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David Shavzin, CMC© (Certified Management Consultant*) is President/Founder of Shavzin & Associates, Inc. (SAI). He excels in guiding the partners and leadership teams of client firms through the complex challenges of strategic planning and decision-making…bringing together solutions that effectively address all areas of the organization. He brings an outside, objective and candid perspective in guiding client firms to success – always gaining an understanding of the organization’s needs and then adapting SAI’s process to their specific situation

David has over 25 years of experience in large corporate environments, small businesses and consulting to management. He has held senior management roles in each of these areas and understands their respective constraints and opportunities. This has provided him a very comprehensive understanding of all functions within an organization and how they relate to each other. David has also created two businesses of his own.His early career was in banking and financial roles, followed by a position on Freddie Mac’s corporate planning team. David then spent 12 years with Aventis.  This included four years in Europe in corporate finance and global mergers and acquisitions work.  He was later appointed Vice President of Operations & Finance for a North American subsidiary.
Consulting since 2000, David has been president of the Institute of Management Consultants (Georgia chapter) and is currently Vice President of Strategic Alliances. He is a member of the World Trade Center – Atlanta and the Association for Strategic Planning. David is on the Advisory Board of the Joshua Brown Foundation and has served on the Board of the Fulton Education Foundation. He is an alumnus of Leadership North Fulton and subsequently served on its Board.
David earned an MBA from George Washington University and a BA in International Relations and French from the University of Wisconsin.  He is fluent in French, conversational in Spanish.  He lives in the Atlanta area with his wife and three children.

Since 1995, the Alpharetta law firm of Morgan & DiSalvo P.C. has been helping individuals and families plan and prepare for the many changes that life brings. Primary practice areas for the firm include protection and distribution of family assets, real estate, tax minimization and business succession planning.
Richard M. Morgan has been practicing law in Georgia for 17 years.   With estate, tax and charitable gift planning as his primary practice areas, Richard prides himself on bringing peace of mind to individuals and families in traditional and special situations related to significant life events.  Richard also specializes in business succession planning, tax controversies and other wealth management and planning needs.
Richard’s work is differentiated by his level of service and detail, technical and analytical capabilities and problem solving approach to estate and tax planning. As a leader in his field, Richard is past president of the Taxation Sections of both the Georgia and Atlanta Bar Associations, the Estate Planning & Probate Section of the Atlanta Bar Association, the North Georgia Estate Planning Council, and the Georgia Planned Giving Council.  Richard also serves in leadership positions with several significant Atlanta based charitable organizations, such as the Jewish Federation, Jewish Family and Career Services as well as his temple, Congregation B’nai Dorot.
Richard received his B.B.A. in Accounting, cum laude, and his J.D. degree, cum laude, from the University of Georgia. He received his LL.M. in Taxation from Emory University.  Richard is a frequent speaker on estate planning, charitable gift planning and other tax related topics.

Vince Gurzo is an experienced President/CEO/Board member of several mid-sized general manufacturing and chemical companies.  In these and previous executive positions, he has created value for shareholders leading organizations of $20 million to $600 million through growth, restructurings, M&A, Joint Ventures and globalization.
Vince has held positions at Merck & Co, Inc., Union Carbide Corporation, International Specialty Products, LaRoche Chemical and several Private Equity sponsored companies. His assignments include operating and management roles in Sales, Marketing, Manufacturing and Research and Development prior to general and executive management.
At Laroche Chemical as Corporate VP, he shared COO responsibility and directly managed 4 divisions and 2 JVs. The teams he led revitalized two of those divisions, consistently improving financial and operating performance. Earlier at International Specialty Products he served in senior sales and marketing roles.  At Union Carbide, now Dow Chemical, he was responsible for the U.S. and European manufacturing and R&D for a $100 million subsidiary. He began his career at Merck & Co, Inc. as a manufacturing engineer.
After a successful corporate career, Vince entered Private Equity as President / CEO / Board member. With “hands on” management, he initially stabilized each company’s operations and finances. He then set and successfully implemented the strategic direction for each company; Most recently, Vince raised $25 million in committed capital and was the Founding Partner of a boutique Private Equity firm, Grove & Mercer Chemical Investments, looking to leverage his operating experience in an M&A transaction.
Vince is from Jersey City, and earned a degree in Chemical Engineering at Rutgers University, and an MBA from Pace University’s Executive Program. He is a Certified Six Sigma Green belt and Lean Engineer. He is the named inventor on several patent applications and has received the Key to the City of Baton Rouge Louisiana for revitalizing the Alumina Division while at LaRoche Chemical.

