Eric is the founder & CEO of Sprints, a running apparel and accessories brand that makes funner gear for athletes. A fashion obsessed, self-proclaimed "average" marathoner he has dedicated his life to making dope gear for athletes. He started Sprints after 10 years working in brand management at Procter & Gamble.

With more than 22 years in technology and automation, Mark leads Sensory Robotics’ operational and commercial execution as COO and co-founder. A U.S. military ARMY veteran, he drives strategy, partnerships, and revenue growth for SR-1, the company’s 3D sensing safety solution built to support fenceless, human-robot collaboration in real production environments. Mark is known for bridging engineering, certification, and customer needs, bringing disciplined execution to complex deployments and turning safety requirements into scalable solutions that protect people and keep lines running.

Will send separate email

Ethan is the Co-Founder and CEO of Another Nine, a 24/7 indoor golf franchisor. He has worn many hats throughout his professional career prior to co-founding Another Nine. With a breadth of experiences, his primary focus has always been at the intersection of tech and retail. He's spent time in consulting, strategy and operations, partnerships & M&A, and product management, at Deloitte, dunnhumby, and 84.51, as well as executive leadership roles with Kroger and Shipt (Target). He's a dedicated Co-Founder and an active collaborator and mentor in the Cincinnati/NKY startup ecosystems. He holds a bachelor's degree from Miami University and an MBA from Indiana University. Ethan lives in Cincinnati, OH and is a proud husband and father of three.

Brett is the Co-Founder & COO of Another Nine, a Cincinnati-based indoor golf startup and one of the fastest growing franchise brands in the US. A proud Kentucky alum and former Lexington native, Brett pursued entrepreneurship following an Executive MBA program at Quantic. Over the last 12 years, Brett has made Cincinnati his home alongside his wife, Kelly, and two daughters.

Torrey Babson is the Senior Director of Innovation Services at BRITE Energy Innovators. Day-to-day, Torrey oversees BRITE's CXO Services, which provides fractional leadership solutions to pre-market energy technology startups.

Joe Rohan is the Director of Startup Programs at BRITE Energy Innovators. In his role, Joe helps early-stage startups build the foundation needed to build a business from the ground up, launch successful fundraising rounds, and enter the market.

Early-stage investor focused on solutions for SMBs

Sue Bevan Baggott is a human-centered Executive Advisor, Innovation Catalyst, and Intentional Investor. Sue is dedicated to empowering leaders to create positive impact, accelerate life-improving innovation, and invest in transformative change. Her career spans global innovation leadership at Procter & Gamble (growing mega-brands from Pantene and Pampers) to founding Power Within Consulting, a firm focused on human-

centered strategies for meaningful leadership and business success.

As an “accidental angel investor” and startup advisor, Sue supports diverse portfolios of innovative startups addressing critical global challenges. She also advocates for inclusion in entrepreneurship and investing as an Associate Producer of Show Her the Money, a multi-award-winning documentary promoting investment in underrepresented

founders. Through speaking, writing, consulting, advising, and board roles, Sue strives to inspire purposeful leadership and meaningful innovation. She also encourages more open discussions about money confidence and investing to encourage more people to build wealth through investing with their values to drive positive change.

Sue is a member of multiple early-stage investment groups and funds including: QCA Ventures, Next Wave Impact (Investment Committee member), Kachuwa Impact Fund, Mindshift Capital (LPAC member), Ohio Impact Fund (LP), H Venture Partners (LP), Fireroad Ventures (LP), SoGal Ventures (LP), Emmeline Ventures (LP), and Sage Growth Capital (LP). She’s also an Advisor for Accelerating Angels and several

purpose-driven startups.

Denise Dunlap Co-Founder and Managing Partner Loon Creek Capital Group Sage Growth Capital denise@looncreekcapital.com denise@sagegrowthcapital.com www.linkedin.com/in/denisedunlap55 ​ Denise brings a rare combination of operator experience, investment acumen, and community leadership to everything she does. Her career spans founding and running companies, mentoring entrepreneurs, and shaping the ecosystems that help them thrive. Earlier roles include CEO of an IT services company and Director of Boise State University’s business incubator. She has been an active angel investor and a recognized leader in the angel investment community since 2008. Denise co-founded Loon Creek Capital Group in 2010, building it into a trusted resource that provides consulting and administrative services to angel investors across the country. In 2019, she co-founded Sage Growth Capital, a fund dedicated to companies that need growth capital but aren’t a fit for traditional bank or equity financing. She serves as CEO/Managing Partner of both organizations. In 2025, Denise was appointed President of the COBE Advisory Council at Boise State University, where she helps guide the College of Business and Economics in developing the next generation of entrepreneurs and business leaders. Denise holds a BBA from Boise State University, a first-degree black belt in Shaolin Kung Fu, and is a certified Wrangler/Packer. She collects hobbies the way others collect frequent flyer miles! A few of her interests include golf, growing vegetables, classic cars, riding horses/motorcycles/bicycles, collecting wine, and turning wine bottles into artificial sea glass.

Max Dworin serves as a Vice President at Cintrifuse Capital, a $180mm AUM fund, where he leads investment into seed-stage companies in the Cincinnati region. Immediately prior to joining Cintrifuse, Max served as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Northern Kentucky-based startup hub Blue North. Max is a seasoned startup operator, having co-founded and served as COO of Onda, a tequila seltzer brand that scaled to national distribution and raised over $20 million in venture capital funding. Prior to working in startups, Max served as Press Secretary to U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer. Max received a BA from The Johns Hopkins University and an MBA from Yale School of Management. He is a recipient of the Cincinnati Business Courier’s 40 Under 40 Award and is a member of the 50th cohort of the Cincinnati Regional Chamber’s Leadership Cincinnati program.

Daniel Levine first joined Accel in 2010 and focuses on product-first startups aimed at consumers, developers, and bottoms-up business users. After spending time at Dropbox on the platform team, he re-joined Accel in 2015. Earlier, Dan co-founded Chartio, a Y Combinator-backed (S10) startup in data visualization, and worked on CrunchBase at TechCrunch. He’s from Washington, DC, and graduated from Yale.

Mark is a chartered financial analyst (CFA) and financial risk manager (FRM) with 20+ years of experience in investment management and business advisory, specifically for ultra-high-net-worth clients. His expertise spans trading, sector analysis, portfolio management, and succession planning, and as a small business owner himself, he has started, bought, built, and exited businesses across a range of industries. Mark is the president of Owner Actions and a board advisor to every portfolio business. He is also a youth soccer coach, a father to 3 boys, and an avid Ohio State fan.

