Committee

Dr. Tony Andrulonis leads operations at ScribeAmerica. In this role he collaborates cross-functionally with executive, senior and local management to define key performance objectives, and develop strategies to address healthcare delivery challenges.

As an emergency medicine physician, Dr. Andrulonis has driven groundbreaking results in clinical care, and administrative efficiency over the course of his career. With expertise improving the quality of life for patients and providers, he guides health systems through the transition to value-based care.

Prior to joining ScribeAmerica, Dr. Andrulonis served as the President of Emergency Medicine at Envision Health, and Chief of the Department of Emergency Medicine at Baptist Health in Miami, Florida. As a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Task Force member, Dr. Andrulonis contributed to the emergency response for 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina. He is a sought out speaker, and was recognized by the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) as a “Hero of Emergency Medicine” during their 40th Anniversary celebration.

Dr. Andrulonis graduated from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and completed a residency at the University of Pennsylvania. He holds an MBA from Northwestern, Kellogg School of Management and served as an Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

Mike is the Head of the Flagler Group at Morgan Stanley Wealth Management. He and his team are exclusively focused on the needs of multi-generational families and private business owners. Mike joined Morgan Stanley (and its predecessor firms) in 2003 from J.P. Morgan Private Bank in New York. Prior to that, he was a Certified Public Accountant with Coopers & Lybrand from 1993 to 1996.

Mike graduated from the Wharton School at The University of Pennsylvania in 1993 and received his MBA from Michigan Business School (now Stephen M. Ross School of Business) in 1998.

Krishan Arora currently serves as the Managing Director and CMO of Novastone Capital, a global private equity firm with a portfolio of 21 global acquisitions. Headquartered in Switzerland, Novastone solves succession challenges faced by small—to medium-sized enterprises through our Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition (ETA) program.

Prior to joining Novastone, Krishan Arora was the Founder and CEO of The Arora Project, a venture capital media agency that has raised and invested over $125,000,000 in high-growth ventures worldwide.

Brent has spent his entire career working for or investing in entrepreneurs. Now he is a Director at Trivest Partners for TGIF, the firms' non-control growth investment fund. Prior to joining Trivest, Brent was Vice President Sheridan Capital Partners, a Chicago-based private equity firm. His previous experience includes working at a financial services platform backed by Carlyle and Warburg Pincus, as well as being an early team member at a venture-backed company acquired by Nasdaq, Inc. Brent began his career at Morgan Keegan, a Memphis-based investment bank. He holds a B.A. in Economics from Furman University, where he was a member of the football team.

Raechel Canipe is a Venture Partner at Valor Ventures, the Founder and CEO at Women in Tech & Entrepreneurship, and the Chief Marketing Officer at RevStar. She dedicates her time to mentoring ambitious entrepreneurs and connecting them with the network and resources they need to succeed. Raechel’s community impact and business success have been celebrated with two Innovation Awards, a ChangeMaker Award, and as a nominee for Business Woman of the Year.

A veteran of the finance industry, Eric Cohen founded Merchant Advocate in 2006. After his extensive experience in the merchant services industry, he was determined to create a fair value proposition and transparency for merchants with their credit card processors. He established Merchant Advocate to act as a trusted advisor on behalf of all size and categories of businesses. As the CEO and founder of Merchant Advocate, Eric leads the team with passion that comes from saving merchants over $300MM. He is always striving to help business owners save money. His unique vision has driven the development of an entirely new industry of Advocacy in Merchants Services.

Prior to founding Merchant Advocate, Eric held various sales and training positions in the industry, gearing up for the formation of his own organization as an independent advocate for merchants. Eric earned his undergraduate degree in Communications from Rutgers College and his MBA from the Graziadio School of Business and Management at Pepperdine University. Eric lives in New Jersey with his beautiful wife and three adorable daughters.

Alex Esposito is the CEO and Co-founder of Circuit. Alex has over 10 years of experience in the financial industry. Prior to joining Circuit, they were a financial research intern at Nua Advisors. Alex also worked at Vistaprint as the Global Partnerships Manager.

