Please make your appointments by 7 pm on Thu 12/02/21. We will end registrations then, so our Experts can plan their Friday schedules.
STEPS
1. Review our roster of Experts, below
2. Click on the link below the Expert’s name to schedule an appointment
3. Make individual appointments w/ the experts you need – just ONE – or, up to a maximum of SIX
4. You’ll receive an email & a calendar invitation – w/ a Zoom link (or call-in phone #) for each appointment
5. Fri December 3: at time of each appointment, click on Zoom link or call phone #, to meet w/ your selected Expert
NOTES
1. For most of you, a personal computer will be the best means to access your Expert meetings via Zoom; no need to download software
2. Questions? Email Neil Collins at “neil@InnovateNewAlbany.org”
Schedule up to six 30-minute meeting(s) below:
Liane Rousseau | Porter Wright
Law – Trademarks & Other Intellectual Property
Liane focuses her practice on all aspects of intellectual property. Her experience across a wide range of industries allows her to provide her clients with comprehensive services that protect their products, services and intellectual assets.
Liane has extensive litigation experience in federal courts and with the U.S. Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. She routinely provides advice to clients concerning brand protection, trademark registration, licensing agreements and trademark, trade dress and copyright enforcement and defense.
With a background in privacy and data security, Liane has deep knowledge in litigation, records management and privacy policies. She also understands the operations and governance of intellectual property as it relates to entrepreneurships and startups.
Great Topics for Liane:
- Trademarks, Copyrights, & Patents
- Intellectual Property Rights
- Protection of a Business’s Intellectual Property
- Advertising Law: Can My Competitors Really Say “That”?
Click here to schedule 30 minutes with Liane.
Ryan Steele | Porter Wright
Startup & Emerging Business Law
At Porter Wright, Ryan Steele helps early stage entrepreneurs choose optimal business structures and complete the documentation needed to establish their business foundation, grow and expand, and ultimately exit on their own favorable terms.
Ryan also handles corporate contractual matters to bring mergers, acquisitions, financing, startup operations, and other general business transactions to fruition. Combining business operations knowledge with legal acumen, Ryan efficiently executes complex business contracts so that rapidly growing companies, business owners and early stage entrepreneurs can cost-effectively achieve their growth goals.
Ryan also brings great business savvy to his client relationships. Having managed an office of over 100 people, Ryan can apply his first-hand knowledge of everyday business functions including project management, employee management, and independent contracting, providing practical counsel to fast-growing entities so they can overcome challenges and achieve their business goals.
Great Questions for Ryan:
- Incorporating Your New Business – What forms are possible and the pros/cons of each
- Capital Tables – How to structure company ownership to ensure achieving my long term goals?
- Business Operating Agreements – What are these and when does my business need one?
- Liability – How do I protect myself and my business?
- Written Contracts – When and why should my business use them?
- Regulation & Red Tape – What docs must I file to comply with laws/rules for my industry?
Click here to schedule 30 minutes with Ryan.
Manny Larcher | Stopwatch Creative
Growth Marketing & Branding
Manny Larcher is the CEO of Stopwatch Creative and Founder of Collaborate and Elevate. He is a first-generation American who enjoys helping others find purpose in their work and is passionate about solving the challenges businesses face around growth.
Stopwatch Creative, a boutique marketing agency, with a portfolio including numerous industries from Start-Ups to highly respected brands and high profile individuals. A full-service agency with the clear goal of driving a positive return on investment for clients, Stopwatch Creative assists their clients in numerous ways website/app development, brand development and growth, storytelling, digital advertising, social media, and more. Manny was recently recognized as one of the Top 20 Young Professionals in Columbus by CityPulse.
Great questions for Manny:
- Am I using best design practices to provide a great user experience and engagement?
- How can I generate more sales?
- How can I maximize the results of advertising efforts with my analytics?
- Is my website or my marketing generating good results?
Click here to schedule 30 minutes with Manny.
Brad Griffith | Buckeye Interactive
Web Strategy & Engineering
Brad Griffith is President of Buckeye Interactive, the web strategy and engineering agency he started in 2009. Prior to starting Buckeye Interactive, Brad spent several years consulting and developing web applications in-house for a variety of companies including JPMorgan Chase, QUALCOMM, and the Go Big Network. Brad earned his Masters in Business Administration after completing his Bachelor’s in Electrical and Computer Engineering with honors, both at The Ohio State University.
He has more than 20 years of web development experience and has worked from coast to coast with small and large companies, educational institutions, non-profit organizations and government agencies to build innovative web solutions.
Great questions for Brad:
- What is the best way to get my website started?
- How do I start planning an application for my business?
- How can I improve my site for better SEO?
- What different ways can I start building my company’s brand?
- How can I refresh or redesign my website?
Click here to schedule 30 minutes with Brad.
