Regine Beauboeuf

CEO
American Roads

William Blake III

Partner
Beringea

Bill is responsible for making and managing investments, shaping the firm’s strategic direction, and helping to lead a growing team of investors and analysts. He serves as a board director for Beringea portfolio companies Rush ReCommerce, ATLAS Space Operations, and Flywheel and is a board observer for Dentologie, Tovala, Hygenica, and Freeosk. He previously served as a board director for Fiber By-Products (acquired by Lignetics Group), Avid Ratings (acquired by ECI Solutions), Complion (acquired by Real-Time Software Solutions), and Montage Talent (acquired by Shaker International).

Bill was recognized as a Crain’s Detroit Business "40 Under 40” award winner and is a member of the Events Committee with the Michigan Venture Capital Association. Prior to joining Beringea, Bill was an investment banking associate in Southeast Michigan, where he supported the management of middle market sell-side and buy-side transactions, advising clients on divestitures, acquisitions, and refinancings.

He received a bachelor’s degree in finance from the Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan.

Dan Bonucchi

Partner
Warner Norcross + Judd LLP

Dan Bonucchi is a partner at Warner Norcross + Judd LLP advising on corporate matters involving mergers and acquisitions, commercial transactions, corporate governance, product liability, and general business. His practice includes providing facilities and operations counsel to automotive and supply chain clients in the Great Lakes region and beyond.

John Decker

Partner
Taft

John has expertise in complex business transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, financings, private equity and venture capital investments, cross-border transactions, general contracts, and securities. He represents a diverse client base ranging from individual entrepreneurs and professional athletes to private equity firms, private foundations, and global businesses. In addition, John serves as outside general counsel to several firm clients in support of their day-to-day and strategic, long-term operations.

Etrit Demaj

Co-Founder & Co-CEO
KODE Labs

Etrit Demaj, Co-Founder of KODE Labs, leads the company’s operations, with responsibility for businesses in North America and Europe. He also oversees the company’s ongoing expansion efforts into emerging markets. Before KODE Labs, Etrit helped run operations and sales with other companies in the industry.

Brian Demkowicz

Chairman & Founding Partner
Huron Capital Partners LLC

Brian is a seasoned investor and entrepreneur with a 30+ year track record of successfully transforming and building middle-market companies in partnership with experienced operating executives. He founded Huron Capital in 1999 with the goal of building great companies with great people through the deployment of high-impact buy-and-build investment strategies, the core tenets of which include improving profitability through operating efficiencies and accelerating growth through strategic add-ons. Since inception, Huron Capital has successfully established six private equity funds totaling nearly $2.0 billion and invested in over 275 businesses throughout North America underpinned by its margin-of-safety approach.

Derek Dickow

Founder
Power Connections

Derek Dickow, a strategic networking advisor and founder of Power Connections, works with CEOs, and top innovators, sharing his expertise through his ‘5 Pillars of Purpose-Driven Networking.’ Through Power Connections, he also organizes high-impact conferences that foster meaningful connections and growth among among business leaders. In addition to his role as a board member of the Small Business Association of Michigan, Dickow is an ambassador for the Children’s Foundation and a member of the National Speakers Association.

Kevin DiDio

Partner
Barnes & Thornburg LLP

Kevin advises a wide range of domestic and international clients and provides an in-depth understanding of substantive legal disciplines in virtually all corporate issues. With a keen eye for detail, he assists clients in corporate matters and transactions including mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and strategic alliances, corporate governance and structure, cross-border business transactions, private equity investments, and business taxation.

Robert Dutkiewicz

Partner
Wipfli

Rob Dutkiewicz is a partner with over 30 years of experience helping closely held business owners maximize expansion and profitability. Before joining Wipfli, he was the president of Clayton & McKervey for over seven years and brings this leadership expertise and strategic business knowledge to clients. By understanding the unique needs and challenges of business owners, Rob delivers proactive tax and accounting advice to clients.

Rick Ellis

Managing Director
Grand Sakwa Capital, LLC

Rick is a Managing Director with Grand Sakwa Capital, LLC and is involved in alternative investments, including Private Equity, Venture Capital and other Alternative Assets. Rick spent over 30 years with JPMorgan Chase and JPMorgan Securities, as a Managing Director, and focused his efforts on Commercial and Investment Banking activities. Rick is also a board advisor to Chartline Capital Partners, a Venture Capital fund, based out of Wilmington, DE. 