Grayson Stalvey is the founder of Aegis Runway Systems, where he helps early-stage founders improve financial visibility, understand burn rate and runway, and make better decisions with limited capital. He is a Coast Guard veteran, entrepreneur, MBA, and Fortune 50 operations leader with more than 20 years of experience in operations, cost management, procurement, decision-making, and resource allocation. Grayson has also coached individuals and businesses on financial management and budgeting topics for more than six years.

Tim Metzner is a serial entrepreneur (x5), father (x4), husband (x1), and follower of Jesus. He believes business can and should be a force for good in the world.   Tim is the founder of Fireroad, a pre-seed fund focused on founders who are helping SMBs stay local, scale efficiently, and compete in the AI economy.   Previously, Tim co-founded Coterie Insurance, a fast-growing small-business insurance company that has raised more than $200 million in capital and is growing profitably. He also co-founded Differential, an early venture studio that helped launch several successful companies, including Astronomer, now valued at more than $1 billion, and Apollos, a digital platform for churches.   Tim also founded OCEAN Accelerator which helped launch 80 companies over a decade supporting both founders and their companies.   A graduate of the Lindner Business Honors Program at the University of Cincinnati, Tim has also served as an adjunct professor and mentor to many college students and entrepreneurs. When he isn’t working or exploring with his wife, you’ll likely find him coaching or cheering on their four children at courts and fields around Cincinnati.

Tammie Scott is the founder and CEO of RiffPay, a fintech platform that streamlines live entertainment booking and payments for independent venues and artists, and the founder and co-owner of Nostalgia Wine & Jazz Lounge, an upscale wine bar and live music venue she opened in downtown Cincinnati in 2020. Before launching RiffPay, she spent 15 years in sports and entertainment marketing, with roles at the NFL Players Association, Roc Nation, and most recently Barstool Sports, where she was Brand Strategy Director. A Cincinnati native, she is an Ohio University and Howard University alum.

Mike MacCombie is the General Partner of Generous Ventures, an early stage VC fund investing in low-hype startups providing vertical-specific solutions for legacy industries. He has built an ecosystem of 336 communities across every sector, stage, and geography of the early-stage venture ecosystem and has invested in approximately 100 companies since 2017. Before working in venture capital, Mike was a behavior science-based consultant, and had started his career as a middle school teacher to students with special needs.

Steph is a Principal on the JobsOhio Ventures team, the corporate venture arm of JobsOhio, when she identifies and invests in Ohio's most promising venture-backed startups. She's part of the team that launched the fund in 2020; and since then, the portfolio has raised nearly $2 billion in capital, with over 70 active companies and 10 successful exits.

Her investment approach is shaped by real time on the "other side of the table." Prior to her work at JobsOhio Ventures, Steph operated high growth startups across tech, real estate, and finance; and she raised capital for an Inc 500 top 50 company.

Outside the office, Steph's latest hobby is linocut printmaking, swapping term sheets for carving tools whenever she gets the chance.

Blair Garrou has spent the majority of his professional career advising and investing in tech entrepreneurs. Blair is co-founder and Managing Partner of Mercury Fund, an early-stage venture capital firm focused on backing disruptive AI and blockchain startups outside of Silicon Valley. With nearly $1 billion AUM and $20 billion of startup value creation since inception, Mercury employs an operationally-focused venture investment strategy helping startups achieve rapid, sustainable growth. Additionally, through his work in helping to build Houston’s innovation ecosystem, Blair launched a number of startup accelerators and investment organizations to help diversify and broaden educational and funding opportunities for entrepreneurs. Blair is also an Adjunct Professor at the Rice Jones School of Business where he teaches a course on venture capital. He received a BS in Management with special attainments in Commerce from Washington & Lee University, where he currently serves on the advisory boards of the Connelly Center for Entrepreneurship, and the Williams School of Commerce, Economics, and Politics. Blair also serves in board and/or advisory roles for Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, Houston Innovation Council, South Loop Ventures, The Collectiv SportsTech Fund, and UTHealth.

Sasha McKenzie Vice President and Deal Lead, Wellington Access Ventures (WAV) Sasha McKenzie is a Vice President and Deal Lead at Wellington Management, where she focuses on early-stage private company investments through Wellington Access Ventures. In her role, she partners with ambitious founders building innovative companies and helps lead the firm’s investment activity in businesses founded by entrepreneurs who have historically been underinvested in and overlooked by the venture ecosystem. Prior to joining Wellington, Sasha was a Principal at H Venture Partners, an early-stage venture capital firm investing in consumer-focused businesses. Earlier in her career, she worked in investment banking at Bank of America Merrill Lynch and began her career advising Fortune 500 companies on supply chain and logistics at RR Donnelley. Sasha holds a B.S. in Business from The Ohio State University and an MBA from Columbia Business School.

John Hurley leads marketing at Notion, where he runs product marketing, demand, content, and regional go-to-market as the company scales. Before Notion, he built product marketing at Amplitude through its growth from $50 million to $250 million ARR and its IPO. He started even earlier as a first go-to-market hire at Radius, joining pre-seed and staying through acquisition. He has spent fifteen years in the middle of product and go-to-market, usually sitting next to founders.

Nick Cramer is the founder and principal of Cramer Office, a design studio where he works with early-stage founders ahead of inflection points to make the next version of their company feel inevitable. His work spans product, brand, engineering, and narrative. He's an EIR at Blue North, a former venture-backed founder at Harper, and was Head of Design at Ahalogy and a GM at Roadtrippers. "Nick Cramer is the founder and principal of Cramer Office, a design studio that works with early-stage founders ahead of inflection points to make the next version of their company feel inevitable. He's an EIR at Blue North, a former venture-backed founder at Harper, and was Head of Design at Ahalogy and a GM at Roadtrippers.

Max Dworin serves as a Vice President at Cintrifuse Capital, a $180mm AUM fund, where he leads investment into seed-stage companies in the Cincinnati region. Immediately prior to joining Cintrifuse, Max served as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Northern Kentucky-based startup hub Blue North. Max is a seasoned startup operator, having co-founded and served as COO of Onda, a tequila seltzer brand that scaled to national distribution and raised over $20 million in venture capital funding. Prior to working in startups, Max served as Press Secretary to U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer. Max received a BA from The Johns Hopkins University and an MBA from Yale School of Management. He is a recipient of the Cincinnati Business Courier’s 40 Under 40 Award and is a member of the 50th cohort of the Cincinnati Regional Chamber’s Leadership Cincinnati program.

