Denise Resnik

Q: What most notably stands out about your leadership style or what is an example of leadership success you can share with our readers?

My leadership style recognizes the value of constellations among stars and is fueled by building both. Stellar leaders are drawn to big ideas and even bigger visions — and I work to empower people who believe in each other and in what we’re creating together for adults with autism and/or intellectual/developmental disabilities (I/DD). Trust is the starting point.

That trust extends to external leaders across the private, public and nonprofit sectors. We share a commitment to innovation, learning and collaboration. This is the foundation for market transformation, where systems, standards and partnerships align so communities everywhere can offer inclusive housing, employment and healthcare options.

Consider this: When a real estate developer includes neuro-inclusive design, that project becomes eligible for public funding. When employers build neuro-inclusive teams, innovation and retention rise. When health insurers support community-based living models, emergency room visits decline. That’s when we know the system is working — because the right thing has become possible, permissible, pragmatic and even profitable.

Q: What impact have any disruptions of the past 18 months had on you as a leader?

Over the past 18 months, national attention has focused on the one in 31 children diagnosed with autism. Children matter immensely — but most individuals spend the majority of their lives in adulthood, and adults with autism and/or I/DD remain significantly underserved.

Just as senior housing matured over decades to offer diverse communities, our field must evolve to offer a true marketplace of options. There is no one-size-fits-all approach.

As a leader, this moment has required me to focus on market-shaping principles: creating choices, improving quality, expanding affordability and connecting people to place, purpose and community. With more than one million Americans with I/DD living with caregivers over age 60, this is a present-tense urgency families face right now.

At First Place AZ and First Place Global, we are galvanizing innovators, trusted partners and adults with autism and/or I/DD to create proof points, change minds and transform systems.

Q: What do you feel we can be doing as a business community to empower economic growth here?

With one in three Americans experiencing a disability at some point in their lives, disability inclusion isn’t a side topic — it’s a core economic strategy.

Economic growth comes from getting it right for more people in more places. When Phoenix commits to being an accessible city — and when businesses invest in inclusive hiring, accessible design and community engagement — we strengthen our workforce, expand consumer participation, reduce long-term costs and create neighborhoods where everyone can flourish.

Empowering the next generation of leaders in business, education and healthcare is essential. Creative, informed and inclusive leadership fuels transformation — and transformation fuels economic expansion.

Q: What is new and notable for your company’s near future that will impact our economy?

First Place AZ is creating community through First Place-Phoenix, our flagship supportive housing property, while First Place Global is building a marketplace — connecting housing, employment, education and healthcare with a network of trailblazers in Arizona and across the country.

Through A Place in the World® and Housing Market Analyses, we’re giving communities the shared language and market insights needed to make informed decisions. Our Learn4Independence® and Be Open + Be Ready® initiatives equip educators, service providers and employers with tools to prepare neurodivergent adults for meaningful work. And we’re partnering with universities, healthcare systems and employers to train future professionals, grow inclusive workplaces and demonstrate scalable models.

Leadership isn’t a title — it’s a responsibility to create opportunities for people in your orbit to deliver on your mission and theirs. At First Place Global, that means building partnerships that fuel innovation, expand economic participation and help communities thrive.