The College of Business features a diverse group of Distinguished Guest Speakers each year. Speakers connect with students, faculty, and staff by sharing knowledge and real-world business experiences. Explore some of the College’s past guest speakers below.
Distinguished Guest Speakers
Guest Speakers 2020-2021
Carrie Schaller - I/T Director for Manufacturing and Engineering, Dow Chemical
Carrie Schaller spoke with the students in MIS2000 IS/IT Management. She focused on Industry 4.0 and its impact on Dow manufacturing systems. The five primary components are: analytics (critical skills for all business professionals), robotics, mobile communications, process control systems, and digital thread/visibility (integration). The key driver is Value. She included a discussion of the levels of security covered by ISA-95 International Standards from the shop floor to the enterprise level.
Schaller has been with Dow for just over 30 years and is currently leading a global team that is securing cyber information critical to the work processes for manufacturing. She is a certified Six Sigma Black Belt, and earned her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration - MIS concentration - from Michigan Tech ('87). Schaller serves on the North American steering team for the Women's Innovation Network (WIN) at Dow. She resides in Midland, MI with her husband and family.
Guest Speakers 2019-2020
Denise Blankinship
Denise retired in 2017. Throughout her career she held numerous positions in the
Information Technology field with a focus on Business Analysis and Resource Management.
Most recently Denise served as the Vice President of Business Analysis at the Church
Pension Group (CPG) where she was a senior IT manager responsible for partnering with
corporate business leaders to define, prioritize and develop IT strategy for supporting
both IT and business projects.
During her tenure at CPG, Denise:
- Established an enterprise Business Analyst program.
- Implemented numerous process improvement projects spanning web self-service, policy administration, document automation and enterprise content management with a focus on efficient work-flow automation.
- Served on numerous vendor Customer Advisory Boards
- Recipient of the 2011 Woman in Insurance Leadership award
Denise holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Michigan Technology University. As an alumni, Denise has:
- Served as Alumni Chapter President for New York City
- Served as a member of the MTU Presidential Council of Alumnae (PCA)
- Sponsored high-school students for the Summer Youth Program
- Presented at numerous MIS related classes
Marie Cleveland
As a worldwide corporate account manager for Federal Express, Marie Cleveland handled
six major accounts and was responsible for bringing in over $50 million in sales each
year. Cleveland has found a talent and a passion for a high level of client interaction.
She became a regional recruiter for Roadway Package Systems (RPS) in 1988 and went
on to hold various positions with the company. When FedEx purchased RPS in 2000, Cleveland
was named a corporate account executive. A passionate Michigan Tech supporter and
advocate, she has served on the Presidential Council of Alumnae, in various roles
for the Alumni Association and gives regular presentations to students on campus.
Steve Fairbanks
Steve is a seasoned executive with over 18 years of experience serving at the CEO/President/Board
of Directors level. He has successfully taken over and worked numerous engineered
product manufacturing businesses out of distressed situations in both Private Equity
and Fortune 500 settings.
Fairbanks started his career as an engineer, and grew through market/product management
and engineering leadership roles. His efforts contributed to industry changing new
products viewed as either “state-of-the-art” or “disruptive technology”. He further
gained experience in the operations and finance areas as he progressed to his President/CEO
positions.
His turnaround successes, the tools and techniques used to achieve them, and his understanding
of the dynamics in smaller companies, led to multiple guest lecture invitations to
MBA and EMBA schools. Post-lecture demand from these executives/students for a hard
copy documentation of this well-received information led to the new book “Performance-Based
Strategy: Tools and Techniques for Successful Decisions”. Here Fairbanks shares his
strategic planning process and practical approaches developed over the years - specifically
aimed for use in these unique time and resource constrained organizations.
Fairbanks graduated with a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Michigan Technological
University and an MBA from Baldwin Wallace University. He earned his Professional
Engineer’s License, has been awarded eight United States patents, is a trained Six-Sigma
Black Belt and has been additionally recognized with “Distinguished Alumni” and “Executive
of the Year” awards. A practicing Servant Leader, he has also been involved with and
certified as a facilitator with the “Lead Like Jesus” organization, and is passionate
about leadership development concurrent with his turnaround efforts.
Fairbanks is currently CEO of SIXFAIR Ventures, LLC, where he is now focusing his
efforts on helping other small business leaders replicate his success.
Dana M. Johnson
Johnson has over 37 years of experience including industrial, consulting, and academia
starting at Michigan Tech in 1981 as an accounting instructor. Upon her departure
in 1984, she worked for a variety of manufacturing and consulting firms, ultimately
owning her own business supplying training and consulting primarily to the automotive
industry in quality engineering and supply chain management, business assessment,
and project management. In 1999, Johnson returned to the College of Business to teach
supply chain, operations and engineering management related courses.
Ryan Layton, CFA
As alumni of the Applied Portfolio Management Program, Ryan has over ten years of
portfolio management and research experience involving asset allocation, strategy
implementation, economic analysis, and investment research in equities, fixed income,
real assets, and alternative assets.
His resume includes the following positions and activities:
EmeraldSpark Investments, LLC – Chicago; Founded EmeraldSpark in 2014 as a fiduciary
investment adviser serving community bank trust departments, 401(k) plan sponsors,
and other fiduciaries as well as individual wealth management clients.
MainStreet Advisors – Chicago; Portfolio Manager who advised community bank trust
departments on the management of over $2 billion in assets.
Wells Fargo WMG – Minneapolis, MN -Team Lead for Asset Allocation and Analysis on
the Wells Managed Portfolio (WMP) Team.
Jeffrey C. Littmann
Jeffrey Littmann of Grosse Pointe Park is a life trustee and chairman of the Ralph
C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation. For more than 25 years, Littmann served as the director
and CFO of Buffalo Bills, Inc., operating within the National Football League. He
received a bachelor’s degree in accounting and master’s degree in taxation from Walsh
College and a law degree from the Detroit College of Law.
Mark C. Roualet - Executive Vice President, Combat Systems
Mark was named an executive vice president of General Dynamics in March 2013. He is
responsible for the company’s Combat Systems group, which includes three companies:
European Land Systems, Land Systems and Ordnance and Tactical Systems. He was appointed
a vice president of the corporation in October 2008.
Previously Roualet served as president of General Dynamics Land Systems, from October
2008 to March 2013. Roualet joined General Dynamics Land Systems’ predecessor, Chrysler
Defense Inc., in 1981 as a quality engineer. He held positions of increasing responsibility
throughout his employment with General Dynamics Land Systems to include plant manager
of the Sterling, Mich., manufacturing facility; vice president of the Interim Brigade
Combat Team program; vice president of Wheeled Vehicle Systems; and senior vice president
and chief operating officer.
Roualet earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Michigan Technological
University and a master’s of business administration from the University of Dayton.
He was recognized in 1993 by Crain’s Detroit Business Magazine as one of their “40
Under 40” executives, which is an annual acknowledgement of the top 40 executives
under 40 years old in the state of Michigan.
Darnishia Slade
Darnishia is a proud Detroiter turned Yooper; she graduated from Michigan Tech in 1998 with a degree in Industrial Management, minoring in International Business. She currently serves as Manager of Global Engagement Programs in the Pavlis Honors College and working on a doctorate degree at in Applied Cognitive Science and Human Factors at Michigan Tech. Since her first international trip to Finland in 1997 she has studied, traveled and performed community service in over 25 countries.
As an alumna, Darnishia served on the Alumni Association’s Board of Directors from 2008-2016. She is the second woman and first African-American to serve in the role of President of the Board. In 2014, she was inducted into the Presidential Council of Alumnae and she earned the inaugural Bayard Rustin Award presented by the National Society of Black Engineers in 2019.
Dar is a foodie who enjoys impromptu road trips and spending quality time with friends, family and her pup Trotter. Her favorite pastime is watching a good comedy and serving as a volunteer Minister at Harvest Church of the Keweenaw in Calumet, Michigan.
Miklos A. Vasarhelyi
He is credited with developing the original continuous audit application and is the
leading researcher in this field. At Rutgers Business School, Professor Vasarhelyi
heads the Continuous Auditing and Reporting Laboratory, which works on projects for
such leading companies as Siemens, KPMG, Proctor and Gamble, AICPA, CA Technologies
and Brazil's Itau-Unibanco. Also, he leads the RADAR (Rutgers AICPA Data Analytics
Research Initiative) project support by the 8 leading CPA firms, AICPA, and CPA Cananda.
Eric Waara - Houghton City Manager
Waara was a guest speaker in Professor Tom Merz’s Public Sector Economics class March
3 2020. Eric graduated from Michigan Tech with a degree in Civil Engineering. Upon
graduating, he worked as a consulting engineer in the private sector until he was
appointed City Manager in 2014. In 1986, Eric completed an economics class taught
by Professor Merz.
Guest Speakers 2018-2019
Danielle (Lorenzetti) Cyrus - Director of Purchasing, Michigan Tech University
Danielle serves as the Director of Purchasing and is responsible for university Purchasing, Strategic Sourcing and the University Card Program. Prior to joining Michigan Tech in 2017, Cyrus spent 22 years in healthcare supply chain management and logistics. She played a major role in working with the UP wide Group Purchasing Organization (GPO) that works collaboratively with all healthcare organizations in upper Michigan to ensure cost effective group buying.
In additional, Cyrus is part of the university Emergency Management Incident Command Team (ICT) and serves as Chapter Advisor to Alpha Gamma Delta international woman’s fraternity on campus.
Cyrus is a 1993 Michigan Tech graduate of the College of Business with a B.S. in Business Administration. She and her husband, Michael, live in Houghton with their children, Dante and Jillian.
Larry Durland Jr.
Larry is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries, retired, and a Member of the American Academy of Actuaries. He served in senior management positions in the financial services industry including service as Senior Vice President of Equitable of Iowa Companies. He received a B.Sc. In Mathematics from Montana State University.
John Farquhar - Chief Credit Officer of Superior National Bank and Trust Company
John’s roles includes developing policies and procedures for the loan area of the bank, management of the credit risk of the loan portfolio, supervision of the credit department, collections department and the loan operations department.
John joined Superior National Bank in 2014 and has 30 years of banking experience. Prior to working at Superior National, John was a special loan administration officer for a holding company in Lower Michigan specializing in financial risk management for the member banks owned by the holding company. John holds a bachelor’s degree in pharmacy from Ferris State University and a MBA in finance from Grand Valley State University.
Joel Florek - Owner of JF Holdings: Residential Multifamily Properties
Joel Florek graduated with a Finance degree from Michigan Technological University
in 2015 and was a participant in APMP during his senior year. Post-graduation he began
a career as a Program Manager for Trident Maritime Systems based out of Iron Mountain
MI. While starting his career he began investing in small multifamily real estate
in Iron Mountain. Joel currently owns 31 units between 4 properties and transitioned
to managing his portfolio full time more than a year and a half ago. Now, he is focused
on partnering with investors to tackle larger multifamily projects in Indiana and
South West Michigan and help others learn how to get started investing in real estate
themselves.
Barbara Johnson-Rossi
Barbara has worked in the health care industry for nearly 30 years. The first was
Marshfield Clinic, based in Marshfield, Wisconsin. Her career with Marshfield started
as an Internal Auditor which led to CFO for Security Health Plan. She served for
9 years on the Board of Trustees of the Marshfield Clinic Retirement Plans.