Alex received their MBA in Economics-Financial Markets from Bentley University's McCallum Graduate School of Business and their Bachelor of Science in Economics Finance from Bentley University.

Justin Garrod has 25+ years of alternative investment, corporate finance and legal experience from both large global and specialized institutions. Over the last 15 years he has been specializing in U.S. lower middle-market private capital fund, secondary and direct deal advisory within private equity and private credit across a broad range of industries.

Having worked with several senior team members at Star Mountain on various direct and secondaries investment opportunities with his U.S. lower middle-market clients during his prior roles over the last decade, Mr. Garrod is now focused on originating, analyzing and helping manage fund, secondary and direct investments at Star Mountain.

Mr. Garrod’s experience in secondaries dates back to 2007 when he worked with the Lehman Brothers secondaries business, now part of Neuberger Berman. During the Global Financial Crisis of 2009, he assisted the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy estate in the sale of its LP interests.

Mr. Garrod co-founded and was co-Managing Partner for Stonington Capital Advisors, a specialist placement agent and strategic advisor on fund, secondaries, and direct investments in U.S. lower middle-market private equity and private credit. For over a decade, he worked with numerous managers and global institutional investors. He also specialized in working with independent sponsors, advising them on deal structuring and raising them capital for often proprietary transactions.

Benjamin Gordon is founder and Managing Partner of Cambridge Capital. He draws on a career building, advising, and investing in supply chain companies. Benjamin has led investments in outstanding firms including XPO, Greenscreens.ai, Grand Junction and others.

Prior to Cambridge Capital, Benjamin built BGSA Holdings into a global leader in M&A for the supply chain sector. As CEO of BGSA, Benjamin led the firm’s efforts, advising on over $2 billion worth of supply chain transactions. Benjamin has worked with firms such as UPS, DHL, Kuehne & Nagel, Agility Logistics, NFI Logistics, GENCO, Nations Express, Raytrans, Echo Global, Dixie, Wilpak, and others.

Benjamin received a Masters in Business Administration from Harvard Business School and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Yale College.

Grace is an experienced early-stage investor and operator with experience in the U.K. and the U.S. She started her career at Apple in London where, among other things, she trained as an Apple Genius. She then went to work for consumer electronics supply chain management group PCH International, based in Shenzhen and San Francisco.

Grace applied her consumer technology experience to launch the venture-backed School of the Digital Age, a retail concept for new technology products in partnership with companies such as Selfridges, Neiman Marcus, and Nordstrom.

On the investment side, she has worked on the early-stage investment team at Index Ventures in London and at an investment advisory group focused on the business ventures of leading global entertainers and athletes.

Grace's operational experience encompasses supply chain management, physical product development, retail partnerships, and go-to-market strategy. In addition to her work, she has been an advisor to the U.K. Government's Digital Industrialisation Strategy and the IPPR Commission on Economic Justice.

Will joined Boyne Capital in 2023. As a Vice President of Business Development, he helps drive the sourcing and origination efforts at Boyne. Prior to joining Boyne, Will served as a Senior Associate on the origination team at Sole Source Capital, a lower-middle market private equity firm based in Dallas, Texas. Will previously worked for Edge Capital Group, where he managed investment strategies across all asset classes for family offices, foundations, and ultra-high-net-worth individuals. Will received his BS in Economics with Financial Applications from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas.

Harvey Hernandez is the Founder & CEO of Miami-based Newgard Development Group. Fueled by his creativity and armed with a diehard entrepreneurial spirit, Harvey first began his involvement in real estate development during the 1990’s as a hands-on investor in the rapidly expanding Miami market.

Harvey has spent more than two decades in the South Florida market – observing the city’s tremendous capacity for change and progress. Always holding firm to excellence and being at the forefront of the industry, Harvey continues to revitalize high-end residential markets in South Florida by developing innovative projects that deliver the best in location, cutting-edge amenities, luxury finishes, and forward-thinking design. Harvey currently resides in Miami, FL.

