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Council of National Advisors
The Members of the Springboard Council of National Advisors of Springboard Enterprises are some of the most talented and accomplished leaders in the business world. The Council was convened to advise and support the organization and its Board of Directors and to actively advocate on behalf of Springboard Enterprises and its alumnae among their peers and within the broader business community. Click on a picture below to learn more about one of our Advisors.
Council of National Advisors:
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Denise Brosseau |
Connie Connors |
Pamela Reilly Contag |
Ellen Corenswet |
Lauren Flanagan |
Ellen Hancock |
Holly Hassett |
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Christie Hefner |
Mary Frances Kelley |
Lauri Kien Kotcher |
Kay Koplovitz |
Geraldine Laybourne |
Joan Lyman |
Lore McGovern |
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Pat Mitchell |
Toby Moskovitz |
Julie Muraco |
Betsy Myers |
Carol Nichols |
Sharon Patrick |
Jacqueline Reses |
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Heidi Roizen |
Muriel Siebert |
Bernee Strom |
Amy Wildstein |
Elizabeth Zabludoff |
Jura Zibas |
Penny Zuckerwise |
Denise Brosseau
Well-Connected Leader, Inc.
Denise is the Founder and CEO of Well-Connected Leader, Inc. (WCL) a company dedicated to the success of women leaders. The WCL team is focused on increasing the visibility, credibility, connections and results of their clients, which include entrepreneurs, corporate executives and professional service providers. She spent the first 10 years of her career in the high tech industry, with leadership positions in marketing, product development and international business development at Motorola, Kensington/Acco and Broderbund Software. In 1998, she launched the Forum for Women Entrepreneurs (FWE), growing this non-profit into the country’s leading organization for high-growth women-led start-ups with seven offices and over 1200 members. While at FWE, Denise was one of the co-founders of Springboard, leading the first two California venture forum events in 2000 and 2001. After leaving the non-profit arena in 2002, Denise co-founded Invent Your Future, a women’s leadership company focused on the retention, development and acceleration of women leaders.
Connie is one of new media's pioneers. Throughout her more than 20 year career, she has helped companies capture their share of the emerging technology markets, defining a new approach to communications and marketing practices in the process. Her work for start ups as well as established companies has earned her numerous awards and honors.
Connie launched Connors Communications in 1985 with the mission to educate the broader consumer audience on how technology can make a difference in the way we live, learn and work. Connie and her team have been responsible for launching many of the major technology initiatives over the past two decades, including: the first personal and hand held computers, CD-ROM drives and educational software, the first networked workstations, online services and new Internet brands including Amazon.com and Priceline.com as well as assisting household brands - Disney.com, National Geographic, Nordstrom.com, The New York Times Digital - transition their offerings online.
Over the past several years, Connie has led her company into the age of digital influence through an integrated online communications and search engine optimization approach. As a result, Connors has developed its own software solution that was the genesis of a popular consumer product called HitTail which was launched in the summer of 2006. Connie served as an Advisory Board Member of the New York New Media Association (NYNMA) and also as its president from 1996-1998. She also served on the NY Governor's task force regarding media and Internet development in 1998. Currently, Connors is an advisor to a number of investment funds and is actively involved in an advisory capacity to several startup companies as well as not-for-profit organizations. She is a member of the Young Presidents' Organization.
Dr. Pamela Reilly Contag
Founder and CEO, ConcentRx and Cygnet BioFuels
Founder, Cobalt Biofuels and Xenogen
Pamela R. Contag, Ph.D., is a serial entrepreneur and currently the CEO of Cygnet, a Biofuels company focused on the utilization of novel organisms for feedstock and biofuel production, and ConcentRX, a biotech company.
Pam has founded and led several companies including Xenogen Corporation which she founded in 1995 from her research at Stanford University. She served as President and Founder of Xenogen from 1995-2004 when the company was listed on the NASDAQ. She continued to serve as CEO of Xenogen Biosciences until 2006 when Xenogen merged with CaliperLS.
In 2000, Xenogen Corporation was listed as one of the Top 25 Young Businesses" by Fortune Small Business and in both 2001 and 2003 received the R&D 100 award for achievements in Physics. Pam was named as one of the "Top 25 Women in Small business" by Fortune magazine.Dr. Contag has held various consulting and board positions; public, private and not-for-profit.
