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Keynote Speaker
Panelists
Presenters - Lunch & Learn Networking Session


Keynote Speaker
Brad Keywell, Co-founder and Director of Groupon, Inc.
Brad Keywell, 41, is a Co-founder and Director of Groupon, Inc. He is a co-founder and Managing Partner of Lightbank, a venture fund investing in disruptive technology businesses where Lightbank’s financial and operational resources can add unique value. He is a co-founder and Director of MediaBank LLC, a technology firm providing integrated technology platforms and solutions to the advertising and media buying industry. He is a co-founder and Director of Echo Global Logistics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECHO), an enterprise transportation management firm, which provides transportation procurement, management, and optimization services across all modes.

Keywell is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, teaching a course on entrepreneurship and building technology-based businesses. He is the Chairman of the Illinois Innovation Council, appointed by Illinois Governor Pat Quinn. He is on the Mayor’s Committee on Technology Infrastructure, and the Mayor’s Chicago-China Friendship Initiative, both positions appointed by Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley.

Keywell is the Founder and Co-Curator of TEDxMidwest, TEDxYouth/Midwest, and Chicago Ideas Week, events which constitute a new platform in the Midwest for innovators and entrepreneurs from all fields to connect and collaborate.

He is the Managing Partner of Meadow Lake Management LLC, an investment and advisory firm. Among Meadow Lake’s holdings is Archer Corporate Services LLC, a marketing fulfillment services firm. Keywell was previously with Equity Group Investments, LLC, Sam Zell’s investment vehicle, identifying and assessing investment opportunities and serving as Board liaison to several portfolio companies. He is the former President of HA-LO Industries (NYSE:HMK), then the world’s leading provider of promotional products. In January, 2000, HA-LO acquired Starbelly, an online promotional product supply chain management technology firm which Keywell co-founded in May, 1999.

He is a Trustee of the Zell Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurship at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. He is on the Advisory Board of the Directors College for Global Business at the University of Michigan Law School. Keywell is on the Board of Trustees of the Foundation of North Shore University Health System, a $1.5 billion healthcare organization. He is on the Board of Directors of the Abraham Path Initiative, a global NGO dedicated to facilitating cross-cultural bonds in the Middle East and throughout the world. He is on the Board of Trustees of Imerman Angels, a network of cancer fighters and cancer patients which pairs survivors with patients to form human bonds in the battle against the disease. He is a Special Advisor to the Redmoon Theater Company, a Chicago-based theater and public spectacle performance troupe.

Keywell is a frequent speaker at technology and marketing industry events, as well as a guest lecturer at the University of Michigan Business School, Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University, and the Medill School of Journalism. He has been a Judge for the New Venture Challenge at the University of Chicago Booth School. He has served on the Advisory Committee of the University of Chicago GSB Directors’ College. He founded the Digital Leadership Exchange, in partnership with Spencer Stuart, which is now a global CEO-level networking organization. He is the author of Biz Dev 3.0: Changing Business as We Know It, published by ALM Publishing, and, with his daughter, the author of Isabelle Speaks Up: A Story of Possibilities.

Keywell was named one of the nation’s Top Ten Collegiate Entrepreneurs in 1991 by the Association of Collegiate Entrepreneurs, and received the 2000 Conrad Hilton Distinguished Entrepreneur Award from Loyola Marymount University. He was named one of the “Internet 100” by Crain’s Chicago Business. He was keynote speaker at the 2004 National Conference of the Collegiate Entrepreneurs Organization.

Keywell served on the Board of Trustees of Columbia College, the nation’s largest secondary education institution dedicated to the fine arts, and was a member of the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges. He has served on the Board of Directors of Warrior Productions, a documentary filmmaker whose principal produced Hoop Dreams. He has served as a Trustee of the University of Michigan Hillel Foundation. He is a participant of both the Renaissance Weekend and the TED Conference. He is a member of the Chicago chapter of the Young Presidents’ Organization, and serves as Chairman of the YPO Coaches Clinic, an international YPO event.

Keywell founded the Connect to the Future program in the Chicago Public Schools system, which is aligned with the Renaissance 2010 foundation. Connect to the Future pairs professionals in the community with high school classes, giving the professionals a chance to share their stories and lessons with students, and giving students inspiration to go to college and pursue a career. Connect to the Future also provides students field trips to facilitate real-world experiences that may influence their work effort and future plans.

Keywell received his J.D. cum laude from the University of Michigan School of Law (1993) and his Bachelor of Business Administration with honors from the University of Michigan (1991). He also studied in 1990 at the London School of Economics. He is a member of the State Bar of Illinois and the Michigan Bar Association.


