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Curated Collection Of The Best Interviews From Our Sandy Springs Studio





ASTD Workplace Learning Special with Dr Stephen Harmon GSU Director of Learning Technologies

In this ASTD Workplace Learning Special Edition interview, hear from Dr. Stephen Harmon. Dr. Harmon is the Director of Learning Technologies and an Associate Professor in the school of Education at Georgia State University where he promotes effective and innovative uses of technology

After majoring in English literature at Furman University, Stephen moved to Upper Egypt to teach fourth-grade English for two years. While there he had the opportunity to travel extensively through the Middle East and Africa. During this time he realized that there was a tremendous need for education and training in developing countries, but few resources to provide it. He decided to attend graduate school and enrolled in graduate studies in instructional technology at the University of Georgia,where he completed a masters and doctorate in instructional technology with a cognate in global policy studies.

Dr. Harmon then accepted a position as an assistant professor of instructional technology at the Universityof Houston-Clear Lake and worked there the next five years building a masters program and working to improve the university’s educational technology infrastructure. He returned to his native Atlanta, along with about 15 million other people, just in time for the summer Olympics in 1996 and joined the faculty in Middle, Secondary Education and Instructional Technology at Georgia State University, first as an assistant and then as an associate professor.

In addition to his academic appointments, he has served as theDirector of Educational Technology in the College of Education and as Chair of the Division of Learning Technologies. His research centers on educational uses of emerging technologies and has focused on elearning for the last few years, particularly with respect to synchronous online learning environments. He also conducts research on educational technology in developing countries.

He has served as president of both the Division of Learning and Performance Environments and of the Research and Theory Division for the Association of Educational Communications and Technology, and is currently President elect of that organization.

 

Transformational Business Models Featuring Interviews with Bobby Ryan from ApolloMD; Asif Ramji from Paymetric and John Ujda from Better World Books

Today we shined our spotlight on some transformational business models impacting Atlanta, the US and the world.

Bobby Ryan/ApolloMD

Bobby Ryan joined ApolloMD in 2001 and runs all business development and marketing initiatives. On a day-to-day basis, Mr. Ryan oversees the strategic development, marketing and branding, along with financial projections. He has worked with ApolloMD’s clinical operations team at over 50 facilities to develop physician driven models in complex settings to ensure the highest quality service offering. With his extensive understanding of physician services and the healthcare marketplace, Mr. Ryan is distinctively qualified to run the business development for the company.

Mr. Ryan has a MBA and bachelor’s degree from the Coles College of Business at Kennesaw State University. He served active duty in the United States Marines Corps from 1993-1997 and is also a member of the Georgia Association of Health Care Executives and a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.

Asif Ramji/Paymetric

Asif Ramji, Paymetric’s President and Chief Executive Officer, is a seasoned payments executive, with over 15 years experience directing companies within the software and payment transaction processing industries.

Most recently, Ramji served as Chief Revenue Officer for Paymetric and led ten consecutive quarters of double-digit revenue growth. Ramji joined Paymetric in 2009 and was responsible for sales, marketing, business development and product strategy.

Prior to joining Paymetric, Ramji was Senior Vice President and GM for the Royal Bank of Scotland Group’s RBS WorldPay Card Services and ATM Divisions. The Royal Bank of Scotland Group is one of the largest payment transaction processors in the world and manages the largest off-premise ATM transaction processing businesses in North America. Ramji was responsible for the strategic double-digit growth of the respective divisions.

Ramji commenced his formal business education at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, Canada and holds an MTIS certification from the Stanford Graduate School of Business in Leading Teams for Innovation and Success. Ramji also attended Harvard Business School in Boston, Massachusetts and holds an executive leadership certification on Strategic Negotiation.

John Ujda/Better World Books

John Ujda is vice-president of marketing at Better World Books. He has 10 years of Marketing experience, layered on top of a strong technical background. John previously served as vice president of product management at Primedia and as director of product management at EarthLink. He taught Math, English, Chemistry and Physics to 11th and 12th grade students for 2.5 years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Papua New Guinea. And he started his career in information technology at Procter & Gamble. John graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Notre Dame with dual degrees in Computer Engineering and Spanish. He earned his MBA with honors from Emory University’s Goizueta Business School in Atlanta, GA. John drives a hybrid vehicle all the time, likes brussel sprouts, and shamelessly reads sci-fi.