Dr. Contag is currently Chariman of ConcentRX, Inc. a privately held Immunotherapy Company and a Board Member of Delcath, Corp. (Nasdaq) and a member of the DOE Biomass Technical Advisory Committee. Other positions include a consulting Professorship at Stanford School of Medicine in the Department of Pediatrics (1999-present), the Dean’s Advisory Board of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (1999-2005) and the editorial board of the Journal of Biosecurity and Bioterrorism (2002-present). Dr. Contag was a Director of Xenogen Corporation (1995-2005), Chairman of Cobalt Technologies (2005-2008). With more than 25 years of microbiology research experience, Dr. Contag is widely published in the field of Microbiology and Optical imaging and has over 35 patents. Dr. Contag received her Ph.D. in Microbiology at the University of Minnesota Medical School in 1989 studying Microbial Physiology and Genetics (for Alternative Fuels) and completed her Postdoctoral Training at Stanford University School of Medicine in 1993 specializing in “Host/Pathogen Interactions”.
Ellen Corenswet
Corporate Partner, Covington & Burling LLP
Ellen Corenswet is a Co-Chair of Covington's Corporate Group and operates out of the New York office. She specializes in representing venture capital firms and emerging growth companies in securities matters, venture financings, IPOs, follow on offerings and PIPES, mergers & acquisitions, equity plans and executive compensation, and general corporate governance and advice. Her practice focuses on a number of industries, including life sciences, software, Internet services, financial services, clean technology, and telecommunications. Ellen has over 30 years' experience in venture capital transactions at all stages, for both companies and investors. She has helped numerous companies to prepare for an IPO and to successfully navigate the IPO processes. Ellen takes a hands on, business-focused approach to working with companies and investors.
Prior to joining Covington, Ellen was a partner of Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison LLP, a preeminent law firm in the venture capital and emerging company arena, until its closure in early 2003. She was one of two founding partners of the New York office of Brobeck and the Chair of its New York corporate practice for a number of years.
Lauren Flanagan
Founder & CEO, SCIO Corp
Co-Founder & Managing Director, Phenomenelle Angels Fund I, LP
LLauren is a Managing Director of the Phenomenelle Angels Fund I, LP, an early stage private equity fund she co-founded in 2006. The Phenomenelle Fund invests in women and minority owned or managed high technology businesses in the MidWest. The Fund's limited partners are successful women entrepreneurs and select entities. Lauren also serves as CEO of SCIO Corp, a strategic advisory firm focused on serving emerging companies in the information technology, biotechnology, clean technology and consumer technology markets. SCIO assists clients with strategic planning, partnerships, executive team/board development, corporate restructuring and financing.
Prior to founding SCIO Corp in 2002, Lauren co-founded WebWare Corporate, and served as its Chairman, President and CEO for 7 years. While at WebWare, she helped define and lead two new market categories: brand resource management (now called marketing content management) and media asset management (now called digital asset management). She raised approximately $20 million in equity capital for WebWare, which in 2003 was acquired by a publicly traded company.
In her 15 years of senior management experience prior to WebWare, Lauren co-founded 4 technology companies and consulted for high technology leaders including Apple, Atari, HP, IBM, Microsoft, NeXT, Texas Instruments and Xerox. Lauren received Trailblazer Awards in 2000 and 2001 from Forum for Women Entrepreneurs, and was awarded IT Software CEO of the Year for 2001 by a leading analyst firm, Frost and Sullivan. She was named to BusinessWeek's Top 25 Angels in Tech in 2010. She serves on the Board of Directors at Springboard Enterprises and Michelle's Miracle, is Chairman at HarQen and at Current Motors, and is a Board observer at EraGen BioSciences.
Ellen Hancock
Consultant
Ellen Hancock is a long-time technology manager. She is best known for her 29-year tenure at IBM, where she rose to the position of senior vice president in charge of network hardware and software. She ran the networking hardware division through the first half of the 1990s, at a time when it produced double digit losses in market share year after year. (The same division was ultimately sold to Cisco in 1999.) She was also a member of the IBM Corporate Executive Committee and the IBM Worldwide Management Council. In September 1995 she started with National Semiconductor as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer (COO), after being lured from IBM by Gil Amelio. She worked closely with Amelio to move National Semiconductor to profitability. In May 1996 she again joined Amelio at Apple Computer where she took over the Chief Technology Officer role. After Apple she took the CEO position with Exodus Communications in March 1998, and became chairman of the board in 2000. While leading Exodus she set a NASDAQ record of 19 consecutive quarters of 40 percent quarter-over-quarter revenue growth. Her next gig was as President, COO, and secretary to the board of Acquicor, a company she co-founded with Amelio and Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak. The company served as a 'blank check' holding company which acquired Jazz Semiconductor.