Panelists

Getting Started: Making an Idea Reality
Adam Borden (MBA ’05), Founder and Managing Director, Bradmer Foods
Adam Borden is the founder and Managing Director of Bradmer Foods, a venture capital and private equity firm that invests in emerging food and beverage businesses. He is a nationally-recognized food entrepreneurship expert who has spoken professionally at the Fancy Food Shows, the New England Culinary Institute and the Ross School of Business on food entrepreneurship. Adam also has been quoted in national news outlets such as The New York Times, The Washington Post and National Public Radio. Adam previously worked as the Marketing and E-Commerce Manager for Petrossian, the Paris-based luxury food importer and distributor, where he co-managed the direct-to-consumer business and overall marketing for the firm. At the same time, he served on the James Beard Foundation Programming Committee, organizing many fundraising dinners with chefs from across the country. Adam has an MBA from the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business and a BA Phi Beta Kappa in art history from Wesleyan University.

Michelle Crumm (MBA ’99), Co-founder and former Chief Business Officer, Adaptive Materials
As co-founder and chief business officer of Adaptive Materials, Inc., Michelle Crumm’s leadership was instrumental in helping the fuel cell company transition from start-up to second stage, fast-growing manufacturing company. The company was recently acquired by defense industry giant Ultra Electronics. Since the acquisition Michelle has recently started her fourth company named Present Value, LLC. Widely recognized for her leadership, Crumm was named one of “Most Influential Women” by Crain’s Detroit Business and one of Enterprising Women’s “Women of the Year.” Crumm was also awarded the prestigious title “Entrepreneur of the Year” by Ernst and Young. Adaptive Materials has been recognized for its dynamic growth with Ann Arbor SPARK FastTrack, Inc. 5,000, and Inc. 100 Energy Company awards. Prior to founding Adaptive Materials, Crumm spent nearly 5 years at Kellogg Company. During her tenure at Kellogg, Crumm was able to accelerate her career with experiences in internal audit, investor relations, and procurement. In addition to Kellogg Company, Crumm has served as an accountant at an automotive supplier and obtained her Certified Public Accountant license while working as an auditor with Plante and Moran. As a dynamic community participant, Crumm is an active board member for the Washtenaw County American Red Cross and currently serves as treasurer for the Great Lakes Entrepreneur Quest executive board of directors. She is an enthusiastic participant of Women’s President Organization and Women in Public Policy. Crumm earned a bachelor of science degree in accounting from Purdue University and a master of business administration degree from University of Michigan.

Ben Kazez, Founder & General Manager, Mobiata
Ben Kazez is founder and GM of Mobiata, which develops numerous bestselling travel apps. In two years Ben bootstrapped the company from one app to a 12-person travel app powerhouse, acquired by Expedia in November 2010. Ben now leads Mobiata as the app and emerging platform arm for Expedia, from product innovation to user experience and visual design to engineering and marketing.

Todd Sullivan (MBA ’05), CEO, CrowdZone
Todd Sullivan is a highly innovative and energetic serial entrepreneur with an MBA from the Ross School of Business. Todd has 15 years of remarkable achievements in creating new businesses and driving revenue growth through business strategy, product development and business development initiatives in customer-facing, digital and mobile commerce startups. “Most of my time is spent on business-model discovery,” Sullivan says. “I’m focused on getting products to market in front of paying customers quickly, then iterating until the customer response warrants turning the product into a business.” Todd’s string of successful start-up companies includes Spirit Shop, an e-commerce portal for custom school products, CrowdZone, a mobile social network for crowds that was subsequently licensed to CBS Broadcasting Inc. and BuyFi, a mobile marketing and payments company. His newest soon-to-be-announced venture will utilize mobile and web technology to help put people back to work by harnessing their natural entrepreneurial talents to grow local businesses. “I enjoy using technology as a catalyst to bring products to market that improve how people live, connect and express themselves,” says Sullivan. “I have worn many hats from Founder to Consultant, focused on product development, product marketing, business development and business strategy. My passion is for growing e-commerce, m-commerce and f-commerce businesses through web, mobile applications and social media technology.”

Moderator: Ed Grubb (MBA '12), Ross School of Busi

Growing a Company: How a Startup Becomes a Business
Omer Abdullah (MBA ’95), Co-founder and Managing Director, The Smart Cube, Inc.
Omer manages business development in North America and is the Marketing Director for the company. He has 17 years of management consulting, global corporate and industry experience across North America, Europe and Asia. Prior roles include A.T. Kearney (North America), Warner Lambert (USA) and The Perrier Group (Asia-Pacific). Omer has an MBA from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, USA and a BBA from the University of East Asia.

