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Tamika Morrison and Tramell Smith with Kamp Kiles World and Patrick Pittaluga and Sean Warner with Grubbly Farms

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Patrick Pittaluga and Sean Warner are Georgia Tech graduates who started Grubbly Farms in early 2015. Patrick graduated with a degree in business and Sean a degree in building construction so insects and biology was an entirely new field.

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Kile’s World Foundation offers comprehensive art education to children ranging from ages 8‐17; focusing on music, performance, fine and applied arts. The foundation offers art-based camps with multiple workshops including general instruction in the areas of acting, singing, dance, painting, illustration, music production and digital media.

Kile’s World wishes to cultivate an environment where developing artists can explore their artistic interests with the guidance and support of our mentors. Kile’s World Foundation is poised to eventually open an academic school with an emphasis on music, drama and the arts.

 

 

 

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Frank Fenello with UHY Advisors, Jason Walker with Deputy, Mike Popowski with Dagger and Charlie Whitfield with Whitty Apps

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Jason Walker, Mike Popowski, Ryan Redhawk, Charlie Whitfield, Frank Fenello

 

 

 

Frank Fenello / UHY Advisors
Managing Director

Frank Fenello is managing director of the UHY Atlanta office, and leads the national management consulting practice. He has more than 20 years of experience in management and professional consulting in the finance, audit and accounting professional services industries.
UHY Advisors, Inc. is one of the nation’s largest professional services firms in the U.S., delivering financial, tax and business consulting services to companies ranging from mid-sized to the Fortune 500. The firm’s innovative Management & Technology Consulting practice provides a one-stop solution for a company’s financial and operational functions, with a full suite of services to transform a company’s performance and profitability.

 

 

 

Jason Walker / Deputy
President, Americas

I’m a dreamer of “the way things can be,” and have a passion for finding simple and elegant solutions to complex problems by utilizing innovative technology.

A thought leader within the SaaS and retail industries, I’ve worked with some of the biggest brands you know, including Home Depot, HP, Best Buy, Target, Apple, and Nokia. With over 20 years of experience, my team has driven sales quotas exceeding $10 billion, reduced turnover by 54% and increased top line revenues by over 300% YoY through leading large scale business transformational efforts throughout North America. Behind it all was a focus on delivering phenomenal customer experiences.

Currently, I serve as President, Americas of Deputy, a leading cloud technology equally loved by managers and employees who want to take charge of work and life in the hourly economy. In this role, I lead Deputy’s North and South America service areas, overseeing marketing, business development, strategic partnerships and customer experience, to ensure Deputy can spread its awesome workforce management solution with the entire world.

When I’m not helping businesses transform the experience of hourly employment for the 21st century, you can find me somewhere in the outdoors fishing, biking and hiking or asking someone “why” for the hundred-bajillionth time.

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Mike Popowski / Dagger
CEO

Mike took the helm at Dagger last year to drive the companys vision, culture and growth. He brings 15 years of digital, social and brand-building experience. A proven client service and team leader, Mikes had success in building campaigns and activations for the worlds biggest brands across a variety of industries. Since joining Dagger, the agency has created work for some of the worlds biggest brands, including: Interface, Aflac, Carters and Mizuno.

Mike joined Dagger from TBWA\Chiat\Day New York, where he led the global repositioning for GSKs global smokers health business, Nicoderm CQ (US). For GSK, TBWA deployed TV and digital content assets through a centralized model that disseminates content to Australia, UK, Brazil and Europe.

Mike was previously SVP, Client Partner at Moxie, where he architected the agencys early content marketing practices for Cisco Systems, UPS and Wells Fargo. He led a fast-growing, interdisciplinary team of over 40 FTE account directors, account managers, project managers, social media strategists and community managers, creative, producers analysts and technologists.

He was one of the early pioneers of social marketing as a consultant for AARP from 2008 to 2011, and implemented early digital content practices for AARPs renowned Travel Ambassador, Peter Greenberg, and Health Ambassador, Martina Navratilova. Mikes previous stints include AOL and SureClick, an Inc. 5000 digital agency based in Washington, D.C.

Mikes a native Vermonter and now resides in Atlanta.

 

 

Charlie Whitfield / Whitty Apps
CEO

Charlie Whitfield is the CEO of Whitty Apps LLC, a SBA certified 8(a), HUBZone, SDVOSB, WBE, Woman Owned and Operated Company. We are an emerging Software Engineering & Integration Company, specializing in mobile and device technology. We provide architecture, design, development, and project management expertise for our clients. Our innovative mobile software solutions focus on solving unique challenges, productivity, customer experience, and marketing strategies that have an impact on your success. Charlie’s leadership skills honed in the military and corporate world enabled her to develop a business model and entrepreneurial vision that encourages and fosters leadership skills focused on empowering other Veterans and Woman business owners to continue to make meaningful contributions to our nations defense as well as local communities.