In 2009, she took a job as CFO for SMDC Health System out of Duluth, Minnesota overseeing
approximately 500+ staff in Accounting, Business Intelligence and Revenue Cycle.
SMDC was part of Essentia Health which included hospitals and clinics across Northern
Minnesota and North Dakota.
In 2010, she was appointed to be the Vice President of Financial Operations for Essentia
Health. Recently retiring from Essentia Health, but continues to work as a consultant
helping with payer contracting and data around cost of care.
Eli Karttunen - Trust Investment Officer for Superior National Bank and Trust Co.
Karttunen provides investment management and trust services to a variety of clients including: individuals, corporations, non-profits, and municipalities totaling assets under management of approximately $550 million. He is also a licensed Life, Accident, and Health Insurance Producer in the State of Michigan. Aside from that, Karttunen is an Adjunct Instructor of Accounting at Finlandia University.
Karttunen received a Master’s of Science in Finance degree from the University of Michigan – Dearborn in 2016. He also has a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from Michigan Technological University. Karttunen is a Keweenaw native and currently resides in Dollar Bay. He is actively involved in numerous activities throughout the area. He has served as President for the Rotary Club of Houghton and currently is Treasurer for Dial Help, Inc. –a human services agency with focuses on prevention of substance abuse and sexual assault –as well as an advisory board member for the Salvation Army of Hancock.
Laura Konkel - Attorney and Partner of Michael Best and Friedrich LLP
Laura spoke in the MGT3650 class about 'careers in intellectual property law'. She
is an attorney and partner at the law firm of Michael Best and Friedrich LLP and her
practice focuses on all aspects of trademark and copyright prosecution and enforcement.
Amanda Massaway
Amanda was a guest speaker in ACC4100, Audit and Attestation and ACC5100 Advance Audit
and Forensic Examination.
Amanda is responsible for the integrity of Walmart's domestic internal control environment
for approximately $20B of retail store inventory. She also indirectly oversees the
process to measure and post inventory shrinkage captured during each store's physical
inventory reconciliation. Additionally, she supports internal and external auditors
on inventory related requests and develops accounting system enhancements involving
new inventory flows to accommodate new business projects and more efficiently/accurately
account for inventory.
Amanda is the founder and Coordinator of the Houghton Women's Leadership Society and a member of the Rotary Club of Houghton.
Stephen Mattson - Regional Brokerage Manager, Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC
The LSGI Trading Room hosted guest speaker Stephen Mattson on Tuesday, March 31, 2015. Mr. Mattson is a Regional Brokerage Manager and Senior Vice President at Wells Fargo Advisors. As a Regional Brokerage Manager, Mr. Mattson is responsible for Wells Fargo Advisors financial advisors across his Midwest U.S. region. In particular, Mr. Mattson presented a "how to" on becoming a financial advisor to the students in the Applied Portfolio Management Program. Steve also discuss his role and responsibilities in the firm. The SBE and the APMP thank Steve for his long-time connection to Michigan Tech.
Dave Priem - in-house counsel at Medtronic
Dave spoke in the MGT3650 class in the spring. Medtronic is one of the world's largest medical technology, services and solutions companies. Dave is responsible for management of Medtronic's intellectual property portfolio.
Drew Randell - Facilities Purchasing Manager, Michigan Tech University
Drew Randell graduated from Michigan Technological University in 2013 with a B.S.
in Operations and Systems Management. He went on to work for Uline Inc. as a Corporate
Buyer where he was responsible for maintaining the inventory levels of thousands of
products through the procurement of goods based on warehouse space, sales trends,
and forecasts. Drew left Uline in July of 2015 to become the Facilities Purchasing
Manager at Michigan Tech. He is responsible for procuring supplies and equipment for
campus maintenance as well as the negotiation of maintenance contracts.
Special Agent Martin Rowe - US Dept of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General
Special Agent Martin Rowe spoke in both ACC4700 and ACC5100 class this spring.
Martin has worked as a special agent for the HHS department for 18 years. The goal of the Office of Investigations (OI) is to conduct criminal, civil and administrative investigations of fraud and misconduct related to HHS programs, operations and beneficiaries. State-of-the-art tools and technology assist OIG investigators around the country and help OI meet its goal of becoming the world's premier health care law enforcement agency. Martin is also a visiting faculty member at Georgia Southern University in the Criminal Justice and Criminology Department. He is also a retired Colonel from the US Army.
Ronald Staley-Sr. VP Southeast Michigan Operations, The Christman Company
Staley has been with The Christman Company for 33 years and is currently leading the reestablishment of a new construction management and general contracting office in the City of Detroit. He founded Christman’s Historic Preservation Group in 1992 providing construction services for high profile national historic landmarks across the US and foreign countries. Ron earned his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (Industrial Management) and Associate of Applied Science in Civil Engineering Technology from Michigan Technological University. He is on the Board of Directors of The Christman Company and multiple non-profit boards, and honored as a Fellow in the Association for Preservation Technology International and Honorary Affiliate of the Michigan Chapter American Institute of Architects.
Ian Wienke
Tax and Accounting Staff at Greenstone Farm Credit. Ian is an alumni of the SBE, majoring
in accounting and also a 4 year football athlete. He has worked in the tax and accounting
department for Greenstone for 2 years. GreenStone Farm Credit Services offers land
loans, construction loans, farm financing, leases for real estate, operating and farm
equipment.
Adam Zawisza - Financial Supervisor of Kent County, Michigan
Adam supervises several Financial Analysts within the Fiscal Services Department.
He is responsible for overseeing the processing of bi-weekly payroll for almost 2000
Kent County employees. Assist and oversee the preparation and issuance of the CAFR
and Single Audit. He is also the Point of contact for Accounting and Payroll Questions
from other departments. Adam spoke in class about the need for data analytics training
within the college experience.
Guest Speakers 2017-2018
Tim Bailey - Senior Vice President, Fortress Investment Group
Tim graduated from Michigan Technological University in 2004 with a B.S.B.A with concentrations in Finance and Financial Economics and Marketing and Operations Management and a Certificate in International Business. After completing the College of Business Applied Portfolio Management Program, Tim has spent 10+ years in the hedge fund industry and is currently employed at Fortress Investment Group in their San Francisco office. In his free time, Mr. Bailey enjoys traveling and hiking.
Jeff J. Bauman
As Chief Investment Officer for the Investment Management and Trust Services Division, Jeff’s role includes evaluating and recommending appropriate investment options, monitoring portfolio performance, optimizing asset allocation strategies, and account administration.
He joined SNBT in 2010, with an already impressive fifteen years of experience in equity and fixed income markets. Prior to joining SNBT, he was responsible for overseeing a multi-billion dollar trust and wealth management division and had successfully devised and implemented various investment strategies that focused on total return and tax efficiency.
Jeff attained the Accredited Investment Fiduciary® (AIF®) designation in 2015. The AIF credential demonstrates the ‘gold standard’ of fiduciary excellence and full understanding of all aspects of investment management, including: asset allocation, fund evaluation and selection, performance monitoring, reporting, governance, and compliance.
Dave Bernard
After receiving a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Michigan Tech, Bernard began an illustrious career at Kimberly Clark in 1974. After earning an MBA from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh while continuing his work, and moving around within the tax department, he retired as the VP for Taxes and Real Estate.
In addition to his work at Kimberley Clark, he was a member of the Tax Executives Institute for over 25 years and served as the Institutes International President in 2006-2007. Bernard also served on the IRS’s Advisory Council from 2008 through 2011. He currently sits on Michigan Tech’s College of Business Dean’s Advisory Council.
Marie Cleveland
As a worldwide corporate account manager for Federal Express, Marie handles six major
accounts and is responsible for bringing in over $50 million in sales each year.
Cleveland has found a talent and a passion for a high level of client interaction.
She became a regional recruiter for Roadway Package Systems (RPS) in 1988 and went
on to hold various positions with the company. When FedEx purchased RPS in 2000, Cleveland
was named a corporate account executive.
A passionate Michigan Tech supporter and advocate, she has served on the Presidential
Council of alumnae, in various roles for the Alumni Association and gives regular
presentations to students on campus.
Danielle (Lorenzetti) Cyrus - Director of Purchasing, Michigan Tech University
Danielle serves as the Director of Purchasing and is responsible for university Purchasing, Strategic Sourcing and the University Card Program. Prior to joining Michigan Tech in 2017, Cyrus spent 22 years in healthcare supply chain management and logistics. She played a major role in working with the UP wide Group Purchasing Organization (GPO) that works collaboratively with all healthcare organizations in upper Michigan to ensure cost effective group buying.
In additional, Cyrus is part of the university Emergency Management Incident Command Team (ICT) and serves as Chapter Advisor to Alpha Gamma Delta international woman’s fraternity on campus.
Cyrus is a 1993 Michigan Tech graduate of the College of Business with a B.S. in Business Administration. She and her husband, Michael, live in Houghton with their children, Dante and Jillian.
Kellie Davis - A/R Finance Manager, CCI Systems, Inc.
Manage revenue and billing team that supports our Engineering Services, HMTS, NOC/Call Center, VoIP, Access Networks, NSG Services and Packerland Broadband business groups. Served for two years as the Finance Product Owner of our internally developed revenue/billing software.
William (Bill) DeGenaro
Mr. DeGenaro has more than 40 years of strategic planning, intelligence and business
management experience. An internationally recognized expert, he and his team have
produced successful results for companies globally.
Bill attended undergraduate courses at Michigan Tech and has taught in the SBE graduate program. He holds a management degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago and advanced studies at the Joint Military Intelligence College in Washington DC, Harvard University, Columbia University and University of Minnesota. He is an active member of professional organizations including Operations Security Professionals Society, Security Affairs Support Association, Strategic Leadership Forum, National Military Intelligence Officers Association and the Association of Former Intelligence Officers. He has been elected to the board of directors of SCIP and is a Fellow of the Society.
Christine Dittmer
Christine earned her undergraduate and graduate degrees in Accounting Information Systems from the Eli Broad College of Business at Michigan State University. Specializing in IT/Systems, she joined Pricewaterhouse Coopers in Detroit, where she created narratives of systems processes and key controls for public audit clients. She next joined The Dow Chemical Company in Midland, where she held the positions of a cost accountant and junior analyst before assuming her current role, Manufacturing SME in the Cost Process Technology Center. Her work in this area includes supporting manufacturing variances, GRIR, and ERP implementation.
She also serves as a LIFO Subject Matter Expert, where she designed and implemented a functional LIFO interface. Christine is currently pursuing an Executive MBA and resides in the Midland area with her spouse and children.
Larry Durland Jr.
Larry is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries, retired, and a Member of the American Academy of Actuaries. He served in senior management positions in the financial services industry including service as Senior Vice President of Equitable of Iowa Companies. He received a B.Sc. In Mathematics from Montana State University.