Early-stage investor focused on solutions for SMBs

Eric is the founder & CEO of Sprints, a running apparel and accessories brand that makes funner gear for athletes. A fashion obsessed, self-proclaimed "average" marathoner he has dedicated his life to making dope gear for athletes. He started Sprints after 10 years working in brand management at Procter & Gamble.

Aaron Chow, CEO of Vixiv, has been pioneering advanced latticing solutions since 2014, helping aerospace, medical, defense, and heavy industry companies rapidly identify optimal part geometries without months of simulation or iteration. With over a decade of additive manufacturing experience and direct work with with Autodesk, GE Aviation, Johnson and Johnson, NASA, and others, Aaron focuses on turning cutting-edge design innovation into real-world production.

Michelle has more than 25 years of finance, accounting, administration and investment experience, in publicly traded, privately held and not for profit corporations, startups and billion-dollar enterprises, regional investment funds, investment advisory service firms and highly performing national funds. Michelle has served as a C-level consultant to early-stage start-up companies since 2013 providing strategic financial services as their contract Chief Financial Officer, advising on a number of complex financial transactions, and to an investment advisory firm as Venture Partner, supporting the investment process for Series B, C and later stage syndicated venture transactions, including due diligence, financial modeling, investment document preparation and portfolio reporting. She launched Book+Street in early 2018 to address a big gap in the startup ecosystem in the Midwest, providing on-demand CFO and controllership services to a growing number of tech and service companies throughout Ohio. Michelle is a Certified Public Accountant in addition to her Certified Equity Professional designation, earned a BS in Business Administration with an emphasis in Service Sector Management from California State University, San Marcos, and an MBA from The Ohio State University.

Startup lawyer, angel investors, adjunct at University of Tennessee, author of The Patent Game

Mason Clutter is a Partner and Privacy Lead at FBT Gibbons. Her work focuses on the intersection of data security, privacy, and technology. A pivotal member of the firm’s AI and AI Governance team, Mason offers nearly years’ experience as a lawyer and policy advocate in Washington, DC. She delivers actionable advice on privacy and data security, including legal compliance, policy and program development, and complex issues where privacy, security, and technology converge. Mason is a Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP/US, CIPP/E) with unique insight into policymaking, providing practical guidance that aligns with client objectives and is easily implemented. Previously, Mason served as Chief Privacy Officer at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, advising senior leaders and the National Security Council on privacy implications for national security and law enforcement. She shaped and executed policies around emerging technologies and personal data, including AI, commercial data, and privacy-enhancing technologies, balancing innovation with federal privacy compliance. She managed data breach responses, cybersecurity incidents, and oversaw DHS’s FOIA program and training. Mason also held key roles at the U.S. Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, serving as Attorney-Advisor, Counselor to Board Member Ed Felten, and Acting Executive Director, and was detailed to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence for FOIA and civil litigation. Her prior experience includes serving as National Security and Privacy Counsel for the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Rule of Law Counsel at the Constitution Project, and research at Yale Law School’s Lowenstein International Human Rights Clinic. Mason’s deep expertise in privacy law and her experience advising government leaders empower her to deliver innovative strategies that help clients meet regulatory demands and mitigate privacy risks.

Adam Bianco is the Founder & Chief Strategist at Offtrail Marketing, an email and lifecycle marketing agency that helps businesses onboard new customers, increase retention, create more personalized customer journeys, and more. He’s also the host of the AI-Powered Inbox podcast, which shares proven strategies for implementing AI in lifecycle marketing. Adam has over 15 years of marketing experience working with top B2B and B2C brands, ranging from Fortune 50 companies to startups, including P&G, The Beard Club, and the national nonprofit Move For Hunger. Along the way, he has launched campaigns in partnership with iconic brands such as Harley-Davidson, Disney, the Chicago Cubs, Kroger, the NFL, and more. He’s also a proud dad of 1-year-old identical twin boys.

https://fbtgibbons.com/people/zachary-d-bahorik/

Megan Dollenmeyer is a Managing Associate at FBT Gibbons LLP who advises startups, founders, and investors on federal tax matters, including QSBS, equity compensation, pass-through and corporate taxation, business restructurings, and M&A transactions. She serves as Vice-Chair of the S Corporation Committee of the American Bar Association Tax Section and as Co-Chair of the Cincinnati Bar Association Taxation Section. Megan regularly works with emerging growth companies and provides practical tax planning guidance to businesses and founders from formation through exit.

Torrey Babson is the Senior Director of Innovation Services at BRITE Energy Innovators. Day-to-day, Torrey oversees BRITE's CXO Services, which provides fractional leadership solutions to pre-market energy technology startups.

Tim’s background in business has been entrepreneurial throughout his career. Even within established companies, he has consistently identified opportunities and developed new areas of business. He has worked across a wide range of industries, including radio, telecommunications, hospitality, restaurants, and healthcare. The diversity of these experiences has enabled Tim to quickly learn and adapt to unfamiliar industries while recognizing that the fundamentals of building a successful business are remarkably consistent. He understands what it takes to take a business from concept to launch and from startup to successful day-to-day operations.

Zachary Hensley is SVP of Product & Operations at FRAYT, an early-stage tech startup building an on-demand logistics marketplace. He's spent 15+ years in tech and the last seven building venture-backed companies: COO and then President at Livegistics, and VP of Technology & Operations at Astronomer, where he was employee 19 and scaled the company through hypergrowth. Before startups, he was Head of Product at Kroger Digital and a Director at P&G, where he founded Alchemy, an internal startup. He's also an Expert in Residence at Cintrifuse Capital and an early member of X15 with Refinery Ventures.

Jaimin Gandhi is Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer at Redi Health, where he oversees Product, Engineering, Design, and Implementation. His work focuses on modernizing how pharmaceutical patient support programs operate by connecting fragmented vendor ecosystems into unified, patient-centric platforms. He enables faster access to therapy by simplifying enrollment, reducing operational friction, and embedding automated intelligence into complex healthcare workflows. Jaimin brings a systems-level perspective to building compliant, scalable infrastructure that improves patient outcomes and patient support program performance.

Chief Architect at Pantomath, former CTO at VNDLY, all-around hypergrowth technical leader.