 

LawJam 2012 Special with Burr and Forman’s Scott Hitch and Atlanta Bar Foundation’s David Schaeffer and Sally Hogsette

LawJam 2012

Come join the Atlanta Bar Foundation for the third annual “LawJam 2012: Battle of the Atlanta Lawyers’ Bands”!  Watch as Atlanta’s most muscial lawyers compete for the top spot in an American Idol style competition.  Proceeds support youth programs in Atlanta and free legal services for low income citizens.

Tickets can be purchased through the Variety Playhouse.  Please contact Sally Hogsette at shogsette@atlantabarfoundation.org or (404) 521-0781 if you have any questions. Keep up with all the latest news!  Add “LawJam 2012” on Facebook!

Scott Hitch/Burr & Forman

Scott practices in the firm’s Environmental group and works with clients in all aspects of environmental law. Scott counsels clients on business strategy, regulatory compliance, permitting, policy, transactions and resolution of disputes. Scott’s services include: land conservation, historic preservation, brownfield redevelopment, environmental remediation, corporate responsibility/sustainability and recycling and regulation of wastes. He also consults with corporations in dealing with resource allocation and regulation such as water quality and its environmental impact, air quality, greenhouse gas, climate changes and energy sources. Scott’s environmental services also include dealing with commercial real estate transactions and the entire sustainable building process.

Prior to joining Burr & Forman, he practiced at national and regional law firms and had his own law practice. Scott’s environmental law background also includes previous law clerk experience at the U.S. Department of Justice, Environmental & Natural Resource Division, Environmental Enforcement Section and the Georgia Land Trust Service Center. Scott is a U.S. Green Building Council LEED Accredited Professional and has been named a “Georgia Rising Star” by Super Lawyers for three consecutive years in environmental law. He serves on the Board of Directors for the Georgia Land Conservation Center and Georgia Wetlands and Streams Trust Fund, and has served on the Stakeholder Committee for the City of Atlanta Sustainable Building Ordinance and the Georgia Chamber of Commerce Environmental Conference Steering Committee.

Aside from Scott’s professional leadership, he is involved in a variety of community organizations including: Board of Directors for Keep Roswell Beautiful, Vice President on the Board of Trustees for the River Eves Education Foundation, Inc., and President of the International Board of Directors for the Center for Mediation, Peace and the Resolution of Conflict, Inc.

Scott received both his B.S., in ecology, and J.D. from the University of Georgia where he served as President of the Environmental Law Section in law school.

David Schaeffer/Chilivis Cochran Larkins & Bever

David is a partner at Chilivis Cochran Larkins & Bever as well as the former President of the Atlanta Bar Association (2009-10) and the Current member of the Atlanta Bar Foundation Board of Directors

A founder of LawJam, David brought the idea of the battle of the bands to the Foundation while he was bar association president. He is a leader of the LawJam 2012 Executive Committee, a major sponsor and fundraiser for the event.

Sally Hogsette/Atlanta Bar Foundation

Sally is the Executive Director of the Atlanta Bar Foundation as well as a member of the Atlanta Bar Association.

She has practiced law for 30 years now in Atlanta with the last 20 of these spent as senior international counsel for Delta Air Lines, Inc. She retired from Delta in 2009. Sally was Treasurer of the Atlanta Bar Foundation and the Board invited her to become Executive Director.


 

 

Dr. Govind Hariharan: ICA Institute, Sue Reager: International Services, and Alvin C. Miles: Coles College of Business and the Executive MBA Program

Dr. Govind Hariharan/ICA Institute – Kennesaw State University

Dr. Govind Hariharan is the Executive Director of the India China America Institute. He was the Chair of the Department of Economics, Finance and Quant. Analysis at the Coles College of Business at Kennesaw State University in Atlanta, Georgia (until September 2011) and is the Associate Director of the Econometric Center. Dr. Hariharan also spearheads the India Initiative for Coles College that has resulted in significant partnerships in business education and corporate training. He has previously held positions at SUNY-Buffalo (including Co-Director at Center for Public Policy and Regulation) and West Virginia University.