Hancock is a member on the boards of several companies, including Aetna, Colgate-Palmolive, Ripcord Networks, Marist College and Santa Clara University. She is also a board member of non-profit venture catalyst Springboard Enterprises. She is a graduate from the College of New Rochelle, and obtained a master's degree in mathematics from Fordham University.
Holly Hassett
Consultant
Holly is a well-respected, seasoned public affairs advocate who for much of her career headed up the government affairs operations for The Hershey Company, a large, publicly traded, food and consumer goods manufacturing company. Since her retirement from Hershey, Holly has worked as a Consultant, Board Member and Advisor providing strategic guidance to corporate, trade association and non-profit clients seeking to influence the political process on a broad range of public policy issues, including Homeland Security, health, tax and appropriations.
Holly spent 25-years at The Hershey Company starting in 1978 when she opened their Washington, D.C. Corporate office. She served as Manager until 1992 when she was named Director of Federal Government Relations. In 1994 she relocated to Corporate Headquarters in Hershey, PA to manage international, federal, state and local government relations programs for the company. Holly retired from The Hershey Company in June of 2002 as Vice President of Government Relations and a corporate officer.
Currently Holly serves on the Board of the Capitol Forum, a Washington, D.C.-based women's organization comprised of current and former Washington heads of corporations and trade associations. She also serves on the board of The Washington-Ireland Program for Service and Leadership and supports the programs of USA for UNHCR.
Christie Hefner
C.A.H., LLC
As Chairman and CEO of Playboy Enterprises, Inc. from 1988 to 2008, Christie Hefner oversaw the global expansion of Playboy’s legendary brand to a wide array of new platforms and markets, transforming a domestic publishing-based business into a global multi-media and lifestyle company. She was the longest serving female CEO ever of a public company, and she was also named one of the 100 Most Powerful Women in the World by Forbes magazine for three consecutive years (2005-2007), and in 1991, she was inducted into the Women's Business Development Center Hall of Fame for "opening doors and building opportunities for all women entrepreneurs."
Since stepping down, Christie has been working with the Center for American Progress, the leading progressive think tank started and run by John Podesta, and appearing regularly on cable news to talk about business and public policy. She is working with the “Columbia Journalism Review” to increase its influence and effectiveness both as a media watchdog and as an ally in the effort to find new business models for journalism. She is also developing a new brand-licensing business for Canyon Ranch Health Resorts.
The first woman elected to the Chicago chapter of the Young Presidents' Organization, Christie helped to found the Committee of 200, an international organization of preeminent women business owners and executives. She currently sits on the Council of National Advisors for Springboard Enterprises, which supports women-led growth ventures, and has long been involved in working to elect progressive candidates, advance women, and first amendment issues. She was a founding partner of The Directors’ Council, which is dedicated to meeting the increasing needs of public boards for independent directors by increasing the diversity of boards.
She’s on the board of Trustees for Rush University Medical Center and has also distinguished herself as a committed HIV/AIDS activist, dedicating time and resources to many AIDS-related programs. She spent four years as project board chairman for the CORE Center––a public-private partnership between Rush University Medical Center and Cook County Hospital––and raised $30 million to build this innovative clinic and research facility, which opened in Chicago in the summer of 1998. The CORE Center conducts clinical research and provides prevention education and outpatient care for
people with HIV/AIDS and other communicable diseases.
Christie was born in Chicago in 1952. Elected to Phi Beta Kappa in her junior year of college, she graduated from Brandeis University summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and American literature in 1974. After graduation, she worked as a journalist for a year for The Boston Phoenix. She is married to real estate developer
and attorney William A. Marovitz, a former Illinois state senator.
Mary Frances Kelley
General Partner, INVESCO
Mary Frances is a nationally recognized small business expert and lecturer, and has been a consultant to two Fortune 100 financial services firms. Mary joined Sovereign Financial services (now INVESCO Private Capital) in 1994. She began her career in 1976 with Deloitte & Touche in the Audit and General Service department. Many rounded her own full service accounting firm in 1980. Her business acumen and leadership have been recognized by both the Reagan and Clinton administrations. She was a participant in President-elect Clinton's Economic Summit, and has served on an advisory board to the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank. She was appointed by President Clinton to be a commissioner for the White House Conference on Small Business in 1995. She has extensive experience in business valuation and strategic planning matters. In addition, she has worked with a number of businesses, foundations and endowments with regard to the development of systems, reporting and internal controls. Mary Frances serves on several partnership advisory boards including Telecom II & III, CHL Medical, Healthcare Ventures and Apex.
Lauri Kien Kotcher
Chief Marketing Office and SVP Global Brand Development, Godiva Chocolatier, Inc.
