Check-6 International Inc. said Sept. 28 its board of directors has appointed Laura Owen as CEO effective immediately.

Owen¹s top priorities in her role are to accelerate the company¹s performance in its current markets and advance the company into new verticals, according to the release.

"While we will continue to deliver performance excellence for our highly valued clients in the oil and gas and mining industries, we are taking our toolkit and rich experience into three new verticals, including manufacturing, transportation and construction. Our mission is to impact the front line, to improve the bottom line for our clients," Owen said in a statement.

Owen is based at Check-6 operations headquarters in Houston.

Owen is a seasoned entrepreneur and C-level executive. She joined the board of directors for Check-6 in December 2014. Prior, she was the founder and CEO of PontSalus, an organization focused on reducing health care costs and increasing access to quality healthcare, for health systems worldwide. Owen was co-founder and COO of ICOP Digital, a company that engineers and markets mobile video products for first responders, worldwide. Owen served as Kansas Secretary of Commerce (KDOC) where she led international trade, business development and travel and tourism. She served as regional branch manager for Stephens Inc., the largest investment-banking firm in the U.S.