Keith Fishe - Managing Partner at TradeForecaster Global Markets LLC
Mr. Fishe has worked in the investment banking and hedge fund industry for over two decades managing strategic technology initiatives and trading activities in cash and derivative markets. He has chaired efforts to draft standards and suggested practices for Automated Trading and participated in producing FIA's Guide to the Development and Operation of Automated Trading. He was a member of the CFTC’s subcommittee on Automated and High Frequency Trading. He spent 9 years at UBS and Swiss Bank Corp, creating both their FX New Product and Business Development and the FX Quantitative Trading Groups. Since then he has worked at DRW Holdings, CSS and as a co-owner of a principal trading firm. Mr. Fishe hold and MBA from the Tepper School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University as well as a BS in Computer Science/Mathematics from the University of Miami.
Chris Gariepy - VP of Trust and Financial Service, Superior National Bank and Trust
Chris Gariepy is Vice President of Trust for Superior National Bank and Trust headquartered in Hancock, Mich. SNB’s Trust and Financial Services Department manages a $575M portfolio including $325M in trust and brokerage assets and $250M in bank investments and accounts that hold bank stock for shareholders of Keweenaw Financial Corporation (SNB’s holding company). A 1997 graduate of Michigan Technological University with a bachelor’s degree in economics (major in finance), Gariepy began working at SNB in 1999 as assistant portfolio manager. He became head of the Trust and Financial Services Department in 2005. Gariepy and his excellent team are committed to providing effective solutions and superior service to customers in the western Upper Peninsula.
Daniel D. Greenlee
Dan received his B.S. degree in business administration in 1974 from Michigan Technological University. Mr. Greenlee is a certified public accountant.
Mr. Greenlee was appointed to his current position as the President of the Michigan Tech Fund, in June of 2014. Previously, he was Michigan Tech University's Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer for the Board of Control for 13 years. As the President of the Michigan Tech Fund, he is responsible for endowment investments and investment manager relationships, along with general fiduciary responsibilities.
Mr. Greenlee was hired as Controller at the University in 1999. As the Controller of the University he was responsible for accounts receivable, accounts payable, plant fund, research accounting, purchasing, property office, and financial reporting and tax issues. In 2001, Mr. Greenlee was promoted to the CFO of the University and appointed as the Treasurer of the Board of Control. He remained in those positions until June, 2014.
Prior to coming to the University, Mr. Greenlee served as senior vice president/controller at D&N Bank, Hancock, Michigan. He began his career at D&N Bank in 1984 and prior to becoming their senior vice president/controller, he served in a variety of positions, as: secondary market services, financial analysis, asset management, and treasurer/portfolio manager.
Mr. Greenlee's early career experience began as a senior auditor for Arthur Young and Company CPAs (later Ernst and Young CPAs), and later, as a cost accounting supervisor for Niagara of Wisconsin Paper Corporation.
Brandon Hutchinson - Fixed Income Municipal Trader for Crossmark Global Investments
Brandon graduated from Michigan Tech with my undergrad in Finance in 2015 and completed 75% of his MBA right after before pursuing the NFL. He then starting work in Detroit later in fall of 2016; Brandon plan to complete his MBA between the CFA exams each June. Brandon started his career at Quicken Loans in Detroit for 10 months, serving in two analytic, non-finance roles. He then was a financial analyst for a Tier 1/2 auto supplier in Madison Heights, MI for 5 months concluding with the company being bought out by a competitor. Brandon used this, in his words, "fortuitous event" to move to Houston, Texas where he is currently the Fixed Income Municipal Trader for Crossmark Global Investments. He focuses on all aspects of municipal portfolio management for Crossmark's SMA (separately managed accounts) portfolios that total just under 700 in number and $500 Million dollars in assets under management.
Barbara Johnson-Rossi
Barbara has worked in the health care industry for nearly 30 years. The first was Marshfield Clinic, based in Marshfield, Wisconsin. Her career with Marshfield started as an Internal Auditor which led to CFO for Security Health Plan. She served for 9 years on the Board of Trustees of the Marshfield Clinic Retirement Plans.
In 2009, she took a job as CFO for SMDC Health System out of Duluth, Minnesota overseeing approximately 500+ staff in Accounting, Business Intelligence and Revenue Cycle. SMDC was part of Essentia Health which included hospitals and clinics across Northern Minnesota and North Dakota.
In 2010, she was appointed to be the Vice President of Financial Operations for Essentia Health. Recently retiring from Essentia Health, but continues to work as a consultant helping with payer contracting and data around cost of care.
Igor Kliakhandler - Energy Trader, Houston Texas area
Kliakhandler received his PhD in Applied Mathematics in 1997 from Tel-Aviv University. He held positions at Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and Northwestern University before joining the Department of Mathematical Sciences at Michigan Tech University as an assistant professor in 2001. He was promoted to associate professor in 2005 and left the University in 2007 to work in the energy sector in Houston, where he is now involved in trading energy futures.
Jim LaVallee
Jim spoke in the MIS2000 IS/IT Management class. He provided an example of how IT impacts innovations like a tesla car, particularly the driver's experience and how it will relate to IT and non-IT careers.
Jim is currently a Regional Director of Delivery Management at Microsoft. He oversees
Microsoft support and consulting services at major accounts like 3M, Thomson Reuters,
and Conagra throughout the upper Midwest. During his 7 year tenure at Microsoft he
has also been a Project Manager and Cloud Consultant. Prior to Microsoft, Jim was
an IT Manager at the Chrysler Corporation for over 14 years. He has managed both
infrastructure and application development teams there. In the past Jim has started
his own consulting business and served in the Marine Corps.
Jeff Lemmer
Jeff Lemmer is appointed vice president and chief operating officer of Information Technology (IT), Ford Motor Company, and effective June 1, 2017. At the same time, he also is elected a Ford Motor Company Officer. In this role, Lemmer is responsible for automotive-related application development and running the day-to-day operations, including networks, data centers and employee collaboration tools. He reports to Marcy Klevorn, Ford executive vice president and president, Mobility.
Stu Ostlund
Stu is a licensed Portfolio Manager with RBC Dominion Securities with 30 years of investment industry experience. In addition to holding his Portfolio Manager license, Stu has been a perennial member of the firm’s Chairman’s and Executive Councils throughout his career. Managing one of the largest asset bases in Canada for RBC Dominion Securities, he takes a strong financial planning approach with each individual client. Stu is a native of Vancouver. He attended Michigan Tech on an athletic scholarship, where he graduated with Honors in Business Administration. Stu began his career as an Investment Advisor in 1981 with Pemberton Securities, which was subsequently acquired by RBC Dominion Securities in 1989.
Mark G. Premo - President and CEO, Predictive Safety
Mr. Premo oversees the corporation direction and strategy for Predictive Safety’s operations, including its entire product line and consulting services. He joined Predictive Safety in 2016, bringing with him more than thirty-eight years of combined surface and underground coal and minerals mining experience in operational and general management, executive leadership, business performance improvement, and strategy execution, and successful management of cross-functional teams.
Mr. Premo was previously President and CEO at Avanti Mining, where he was responsible for the development of a 40,000 ton per day molybdenum mine in northern British Columbia including engineering and 43-101 compliant FS, corporate infrastructure and governance, commercial agreements, British Columbia Environmental Assessment Certificate and Permitting, and negotiations with First Nations.
Mr. Premo had a long career with Chevron Mining, beginning as a Mine Engineer in 1977, and continuing on to the role of President and CEO until 2012, overseeing all aspects of Chevron Mining consisting of six business units, four coal mines, a petroleum coke calcining plant, a rare earth mine and SX plant, and a Molybdenum mine. He was also responsible for divestiture of certain Chevron Mining business units.
Mr. Premo received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Civil Engineering from Michigan Technological University. He is a Registered Professional Engineer and a Past Member of the Chevron Mining Corporate Management Committee, Chevron Corporation; Board of Directors of the National Mining Association; Board of Visitors of the College of Continuing Studies at the University of Alabama; Advisory Board, Michigan Technological University, Mining Engineering Program; and Chevron Corporate Reliability Steering Committee and Operational Excellence Governance Committee.
Drew Randell- Facilities Purchasing Manager, Michigan Tech University
Drew spoke in the OSM3600 Procurement and Supply Management class this fall.
Drew Randell graduated from Michigan Technological University in 2013 with a B.S. in Operations and Systems Management. He went on to work for Uline Inc. as a Corporate Buyer where he was responsible for maintaining the inventory levels of thousands of products through the procurement of goods based on warehouse space, sales trends, and forecasts. Drew left Uline in July of 2015 to become the Facilities Purchasing Manager at Michigan Tech. He is responsible for procuring supplies and equipment for campus maintenance as well as the negotiation of maintenance contracts.
Sean Ristau - Director of Exchange Integration and Education, Bcause LLC
Sean has an extensive 17 year background in the capital markets space and is fluent with most sectors of the financial and capital markets industry. Sean was an early adopter of cryptocurrency and blockchain technologies particularly Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, and Ripple. Sean has provided advisory to firms on initial coin offerings (ICOs) and firms looking to enter the crypto space. Sean is the founder and Chairman of the FIX Protocol Digital Currency and Blockchain Working Group, a group that is working to ensure FIX Protocol proper representation in this ever-changing space. Sean is also an Advisory Board Member for the Security Traders Association of Chicago. Sean continues to be heavily involved in this space as a leader and frequent speaker. Sean holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management from Colorado Technical University.
Ronald Staley-Sr. VP Southeast Michigan Operations, The Christman Company
Staley has been with The Christman Company for 33 years and is currently leading the reestablishment of a new construction management and general contracting office in the City of Detroit. He founded Christman’s Historic Preservation Group in 1992 providing construction services for high profile national historic landmarks across the US and foreign countries. Ron earned his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (Industrial Management) and Associate of Applied Science in Civil Engineering Technology from Michigan Technological University. He is on the Board of Directors of The Christman Company and multiple non-profit boards, and honored as a Fellow in the Association for Preservation Technology International and Honorary Affiliate of the Michigan Chapter American Institute of Architects.
Ed Robinson
Robinson was an honor graduate of Michigan Tech in 1966 with a bachelor's degree in business administration. He began his career as a business consultant with Deloitte Haskins and Sells (now Deloitte and Touche) in Chicago. When he left the company in 1991, he was National Director of Transportation Services. Since then he has worked as a private financial and strategic business consultant to numerous companies within the transportation industry and serves on several corporate boards.
He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Minnesota Society of CPAs, the Governmental Accounting and Auditing Commission of Minnesota, and has many other professional affiliations. Robinson is a Michigan Tech Fund Life Trustee, having served on the Board of Trustees from 1985-1995.
He was inducted into the MTU Business and Engineering Administration Academy in 1994. Having a strong commitment to the College of Business, he was Chair of the Tidwell Center Endowment Campaign.
Richard E. Ten Haken - Retired Pilot
Richard, BSBA-Accounting with honor Michigan Tech 1970. MBA with high honor Oklahoma City University 1975. U. S. Air Force instructor pilot in T-38 and KC-135Q for over 9 years with over 2650 flight hours with attaining Senior Pilot status. Commercial airline B737 pilot for over 27 years with over 22,500 flight hours. Past treasurer and school board chairman of his church. Since retiring, he donates approximately 500 hours per year as a volunteer at the local police department.
Together with his wife of 49 years, Joyce Ten Haken, BSBA-Accounting, MTU 1970, have funded scholarships for SBE students for 20 years and funded 2 fellowships in support of SBE faculty starting in 2016. They are members of MTU's 1885 Society and McNair Society. They live in Yuba City, CA with their 2 Doberman Pinscher AKC show dogs. Three legs for a satisfying life-faith, family and education. His experiences and outstanding education at MTU went a long way in achieving a fulfilling life.