Lauri is Chief Marketing Office and SVP Global Brand Development, Godiva Chocolatier, Inc. a position she assumed in early 2009. Prior, She was a Managing Director of Lehman Brothers, and Head of Marketing for Equity Research. Until 2007, Lauri was the Vice President, Global Brand Management at Pfizer Consumer Healthcare (a $4 billion division of Pfizer Inc.), a position she had held since 2004. Lauri was responsible for growing Pfizer's consumer brands globally: Listerine, Nicorette, Visine, Purell, Zyrtec, and Rogaine which collectively represented almost $2B in sales and about 50% of Pfizer's consumer portfolio.
From 1988-2003, Lauri was at McKinsey & Company where she was a partner and co-leader of the North American Packaged Goods practice. She has deep industry experience in OTC, HBA/beauty, food and beverage, household goods, and retail apparel. During her 15 years in consulting, she led efforts for major clients across a board range of product categories and channels, including mass retail, food service, and luxury goods. She also has international experience, having worked for global companies in Western Europe, Brazil, Mexico, and Asia Pacific.
At McKinsey, Lauri was known as a knowledge leader in the firm and has led ground-breaking work including "Cracking the Code on Innovation," "Making Consumer Mergers Work," and "Breaking Out of the Pack-Building New Businesses." She also developed McKinsey's industry leaders consumer products sales force survey, which is used to benchmark sale effectiveness measures and efficiency issues and published every 4-5 years, and published several articles on sales force best practices.
Kay Koplovitz
Chairman, Springboard Enterprises
Founder, USA Networks
Chairman of the Board, Liz Claiborne Inc.
Chairman and CEO, Koplovitz & Company
Author and Entrepreneur
Kay Koplovitz is the founder of USA Network and the first woman network president in television history. A pioneer in cable television networks and new media ventures, she is a visionary woman who led the emergence of cable television to challenge the broadcast networks for coveted audiences. She continues to be a leader in raising venture capital for women entrepreneurs and in launching new programming companies that challenge the frontiers of the digital age. She is the author of, Bold Women, Big Ideas (May '02), which she wrote to inform and inspire women entrepreneurs to create wealth through equity. Kay speaks on subjects ranging from media and the digital revolution, to venture and private equity and corporate governance. She presently serves as Chairman of the Board, Liz Claiborne Inc.
Among her recent accomplishments, Kay co-created Springboard Enterprises, a national organization that fosters venture capital investments in women-led high growth companies. Since inception, Springboard has presented over 380 companies that have raised $4 billion in new capital. She also co-founded Boldcap Ventures, a venture capital fund backed exclusively by leading women executives. Boldcap invests principally in early to mid stage companies in the media, technology, and healthcare sectors. Kay counts among her accomplishments the Presidential appointment as Chair of National Women's Business Council (1998-2001). She is the recipient of numerous awards and inductions for her leadership accomplishments in the areas of Media and Entrepreneurship.
Kay currently serves as Chairman of the Board of Liz Claiborne Inc. and as a board member of Reactrix, and has previously served on the boards of Instinet, Oracle, Nabisco, General Re, and Sun New Media. She serves as trustee of The Paley Center for Media and The International Tennis Hall of Fame. She holds a master's degree in Communications from Michigan State University and a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin as well as honorary doctorate degrees from Emerson College, St. John's University, and Michigan State University. A native of Milwaukee, Kay is married to private investor William C. Koplovitz, Jr.
Geraldine Laybourne
Founder and Former Chairman and CEO, Oxygen Media, LLC
Zelinick Media
Gerry founded Oxygen Media and served as its chairman and chief executive officer until November 2007 when the network was acquired by NBC Universal. She launched the network in 2000 to fill a void in the television landscape - creating a network targeted to younger women. Gerry led the company to be a strong advocate for women.
Prior to starting Oxygen, Gerry spent 16 years at Nickelodeon. Under her leadership, Nickelodeon became the top-rated 24-hour cable service and won several notable honors, including Emmy® and Parent's Choice® awards. From 1996-1998, Gerry was president of Disney/ABC Cable Networks where she was responsible for overseeing cable programming for the Walk Disney Company and ABC.
Gerry is a member of the Board of Directors of Symantic, Insight Communications and Move.com and also serves on the Board of Trustees of Vassar College. Gerry also sat on a number of industry boards and advisory committees, including The National Cable Television Association, The National Council for Families and Television, New York Women in Film and television (Advisory Board), Cable Positive (Honorary Chair) and the Council of National Advisors of Springboard Enterprises. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in art history from Vassar College and a Master of Science degree in elementary education from the University of Pennsylvania. A native of Martinsville, New Jersey, she and her husband Kit have two children and two grandchildren.