Jennifer Baird, CEO, Accio Energy; Formerly President & CEO, Accuri Cytomers
Ms. Baird is CEO of Accio Energy. She brings her track record of successfully commercializing transformational technologies to develop Accio’s revolutionary Aerovoltaic™ wind energy systems. From 2005 to 2010, Ms. Baird was President and CEO of Accuri Cytometers, a rapidly growing company developing and marketing breakthrough life science products for research and clinical use. Ms. Baird co-founded Accuri and led the company from inception through development and commercialization. She raised over $30 million in venture equity and debt funding and achieved more than $12 million in annual sales, a global reach, and near-profitability in just five years time. In 2011, Accuri was successfully sold to Becton Dickinson for $205 million, generating 5-6x returns for investors. Previously, Ms. Baird was a key member of the senior management team at Integrated Sensing Systems, Inc., a technology development firm focused on using micro-electromechanical systems for medical and scientific sensing applications. Earlier in her career, as a Vice President at Keane Consulting Group, she managed over $10 million in projects and helped the firm quintuple in size to over 150 staff. Ms. Baird began her career in commercial banking. She received her MBA from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management, where she shared Top-of-Class honors, and a BA degree from the University of Michigan.

Jason Raznick, Co-founder& Editor, Benzinga
Jason Raznick is a passionate entrepreneur who founded two successful Internet companies prior to his current and largest company, Benzinga. In Benzinga’s first five months, it grew to over 50,000 active members. Raznick had prior experience working for Merrill Lynch, Jim Cramer’s TheStreet.com, and Tricap Holdings. Benzinga is a financial media company based out of Metro Detroit and looking to disrupt the status quo in the financial industry. Benzinga currently serves over 3 million readers in over 125 countries monthly. Its original articles focus on timely issues affecting the global financial industry. The company also produces real-time tools and applications to give traders and readers an edge that has traditionally been available only to the privileged elite. Benzinga recently received one of the largest initial investments from Lightbank, the seed fund started by Groupon co-founders, Brad Keywell and Eric Leftosky. Moving forward, Raznick is excited to continue growing his business nationally by recruiting innovators to help launch future products and services.

Robert Wolfe, Co-founder, Moosejaw and Crowdrise
Robert founded Moosejaw and Crowdrise. His primary goal is to have the most concise bio ever.

Moderator: David Miller (MBA '12), Ross School of Business

Inside the Mind of a VC: How They Look at Startups
Mary Lincoln Campbell, (MBA ’79), Managing Director & Founder, EDF Ventures
Mary is a Managing Director and Founder of EDF Ventures. She has been an active investor both in healthcare and information technology companies for over 20 years. Currently, Mary sits on the boards of the following companies: Arxan Technologies, a company developing next generation anti-tamper solutions to enable software programs to nullify software tampering and piracy; IntelePeer, a VoIP based interconnection, gateway and enhanced telephony services for VoIP and PSTN private/local exchange carriers; and ValenTx, a medical device company treating morbid obesity. She is also a board observer for the following companies: Cerenis Therapeutics, a developer of drugs for the treatment of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases; and Lycera, a pharmaceutical company developing drugs to fight diseases of the immune system. Mary led several of the firm's most successful transactions including: Pixelworks, a leader of system-on-a-chip integrated circuits for the advanced display market which became a public company; HandyLab, a developer of molecular diagnostic assays and automation platforms, sold to Becton Dickinson & Company; Sircon, a provider of automation solutions for the insurance industry, sold to Vertafore the nation’s number one insurance software provider; and Greenplum, a database clustering software for business intelligence and data warehousing, sold to EMC Corporation, the world’s leading provider of information infrastructure solutions. Mary is active with The Stephen M. Ross School of Business at The University of Michigan and currently serves as an advisor to the Zell Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies as well as its student-run venture activity, the Wolverine Venture Fund. She is an advisor to The University of Michigan's Life Science Institute and she serves on the advisory board of The Charles F. Dolan School of Business at Fairfield University. Mary has also served as past President and board member of the Michigan Venture Capital Association, the State's premier public policy advocate for the private equity/venture capital industry. Mary received her MBA from The University of Michigan; her MA in Special Education from Fairfield University; and her BA in English from The University of Michigan.