Mr. Hill is a managing partner and co-founder of Hyde Park Capital Advisors, LLC.
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During his career, Mr. Hill has executed hundreds of transactions, in aggregate totaling more than $5 billion, including numerous mergers & acquisitions, financial advisory engagements, initial and secondary public offerings, private placements of equity and debt securities and fairness opinions.

Prior to forming Hyde Park Capital in January 2000, Mr. Hill was employed for nine years in the Investment Banking Department at Raymond James & Associates, Inc., most recently in the position of Managing Director and Head of the Investment Banking Technology Group, which he co-founded in 1991. Prior to Raymond James, Mr. Hill was employed by Morgan Stanley in the Mergers & Acquisitions Group within the Investment Banking Department in New York City. Mr. Hill also has prior work experience at IBM Corporation.

Mr. Hill is a former director and Chairman of the Florida Venture Forum. He is a former Director and Chairman of the Investment Advisory Council, the Oversight Board for the $130 Billion State of Florida Pension Fund. He is a member of the Tampa Bay CEO Council and the Association of Corporate Growth (ACG). Mr. Hill is also actively involved in STAR (Special Operator Force Transition Resource), comprised of select Tampa Bay business leaders, working with retiring special forces operators out of Tampa-based United States Special Operations Command (SOCOM) at MacDill AFB.

Mr. Hill holds a B.S. in Industrial Engineering and Operations Research from Virginia Tech and a Masters in Business Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Mr. Hill was awarded the Beta Gamma Sigma honorary at the University of North Carolina. Mr. Hill holds Series 7, 24 and 63 securities licenses.

Michael L. Kohner serves as both the Co-Leader of Private Client Services for Alvarez & Marsal Tax and Head of the West Palm Beach office. With 40 years of experience as an accomplished trusted advisor on taxation and family offices, Michael services clients in various industries ranging from private equity, real estate, aviation, technology, professional sports, entertainment, distribution and blockchain.

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. 

Matt is a distinguished professional known for his multifaceted career spanning sports, academia, and investment. As a former Major League Baseball (MLB) player and Olympian, Matt demonstrated exceptional dedication and skill on the field, representing his country with pride and excellence. Transitioning from his athletic career, Matt pursued higher education and graduated from Northwestern University's prestigious Kellogg School of Management, where he honed his strategic and leadership capabilities.

Prior to co-founding True Up Capital Advisors, Matt established himself as an investment partner at A111, where he specialized in sourcing and funding deals in the lower middle market. His keen insight and strategic acumen have been instrumental in identifying and nurturing promising investment opportunities, contributing significantly to the firm's success. Matt's unique blend of athletic discipline, academic rigor, and investment expertise makes him a dynamic and influential figure in the industry.

Sean joined Lockton in 2006 and is an Executive Vice President and Executive Committee member in the Southeast Series of Lockton Companies. Lockton is the largest privately held Insurance, Risk Management, and Employee Benefits Brokerage firm in the world. Sean has spent more than 20 years managing merger and acquisition diligence and transactional strategies for some of the most active private equity firms in the U.S. His expertise in working through insurance structures and complex solutions associated with purchase agreements create great value for his clients and their deal teams.

In addition to Sean’s Private Equity related work, his daily tasks are focused on providing cost-effective insurance program structure and placements for large Public and Private Companies, Real Estate portfolios and REIT’s.

Sean is also part of Lockton's Financial Products Practice based on his previous and current experience on Directors & Officers Liability for Public Companies, Private Equity Partnership Liability, and Public REITS.

Sean earned his Masters in Business Administration at Nova Southeastern University’s H. Wayne Huizenga School of Business. Sean also has a Bachelor’s Degree in International Business from Florida Atlantic University.

Managing Partner of the Miami Office, Enrique ("Rick") Martin has over 30 years of experience advising public and private U.S. and multinational companies on complex corporate transactions including domestic and cross-border mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, financings and general securities matters. Rick advises firm clients across a range of industries including financial services, energy, transportation and infrastructure, telecommunications, technology, hospitality, hotels and resorts, media, food and beverage, and agriculture.