Joan Lyman
Partner, Lyman Management Group
Joan Lyman excels at leading Founders and Angel investors to a thorough understanding of the intersection of cash and shareholder rights, and - through that knowledge - building stronger businesses at earlier stages. She has over 25 years of operational and sales experience in developing innovative technology companies. In 1999, Joan co-founded SecureWorks, then raised $30 million to build what is widely recognized today as the largest successful, private MSSP in North America. She spearheaded the first-to-market MSSP for an IDS/IPS solution in Open Source, called the iSensor.
Her unique expertise of understanding the successful mix of markets, money and management teams was honed over two decades of experience that includes launching some of the earliest voice mail systems, information management systems and Internet security solutions. As regional sales director for CompUSA, she managed operations at 23 locations in eight states during the company’s transition from a pure retailer to a solutions-focused integrator. Today, Joan is a frequent speaker on Economics for Innovation with a specialty in Founder and Angel investors’ economics and shareholder rights. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia with her husband and children.
Lore McGovern
Business @Venturess, LHM Ventures
Lore McGovern is renowned for her successful career of entrepreneur, investor, and philanthropist. In 1976 she co-founded Vector Graphic Inc., a pioneering micro computer company. She successfully raised venture capital and expanded the company to over $50 million in sales. She left the company in 1983, to co-found Pacific Technology Venture Fund, managing the Tokyo and San Francisco offices.
In 1985, she founded Aplex Corporation, which developed and marketed feminine hygiene products. She obtained two patents for her inventions and sold the marketing rights in 1989. She became CEO and President of Good Morning Teacher! Publishing Company, a company that published over 750 educational titles for grades K-12 and consumer oriented educational materials for children ages 4-8. The business was sold in 1999.
Lore currently serves as the director of the McGovern Institute for Brain Research at MIT and for Lohika Systems, Inc. Previous board positions include American Electronics Association and Montgomery Ventures. She serves on the Board of Advisors for Blue Pumpkin Software and previously chaired the Board of Associates of the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research at MIT.
Pat Mitchell
President and CEO, The Paley Center for Media
Pat is President and Chief Executive Officer of the Paley Center for Media. She came to the Center in March 2006 from the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), where she was named president and chief executive officer in March 2000, the first woman and first producer and journalist to hold the position. Under Pat's leadership, PBS rejuvenated the National Program Service, which is distributed to the public through 348 locally owned and operated PBS member stations. She also oversaw the development of many new projects, including a new series for children focusing on teaching literacy skills and celebrating diversity. She is credited with leading public broadcasting into the digital future with such initiatives as the conversion from analog to digital broadcasting, the launch of a high-definition PBS channel and an on-demand and cable preschool children's service, the growth of PBS's website into one of the three most visited sites on the internet, and the establishment of the Digital Future Initiative to help define models for public service media using new digital technologies.
Pat is responsible for establishing an independent production company based at Paramount Studios. The company produced documentaries, specials and series for broadcast, cable, and national syndication. Within the company, Pat became the Executive Producer and the host of "Woman to Woman," the first female-hosted talk show. She has reported from Israel, Palestine, Northern Ireland and El Salvador for an NBC series called "Women and War." She also produced "A Century of Women," the first documentary series on women's history in the United States.
Toby Moskovits
Managing Director, Heritage Equity Partners
Toby has spent the past 10 years advising companies on strategic and operational growth strategies. Prior to founding Heritage Equity Partners, Toby launched and led the direct investment practice of Cammeby’s International a large New York based family office whose principal holdings are in real estate. In addition to traditional private equity investing across a range of industries, in her role with the family, Toby developed a merchant banking practice, working with entrepreneurs and companies to identify and execute on strategic growth opportunities, while generating significant proprietary deal flow in partnership with a network of virtual “entrepreneurs in residence” and families across a range of industries. Toby is also the founder of Gotham Angels, a New York based Investment group focused on providing angel investors with opportunities to invest in mature growth and middle market private equity opportunities. Prior to joining Cammeby's Toby founded Cato Advisors, a boutique consulting firm that worked with early and growth stage companies. From 1998-2002 Toby lived in Israel during which time she worked at Israel Seed Partners, a $250 million fund based in Jerusalem, in addition to holding operational and advisory roles in a number of technology companies. During her tenure at Israel Seed Partners, the fund invested in Cyota (sold to RSA) and Dealtime (IPO: Shopping.com, subsequently sold to Ebay). Toby currently holds seats on the board of directors of Melior Discovery, Blink Twice and Vumber. Toby has a B.Sc. from Touro College and an MBA from Bar Ilan University, both awarded summa cum laude.