Satish Albert | E2 Infosystems
Custom Software & App Development
Satish Albert is Founder & CEO of E2 Infosystems. Satish offers a unique combination of experiences: enterprise software development and practical entrepreneurial a, the latter gained while bootstrapping and then selling his own successful SaaS startup. Satish has an advanced degree in computer science and deep experience leading development teams at premier tech companies including: AT&T, Lucent Technologies (Bell Labs), and Docomo Intertouch.
Satish launched E2 Infosystems to help emerging and scaling companies by engineering software solutions that meet their unique needs.
E2 Infosystems has developed software and mobile applications serving:
- SaaS startups
- Healthcare & Assisted Living businesses
- Travel, Manufacturing and Enterprise Legacy Systems
Great questions for Satish:
- How do I turn my idea into a software product or application?
- What factors influence the price of software or app development?
- What are the latest trends or best practices in software/app development?
- How can I make sure my software or app is built to grow as my business grows?
- What’s a realistic timeline & what milestones can I expect when developing my products?
Click here to schedule 30 minutes with Satish.
Susan Fortner | Bowers PR
Public Relations & Marketing
Susan Fortner has 20+ years of experience in public relations and marketing. Her firm Bowers PR manages accounts throughout the country specializing in health care, talent, banking, and packaged and soft goods. In addition the firm is recognized as a broker/partner with QVC, HSN, and Evine shopping networks.
Fortner has won awards and sits on the accreditation board to advance candidates in the Accreditation in Public Relations process. In 2013 Susan received special honors for her work in crisis management.
Great questions for Susan:
- How can I promote my company on a limited budget?
- How do I set Marketing & PR budgets that are sufficient to drive results?
- What simple steps can I take to improve my social media visibility rapidly?
- Which charities, like-minded businesses, and complementary companies should I partner with?
- How do I create and execute events that will differentiate my business in a crowded market?
- How can I get my products featured on shopping channels like QVC and HSN?
Click here schedule 30 minutes with Susan.
Michael Butler | Footprint Capital
Business Exit Advice & Planning
Michael Butler is Senior Director for Columbus based Footprint Capital. Footprint is a boutique investment banking firm that specializes in advising owners of businesses in the exit process.
Michael formerly worked as a certified public accountant in both the audit and consulting practices, a Chief Financial Officer with a manufacturing and distribution company, a senior officer of a Fortune 100 company and a partner in a venture capital firm. These experiences have given him a broad perspective on various industries. He is also a Certified Merger & Acquisition Advisor (CMAA).
Great questions for Michael:
- How should I be preparing to sell my business?
- What are the possible exit options for my business?
- What is the value of having an advisor help me sell my company?
- What are the steps of a sale process and how long does it take?
Click here to schedule 30 minutes with Michael.
Ann Martin | Book+Street
Cash Flow Forecasting & Financial Modeling
Ann Martin joined Book+Street in April 2019 and has provided strategic financial services to multiple early stage companies as their contract Chief Financial Officer. Ask her for support in creating financial models, forecasting cash flow, and if stock options are right for you or your employees.
Prior to joining Book+Street, Ann served as Vice President, Operations for Citi Securities Services and Issuer Services Operations where she managed a team of professionals responsible for the division’s annual budget planning, monthly forecasting, headcount planning and tracking, productivity tracking and cost recovery. She provided guidance and recommendations to senior management if productivity and financials went off track. She was also responsible for managing the technology financial plan, partnering with technology and product organizations to develop a strategic prioritization of the annual spend. She also has experience delivering key insights and financial models for strategic M&A transactions.
Ann has more than 25 years of experience in finance, accounting and administration with a strong focus on financial measurement, risk and compliance, and continuous improvement. Her diverse experience includes strategic planning, budgeting and forecasting, management reporting, financial modeling, vendor negotiations, contract administration and leading global, multi-functional project teams. She has an established track record of improving business performance with strategic financial modeling and analysis.
Great questions for Ann:
- How do I know if I’ll have enough money to pay my bills/payroll next week/month/quarter/year?
- How do I develop a revenue forecast?
- What type of financial information do potential investors expect when considering an investment?
- Do I need to give my employees equity?
Click here schedule 30 minutes with Ann.
Carolyn Kilbride | Book + Street
Startup HR + Talent
Carolyn began her career in Executive Recruiting in 1997, providing sourcing and executive placement support for diverse industries including Technology and Finance. This experience led her to position as a founding team member of a Retail and Pharmacy e-commerce startup in Columbus. As employee number 8, she was responsible for building and managing HR and Recruitment functions for the organization. This included talent and hiring strategy to quickly scale up operations. She managed the end-to-ed HR function, building compensation and benefits plans, defining and implementing company policies and implementing technology to support Human Resources and Recruitment needs. Within 18 months, the company scaled rapidly, growing from 8 to 150+ employees.