Tony Grover, Managing Director, RPM Ventures
Tony Grover is a Founder and Managing Director of RPM Ventures, a seed and early stage IT and Physical Sciences venture fund. He brings over 20 years of venture capital, operating, and technical knowledge and experience spanning a wide array of industries and corporate settings. For RPM, Grover is on the boards of Performix, Arbor Photonics, Eden Park, Mirror.Me, and JanRain. Prior to forming RPM, Grover was vice president at White Pines Ventures and was responsible for investments in telecommunications, software, Internet and supply chain sectors. He was co-founder of Promotum, an Internet-based promotions, marketing, and services company. Grover also served as a business and cost analyst with Intel Corporation and as a manufacturing engineer for Cummins Engine Company. In addition to his board roles for RPM, Mr. Grover is an adjunct professor at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business and serves on the advisory board of the Frankel Commercialization Fund, a pre-seed investment fund established to identify and accelerate the commercialization of ideas generated within the University of Michigan community. He holds a BS in mechanical engineering from the University of Michigan, a MS in industrial engineering from Purdue University, and a MBA from the J. L. Kellogg Graduate School of Business.

Armando Pauker (MBA ’95), General Partner, Apex Ventures
Armando is a general partner with an investment focus in enterprise infrastructure (hardware, software, security) and cleantech. Prior to joining Apex, Armando served as Vice President of Networking Products for Cybernet Systems Corporation, a Linux-based software start-up. Previously, he was a senior product manager for Electronics for Imaging, a developer of high performance digital imaging servers. Armando also served as a management consultant with Booz Allen Hamilton, where he worked with clients in technology industries. Prior to Booz, Armando was a senior engineering manager at Tandem Computers, Inc., where he led product strategy, and hardware and software development in computer subsystems. Armando holds an MBA with High Distinction from the University of Michigan, and he received his BS in Engineering from the California Institute of Technology. Armando currently serves on the board of SiliconBlue and leads Apex's investment in Illumitex and Suniva. He previously served on the boards of BrightCloud (acquired by Webroot), Initiate Systems (acquired by IBM), Informative (acquired by Satmetrix), Integrated Chipware (acquired by Serena) and EVS (acquired by First American).
 
Ryan Waddington, Co-founder & Managing Director, Huron River Ventures
Ryan has over 14 years of experience in investing, operating and consulting roles in the alternative energy and environmental sectors, and is widely recognized as an experienced cleantech investment professional. Ryan has invested in more than 15 energy technology companies at seed, venture and growth equity stages, totaling over $100 million of invested and committed capital. Prior to co-founding Huron River Ventures, Ryan helped establish an energy-focused private equity group within New York-based Ziff Brothers Investments, one of the largest and most successful family office investment firms in the country. There he became part of the core team of investment managers and worked on multiple transactions in sectors including renewables, biofuels, power transmission and advanced materials. Ryan began his career in venture capital working inside DTE Energy’s corporate venture group, where he worked on investments in fuel cells, energy storage, power electronics and waste-to-energy, among others. Ryan also established and executed a seed stage funding program at NextEnergy, where he funded several prominent Michigan-based alternative energy companies, and co-founded a “dot com” web portal for outdoor enthusiasts while in business school. Ryan currently sits on the board of HRV portfolio company Shepherd Intelligent Systems, and is an observer at Ambiq Micro. Prior investments include Danotek Motion Technologies, NRG Dynamix, Nextek Power Systems, Vortex Hydro, Xtreme Biochemicals, Advent Solar and SoftSwitching Technologies. Ryan holds a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Michigan, an M.S. in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Wisconsin, and a MBA with Distinction from the Ross School of Business at University of Michigan, where participated in the Erb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise.
 
Moderator: Pratheepan Madasamy (MBA '12), Ross School of Business

Entrepreneurial Careers: Innovating in Startups, Corporations and Beyond
Shaily Baranwal (MBA '07), Co-founder, Elevate Learning
Shaily Baranwal is the co-founder of Elevate Learning with over 12 years of entrepreneurial and corporate experience. Having built a leading engineering company servicing the pharmaceutical and bio-tech industry in India and SE Asia,
she has first-hand experience in creating organizational excellence and leveraging global resources in today’s global environment. In the past, she has also been a consultant with leading consulting firm AT Kearney and has consulted Fortune 500 companies in operational and international market entry strategies. She is currently COO of Elevate Learning, leading global online education company and guides the development of the operational and strategic practices and effective solutions. Since inception out of the ZLI labs, Elevate Learning has grown to be the #1 provider of math instructional services to school systems across the United States. The company has recently expanded markets to Africa and UK. Currently she is also the founder of a chain of world pre-schools in India as Elevate Learning enters the Indian k-12 market. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Production Engineering and an MBA from the University of Michigan.