Dr. Govind Hariharan has consulted for numerous organizations, public and private, such as the World Bank, Council for Quality Growth and M&T Bank. He was a cofounder of a technology start up in the retail food sector between 1999 and 2001. He is very active in the business and civic communities in Georgia. He has been a member of various state and local task forces on health care especially in the areas of health information and transparency. He has been a key speaker at various summits including Global Business Leaders Forum and Tie-Con East. He was a member of the Technical Advisory Committee for Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) on Forecasting Atlanta 2040. Dr. Hariharan is a member of many advisory boards including the WellStar Institute for Better Health, the American Diabetes Association- Atlanta, Georgia Indo American Chamber of Commerce and is a mentor for TiE-Atlanta. He is actively involved in many academic and business organizations in India as well. He has been interviewed or quoted in many media outlets including the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Atlanta Business Chronicle, Buffalo News, National Public Radio, Money Talks, Channel 5 and the Weather Channel.

Dr. Govind Hariharan’s research is extensively cited. His papers are key citations in a health care, personal finance, regulation, economic development, information technology, and law. He was coeditor of a conference volume on The Problem of Development which featured articles by most of the recent Nobel Laureates in Economics. One of his papers was chosen as among “key papers by leading scholars” and reprinted in “Classics in Risk Management” edited by Professors Gayer and Viscusi of Harvard University. Similarly his paper on Estate Taxation, and on smoking initiation are very heavily cited in the academic and policy literature. His recent research on the stockholding behavior of US individuals won the prestigious Ross award in 2006 and another is among the top 10 most cited papers ever in the Financial Services Review. His current research studies the effect of different health shocks on portfolio allocation by the elderly (AMHCR award recipient), medical technology and technology intermediaries. He has taught a wide range of courses at universities across the globe including stints in India, China and Singapore and has received numerous awards for his teaching.

Sue Reager/International Services

Sue Reager is the founder of International Services and serves as it’s Chief Executive Officer. She oversees a virtual company that is comprised of 300 people spread over 90 different countries. Sue is a programmer and Software Developer. She invented the GlobalConcat System Localizer, which is a tiny software “library” component that enables computer applications to be translated into 200 languages and dialects using one original code, eliminating the need to vary a product in order to display or play correctly in a new language. Sue Reager is also a columnist for Speech Technology Magazine.

Alvin C. Miles/Kennesaw State University’s Executive MBA Program

Alvin C. Miles is a native of Lake Charles, LA, and he retired from AT&T with over 30 years of business experience. He is the Director of Business Development for the award-winning Executive MBA Program (EMBA) and an Instructor of Management in the Coles College of Business at Kennesaw State University.

Before his tenure as the Director of EMBA, Alvin served in many leadership capacities to support his alma mater. He was a Vice-President for EMBARK; the alumni association for the EMBA program, he served as both a team and an individual coach, and he served on the Coaching Advisory Board. Alvin currently teaches Introduction to Teaming, Introduction to Team Constitutions, High Performance Teaming and Teaming & Beyond. He discussed the Program as a guest on “Money Talks” in 2010.

In his career with BellSouth and AT&T, Alvin held a series of diverse strategic and tactical roles. These roles included leading customer-facing field forces in the Network Organization, Project Management for BellSouth’s bid to enter long distance, Director of BellSouth’s only Wholesale Maintenance Call Center and Product Ideation & Lifecycle Product Development in Marketing for Customer Information Services.

Alvin received a Bachelor of Science in Organizational Management with honors from Morris Brown College, a Master’s Certificate in Project Management from George Washington University and his Masters Degree in Business Administration with honors in 2005 from the Michael J. Coles College of Business at Kennesaw State University. He recently earned his Managerial Coaching Certification and he will complete his Doctoral education in 2012.

Alvin has a strong commitment to family, community and personal development. He and Toni are the proud parents of Alicia, Alexandria and Amanda. As a past Finance Council member, a current lector and a Fourth- Degree Knight of St Peter Claver – he maintains leadership roles in the ministries of Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Decatur, GA. Alvin currently serves as a board member of the Global Soap Project.

