Committee

Jim Abbott is the VP of Client Solutions (aka director of sales and marketing) with Ashton Solutions, a nationally recognized provider of business technology consulting and managed IT services. After 15 years in marketing and analytics with Fortune 500 companies, Jim made the move to SMBs where growth could be directly traced to his efforts. While nobody in their right mind would ever ask him to fix their technology issues, he knows the questions to ask and connections to make to ensure the proper solution for his clients.

Sam joined Brady Ware as partner in January 2006. He leads the firm’s Dealership Services team, working with dealerships to decrease their tax burden, maximize tax benefits, streamline processes and financial reporting, increase profits, prevent fraud, and expand operations to new markets. He links these services with overall tax, audit, and strategic planning initiatives to help his clients realize financial rewards across their businesses.

Chris is the Resident Sales Director for Ohio responsible for the offices in Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati. Chris’s responsibilities include working with Aon’s Corporate Leadership team to identify growth areas and developing strategic plans to execute upon across the four pillars of our firm - Risk, Wealth, Human Capital, and Health. In addition, Chris is also responsible for managing Aon’s executive relationships with many of the firm’s large multinational clients.

Michael D. Arguelles, Partner, is responsible for initiating investment opportunities, structuring investments, performing due diligence, negotiating transaction terms, working with Portfolio Company management teams, and managing the disposition of investments. Mr. Arguelles graduated from The Ohio State University in 1993 with a B.S.B.A. in Finance. Mr. Arguelles received his MBA with a concentration in finance from the Fisher College of Business at The Ohio State University.

Mary E. Auch is regional president of PNC Bank for Central Ohio. With a career spanning more than 28-years at PNC, Auch has extensive banking experience and deep roots in Columbus. She began her career as part of the bank’s Retail Development Program in 1995 and then moved into Corporate Banking in 2001. She has been the regional president since 2019.

Matthew “MJB” Benson is the cofounder & CEO of eFuse, the #1 platform for gamers to meet, compete, and be discovered.

Matthew has grown the eFuse ecosystem to millions of gamers, raised over $8M in venture capital, spearheaded the acquisitions of four companies, and been named to the Forbes 30u30 Gaming list.

Prior to eFuse, Benson spent time at the Ohio Innovation Fund (OIF), a venture capital firm in Columbus, Ohio, as an Investment Analyst and Executive in Residence.

Ben is a corporate transactional attorney who has represented a wide range of public and private companies and many of the leading international private equity sponsors. He has significant experience advising clients on domestic and cross-border M&A, leveraged buyouts, joint ventures, minority investments, divestitures and restructurings. Ben also is an adjunct professor at The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law and serves on the board of NoticeAbility and the advisory board of Calmer Choice.

Frank is founding partner of Oxer. By partnering with community banks as investors and obtaining additional capital through the SBA, Oxer has invested in over 28 companies since 2016. Capella originates and manages portfolio companies , in addition, to sitting on Oxer's investment committee, and has been involved in financing middle market companies for more than 30 years.

Hugh Cathey is the chairman and CEO of ChromoCare, a company involved in genetic testing of patients’ medication compatibility. He is also the founder of Columbus Partners, an advisory that provides technology firms guidance on capital acquisition, M&A activity and growth strategy.

Darci joined GBQ in 1998, became a partner in 2003 and was elected managing director in 2010. Prior to joining the firm, Darci worked in the tax practices of two regional firms. Her client base is primarily closely-held businesses and their owners, and real estate companies. Darci is on the boards of the Columbus-Franklin County Finance Authority and the Columbus Chamber of Commerce.

Norm is executive vice president of corporate development at Sequoia Financial Group. Previously, he was president and CEO of Wealthstone Advisers and led Banc One/JPMorgan’s Institutional Investment Group, where he oversaw a team responsible for advising over $250 billion in assets. He also served as director at One Group Global Funds and director of JPMorgan Asset Management (UK) Ltd. and was on Banc One’s Investment Advisors’ Board of Directors and its Investment Policy Committee and Investment Management Group Risk & Policy Committee.

