Committee

Abbeygale Anderson is the Founder of Cross Impact Capital, an investment firm with the mandate of investing in underserved founders and/or category-redefining businesses that seek to address some of the largest disparities among underserved communities. The fund is focused on tech-enabled solutions within financial services and healthcare.

Previously, Abbey was an Investor at Stone Point Capital, where she focused on investing in businesses within the global financial services industry.

Outside of work Abbey serves as a Board Member for her alma mater, Noble and Greenough School and the Synergist Network, a national organization dedicated to providing women the infrastructure, network, and business acumen critical for long-term success in their investing career. Abbeygale graduated Cum Laude from Dartmouth College with a degree in Political Science and Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies.

Jarrett is a Principal at Heritage Growth, responsible for originating and evaluating investment opportunities and working with management teams to implement operational and growth strategies. Previously, Jarrett was employed by Brightstar Capital Partners and Trive Capital, where he was engaged in private equity investments for companies spanning a variety of industries including niche manufacturing, recycled services and building products.

Ryan Brown brings a diverse background in both sales and operational leadership in addition to entrepreneurship spanning the past 25 years. With Insperity's Private Capital Markets team, Ryan's focus is on expanding relationships within Private Equity and Venture Capital firms as well as Family Offices and their portfolio companies. Prior to joining Insperity in 2009, Ryan held several sales leadership roles in the recruiting industry before launching a 10 year career as an entrepreneur and business owner.

Christy Brown is the dynamic CEO of Dr. Noze Best, based in Atlanta, Georgia. With over two decades in the realms of professional services, digital commerce, and technology, Christy's entrepreneurial journey boasts the successful foundation and exit of four companies, both public and private.

In 2010, she pivoted to Angel Investing and mentorship, with a laser focus on elevating female founders. By 2018, as a General Partner, she spearheaded the inception and nationwide replication of a venture studio model from her home turf in Atlanta. Her fervor for merging venture capital with underserved entrepreneurs led her to take the helm as President & CEO of Launchpad2X in 2020. This non-profit accelerator, which Christy ardently supported both financially and as a mentor, zeroes in on amplifying female founders, readying them for venture capital through comprehensive education and a tight-knit community. By 2022, Christy was back in the entrepreneurial hot seat, taking charge as the CEO of Dr. Noze Best — a rapidly growing pediatric wellness brand devoted to premier health and preventative care products for youngsters.

In addition to her corporate achievements, Christy actively uplifts, mentors, and invests in female founders and founders of color. This is evidenced by her roles as an Entrepreneur in Residence at Emory University, Venture Partner in various funds, Lead at the Emory University Startup Accelerator, and board member for numerous non-profits and burgeoning companies.

Eric Carter leads Brady Ware’s Atlanta office and focuses on developing and implementing financial and tax planning strategies for his clients. He spends most of his time in consulting work, helping clients with compliance, buying and selling business, and other transactional needs. Eric also helps lead the firm’s Business Solutions Group, providing customized tax services and consulting for small-market business clients.

Eric’s experience includes working at Marsh & McConnell before joining Brady Ware as a result of a merger in 2010. Eric was named a director in 2012.

Corey Clemons is a Vice President at Georgia Oak, supporting Georgia Oak’s deal, portfolio, and sourcing efforts.

Corey joins Georgia Oak from ServiceMaster, a Roark Capital portfolio company, and TireHub, a JV between Goodyear and Bridgestone. He’s served in a variety of roles including FP&A, corporate strategy and the in-house M&A team. Prior to TireHub, Corey was an Associate with JP Morgan Chase in their multinational corporation and public finance credit team, where he worked on several notable municipal and infrastructure finance deals.

In addition to his professional accomplishments, Corey holds a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Michigan and an MBA from the University of Georgia. He grew up around football and played quarterback for an NCAA Division III school. He currently lives in Atlanta with his wife and two daughters.