Laura Engelland

Principal
Uphill Partners

Laura Engelland is the founder of Uphill Partners, focused on acquiring and operating a lower-middle-market business in Southeast Michigan. She previously drove growth and product adoption at iRobot and Ford Motor Company, and led sales and marketing for a local SMB. Operator-minded and execution-focused, Laura translates vision into results. She is a former NCAA Division I athlete, bringing resilience and team-first leadership.

Dan Gallagher

Client Advocate
Lockton

Dan is a Producer at Lockton, responsible for new business growth and developing long-term client relationships. His expertise is primarily centered on complex large-scale property and casualty solutions for private equity, automotive manufacturing, and real estate clients. Dan is involved in the local and national business community through several non-profits and networking organizations.

Gerry Giudici

President
Barden Brook Capital, LLC

Gerry is President of Barden Brook Capital. This is an advisory firm and investment partner to private equity groups, portfolio companies, and privately-held companies. Gerry is also an interim/fractional executive for Chief Outsiders. Chief Outsiders delivers experienced leadership when companies need results, not headcount. Interim/fractional executives at Chief Outsiders step in quickly, work hands-on with CEO’s, and focus on building repeatable, profitable growth. Gerry continues his work with private equity groups as an investment partner, executive advisor, industry advisor,  and Board Director assisting with deal sourcing, diligence, execution, and management. Gerry has held senior leadership roles for private equity sponsored middle-market manufacturing companies, including portfolio companies of the Carlyle Group, Wynnchurch Capital, Covington Capital, and The Questor Fund.

Paul Glantz

Chairman Emeritus
Emagine Entertainment, Inc.

Paul Glantz is the Chairman Emeritus of Michigan-based Emagine Entertainment, Inc. which operates 27 entertainment venues in Michigan, Indiana, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Illinois. Emagine has grown from one movie screen with 265 seats in 1989to become the 10th largest theatre operator in North America over the course of his career.

Marc Griffin

Corporate Relationship Manager
Old National Bank

Marc Griffin has over 10 years of commercial banking experience serving Middle Market companies throughout the Midwest. Mr. Griffin is currently serving corporate clients at Old National Bank, with experience at Huntington Bank and Flagstar Bank.

Marc has an MBA and MSF from Walsh College.

Rob Grimaldi

COO
Viscogliosi Brothers

Rob Grimaldi is chief operating officer of Viscogliosi Brothers, a leading investor and innovator in the med-tech space, and co-founder and CEO of Ad Infinitum Cell Preservation Technologies, a firm creating novel cryopreservation solutions for medical research applications. He has been directly involved in many entrepreneurial led companies across multiple sectors from seed and venture stage to exit/IPO.

Matthew Gurwin

Vice President, Private Wealth Advisor
Graystone Consulting

Matthew Gurwin is a First Vice President, Private Wealth Advisor, and Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA®) for Graystone Consulting at Morgan Stanley. He specializes in advising wealthy business owners and families, especially those considering substantial liquidity events due to the sale or recapitalization of a privately held business. A veteran of the financial services industry, Matt draws on his 25 years of experience, helping entrepreneurs and private business owners maximize the value of their business, take their personal and personal financial plans to the next level, and be prepared for what adventure comes next after transitioning their current company. He draws on his 20 years of experience in the field to collaborate with professionals in a range of industries, build relationships with existing and prospective clients, and enhance internal operations to improve our clients' experience.

Matt earned both his BBA and his MBA from the University of Michigan Ross School of Business. Prior to joining Graystone Consulting - Chicago, Matt was a Principal at Doeren Mayhew leading their firm’s business development efforts. Earlier in his career, Matt worked at Telemus Capital Partners, LLC, as a managing director and as an Investment Banker for Deloitte Corporate Finance.

Outside the office, Matt enjoys spending quality time with his spouse and their four children.

Shawn Gutierrez

President
AtomTech

Shawn has held leadership positions over his 30-year career and has a proven track-record in leadership and management as well as the ability to develop and implement standard engineering practices.

He is truly enthusiastic about his work and enjoys his job. His favorite stage of a project is collaborating with the client to understand their business objectives. “I spend a lot of time understanding the process and the challenges before suggesting ideas.”

He believes that every great customer experience starts with our team at AtomTech and our purpose of furthering manufacturing progress through technology. “Hearing the excitement around the solutions AtomTech’s team continues to create is always amazing.”