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Atlanta’s Most Trusted Advisors Features Timothy J. Jones

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Atlanta’s Most Trusted Advisors interviews industry experts from in and around the Metro Atlanta Area. Our goal is to provide valuable information that all business owners and managers can use in their day-to-day work to help them succeed.

 

Timothy J Jones and Bonnie Buol Ruszczyk

Timothy J Jones and Bonnie Buol Ruszczyk

 

Timothy J. Jones / The Timothy Jones Companies
CEO & Founder

TJ is an expert leadership speaker, coach, and consultant with a new book to be launched in September. He began his professional life as a teacher, then spent 20 years in the biopharmaceutical industry leading sales teams and as head of Training and Leadership Development. With practical wisdom learned in the trenches, TJ helps individuals, teams, and companies enhance their engagement and effectiveness. He delivers highly interactive and transformative learning experiences. He is President/Owner of the Timothy Jones Companies. LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/timothyjjones1

 

 

Bonnie Buol Ruszczyk (Host)/ bbr Marketing
President

Bonnie Buol Ruszczyk has been a member of the creative and marketing services community for over 20 years and does not appear to be leaving it anytime soon. As president of bbr marketing, she has relished the challenges of entrepreneurship as she worked to grow and nurture a new business. Since the firm’s inception in 2009, Bonnie has led the young company to become widely recognized and respected within the professional services marketing niche, with award-winning client websites and an outstanding history of business success having worked with clients in 23 states and 2 Canadian provinces.

 

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Timothy j Jones and Ryan “Redhawk” McPherson

Dave Norton Creator of InContextNow conference in Atlanta

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David Norton, PhD is founder and principal of Stone Mantel, which has guided hundreds of brand leaders in creating meaningful brand experiences. Norton founded the Digital Collaborative in 2013 to help companies collaborate in conducting research about consumers and the impact of digital in their lives. He is the author of the new book DIGITAL CONTEXT 2.0: Seven Lessons In Business Strategy, Consumer Behavior And The Internet Of Things. Norton is also the person behind InContextNow: The Conference On The Internet Of Things For Marketers, Business Strategists And Research Leaders which is taking place in Atlanta on June 2 & 3, 2016.

Stone Mantel     InContextNow

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JoAnn Holmes with HOLMES@LAW, Kevin Geraghty with Revenue Research and Thad Oviatt with ParkENT Cycles

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Ryan “Redhawk” McPherson, Kevin Geraghty, JoAnn Holmes and Thad Oviatt

 

 

JoAnn Holmes, Esq. / HOLMES@LAW, LLC
Attorney and Founder

JoAnn Jo Holmes is the founder of HOLMES@LAW, LLC(www.holmesatlaw.com), where her practice focus is Business Law & Contracts, Trademark & Copyright, Software & Tech. She works with a broad array of clients, including professional service providers, consultants, software and creative content developers, and manufacturers. Having practiced law for nearly 17 years, her goal is to live the firms slogan Your Business Ally™.

A graduate of Stanford University and Emory School of Law, her career began in the Technology & Intellectual Property (IP) practice group of Troutman Sanders, a prominent Atlanta based law firm. There, she successfully represented a gamut of diverse clients, from startups to multi-billion dollar companies like Chick-fil-A, Microsoft and WalMart.

Moving in-house, Jo served on business management and legal teams in senior leadership roles for both public and private manufacturing companies. For more than a decade, she was the go-to lawyer for her business units with presence in North and South America, Europe, Africa and the Pacific Rim. She has overseen IP portfolios in more than 130 countries, is well accomplished in negotiating sophisticated domestic and international commercial contracts, and in resolving high dollar disputes.

Jo has spoken extensively about business law, technology, and intellectual property. Currently, she writes the business law section for the Gwinnett Citizen newspaper, and speaks for SCORE, a longstanding resource partner of the Small Business Administration. Likewise, Jo volunteers with Leadership Gwinnett, Discovery High Schools Entrepreneurship Academy, the SE Gwinnett Coop food pantry, and the Stanford Alumni Association.

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Kevin Geraghty / Revenue Research, Inc.
President

Kevin is responsible for the creation of $3 billion in documented corporate value. He has built successful analytic departments and profitable business models for Fortune 500 clients. Kevin received the Edelman Laureate Award in 1996 and 2016 for outstanding Operations Research practice and received the DM News Martech Award for Data Science in 2015. He is the author of machine learning patents for Dynamic Pricing and Paid Search marketing.