 

Jennifer Scully: Clinical Resources, Howard Hsu: Atlanta Food Truck Park & Market, Clayton Hiatt: The Accountant, and Brandy Nagel: Digitally Famous

Jennifer Scully/Clinical Resources LLC

Jennifer L. Scully has dedicated over 30 years to the delivery of quality care to geriatric patients and seniors across the nation throughout the healthcare continuum; including acute, subacute care, assisted living, and long-term care.

Jennifer launched Clinical Resources LLC in 2007 to address the critical shortage of talent management and qualified personnel to meet the personnel needs in healthcare settings nationwide. She is committed to recognizing and supporting nurses and the nursing profession through her efforts to encourage “back to work” opportunities for nurses and other healthcare professionals.

Jennifer is a Registered Nurse with a Bachelors of Science in Nursing and is also a Licensed Nursing Home Administrator and a Paralegal. She holds Certifications in Healthcare Risk Management, Case Management, Legal Nurse Consulting, and Nursing Assessment. Jennifer has dedicated her career to Quality Improvement of care and services to thousands of patients and residents, nationwide.

Jennifer is active in many organizations such as the Women President Organization (WPO), the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO), the Women Business Enterprise Council (WBENC), the Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP) as well as the U.S. Women’s Chamber of Commerce (USWCC).

Jennifer continues to share her philosophy and proactive approach to Quality Improvement through her membership and work with national organizations including the American Health Care Association (AHCA), National Association of Directors of Nursing in Long Term Care (NADONA/LTC), American Association of Nurse Assessment Coordinators (AANAC), National Geriatric Nurse Association (NGNA), the American College of Health Care Administrators (ACHCA), National Student Nurse Association (NSNA) and the Georgia Association of Healthcare Executives. She is a member of the American Organization of Nurse Executives and serves as a Board Member for the Coalition of Women in Long Term Care (COWL).

Jennifer has published numerous articles related to elder and senior care including a guidebook published in conjunction with the American Health Care Association, Continuous Quality Improvement Using the Regulatory Framework, in 2005. Additionally, she co-edited the American Nurse Associations “Core Curriculum for Subacute Care” published spring 1997. Jennifer continues to present at national and local conventions and seminars on subjects related to elder care. In addition, she continues to serve as a Senior Examiner for AHCA’s Quality Reward Program.

Through Clinical Resources LLC, Jennifer is able to combine her comprehensive experience with a broad network of contacts, to assist providers with their staffing and personnel needs.

Howard Hsu/Atlanta Food Truck Park & Market

The growing Atlanta food truck movement welcomed its first street food park as the Atlanta Food Truck Park & Market on Thursday, April 26. Located at 1850 Howell Mill Road, the Atlanta Food Truck Park & Market is the seven-day-a-week go-to destination for Atlantans craving the best in street food fare, local products and artists, entertainment and more.

The premier park was conceptualized by Howard Hsu, co-owner of Sweet Auburn BBQ, who then partnered with Brian Harvin and Anita Hsu seeking to fulfill their mission of developing a community site to foster the creative and entrepreneurial spirit of start-up businesses, artists, musicians and local industry. Together they created the sprawling three-acre space that hosts up to 15 food trucks at one time, perfect for picnicking and enjoying the city’s best street food fare for breakfast, lunch, dinner and late-night noshing. The park also features al fresco seating areas along with several outdoor attractions including bocce ball, horseshoes and a playground all located in a shady green space along with exciting weekly programming. Ample complimentary parking is available both on- site and at dedicated adjacent properties.

Clayton Hiatt/The Accountant

An accomplished management and accounting professional, Clayton leverages his more than 20 years of experience in executive management and corporate accounting, toward his current role at The Accountant as its Principal. Based in Marietta Georgia, Clayton is adept at managing a variety of complex financial initiatives and is now playing a critical role in establishing The Accountant as one of Marietta’s leaders in providing small businesses a trusted advisor in management and control of their monthly financials, payroll processing and tax preparation.

Prior to The Accountant, Clayton served as a Senior Manager and Controller at Casablanca Group, LLC also based in Marietta. In this position, he worked closely with the company’s CFO and President overseeing fiscal and fiduciary responsibilities and enhancing processes across functions. Focused on creating highly motivated teams, he worked on developing staff through corporate training, as well as advanced mentoring.