Julie Muraco
Consultant
Julie C. Muraco, Managing Partner, Praeditis Group LLC, works with private companies and fund groups seeking access to global capital sources, as well as providing operational expertise in strategic planning, sales & marketing and corporate communications. She founded Praeditis Group LLC, a capital markets and corporate advisory firm in 2007.
Previously, Ms. Muraco was a Senior Managing Director and head of Global Capital Markets for The NASDAQ OMX Stock Market responsible for strategy and client relations with corporate advisors, such as investment banks and financial sponsors, transitioning private companies to the public markets. She has extensive experience with global financial sponsors, banks, and institutional investment firms throughout the U.S., Canada and Asia. Ms. Muraco spent more than 20 years on Wall Street as a Vice President with J.P. Morgan’s Cash Markets Division, based in New York, and as a Managing Director in the Capital Markets Division of Smith Barney, based in Chicago and earlier, in Cleveland. Ms. Muraco spent 2 years as Vice President, Investor Relations, for Archstone-Smith, a publicly traded REIT specializing in luxury high-rise apartments.
Ms. Muraco serves on the advisory boards of Genisys Group, a private company based in London and Springboard Enterprises, a not-for-profit organization that promotes women entrepreneurs and their companies in the capital markets. She also is a Vice Chairman on the Board of Directors of Americans for the Arts, Washington, D.C., the nation’s leading nonprofit organization for advancing rticipation in the arts. She writes and speaks nationally on the influence the arts play on corporate innovation and creative thinking and the economic impact of the arts in community development. Ms. Muraco holds a B.A. in Finance from Baldwin-Wallace College in Berea, Ohio. She resides in New York City.
Betsy Myers
Leadership Expert
With more than two decades of executive leadership positions in various aspects of the public sector, Betsy Myers brings a wealth of leadership experience and personal focus. Betsy Myers most recently served as COO for Obama for America, the 2008 Presidential campaign of Senator Barack Obama (IL). Myers, who is known for her ability to build organizations from the ground up, oversaw the day-to-day operations of the campaign. According to Betsy, her "two passions in life are politics and leadership development." In addition to writing her first book, she has a busy speaking schedule on the topics of politics, leadership and women in business.
Prior to joining the Obama Campaign, she was Executive Director of the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government. The Center is dedicated to excellence in leadership education and research and through its programs and initiatives, bridges the gap between leadership theory and practice. Prior to her appointment at the center, she was Director of Alumni Programs and External Relations and the Kennedy School. During the Clinton Administration, Betsy was a senior official at both the White House and the Small Business Administration (SBA) as Associate Deputy Administrator for Entrepreneurial Development and was responsible for the agency's technical assistance, management , and distance learning program.
In addition, she was responsible for implementing the SBA's national requirements under President Clinton's Welfare to Work Initiative. From 1995-1997, Betsy launched and directed the first White House Office for Women's Initiatives and outreach, serving as Deputy Assistant to the President and Director of Women's Initiatives. In 1993, she held the post of Director at the Office of women's Business Ownership, Washington, D.C. where she served as advocate for 7.8 million women entrepreneurs. Betsy began her career as an entrepreneur in southern California.
Carol Nichols
Investor, Circle C Ventures
Investor, Golden Seeds, North Texas Angel Network and Texas Women Ventures Fund
Carol Nichols is an early stage investor, focused on strategies to make companies and people successful. As a former executive with JP Morgan Chase and Bank of America, and as the Founder of Circle C Ventures, LLC, Carol has almost three decades of experience providing capital and advice to growing companies.
Carol is a leader in capital access initiatives for women-business owners. She is a Co-Founder of the Texas Women Ventures Fund, a member of Golden Seeds, a national angel investor group, and a Co-Founder of NWABO Capital Concepts, Inc., a micro loan program for women entrepreneurs. Carol is on the Boards of Springboard Enterprises, the North Texas Angel Network, and the Texas Horse Park. She serves on the Advisory Board of J.O.Y. Foods in Dallas, TX. The Fort Worth Business Press has recognized Carol as one of the "Great Women of Texas." Carol graduated Cum Laude from the University of Georgia with degrees in Economics and Political Science and she received an MBA from Tulane University. Carol resides in Dallas, Texas.
Sharon Patrick
President, Patrick Partners
Sharon is a business architect and brand builder specializing in entrepreneurial ventures. After graduating from Stanford University and earning her MBA from the Harvard Business School, she spent 13 years at McKinsey and Company developing her brand building skills and experience - founding and leading McKinsey's media and entertainment practice; creating the business model and start-up strategy for ESPN for Getty Oil; directing Cablevision in the development of the original SportsChannel franchises as well as American Movie Classics; directing strategy and branding work for the USTA and USFL; and leading the turnaround and branding of urban cable systems for Times Mirror, Warner Amex, Cox and Cablevision among other assignments.