Jim is a 32 year veteran of the industry.  Before the creation of DocuTeam in 1997, Jim was President of two different Atlanta branch offices of major conglomerates in the office machines  industry.   These were big successful operations with a huge turnover, lots of employees and, of course, lots of customers.  Previously Market Place President for Ikon with revenues of $120m per annum, Jim is co-owner of DocuTeam, Inc., one of the largest dealers in the South Eastern States, with current revenues of $30m

Whitney brings over 20 years’ experience in new business development and sales leadership strategies within the Mortgage and Real Estate Industry.  Mr. Fite is Sr. Vice President and Managing Director of Angel Oak Funding, LLC, a full service mortgage company based in Atlanta, Georgia.  He has consistently led highly productive and profitable sales teams, closing over $300 million in loan originations in 2010, alone and continues to hold the same standard.

After his graduation from the University of Georgia, Whitney began his career with the Fidelity Group in 1992.  From Fidelity, he went on to spearhead the development and execution of several expansion initiatives within the in-town Atlanta market.  These included a new sales infrastructure for a top 10 bank holding company, as well as two start-ups and three company acquisitions.  While at the height of his origination career, Whitney consistently averaged over $65 million in annual personal production and was ranked among the top 5 loan originators in Georgia on an annual basis.

Currently, his primary business focus is heading up sales and marketing for Angel Oak Funding.  His plan is to grow the Southeastern marketplace through hiring industry leaders who are committed to providing world-class concierge service to their clients.  “It’s all about providing professional, consistent and proactive communication”, says Whitney.  His dedication to high achievement and customer service as well as his experience in the loan origination business is what sets him apart from other industry experts and makes him one of the Southeast’s most sought after resources for sales leadership.

Whitney is a native Atlantan and currently resides in Marietta with his wife Laura and their 3 children.

Robert brings over 17 years’ experience within finance and startup businesses. Mr. Mulcahy is Vice President of Specialty Lending with AngelOak Funding, LLC a full service mortgage company based in Atlanta, GA. He has over 10 years direct lending experience focused on the Single Family Atlanta housing market. Mr. Mulcahy began his career in New York with Tullett & Tokyo a global financial futures brokerage firm and has held senior management positions over his career.
His extensive financial experience has resulted in Top Sales & Leadership. Over the years Robert has worked to develop a comprehensive approach for his clients that focus on their short & long term financing needs. With a keen understanding of the local Atlanta market; Mr. Mulcahy has consulted with thousands of clients on their home purchasing and investing needs.
His current primary business focus covers residential renovation lending specifically for REO/Foreclosure & distressed properties. His background has allowed him to build an extensive network of contacts within the REO market. These relationships and firsthand experience with in the REO market provide a solid foundation that allow him to be a sought after resource for single family investment financing and acquisition.

Dac Carver has spent more than 17 years in the residential real estate business working for builders, developers, and brokerage companies.
He is currently the Vice President and Managing Broker of Beacham & Company, Realtors based in the Buckhead area of Atlanta. The boutique residential real estate brokerage firm is the #1 office in Buckhead for listings sold since opening its doors in 2006 and has the highest average sales price in metro Atlanta at nearly $900,000 per sale. Dac is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the company including coaching and management of the sales team, business development, marketing, and relocation services.
Prior to joining Beacham & Company, Carver was the Director of Marketing and New Home Services for the largest GMAC Real Estate real estate franchise in the United States with more than $2 billion in annual sales and 2,000 agents. During his seven years with GMAC, he directed the company’s corporate marketing efforts, which earned more than a dozen local and national marketing awards. He also managed an on-site sales team of more than 35 agents who specialized in new home sales and closed more than 200 homes a year while also serving in his corporate marketing role.
Dac joined GMAC Real Estate after three years as Director of New Home Marketing for PATHWAY Communities, the developers of Peachtree City, the largest master-planned community in the United States. While at PATHWAY, he was instrumental in the successful opening of three new planned communities, which were the first the company’s first projects outside of Peachtree City in more than 20 years.
Dac has a B.A. in English from the University of South Carolina. He is a member of the Rotary Club of Buckhead and Northside United Methodist Church and is a volunteer for Crohns and Colitis Foundation. He and his wife, Shannon, have two adopted school-age sons, Charlie and Jack.