Kevin S. Wampler - CFO of Dollar Tree
Mr. Wampler has served as Chief Financial Officer of Dollar Tree (headquartered in Chesapeake, VA) since December 2008. Dollar Tree (NASDAQ: DLTR) is a Fortune 150 company with approximately $22 billion in annual revenue. Prior to joining Dollar Tree, he served as Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Assistant Secretary for The Finish Line, Inc. (Indianapolis, IN) from October 2003 to November 2008. Mr. Wampler held various senior positions during his 15-year career at The Finish Line, including Senior Vice President, Chief Accounting Officer and Assistant Secretary from 2001 to 2003. Mr. Wampler, a Certified Public Accountant, was employed by Ernst and Young from 1986 to 1993.
Guest Speakers 2016-2017
Luis Arguello Jr. - Associate Portfolio Manager, Northern Trust Company's Foundation
Luis Arguello Jr. is currently an Investment Associate within Northern Trust’s Foundation and Institutional Advisors. He currently works alongside FIA Portfolio Managers by rebalancing accounts, providing investment performance, and preparing clients presentations. Prior to joining FIA, he was an Institutional Fund Accounting Analyst within Northern Trust’s Unitized Valuations and Reporting Services for large corporate retirement plans where he determined client’s Net Asset Values (NAV) on a daily basis based on the clients portfolio holdings. Luis graduated from the University of Illinois at Chicago with a concentration in Finance and Economics. He has been awarded several awards for promoting diversity and inclusion through Northern Trust’s Latin Heritage Leadership Council. Luis is currently pursuing a CFA charter designation.
Sarah Cheney - Co-Director, Pewabic Street Garden
Sarah is a master gardener and co-director of the Pewabic Street Garden in Houghton. She spoke with the Advanced Project Management class about her experiences with the formation of this vibrant, volunteer-run community garden, focusing on the legal setup and structure and other practical considerations in the day-to-day management of a community garden. The student teams in the Advanced Project Management class are competing in a project management competition throughout the semester. The competition scenario this year is to choose a community in Michigan and design an implementation plan for a community garden. In addition to speaking with the class, Sarah continues to be a subject matter expert for the student teams as they create their project plans.
Jessica Chlopek - Institutional Equity Research Sales, William Blair and Company
Jessica graduated from Michigan Technological University in 2006 with a Bachelor of Science in Finance. After completing the College of Business Applied Portfolio Management Program as well as numerous financial services-related internships, she joined William Blair in Chicago as a registered broker. Jessica has worked for nearly 10 years in equity research sales, with a focus on institutional funds in the New York and Connecticut region.
Danielle (Lorenzetti) Cyrus - Director of Material Management, UP Health System Portage
Danielle oversees all the purchasing for the clinics and the hospital. She serves as a member of the UP Health System's Executive Team. Cyrus plays a major role in working with the UP wide Group Purchasing Organization (GPO) that works collaboratively with all the healthcare organizations in upper Michigan to ensure cost effective group buying to minimize costs. Cyrus is involved with any aspect of procurement or material management, both products and services, needed to support the successful operations of the health care organization. Cyrus is a 1993 graduate of the College of Business with a B.S. in Business Administration.
Annette Felton - Finance Manager, Charles Schwab
Annette graduated from Michigan Technological University in 2011 with a B.S. in Finance, a minor in the German language and a Certificate in International Business. Annette earned her MBA from DePaul University in 2013. Annette is an APMP alumna and is currently employed at Charles Schwab as a Finance Manager within the Capital Stress Testing Central Finance organization in San Francisco.
Erik Feng - Senior Risk Analyst, Prosper Marketplace
Erik graduated from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2010 with a B.S. in Economics and Mathematics. Erik earned his M.S. in Financial Mathematics from the University of Chicago in 2015. Erik is currently working within San Francisco's FinTech start-up arena and has experience trading in equity index derivatives.
Amy Lorraine Flick, PMP - Principal and Project Leadership Practice Lead, DPT
Amy spoke in the OSM3150 intro to Supply Chain Class.
Amy is a principal owner and the Project Leadership Practice Lead at DPT. She is accountable for developing and managing the Project leadership practice and oversight of PL consulting and advisory services at DPT. She is also accountable for DPT talent acquisition, consultant performance evaluation and management and shares accountability for sales and business development with the managing partner at DPT. She is a versatile leader with progressive experiences in sales, business and process analytics, project management leadership and developing teams that perform. DPT, which stands for “Driving Performance Together”, is a business performance consulting firm based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. You can learn more about Amy and DPT at DPT’s website, which is http://www.dptsolutions.com
Paul Fulton - CEO and President, Zentri Inc.
Mr. Paul Fulton has been Vice President of Products for The Internet of Things at Mocana Corporation since March 2014. Mr. Fulton is responsible for Mocana's embedded device security products, which have been sold to more than 200 companies worldwide, including 5 of the top 7 Android handset makers.
Prior to joining Mocana, he held numerous executive positions at Cisco, which he joined after the acquisition of his startup, Orative Corp. At Cisco, he was General Manager of the Prosumer, Endpoint Security and Smart Home business units and also served in several high-level mergers and acquisitions, market development, product management and strategy roles. Mr. Fulton founded Orative Corporation in 2002, and served as its President and Chief Executive Officer. He has more than 20 years of experience bringing communications software and solutions to both domestic and international markets. He founded Orative during his Executive in Residence tenure at Mayfield Fund.
Prior to joining Mayfield, he served as Vice President and General Manager of 3Com’s Wireless Division. Previously, he was Co-founder of Netcore Technology and served in key management roles at Compaq and Texas Instruments. He served as a Member of the Board of Directors of Orative Corporation.
He has testified before congressional and Administration committees on wireless matters and holds eight communications-related patents. Mr. Fulton received a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Michigan Technological University.
Chris Gariepy - Vice President of Trust and Financial Service, Superior National Bank and Trust
Chris is responsible for the management of $509 million in assets, as well as managing daily operations and personnel. Chris developed and monitors the investment management philosophy for Keweenaw Financial Corporation with assets in excess of $252 million. Chris is a 1997 College of Business graduate and serves on the APMP Advisory Board.
Vinny Gupta - Chairman, Ohio Board of Regents
Vinod "Vinny" K. Gupta joined JumpStart after 25 years as an executive and serial entrepreneur. Born in India, Vinny has lived and worked in Northeast Ohio for the past 32 years.
Vinny began his career as a product development engineer at Gould Inc. and progressed to Director of Operations at their St. Louis aftermarket automotive facility. Vinny later joined Condec Corporation as general manager in Orrville, Ohio for their captive manufacturing of industrial castings and forgings. After a few years, he acquired the operational assets by raising money with investors, vendors and Parent Corporation financing. As founder and President/CEO of the Orrville facility (Technocast Inc) he grew the business from $1 million to over $16 million in 12 years. Concurrently, he acquired a startup specialty metal alloy casting company, Ancast Inc, and grew revenue to $5 million in approximately ten years.
In 1990 Vinny and his group bought the assets of Ohio Cast Products, a castings company in Canton, Ohio. As President/CEO he grew the business from $9 million to $26 million by 2004. The common threads for growth in these organizations were: business reengineering, deploying valuable human assets effectively and intelligently, new product introduction, implementation of innovative new technology (from U.S. and abroad), marketing to customer needs ahead of competitors, increase in value added components, and maintaining strict quality standards. His most recent acquisition was in home healthcare.
Vinny was also the founding President of Ohio Cast Metals Association and has received the minority entrepreneur of the year award from City of Cleveland and is President of the Asian India Alliance. On May 20, 2011, Governor John R. Kasich appointed Vinny to serve as a member of the Ohio Board of Regents for a term beginning May 17, 2011 and ending September 20, 2016.
Vinny holds a Bachelor's degree in Chemistry from Bombay University, a Bachelor's degree in metallurgical engineering from Michigan Technological University and a Master's degree in metallurgical engineering from Case Western Reserve University.
Quincy Higgins-Arney - Master Gardener, Michigan Technological University
Quincy is the master gardener for Michigan Tech and a certified landscape architect. She spoke with the Advanced Project Management class about the project management aspects of designing a community garden, as well as practical considerations for such an endeavor. The student teams in the Advanced Project Management class are competing in a project management competition throughout the semester. The competition scenario this year is to choose a community in Michigan and design an implementation plan for a community garden. In addition to speaking with the class, Quincy continues to be a subject matter expert as the student teams create their project plans.
Christine A. Holm - Vice President, Regional Director, Northern Trust Company's Foundation
Christine Holm is a Vice President in The Northern Trust Company’s Foundation and Institutional Advisors practice, where she works with a variety of organizations to implement customized investment solutions. Christine consults directly with boards and professional staff to implement consulting, asset management, custody, and planned giving services that align with their mission and values. Christine has specific expertise in the infrastructure and management of foundations, endowments, and retirement plans. She has over 20 years of investment management experience, having worked in both the for profit and not-for-profit sectors during that time. Prior to her current position at Northern Trust, she spent the last fifteen years as a Vice President and the Director of Charitable Management Services at Fifth Third Bank. Christine majored in flute performance at Western Illinois University and has served on the boards of several arts and culture organizations, including The American Alliance of Museums, Arts Alliance Illinois and the Old Town School of Folk Music.
Mark Jakupcik - Research Analyst, Sungarden Investment Research
Mr. Jakupcik joined Sungarden Investment Research, as a research analyst. At Sungarden®, Mark conducts equity research to identify potential investment opportunities for the portfolios, and monitors events and opinions that affect the current holdings. Prior to joining Sungarden Investment Research, Mark was a student fund manager and fund accountant for the Michigan Tech Applied Portfolio Management Program, where he earned a degree in Finance. Currently Mark is a level one CFA candidate.
Igor Kliakhandler - Energy Trader, Houston Texas area
Kliakhandler received his PhD in Applied Mathematics in 1997 from Tel-Aviv University. He held positions at Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and Northwestern University before joining the Department of Mathematical Sciences at Michigan Tech University as an assistant professor in 2001. He was promoted to associate professor in 2005 and left the University in 2007 to work in the energy sector in Houston, where he is now involved in trading energy futures.
Amanda Massaway - Director Inventory Controls, Walmart US
Amanda is the director - Inventory Controls for Walmart US and have SOX ownership for all inventory on the Walmart US balance sheet. She has worked at Walmart for 14 years in various accounting-type roles: Internal Audit, internal controls development, balance sheet analysis, and inventory controls.
Amanda taught the auditing class the fundamentals of auditing the inventory cycle.
Jason O'Hallen - Principal, JMG Financial in Chicago
Jason is a Principal at JMG Financial Group. Jason has extensive knowledge in income tax planning, advanced estate planning, retirement planning, and investment portfolio design. He has played an integral role in establishing the firm’s individual and fiduciary income tax procedures. He has served on the firm’s mutual fund research and analysis team for over 10 years. Prior to joining JMG in 1999, he was a financial consultant with Merrill Lynch. Jason is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional, an Accredited Asset Management Specialist(SM), and a Chartered Mutual Fund Counselor(SM). He is a member of the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors and the American Association for Individual Investors. He holds a BS in Economics from Michigan Technological University.