Before joining the management team at Casablanca, Clayton was the Corporate Controller of Mallory & Evans Contractors and Engineers, LLC, based in Atlanta, GA. During his time with M&E, Clayton partnered with the COO and spearheaded the integration of a finer tuned phase code system improving analysis of revenue by job type. He joined M&E after serving in a variety of progressive financial roles at his start-up firm Upright Properties & Construction, at Zales Corporation, Triton International and The Gap, Inc. Combining a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of Utah with earlier experience as the Office & Credit Manager for Pearson Tire Distributing Company in Salt Lake, Clayton has advanced his management and leadership skills throughout his tenure.

Brandy Nagel/Digitally Famous

As a Social Media Coach, Brandy Nagel has traveled the Southeast speaking and teaching high-profile executives how to use social media for business and career development. She holds an MBA from Mercer University and volunteers with MicroMentor, helping entrepreneurs develop social media marketing plans to grow their business. Previous clients include Pennzoil, Quaker State, Tony Roma’s Restaurants, Simmons Bedding Company and more. Most recently, Nagel worked at Georgia Tech’s Innovation Institute as a Marketing Catalyst. Her book,Digitally Famous: Visibility Campaigns for Job Seekers is available on Amazon and Kindle.

 

 

 

Blackberry PlayBook Review Plus Interviews with Rosie Falconi: Falconi Designs and Ron Rizzi: Drive for Research Foundation, Inc.

We opened the show with a quick  Blackberry PlayBook review, the new tablet from the folks at RIM (Research in Motion). It is a great tablet for the money – excellent value for all the features you get and you don’t have to be a Blackberry phone user to get the PlayBook (but it helps). This device has a camera and a video camera. It also has HDMI ports so you can hook it up and watch movies on your HD TV. The video quality is top notch. It seems faster than my Kindle Fire and the video quality is definitely better plus you get a camera so if those are the features that are most important for you then the PlayBook is a no brainer.

Rosie Falconi/Falconi Designs/Whimsical Wascals

Rosie Falconi is a local artist who started her business “Falconi Designs” 10 years ago here in the Atlanta area. Her focus is on custom murals for the home, business, school or any other area that needs a splash of color. Last year she created another division called, “Whimsical Wascals” which specializes in original and whimsical hand-painted pet portraits. Her most recent project however, was when she illustrated her 1st book, “I CAN Fix America” by David Duley. It is a coffee table book with 52 common sense ways YOU can make the United States great again.

Ron Rizzi/Drive For Research Foundation, Inc.

Ron Rizzi is the founder of Drive For Research Foundation. He created this new organization in the last quarter of 2011 in response to the many challenges and obstacles that prevented success in attaining the goals that were set to raise awareness and prevent brain tumors.

As an Acoustic Neuroma brain tumor survivor he understands the financial, emotional and physical challenges as well as the hardship that invades the life of a brain tumor patient and their family.

The programs Daily Drive To Survive® and Pledge The Miles You Drive® were  created and designed by Ron for the purpose of raising awareness and most importantly to raise funds for the cause. He felt that many other causes captured all of the media’s attention to the detriment of others, especially brain cancer, brain tumors and brain tumor research.

His idea of reaching out to all of us as we drive our car or ride a bus or train to work each morning is a universal theme. One that would allow more people to get involved and support this important effort.

Their “mission is to supply the ‘Drive’ to support high performance accelerated clinical brain tumor research, find the key to unlock brain cancer and prevent all types of brain tumors in our lifetime.”

Funds raised throughout the United States will initially provide research grants that will support:  Duke Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center, Raleigh, NC., Emory Brain Tumor Center, Atlanta, GA., and Swedish Neuroscience Center, Seattle, WA. Long range research grant plans include expansion across the country adding additional accelerated brain tumor research organizations and institutions.