Shawn is a family oriented person, he enjoys spending time with his wife of 25 years, Kristen, his children Isabella and Raphael, and his dogs Coco and Graham. His hobbies are cars, and movies, every genre except horror!

Rick Hampson

President
Old National Bank

Rick Hampson is a hands-on Business Leader with over 26 years of commercial banking experience in large corporate syndicated banking and middle market banking at Old National Bank, Citizens Bank, PNC Bank, Comerica Bank and Brown Brothers Harriman & Company.

Proven experience managing a commercial banking portfolio of corporate clients, guiding strategic market direction and overseeing P&L. Accomplished business development professional, skilled in asset-based lending, finance, middle market, lines of credit, and commercial lending.

Throughout my career I have developed additional experience in investment banking and managing M&A advisory efforts. I am an active community leader and current Board Member for organizations including Gleaners Community Food Bank, Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Metro Detroit and Detroit Regional Chamber. M.B.A. from Columbia University Business School in Finance & International Business and B.S. from Boston College in Finance.

Donald Hampton Jr.

CEO
Carbon Revolution

Donald “Donnie” Hampton, Jr. is Chief Executive Officer of Carbon Revolution, a global Tier 1 OEM supplier advancing the design, industrialization, and commercialization of lightweight carbon fiber wheel technology. He is a seasoned manufacturing and operations executive with senior leadership experience at Honeywell, Maxion Wheels, Rea Magnet Wire, Faurecia, and Pace Industries. Donnie is a U.S. military veteran and serves on the Board of Trustees of Tiffin University.

Tim Hildebrand

Co-CEO
Monument MicroCap Partners

Tim joined Monument in 2019 and opened the Michigan office in 2021. Tim has over 10 years of middle market buyout experience. Prior to Joining Monument, Tim was a Senior Associate at HKW. Previously, Tim was an investment analyst at Northwestern Mutual Capital, the private asset arm of Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company. Tim earned his B.S. from Marquette University and MBA at The University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

Ken Johnson

Founder & CEO
Spring Arbor Group

Ken Johnson is the Co-founder and CEO of the private equity firm, Spring Arbor Group. Ken is a visionary entrepreneur with a long track record of founding successful companies. Ken's businesses have spanned a number of diverse industries. He founded his first business in the Toy & Game industry, that company has operated continually for over 40 years. He has built and sold several other businesses, including a hedge fund and a telecommunications firm.

Sean Kelley

Managing Director, Business Development
Gridiron Capital

At Gridiron Capital, Sean focuses on developing new business partnerships, marketing, communicating with business owners, and managing investment sourcing and exit planning. Prior to joining Gridiron Capital, Sean served as vice president at BB&T Capital Markets in Richmond, Virginia. His responsibilities at BB&T included executing mergers and acquisitions advisory for middle-market businesses, as well as establishing and strengthening business development relationships with middle-market investors. Earlier in his career, Sean worked at Credit Suisse and Deutsche Bank.

Mary Kenney

Market Leader
Heartland Ventures

Mary joined Heartland in 2022 on the Investing team and transitioned to the Community team in 2024.

In this role at Heartland, Mary leads engagement with LPs and Midwest industry leaders to ensure Heartland’s portfolio aligns with their strategic needs.  

Prior to joining Heartland, Mary worked in non-profit fundraising, technology, and strategy consulting, managed customer success at an AI startup, and led strategic initiatives at an Ivy League university. She leverages these varied experiences in operational and strategic analysis, team building, and collaborative problem-solving to foster meaningful partnerships with and amongst founders and investors in the Heartland community.

Thomas Kessel

Principal
Glengarry Capital Group

Tom brings nearly 40 years of experience delivering debt solutions to middle-market businesses. His background includes leadership positions in the commercial banking and capital markets business units at JPMorgan Chase (legacy Bank One and NBD), Fifth Third Bank, RBS Citizens Bank, and Wells Fargo Bank.

He has delivered funding solutions in automotive components, specialty vehicles, manufacturing, building supplies, specialty finance, services, technology construction, and food and agriculture sectors.

Tom is a Board Member of the Michigan Chamber of Commerce and a former Board Member of the Michigan AgriBusiness Association. He is a member of the Secured Finance Network (SFNet), Association for Corporate Growth and Turnaround Management Association.

He obtained his undergraduate degree in Economics from Hope College, an MBA in Finance from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, and Executive Management courses at the Harvard Business School. 