From 1990-1993, Sharon joined Cablevision as President and Chief Operating Officer of Rainbow Programming to convert the company from a Cablevision subsidiary into a standalone, self-financing company with a portfolio of branded assets. On Sharon's watch, 4 new channels were successfully launched: In Court (now Court TV) was created, the Bravo network was branded and repositioned, Rainbow's other networks doubled in size, revenues grew 58 percent to nearly $350 million, and operating income tripled, enabling the company to become profitable for the first time.
In 1994, Sharon founded her own company, The Sharon Patrick Company, to create and own highly branded media and merchandising businesses. She began by creating the Outdoor Life Network among other ventures. One of the clients of The Sharon Patrick Company was Martha Stewart who in 1993 was looking to Sharon to help her buy back her interests from Time Warner and help her build her own company. The two joined forces as founding partners to build, based on Sharon's "omnimedia" business model, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc., the well known and highly branded $1.5 billion retail empire for the home. Sharon led the buyback of Martha Stewart Living from Time Warner to establish MSO and in 1998 became MSO's President and COO. In that capacity, she led the company's high-profile IPO, taking over as CEO in June 2003. At year-end 2004, mission accomplished, she resigned from MSO, returning to The Sharon Patrick Company full time once again pursuing her entrepreneurial interests in creating new, next-generation branded ventures capable of "doing good while doing well".
Jacqueline Reses
Partner, Apax Partners
Jacqueline Reses is a partner responsible for the media investment effort in the US. Recent investments include Thomson Learning, Thomson Nelson, The Learning Annex, Hit Entertainment, NEP Broadcasting, Intelsat and TVHead. Prior to joining Apax, Jackie served as the Chief Executive Officer of iBuilding, Inc., a real estate software business that was sold to Realeum. Previously, she was a principal at Doughty Hanson & Co. focusing on media and technology investments.
Prior to Doughty Hanson, she spent over seven years at Goldman Sachs as a Vice President in its Mergers and Acquisitions Advisory Group and Principal Investment area. Jackie is on the Investment Committee for the Peddie School and the Boards of Springboard Enterprises and Baby Buggy.
Apax Partners is one of the world's leading private equity investment groups. It operates across the United States, Europe, Israel and Asia and has more than 30 years of investing experience. Funds under the advice of Apax Partners total $35 billion around the world. These funds provide long-term equity financing to build and strengthen world-class companies. Apax Partners funds invest in companies across its global sectors of technology and telecommunications, retail and consumer, media, health care and financial and business services.
Heidi Roizen
Founder, CEO and Chief Lyrical Officer, SkinnySongs
Until she suddenly decided to make a 180-degree career turn and follow her passion to create music that would motivate her (and others) to lose weight and get in shape, Heidi Roizen was a well-known technology entrepreneur and venture capitalist. Heidi has spent her entire life in the entrepreneurial ecosystem of Silicon Valley, first as an entrepreneur and then as a venture capitalist. Now she is an entrepreneur again, as the founder, CEO and Chief Lyrical Officer of SkinnySongs.
Even as a child, Heidi was an entrepreneur, running a puppet theatre for children's parties and retail establishments from the early age of twelve until well into college. With the earnings from this and other jobs, she put herself through Stanford University, receiving both her BA and MBA degrees. After graduating in 1983, Heidi co-founded T/Maker Company, a software publisher and developer for early personal computers, including the IBM PC and the original Macintosh. As CEO, Heidi led the company for over a decade, raised two rounds of venture capital and ultimately consummated a successful acquisition of T/Maker by Deluxe Corporation. In 1996, she joined Apple Computer as VP of Worldwide Developer Relations. After one year at Apple, Heidi decided to return to her entrepreneurial roots, this time as a Mentor Capitalist and ultimately a Venture Capitalist at Mobius Venture Capital, where she served as a Managing Director from 1999 to 2007. In this capacity, she has served on more than 20 boards of companies ranging in size from 1 to 2,000 employees.
Muriel Siebert
Founder, CEO, Chairwoman, Muriel Siebert and Company, Inc.
Muriel is the founder and president of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) brokerage firm that bears her name, Muriel Siebert & Co., Inc. She established the firm in 1967 when she became the first woman member of the NYSE, and transformed the firm into a discount brokerage house on May 1, 1975, the first day that NYSE members were permitted to negotiate commissions.