Rick is Co-founder and Partner of Slate Capital Group and he runs Slate's Cincinnati office. Having been a CEO multiple times in the lower middle market, Rick spends most of his time with Slate portfolio companies on talent development and operational excellence. In his spare time, Rick serves on a few philanthropic boards, spends time with his family, and completes ultra-hikes with his fellow Sufferfesters (ask him! :)

Scot manages the firm’s corporate, M&A, private equity, securities and tax practices, and is also the head of the cannabis group, which consists of more than 40 attorneys throughout the U.S. and Canada. He has extensive experience in corporate, mergers and acquisitions and tax law and has served as lead counsel in mergers and acquisitions, private equity investments, private offerings, venture capital financings, mezzanine debt offerings, divestitures and other related financial transactions, in a number of industry sectors, including the cannabis industry.

Josh works with business leaders on ownership transactions and liquidity events, including sell-side and buy-side engagements and transactions, such as management buyouts, succession and exit planning, ESOP formations, capital sourcing and leveraged recaps. Prior to leading Footprint Capital, Josh was vice president at Insource Spend Management Group. He led Insource through two synergistic acquisitions and ultimately, its sale.

COhatch was born out of Matt’s desire to merge his business energy and talent with his calling to help the least, the last and the lost. He develops innovative brands and business models that also sustainably support the community. Previously, he was vice president of Business Excellence for Velocys, ran a large business unit for Parker Hannifin, designed and implemented new manufacturing plants for Honda and was a consultant for Arthur Andersen.

Cindi is a serial entrepreneur, business advisor and coach. She is passionate about working with like-minded people ready to support and invest in women-owned businesses. She is excited by the opportunity to create wealth for female founders and ROI for investors. Cindi leads the organization as the fund manager. As a long-time angel investor herself, Cindi looks forward to helping founders scale and successfully exit their businesses.

Reese founded the Columbus Area Family Exchange, a private club for family offices and ultra high net worth individuals with at least $100M in net worth. He also is the Managing Partner at Columbus Venture Partners and he hosts weekly events for business owners, investors, C-suite executives and family offices.

Mark Fleming is the managing partner of MEMM Capital, a holding company focused on acquiring and tech-enabling businesses that generate between $1 mil and $3 mil of EBITDA. Previously, Mark was the founder of Signature Closers, LLC, a real estate services and technology company that was acquired by Fortune 800 Stewart Title Company in Feb '21.

Ryan Giacomarro is a Managing Director at J.P. Morgan Private Bank. As the Head of the Ohio Market, Ryan leads a team of Bankers and Specialists to deliver holistic wealth management advice, strategies and services for affluent individuals and their families. His focus is on providing the resources necessary to help clients fulfill their purposes and leave legacies for the next generation.

Ryan believes strongly in a “One Ohio approach,” essentially a single team sitting in multiple locations, united in delivering the best of J.P. Morgan. Collaborating together, they serve as a powerful gateway to the strengths of the firm—opportunistic ideas and intellectual capital, the Investment and Commercial Banks, and other sophisticated capabilities necessitated by substantial assets. Ryan recruits a diverse group of talented Bankers, and forges a culture where everyone can thrive and succeed. He has deep roots in the area, and plays an active and visible role in expanding J.P. Morgan’s brand recognition and presence in the community.

With over 25 years of industry experience, Ryan brings a strong track record in managing the challenges inherent when running a complex organization. He is drawn to the tremendous growth opportunity in Ohio, and welcomes the chance to be part of an organization that spans the globe.

Before joining J.P. Morgan, Ryan spent much of his career with UBS as an influential force in the expansion and evolution of the firm. His management capabilities extend across products, sales, operations and markets, and he has held senior leadership roles in New Jersey, North Carolina and Ohio.

Girish Gowda is a Serial Entrepreneur, currently serving as a CEO & Director for 2 Tech Companies - Steepgraph & eShocan. Previously co-founded Cresttek and grew revenues from 0 to $18M in 4 years and made a successful exit. Currently working on creating a $100M Tech services group via organic & inorganic strategy.

