The Premier Connector in Snowsports
Brand & Sport Engagement
Coaching, Training & Team Building
Community-Driven Sustainable Solutions
Facilitating Partnerships & Sponsorships
CONNECTING COMMUNITIES
EMPOWERING RESORTS
We are the vital link in the snowsports industry, connecting businesses with communities, resorts, partners, and opportunities they need to thrive. Our innovative global ecosystem is the only snowsports industry connector that cultivates communities and empowers resorts.
The Snowball Effect Group delivers comprehensive solutions across sports and business. We serve resorts, brands, organizations, and teams - helping build momentum and achieve compounding success. Whether forging partnerships or elevating brands, we bring your vision to life through impactful strategies.
Welcome to The Snowball Effect Group – where great ideas gain momentum and success compounds.
We Connect Communities through Sport.
Build momentum for resorts, brands, enthusiasts, and sport culture to thrive.
Team
At The Snowball Effect Group, we harness momentum to fuel client growth through three tiers of expertise:
Senior Advisors: Industry veterans
Rising Talents: Innovative young professionals
Athletes: Unique sports insights
This diverse team drives solutions in strategic partnerships, brand strategies, and complex challenges in the sports and lifestyle industries. We’re not just consultants—we’re partners in your success, helping you become an unstoppable force. Meet the catalysts of your growth.
Jeff Boliba- Founder & Lead Consultant
Jeff, widely known in the industry as "Boliba," is the driving force behind The Snowball Effect Group. Bringing nearly three decades of global sports industry expertise to the table, Boliba's experience spans snowboarding, volleyball, baseball, and softball, giving him a unique, multi-sport perspective. Boliba is all about connecting businesses with the right resources and partners to help them thrive, always with a community-focused, purpose-driven approach. His secret sauce? A blend of strategic alliance know-how, retail marketing savvy, and an uncanny ability to bring out the best in people. This talent for maximizing human potential, combined with his knack for spotting trends across various sports, sets Boliba apart. From grassroots marketing at the Winter Olympics to coaching championship teams, Boliba's mission is clear: creating win-win partnerships that benefit businesses, athletes, and communities alike, while inspiring everyone involved to reach their full potential.
Senior Advisors
Meet Mike, our productivity guru. He's on a mission to help busy folks like us find focus in the chaos of modern life. Mike's the author of "Doing to Done: Productivity Made Simple," a book that's as fun as it is practical. With engaging visuals and simple concepts, Mike's approach cuts through the noise to help you create a productivity system that actually works. Whether you're drowning in to-do lists or just looking to up your game, Mike's got the tools to help you get it done.
Mike Williams- Coach / Advisor
Taryn Hennebicque- Strategic Communications Advisor
Taryn is our storytelling maestro, with a knack for shaping marketing communications that make brands shine. With 20 years of experience spanning from celebrity partnerships to mental health initiatives, she's a PR and marketing Swiss Army knife. Taryn's worked with big names like Disney, Vail Resorts, and Ben & Jerry's, but she's just as passionate about helping startups find their voice. She and Jeff first joined forces at Burton Snowboards, where they collaborated on groundbreaking global initiatives. When she's not crafting the perfect pitch, you might find Taryn championing important causes like the Vermont Donor Milk Center she co-founded.
Jason Ruwet - General Counsel
Jason is our legal eagle, bringing nearly 24 years of corporate and transactional law experience to the team. Licensed in Vermont, Washington D.C., and the U.S. District Court of Vermont, he's been the go-to guy for small to mid-sized businesses across northwestern Vermont. Jason thrives on making personal connections, whether with clients or teammates. He and Jeff often connect over their shared passion for baseball, debating team stats, and strategies. When he's not navigating legal waters, you'll find Jason hitting the ski slopes, hiking trails, or jet-setting with his wife Kate to visit their three college kids.
Rising Talents
Jeffrey Boliba- Creative & Brand Strategist
Jeffrey is our digital design specialist, bringing a next-generation perspective to The Snowball Effect Group. From his base in Burlington, Vermont, he breathes life into ideas through captivating visuals. With roots at the University of Utah and Milosport Snow & Skate, Jeffrey has developed a diverse skill set spanning apparel graphics to web marketing. His creative touch has enhanced brands like Torment Magazine, Woodward, and Burton, leading to success in digital marketing roles, most recently with Cannaplanners. Outside of work, Jeffrey embraces the outdoors - camping, hiking, or snowboarding. His competitive spirit and artistic vision infuse every project with a unique blend of creativity and impact.
Jacob Boliba- Digital Media & Partnership Strategist
Jacob is our dynamic connector, bridging partnerships and digital media at The Snowball Effect Group. A recent University of Oregon graduate with a Sports Business major and Media Studies minor, Jacob brings fresh energy and a lifelong passion for sports to the team. As a three-sport athlete in high school, he learned the value of teamwork and perseverance early on. Jacob continued his athletic journey as a member of the University of Oregon Club Golf Team, while also actively participating in the Warsaw Sports Business Club at UO. This unique blend of hands-on sports experience and academic prowess gives him a multifaceted perspective on the industry. Jacob's innovative approach to digital media and strategic partnerships is key to creating impactful campaigns that resonate with audiences. His enthusiasm for sports, coupled with his business acumen and creativity, makes Jacob a vital asset in our mission to drive growth and innovation in the sports and outdoor recreation world.
Athletes
Our founder collaborates with emerging athletes to bring authentic, inspiring perspectives to our work. Their passion and real-world experiences help shape The Snowball Effect’s innovative strategies, keeping us connected to the pulse of sports culture and community engagement.