Traci Cupp is the founder of Reign Executives. She partners with high-growth companies to secure transformational executives that drives operational excellence, revenue growth and shareholder value. Traci has led over 150 executive searches in various sectors in key roles across the U.S. These placements have contributed to billions in total transaction value creation for lower middle market and middle market private and growth equity sectors. Traci is a Vistage Chair to an Atlanta-based CEO peer group.

Mr. Dangar is responsible for the origination, underwriting and management of mezzanine and equity investments from the Atlanta office. Prior to joining Stonehenge, Mr. Dangar led business development for transaction services for Aprio, LLC, a regional tax and accounting advisory firm focused on growing, middle market companies. Prior to that, Mr. Dangar was the National Deals Sales Leader for PwC, responsible for driving M&A conversations and advice with the firm’s U.S. clients. Prior to that, Mr. Dangar worked for 20 years in the investment banking field, providing buy-side M&A and financing advice to privately-held, growing companies in the US and abroad for Westminster Securities, Wachovia Securities and E&Y. Mr. Dangar earned a BS in Building Construction and a Minor in Economics from The Georgia Institute of Technology and his MBA at Emory University’s Goizueta Business School. Mr. Dangar was recently named one of Georgia's 500 Most Influential People by Georgia Trend Magazine.

Nwanyinma Dike is the Managing Director of Startup Runway Foundation, the leading platform introducing underrepresented founders to their first investors. Nwanyinma also champions the integration of AI and automation in manufacturing as the AI Advanced Manufacturing Catalyst at Georgia Tech’s ATDC.

Dedicated to nurturing the entrepreneurial ecosystem through strategic partnerships, she draws on her extensive experience management consulting and pharmaceutical manufacturing. Nwanyinma holds degrees from Cornell University and the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business.

Mr. Falconer is Co-founder and Managing Member of ScanTech Holdings LLC. A 2007 graduate of Georgia Tech’s Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC), ScanTech is an electron beam and X-ray technology holdings company.

Mr. Falconer is responsible for all corporate operations and has led the company to numerous local and national awards including the Best New Emerging Homeland Technology Company, the Top Ten Most Innovative Technology Company in Georgia, Finalist for Georgia’s International Deal of the Year and Runner-up at the Global Security Challenge.

Mr. Falconer has also played a key role in securing investment capital to fund the successful spin-off of ScanTech’s technology into a homeland security company, ScanTech Identification Beam Systems, LLC (www.scantechibs.com) and a food safety company, Reveam, Inc. (www.reveam.com).

Mr. Falconer still plays an active role in both spin-offs serving as founding President and Chief Executive Officer at ScanTech Identification Beam Systems and Chairman of the Board and a senior technical advisor at Reveam.

Since 2003, Ed has been co-founder and managing partner of SouthPointe Ventures, LLC, an Atlanta-based lower middle market control buy-out fund. SouthPointe focuses on the industrial manufacturing, distribution, and business services sectors, typically in the Southeast and Central U.S.

Prior to SouthPointe, Ed held senior management and operations roles in a family-owned equipment distribution business, and as CFO for the 3rd largest Wendy's franchisee. Ed started his career in leveraged lending at successor banks to Bank of America and Wells Fargo.

Ed serves on the Board of Directors of Junior Achievement of Georgia, on the Investment Committee for Cristo Rey Atlanta Jesuit High School, as FP&A committee chair for the Finance Council of the Archdiocese of Atlanta, and on the Host Committee for the Beloved event. Ed graduated with a B.B.A degree in finance from the University of Notre Dame.

David Gamsey is Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at First Advantage Corporation (NASDAQ:FA). Over his CFO career, he has led two IPO’s, participated in over 40 acquisitions, and raised billions in capital. David attended Emory University and recently earned recognition as Atlanta's CFO of The Year by the CFO Forum in 2022 and The Atlanta Business Chronicle in 2019.

