A woman with shoulder-length blond hair and blue eyes sitting against a black background. She is wearing a white jacket, black jeans, and multiple bracelets on her left wrist. She is smiling and resting her chin on her right hand, with her left hand resting on her knee.

Hi, I’m Tina.

This isn’t just my business—it’s a reflection of what I believe in and where I’ve come from. I’m here to create work that matters, led by a shared commitment to quality and passion.

Tina Sawtelle is the Founder and President of Mare + Co. She has 25 years of CFO and CEO leadership in higher education and the arts. As President and CEO of The Music Hall in Portsmouth, New Hampshire (2020 to 2025), she grew annual revenue from $4 million to $13 million and built it into the state’s largest-grossing nonprofit arts organization; she was its CFO from 2015 to 2020. Earlier she served as Associate Vice President of Finance at Bentley University and VP of Finance and Treasurer of the UNH Foundation, overseeing a $175 million endowment. She holds an MBA from the University of New Hampshire and co-hosts the At Our Table podcast.

My Approach

  • I am a data-driven, transparent leader who values clarity, execution, and informed decision-making. I believe strong organizations are built when strategy, people, and systems are aligned—and when leaders create environments where teams understand both the why and the how behind their work.

    I care deeply about customer and employee experience, recognizing that sustainable organizations depend on both. I bring a practical, hands-on mindset to leadership, balancing strategic vision with operational discipline, and I am known for being direct, collaborative, and steady during periods of growth, crisis or change.

    While I hold high standards, I believe trust, candor, and a shared sense of purpose create the conditions for teams to do their best work.

  • My desire to build is deeply rooted in watching my father spend decades building houses—structures designed to last, adapt, and be cared for over time. That experience shaped my understanding that meaningful work requires patience, precision, and a long-term view.

    That builder’s mindset is now central to my professional DNA. I am drawn to building teams, systems, venues, and organizations that are thoughtfully designed, well-maintained, and resilient. Whether strengthening infrastructure, developing leaders, or aligning operations with mission, my focus is always on durability—not just growth.

  • I am a first-generation college graduate and a proud double alumna (‘96 and ‘01G) of the University of New Hampshire. My education and professional journey reinforced the value of access, opportunity, and lifelong learning—principles that continue to shape how I lead and advise others.

    I believe in working smarter, not harder. I am continually exploring how analytics, financial modeling, and emerging technologies—including AI—can support better decision-making, more efficient processes, and clearer insight across organizations.

    I bring equal respect for analysis and judgment, structure and creativity, recognizing that effective leadership requires both.

  • Outside of my professional life, I maintain a deep appreciation for music, books, gardening, plants, film, and food. I’m inspired by creative spaces that inform how I think about storytelling, audience engagement, and human connection. I could live for days working in spreadsheets, but much more prefer time in my home or traveling with my husband, children (step and biological), and home-zoo of dogs and cats.

I am a senior executive and strategic advisor with experience leading organizations across retail, healthcare, higher education, live entertainment, nonprofits and the film festival sector. My work sits at the intersection of strategy, finance, operations, and culture—helping organizations grow, adapt, and sustain impact over the long term.

Throughout my career, I have been hired into leadership roles where I brought deep expertise in some areas and the expectation—and opportunity—to rapidly learn new capabilities in others. Often, I knew roughly half of the role on day one. What followed was a disciplined commitment to learning, listening, networking and expanding my skill set in service of the organization’s evolving needs.

That approach has shaped my leadership style: grounded in curiosity, accountability, relationships and continuous improvement.