Lindsey Kilbride

Investor
Detroit Venture Partners

Ms. Lindsey Kilbride serves as Investor at Detroit Venture Partners. She serves as Board Member at Catapult Concepts. Ms. Kilbride Co-Founded Shopflix.

Catherine Kosin

President, Michigan
Oswald Companies

With over 25 years of strategic risk management experience across a broad range of clientele, Cathy leads Oswald’s Michigan locations in Bloomfield Hills and Grosse Pointe. While overseeing all Business Units, Cathy’s greatest expertise lies in the large-line Risk Management and Middle Market insurance brokerage segments, especially casualty and international risks. Passionate about conscious capitalism, Cathy engages her teams in regular volunteer service opportunities and has been recognized as a local thought leader around building company culture. She advises Oswald’s Employee Engagement Committee and serves on the DE&I Strategic Planning Committee. She is also a founding organizer and current advisor to Oswald’s Women’s Leadership Council which has allowed her to play an active role in the managerial advancement of women within the organization.

Lee M. Koury

Managing Partner
Smart Business Network Inc.

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. 

Scott Kowalski

Market Leader
PNC Bank

Kowalski manages PNC's middle market and corporate finance businesses in the region. In his prior role as Corporate Banking relationship manager, he was responsible for business development and portfolio management for middle market business clients in SE Michigan. Kowalski has 18 years of corporate banking experience, including eight with PNC. He earned a bachelor's in Finance from Michigan State University and a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Detroit Mercy.

Philip L'Esperance

COO
Ascension Group International

With over 25 years of experience in the industrial space, Phil specializes in spearheading operations-focused initiatives that help organizations improve their business. He is responsible for managing relationships and new pursuits with an emphasis on operations performance improvement, planning, and lean process opportunities. Phil has extensive experience in multiple industries including automotive, industrial, food processing, and medical device manufacturing. Phil is the COO of Ascension Group International, a technology-led management consulting and private equity firm.

Tracy Larsen

Partner, M&A Practice Leader
Honigman

Tracy Larsen is a corporate partner and leader of Honigman’s M&A practice. Having one of the most active transactional practices in the Midwest, Tracy represents clients in a wide array of mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, recapitalization, restructuring and corporate finance transactions. He has led hundreds of M&A transactions, both domestic and international, involving tens of billions of dollars in trade value.

Belvin Liles

Venture Innovation Associate
ID Ventures

Belvin is an investor at ID Ventures responsible for their Venture 313 and FAM programs, as well as other sourcing and diligence efforts. Before IDV Belvin was an early employee at a fintech startup responsible for connecting SMBs with various capital partners. Prior to the startup Belvin was a TMT banker at Citibank providing debt facilities and other bank products. Belvin earned his B.S. in Finance and International Business from Indiana University.

Ethan Linkner

Managing Partner
Muditā Venture Partners LLC

VC by day, builder by night. Co-founding Partner of Muditā Venture Partners. Currently deploying from $125m fund II. Pre-VC, I've built and sold multiple tech businesses. Eternal optimist and allergic to excuses. I also have an unusually high winning percentage at small claims raffles. Umich '06, Go Blue.

Doug Mans

CEO
Mans Lumber and Home

Doug Mans is a fourth-generation owner of Mans Lumber and Home. Founded in 1900, Mans provides the builders and homeowners of metro-Detroit with all their building and home improvement needs. Since 2019, Mans has acquired five businesses in order to expand their capabilities and better serve their growing customer base in the construction and building industry.

Mario Mastroianni

Managing Director, Enterprise Business Development
Clearstead

Mario joined Clearstead in 2024 as Managing Director, Enterprise Business Development. In this role, he is a member of the firm’s Sales and Marketing team and develops opportunities and supports the firm’s organic growth. He brings over 20 years of experience in business development and sales in Financial Services.

Prior to joining Clearstead, Mario was a Sales Executive of Life Insurance for Oswald Companies and held various other sales positions throughout his career. He earned a B.A. in Business Administration from Juniata College and holds the Certified Exit Planning Advisor designation.