Venture Capital Investor with Refinery Ventures, based in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Strategic Account Executive at Databricks, hypergrowth sales guys enabling GenAI, Machine Learning and Analytics.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/emma-scharfenberger-off/

Mike Zelkind is an entrepreneur and longtime food industry executive who co-founded Cincinnati-based 80 Acres Farms in 2015. Prior to launching 80 Acres, Mike spent more than 25 years in the food industry, holding leadership roles with companies including General Mills, Del Monte, Bumble Bee Foods and ConAgra. At 80 Acres, Mike helped pioneer new approaches to indoor agriculture, combining technology, automation and food production to rethink how fresh food could be grown closer to consumers. Over the course of a decade, the company grew from an early Cincinnati startup into a nationally recognized name in vertical farming. Mike remains a recognized voice at the intersection of food, technology, entrepreneurship and innovation, with deep roots in Cincinnati’s business and startup community.

Mary Mason Boaz is an executive coach and talent strategist who helps leaders build organizations where both people and performance thrive. With nearly two decades of experience spanning education, nonprofits, and high-growth organizations, she has led talent strategy, executive team development, and organizational growth through periods of rapid change. As a former Chief People and Program Officer and current executive coach, Mary Mason works with founders and senior leaders to navigate the leadership challenges that emerge as organizations grow and scale. Her approach combines organizational strategy with human behavior, helping leaders recognize the patterns that drive sustainable growth, not just short-term success. Mary Mason lives in Lexington with her husband and two young children. She is originally from Richmond, VA but has also called Washington, DC, Brooklyn, NY, and Charlotte, NC home. She is passionate about social justice and loves all things Bravo.

Rob is a member of the Cincinnati Commercial Products Practice and the Market Sector Leader for Tech and Services Sector for the firm’s Cincinnati, Louisville and Evansville markets. He has over 14 years of experience providing assurance and consulting services to companies in technology and services, manufacturing and consumer and logistics spaces. He is a member of the American Institute of CPAs, The Ohio Society of Certified Public Accountants, and Association for Corporate Growth. Rob is active in the community, having previously served on the board of the Nashville Sports Council and is a recent graduate of Leadership Northern Kentucky. He is a graduate of University of Dayton, Ohio, with an M.B.A. degree and a B.S.B.A. degree in accounting.

Ryan has over 18 years of diversified public accounting experience providing tax and consulting experience to emerging, mid-market, and large multi-national companies. As a partner in the firms Federal Tax Specialty group, Ryan focuses on providing tax planning solutions to companies in a multitude of industries including manufacturing and distribution, energy, technology, real estate, retail, financial services, and health care. Ryan is a member of the American Institute of CPAs, and Tennessee Society of CPAs. Ryan is a graduate of Illinois Wesleyan University with a B.A. degree in accounting and DePaul University with a MBA and M.S. in Taxation.

COO @ Pantomath

Amelia is a senior biomedical engineering student at the University of Cincinnati. She is the Founder of TissuTrak, a mobile app for patients with Hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (hEDS) and Long-COVID that helps patients identify correlations between lifestyle factors and their symptoms so they can have better communication with their doctors and eventually feel better.

Founder & CEO of Illume.

Tammie Scott is the founder and CEO of RiffPay, a fintech platform that streamlines live entertainment booking and payments for independent venues and artists, and the founder and co-owner of Nostalgia Wine & Jazz Lounge, an upscale wine bar and live music venue she opened in downtown Cincinnati in 2020. Before launching RiffPay, she spent 15 years in sports and entertainment marketing, with roles at the NFL Players Association, Roc Nation, and most recently Barstool Sports, where she was Brand Strategy Director. A Cincinnati native, she is an Ohio University and Howard University alum.

Matthew Robben is the Co‑founder and CTO of Serif  Health, where he leads the development of pipelines and platforms that transform complex healthcare price‑transparency machine‑readable files into user-friendly, actionable insights. He is passionate about driving practical improvements in how payers, providers, and employers leverage price transparency.

Austin is Lead Engineer at Pay Theory, a Cincinnati fintech building embedded payment infrastructure, where he leads engineering work across the platform, from architecture to partner integrations. Outside of work, Austin builds iOS apps, including Spritz, a home bar assistant with an AI mixologist. Across both worlds, he's focused on harnessing AI tooling to build stable, scalable systems faster without sacrificing quality.

Mark Wood is the Director of Venture Growth at Cintrifuse Capital in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he focuses on scaling early-stage startups and empowering Midwest founders.

Director CWRU Accelerator and Burton D Morgan Foundation EIR, Former World Bank Group

Alex Zyndorf is the Director of Commercial Real Estate at Model Group, where she leads retail strategy and oversees a 300,000-square-foot commercial portfolio across Cincinnati’s urban core. Since joining Model in 2023, she has guided leasing, tenant partnerships, and ground-floor activation across neighborhoods including Over-the-Rhine, Pendleton, Findlay Market, Walnut Hills, and Downtown. Alex began her career in New York City’s fashion industry before transitioning to real estate in 2017. She is a Cincinnati resident and active member of the urban core community.

Heather began her hospitality career in Atlanta under Kevin Rathbun, mastering operational precision and the art of genuine service. Her foundation in old world wines and fine dining was further developed with Chef David Falk, after spending years at Barcelona Wine Bar where her passion for Spanish cuisine and wine culture truly flourished. At Etxe, Heather leads the guest experience and curates a beverage program championing Basque, Spanish, and old world wines alongside creative cocktails. Her approach blends technical expertise with the personal warmth that defines genuine hospitality.

With a nearly two-decade tenure at 3CDC, Christy Samad currently serves as Executive Vice President of Civic & Commercial Space Activation. She provides leadership and direction to ensure 3CDC’s vision for both civic and commercial spaces is achieved. Partnering closely with the Public Realm Management and Marketing & Communications teams, Samad oversees the programming, staffing, and financial management of 3CDC’s civic spaces, including Fountain Square, Washington Park, Elm Street Plaza, Memorial Hall, Ziegler Park, Court Street Plaza, and Imagination Alley, as well as venue sponsorships and advertising. She also leads commercial space activation, guiding the leasing process and partnering with business owners to support growth and ensure vibrant commercial spaces throughout Cincinnati’s urban core. Samad earned her Bachelor’s in Marketing & International Business from the University of Cincinnati.