Christopher Graham is the Founder/CEO & CIO of Crown Capital, a private investment firm investing in a diverse range of leading lower middle-market companies. His data-driven investment thesis, business strategy, operations system, and mission to rebuild economic opportunity have proven impactful to thousands of employees and dozens of communities where Crown Capital operates.

Levar Haffoney is the founder and Managing Partner of Vedere Capital Group (VCG), a private investment firm. He is responsible for all aspects of strategy, deal sourcing, due diligence, negotiations, financing, and post-acquisition management.

Mr. Haffoney is a board member with ArtsATL and chairs the Resource Development Committee. He is also the former board Chair with Spectrum Health Services, Inc., a federally qualified health center, based in Philadelphia.

Mr. Haffoney began his career in financial services. He earned a B.S. in Business, Management, and Economics from the State University of New York and an M.B.A. from the Eastern University College of Business and Leadership.

Shuron Hall brings a wealth of experience spanning more than 20 years in the banking industry. She currently leads a group of commercial bankers specialized in providing exceptional advisory services to our commercial clients. Shuron is driven by helping to advise our clients and serving our communities.

Jeff Hawkins is partner and director of CRI's Transaction Advisory Services. Jeff is CPA and focuses all of his time on assisting clients with sell-side or buy-side diligence and consulting needs. He focuses exclusively on middle to lower-middle market buyers and sellers and takes a white glove approach of helping client solve some of their most complex problems will seamlessly integrating into the overall deal team.

Dennis founded North River Group around the belief that traditional private equity does not partner well with family owned businesses. He is active in all stages of North River Group’s investments: deal sourcing, due diligence / deal execution, and portfolio company oversight. Dennis particularly enjoys helping management teams with capital allocation, recruiting and business development activities. He is President of the Birmingham Alternative Investment Group (BAIG) and the Southern Capital Forum (SCF) in Atlanta.

He has taught as an adjunct professor for the business schools of The University of Alabama and Samford University. Dennis serves as an advisory board member of a Birmingham based family office holding company.

He received a JD/MBA and a BS in Finance from The University of Alabama. Dennis is a member of the Rotary Club of Birmingham.

Michael is co-head of the firm’s Mergers & Acquisitions Group and its Investment Management Group. He focuses on middle-market corporate transactions, including mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, and joint ventures. He also serves on the firm's Executive Committee, the governing body of seven partners who oversee firm standing committees, strategic initiatives, and firm operations.

Lee is managing partner of Smart Business Network Inc., a national events, media and marketing company founded in 1989, primarily responsible for expanding the company’s Aspire deal-making conference throughout the U.S. He plays a key role in establishing corporate policies and developing long-term strategy and growth plans. Previously, he founded and chaired the Growth Group at national law firm Arter & Hadden LLP (now Tucker, Ellis & West), which focused on working with middle-market and high-growth technology companies. 

Whalen J. Kuller is a partner at Hartman Simons & Wood LLP. He leads the firm's corporate practice group. He has an earned a reputation as an expert in representation of corporate clients for a wide range of transactions, including acquisitions and divestitures, joint ventures, private equity and venture capital, public offerings and private placements of debt and equity capital. He is also adept at advising clients on a range of corporate issues, such as employment contracts, corporate governance, organization and formation of business entities and licensing and supply and distribution agreements.

Amy is currently Chief Financial Officer for SteelSky Ventures, an emerging venture capital fund investing across women's healthcare. She has extensive experience working with companies from very early-stage to public company with a specific expertise in the middle market.

Before joining SteelSky Ventures, Amy was the CFO for a PE-backed telecom infrastructure company and had her own consulting practice where she provided financial services to boutique investment banking firms, family offices, RIAs and directly to growth-stage companies in conjunction with capital rising activities Amy began her career with J.C. Bradford & Co. (acquired by PaineWebber and now UBS) as a financial analyst. She also had tenures at Ernst & Young Transaction Advisory Services, Interstate/Johnson Lane Corporation (acquired by Wachovia Securities now Wells Fargo Advisors) and Stephens Inc.