She next leveraged her startup experience by taking on a role with Battelle’s Venture Management Group. In this position she was responsible for driving the human resources and recruitment strategy for multiple commercial spinouts from Battelle’s laboratory system. During her tenure with Battelle, Carolyn led multiple firm-wide initiatives to engineer Recruiting processes, build recruitment capability and position the company for success. She led the selection, design, and implementation of novel digital recruiting platform to catalyze Battelle’s diversity and inclusion initiatives, ensuring that all candidates were properly sourced and screened for opportunities. She worked closely with proposal teams to ensure appropriate Talent Planning and pipeline activity. She authored innumerable talent proposals to define Positions, hiring timelines and delivery expectations. She served as Recruiting Manager for the National Security Division for a number of years before returning to her more entrepreneurial roots.
In 2010, Carolyn launched Kilbride Professional Search to support growing companies with their talent acquisition and management needs. She provided HR Consulting and Recruitment and Hiring services for multiple start-ups and corporations, providing on-demand service solutions.
Great questions for Carolyn:
- Developing a compelling company culture for your employees
- Benefit Plan for startups. What should you offer? What is the right time? How to develop a compelling Employer Value Proposition to attract the right people?
- How to hire the right people for your startup.
- What is the difference between a Contractor (1099) and Employee?
- What should I pay employees? What is current market bearing for Compensation? Cash vs. Incentive vs. Equity?
- Developing HR Documentation and Policy guidelines – When is the right time?
- What is happening in the current Talent Market?
Click here to schedule 30 minutes with Carolyn.
Andrea Ewing | Rev1 Ventures
Creating Connections, Corporate Partnerships, Startup Positioning
Andrea is all about creating the connections and infrastructure that entrepreneurs need to build successful companies. Corporate partnerships and high-quality deal flow are the cornerstones of Rev1’s unique, stage-based investor startup studio.
As manager of corporate connections, Andrea advances both. She connects leading corporations that are actively seeking disruptive technologies with startups that are building ground-breaking solutions. Andrea also connects Rev1 portfolio clients with other potential customers—championing the startups with corporates for the innovation potential that startups can deliver.
Outside of the office, Andrea is an avid international traveler and concert-goer. A graduate of The Ohio State University and native of Columbus, she is a Buckeye through and through.
Great questions for Andrea:
- How do you know if you are ready to connect with a larger company?
- How do you prepare for a pitch presentation?
- What are some things we should consider when doing a market comparison?
Click here to schedule 30 minutes with Andrea.
Kevin Hammond | Ohio SBDC
Business Management Advice
Kevin Hammond has been a business management consultant for 13 years, mostly focused on small businesses and start-ups. Kevin has been on the SBDC team for almost ten years as a consultant. Prior to consulting, Kevin was in financial services at Chase Manhattan. Kevin has an undergraduate degree in Business Administration from Ohio Dominican University and an MBA from Capital University.
The Ohio SBDC is part of America’s SBDC national network comprised of over 1000 Centers across the U.S. including 28 in Ohio. The Ohio SBDC Network provides one-on-one advising, by Certified Business Advisors, at no cost and conduct no or low cost business training.
Great questions for Kevin:
- I have a business idea. What is my next step?
- How do I market my services and products?
- How can I take my business to the next level?
- How and where can I get money for my business?
- How do I keep track of my financial records and assure I’m tax compliant?
Click here to schedule 30 minutes with Kevin.
Ed Porter | Blue Chip CRO
Sales, Marketing, and Customer Success
Ed Porter began his professional management career in 2001 and has since led teams from 5 to over 1,000 people with responsibilities for sales, customer experience, and marketing functions. Ed has worked for service, software, and distribution companies learning the foundations of delivering a powerful customer experience while driving value and effectiveness in the sales and development channels. He has participated, facilitated and chaired several executive groups centered on sales management, contact center management, and technology innovation. Ed has been a keynote speaker and guest speaker focused on several key sales strategies and customer management programs. He has been an investor and advisor to startups and will continue supporting startups in these capacities.
Ed is passionate about leadership and volunteers throughout several non-profit organizations supporting the advancement of leaders. Ed has helped re-launch the American Association of Inside Sales Professionals (AA-ISP) Columbus Chapter in 2015 and has served as the chapter President since, growing the chapter to over 150 attendees. He helped launch the Cincinnati/Dayton chapter in 2019 as well as assists with programming and recruitment for events. Ed has also taken an active role as a mentor for #GirlsClub, an organization focused on the advancement and development of women sales leaders. He has mentored three wonderful women, two of which are now mentors in the program.
Great questions for Ed:
- What does a Chief Revenue Officer do?
- What’s the best technology to use to help accelerate sales?
- What does social selling mean?
- I have a sales problem, what can I do?
- What is customer success? Isn’t it just customer service?
Click here to schedule 30 minutes with Ed.
Jake Epling | Compass Business Group
IT, Network, Telecommunications & Security
Jake has 6 years of experience as an IT security professional for a multi-billion dollar organization in Columbus, Ohio. He’s since focused his efforts at helping small to medium-sized businesses secure their networks and protect their data.
Great questions for Jake:
- How do I know my network is set up correctly?
- How do I ensure my data is secure?
- My Wifi or internet connection is too slow, how can I fix the issue?
- What are some security basics I can cover without hiring someone?
- What are some common IT security gaps in a growing business?