Jason covered high wealth personal financial planning and concrete steps to get a job in the industry with the APMP students.
Karyn Olsson - CEO of Upper Peninsula Marketing Department Inc
Karyn Olsson has been leading marketing teams and creating strategies for 25 years. As CEO of Upper Peninsula Marketing Department Inc (UPMDI), Karyn collaborates with her team to create brands and grow companies. Under Karyn’s vision UPMDI has grown and now services clients throughout Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and the Midwest, with clients ranging from manufacturers and government to technology companies and non-profits. She has also forged strong connections with several departments at Michigan Technological University.
Karyn is committed to ensuring that the Keweenaw remains vibrant, serving on several local boards, and she has been involved with numerous projects for Keweenaw Community Foundation, Keweenaw Chamber of Commerce, Houghton Rotary Club, WorkLiveUP, City of Houghton, UP Kids, Keweenaw Economic Development Alliance, and many other community groups.
While Great Lakes, amazing trails and a less-hectic lifestyle attracted Karyn to the U.P. 15 years ago, she moved here with national brand experience. Prior to her move, Karyn worked for the world-famous deli brand, Zingerman’s in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where she mastered the art of customer experience.
Karyn’s agency career took her to New York City and back to her home town of Detroit, where she worked with familiar brands like Disney, Marvel, K-Mart, Warner Brothers and Timex.
Karyn lives on the Portage Canal in Houghton, Michigan, with her husband David, daughter Amelia and son Cameron. While both Karyn and David could be managing marketing and brands anywhere in the world, they choose to live in Houghton, knowing that family and community are most important.
Tyler Pullano - Site Buyer/Coordinator, CertainTeed Ceilings
Tyler purchases all the maintenance items as well as raw materials (assorted minerals, chemicals, and paper product). He works with the corporate team to develop cost savings/avoidance strategies. Pullano also coordinates logistics for the raw materials ensuring they arrive according to the production schedule. He is in charge of sourcing and qualifying suppliers for any capital expenditure project. Also responsible for all inventory management throughout the facility (ensuring accurate inventory, adjusting inventory stocking levels, ensuring cycle counts done regularly).
Drew Randell- Facilities Purchasing Manager, Michigan Tech University
Drew spoke in the OSM3600 Procurement and Supply Management class this fall.
Drew Randell graduated from Michigan Technological University in 2013 with a B.S. in Operations and Systems Management. He went on to work for Uline Inc. as a Corporate Buyer where he was responsible for maintaining the inventory levels of thousands of products through the procurement of goods based on warehouse space, sales trends, and forecasts. Drew left Uline in July of 2015 to become the Facilities Purchasing Manager at Michigan Tech. He is responsible for procuring supplies and equipment for campus maintenance as well as the negotiation of maintenance contracts.
Becca Reinhard- Assurance Senior, Ernst and Young
Becca Reinhard is an Assurance Senior at Ernst and Young in Fayetteville Arkansas.
She has been with Ernst and Young for four years. She graduated in 2011 from University
of Central Arkansas.
The students had to create an audit program for the inventory cycle in the areas of
internal controls, analytical procedures and test of details of balances. Becca then
critique each of programs.
Kanwal Rekhi - Venture Capitalist, Angel Investor, Entrepreneur
Kanwal was the first Indo-American Founder and CEO to take a venture-backed company public on the NASDAQ, co-founded and built TiE into the largest global network of Indian entrepreneurs, and co-founded Inventus where he applies his full energy and time building Inventus into a leading early stage venture franchise.
Kanwal came to the United States from India for graduate studies, advanced through
the engineering ranks in a number of technology companies, and then co-founded Excelan
in Silicon Valley to commercialize ethernet and TCP/IP – standards which became the
basis of the Internet. He took Excelan public in 1987, becoming the first Indo-American
Founder and CEO to list a venture-backed company on the NASDAQ.
Excelan later merged with Novell, where Kanwal served as EVP, CTO and a Board Director
for five years, established Novell’s operations in India, grew the company into the
second largest software vendor in the world and returned 100X to his venture investors.
Later, Kanwal was CEO of Ensim and also CEO of Cybermedia, both companies in which
he was initially a lead venture investor and board member. Kanwal negotiated Cybermedia’s
successful acquisition by Network Associates.
Over the 14 years prior to co-founding Inventus, Kanwal was a full-time venture-angel,
investing his own capital in more than 50 startups, leading the initial financings
for 23 of them and playing an active role on their Boards. These prior venture investments
resulted in 21 exits including 6 IPOs to date. Also active in Indian public policy
related to venture, Kanwal advised India government policy makers in reforming venture
regulations.
This encouraged fund formation in India, and Kanwal was the founding limited partner
behind Infinity Capital-India a successful early-stage India venture fund. He also
successfully advised the Indian Prime Minister and his government on their aggressive
deregulation of telecom, leading to the explosive growth of mobile telephony in India,
and laying the foundation for the country’s impressive IT expansion. At Inventus,
Kanwal’s been a Board Director at Sierra Atlantic (ACQ: Hitachi), Assured Risk, Espresso
Logic, GenWi, and observer at Poshmark.
Kanwal is a well-known figure in the global Indian community and a widely recognized
authority on entrepreneurship. He co-founded The IndUS Entrepreneurs (TiE) to promote
Indian entrepreneurship and was TiE President through the late 90′s presiding over
its growth into a global organization with over 10,000 members who have been behind
Silicon Valley and India start-ups. Kanwal is currently a trustee on the global board
of TiE. With Inventus, Kanwal works closely with entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley and
India, as he has since 1995, to apply his full time and energy helping them accomplish
great result.
Education
Kanwal earned a BSEE from IIT-Bombay and a MSEE and Honorary Doctorates in both Business and Engineering from Michigan Tech. Kanwal is a board member on the IIT Bombay Heritage Fund (IITBHF), and also founded the Kanwal Rekhi Schools of Information Technology at both IIT-Bombay and Michigan Tech.
John Rockwell - CEO and President, Accelergy Corp
John has more than 25 years of experience managing and developing companies commercializing products in numerous CleanTech markets as well as making venture capital investments in these markets. Prior to Accelergy, he has served as the leader of four companies all of which became leaders in their market and realized successful exits for their investors. John has invested, developed and managed companies broadly across the CleanTech sectors including cleaner chemicals and fuels, materials substitution, manufacturing efficiency, supply chain, energy storage, energy efficiency, smart grid, and solar. During his career, he has invested in 22 companies in the CleanTech space, with 14 of those investments having realized an exit.
Previously he was a Founder and Managing Director of Element Partners, an $800 million
venture capital and private equity firm focused on CleanTech investments. Prior to
Element, John was a Partner at Advent International Corporation, now a $30 billion
global private equity firm, during which time he managed the firm’s California office
for 9 years
Before Advent, John spent 7 years at Materia Ventures Associates, investing in and
managing early-stage companies that were commercializing applications of advanced
materials technologies. He also served as CEO of Luxar Corporation, a manufacturer
of CO2 lasers for the medical market and as President of SSC, Inc., a manufacturer
of high performance ceramic oxide materials used in superconductors, fuel cells, catalysts
and other applications. Both Luxar and SSC had successful exits, the former through
a merger with ESC Medical and the latter through a sale to Praxair.
Early in his career, John held various positions at 3M Corporation in its Acquisitions
and Business Development Department including working in the company’s corporate venture
capital program.
Prior to his business career John had a successful hockey career including playing
professionally, being a member of the U.S. Junior National Team and of a U.S. Select
Team that won the Spengler Cup.
John received a BS in Business Administration from Michigan Technological University
and an MBA from the Carlson School of Management, University of Minnesota. John has
served on the boards of more than 25 companies in his career including, among others,
the boards of Accelergy Corp., EdeniQ, Inc., FiveCubits, Inc., GarrettCom, Inc., HiQ
Solar, Inc., Luxar Corp., OK International, Inc., RedPrairie Corp. and SSC, Inc. John
is a member of the Michigan Technological University College of Business Dean’s Advisory
Board, past Chairman of the CleanTech Venture Network Advisory Board and former Chairman
of the Michigan Technological University Hockey Enrichment Campaign. He is a member
of the Michigan Tech Sports Hall of Fame.
Ashley Sudderth - Director of Risk and Compliance Strategy,SANS Securing The Human
Ashley Sudderth is the Director of Risk and Compliance Strategy for SANS Securing The Human. Ashley has over 10 years of IT audit, risk and compliance experience throughout various industries and service sectors. In her previous role as Chief Information Compliance Officer, Ashley was responsible for the strategic management of the organizations information security and compliance program. Ashley holds a Master of Science in Information Assurance and Security and is also a Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA).
Jeffrey Sudderth - Sourcing Manager, Pettibone Heavy Equipment Group
Jeff presented to the Introduction to Supply Chain class about the supply chain management strategy and technology used at the Pettibone Heavy Equipment Group manufacturing facilities in Baraga, MI and Superior, WI. Jeff manages the strategic sourcing efforts for his commodity groups - Hydraulics, Drive Train and Hardware/Fasteners. His primary responsibilities are supplier development, contract management, and new product development support. Jeff is also the department head for the Baraga plant's purchasing department and oversees the daily operation functions for that group which includes procurement, inventory exposure, and demand planning.
Guest Speakers 2015-2016
Tim Bailey - Senior Vice President, Fortress Investment Group
Tim graduated from Michigan Technological University in 2004 with a B.S.B.A with concentrations in Finance and Financial Economics and Marketing and Operations Management and a Certificate in International Business. After completing the College of Business Applied Portfolio Management Program, Tim has spent 10+ years in the hedge fund industry and is currently employed at Fortress Investment Group in their San Francisco office. In his free time, Mr. Bailey enjoys traveling and hiking.
Antoinette Borgens - Campus Recruiter, Bemis Company, Inc.
Antoinette graduated from University of Wisconsin Oshkosh with a bachelor's degree in Human Resources Management, minoring in Supply Chain. She has been with Bemis Company going on 2 years, started out as an HR intern and then becoming the Campus Recruiter.
Patrick Carroll - Financial Analyst, S.N. Phelps & Co.
Recently, Patrick was appointed to the equity committee for Saratoga Resources, an oil and gas company in New Orleans, LA. He spoke with current APMP and finance students about the bankruptcy process, the accompanying challenges for equity holders, and evaluating oil and gas companies.
Patrick Graduated Michigan Tech in 2012 with a double major in Finance and Business Management. During his time at Tech he was a member of the 2011 APMP team and a 4 year GLIAC All Academic football player.
Upon graduation he accepted a position at S. N. Phelps & Co., an investment company in Stamford, CT. There he helps manage a portfolio of wholly-owned subsidiary companies in the agriculture, energy, real estate, and technology industries. In addition, the firm also has a portfolio of publicly traded securities.
Currently, Pat resides in Connecticut and is pursuing an MBA at NYU with concentration in finance, banking, and strategy. He enjoys playing sports, investing, and travelling back to the Upper Peninsula.
Adriana Coopman - Accounting Manager for Becker Professional Education
Becker Professional Education is a global leader in quality professional education, empowering people to advance their careers. Becker Professional Education is accredited by the Accrediting Council for Continuing Education & Training (ACCET), a U.S. Department of Education nationally recognized agency that promotes quality-oriented education and training through the establishment of standards and an accreditation process focused on integrity. Adriana presented an overview of the CPA exam and upcoming changes to the exam.