Josh Levy currently serves as the CEO of Document Crunch, a contract intelligence platform for the construction industry. With a strong leadership background and expertise in construction law, Josh co-founded Document Crunch to bring his extensive experience with construction contracts to the field. Throughout his career, he has worked for top-ranking construction firms, including JE Dunn, and overseen business units with annual revenues of $1+ billion.

Josh graduated with honors from the University of Florida, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Construction Management. He also holds a Juris Doctorate from the University of Miami, graduating with high honors. These educational achievements, coupled with his professional experience, have shaped the vision for Document Crunch and his desire to raise the standards of the construction industry.

Under Josh's leadership, Document Crunch is on a mission to empower everyone in the construction industry to know what’s in their contracts. With a focus on innovation and excellence, the company strives to make a positive impact and drive industry-wide improvements.

Josh resides in Atlanta with his wife and two daughters. Aside from keeping VERY busy with his family, Josh loves to travel the world, always is ready for a big Florida Gators, Miami Dolphins or Miami Heat game, and is mostly into something active like mountain biking, skiing, boxing, working out, or just enjoying nature.

Renee McCalla-Taylor is a Private Equity investor and Entrepreneur who has a passion for helping businesses to grow and flourish. Renee is Co-Founder and Managing Partner of 4C Capital that has invested in several companies including IGeneX, Insight Medical Genetics, Stride Tool, and Sparkstone. She is responsible for origination, structuring, closing transactions, and portfolio management.

Mrs. McCalla-Taylor is a strong advocate for Minority and Women Owned Businesses. She currently mentors at the Gwinnett Women’s Chamber of Commerce to help women grow and scale their businesses. She has served on the boards of Florida Minority Supplier Development Corporation and as President of the Orlando Chapter of Business and Professional Women (BPW). She holds B.S. and M.A. degrees from the University of Central Florida in Communicative Disorders.

In her spare time, she enjoys a great game of golf, traveling, dancing, and hanging out with family and friends.

Jane McCracken has experience as an entrepreneur and venture capitalist. She co-founded 4 companies, raising $100+ million and achieved exits in each via IPO or trade sale. She also raised 2 venture capital funds and established a 50-person business angel network.

Jane currently serves as the Chief Growth Officer at Corps Team, a nationwide search and staffing firm that works with startups to the Fortune 500. Before this role, Jane was Assistant Director and Entrepreneur in Residence at the ATDC, the state of Georgia’s technology incubator.

She is also a member of the Board of Directors for the Edinburgh Worldwide Investment Trust and Radyus Research.

Chris McDaid is the Region Head for BMO's commercial banking offices across the Southeast. After 20 years at a national competitor, Chris joined BMO six years ago to build their offices and brand in the Region. His teams serve the diverse financial needs of businesses across the geography. Outside of work, he lives in the Virginia-Highlands with his wife and three sons and loves to travel.

Jennifer Moseley is a corporate and securities partner at Burr & Forman LLP, where she counsels public and private companies on an array of transactional, regulatory, capital raising, financing strategies and corporate governance matters. She enjoys assisting clients in her role as counselor and helping clients navigate the intricacies of securities laws with practical solutions to meet their goals.

Mo is a Senior Relationship Manager on Bank of America’s Atlanta Metro Business Banking Team, acting as a client advocate and primary banking contact for clients in the Healthcare, Manufacturing, Transportation, Government Contract space and diverse other industries. In his role, Mo advises clients, helps them navigate the bank and delivers a full spectrum of banking, treasury, credit and other innovative financial solutions. Mo has worked in the financial industry for the past 13 years. Prior to joining Bank of America, Mo worked at J.P. Morgan Chase in the Healthcare, Education & Not-For-Profit banking group and in the Private Bank.