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With 20-plus years of experience in strategy, operations, engineering and marketing, Amanda gives clients powerful new perspectives for profitable growth. As an experienced thought partner, Amanda helps clients leverage their distinct assets and capabilities to produce lasting competitive advantage, zeroing in on key actions that will improve profit, performance and growth. Her work has taken her throughout North America and Asia, including four years in Malaysia, where she helped plant the seeds that grew into McKinsey’s Kuala Lumpur office.

Prior to founding Setili & Associates, Amanda was a senior executive in two successful high-tech start-ups and served as a manager with McKinsey & Company. As an engineer with Kimberly-Clark Corporation, she led the start-up of a new production process and commercialized new components in 20 consumer and industrial products.

Amanda earned her MBA with distinction from the Harvard Business School, and her Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from Vanderbilt University, cum laude. She is past President and current Board Chair of the Harvard Business School Club of Atlanta, and is an adjunct professor at Emory University’s Goizueta Business School, ranked number three by Businessweek for undergraduate programs.

Rob Setili has a track record of helping companies clarify their value proposition, and solving problems to improve profits. With a focus on clearly differentiating products and services to meet customer needs, Rob has helped large corporate clients, entrepreneurial, and mid-market companies improve margins while growing sales.

An effective integrator who helps teams reach creative, winning solutions across organizational and functional lines, Rob provides broad expertise and a practical framework that brings out the best in teams and individuals.

With over 20 years of experience in strategy, manufacturing, operations and engineering, Rob gives clients powerful insights to produce profitable growth.
At Kimberly-Clark Corporation, Rob led project, operations and engineering teams in launching innovative new products, improving product performance and reducing manufacturing cost.

Rob earned his MBA at the Harvard Business School and B.S. in Mechanical Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Jennie leads innovative, strategic change.  She has been described as one who ‘excels in future reality’.   Jennie specializes in partnering with leaders across the organization to translate growth strategies into disciplined execution programs.

Jennie’s love for change began early:
– Moved around frequently while growing up, which whetted her appetite for change and how people are influenced by change
– Exchange student in India at 17, which showed her the world is a collection of diverse ideas, talents, and philosophies
– Educated at small colleges, which taught her about communities
– Early career:  COO for small, family-owned business – learned about work groups becoming families
– Mid career:   Corporate America – Consulting with small manufacturers, a dive into Lean Six Sigma at GE, and building the Business Transformation group at Coca-Cola Enterprises that created a culture of visible, profitable strategy execution.

Jennie has spent the last 20 months on sabbatical:  travel in a very small trailer (blue highways and small town America), tourist volunteer (India) and LOTS of family time (hubby, kids, parents, siblings).  She is now in active transition, seeking her next opportunity to engage leaders across an organization to make change happen.

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A Marketing and Communications leader with passion for delivering”marketing magic,” that blend the art & science to bring a company’sportrait to life, specifically in the technology, agriculture & manufacturing industries.

As Director, Corporate Marketing and Brand Communications Worldwide with AGCO, an $8B farm equipment manufacturer, Sue was responsible for the corporate brand and led the global marketing efforts throughout 140countries. Sue was responsible for public relations, digital communicationsand social media, branding, employee communications, sustainability and marketing communications. Sue’s social media efforts have been recognized along with Coca-Cola and Delta Airlines as having a perfect engagement score and has also been recognized by IABC (International Association ofBusiness Communicators), NAMA (National Agri-Marketing Association), DECA Paths in Marketing, and TopView Social Media Series, and her Global Branding project has been recognized by IABC and has evolved into aPersonal Branding training she offers to executives in transition. She is also published in the PR News Media Guidebook as the featured chapter and hasearned her Accredited Business Communicator designation by IABC.