Fred Minturn

Group Chairman
MSX International

Fred Minturn is Group Chairman at MSX International. Under his leadership, the company has achieved double-digit growth year on year. Previously, he served as MSX’s President and CEO, as well as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

For 40 years, Fred has focused on developing global solutions for OEMs and continues to do so today. He serves on the Board of Directors for MSX, The Detroit Athletic Club, Automotive Hall of Fame, The Children’s Foundation, The HELM at the Boll Life Center and Business Leaders for Michigan. He was selected for Staffing Industry Analyst’s Staffing 100 as one of the most influential people in the industry. Additionally, Fred was recognized as a Supply and Demand Chain Executive. He has been named Crain’s Detroit Business CFO of the Year and has recently become a finalist for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year.

David Mitchell

Managing Partner
TRP Capital Partners

Dave Mitchell has spent 23 years at TRP Capital Partners where he serves as Managing Partner. TRP makes investments in growth-oriented businesses in the transportation sector and is currently investing out of its sixth fund. The firm capitalizes on strategic relationships, commercial synergies, and the transportation expertise of its partners to support existing management teams while giving them autonomy to run their businesses. Prior to TRP, Dave spent 11 years in consulting in the areas of distribution, supply chain, manufacturing and technology.

Rich Pennock

President
Technology Resource Group

Rich Pennock is a seasoned human capital and talent solutions leader with over 25 years of staffing industry experience. As President of Technology Resource Group (TRG), he helps executives transform workforce strategy into high-impact business outcomes. TRG are experts in Engineering, IT, Software, and Infrastructure, with a client base that spans Automotive OEMs and suppliers, Manufacturing, FinTech, and Startups. This diversity is by design; it reflects a deep-seated passion for the technology market. Since 1998, TRG has partnered with clients to execute critical services including Recruiting, Talent Acquisition Strategies, RPO Programs, and rapid-growth Engineering and IT team builds.

Beyond his leadership at TRG, Rich serves as a strategic advisor within the HRTech, AI, and Mobility sectors. He helps early-stage and growth-stage startups bridge the gap between innovative tech and real-world talent pain points by designing scalable go-to-market strategies and organizational models. 

Lee Rawlings

Managing Director
ID Ventures

Lee Rawlings is Managing Director at ID Ventures and has 20+ years in operations, strategy, and financial transactions in several of, what he likes to call, modern society’s connective tissue technologies: Telecom, Energy, Aerospace & Defense, and Automotive / Mobility. Over the span of his career, Lee has helped drive over $3Bn in transactions, including M&A, public equity & debt financings, and more recently, early-stage technology investing. Lee's stops along the way include U.S. Army, Credit Suisse, Morgan Stanley, Cruise, and GM Ventures. Lee earned his BS in Mechanical Engineering from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and his MBA from Harvard Business School.

Sean Roberts

Managing Partner
HighGrove Companies

Sean is the Founder of HighGrove Companies, a private equity firm operating in the lower middle market, focused on investments in the consumer products, consumer serivces and business services markets. Sean leads HighGrove's investment activities and portfolio company management. Sean currently sits on the board of HighGrove's 4 portfolio companies - Express Flooring, All Star Driver Education, MediaTechnologies, and Store Your Board.

Dominick Schiano

CEO & Co-Founding Partner
Evergreen Capital Partners LLC

Dominick Schiano is the CEO and Co-Founding Partner of Evergreen Capital Partners, LLC. Mr. Schiano founded Evergreen Capital Partners LLC to provide strategic, operational, and financial guidance to private equity firms and their portfolio companies and co-invest alongside them.

Evergreen has previously been engaged by The Gores Group where Mr. Schiano was a Senior Advisor in the industrial sector, TowerBrook Capital Partners where Mr. Schiano was a member of the Management Advisory Board and by DLJ Merchant Banking Partners, the Private equity arm of Credit Suisse where he held the position of Vice Chairman – Global Industrial Partners.

Prior to forming Evergreen, Mr. Schiano served as a Managing Director and member of the Investment Committee of Questor Partners Funds. Previously, Mr. Schiano served in various senior operating, finance and M&A roles in the automotive industry at Textron Inc., TRW Inc., Wickes Companies Inc., and its predecessor, Gulf+Western Industries Inc.

Mr. Schiano has served on over thirty local government, private company, joint venture and public company and charitable boards.

Dan Shanahan

Director
Mason Wells

As a Director of Mason Wells Buyout Funds, Mr. Shanahan is primarily responsible for supporting the investment activities of those funds. In this capacity, Mr. Shanahan is responsible for initiating investment opportunities, conducting due diligence, negotiating debt financings, serving on the Board of Directors of portfolio companies, and working with portfolio company management teams.