Lyle Newkirk is a CFO Partner with SeatonHill Partners in Atlanta. He has over thirty-five years of experience as a chief financial officer and in executive finance roles, with a significant background in technology and SaaS. Lyle has worked with public and private companies based both in the US and internationally, where he developed the strategies to achieve significant and sustainable top line revenue growth.  Lyle has extensive experience in both buy side and sell side M&A, including three exits to Fortune 500 companies. He has served as CFO for both public and private companies and has led one IPO.

Michael Nolan is the Development Director – Private Equity and Quality of Sales at Sales Xceleration. He is responsible for building relationships with private equity sponsors and helping their portfolio companies grow their topline performance to build value creation and accelerate performance. Michael and his team leverage a collective of 110 sales leaders with portfolio company experience to help their companies grow 32% in year 1, resulting in $1.7B in revenue growth. Their focus is to drive significant growth through strategy formulation, process development, and effective execution in pre-acquisition due diligence, value acceleration during the hold period, and value maximization to support successful exits.

George has over 30 years experience with investment banking, private equity, c-level operations management and corporate development. Currently George leads the efforts of Applied Technical Services, a PE-backed platform that has completed over 30 acquisitions in the past eight years.

John Phillips is the President and CEO of Walden Mergers & Acquisitions based in Atlanta, Ga. He is a retired US Army Reserve Colonel and accomplished business executive with direct experience with creating, turnaround, stabilizing, and driving growth and value for mid-sized businesses and organizations. His success as a business leader reaches back over 35 years and spans the banking, community development, technology, and transportation and logistics industries, where he has increased business value with operational, strategic, and analytical agility.

Mr. Phillip’s career includes 15 years as the founder, owner, and President of Premier Transfer and Storage. Intrinsic to his entrepreneurial tenacity, John completed and integrated three acquisitions for his company. His background also includes the creation of technology accelerators for a major research university and leading the transition and merger or a Virginia based regional technology council.

Will Seippel successfully negotiated over 20 acquisitions and structured complex transactions surpassing $5 billion in capital. A lifelong collector, he created WorthPoint to bring pricing transparency to the $360 billion fine art, antiques, and collectibles market. Today it is the world's largest valuation resource, with 1.3 billion images and 700 million pricing data points of vintage and antique items.

Jonathan Sherrill is an accomplished investor and former business owner with a strong background in the steel building components manufacturing industry. He began his career at Gulf Coast Supply, where he quickly rose through the ranks to become the President, a position he held until 2017.

In 2018, Jonathan founded Quicken Steel, a company he led to great success over the next four years. Under his leadership, Quicken Steel became known for its innovative solutions and exceptional customer service. Jonathan strategically exited the company in 2022, marking the end of a remarkable chapter in his career.

Today, Jonathan is focused on leveraging his extensive experience and knowledge to excel in the world of investing. He remains open to opportunities and ready to offer his assistance where his experiences may be beneficial to others.

Tom has spent the last 22 years at Bank of America/Merrill Lynch where he considers himself an “Intra-Preneur”. He is the founder of a 9 person boutique within the company called Singh & Associates.

He and his team specialize in pre-exit planning for business owners looking to sell their company in 12-36 months. By using their Proprietary financial Modeling Process, they run various simulations and prescribe strategies to help owners maximize their desired outcome.

He also oversees the Avalon location of Merrill Lynch managing 9 Billion of client assets and has been named the top 13 “Best in State Wealth Advisors” list by Forbes Magazine – 4 years in a row.

Kirk Somers, Esq. is an experienced executive with a range of experience from private to public companies. He served as chief legal officer of public companies for over 20 years and a chief people officer for over 10 years. He has raised over $1B in public markets during his career. He is interested in building organizations that recognize that the people come first and is driven to execute and move the business forward.

Paul Sparrow joined Chief Outsiders in 2015, today serving as Managing Partner of the South. A former business owner, he is an operational CMO, CSO, and revenue growth expert with over 30 years of strategic development and execution in various industries and organizational settings, including Fortune 50, startups, turnarounds, and emerging growth.