Sue is also a veteran of the computer industry with over 15 years at Apple,where she was responsible for demand generation, solutions seminars,marketing integration, co-marketing partnerships, channel programs, field communications, digital and small business market development.

Sue has also helped other companies with their sales and marketing strategy,as she founded Otten Associates, a consulting and program management firm. Services include sales and marketing strategy, market research, events,team building, demand generation, field marketing, communications, and channel programs. A division of the company, Otten Interactive, focused ondynamic website development and e-marketing initiatives. Her varied client list includes companies from the entertainment, healthcare, software,manufacturing, retail, Internet infrastructure, and technology sectors.

Sue, a graduate of University of Minnesota, has an MBA from Illinois Benedictine University and has taught marketing courses at the MBA level,using real world examples, both good and bad, to challenge her students. She and her husband Ron live with their two children near Atlanta. She is active in her church and her kids’ athletic activities, and is training for her third marathon

Mark B. Fonseca, President of Fonseca Clothiers is a subject matter expert in the area of Executive Image and Professional Attire to leading Executives and Entrepreneurs. He is a member of the Custom Tailors and Designers Association, wardrobe Consultant to CNN / Turner Broadcasting, and conducts Seminars for Vistage International, Fortune 500 companies and has worked with men’s clothing icon and author of “Dressing the Man” Alan Flusser.

As an on-air image consultant to CNN and Turner Broadcasting, Mark Fonseca has developed over a decade of best practices in non verbal communication, most importantly what you should not wear whether it makes you look too short, too heavy, or just outdated!

Mark provides straightforward, honest and objective information about specific suggestions for improvement based on your individual personality, profession and unique motivations, with recommendations on styles, fit, and colors that will enhance your presence and personal effectiveness. His exclusive “Dressing by the Numbers” system makes it “easy” to look your best whether your dress is Business, Business Casual or Casual attire.

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Diane Crompton loves all things social and helping people showcase their unique skills.  It made sense that Diane was an early adopter of social media and leveraged her knowledge of social media to help people build their personal brand.  Her multi-faceted career includes experience as an educator and as a nationwide recruiter where she recruited medical specialists nationally for several contingency and retained search firms.
In addition, she has worked for ten years as a Senior Career Consultant with an international human resources consulting group.  In this role she has coached hundreds of professionals from all organizational levels and industry backgrounds, including Fortune 500 firms locally and nationally.  Since 2004 Diane has applied her knowledge to consult with professionals on how to build their personal brand by using social media strategically.  In her consulting practice she partners with organizations to enhance their success through strategic use of social media.
Diane is the co-author of several books including “Seven Days to Online Networking,” (JIST 2008) and “Find a Job Through Social Networking” (JIST 2010).  She has had the opportunity to share her expertise at industry, corporate and academic events and has presented live and web based sessions on this topic to organizations throughout the country.  Diane has also served as a SME (Subject Matter Expert) and is a frequent contributor to media on this topic.

Diane holds a B.S. degree in Education from Springfield College in Massachusetts, combined with graduate studies in Instructional Design. She is a member of ACPI (Association of Career Professionals International), and CDI (Career Directors International).

Debbie Reetz   is co-owner and VP of Sales and Marketing for Media Solutions Partners and specializes in digital sales growth and training, social media, sales management, start-ups, turnarounds, revitalization, business development, marketing strategy, client development and retention, and brand management.
Her sales experience includes success as Director of National Accounts for AutoTrader.com, Classics division, and as Director of National Advertising for The Atlanta Journal- Constitution.
Her responsibilities included leading teams in selling advertising and marketing initiatives to auto manufacturers, and businesses such as those in insurance, financial, travel, consumer products, entertainment, movies, sports, and healthcare.
Debbie resides in Atlanta, Georgia and is an active member of the American Marketing Association, Atlanta Ad Club, the Society of Human Resource Management, and Executives in Sales and Marketing.