Rachel DesRochers is a strategic advisor, community architect, transformational leader, consultant, connector, and the visionary founder of Power to Pursue, the Incubator Kitchen Collective and The Gratitude Collective – and she's passionate about empowering women and supporting entrepreneurs to build sustainable, purpose-driven businesses! As an international speaker and recognized thought leader, Rachel shares her insights on entrepreneurship, strategic leadership, community building, gratitude, and women's empowerment with audiences worldwide. Her collaborative leadership style is key to her role as advisor for the Queen City Game Changers, an executive leadership program for women, where she develops and facilitates programming that mentors and guides emerging entrepreneurs and corporate leaders. She's also the author of The Mourning Light: Reflections on Love and Loss and Shift to Light: 90 Days to Grateful, and creator of Gratitude Grams – a 54-card deck designed as practical tools for personal and professional transformation. When she's not consulting, speaking, or building community, Rachel is being a mom to three wildly wonderful children who keep her grounded, grateful, and endlessly inspired!

Sue Bevan Baggott is a human-centered Executive Advisor, Innovation Catalyst, and Intentional Investor. Sue is dedicated to empowering leaders to create positive impact, accelerate life-improving innovation, and invest in transformative change. Her career spans global innovation leadership at Procter & Gamble (growing mega-brands from Pantene and Pampers) to founding Power Within Consulting, a firm focused on human-

centered strategies for meaningful leadership and business success.

As an “accidental angel investor” and startup advisor, Sue supports diverse portfolios of innovative startups addressing critical global challenges. She also advocates for inclusion in entrepreneurship and investing as an Associate Producer of Show Her the Money, a multi-award-winning documentary promoting investment in underrepresented

founders. Through speaking, writing, consulting, advising, and board roles, Sue strives to inspire purposeful leadership and meaningful innovation. She also encourages more open discussions about money confidence and investing to encourage more people to build wealth through investing with their values to drive positive change.

Sue is a member of multiple early-stage investment groups and funds including: QCA Ventures, Next Wave Impact (Investment Committee member), Kachuwa Impact Fund, Mindshift Capital (LPAC member), Ohio Impact Fund (LP), H Venture Partners (LP), Fireroad Ventures (LP), SoGal Ventures (LP), Emmeline Ventures (LP), and Sage Growth Capital (LP). She’s also an Advisor for Accelerating Angels and several

purpose-driven startups.

Donna Zaring is a dynamic leader dedicated to empowering entrepreneurs and innovators who make the world a better place. Prior to joining Flywheel Donna held leadership roles in economic development, corporate innovation and marketing at organizations including Cintrifuse, Fifth Third Bank, and Burke Inc. She is also an entrepreneur, leading communications campaigns for prominent regional and national brands as founder of her own marketing and PR firm. During her career, she has served on non-profit boards including The Cincinnati Museum Center and Mercy Health, and has been named to the Business Courier 40 Under 40 as well as the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Woman of the Year.

Jeff (J.D.) Davids is a founder and seasoned entrepreneur with more than 28 years of experience building venture-backed startups in California, where he raised over $100 million in venture and corporate funding. He has served on the leadership teams of eight VC-backed companies as CEO, COO, or CFO, resulting in six successful exits and over $1.5 billion in completed corporate finance transactions. He is the founder the SmartMoney Group and the DealMaker Academy, which has trained more than 3,500 entrepreneurs nationwide. Graduates of the program have gone on to raise over $260 million in funding. Now based in the Heartland, J.D. focuses on strengthening regional venture ecosystems through education, events, and data-driven reporting. He leads the Ohio Venture Pipeline, a semi-annual report and event series that tracks and promotes venture-style investment activity across Ohio. Since 2022, the Ohio Venture Pipeline has built a proprietary data lake cataloging more than 1,000 deals that raised over $6.8 Billion of venture growth capital. J.D. also authors investment and industry research reports for Ohio Life Sciences, Illinois Bio (iBIO), and BioForward Wisconsin. A U.S. Marine veteran, he has received Congressional recognition for his work training veteran entrepreneurs. He is a graduate of The Ohio State University. LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jddavids/ Websites: https://www.jddavids.com/ https://www.ohioventurepipeline.com/

Courtney Carroll, LPCC-S, is the founder of Called 2 Encourage Counseling & Self Development in Cincinnati's Pendleton neighborhood and the creator of CEO Serenity, a restorative experience built for entrepreneurs and high achievers. With 13 years in mental health and 8 years running her own practice, she helps founders build businesses that don't cost them themselves.

Jackie Reau is the CEO and Co-Founder of Game Day, a media and marketing agency founded in 2002. She is the author of the book, The Power of Hustle, to be released in March 2027. Reau is a proud graduate of Ohio University.

With more than a dozen years of non-profit experience and twice as long as an entrepreneur, Jill Morenz is leading Aviatra Accelerators into its 16th year. Jill has created three businesses in her career and leverages those insights as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Aviatra, as she works with women entrepreneurs to set them up for business success.

Helping women dream BIG!... I support & spotlight women business owners by connecting them to the resources and creating space where women shine and thrive. I'm focused on digital marketing, branding, and talking about your business in a succinct and engaging way.

For the past decade, Antony Seppi has built and scaled the startup ecosystem across the Greater Cincinnati regional footprint. His work bridges economic development, innovation strategy, and hands-on founder support to turn local assets into launchpads for high-growth ventures. As VP of Alloy Growth Lab - recognized as a UBI Global Top 10 Public Business Incubator worldwide and ranked #45 on TIME & Statista’s 2026 list of America’s Best Incubators - Antony champions a "patient growth" model built on rolling admissions and zero equity take. He works directly with early-stage founders to connect them to capital, tailored mentorship, and talent pipelines. With a background spanning urban planning, clean-tech, tech transfer, and civic innovation, Antony focuses on cultivating resilient, interconnected networks where entrepreneurs transform ambitious ideas into lasting regional impact.

Jeremy Jarrett is CEO of Kinetic Vision, a Cincinnati-based technology and product development company specializing in digital transformation, advanced manufacturing, AI, simulation, and automation. With extensive experience helping organizations adopt emerging technologies, Jeremy brings a practical perspective on the evolution of robotics and automation and how these tools are transforming the factory floor.

With more than 22 years in technology and automation, Mark leads Sensory Robotics’ operational and commercial execution as COO and co-founder. A U.S. military ARMY veteran, he drives strategy, partnerships, and revenue growth for SR-1, the company’s 3D sensing safety solution built to support fenceless, human-robot collaboration in real production environments. Mark is known for bridging engineering, certification, and customer needs, bringing disciplined execution to complex deployments and turning safety requirements into scalable solutions that protect people and keep lines running.