Lawrence Vining Durland Jr.
Larry is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries, retired, and a Member of the American Academy of Actuaries. He served in senior management positions in the financial services industry including service as Senior Vice President of Equitable of Iowa Companies. He received a B.Sc. In Mathematics from Montana State University.
Amy Fox - Manager of Financial Training & Development, Kohler Co.
Amy gave an overview of Kohler Co., their Four Business Groups, Accounting and Finance internship and about the job opportunities within Kohler.
Amy wants to share her knowledge about working in industry with a business background with YOU. Prior to beginning her career at Kohler Co., Amy completed her undergraduate degree in Finance at UW-Whitewater. Upon completion of her Bachelor’s degree, Amy began working with Kohler Co. in the Sheboygan, WI area in March 1995 (21 years!). After working at Kohler for six years, Amy earned her Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) from UW-Milwaukee. She has continued working with Kohler ever since.
Diana Garty - Global Growth Finance Manager, GE Healthcare
Diana Garty is the Finance Manager for the Services Organization, supporting Technology and Product P&L's in addition to GoldSeal and Accessories at GE Healthcare.
Katie Genadek - Dissemination/Outreach Core Director, Minnesota Population Center
Dr. Katie Genadek spoke in both sections of the EC3100 International Economics class.
Katie started using MPC data in 2003 and joined the MPC as a graduate research assistant in 2007. She currently directs the IPUMS and other MPC data project dissemination efforts, support users with data quires, and give trainings locally and around the country. Katie also works as a Research Associate for the Flexible Work and Well-Being Center.
Her research is focused on the relationship between work and family for individuals, couples and parents. Katie's dissertation used IPUMS-CPS and ATUS-X data to analyze couples' work schedules and the impact of divorce on time allocated to work and family. She continues to use the MPC data products on research related to work, family and the economy, and also has research projects focused on the Work, Family and Health Network’s workplace intervention.
Lisa Genslak - Manager of the IT Strategy at Ford Motor Company
Lisa spoke in MIS2200 Web Programming class and MIS3200 Systems Analysis & Design.
Lisa is the Manager of the IT Strategy, Culture and Learning Services at Ford Motor Company which includes organizational change management and communications activities. In this critical role, Lisa is responsible for the overall development and implementation of the strategy to move IT forward into the digital era.
Additional, Lisa leads all IT learning and development activities, research services and driving the transformation of IT through effective communications.
Lisa has been with Ford Motor Company for over 26 years. During this time, Lisa held many roles within IT. She managed IT strategic planning for business functions, large scale application development and infrastructure consolidation programs, as well as, IT engineering and operations.
Lisa has a B.S. in Computer Science Engineering from Michigan Technological University and MBA from Wayne State University.
Keith Johnson - co-founder and CEO of ThermoAnalytics
ThermoAnalytics was founded by Keith Johnson along with Al Curran back in 1996 as a spin-off from Michigan Technological University. We had a singular mission then that remains at the core of the company’s driving principles today: to develop and deploy the most robust, intelligent and accurate thermal modeling technologies and methodologies in the world. Our vision was to become the leading total thermal solutions provider of software and services.
Barbara Johnson-Rossi - Consultant at Essentia Health
Barbara has worked in the health care industry for nearly 30 years. The first was
Marshfield Clinic, based in Marshfield, Wisconsin. Her career with Marshfield started
as an Internal Auditor which led to CFO for Security Health Plan. She served for
9 years on the Board of Trustees of the Marshfield Clinic Retirement Plans.
In 2009, she took a job as CFO for SMDC Health System out of Duluth, Minnesota overseeing approximately 500+ staff in Accounting, Business Intelligence and Revenue Cycle. SMDC was part of Essentia Health which included hospitals and clinics across Northern Minnesota and North Dakota.
In 2010, she was appointed to be the Vice President of Financial Operations for Essentia Health. Recently retiring from Essentia Health, but continues to work as a consultant helping with payer contracting and data around cost of care.
Igor Kliakhandler - Energy Trader, Houston Texas area
Kliakhandler received his PhD in Applied Mathematics in 1997 from Tel-Aviv University. He held positions at Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and Northwestern University before joining the Department of Mathematical Sciences at Michigan Tech University as an assistant professor in 2001. He was promoted to associate professor in 2005 and left the University in 2007 to work in the energy sector in Houston, where he is now involved in trading energy futures.
Mike Kolasa- VP & Trust Officer, Stephenson National Bank and Trust
In April 2012, Mike opened the Marquette Trust & Investment Services Office. He has 20 years of financial and legal services experience. In addition, Mike has been licensed to practice law in Michigan since 1993. As a Marquette area resident for over 20 years, his primary focus is on financial, tax, and estate planning and account investment management for clients in Upper Michigan and beyond.
His professional experience also includes serving as an Adjunct Professor at Northern Michigan University and at the Cannon Financial Institute.
Mike received a Bachelor in Science cum laude from Northern Michigan University, Juris Doctorate cum laude from Thomas M. Cooley Law School and Master of Laws in Taxation LL.M. from Wayne State University Law School.
Ryan Layton, CFA
As alumni of the Applied Portfolio Management Program, Ryan has over ten years of portfolio management and research experience involving asset allocation, strategy implementation, economic analysis, and investment research in equities, fixed income, real assets, and alternative assets.
His resume includes the following positions and activities:
EmeraldSpark Investments, LLC – Chicago; Founded EmeraldSpark in 2014 as a fiduciary
investment adviser serving community bank trust departments, 401(k) plan sponsors,
and other fiduciaries as well as individual wealth management clients.
MainStreet Advisors – Chicago; Portfolio Manager who advised community bank trust
departments on the management of over $2 billion in assets.
Wells Fargo WMG – Minneapolis, MN -Team Lead for Asset Allocation and Analysis on
the Wells Managed Portfolio (WMP) Team.
Amanda Massaway - Sr. Manager, Inventory Controls at Walmart US
Amanda has worked for corporate Walmart for 13 years in various accounting-type roles: Internal Audit, internal controls development, balance sheet analysis, and inventory controls.
Currently she is the Sr. Manager - Inventory Controls for the Walmart US and has SOX ownership for all merchandise inventory in our retail stores and distribution centers.
Sean Mcleod, Director with Public Investments, Northwestern Mutual Investment Company
Sean McLeod is a director with Public Investments, Northwestern Mutual Investment
Company, LLC on the Concentrated Equity Portfolio. Prior to joining in 2011, Sean
was a small cap growth portfolio manager at M&I Investment Corp. and FAF Advisors.
During his tenure as portfolio manager of a publically traded mutual fund, Sean was
in the top quartile of small cap growth managers.
Sean received a BBA and an MS degree from the University of Wisconsin and holds the
Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation.
Jacob Northey - Product Manager Testing and Certification at Itiviti
Jake Northey is a software entrepreneur in the electronic trading industry. Jake graduated from Michigan Tech in 2004 with a B.S. in Computer Science and a B.S. in Bioinformatics. In 2006, he co-founded Lasalletech with his father, Jim Northey. Through Lasalletech he developed a suite of products for testing, certifying, monitoring and managing specifications for electronic trading connections. In 2015, Lasalletech was acquired by CameronTec Group. After the acquisition, Jake continues to work for CameronTec/Itiviti as a product manager for certification and testing products.
Karyn Olsson - CEO of Upper Peninsula Marketing Department Inc
Karyn Olsson has been leading marketing teams and creating strategies for 25 years. As CEO of Upper Peninsula Marketing Department Inc (UPMDI), Karyn collaborates with her team to create brands and grow companies. Under Karyn’s vision UPMDI has grown and now services clients throughout Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and the Midwest, with clients ranging from manufacturers and government to technology companies and non-profits. She has also forged strong connections with several departments at Michigan Technological University.
Karyn is committed to ensuring that the Keweenaw remains vibrant, serving on several local boards, and she has been involved with numerous projects for Keweenaw Community Foundation, Keweenaw Chamber of Commerce, Houghton Rotary Club, WorkLiveUP, City of Houghton, UP Kids, Keweenaw Economic Development Alliance, and many other community groups.
While Great Lakes, amazing trails and a less-hectic lifestyle attracted Karyn to the U.P. 15 years ago, she moved here with national brand experience. Prior to her move, Karyn worked for the world-famous deli brand, Zingerman’s in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where she mastered the art of customer experience.
Karyn’s agency career took her to New York City and back to her home town of Detroit, where she worked with familiar brands like Disney, Marvel, K-Mart, Warner Brothers and Timex.
Karyn lives on the Portage Canal in Houghton, Michigan, with her husband David, daughter Amelia and son Cameron. While both Karyn and David could be managing marketing and brands anywhere in the world, they choose to live in Houghton, knowing that family and community are most important.
Tyler Pullano - Site Buyer/Coordinator, CertainTeed Ceilings
Tyler presented in OSM3600 Procurement and Supply Management class, about purchasing, buying, managing inventory and control at CertainTeed, a Saint Gobain company, in L'Anse Michigan.
Tyler purchases all the maintenance items as well as raw materials (assorted minerals, chemicals, and paper product). He works with the corporate team to develop cost savings/avoidance strategies. Pullano also coordinates logistics for the raw materials ensuring they arrive according to the production schedule. He is in charge of sourcing and qualifying suppliers for any capital expenditure project. Also responsible for all inventory management throughout the facility (ensuring accurate inventory, adjusting inventory stocking levels, ensuring cycle counts done regularly).
Mayur Ranpara - Internal Auditor II, Bemis Company, Inc.
Mayur started his career with Bemis Company in 2012 in the IT department as an IT Financial Analyst intern. He worked in IT for 3 years prior to accepting a role in the Internal Audit department. Mayur is a Certified Management Accountant (CMA) and currently is pursuing the CPA certification.
Jason Robinson - Owner of Brickside Brewery
Jason Robinson had a dream, he wanted to brew beer for a living.
Jason put his dream out on Kickstarter hoping the beer loving community would lay down some of their hard earned cash to help him launch the first craft brewery in Keweenaw County in more than 100 years. And the movement started, and had quickly snowballed, resulting in over $20,000 in funding for his new venture, Brickside Brewery. The brewery opened in 2012, in Copper Harbor.
Special Agent Martin Rowe - US Dept of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General
Special Agent Martin Rowe spoke in both ACC4700 and ACC5100 class this Spring.
Martin has worked as a special agent for the HHS department for 16 years. The goal of the Office of Investigations (OI) is to conduct criminal, civil and administrative investigations of fraud and misconduct related to HHS programs, operations and beneficiaries. State-of-the-art tools and technology assist OIG investigators around the country and help OI meet its goal of becoming the world's premier health care law enforcement agency.
Carrie Schaller - I/T Director for Manufacturing and Engineering, Dow Chemical
Carrie Schaller spoke with the students in ACC4800 Accounting Systems. She focused on the internal controls and security essential for safe communication of data in large, global companies like Dow Chemical. She included a discussion of the levels of information that run the various processes, including the machines in the chemical plants.