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Bob Drew’s passion for nature and water began during his formative years in Wisconsin. He grew up an avid swimmer, canoeist, kayaker, skier and sailor in the water-abundant great lakes region. Along the way, he spent five-and-a-half years as an engineer in a paper mill in Southern California where water is quite scarce. Paper manufacturing uses copious amounts of water, and Drew led all efforts in running the water portion of the plant while optimizing paper production and quality. Through his conservation efforts, he was able to cut water usage in half while improving production and quality. As a result, the water savings amounted to a million gallons a day, which was enough to supply 12,500 residents. He has taken that passion and know-how to get similar results in Atlanta with its infinite water challenges.

ECOVIE (pronounced ECHO-VEE) Rainwater Collection Systems, founded in 2008, has become one of the leading firms that engineers, designs and installs systems in Atlanta and beyond. Projects range from home installations where smaller basins are needed, to larger scale such as college campuses and apartment buildings. Each system is engineered for the specific project to help maximize conservation efforts.
In addition to founding ECOVIE, Drew has optimized the creation process of paper products in Latin America and Europe, as well as managed large engineering projects. His eye for innovation and his project management orientation are great assets to the design and installation of rainwater systems.Drew holds a degree in chemical engineering from the University of Wisconsin, and an M.B.A. from UCLA. He is professionally accredited by the American Rainwater Catchment Systems Association. He was recently elected to the board of directors of ARCSA and also is the president of SERHSA (Southeast Rainwater Harvest Systems Association). He also serves on the advisory board of DeKalb Tech’s new Green Technologies Academy.

Robert “Tim” Uzar is the Chief Executive Officer of EcoMech, LLC, opened in 2009 in Newnan, Georgia. He is responsible for providing the vision and strategic direction of the company. Under Mr. Uzar’s leadership, EcoMech, LLC., has grown into a successful mechanical contracting company with 100% of its growth reinforced by referrals, and is one of the top company’s in Georgia that is committed to creating healthy environments which serve the needs of the “green minded” clientele.

EcoMech,LLC., specializes in geothermal system installations, spray foam insulation, solar, rainwater collection systems, radiant floor heating and even air quality. As one of Georgia’s leading Geothermal HVAC systems installers, EcoMech offers a team of mechanical industry professionals, skilled and focused in energy efficient systems, an integral part of its sustainable design excellence.

Uzar is a graduate of Southern Polytechnic State University in Marietta, Georgia with a Bachelor’s Degree in Construction Management, where he founded in 2001, both the Georgia Student Chapter of “MCAA” Mechanical Contractors Association of America and the Specialty Contractor’s Association. He continues EcoMech’s upward growth throughout the south east with expansions in Alabama and Florida. http://www.ecomech.net/

Steve is a founding partner of Inman solar, which is a full service photovoltaic solar system installer and integrator based in Atlanta.  Inman focuses on developing solar solutions that make economic sense and add marketing value for its customers.  Requiring a vast knowledge of solar technological advances, Inman Solar also offers detailed financial analyses for projects.
Inman Solar has been involved with some of the largest solar projects in the Southeast.  One of their latest projects is installing a 1 MW solar farm on the Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport.   In addition, they have also done many small residential systems and more intricate architectural projects.
Steve is a Board Member of the Georgia Solar Energy Association, GSEA.  He holds an MBA from Emory University with an undergrad degree in industrial engineering from North Carolina State University.

Darren Horvath, is a member of the Employment, Labor and Immigration Group at Taylor English. He is dedicated to counseling and defending both private and public employers in labor and employment matters. Mr. Horvath has successfully litigated cases for employers in state and federal courts and administrative agencies throughout the country. These cases have included discrimination, retaliation and harassment claims under state and federal employment laws, federal and state leave laws, overtime, minimum wage, and exempt classification claims under the FLSA and state wage and hour statutes, FLSA collective actions, state law tort claims, whistleblower claims, breach of contract claims, and equal protection, due process, first amendment, excessive force, and other constitutional claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Mr. Horvath also has successfully represented litigants in cases involving trade secrets and restrictive covenants, including seeking and defending against requests for temporary restraining orders and preliminary injunctions

In addition to a successful track record of defending employers in litigation, Mr. Horvath also assists clients with avoiding potential legal claims by providing thoughtful advice on employment-related issues, such as employment contracts, severance agreements, employee policies, handbooks and procedural manuals, restrictive covenants, FMLA, ADA and FLSA compliance, drug testing, background checks, termination and other personnel decisions, and handling complaints of harassment, discrimination or other allegations of misconduct. When providing such advice, Mr. Horvath focuses on developing practical solutions that minimize legal risks without losing sight of the client’s business and operational considerations.

