 states and to over 20 different countries, but can’t wait to see even more of the globe! Kurtis earned his Master’s degree in Health & Wellness from Eastern Kentucky University as a “non-traditional (older) student”. He’s used this knowledge to help organizations implement innovative strategies to improve the overall well-being of their employees.

With the goal of giving back and sharing their expertise with others, Kurtis and Juan created Unfiltered HR. Unfiltered HR focused on relationships and connections with people, helping businesses achieve their vision and goals while also attracting, retaining, and engaging top talent.