How she shines: Kat Whipple is a Franchise Managing Partner with Corporate Cleaning Group (CCG), where she and her husband, Jarod, have built a growing commercial cleaning business serving medical facilities, churches, large office buildings, schools, manufacturing facilities, and other organizations throughout their community.
Kat is truly a force to be reckoned with. She leads the day-to-day operations of the business and plays a hands-on role in nearly every aspect of its success. She oversees the screening, recruiting, and training of team members, develops and supports her teams, and manages customer relationships with a strong focus on quality, consistency, and long-term partnership.
Kat brings a unique background to the commercial cleaning industry. She holds a Master’s Degree in Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science and spent more than three years working in various research roles before beginning her journey with Corporate Cleaning Group. Her scientific background, attention to detail, analytical approach, and high standards have translated exceptionally well into an industry where processes, safety, quality, and consistency matter every day.
Her impact was evident very early in her CCG journey. Shortly after joining Corporate Cleaning Group, Kat and Jarod secured a partnership with Mobile Loaves & Fishes, a prominent faith-based nonprofit and social outreach ministry dedicated to serving individuals experiencing homelessness. What began as a new business relationship has continued to grow and develop into a meaningful partnership—an example of Kat’s ability to build relationships that go well beyond providing a cleaning service.
What makes Kat especially deserving of recognition is the way she leads. She is actively helping build a business, creating employment opportunities, developing team members, strengthening customer relationships, and demonstrating the professionalism and leadership that continue to elevate the commercial cleaning industry.
And she is doing all of this during an especially exciting chapter of her personal life. Kat and Jarod recently celebrated the first birthday of their twin boys, Phoenix and Austin. While navigating the demands of entrepreneurship and raising twins, Kat continues to show up with energy, determination, and an unwavering commitment to her team, her customers, and the growth of their business.
Kat represents the next generation of leadership in the commercial cleaning industry—educated, driven, people-focused, community-minded, and committed to making an impact. In a relatively short period of time, she has already demonstrated the kind of leadership and influence that make her an outstanding candidate for the Women of Clean.
Years in the industry: 3 years
Job responsibilities: Kat Whipple, along with her husband, is a Franchise Managing Partner with Corporate Cleaning Group for Austin, Texas. She oversees the day-to-day operations of their commercial cleaning business, which specializes in providing professional cleaning services for medical facilities, churches, large office buildings, schools, and manufacturing facilities.
In her role, Kat leads the screening, recruiting, and training of her team members, while also overseeing customer relationships. Her responsibilities span both workforce development and client engagement, helping ensure her teams are prepared to deliver consistent, high-quality service while maintaining strong relationships with the customers they serve.
Career path: Kat Whipple’s career path is a great example of how skills developed in one industry can become powerful leadership tools in another. Kat earned her Master’s Degree in Clinical Research Management from Arizona State University and became a Certified Clinical Research Coordinator through the Association of Clinical Research Professionals. She spent the early part of her career in clinical research, an environment that demanded attention to detail, adherence to established protocols, strong documentation, problem-solving, and an unwavering commitment to quality.
Kat ultimately brought those skills into entrepreneurship when she and her husband, Jarod, became Franchise Managing Partners with Corporate Cleaning Group in Austin, Texas. While commercial cleaning may seem like a significant departure from clinical research, Kat’s background has proven especially valuable in an industry where processes, safety, training, quality control, and consistency are critical. Kat made an impact quickly. Early in their CCG journey, she and Jarod established a relationship with Mobile Loaves & Fishes, a faith-based nonprofit serving individuals experiencing homelessness, which has developed into a meaningful ongoing partnership.
Today, Kat oversees the day-to-day operations of their growing commercial cleaning business, including recruiting, screening, training, team development, quality oversight, and customer relationships. Their business serves organizations across healthcare, education, religious, corporate, and other commercial environments.
Kat’s career has evolved from clinical research professional to entrepreneur and business leader, but the common thread throughout has been her ability to combine analytical thinking with a genuine commitment to people. She has taken the discipline and precision of her scientific background and applied them to building teams, serving customers, creating employment opportunities, and growing a commercial cleaning organization focused on quality and relationships.
Best advice received: One of the best lessons Kat has learned throughout her career is that you can’t expect people to care about something if they don’t understand why it matters.
"That advice has shaped the way I lead. Whether I’m working with an employee or a customer, I try to communicate the “why,” not just the expectation. I’ve found that communication, consistency, and respect go a long way. I was also taught that a good leader should never ask someone to do something they wouldn’t be willing to do themselves. That has always stayed with me, and it’s something I try to practice every day."
Fun fact: People might be surprised by how different Kat's career paths have been, and how many times she's essentially started over. Kat has worked in call centers, fast food, clinical research, and now commercial cleaning. On paper, those industries don’t have much in common, but in each one, she started by learning the business from the ground up, taking on more responsibility, and eventually moving into leadership.
These experiences have taught Kat not to be afraid of being new at something. She's learned that a lot of skills carry with you—how you treat people, how you solve problems, how you lead, and how willing you are to learn. While Kat's career definitely hasn't been a straight line, she's learned to appreciate this. Every chapter has prepared her for the next one in ways I probably couldn’t have predicted at the time.