Doug Hardesty is a serial entrepreneur, operator, and AI strategist. He founded Hardesty Operating Group to give founders scaling manufacturing and hard tech companies access to the operator in the room at every scale, taking them from concept to commercial scale through a repeatable operating playbook. As COO of MycoWorks, he took a first-of-kind (FOAK) technology from concept to a greenfield commercial manufacturing facility and global supply chain spanning the U.S. and Europe, leading a company that raised more than $350M and reached a $500M valuation at commercial scale. At Ernst & Young, he led supply chain reinvention work across global industrial, life sciences, and consumer products companies, leading 10+ plant builds and major expansions representing more than $5 billion in capital investment. He started his career at Procter & Gamble, where he built the company's first external manufacturing platform and holds 8 U.S. and international patents. He's holds a Juris Doctor, MBA and cerificate in AI strategy from MIT Sloan.

Engineer, Inventor, Entrepreneur. 20 years of business and engineering experience from startups to fortune 500 projects. Named inventor on 27 patent applications, Founder & CEO of KineticArc. Currently focused on bringing the latest advances in Physical AI Agents to help revitalize the manufacturing sector.

Sierra Hayden is the founder and CEO of We Outside, a Cincinnati outdoor lifestyle brand headquartered at The Basecamp in Over-the-Rhine. Her path runs through graphic design, fine art, and regenerative agriculture, an unusual mix that shapes how she builds brands, spaces, and community. She started the company on a simple observation, most people never picture themselves outdoors because nobody ever showed them how to start, and built We Outside to be that starting point. What began as community hikes has grown into a full lifestyle ecosystem, events, product, community, all built in Cincinnati for anyone who’s ever felt like they needed permission to be outside.

Brad runs Wolf House Fables and teaches Creativity & Ideation at the University of Cincinnati. He helps organizations build cultures of courage using Wonder Building practices he developed working with teams from Fortune 10 giants, non-profits, entrepreneurs, and his students at the University of Cincinnati. Brad is raising three kids and dog named Huckleberry with his wife, Leah in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Austin is Lead Engineer at Pay Theory, a Cincinnati fintech building embedded payment infrastructure, where he leads engineering work across the platform, from architecture to partner integrations. Outside of work, Austin builds iOS apps, including Spritz, a home bar assistant with an AI mixologist. Across both worlds, he's focused on harnessing AI tooling to build stable, scalable systems faster without sacrificing quality.

Paul is a biomedical engineer that somehow got trapped in the world of startups and venture capital. He currently runs Flamel - automating marketing for multi-location brands. In his free time - he reads, studies (read drinks) wine, and cooks meals with his wife Lina.

Chris Bergman is a serial entrepreneur, game creator, and investor based in Cincinnati, Ohio. He is the founder and CEO of Gylee Games, an independent studio focused on creating character-driven games with distinctive worlds and meaningful stories, and served as game director, writer, designer, and composer on the studio’s debut title, Ra Ra BOOM. Previously, Chris co-founded ChoreMonster, a family-focused technology company that grew to more than four million users and  participated in the Disney Accelerator. He is also a General Partner at Everywhere Ventures Midwest, where he supports early-stage founders and helps strengthen the region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. His multidisciplinary career spans technology, venture capital, video games, music, and Cincinnati’s creative community. All connected by a belief that meaningful work can also be weird, joyful, and deeply human.

Dr. Christin Godale is a scientist, innovation strategist, and ecosystem builder with experience spanning academic research, venture capital, early-stage company development, and nonprofit innovation infrastructure. Trained as a neuroscientist, she brings a dual perspective as an academically trained scientist and a builder of programs, partnerships, and platforms that help scientific innovation move into the real world. She is the founding Executive Director of LifeSciKY, a nonprofit life sciences lab in Kentucky, where she leads strategy, partnerships, and infrastructure development to support early-stage biotech, diagnostics, and health innovation companies while strengthening the life sciences ecosystem. Christin’s expertise spans therapeutics, cell and gene therapy, neurology, drug-delivery systems, and emerging biomedical technologies. She is known for translating complex science into clear, actionable strategy and for aligning research, venture insight, policy, capital, and talent to accelerate impact. She is deeply passionate about using innovation infrastructure as an economic development tool, expanding access to labs, talent pathways, and STEM education, reducing barriers for scientists and founders, and ensuring that breakthrough research can create jobs, companies, and healthier communities, especially in regions that have historically been overlooked.

Catherine Lentz is the Director of Lending for Southern Ohio at Economic and Community Development Institute (ECDI). She helps entrepreneurs and small business owners realize their dream of owning and growing their small business by providing resources and small business financing. Catherine has over 25 years of experience in the financial services industry and prior to joining ECDI in 2021, she was a Business Relationship Manager and Private Client Branch Manager with JPMorgan Chase. Catherine grew up in the Dayton, Ohio area, is a graduate of the University of Cincinnati, Co-Chair of the Emerging Leaders for the Cincinnati Parks Foundation and a sustaining member of the Junior League of Cincinnati.

Norlynn Story is an Assistant Vice President and Business Access Advisor with U.S. Bank, bringing more than 20 years of banking experience to her work with entrepreneurs and small business owners across Ohio. Serving Cleveland, Columbus, and Cincinnati, she helps business owners navigate financial systems, access capital, strengthen financial readiness, and build sustainable banking relationships. A passionate advocate for economic opportunity, Norlynn regularly leads financial education workshops and collaborates with community and economic development organizations to connect entrepreneurs with the resources, relationships, and tools needed to grow their businesses. She is known for her relationship-driven approach and commitment to helping individuals and communities thrive.

Gino Is one of Hamilton County’s Certified Business Advisors. In this role Gino works with startup companies as well as companies that have been in business for years. Gino started his career early by working in his family’s real estate business of owning and managing a strip mall in the Louisville Kentucky area. After completing his degree program at the University of Louisville, Gino took over the management of the strip mall as the family expanded its business interest by opening an Italian/Deli bakery in one of the stores that had become vacant. Gino is a successful realtor with a local Real Estate company. His focus is on both residential and commercial properties. Gino was also an Account Executive with Sysco Foods. He held the position of Sales Compensation Manager and CRM Administrator with Executive Jet Management. Gino also held the position of Financial Analyst with Milacron.

With more than a dozen years of non-profit experience and twice as long as an entrepreneur, Jill Morenz is leading Aviatra Accelerators into its 16th year. Jill has created three businesses in her career and leverages those insights as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Aviatra, as she works with women entrepreneurs to set them up for business success.