Chris Greenfelder has over 30 years of experience leading Finance and Accounting teams and more than a decade as a mid cap company CFO helping to grow brands and increase shareholder value in consumer products and consumer services. Chris has helped to complete two dozen transactions, two of which were private equity-sponsored, sell-side transactions.

Jordan Hansell is the Founder and CEO of Tradepost, LLC., an investment platform, providing growth capital to mid-market firms ($1MM to $20MM in EBITDA and $10MM to $100MM in enterprise value) with proven growth trajectories and management teams who have a strong vision. Tradepost selectively seeks investments in businesses it can understand that enjoy defensible, competitive positions with demonstrable opportunities to grow.

Most recently, Jordan served as the President of Rockbridge, a private equity firm focused on the hospitality industry with just under $3B in assets under management. Mr. Hansell also served as a member of the firm's Executive and Investment Committees.

Prior to joining Rockbridge, Jordan served as the Chairman and CEO of NetJets Inc., a Berkshire Hathaway Company and the world's largest private aviation provider, which focuses on providing premier, personalized customer service to highly discerning consumers. At NetJets, Jordan led a complete overhaul of the business's culture, processes, and marketing strategies as well as an international expansion into China and India. More specifically, during Jordan’s tenure, NetJets enjoyed its longest-ever string of profitable years, culminating in the highest level of annual profit in its history (which resulted in $1B P&L improvement from the year Jordan arrived at NetJets). In addition, during Jordan’s tenure, NetJets placed $17.5B worth of aircraft purchases, the largest of any such orders in private aviation history, and retired $1.8B in debt.

Before joining NetJets, Jordan was a partner with the law firm Nyemaster Goode, where his practice focused primarily on general corporate matters, complex real estate transactions, private placements, and mergers and acquisitions. Prior to joining Nyemaster Goode, he served as a law clerk to the Honorable Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.

Jordan is the Executive Chairman of Consolidated Metals, Inc., a national tubing supplier, the Executive Chairman of GO Companies, a technology-forward combination of businesses serving the residential real estate market, and a board member of Feazel Roofing, LLC, one of the 10 largest residential roofing companies in the US. Jordan also served for 7 years as the Executive Chairman of QuickInsured, a fast-growing digital insurance agency (which was sold in 2022 to one of the country’s largest insurance brokerages). Jordan was also the Chair for Mount Carmel Health System, which included serving as the Chair of the Finance Committee, and on the Board of Trustees for Simpson College for 17 years, which included stints as Treasurer for the College as well as Chair of the Finance and Audit Committees.

Jordan has spoken internationally on a variety of topics, including global supply chains, intellectual property for emerging businesses, and leadership. Mr. Hansell received his

A.B. Honors degree in Political Science, summa cum laude, from Duke University; a Juris

Doctorate, magna cum laude, from the University of Michigan Law School; and a master’s degree in Public Policy from the University of Michigan School of Public Policy.

Jordan has been married to Silvia for 26 years, and the two of them have two daughters and a son, Emery, John and Collier. They live together on Daufuskie Island, South Carolina.

Carter Hatch is a Director at Windsor Advisory Group, an investment advisory firm providing family office services to highly successful individuals, their families and family offices. Carter combines her work at The Columbus Foundation as a philanthropic advisor with her time as an Investment Specialist with JPMorgan’s Private Bank in San Francisco to bring unique experience and expertise to Windsor.

Jacob Herschend is a Principal at Brightstar. Jacob leads Brightstar’s Business Development across the Midwest. He is a third-generation owner and steward of a family-owned business, Herschend Family Entertainment. 

Prior to joining Brightstar, Jacob was a Vice President at Marsh & McLennan Agency, working in Business Insurance and specializing in strategically owned and family-operated businesses serving as the Director of the Multi-Generational Family-Owned Businesses Strategies Vertical. Previously, Jacob owned and operated three restaurants in the St. Louis area. Additionally, Jacob has worked for three United States Senators and a U.S. Attorney General.