Peter Hillmuth, class of 2025, is an accomplished skateboarder and aspiring artist from Champlain Valley Union High School in Hinesburg, Vermont. He actively contributes to the local skating community as an instructor at Talent, Vermont's premier indoor skate park. Demonstrating prowess in both skateboarding and visual arts, Peter aims to further develop his skills in these areas while pursuing higher education. Beyond skateboarding, he explores various artistic mediums, including film photography, painting, and drawing, balancing his athletic passion with creative pursuits and community engagement.
Rylee Heinz, class of 2026, is a standout Middle Blocker for Rocklin High School's Varsity Volleyball Team in Rocklin, California. She also plays for the SynergyForce 17 National 1’s club team, showcasing her dedication to the sport. Excelling both on the court and in the classroom, Rylee aims to pursue volleyball in college while working towards a degree in the medical field. Beyond volleyball, she enjoys spending time with her family, doing outdoor activities, traveling, and balancing her athletic pursuits with personal growth and social connections.
Success Stories
GRIT ‘N SNOW
This 2023 NSAA Award Winning collaboration was started at Mountain Creek when they collaborated with The “Y” in Lakeland Hills, NJ, the Mental Health Association (MHA), and Peapack-Gladstone Bank to develop a unique twist on the Riglet program that incorporated Mental Health components. The inspiration and goal was to help youth build resiliency (GRIT = Growing Resilience In Time) and to introduce kids to snowboarding, first inside the Lakeland Hills “Y” gym, and then take them to Mountain Creek’s slopes so they could apply those learned skills on the snow. Going into it’s second year, all GRIT Instructors received training from the MHA as Youth Mental Health First Aiders.
RIGLET
Burton Riglet products and programs are a game-changer for kids snowboarding. The Burton Riglet Reel, Riglet Park, Hover Cover and the Riglet K-2nd physical education program, kids snowboarding has never been easier! This was Boliba’s mission when he got to Burton in 2000, to break down as many barriers as possible for kids and to carve a path for creativity and innovation to happen globally. By empowering parents and teachers to introduce kids to snowboarding as soon as they fit into the Toddlers’ Mini Grom 7C kids boot, the smallest of kids are able to be introduced to snowboarding anywhere at anytime.
THE STASH
In 2003, Jake Burton Carpenter asked Boliba to help bring innovation and creativity to the way resorts were building terrain parks. His vision was to inspire more riders to explore the entire mountain and for resorts to utilize more of the natural features and habitat at resorts. This innovative Stash program launched in 2006 at Northstar at Tahoe and helped resorts progress park building, run design & the utilization of more natural materials. Stash Parks are located at a few select resorts globally and blend components of freestyle riding with flowy all-mountain lines for a snowboarding experience like no other. Learn more at the Discover section of the Burton website. The Woods are the Goods!
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL OAKLAND ATHLETICS - 2015
Community driven partnership between the Oakland Athletics Coliseum, Sierra at Tahoe & Burton Global. Bring snowboarding and baseball to the school, store and stadium to meet families where they naturally go. Increased parent and youth engagement, participation and excitement for Snowboarding, Burton, A’s and Sierra.
TERRAIN BASED LEARNING (TBL) BURTON SNOWBOARD ACADEMY - 2008
Collaboration between Northstar at Tahoe Resort & Burton Global. Innovate Indoor training with progression onto terrain-based learning (TBL) followed by immersive outdoor experience, ensuring first-day success. TBL revolutionized features, terrain and instruction, boosting retention rates and first-time experiences; highest intent-to-return scores in resort-wide survey & inspired industry-wide adoption, innovating learning terrain.
WINTER OLYMPICS SEOUL TO PYEONGCHANG, SOUTH KOREA - 2018
Collaboration between Waikiki Kids Sports Center, YongPyong Resort & Burton Global. Grassroots marketing campaign to help the local community & gain global exposure for Burton’s Kids initiative. Achieved millions of impressions for Burton through media coverage and digital marketing. Leveraged the Olympics to boost global awareness of Burton's Kids initiative.
Testimonials
Media
Mt. Rose x Snowball Effect Partnership Press Release 2024
JAKE
Jake Burton Carpenter (April 29, 1954 – November 20, 2019), also known as Jake Burton, was an American snowboarder, founder of Burton Snowboards, and one of the inventors of the modern-day snowboard. A native of New York, he grew up in Cedarhurst, New York.
BOLIBA TRIBUTE
Jake, you ignited a passion that became my life's work. Through snowboarding, you gave me a love for the mountains, a tight-knit global community, and a career that allowed me to raise a family - all while standing sideways. Your tireless efforts to open resorts to snowboarding changed the winter sports landscape forever. I'll never forget the time we spent strategizing about little league baseball coaching, The Stash, The Burton Snowboard Academy, and Learn To Ride and planning ways to progress products, riding, experiences, and the way resorts design runs. You empowered our Global Resorts Team and people around the world to break down barriers and make snowboarding more accessible to many people around the world. You were more than an industry leader; you were a mentor who shaped countless lives, including mine. For that, I am eternally grateful.
ABOUT JAKE
Jake founded Burton Snowboards out of a Vermont barn in 1977 and dedicated the rest of his life to snowboarding. He was our founder, the soul of snowboarding, the one who gave us the sport we all love so much. The impact his spirit had on each of us is undeniable, and through snowboarding, the feelings we've experienced and the memories we've made are unforgettable. His legacy will live on forever.
A DAY FOR JAKE ANNUAL EVENT MARCH 15, 2025
Join us in honoring the legacy of snowboarding pioneer Jake Burton Carpenter with a celebration of his contributions to the sport. This special event will bring together riders of all ages to pay tribute to Jake’s impact on the snowboarding community. It’s a chance for the community to reconnect with the spirit of snowboarding, remember Jake’s passion for innovation, and inspire the next generation of riders
To join us and more info, click here