Jeffery Washington is a passionate and dedicated Business Lending & Community Development Manager and Program director at Wright-Patt Credit Union® (WPCU®), where he supports businesses and communities across Dayton, Cincinnati, and Columbus. In this regional role, Jeffery focuses on empowering small businesses to grow, thrive, and succeed by addressing their unique needs with tailored financial solutions and exceptional relationship support. With more than 15 years of experience in financial services, Jeffery brings a strong background in management, relationship building, and commercial lending. His expertise in strategic planning, risk management, and operations, combined with a deep-rooted commitment to community service has helped countless businesses navigate challenges and reach new heights. Jeffery is especially passionate about serving underrepresented communities and small business owners, ensuring they have access to the resources, education, and capital needed to build lasting success. He’s known for his collaborative approach, deep listening, and practical guidance, making him a trusted partner to business leaders across the region. An Ohio native and proud Midwesterner, Jeffery finds joy in helping others unlock their potential. Outside of work, he enjoys quality time with his family and staying connected to his community. “My passion is helping business owners reach potentials they didn’t see as possible. That, to me, is what being a Relationship Manager and community strategist means, looking out for people and being present when they need you the most. That’s what I believe I do best.”

For the past decade, Antony Seppi has built and scaled the startup ecosystem across the Greater Cincinnati regional footprint. His work bridges economic development, innovation strategy, and hands-on founder support to turn local assets into launchpads for high-growth ventures. As VP of Alloy Growth Lab - recognized as a UBI Global Top 10 Public Business Incubator worldwide and ranked #45 on TIME & Statista’s 2026 list of America’s Best Incubators - Antony champions a "patient growth" model built on rolling admissions and zero equity take. He works directly with early-stage founders to connect them to capital, tailored mentorship, and talent pipelines. With a background spanning urban planning, clean-tech, tech transfer, and civic innovation, Antony focuses on cultivating resilient, interconnected networks where entrepreneurs transform ambitious ideas into lasting regional impact.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-grimberg-phd/

Paul Jackson is the Senior Vice President of Strategic Programs at Entrepreneurs' Center (EC) in Dayton, Ohio, where he leads EC's Commercialization Team and has directly supported over 100 startups in licensing university- and federally-owned IP. He also co-teaches the University of Dayton's entrepreneurship capstone course, guiding students through market assessment and new venture creation based on university-derived technology. Paul's experience spans nearly 20 years across technology commercialization, economic development, and applied research policy — including managing Ohio Third Frontier's technology commercialization and R&D grant portfolio. That work has put him in direct, ongoing contact with technology transfer offices across the State and beyond, giving him a broad, cross-institutional view of what it takes to move research out of the lab and into the market.

Patrick J. Brown is Director of Commercialization at the University of Cincinnati's 1819 Innovation Hub, where he leads efforts to develop and commercialize UC technologies, research, and innovation — connecting entrepreneurs, industry partners, and investors with UC's deep portfolio of intellectual property, capabilities, and resources. Having licensed UC technology and co-founded a startup himself, Patrick now helps others do the same. With nearly two decades at UC, he has built a career around bridging the gap between the lab and the market and finding the right partners to bring UC innovations to life.

I am technology commercialization and venture development leader with almost 15 years of experience helping move promising research from the lab into the marketplace. I work closely with researchers, industry partners, and entrepreneurs to identify commercial opportunities, build productive partnerships, and structure principled win-win licensing agreements. I bring a practical, relationship-driven approach to stakeholder engagement and business development with a focus on strengthening commercialization pipelines and creating meaningful impact.

Candida Crasto, MFT, LPC (she/her) is the Founder and Executive Director of The AFFECT Project, a non-profit clinical research initiative developing an evidence-backed model for integrated sex and family therapy. A former chemical engineer who navigated the startup world before becoming a licensed therapist, Candida bridges analytical systems-thinking with deep human connection. She is also the host of the #SEXHAPPENS podcast, where she destigmatizes sexuality through candid, shame-busting conversations. Across her research, podcast, and experiential workshops, Candida helps individuals, couples, and families dismantle internal barriers, step into their authentic selves, and step into their full potential.

Ann Mooney is Executive Director of the Sedler Xavier Center for Experiential Learning (XCEL) in Business at Xavier University. She is a longtime business strategist, advisor, and investor. Ann spent 18 years at Procter & Gamble in brand, marketing, innovation, and global leadership roles. Since 2009, she has been working extensively with executives, entrepreneurs, students, and emerging businesses. Ann is also an active angel investor and board advisor, with a particular focus on turning real-world business challenges into experiential learning opportunities and unlocking business growth.

Scott Jacobs is Executive Director of QCA Ventures, where he helps connect early-stage companies with capital, experienced investors, and practical guidance. He oversees deal flow, member engagement, sponsor relationships, and initiatives that strengthen QCA’s investment process and expand its national reach. Scott has helped advance QCA’s use of artificial intelligence in angel investing. Working with colleagues, he developed the organization’s Deal Hub and Member Hub and introduced AI-assisted tools to review funding applications, match opportunities with members’ expertise, and support more efficient screening and due diligence. He is also exploring how investor groups can learn from their collective deal histories while keeping investment decisions in the hands of experienced people. A focus of Scott’s work is building syndication relationships with other angel groups and early-stage investors. He helps prepare and share investment opportunities beyond QCA’s membership, giving promising companies access to broader networks of capital and expertise. He has also supported QCA’s evolution from Queen City Angels to QCA Ventures, along with efforts to strengthen its funds, investor experience, and founder support. Scott is President of the QCA Education Foundation, doing business as Startup College®, which offers programs including Entrepreneur Boot Camp and Morning Mentoring. He has served on the Angel Capital Association’s Education + Smart Practices and Syndication committees and has spoken about AI, due diligence, and the operation of angel investor groups.

Engineer, Inventor, Entrepreneur. 20 years of business and engineering experience from startups to fortune 500 projects. Named inventor on 27 patent applications, Founder & CEO of KineticArc. Currently focused on bringing the latest advances in Physical AI Agents to help revitalize the manufacturing sector.

Norlynn Story is an Assistant Vice President and Business Access Advisor with U.S. Bank, bringing more than 20 years of banking experience to her work with entrepreneurs and small business owners across Ohio. Serving Cleveland, Columbus, and Cincinnati, she helps business owners navigate financial systems, access capital, strengthen financial readiness, and build sustainable banking relationships. A passionate advocate for economic opportunity, Norlynn regularly leads financial education workshops and collaborates with community and economic development organizations to connect entrepreneurs with the resources, relationships, and tools needed to grow their businesses. She is known for her relationship-driven approach and commitment to helping individuals and communities thrive.