Before joining Taylor English in 2009, Mr. Horvath practiced labor and employment law as an associate and equity partner with Fisher & Phillips LLP, from 1996 through 2009

Scott Porter, is a member of the Employment, Labor & Immigration practice group at Taylor English. He primarily focuses his practice on labor and employment counseling and the negotiating and drafting of employment and severance agreements. Mr. Porter has particular experience representing clients in media, entertainment, sports, and higher education.  Mr. Porter also represents executives with respect to the negotiation of employment-related agreements.

Mr. Porter has extensive experience counseling clients concerning day-to-day employment issues such as hiring, discipline, firing, reductions-in-force, disability accommodations, and requests for leave; preparing employment agreements, restrictive covenants, separation agreements, employee handbooks, supervisors’ manuals, and various employment policies; conducting sexual harassment investigations; and conducting equal employment opportunity and sexual harassment training seminars.

Mr. Porter has also represented employers successfully in a wide variety of employment and other litigation matters in both state and federal courts as well as before administrative agencies in Georgia and throughout the country. These matters have included cases involving state and federal discrimination statutes (including harassment and retaliation claims), employment related state law torts, breach of contract, tortious interference with contractual and business relationships, and unfair labor practice claims.

Prior to joining Taylor English in 2007, Mr. Porter served in-house for eight years as a Senior Employment Counsel for Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. Prior to joining Turner, Mr. Porter was an associate with the labor & employment group of Powell Goldstein, LLP.

At Turner, Mr. Porter negotiated and drafted executive and on-air talent agreements; provided advice with respect to contracts, policies, procedures, personnel decisions and internal investigations. He ensured compliance with statutory and regulatory requirements created and revised company-wide policies and procedures; and conducted training for supervisors and human resources employees, including helping to create and implement a company-wide harassment and respectful behavior training program. Mr. Porter was the primary employment counsel for CNN for much of his tenure at Turner.

Mr. Porter has twice spoken to the Georgia Bar Association about the ADA Amendments Act and has been a guest lecturer at Georgia State’s Executive MBA Program.
Mr. Porter and his partner have a wonderful daughter and are active at All Saints Episcopal Church.

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Keith Green has worked with thousands of individuals who are preparing for retirement.  He responded to critical gaps in the U.S. retirement system by founding the American Retirement Initiative in which he serves as its president.  The American Retirement Initiative is a national conversation that facilitates best practice-sharing among trusted advisors.  ARI provides thought leadership on employer-sponsored retirement plans and the retirement landscape in general in the US.  He brings to this role over 20 years in leadership roles for leading financial services companies offering retirement solutions to individuals and organizations.

In his early career with TIAA-CREF, Keith worked as an Institutional Consultant, collaborating with colleges and universities on their retirement plan designs.  Keith then joined Aetna Financial Services as its Regional Manager in its Michigan office and ultimately became vice president for its Southeastern Region.

After ING’s acquisition of Aetna Financial Services in 2000, Keith held progressively responsible roles, including Senior Vice President of Strategic Marketing and Senior Vice President of Domestic Emerging Markets.  He was then appointed Senior Vice President and executive-on-loan to Hemisphere, Inc., an organization tasked with bringing the headquarters of the Free Trade Area of the Americas to Atlanta.  Much of his time during that period was spent in Latin American and the Caribbean capitols promoting trade and working on economic development issues with diplomats and democratically elected leaders.

In January 2006, Mr. Green was appointed Vice President of Government Relations for ING, responsible for ING’s state government relations in twenty US states.  He held this role until 20ll when he founded the American Retirement Initiative.

Keith received both a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Michigan.