 

 

Thad Oviatt / ParkENT Cycles
Founder & CEO

ParkENT Cycles just wants to HUG your bicycle and keep it safe. We produce an electronic bike rack. The rack is a bicycle locking system built into a custom bike rack. To use the rack a person just needs to push their bike into the rack, activate it with the paired phone app (or key card, or attached kiosk), and the bike rack locks up the bicycle. The electronic bike rack locks the wheel and frame of the bicycle. The rack is safer than any other bicycle lock on the market.

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Special Edition: Georgia Society of CPAs

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Rep. Howard Mosby / Georgia House of Representatives

State Representative Howard Mosby (D-Atlanta) represents the 83rd District of the Georgia House of Representatives. Rep. Mosby was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2002. Born on June 20, 1961 in Atlanta, Rep. Mosby is a life-long native and community leader. First attending East Atlanta High School, he continued his education at Georgia State University receiving a Bachelors of Business Administration. It was this education that led Howard to become the Assistant Vice President of the Grady Health System. A board member of the Oakhurst Health Centers and Chairman of the Finance Committee, as well as being a Board Member and Treasurer of the Dekalb NAACP, Rep. Mosby continues to fight for healthcare and rights of all people in the Atlanta Metro region. Rep. Mosby is also a member of the Georgia Society of CPAs and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, which gives him great insight to the healthcare and financial issues of the state’s healthcare system. Representative Mosby will be serving the General Assembly as a member of the Governmental Affairs, Health and Human Services, and Ways and Means Committees.

 

 

Joel Pascaner/Jones and Kolb Linkedin

Joel L. Pascaner is a tax principal specializing in high net worth individuals, privately held entities, partnerships, S corporations, estates and trusts, not-for-profit organizations, and state and local tax matters. He also has extensive experience representing taxpayers before the IRS as well as numerous other taxing jurisdictions.

Joel is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants, and The Leaderhship Team of the Tax Section of the Georgia Society of Certified Public Accountants. He has been an at-large member of the GSCPA Council. In addition, he has served as the Chairman of the Tax Section of the GSCPA as well as both the Federal Tax Legislation and the Georgia Tax Legislation Subcommittees of the GSCPA Tax Section, where he was involved in the drafting and introduction of proposed legislation. He is also a Past Chairman of the Depreciation Committee and the Tax Accounting Problems Committee of the NYSSCPA. Mr. Pascaner was a member of the GSCPA 2006 Tax Forum Planning Committee and served as Moderator at the Forum’s Luncheons with Georgia Tax Commissioner Bart Graham. He was awarded “2006 Distinguished Section Leader” by the GSCPA and served on their Task Force on Employment. Joel is a member of the Atlanta Tax Forum and the Atlanta Estate Planning Council. He is a graduate of the Philanthropic Advisor Leadership Institute and was awarded the “Best in Client Satisfaction Wealth Manager” by Atlanta Magazine for years 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, and 2014.

Joel has authored numerous articles in professional and industry publications including the CPA Journal and the Taxation for Accountants.

He has served on the Board of Directors of the Interfaith Disabilities Network and the Board of Trustees of Georgia Shakespeare. He is currently on the Board of Trustees of the Georgia Society of Certified Public Accountants and the Finance Committee of the Atlanta Film Festival.

Prior to joining Jones and Kolb, Joel practiced as a tax professional with Stephen M. Berman & Associates, L.L.C, Laventhol & Horwath and Peat Marwick.

Joel is a CPA and received his Bachelor of Science in Accounting at The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania as well as his Masters of Science in Taxation at the Long Island University.

 

 

 

John Masters, CPA, PC Linkedin

John Masters earned his Bachelor of Science degree from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1969, followed by his Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business in 1975, and finally his Doctor of Jurisprudence degree in 1979. During this period he was employed eight years in the Computer, Aerospace, and Electronics industries. During 1979 he was admitted to the Georgia Bar and received his certificate to practice as a Certified Public Accountant in Georgia and Alabama.

John has been active in professional, civic, and political activities throughout his career. He presently serves on the Georgia Society of Certified Pubic Accountants Professional Ethics Committee, and recently completed his term as Chairman of the Georgia Society of Certified Public Accountants Tax Section. He has served as a SBA Score/Ace Volunteer Consultant, taught in the Junior Achievement Program and been a Future Business Leaders of America sponsor. He administered the “Call the Expert” on taxation program for 21 years at WGST News Radio where he also appeared as Tax Series Guest/Host. He has participated in various other radio and television tax related programs, testified at administrative hearings including the Georgia Special Council on Taxation, and held positions in other organizations.