Before joining Mason Wells in 2018, Mr. Shanahan worked as an Investment Banking Associate in Robert W. Baird’s Industrial Group, where he focused on middle-market M&A advisory engagements.

Mr. Shanahan received a Bachelor of Business Administration degree with Distinction in Finance from the University of Wisconsin – Madison.

Chris Sheeren

Partner
Longhouse Partners, LLC

Chris has over 20 years of private equity experience, after spending 10+ years in turnaround consulting, public accounting, and sales. Prior to co-founding Longhouse, he was a Partner at Huron Capital, and he has also worked with Conway McKenzie, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and Revlon.

Bob Surrette

President & Shareholder
McAndrews, Held & Malloy

Robert Surrette is a Shareholder and serves as President of McAndrews, Held & Malloy. He focuses his practice on the resolution of intellectual property and technology-related disputes with an emphasis on patent, trademark, trade secret and trade dress litigation. For the last 20 years, Bob has counseled a leading global medical device manufacturer on numerous litigation and transactional matters.

Pete Thomas

Chair
Vistage Michigan

Pete facilitates peer groups of C-level leaders who are committed to professional and personal growth and the success and well-being of each other. At monthly peer group meetings, Vistage members offer agenda-free advice — and challenge each other to take courageous, thoughtful steps. Vistage members become better leaders and make better decisions.

Sam Valenti III

Chairman & CEO
Valenti Capital, LLC | World Capital Partners

Sam is chairman of the board of TriMas Corp., a NYSE $1 billion manufacturer of highly engineered precision products for industry. He is also lead director of the board of American Axle Corp., a $7 billion company. He is the former president of Masco Capital Corp., and a 40-year veteran of the company.

Stephane Vedie

CEO
LUXIT Group

Mr Vedie is a seasoned CEO with a track record of growth and an expertise in M&A execution. He has 27 years’ experience in the automotive industry working for global corporations in Europe and North America. He has worked extensively in regulated environments including leading an initial public offering (NSE: VARROC), capital raising and general compliance.

He is currently the CEO of LUXIT Group, a global lighting supplier to the Automotive Industry. Prior to joining LUXIT Group, Mr. Vedie was the North American CEO at Magneti Marelli (now Marelli) and the Global CEO at Varroc Lighting Systems (now Plastic Omnium Lighting).
Mr Vedie is a non-executive director of Seeing Machines Ltd (AIM: SEE).
Mr. Vedie holds dual Masters Degrees, one in Purchasing from University of Grenoble (France,) and the other in Business Administration from the Graduate School of Business in Amiens (France).

Monica Wheat

Executive Director
Venture Catalysts

Monica Wheat is a Strategist, Investor, Consultant and Venture Developer. She currently serves as the Managing Director of the Techstars Detroit powered by JP Morgan Accelerator, part of a global seed-stage accelerator network in 44+ cities worldwide. She is the Founder & Executive Director of Venture Catalysts, an ecosystem development group serving 50,000+ program attendees. She previously served as a Techstars Startup Programs Lead for 10+ years and Managing Director for Backstage Capital Accelerator.

Bill Zhuang

President & CEO
Angstrom Electric

Accomplished Senior Executive with domestic and international leadership experience in P&L, Sales &
Marketing, Product Development, Supply Chain, Program Management, Operation in both start-up and
growth organizations (Global companies in US & China).

Samantha Ziarko

Managing Partner
Diag Partners

Samantha Ziarko is the Managing Partner of Diag Partners, a premier staffing and recruiting organization. Since the company’s founding in 2011, Samantha has been instrumental in driving Diag’s growth, scaling its operations to offer both national and global recruiting solutions. Under her leadership, Diag has consistently earned prestigious recognition, including being named one of Forbes' 100 Best Professional Recruiting Firms. Samantha is deeply passionate about delivering innovative staffing solutions and fostering meaningful partnerships. She takes great pride in the exceptional culture at Diag and the unwavering commitment of the team to deliver outstanding results for their clients.

Daniel Zinser

Senior Vice President
Old National Bank

Dan is a Corporate Banking Senior Vice President at Old National Bank. He is responsible for helping lead Old National Bank’s growth effort in Southeast Michigan. Daniel has more than 15 years of commercial banking experience including credit, portfolio management, middle market, and large corporate lending. He has an M.B.A and a BS in Finance from University of Detroit Mercy.