Bob Reid graduated from Georgia Tech with a Bachelor’s in Electrical Engineering, married his sweetheart and went on to get a Master’s in EE from Stanford University. The work at Stanford was paid for by Bell Labs in Holmdel, NJ. His time at Bell Labs was by far the happiest time of his life. While starting a family, Bob became an instrument rated pilot. Working at the Labs was heaven for an engineer, where he wrote software for one of the first packet switches that was actually deployed. Bob produced the first computer generated animated video. (16mm movie!)

The department Bob was a part of was the systems engineering department for all data communications of the Bell System, and they never thought that the internet would be the result of the channels and switches that they were working on.

After taking a promotion with AT&T, where they put him through an Executive MBA program at Pace University, Bob decided the next headhunter that called would get his attention.

Bob and his family moved to Atlanta In 1980 to join a startup in satellite communications called Isacomm, where he was in charge of all the advanced data communications applications. The main outgrowth of that group was the first video conferencing network called “The Meeting Channel.” Isacomm was bought by United Telecom and eventually became the national accounts division of US Sprint. Rather than move to Kansas City, Bob joined Scientific Atlanta and began the very early development of the VSAT product line.

Bob left Scientific Atlanta in 1987 and wrote a business plan for AvData Systems, a shared hub satellite service, where he raised $1.4M in initial funding for this new company and booked $3.7M in revenue before we opened the doors for business.

In 2004 Bob Reid joined SDN Global as VP of Business Operations. SDN is an enterprise and military communications company using satellite and other technologies to literally cover the globe.
 
In more recent years, Bob has been the VP of Business Development at The Kotter Group, a 100% Virtual Desktop Company.

Bob Reid’s greatest mentor and influence was his father who was part of the greatest generation. He returned from the war to start a fine furniture manufacturing company which continues today under one of his grandsons. (reidclassics.com). He taught Bob what it meant to be a real patriot and to start and run a business successfully. He also instilled in him a love for math and physics.

Bill brings a Client focused attention to the Business Development initiatives for Talent Connections and Career Spa. Bill’s career encompasses 20+ years of Leadership, Business Strategy, Sales Process, and Human Resources success. As President at AMPF/AMCI, a consumer products company, Bill has initiated a targeted Sales focus across his national team to increase customer interaction, built sales processes consistent across the organization and increased customer contact to grow the brand. Bill’s background includes start-up experience where he served as Director of Sales for FANMATS, a consumer products company.

From 1997 to 2003 Bill led the recruiting practices and leadership development initiatives as Manager of Staffing and Development at Larson-Juhl, a Berkshire-Hathaway subsidiary. In this role, Bill initiated an entirely new national sales recruiting process and strategy, built the recruiting criteria, identified the key criteria for performance success and worked collaboratively across the organization to drive the process.

Bill is active in career mentoring and business networking as a board member for the St.  Brigid Business Connection Group and he volunteers with the Christ Centered Career Group (C3G) at Northpoint Community Church – both located in Alpharetta, GA. In addition, Bill is active in the Atlanta Catholic Business Conference, the Kettering Executive Network, the Furman Business Breakfast series, Hith Tech Ministries and the Men of St. Brigid.

Earning his Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Furman University in Greenville, SC,   Bill chose to stay in the southeast after growing up in south Florida. Bill, his wife Laura and their daughter Hampton live in Alpharetta where they are active with travel softball, school activities and enjoying the outdoors. They enjoy golf, tennis, tent camping, trips to the beach and their Boxer, Samantha.

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Darcy has coached, inspired, and motivated change for individuals and teams at companies including Wachovia, The Home Depot, The Coca-Cola Company, AOL, Biogen Idec, and Verizon. She also has been a featured speaker for the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC), the Public Relations Society of American (PRSA), the Credit Insurer’s Association, and Best Buy’s Women’s Leadership Forum (WoLF). Her coaching expertise has been cited in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Modesto Bee, Atlanta Business Chronicle, ABCnews.com, and CareerBuilder.com.