John has taught courses at Oglethorpe University, Clayton Junior College (now Clayton State College) and the Becker CPA Review Course. For the last several years he has been an active member of the Dekalb Peachtree Squadron, Georgia Wing, of the Civil Air Patrol where he currently holds the rank of Major, and has been an active member of the Northside Atlanta Jaycees and the Decatur Dekalb Kiwanis Club. His is currently a member of the American Bar Association, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Georgia Bar Association, Georgia Society of Certified Public Accountants.

John practices in Atlanta, Georgia principally in the areas of taxation and accounting, taxpayer representation before administrative bodies and tax tribunals, and related fields.

 

 

 

Myra Cisse with Government Contractors Association and Adam Rosenkoetter with Sol Design

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Adam Rosenkoetter and Myra Cisse

 

 

Myra Cisse / Government Contractors Association
VP Service Delivery

 

Myra Cisse, MBA, is the owner of Certification Consultants, a partner at the Government Contractors Association (GCA). Myra majored in finance at the University of South Carolina and worked in the banking industry for more than 20 years. In August 2010, she obtained her MBA from Georgia State University with a concentration in project management. She spent the last six years of her banking career working exclusively with business owners.
As a former banker, Myra has in-depth knowledge of the banking industry in general, and the SBA in particular, having closed millions of dollars of SBA loans. In 2011, she combined her decades of industry experience, many years of SBA experience, and her education to provide a much-needed service to business owners.

GCA’s mission is to Educate Facilitate and Advocate for its members. Our organization provides tools to educate women, minority and veteran business owners across the country navigate the government contracting maze. In her role as VP of Service Delivery, Myra is responsible for assisting members with certifications for their business and also acts as membership director.

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Adam Rosenkoetter / Sol Design
Co-founder & Technical Director

 

In 2001, entrepreneur Adam Rosenkoetter co-founded Sol Design, a successful branding and marketing consultancy based in Atlanta. Since then, hes built the company from ground up, now advising an impressive roster of clientele. As Co-Founder and Technical Director, Adam is Sol Designs clients digital guide. Whether he recommends a custom CMS, a marketing automation tool or an internet marketing strategy, he keeps the business objective in mind and the best technology in the forefront. When Adam is not working, hes off running, biking, being a yogi or enjoying time with his lovely wife and two young daughters at home in Decatur.

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Spotlight Episode: Doing Good Atlanta

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This is a spotlight episode of Atlanta Business Radio featuring non profit organizations in metro Atlanta. Highlighting the good work, community involvement and how to operate a succesful not for profit business.

 

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Michael Dayl, James Franklin, Corey Moore, Dr. Joi Freemont

 

Dr. Joi Freemont / The Freemont Foundation 
President

The James M. and Erma T. Freemont Foundation was created on the legacy of Dr. James McKinley Freemont, Sr. (1942 – 2013).  His life’s works were built on integrity, hard work, and genuine laughter.  He was an obstetrician/gynecologist, medical acupuncturist, and hospital administrator.  He believed in higher education and Christian principles.  His dedicated wife of 47 years, Erma, and children are determined to continue his legacy by funding projects that reflect his nature.

Dr. Freemont’s contributions to his wider community are too numerous to count, from his ongoing dedication to his alma mater, Southern University, to his fraternity, Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., to his beloved family, and many others.  His circle of friends and family was very important to him, as was his sense of service.  His dedication to the South Fulton Medical Center and his community of patients and staff is living on in the lives of the more than 7,800 babies that Dr. Freemont delivered, and in the memories of the lives he touched with his humor, his sense of commitment, and excellence.

Annually, the James M. and Erma T. Freemont Foundation awards scholarships to deserving students attending institutions of higher education. In our first two years, with the help of phenomenal supporters, we raised over $30,000 for scholarships and have named twelve “Freemont Scholars”.

 

 

 

Corey Moore / Social Georgia 
Founder

Corey ‘ NetworKing’ Moore is the founder and CEO of ProNetworker, Atlanta’ s largest online resource center for business events, networking events, seminars, and expos. Currently, ProNetworker hosts four to seven events per month as well as produces two to three conferences/expos and niche events yearly. Two past events have featured speakers like Daymond John & Kevin Harrington, stars of ABC’ s award winning ‘ Shark Tank’ . Companies that have used ProNetworker to feature their products/services include Atlanta Business Chronicle, Microsoft, Sprint, InfusionSoft, BNI, Constant Contact, Fifth Third Bank, and American Express.