Jacob received his M.B.A. focused on Families in Business from Kennesaw State University. He received his B.A. from Gordon College. Jacob serves on the boards of The Foundation for Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Forest Park Forever.

Christopher has diverse experience representing top-tier leveraged buyout and private equity funds, fund sponsors and investors, and their portfolio companies. Chris advises clients on corporate matters, including mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, venture capital and private equity financings, joint ventures, and other investment transactions with an emphasis on middle-market transactions. Chris represents financial sponsors and their portfolio companies, as well as strategic buyers in connection with mergers and acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, recapitalizations, growth equity financings, and other investment transactions. Prior to joining Benesch, Chris practiced at Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP in New York, New York.

Sheri’s foray into entrepreneurship began with Measurement Resources Company in 2010. Now a national firm, Measurement Resources increases the capacity of non-profit and government sector organizations through high-performance practices and data-driven insights. In 2018, Sheri launched SureImpact, Inc. to automate and simplify the process of collecting and sharing outcomes and impact data. She is an international speaker and author of Impact & Excellence: Data-Driven Strategies for Aligning Mission, Culture, and Performance in Nonprofit and Government Organizations (Jossey Bass, 2014).

Todd Kavalieros is a Senior Vice President and Market Leader with First National Bank in Columbus, Ohio. In this role, Todd will expand FNB’s presence in the Central Ohio region and develop new business opportunities with various middle market companies and municipal entities. Prior to joining FNB, Todd worked at several super-regional banks throughout the Midwest in leadership capacities within the commercial, municipal and treasury management banking verticals. Most recently, he worked as a senior management consultant delivering enterprise-wide strategic financing solutions and capital planning to entities with annual budgets up to $750 million.

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. 

Paige McCarthy is the Vice President at Trailhead Brothers. Founded in 2020, Trailhead is a private capital group that acquires and runs Midwest operating companies. At Trailhead, Paige helps identify, evaluate and execute acquisition opportunities. Post-closing, she helps support these acquisitions by providing financial and operational support. Paige joined Trailhead Brothers after years of diverse financial experience including former roles in corporate finance, venture capital and private equity.

Al Melchiorre is President and founder of MelCap Partners, a middle market investment banking firm that he founded over 22 years ago, Over the past few years, MelCap has been recognized as boutique investment banking firm of the year multiple times by The M&A Advisor. MelCap's clients are predominately privately-held, family owned businesses going through a once in a life-time transaction.

William Miller has proven himself as a premier IT Financial Management guru and is passionate about sharing his knowledge to help organizations make better business decisions. With more than 20 years of IT Financial Management experience and distinctive IT savvy combined with financial insight, William has created proven repeatable processes to help IT organizations address the fundamental challenges of demonstrating their cost drivers, showing their business value, and aligning their strategic goals.

Prior to founding Proven Optics, William founded Proven IT Finance, a leader in IT Financial Management and innovation. In his role with Proven IT Finance, William developed the cornerstone “Blueprint for Success” and helped 70+ organizations across industries and the Public Sector achieve outstanding results with their ITFM/TBM practice.

William worked as IT CFO for Nationwide Insurance, overseeing the planning, forecasting, and chargeback of more than one billion dollars in annual IT spend. As one of his many accomplishments, Miller drove IT cost reductions of $80M in a single year — without disruption in core service levels or delaying key business initiatives by combining a well-designed cost model with unique insights into IT and its cost drivers. In addition, through proactive management of the IT footprint, Miller kept total IT spend flat for 7 years while continuing to upgrade and update key technologies as well as delivering $2.5B in new business-transformation projects.

Since joining Kassel Equity in 2013, Brett Motherwell has contributed to its business development team with his experience in global financial markets, creating multinational corporations’ global payroll platforms at Global Single Source Solution. He also helps oversee financial operations throughout the company and its subsidiaries, in concert with Thomas Werner. Previously, he worked with TTR, a Portland, Oregon-based company that specializes in the creation of customized sales and use tax rulings on business-related goods and services.