Before founding her company, Darcy was a Principal, Internal Coach, and Senior Communication Consultant at Hewitt Associates, a top human resources consulting firm. She served on Hewitt’s national Communication Leadership team and led the Communication Consulting business in the Southeast US. In that role, she was responsible for developing and retaining successful people and teams, helping clients create better results, and managing a healthy, growing bottom-line. At Hewitt, Darcy also innovated an Associate Coaching program, designed to support associate retention and growth in ways that made a tangible difference to the company and its clients. She coached associates one-on-one, plus coached teams accountable for serving multi-million dollar, complex client relationships.

Darcy holds the Associate Certified Coach (ACC) credential from the International Coach Federation (ICF). She is the 2010 president-elect of the Georgia Coach Association, and graduated from Northwestern University.

William Crossley was born in Columbus, OH after which he was educated and raised around the world as a military child. After attending several Universities from Sophia University in Tokyo to Georgia Tech, Bill graduated from Mercer University.

During Bill’s 28-year career in the Army, he commanded field artillery units at every level from Lieutenant to Brigadier General.  He retired in 1988 after three years as Chief of Staff – V Corps in Germany, where he was selected by Colin Powell.

 Retirement last a whole 10 days before Bill was bitten by the entrepreneurial bug. He co-founded and successfully ran various entrepreneurial ventures before settling down for retirement.

As a retiree, Bill now writes business books with a twist. His first was H2 which was an espionage thriller set in Europe and more recently Build it! Run it! Sell it! (BIRISI)- a business book disguised as a novel, that comes out in the next couple of weeks.

Short Introduction to Build it! Run it! Sell it!
BIRISI is a business book disguised as a humorous novel, with a plot that makes for an entertaining and informative read.  Set in the disparate worlds of sailing aboard luxury yachts and women’s high fashion, BIRISI is organized around the framework of the entrepreneur’s mantra—Build it! Run it! Sell it!—into which are woven the imperatives of a multi-million dollar entrepreneurial enterprise and the structuring of a deal that investing angels and green card seekers can’t refuse.

A long time resident of Atlanta, Jim moved to Marietta in 1980 while he was working with AT&T. He spent 36 years with AT&T and affiliated AT&T companies progressing through positions of greater responsibility up to Area Vice President. Jim retired from AT&T in 2001 and went on to work for OFS, Conklin Corp., Carbon Motors, Ameriprise Financial and Penn Mutual, before finally settling into a slower paced life.

He has remained active with Georgia Tech teaching financial planning and supporting the alumni organization through the Cobb Georgia Tech Executive Network group as a coach and mentor for senior level graduates in career transition. Jim is also a member of the Kettering Executive Group.

Jim first came to Atlanta to attend Georgia Tech where he received a Bachelors degree in Mechanical Engineering and a Masters in Business Administration majoring in finance. He is also a graduate of the Executive Program at Penn State.

His has 3 grown children, and 8 grandchildren, and lives with his wife of 44 years in East Cobb. His hobbies include golf, bridge, motorsports and writing. His book “LifeSpan Financial Mapping” is listed with Amazon.com.

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Mark is the co-founder and CEO of ExecuThink. ExecuThink helps professionals achieve peak brain performance, as well as reverse the effects of normal age-related cognitive decline, by delivering unique coach-led and scientifically proven programs to both individuals and corporate customers.

Mark brings 20 years of marketing and business development experience from the Telecom and Technology industries, including serving in executive and leadership positions at Redknee Solutions, Glenayre Electronics, Lucent Technologies and AT&T.

In these roles, Mark has led efforts to open new markets in Asia, Africa and Europe, has created market-leading and award-winning new customer innovations, forged strategic partnerships with leading companies such as Huawei and Microsoft, while staying focused on rapidly evolving customer and market needs.

Dr. Avner Stern is the co-founder and Chief Science Officer of ExecuThink.

For more than three decades as a psychologist, Avner has served as an educator, clinician and consultant, specializing in the evaluation of attention deficit and learning disorders in children, adolescents and adults. He has consulted in the areas of human resource selection of executives and security personnel. He currently serves as a consultant and reviewer to state professional licensing boards.

Avner helped to pioneer cognitive training in the U.S, and is now one of the nation’s most experienced clinicians in that field. Avner supervises all ExecuThink brain training to ensure that clients receive maximum benefit from the program.