Rick has also assisted numerous Latin American and European companies in establishing and expanding their operations in the United States. In addition, he has extensive experience advising global corporations in managing their legal matters throughout Latin America.

Eli Minski, Principal, joined WM Partners in 2015. He is responsible for identifying, evaluating, and executing investment opportunities, as well as monitoring existing portfolio companies. Prior to joining the Management Company, Eli worked as cash manager and treasury analyst at Nutranext, LLC, where he was responsible for monitoring and forecasting net working capital and bank reporting. He was also involved with Nutranext's acquisition and integration of Nutri-Health Supplements. Prior to Nutranext, LLC, Eli worked as a financial analyst at Bayview Center for Mental Health, a non-profit community mental health center in South Florida.

Ziba Movassaghi is a Senior Relationship Manager for the Broward County market in Commercial Banking at Bank of America.

In this capacity, her responsibilities include leading a team of specialists focused on understanding each client’s unique needs to deliver strategic financial guidance and solutions. Ziba's mission is to help local companies thrive by achieving their business goals, no matter how simple or how complex.

Ziba is a career banker with over 35 years in the industry and has worked for Bank of America for 35+ years in various roles throughout the bank.  Throughout her banking career, Ziba  has served mid-sized to large companies and managed a portfolio of high net worth clients in the Private Banking space.

Originally from Seattle, Washington Ziba graduated with a bachelor of science in Chemistry. She has lived in South Florida for the last 18 years. She resides in Boca Raton.

Maylin Nelson is a Certified Business Performance Advisor at Insperity, serving the South Florida Lauderdale. With over five years of experience, she partners with business owners to drive growth, streamline operations, and boost profitability through strategic HR solutions. Her expertise spans networking, marketing development, and performance optimization to help companies run better and grow faster.

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

Ryan Petnuch is a Senior Associate at Alterna Equity Partners where he is responsible for evaluating and executing new investment opportunities as well as portfolio management. Previously, he worked as an investment banker at Cross Keys Capital, specializing in sell-side mergers and acquisitions for founder-led businesses. Ryan began his career at PNC, underwriting corporate credit transactions in the industrials sector.

At the helm of CohnReznick's advisory marketing, her focus is steering strategy and innovation for the firm's advisory services. Michelle's expertise in relationship management and marketing communications has proven instrumental in fostering connections that enhance our brand's presence in the middle market.

Our team's efforts in cross-channel marketing and customer-centric campaigns have contributed to significant growth and client engagement. With a talent for anticipating market shifts and implementing strategic adjustments, we ensure that CohnReznick's value proposition resonates strongly within our target markets.

For over 30 years, I have served financial advisors and their clients, helping them navigate the complexities of wealth management, asset allocation, and market evolution. As a former Managing Director and Market Executive at Merrill Lynch, I was responsible for $130 billion in global private client assets, a $1.5 billion P&L, and 2,000+ employees across the Southeast U.S., Latin America, and the Caribbean. Through this experience, I witnessed firsthand how technology democratized information, reshaping the financial landscape and shifting the greatest investment opportunities from public markets to private markets. Recognizing that private clients now understand where true value creation lies—especially in technology, I founded Fuel Venture Capital Partners in 2017 to give them access to this high-growth asset class.

I pride myself on taking an approach to venture capital investment that can be best described as “founder-focused, investor-driven,” shaped by my two decades of experience and tenure as a top executive at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Fuel was built with the same mission that guided my career in wealth management: to serve financial advisors and their clients, ensuring they have the opportunity to invest in disruptive, exponential technologies that power our daily lives.

Today, Fuel Venture Capital manages five funds and 34 global startups, including Unicorns and Soonicorns such as Betr, Cook-Unity, Soundtrack Your Brand, Tradeshift, Lunar Bank, Curve Card, Regargapay, AexLabs, and Taxfyle. We provide access to the next generation of innovation, giving investors a seat at the table where the economy is truly being shaped.