With the support from contributors’ personal daily drive, riding commute and pledge of the miles they drive or ride the Foundation will make the road to finding a cure for brain cancer and brain tumors a short ride. Other Cause InnovatorsTM – Created Specifically For Accelerated Brain Tumor Research are Grey Matters More Than You Think!TM, Daily Drive to Survive® and Pledge The Miles You Drive®, Daily Ride to Survive® and Pledge The Miles You Ride®, and Daily Commute To SurviveTM and Pledge The Miles You Ride®

Peter Pasternack’s Real Estate Connections Special Edition with Shane Jarmin, Glynn Lockaby, and Thomas Cardone

The Real Estate Connections event for this month will be on Thursday, June 7, and it will be held at Aja, a modern Asian kitchen, located in the Alliance Center on Lenox Road. If you are in Real Estate in Atlanta this is a must go to networking event.

 

Peter Pasternack/Foundations Designs 

Peter Pasternack, from Foundation Designs, is one of our hosts and is also one of the stars of Flip This House, on one of television’s most recognized real estate investment and home renovation. His company designs, builds, and renovates residential and commercial property.

Peter is in charge of the largest real estate networking event, Real Estate Connections, in town that is held every month.

Shane Jarmin/Jarmin & Jones Real Estate Group @ Ian Marshall Realty

Shane has been consulting buyers and sellers in the Atlanta real estate market since graduating from the University of Central Florida in 2008.  His expertise includes but is not limited to, helping both buyers and sellers in the condo, loft, and townhome markets. He personally invests in residential single family homes and helps other investors purchase income producing properties as a source of residual income.  Shane began his career at Coldwell Banker The Condo Store while attending graduate school at Georgia Tech.  He made the switch to Ian Marshall REALTY in August of 2010 after interviewing with several top real estate companies in the Atlanta area.  He is the youngest brother of an Atlanta business attorney and United States Marine.

Thomas Cardone/Winter Capriola Zenner, LLC

Tom Cardone is an attorney with the firm Winter Capriola Zenner, LLC, which is located in Atlanta, Georgia. He focuses his law practice in the areas of construction, real estate, and business law. Within these practice areas, Tom assists clients with a variety of deals and disputes.

As a litigator, Tom has experience handling disputes involving, among other matters, breach of contract, property rights, construction liens & construction defects, residential landlord-tenant & commercial leasing issues, homeowners’ & condominium association covenant enforcement and assessment collections, business collections, and general business and commercial disputes. Although disputes often result in litigation, Tom recognizes the value of alternative dispute resolution and assists his clients with pre-trial negotiation, mediation, and arbitration when appropriate.

Tom counsels his clients through a variety of transactions. He has experience assisting clients with choosing the appropriate corporate form and setting up companies, as well as negotiating and drafting business agreements. Tom also assists clients with construction agreements, real estate purchase and sale agreements, residential & commercial leasing, and drafting subdivision & condominium covenants.

Tom received his Juris Doctor, with honors, from Emory University School of Law and is admitted to practice law throughout the state of Georgia. Tom attended Auburn University for his undergraduate education.

Prior to becoming an attorney, Tom served honorably as a United States Marine.

Glynn Lockaby/Lockaby State Farm Agency

The Lockaby State Farm Agency’s mission is to assist their clients with their insurance and financial service needs including auto, home, renters, life, health, and even retirement planning. Their team is dedicated to offering the finest products while providing personal service that is unsurpassed.

 

Sahil Patel with ER Express, Brett Compton and Rich Fabritius with Brunner, and Mavian Arocha-Rowe with Strategy Magazine

Sahil Patel/ER Express

Sahil Patel is the executive vice president of ER Express, overseeing sales, client relationships, product development, and company strategy. An Emory University alumnus, he also holds an MBA from Harvard Business School. Prior to ER Express, he worked at CodeRyte and MedAssets. Sahil lives in midtown Atlanta with wife, Katie, and their two year old daughter, Lark. Find him on LinkedIn.

ER Express lets patients choose their preferred time and location when going to the emergency room. It puts power and information in the patient’s hand.

Brett Compton/Brunner

Brett Crompton is VP and Atlanta Creative Director for Brunner and is among a handful of creative directors in the business who actually worked in account management long before he ever created his first word of ad copy. For our clients, that means he has a real appreciation for the business of brand strategy and generating work that makes a difference in sales, market share, and mind share. He also has a strong appreciation for the power of great ideas in making client budgets go further and work harder. Brett’s work has been recognized internationally by The One Show, Communication Arts, Cannes, The National Addy Awards, as well as many more. He joined Brunner in 2005 when the agency acquired Sawyer Riley Compton in Atlanta.