Muriel continues to oversee the firm's day-to-day operations at its seven branches. The firm's Siebert Brandford Shank & Co., LLC municipal affiliate is ranked in the Top 25 Public Finance Firms in the country. Muriel started her career as a $65 a week trainee in research at Bache & Co., and became an industry specialist (airlines and aerospace). She later became a partner at Finkle & Co., as well as at Brimberg & Co.
Bernee Strom
CEO, The Strom Group
Bernee Strom has a worldwide reputation for successfully guiding technology firms from startup to mainstream success. Strom is chairman and CEO of Strom Group Inc, an investment, management consulting and business advisory firm and has served as president of InfoSpace Ventures, LLC, president and COO of InfoSpace, Incorporated and was founding CEO of Priceline.com.
Strom is a member of the Board of Directors at Hughes Electronics (NYSE), the Polaroid Corporation (NYSE) and ImageX.com (NASDAQ). She is a former director of Krug International (AMEX), DDL Electronics, Inc. (NYSE), Software Publishing Corporation (NASDAQ), InfoSpace (NASDAQ), iGrandparents.com, PassKey, and eLetter.com (private companies).
She serves on the Board of Advisors at J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management of Northwestern University and the Women's Leadership Board of the Harvard University Kennedy School of Government, and is a trustee of the National Public Radio Foundation.
Amy Wildstein
Fund Manager, Boldcap Ventures, LLC
Amy Rosen Wildstein serves as the Fund Manager for Boldcap Ventures, LLC, a venture capital fund that invests in early to mid-stage women-led companies, primarily in the healthcare and technology sectors. Wildstein oversees the investment activities of the fund.
Prior to Boldcap, Wildstein served as a Principal of Solera Capital, which was formed in 1999. Prior to this position, she worked at Morgan Stanley, where she was responsible for evaluating potential acquisition candidates and structuring investments for Morgan Stanley's $2 billion investment fund.
Prior to Morgan Stanley, Wildstein worked with The Blackstone Group and focused on private equity investing and mergers and acquisitions. With this experience under her belt, Wildstein is able to play a crucial role for Boldcap's portfolio companies in developing and executing financial strategies, including public equity and debt financings, bank facilities and private equity placements. Amy has served on the Boards of Directors of companies in the media, healthcare information technology and consumer sectors.
Elizabeth Zabludoff
Head of U.S. Business Development and Marketing, Withers Bergman LLP
Elizabeth works closely with Firm attorneys to market their respective practices and to develop their individual books of business. She is a graduate of the University of Michigan (BA) and earned her JD at Fordham University School of Law.
Jura Zibas is an Intellectual Property and litigation attorney and investor practicing in New York city. Previously, she was a family office executive and oversaw the operations and technology development. Central to her role was identifying and selecting companies to receive funding and potentially locate their operations within Florida's I-4 technology corridor. She developed investment strategies and worked with management teams to develop successful spinouts and strategies. Jura brings over 18 years of legal experience handling corporate transactions with a focus on intellectual property, litigation and business development. Her corporate and legal practice emphasized new business development via identifying and establishing joint venture partnerships and the protection of trademarks, patents and trade secrets. She has authored several industry journal articles on intellectual property business development and has edited textbooks and articles for several large legal publishers.
Penny Zuckerwise
CEO Americas Institutional, Russell Investments
Penny Zuckerwise is chief executive office of Russell Investments’ Americas institutional business. In her role, Penny has primary responsibility for Russell’s institutional business. Penny brings more than 25 years of industry experience, as a business leader, consultant and investment advisor to this role. She serves as a member of Russell’s management committee and provides strategic direction and oversight for Russell’s Institutional leadership team. She joined Russell in 2010.
Before joining Russell, from 2005 to 2010, Penny was president and chief executive officer of Utendahl Capital Management, L.P., an asset management firm offering institutional investment grade fixed income management to Fortune 500 companies. As a successful executive in the asset management industry and as an entrepreneurial business builder, Penny was instrumental in building key new relationships for the firm.
Previous to that, Penny served as the principal and founder of Wiserock, LLC, which provides strategy management oversight and business advice to a select group of companies, CEOs, management teams, pensions and private equity funds. She was also founder, general partner, and governing board member of Boldcap Ventures, formerly Angels4Equity, the first New York women’s investment fund that targets early to mid-stage private investments across the media technology and healthcare industries.
Throughout her career, Penny has demonstrated an ability to execute business strategies in a complex and rapidly changing environment. She brings an extensive background in fixed income investing, and a proven track record as a catalyst for a client-driven culture to the role.