Brant Murdock is a Partner of Tenby Partners, a boutique commercial real estate investment and development company with a primary focus on industrial, office and retail assets in Columbus and select Southeast markets. Since the pandemic, Tenby has developed over 1.3MM square feet of new Class A Lab/R&D/Tech-Flex, last-mile infill distribution, and traditional manufacturing buildings - with another 1MM square feet of projects in the pipeline.

Doug is the Central Ohio Market President for Truist, leading a team of bankers to grow, retain, and attract long term client relationships and serve as our client’s trusted financial partner by leveraging deep industry knowledge and best in class advisory solutions. Prior to joining Truist, Doug held leadership roles in Corporate Banking and Credit Administration with Central Ohio financial institutions.

Kerri Nicholson is a Business Performance Advisor in the Columbus community. She works with entrepreneurs to help remove barriers blocking business success and guides them on the journey toward greater revenue generation, better cost containment and risk reduction through a more strategic approach to human resources. Her passion is helping small businesses level the playing field and elevate their competitive advantage in the marketplace. For over 15 years she has been building relationships with business owners and leaders across various industries and understands the day-to-day challenges they must overcome to achieve their goals.

Andrea O'Carroll is an experienced leader, supporting a wide variety of Fortune 500 clients and industries throughout her career. As Managing Director, Corporate Partnerships at Rev1 Ventures, she ensures that their innovation partners leverage all aspects of Rev1’s Startup Studio to deliver strategic, high-impact innovation outcomes. With an extensive background in strategic operations and customer experience, as well as her entrepreneurial spirit, Andrea fosters strong relationships and offers solutions to a wide range of stakeholders from corporate executives to startup founders. Previously Andrea served for nearly 7 years in a variety of leadership roles at CoverMyMeds, experiencing the rapid scale and exit of one of Ohio's preeminent start-ups.

Matt is responsible for the underwriting and administration of equity and mezzanine investments as part of the Stonehenge Community Development team in Columbus. With extensive experience in underwriting federal and state New Markets Tax Credit investments, he is uniquely qualified to assist with equity, mezzanine and early stage investments. Mr. Orr gained his early experience as a financial analyst at Procter & Gamble in Cincinnati.

Prior to joining Stonehenge, Mr. Orr served as an advisor for the Evans Scholarship Foundation at The Ohio StateUniversity, overseeing 76 Evans Scholars and managing the off-campus group living facility. Mr. Orr, who is an Evans Scholar, earned his BS in finance from The Ohio State University.

Jeff leads Kensington Hill Partners, a board of directors and corporate growth advisory firm, which concentrates on five business competencies: board advisory services, private equity investments, business consulting, executive search and sales advisory services. Its focus and expertise is on mid-market and entrepreneurial companies with high-growth potential. With offices in Columbus, Ohio, Jeff supports and invests in companies throughout the Midwest.

Moniqua Spencer is an experienced banking and finance professional. She is currently a Senior Vice President at Advantage Capital, a growth equity firm with $3.6 billion AUM. As a member of the investment team, Moniqua seeks new investment opportunities with high growth businesses located in communities where access to investment capital has historically been hard to find.

Jason Stevens is a Managing Director and COO at Copper Run, a middle-market investment bank focused on M&A Advisory. Prior to joining Copper Run in 2016, he founded an energy start-up, led energy equity research at Morningstar, and worked in corporate financial planning at property-casualty insurer Zurich North America.

Catherine Strauss is the Managing Partner of Ice Miller's Columbus office. She is also an adviser and advocate for employers with workforces in Ohio and nationally. She is also a skilled coach to human resource professionals and business executives. Preferring practical outcomes based on a keen knowledge of the law and common sense judgment, Catherine is an effective adviser in managing risks and conflict avoidance.

When disputes are unavoidable, Catherine is a tenacious trial attorney, having successfully represented employers and businesses in all types of legal proceedings, both in Ohio and nationally.

Finally, Catherine serves as a neutral investigator in all types of matters involving or impacting employees.