Rich Fabritius/Brunner

Rich is VP and Atlanta Managing Director for Brunner. He has developed a reputation as a team player who is well respected by his clients and colleagues for his ability to apply market research findings to establishing effective strategies that lead to truly integrated marketing plans. Rich also has worked with clients, such as Dow Great Stuff, Golf Pride, and Goody Hair Care, to develop innovative merchandising and POS programs to improve their performance within leading retail chains, including Wal-Mart and Target. Rich became a member of Brunner in 2005 when Sawyer Riley Compton became Brunner’s Atlanta office and has been instrumental in its explosive growth.

Mavian Arocha-Rowe/Strategy Magazine & The IHC

Mavian Arocha-Rowe is an asset to the publishing industry, allocating her strengths in writing and research to developing thought-provoking profiles and informational editorial which have been published in a variety of media outlets. She is currently the editor-in-chief of Strategy Magazine, a national business lifestyle publication, where she has received accolades from FOLIO Magazine and the Library Journal. Her hands-on experience in the ever- changing business world has ignited her passion and perseverance to creatively fuse Strategy’s “Business Learning & Life.” She provides business tips to the ambitious professionals who are thirsty to reinvent themselves within the present economy, as well as business leaders who are striving to build a legacy.

Arocha-Rowe is also a Speaker and Advocate for WellSpring Living, spokesperson for Ambassadors for Kids Club, on-air contributor for CNN NotiMujer, and Director of Content and Education for The Institute for HealthCare Consumerism.


Corporate Relocation Trends with Kathy Connelly: Prudential Georgia Realty

Kathy Connelly/Prudential Georgia Realty

Kathy Connelly, SCRP is Senior Vice President,Corporate Services. She has over 25 years of experience in the real estate industry. Prior to joining Prudential Georgia Realty in 1994, she gained experience in a management capacity for two different third party relocation management companies and achieved success in business development and relocation management with another national residential real estate franchised company.

Under her leadership and with support of a skilled team of 25 real estate service professionals, Prudential Georgia Realty has been the recipient of numerous performance awards including the coveted 2010 Prudential Relocation Spirit of Partnership Award.

Areas of responsibilities include corporate business development, REO disposition services, relocation service, corporate inventory management, property management, short sales marketing, e-business management.

Ms. Connelly has earned her SCRP designation, was awarded both the Meritorious Service and the Distinguished Service awards by the Worldwide Employee Relocation Council, served as the past president and chairman of the board for the Relocation Directors Council as well as two-term president of the Metro Atlanta Relocation Council and she was previously honored with national recognition as the Relocation Director of the Year for Prudential Relocation. With her leadership and support from a wonderful relocation team of 20, her company has been the recipient of numerous performance awards.

 

 


Technology and the Information Economy with Keith Herndon with Internet Decisions

Keith Herndon/ Internet Decisions, LLC

Keith L. Herndon, Ph.D. is a strategic research consultant specializing in media, technology and the information economy. His firm is Internet Decisions, LLC. Dr. Herndon’s extensive career includes experience as a reporter, editor and new media executive. He was Administrative Editor at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution where he chaired the company’s technology committee. Later, he was Vice President of Operations and Vice President of Planning and Product Development for Cox Enterprises’ Internet Division. Dr. Herndon has also taught research methods, ethics, leadership and media management at Kennesaw State University and the University of Georgia. He will be a visiting professor at UGA during the upcoming academic year. He completed his doctorate work in media and information at Curtin University in Perth, Australia and earned his master’s degree from the University of Oklahoma. He has an undergraduate degree in journalism from the University of Georgia and also completed the Davenport Fellowship in business and economic reporting at the University of Missouri. Dr. Herndon’s third book will be out this summer: The Decline of the Daily Newspaper: How an American Institution Lost the Online Revolution by Peter Lang Publishing. His two previous books were based on expert interviews regarding innovation and entrepreneurship.