Initially, SocialGeorgia started out as a way to raise money for local nonprofits; however, it quickly reshaped into something far greater: a social movement. As SocialGeorgia’s devoted team went out into the community to engage with local nonprofits, a discovery was made. It was more than just money and resources missing. It was the practice of kindness and the understanding of sustainability.

As a way to fulfill this need, SocialGeorgia developed a #12DaysofKindnesscampaign, in which the team reached out to the Atlanta community by performing random acts of kindness. Through this campaign, SocialGeorgia witnessed an enormous transformation thanks to the one key ingredient they added that had been missing from the community pot: togetherness.

During the campaign, the SocialGeorgia team heard countless stories from struggling nonprofits that began their organizations when a problem came tugging at their heart strings. Whether the problem was rooted in their own personal experiences or the experiences of others, they knew something had to be done. Each nonprofit intended to make a difference, but sadly their dream was deferred. Unable to communicate their results and improve on their capabilities, the community members they served became restless. Out of frustration, members of the community attempted to solve these issues on their own. Although their intentions were admirable, they were also unsuccessful.

After hearing similar stories from various nonprofits, our team quickly realized how efforts were being duplicated, resources were being wasted, and members of the community were suffering silently from feeling forgotten. Even though it’s well known that two heads are better than one, many people we interacted with were working separately and losing sight of a universal truth: “Together We Build”.

We believe our community needs a safe space to reconnect, repair, and restore togetherness with like-minded people.  As a way to meet the needs of the community it proudly serves, SocialGeorgia has revamped its mission, vision and structure to eradicate this issue of division.

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James Franklin / Techbridge
CEO

TechBridge® is a nonprofit that drives community impact by bringing affordable technology & business expertise to other nonprofits.   Since 2000, we’ve been providing IT consulting and services to thousands of nonprofits in all 50 states and in seven countries—helping them harness the productivity gains long since enjoyed by the corporate sector, by connecting the needs of nonprofits with the skills and financial resources of the technology community.

James’ service to TechBridge started in 2006 as a volunteer. From there he joined the Board, serving as Products and Services Chair, Digital Ball Chair, and Board Vice-Chair before becoming Board Chair.

Prior to joining TechBridge as CEO, James held executive management positions at a number of IT products and services companies. Most recently, James was General Manager for the Enterprise business segment of Omnilink, a software-as-a-service business. He also worked at Avanade, an Accenture company focused on Microsoft solutions, where he ran the Southeast Region, and HP, where he served as General Manager for HP’s US State Government Consulting business unit. Throughout James’ career he has focused on the delivery of top quality IT products and services for leading brands.

James has a MBA from the University of Maryland and BA in Management Information Systems from the University of Georgia. With generations of family history in Georgia, James is honored to have the opportunity to serve the community through TechBridge.

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Michael Dayl /Orange Duffel Bag Initiative  
President

Orange Duffel Bag Initiative, a 501c3, provides at-risk teens and young adults programs proven to improve their education success, ongoing advocacy, support to their guardians and caring adults, and service to the community in a spirit of offering hope and positive systemic change.

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G. Martinez with Strateegus

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G. Martinez and Ryan McPherson

G. Martinez and Ryan McPherson

 

 

G. Martinez / Strateegus 
CEO

I’m an Industrial Designer (major: Product Design), graduate of the prestigious Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. I’m currently CEO of Strateegus, a full service “design to retail shelf” firm focused on getting customers products or services into retail and online channels. During my 28 year career, I have held positions of high visibility and increased importance, ranging from Founder, to Director, General Manager, to V.P. of Product Development for both design firms and major corporations such as Catalyst Strategic Design, Herbst/ LaZar/Bell, The Art Institutes, TOTO USA, and now Strateegus. I have led teams of designers, researchers, and R & D pros for the Design/Development and Launch of products in the Appliance (small), Bath (luxury), Consumer, Fitness & Sporting Goods, Hardware (powered and mechanical), Lawn & Garden (powered; watering; equipment), Medical Devices, Outdoor (hearth; structures), and other sectors, for start-ups and F-1000 sized companies with sales ranging up to $90B+! In addition to my background in Design, I’ve also amassed a wealth of knowledge and have led efforts in Brand-Building (ground up to re-branding), Market & Consumer Research (market sectors; competitive; focus groups; ethnographic research), Retail Strategy, QC/QA, Sourcing, and Global Project Management. Additionally, I am a:
– Strategic & Rare combination of “Right & Left Brain” Thinking
– Innovator/Inventor–Always looking for a better solution
– Exceptional & Passionate Collaborator and Team Leader
– Looking for opportunities of mutual benefit to all parties!

 

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