I am deeply passionate about mentorship, empowering founders, and ensuring that financial advisors and their clients recognize and capitalize on the opportunities ahead. (Jeff Ransdell has been licensed with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, covering all asset classes, and supervision and control of financial securities broker-dealers. He continues to be used as an expert witness in many FINRA and SEC-related securities arbitrations.)

David is Founder and Managing Partner at Reformation Partners. David was formerly Vice President at FirstMark Capital, a $3B+ B2B and B2C venture capital firm based in New York City. Prior to FirstMark, David worked in the capital markets and investment banking division at Goldman Sachs. David graduated as Valedictorian and Summa Cum Laude from Dartmouth College.

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

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

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

I am the Business Banking Market Executive for Broward County. I have a track record in driving market growth and leading high-performing teams. Skilled in strategic planning, client relations, and delivering tailored financial solutions to small and mid-sized businesses.

Jeffrey has a track record in driving market growth and leading high-performing teams. Currently serving as the Business Banking Market Executive for Broward County, his extensive background in commercial banking, risk management, and strategic planning has empowered him to foster significant partnerships and drive economic progress for entrepreneurs.

He holds a Bachelor's Degree in Economics from Florida International University, which underpins his analytical approach to financial analysis and forecasting.

Marlee Strawn is the Co-Founder of Scholar Education, where she leads the development of AI tools co-designed with teachers to personalize learning and support classroom instruction. A former teacher and school administrator with nearly 20 years in education, she works to ensure AI meets the real needs of students and educators. Most recently, she was named one of ASU+GSV’s 2025 Leading Women in AI and delivered a TEDx talk on how AI will shape the future of education.

Cat Suplicy is your favorite business therapist — part strategy queen, part systems sorceress. As founder of RavenOps, she turns messy ops into smooth moves for scaling startups and growing empires. Equal parts heart and hustle, Cat speaks fluent whiteboard, swears by AI, and believes wine is a business tool. Spoiler: she’s probably your next secret weapon.

Mr. Tagle is a Director at Palm Beach Capital leading fundraising, investor relations, and business development efforts for the firm.

Prior to joining Palm Beach Capital, Juan was a Managing Director at JP Morgan Chase in the Middle Market Banking and Specialized Industries Group. There for 12 years, Juan led a team of South Florida based Middle Market Bankers and worked very closely with companies ranging from $20M-$1B in revenues. Juan was responsible for overseeing the delivery of various product sets including senior credit facilities, debt capital markets, investment banking, and treasury management solutions. Juan was licensed 79 and 63 (both inactive).

Juan is also very involved in local community engagement efforts, and currently sits on the Board of Directors and Executive Committee for the Business Development Board of Palm Beach County and the Education Foundation of Palm Beach County.

Juan is a graduate of the University of Central Florida, BS in Finance

With over a decade of professional experience, Dirk brings expertise in new business development, marketing, and business strategy to his role as Director of Business Development at Medrus Capital Partners. Focused on creating meaningful partnerships with portfolio companies, Dirk is driven by the mission to foster scalable growth and team-oriented collaboration. His goal is to align with organizations that share values of innovation and opportunity, empowering businesses to take confident, calculated risks for top-line and bottom-line growth.

At Medrus Capital, Dirk works closely with portfolio companies in entertainment, technology, consumer products, and real estate to optimize brand strategy and financial performance. Leveraging his background in business development and marketing, he contributse to identifying and nurturing growth opportunities while facilitating partnerships that align with shared values and long-term scalability.

Max Weiss is a founder of Diatonic and actively works to source, execute, and manage new investment opportunities with the team, as well as develop investment themes. Mr. Weiss has had experience as both a healthcare investor as well as a business services operator/founder. Mr. Weiss previously worked with Eir Partners Capital, a middle market Healthcare Tech private equity firm.

Prior to Eir Partners, Mr. Weiss worked at Prospect Capital, Cross Keys Capital, and US Anesthesia Partners, as well as several full-time investment roles during business school.

Mr. Weiss holds a Bachelor of Arts with Honors in Economics from The University of Chicago, and and an MBA from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business.