Nick Cucinelli (MBA ’05), Mentor in Residence, UM Office of Tech Transfer & CEO, CSquared Innovations Inc.
Nick is a Mentor-in-Residence at the University of Michigan Office of Technology Transfer, where he focuses on the development and commercialization of “cleantech and advanced manufacturing technologies. In this role he provides assistance in technology disclosure assessments, business formation, and mentoring staff, inventors, and entrepreneurs. Nick is also the CEO of CSquared Innovations Inc., where he is working to commercialize an atmospheric plasma deposition technology developed at UM-Dearborn which offers a high speed, cost effective, and highly scalable "platform" approach to the synthesis of nanostructured materials and films for advanced batteries, photovoltaic materials, and industrial coatings. Before joining CSquared, Nick was Business Development Officer for Diverse Energy Ltd., an early-stage fuel cell company working to replace diesel generators in off-grid cellular telecommunication base stations in developing countries. He also held leadership positions in three cleantech startups, worked for several established companies in the cleantech sector, and served sixteen years with the U.S. Coast Guard, where he focused on environmental protection and emergency response and earned the designation of “Coast Guard Hero” in 2000. Nick holds a 200-ton USCG captain’'s license, a BS (with High Honors) in Marine Science from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, an MS in Natural Resources & Environment (Sustainable Systems) from the University of Michigan, and an MBA, also from the University of Michigan.

Gregg Hammerman (MBA ’07), formerly Director of Business Development and Strategy, gloStream
Greg serves as Team Leader, Product and Business Development for gloStream, an early stage company providing doctors with certified, voice-enabled Microsoft Office-embedded electronic medical record and practice management solutions. He serves as liaison between gloStream’s development and enablement teams and is responsible for managing gloStream’s relationships with industry groups such as the Health Information Management Systems Society (HIMSS) and the Electronic Health Record Association (EHRA), while simultaneously looking for additional partners and revenue streams. Prior to joining gloStream, Gregg co-founded and served as President of TechStreet, a Web site that provides engineers, librarians and technical professionals with efficient, convenient, reliable access to mission-critical industrial codes and standards. Techstreet's Web-based tools and services help users efficiently acquire and manage information resources. Through an e-commerce Web site and Web-based subscription service, customers can freely access an online database of over 300,000 industry codes and standards aggregated from 350 of the world's leading Standards Developing Organizations (SDOs. TechStreet was acquired by Thomson Reuters. Gregg received his BSE and MBA from the University of Michigan where he also was a Frankel Fellow.

Atisa Sioshansi (MBA '04, MSE/BSE '97), formerly Medical Products Strategic Initiatives, Group Manager, Baxter Healthcare Corporation
Atisa Sioshansi has recently embarked on an adventure to pursue new opportunities with her career. Previously, as Group Manager of Strategic Initiatives for Baxter’s Medical Products division, she worked on various projects ranging from business development, marketing, business strategy, corporate venture capital and other key company initiatives. Atisa was with Baxter for over 7 years and had prior roles in Strategy and Global Marketing with Baxter’s BioScience division. In these roles, Atisa had global responsibilities including strategic portfolio management for the division and product launch and marketing initiatives with the Asia Pacific and Latin America regions. She has previously worked for 3M, Procter & Gamble and two startups. Atisa is a passionate Michigan Wolverine. She graduated with a MBA from the Ross School of Business in 2004 and earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in chemical engineering in 1997, also at the University of Michigan.

Moderator: Erin Braddock (MBA '13), Ross School of Business

Presenters

Lunch and Learn
Jennifer Baird, CEO, Accio Energy, formerly President & CEO of Accuri Cytometers

Nick Cucinelli (MBA ’05), Mentor in Residence, UM Office of Tech Transfer & CEO, CSquared Innovations Inc.

Gregg Hammerman (MBA ’07), formerly Director of Business Development and Strategy, gloStream

Ben Kazez, Founder & General Manager, Mobiata

Armando Pauker (MBA ’95), General Partner, Apex Ventures

Jason Raznick, Co-founder & Editor, Benzinga

Atisa Sioshansi (MBA '04, MSE/BSE '97), formerly Medical Products Strategic Initiatives, Group Manager, Baxter Healthcare Corporation

Todd Sullivan (MBA ’05), CEO, CrowdZone