She also spoke to the MIS3500 User-Centered Design class. That talk was primarily focused on the SAP implementation that recently concluded at Dow. Her team was instrumental in the successful conversion from their approximately 20-year-old enterprise system to the current, updated SAP ECC system. She also answered numerous questions about job and internship opportunities.
Schaller has been with Dow for 25 years and is currently leading a team that is implementing the next generation of SAP-based tools and work processes for manufacturing. She is a certified Six Sigma Black Belt, and earned her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Michigan Tech. Schaller serves on the North American steering team for the Women's Innovation Network (WIN) at Dow. She resides in Midland, MI with her husband and three children.
Glen Simula - Founder and President of GS Engineering
Glen founded GS Engineering in 2001 based upon his previous 19 years’ experience in the development of military vehicles. Glen leads GS Engineering on all tracked vehicle programs, leads new business initiatives, and serves as the Chairperson of the Green Forces Board. Glen has been involved with every tracked vehicle program for the US Department of Defense, except for one, since 1983. In addition to his daily responsibilities at GS Engineering,
Glen also teaches classes for the Society of Automotive Engineers, based upon his previous military vehicle development experience. Through Glen’s direction, GS Engineering has maintained significant growth across a variety of economic times.
Ashley Sudderth - Chief Information Compliance Officer (CICO) for Michigan Tech
As CICO, Ashley oversees and manages University IT compliance with legal and regulatory requirements and related controls that govern Michigan Tech's business processes. Ashley is also responsible for the strategic management of the University's information security and compliance training program.
Sudderth is a certified information systems auditor (CISA) with over 10 years of IT audit experience throughout various industries and service sectors. She also provides information security risk consulting services to System Administration, Networking, and Security Institute (SANS). She received her BS in Business Administration with a concentration in MIS from Michigan Tech and will complete her MS in Information Assurance and Security from Capella University in December 2015. Ashley also servers on a number of advisory boards.
Cindy Watson - Manager of the IT Operations, Ford Motor Company
Cindy Watson is the Manager of the IT Operations – Strategy and Planning at Ford Motor Company which includes leading the Director of ITO Staff Meetings, metrics reporting, and management meeting.
Additionally, Cindy leads all the Ford Motor Company campus recruiting teams at Michigan Tech and serves on the Corporate Advisory Board for the Career Services Center.
Cindy has been with Ford Motor Company for over 13 years. During this time, Cindy has held many roles within IT. She managed IT application support for business functions, large scale application development and infrastructure security programs.
Cindy has a B.S. in Mathematics from Michigan Technological University and M.S. in Finance from Walsh College.
Adam Weber- Co-Founder 1st Element
Adam Weber founded 1st/Element in January of 2014. He wanted to create handcrafted sunglasses that not only were affordable, but also helped the environment at the same time.
Adam is currently a student at Michigan Tech University. Outside of college, Adam enjoys hiking, skiing, and photography.
Guest Speakers 2014-2015
Karen Blunden - CEO of IFM Americas at Infomedia Ltd.
Ms. Karen Blunden joined Infomedia in 2010 as the CEO of IFM Americas Inc.
With over thirty years of executive leadership experience in the IT and Automotive industries, Karen has been involved in business turn-around and growth across many verticals.
Karen has held executive positions in engineering, marketing, automotive retail and aftersales. Prior to joining Infomedia, Karen was the Chief Operations Officer for a medical diagnostic product manufacturer and also consulted with Automotive Suppliers in the area of M&A transactions.
Karen spent much of her career at EDS, a global Information Technology Services company. While at EDS, Karen was the Division President of the Automotive Retail Group supplying Dealer Management Solutions (DMS) solutions to dealerships. During her tenure at ARG, the exclusive Saturn DMS agreement was secured. Her career with EDS also involved divisional leadership for the OnStar, Service Technology Engineering and Cadillac Engineering units.
Karen holds degrees in Mathematics and Computer Science along with being certified in Quality Management. She and her husband Don live in Michigan and have four children.
Bill Boehm - Vice President, Wealth Management Consultant
Bill has been with RBC for ten years and has over 15 years of experience in the financial
services industry. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of
Minnesota. He has earned the Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA®) designation
and is a member of the Investment Management Consultants Association. Bill also holds
the Series 7, 63, and 65 securities licenses.
As part of his responsibilities, Bill helps RBC Wealth Management Financial Advisors
address the investment and retirement planning needs of high net worth individuals.
Bill provides expertise to financial advisors who work with endowments, non-profits
and foundations. He also assists financial advisors in using internal and external
wealth management tools, including sophisticated software programs, to help provide
appropriate solutions for clients’ needs. He frequently makes presentations at seminars
and client meetings, giving overviews of RBC Wealth Management’s fee-based wealth
management platform and other capabilities.
Maggie Chen - Assistant Portfolio
Maggie Chen is currently an Assistant Portfolio Manager with SAFE Investment Company in Hong Kong focusing on investing U.S. equities. Previously, she worked at China Everbright Capital Management investing in Chinese equities.
In addition, Maggie has experience with Citigroup, Morgan Stanley and AIG in New York and China Investment Corporation in Beijing.
Maggie received a Bachelor of Science summa cum laude in Business Administration from Michigan Technological University and an MBA from Yale University.
Danielle (Lorenzetti) Cyrus - Director of Material Management, Portage Health LLC
Danielle oversees all the purchasing for the clinics and the hospital. She serves
as a member of the Portage Health's Executive Team. Cyrus plays a major role in working
with the UP wide Group Purchasing Organization (GPO) that works collaboratively with
all the healthcare organizations in upper Michigan to ensure cost effective group
buying to minimize costs. Cyrus is involved with any aspect of procurement or material
management, both products and services, needed to support the successful operations
of the health care organization. Cyrus is a 1993 graduate of the College of Business
with a B.S. in Business Administration.
David Kneisler - VP of Global Quality, Dana Corporation
David is a 1983 graduate of the College of Business. He received his Masters from the University of Michigan – Flint. He began his career with General Motors, Central Foundry Division, in IT and then transferred to Saginaw Steering. While there he moved into Finance. He left General Motors and went to TRW Vehicle Safety Systems for 8 year and then moved to Dana Corporation where he has been for the past twenty years. In 2006 he became the VP of Global Quality and has since taken on the responsibilities of Safety and Reliability. Kneisler is also Chairman of the Board of the Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG), discussed automotive industry trends, his role in leading AIAG, and what Dana Corporation seeks in hiring graduates. Dana offers high-quality automotive product solutions in three core areas of the vehicle – drivetrain, sealing, and thermal-management systems. This lineup of technologies from one source is designed to offer flexibility to vehicle manufacturers around the world. He oversees the technical aspects of quality engineering for design and manufacturing. In 1982 AIAG was founded by visionaries from the three largest North American automotive manufacturers – Chrysler, Ford, and General Motors. Membership has grown to include Japanese companies such as Toyota, Honda and Nissan, and many of their part suppliers and services providers. It is one of the largest non-governmental agencies establishing industry standards.
Mike Kolasa - VP & Trust Officer, Stephenson National Bank and Trust
In April 2012, Mike opened the Marquette Trust & Investment Services Office. He has 20 years of financial and legal services experience. In addition, Mike has been licensed to practice law in Michigan since 1993. As a Marquette area resident for over 20 years, his primary focus is on financial, tax, and estate planning and account investment management for clients in Upper Michigan and beyond.
His professional experience also includes serving as an Adjunct Professor at Northern Michigan University and at the Cannon Financial Institute.
Mike received a Bachelor in Science cum laude from Northern Michigan University, Juris Doctorate cum laude from Thomas M. Cooley Law School and Master of Laws in Taxation LL.M. from Wayne State University Law School.
James Leckinger - Senior Vice President
Jim is a Senior Vice President and Chief Investment Officer of Northern Trust’s Foundation and Institutional Advisors national investment team. Jim is responsible for guiding overall investment strategy and providing leadership for the design and implementation of a working investment process for the Foundation and Institutional Advisors practice. Jim serves on Northern Trust’s Investment Policy Committee (IPC) and Investment Guidance Committee (IGC) two firm wide investment committees responsible for overall investment policy and strategy at Northern Trust Company. He also serves as portfolio manager for a select group of relationships. Jim has over 20 years of experience in various investment roles both with Northern Trust and other financial organizations.
James Lenz - Director at John Deere
Lenz opened and was the first Director of the John Deere's Technology Innovation Center located on the campus of the University of Illinois. He later started a similar research center for Deere located in Kaiserslautern, Germany. Through Lenz's career he has worked for Boeing, Honeywell, and the University of Minnesota, and has been involved with more than 100 new product developments, working with hundreds of innovators and engineers. In the past he has served as a member of Michigan Tech's College of Business National Advisory board and the Dean's Advisory Council.
Stephen Mattson - Regional Brokerage Manager, Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC
The LSGI Trading Room hosted guest speaker Stephen Mattson on Tuesday, March 31, 2015. Mr. Mattson is a Regional Brokerage Manager and Senior Vice President at Wells Fargo Advisors. As a Regional Brokerage Manager, Mr. Mattson is responsible for Wells Fargo Advisors financial advisors across his midwest U.S. region. In particular, Mr. Mattson presented a "how to" on becoming a financial advisor to the students in the Applied Portfolio Management Program. Steve also discuss his role and responsibilities in the firm. The SBE and the APMP thank Steve for his long-time connection to Michigan Tech.
Tyler Pullano - Site Buyer/Coordinator, CertainTeed Ceilings
Tyler purchases all the maintenance items as well as raw materials (assorted minerals, chemicals, and paper product). Pullano works with the corporate team to develop cost savings/avoidance strategies. Pullano also coordinate logistics for the raw materials ensuring they arrive according to the production schedule, sourcing and qualifying suppliers for any capital expenditure project. He is also responsible for all inventory management throughout the facility (ensuring accurate inventory, adjusting inventory stocking levels, ensuring cycle counts done regularly).
Hal Tearse - Senior VP - Branch Director, Private Client Group, RBC Wealth Management
Hal has been working in the financial services industry as a financial advisor since 1976, and has held several positions in management. He is a member of the FINRA Board of Arbitrators. Hal is also registered as an Investment Advisor Representative. He earned his Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Mass Communications from the University of Minnesota. Since entering the financial services industry, Hal has continued his education through a number of advanced training programs and seminars, including the Accredited Wealth Management (AWM) program and the Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF) program.
Guest Speakers 2013-2014
Joseph R. Dancy - President of LSGI Advisors, Inc.
Upon completion of his BS in Metallurgical & Material Engineering from Michigan Tech, Joseph Dancy completed his MBA from the University of Michigan in 1978, and his Juris Doctorate from the School of Law at Oklahoma City University in 1983. Since 1993 Dancy has been an adjunct professor teaching Oil & Gas Environmental Law at the SMU School of Law and more recently at the SMU Cox School of Business. He has published two textbooks and numerous research articles. In addition to his academic commitments he also manages the LSGI Venture Fund, a private investment partnership that invests in small publicly traded companies. Dancy and the LSGI Advisors Inc. have been long-time supporters of Michigan Tech’s Applied Portfolio Management Program, with his serving on the Program’s Advisory Board since 2000. Dancy has been appointed by the Governor as a Texas delegate to the Interstate Oil & Gas Commission, and also serves on the Finance Committee of the Board of Directors of Arts Way Manufacturing, a public agricultural sector manufacturing firm out of Iowa.