An inspiring, highly ethical "C" level executive with significant depth and experience in the Financial and Professional service sectors. Strengths focused on operational excellence leading national in-scope service groups, financial and strategic planning and reporting. Over the course of an extensive senior leadership career, the ability to build and support cross-functional teams with a focus on employees growth and exceeding revenue/EBITDA goals was demonstrated, as well as the ability to build consensus and to be an extremely effective communicator among peers, board members and direct reports. I have achieved extraordinary results with a Fortune 500 company, a pre/post IPO as well as mid-sized private firm.

Faith Voinovich is a Principal at Ohio Innovation Fund where she serves as a key member of the investment team. Since joining the team in 2018, Faith has led investments spun out of top research institutions, helped facilitate numerous follow on equity (and non-dilutive) rounds across the portfolio, assisted on several M&A exit transactions (value exceeding $500 million), and served in a variety of board roles including at Invirsa, Clarametyx, Genetesis, DatAnchor, Complion (merged with Realtime CTMS), and Stirling Ultracold (merged with BioLife Solutions, NASDAQ: BLFS).

Andy is Managing Director and Co-CEO of Bellmark Partners, LLC, and head of the firm’s Cleveland office. Andy has 30 years of investment banking experience, having personally completed well over 100 M&A, special committee, and board advisory assignments. Previously, he was with KeyBanc Capital Markets, where he was head of the sponsor coverage, consumer & retail, and M&A investment banking groups.

Eric is the co-founder and CEO of Converge Ventures, a technology start-up studio. He is the co-founder and CSO of Converge Technologies, an engineering and product development company. Eric is an experienced entrepreneur and seasoned C-suite executive. Previous to Converge, he was the president of a $300mm aerospace and defense company. Eric is an active angel investor.

Julie is an Audit Partner with Crowe and has over 18 years of experience. She serves upper middle-market privately owned clients in the manufacturing, distribution, and service industries. Julie’s clients range in size from $20 million to more than $1 billion in revenues, across a wide range of industries and companies with multi-national and multi-state operations and complex accounting and audit issues. Julie works with family owned and private equity owned businesses.

Nici Workman is a partner in the Vorys Columbus office and chair of the firm’s finance practice. Her practice focuses on commercial and structured finance transactions and derivatives matters, representing national and regional banks and public company and other large corporate borrowers in a wide range of financing transactions.

Al Yambor CFP®, CEPA® is a Senior Director in Sequoia Financial Group's Family Wealth team. He delivers family office and investment advisory solutions to ultra-affluent families, entrepreneurs, and family offices. He is energized by working with entrepreneurs and has helped dozens prepare for exits and liquidity events. He brings significant experience helping entrepreneurs incorporate philanthropy into transactions. Prior to joining Sequoia in 2019, he was a vice president for PNC’s Private Bank.

Will has founded three technology companies in addition to building successful real estate and retail ventures over the past 14 years. He is deeply passionate about seeing startups succeed, serving for a time as the Managing Director of a startup accelerator. Will draws from a broad range of experience in communications, organizational development, leadership, brand development and innovation. He brings drive and passion to the Nikola Labs team.  Will was honored at the White House as top entrepreneur under 30 as part of Empact100 list and was also received the 2019 BizTech Executive of the Year award by Columbus Business First.

Dean Zody is a business-oriented Global Operations Leader with an engineering background delivering innovative solutions with measurable growth and profitability. Accomplished background in start-ups, cost reduction initiatives, and operations management in telecommunications, chemical and consumer product. Multiple disciplines include operations, supply chain, procurement, and logistics. Strong database and data analytical skills. In 2016, he founded GhostWave, commercializing patents from Ohio State University.

Brian Zuercher is a General Partner of 1870 Ventures. 1870 Ventures is a venture capital studio bringing brilliant IP to market. We discover, fund, and build companies around breakthroughs that originated at universities and institutions. Brian has been the co-founder of several companies and is passionate about supporting entrepreneurs in the Central Ohio region.