Andrew Steinberg is the Managing Partner and Founder of Phoenix Capital Ventures (PCV) an early-stage venture firm partnering with companies in the sports, gaming, human performance and immersive media industries. He has a long track record of success growing and operating sports and entertainment properties with the NBA, MLS, NCAA, Nike and others.

Prior to launching Phoenix Capital Ventures, Andrew served as Executive Vice President and Chief Business Officer for the Atlanta Hawks’ NBA franchise and Philips Arena, after rising from Executive Vice President and Chief Revenue Officer for the organization.

Before joining the Hawks, he served as Executive Vice President, Business Operations for Sporting Kansas City and the venue, Sporting Park. Andrew also served as the Associate Athletics Director for Marketing and Revenue Development in the University of Kansas Athletics Department. Prior to his time at KU, he was an associate with the law firm of Riling, Burkhead & Nitcher and had a successful exit as a founder.

Andrew earned bachelor’s degrees in media arts and political science from the University of Arizona. He went on to earn a Juris Doctor from the University of Kansas School of Law, where he also received a certificate in Media, Law and Policy.

Dave Sutton is a globally recognized marketing strategist and investor, with over 30 years of experience transforming businesses through innovative marketing practices. He is the founder of Blue Rhino Capital and TopRight, a transformational marketing consultancy. An accomplished author, Sutton has contributed to significant works in marketing, including “Marketing Interrupted,” “Strategic Analytics,” and “Enterprise Marketing Management: The New Science of Marketing.” His expertise covers a broad spectrum of marketing disciplines, including branding, digital marketing, and leveraging artificial intelligence in marketing. A sought-after speaker, Sutton is known for his insights on marketing ROI, brand strategy, and the impact of technology on marketing. His leadership roles in organizations like YPO and his academic background in computer engineering and marketing enrich his unique perspective on marketing’s role in business growth and innovation.

Glenda Waldschmidt is a Vice President with the National Christian Foundation, an innovative leader in charitable planning. NCF leads with creative and strategic solutions incorporating the gifting of non-cash assets, including private businesses. In her role, she advises high-net-worth business owners comprehensively on financial and non-financial aspects of charitable giving and the stewardship of family wealth, often multi-generational wealth. Glenda previously worked for Deloitte, specializing in taxation. She then transitioned into a career focused on providing comprehensive wealth management counsel to high capacity and ultra-high capacity families.

Gordon R. Watt is a Managing Director & Co-Founder, Ascent Advisory Partners. Gordon has over 30 years of M&A and investment banking experience. He has both middle-market and Wall Street experience, having advised clients ranging from small, founder-owned businesses to large, publicly traded companies. He was a Managing Director at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey (now Truist) responsible for the execution of both M&A and capital raising transactions. Prior roles included Managing Director in the investment banking group at The Robinson-Humphrey Company (a division of Citigroup). He started his career in the corporate and investment banking group at Chemical Bank (now JPMorgan) in New York City. In 2019, he co-founded Ascent Advisory Partners to provide M&A advisory services to family and founder-owned companies in the lower middle-market.

Marvin joined Smith + Howard in 1999. He is a partner in charge of our Accounting and Advisory practice and oversees the firm’s Cyber Risk Management + Compliance solutions. Prior to joining Smith + Howard, Marvin spent several years as CFO of a large Atlanta business. He has extensive experience in accounting, auditing, information systems, business management and consulting. Marvin’s background as CFO and his financial knowledge provides tremendous value to our clients in the areas of SOC engagements, internal control reviews, cyber risk management + compliance, corporate governance, general business advice, accounting and technology services.

Nathaniel Wilson was the co-founder of AKA Tree Service which was acquired in 2023 by a private equity firm. Nathaniel is a co-founder and co-owner of Wilson Construction Management, a heavy civil construction company with a primary focus in roadway construction. Wilson Construction Management was founded in 2019.