Grant Fenner
Dr. Grant Fenner taught Organizational Behavior and Business Strategy to undergraduate students as well as Organizational Behavior and Business Ethics at the MBA level at Arkansas State University before retiring in May of 2013. Prior to earning his Ph.D., in Business Administration with a concentration in Organizational Behavior and a minor in Business Strategy from the University of Memphis, he spent 23 years in the environmental business. He organized and led an entrepreneurial start-up in Greenville, MS that was sold 6 years later to a global waste services company. He served the remaining 7 years of his business career as general manager and president of Marathon Equipment Co., a subsidiary of Dover Corporation - the world’s leading manufacturer of on-site waste processing and recycling equipment headquartered in Vernon, Al.
Narayana Kocherlakota - President, Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis
Narayana Kocherlakota is an American economist and is the 12th and current president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. He oversees the operations of the bank including payment services and member bank assistance. Additionally, he serves on the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee directing Monetary Policy for the United States.
Mitzi Montoya - Professor of Management, Arizona State University
Dr. Montoya is a Professor in the Management Department of the W.P. Carey School of Business and serves on the board of the Center for Entrepreneurship. Dr. Montoya received her Ph.D. in Marketing and Statistics and a B.S. in Applied Engineering Science, both from Michigan State University.
Jeff Petchey - Professor of Economics, Curtin University Perth Australia
Jeff teaches microeconomics, public finance and game theory. He is also Director of the Fiscal Federalism Research Unit and has published issues in fiscal federalism and public economics, both in Australia and internationally. Recent publications include papers in prestigious international journals including the Journal of Development Studies, Regional Studies, and Regional Science and Urban Economics.
Guest Speakers 2012-2013
Marie Cleveland—Corporate Account Executive
Marie Cleveland a worldwide corporate account manager for Federal Express, she handles six major accounts and is responsible for bringing in $50 million in sales each year. FedEx has recognized her contributions with numerous accolades over the years, including Rookie of the Year, Senior Account Representative of the Year, Corporate Account Executive of the Year, Ambassador’s Club Award, and the Largest Corporate Account Close Award. In 2010, she received the highest honor at FedEx, the President’s Club Award.
Elizabeth Hoffman—Professor of Economics
Elizabeth (Betsy) Hoffman is currently Professor of Economics at Iowa State, where she was Executive Vice President and Provost from 2007 to 2012. Previously, she was President of the University of Colorado System. She is a 1968 graduate of Smith College, hold doctoral degrees in economics and history, and has been an accomplished university administrator, faculty member, and researcher over a career spanning 40 years.
Alice Stuhlmacher—Professor of Psychology
Alice F. Stuhlmacher is a Professor of Psychology at DePaul University in Chicago. Her research interests include negotiation and conflict in organizations, particularly relating to gender, labor mediators, and virtual communication.
Guest Speakers 2011-2012
Jim Beran—Account Executive for Barrington Broadcasting
Jim Beran is currently an Account Executive for Barrington Broadcasting’s Marquette affiliates, WLUC TV6, FoxUP and UpperMichigansSource.com . Mr. Beran has over 30 years of business management experience in a variety of industries, including banking, telecommunications and computer software. He uses his broad business experience to help small businesses effectively navigate the complex world of advertising. A loyal Iowa Hawkeye (computer science major, physics and pinball minor!), Jim resides near Marquette and works with clients throughout the UP and northern Wisconsin . He is an active member of the Hancock Business Professionals Association, is currently the Men’s Ministry Leader at Lake Superior Christian Church and is the father of 3 college-age daughters.
Jim Bogan—Marketing in Healthcare
The fall 2011 principles of marketing class welcomed Jim Bogan, President and CEO of Portage Health, based in Hancock, Michigan.
Charmaine David - Ad Agency & Creative Strategy
Charmaine David, who most recently led the development and implementation of the biggest federal account in the United States -- the 2010 U.S. Census, will be a guest speaker for the Integrated Marketing Communications class.
As a Client Service Director for IW Group, Inc., she has been in the advertising agency industry for close to fifteen years, and is a seasoned brand strategist and integrated marketing communications specialist with valuable experience in direct, database and e-commerce marketing. Prior to joining IW Group, Charmaine worked at McCann-Erickson Philippines where she managed multiple clients such as Coca-Cola, Gillette, Braun and Citibank.
Pallas Huang—Director of Insights and Strategy in McDonald's China
Huang presented on Building a Brand to students in the Integrated Marketing Communications course.
She is responsible for business analysis, identifying future business growth drivers, pricing, and to assist the Chinese leadership team with the development of strategy.
John McCadden—Personal Marketing as a Finance Professional
With over 30 years of experience, John McCadden spoke to the Principles of Marketing class about his career path and future goals.
McCadden is an accomplished consultant, practitioner and financial specialist. He prides himself on the high net worth clientele that he has cultivated through the years. He is a member agent at The Nautilus Group.
Dot Proux—Maximize your Personal Brand and Secure Career Opportunities
Michigan Tech’s College of Business hosted alumnus Dorothy (Dot) Proux ’86 as part of the Scott Pattullo Visiting Executive Speaker Series. The series is designed to give students access to influential alumni in business and engineering fields.
Dot is a partner in Ernst & Young’s National Tax practice, and is based in Chicago. She is currently the Americas Director for EYU Tax and Resource Management, overseeing the learning, development, and deployment of tax professionals in North America, South America, and Israel. In this role, she is also involved in the development of Ernst & Young’s tax campus recruiting strategy and the successful integration of new staff into the firm. In the past, she led Ernst & Young’s Midwest State and Local Tax practice, and continues to serve Fortune 500 companies related to their state and local tax service needs.
John Rockwell—Venture Capital Strategy and Entrepreneurship
Rockwell, the inaugural speaker in Michigan Tech’s Scott Pattullo Visiting Executive Series, visited campus to address business and engineering students and meet with faculty.
Rockwell is now founder and managing director of Element Partners, a venture capital and private equity firm that specializes in green technologies. During the last 20 years, he has invested his time and money in numerous green-tech companies, from Luxar, a manufacturer of carbon dioxide lasers, to EdeniQ, a biofuels company now deriving sugars from cellulose.
James Studinger of JPStudinger Group out of Bloomington Hills, MI
James presented to Applied Portfolio Management Program (APMP) students about wealth management.
Studinger is the owner of the wealth-management company JPStudinger Group out of Bloomington Hills, Michigan. He has also authored the book "Wealth is a Choice". To learn more, visit www.jpstudinger.com.
Guest Speakers 2010-2011
David Chaudier—Project Management in Healthcare
David Chaudier will be speaking to the Project Management course and discussing how project management is undertaken in his firm. He will also be holding a Q and A session with the MBA Association.
David M. Chaudier (93) graduated with a degree in business administration from Michigan Tech. He is the VP of Operations at Aurora St. Luke's Health Medical Center in Milwaukee and lives in Belgium, Wisc.
Bill DeGenaro—Business Intelligence
Bill DeGenaro previously taught Business Intelligence fundamentals to graduate students in the College of Business and has been a featured guest speaker on the topic in a number of class sessions and workshops. He will be speaking with the Systems Analysis & Design undergraduate class and, separately, with the Strategic IS Management MBA class.
Bill is the President of DeGenaro & Associates, providing consulting services on a variety of business intelligence needs, including: Intelligence collection, analytical assessment, personality profiling, warning processes, counterintelligence, and business intelligence system design.
Paul Dejarnatt—Strategic Planning for Digital Marketing
Paul will be speaking to students taking the Digital Marketing course.
Paul Dejarnatt is the director in charge of the Blackberry account from Starcom Worldwide Media Group. He oversees a team of media buyers and planners in the interactive space and is responsible for driving strategies regarding client advertising, coordinating cross-platform initiatives, and managing an online media team to provide efficient and effective media plans.
Anne Herron—Business Intelligence in Information Technology
Anne Herron will be speaking to the campus community as part of the ongoing “Women in IT” series. She will hold and informal a question and answer session with students following the prepared presentation. Anne will also interact with undergraduate students in Accounting Systems in the afternoon.
As Business Intelligence Director, Anne Herron’s responsibilities include new business development, current client/project development and managing a team of information researchers and analysts. Over the past decade, she has assisted in the development of educational/training sessions in the field of business intelligence – including information collection & analysis and information systems. Speaking and training engagements include Fortune 500 companies, professional associations, Business Management Graduate School Programs and the Harvard Business Club. Prior to her thirteen years at AIM, she was an Analytical Chemist in Polymer Sciences for The Dow Chemical Company.
Laura Konkel—Practical Advice for Creating and Protecting Trademarks
Speaking to students taking the Intellectual Property Law, Technology, Society and Innovation course.
Laura Konkel is a member of the firm’s Intellectual Property Practice Group in the Milwaukee office of Michael Best & Fredrich LLP. Her practice focuses on all aspects of trademark law including managing domestic and foreign trademark portfolios, prosecuting U.S. trademark applications, assisting in opposition and cancellation matters and infringement litigation proceedings.
Jim Lenz—Technology and Innovation Management
Jim will be speaking to undergraduate and MBA students.
Jim is currently the Director of the John Deere Technology Innovation Center located on the campus of the University of Illinois. Over the past two years he started and created this new innovation center and a new way of doing innovation for Deere and Co. He is now also starting a similar research center for Deere which will be located in Kaiserslautern, Germany.
Jim Northey—Financial Institutions
Jim Northey is speaking about the use of technology in financial institutes and the changing structure of global FX markets in Banking and Financial Institutions and the Global Finance course.
Jim Northey serves as a partner at LaSalle Technology Group in Hancock, MI. His main business focus is in providing consulting services and products for messaging and transaction processing to improve the quality of financial services in terms of efficiency, reliability, and performance. A commitment to open international standards, such as FIX and ISO 20022, is a key part of this focus.
Dave Olsson—Strategic Marketing in Healthcare
Dave is speaking with students in the Principles of Marketing course about strategic marketing measures in health care systems.
Dave is the Director of Strategic Marketing and Growth at Aspirus Keweenaw Hospital located in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.
John Soyring—International Organizational Behavior
John Soyring will be addressing students in Organizational Behavior and Managing Change about organizational behavior practices in IBM. Specifically, he will address how they view and convert the challenges that arise out of operating in 174 countries with diverse cultures as IBM's strategic strength. Soyring will be speaking on Sept 30 at 10:45 a.m. in Academic Office Building (101) within the College of Business.
After graduating from Michigan Tech with a BSEE in 1976, John joined IBM. During his career with IBM, John has held a variety of technical, professional, managerial and executive positions within the company. He is currently an IBM corporate vice president and the senior global executive for the IBM Software Services & Support business unit. John currently lives in Texas, but his second home and his heart are on the shores of Lake Superior near the mouth of the Huron River.
Dr. Sheneeta White—Operations and Supply Chain Management
Dr. Sheneeta White presented to students, faculty, and staff on “A model for efficiency-based resource integration in services.” During her time on campus, Dr. White also took part in a student networking event with undergraduate and graduate students.
Sheneeta W. White is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Operations and Supply Chain Management at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, MN. She received a doctorate in Management Science from Virginia Tech, an MBA from North Carolina State University, and a bachelor’s of science degree from Xavier University of Louisiana.