AJ Arias is a Small Business Specialist at U.S. Bank, dedicated to helping entrepreneurs and small businesses across Cincinnati strengthen their financial foundation and achieve sustainable growth. His approach centers on relationship-driven banking and practical, strategic solutions that empower clients to reach key milestones while contributing to the strength of the local economy. Beyond his professional role, AJ is deeply committed to cultivating environments where young professionals can connect, develop, and lead. Through community engagement, mentorship, and leadership initiatives, he actively supports emerging talent and helps foster a more inclusive, opportunity-driven professional ecosystem in Cincinnati.

Corey Thompson is a business banker serving businesses throughout the Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky market. He specializes in helping business owners navigate their banking, lending, cash management, and financial needs while building long term relationships with clients and professional partners.

Carlos Diaz Payment Solutions Market Manager US Bank - Elavon 21 years working for US Bank and held positions as personal banker, small business specialist and merchant services.

Founder of a product engineering, design, and commercialization company. Supporting students develop the mindset of an entrepreneur at BGSU

For the past decade, Antony Seppi has built and scaled the startup ecosystem across the Greater Cincinnati regional footprint. His work bridges economic development, innovation strategy, and hands-on founder support to turn local assets into launchpads for high-growth ventures. As VP of Alloy Growth Lab - recognized as a UBI Global Top 10 Public Business Incubator worldwide and ranked #45 on TIME & Statista’s 2026 list of America’s Best Incubators - Antony champions a "patient growth" model built on rolling admissions and zero equity take. He works directly with early-stage founders to connect them to capital, tailored mentorship, and talent pipelines. With a background spanning urban planning, clean-tech, tech transfer, and civic innovation, Antony focuses on cultivating resilient, interconnected networks where entrepreneurs transform ambitious ideas into lasting regional impact.

Matthew Sias spent nearly two decades in Kroger's R&D organization building AI/ML, computer vision, and digital-twin systems before founding InnovationAcceleration.ai to answer a harder question: why does breakthrough thinking still feel like luck? His platform The Accelerator Powered by IA Workflows fuses decades of global pattern-based innovation research with generative AI. Matt has three patents pending on the approach and is a facilitator and speaker on turning innovation from a rare event into a repeatable capability.

With more than a dozen years of non-profit experience and twice as long as an entrepreneur, Jill Morenz is leading Aviatra Accelerators into its 16th year. Jill has created three businesses in her career and leverages those insights as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Aviatra, as she works with women entrepreneurs to set them up for business success.

Helping women dream BIG!... I support & spotlight women business owners by connecting them to the resources and creating space where women shine and thrive. I'm focused on digital marketing, branding, and talking about your business in a succinct and engaging way.

Lindsay is a partner in the New Ventures practice at Thompson Hine and chairs the Private Fund Formation group. She advises entrepreneurs, investors, and fund managers on a wide range of venture capital and startup matters, including fund formation, mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, securities compliance, and governance. Before joining Thompson Hine, she was a partner and chief legal counsel at a Midwest-focused venture capital firm, concentrating on deal structuring, portfolio management, fundraising, and exit transactions. Lindsay also managed her own private practice, representing emerging and diverse fund managers, startups, and investors nationwide. Her leadership roles at a venture development organization in upstate New York included serving as COO, CIO, CLO, and Managing Partner, where she helped establish and run one of the most active and largest seed funds in the region. Lindsay’s extensive legal, operational, and investment experience enables her to effectively address client needs. She also teaches at The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law and is a national speaker on topics of socioeconomic impacts on venture capital.

John Hurley leads marketing at Notion, where he runs product marketing, demand, content, and regional go-to-market as the company scales. Before Notion, he built product marketing at Amplitude through its growth from $50 million to $250 million ARR and its IPO. He started even earlier as a first go-to-market hire at Radius, joining pre-seed and staying through acquisition. He has spent fifteen years in the middle of product and go-to-market, usually sitting next to founders.

Kerry Taft is the expert entrepreneurs call when their business systems are holding them back. She’s the one founders turn to when they’re ready to stop duct-taping systems together and start running a company that works without them. With over 20 years in the health sciences as an exercise physiologist and former university professor, Kerry brings both analytical rigor and a deeply human-centered approach to every system she builds. In 2024, she acquired and integrated a digital agency into her growing portfolio, further solidifying her role as a strategic force in the operations space. Founders seek her out when they’re ready to reclaim their time, streamline their backend, and build businesses that run smoothly—and feel better.

Tian Philson is a Jay Shetty Certified Leadership Transformation and Decision-Making Coach and creator of the VOICCE® Framework - a proprietary method that helps leaders navigate uncertainty with clarity and confidence. With 20 years of corporate experience across CPG, Retail, and Media and as the founder of Love, Strength & Fitness, LLC, she blends mindfulness and strategy to help professionals lead authentically, confidently and sustainably. Tian is also a registered yoga teacher and passionate advocate for purposeful, holistic growth. “We help leaders go inward, so they can go Upward.”

Christopher A. Ritter is a design thinker, branding expert, and creative entrepreneur focused on strategy, identity, and cultural relevance. He’s led brand work for adidas, GE, lululemon, and the Chicago Cubs, and created public art and exhibitions alongside artists like FAILE, The London Police, and Gene Spatz. His practice integrates strategy and design to help brands evolve and is grounded in the future of creative leadership.

Nicholas Archer – BIO Nicholas Archer has spent more than two decades across healthcare's full continuum, spanning operations, innovation, and commercialization. At Cincinnati Children's Hospital, he leads the translation of scientific discovery into real-world impact, moving innovations from bench to bedside through technology transfer and venture creation. His work sits at the intersection of operational excellence, financial sustainability, and patient need—a balance he's pursued whether restructuring care delivery networks, building digital platforms, or advising emerging companies. A graduate of Oakwood University with an MBA from the University of Florida and executive education from Harvard Business School, Nick has served on numerous boards focused on healthcare access and community development. Outside of work, he's an avid cyclist and sports enthusiast who enjoys time with his family.

Dave Theus is a serial founder and C-suite executive with more than 25 years of leadership across technology driven sectors, including healthcare innovation, artificial intelligence, SaaS, PropTech, InsurTech, and TravelTech. Co-founded and scaled multiple venture-backed companies — raising over $65M in institutional and strategic capital, building organizations of 100+ employees, and guiding businesses from concept through launch, revenue growth, and acquisition. A hands-on operator and trusted advisor to boards, investors, and Fortune 500 partners, with a proven record of translating emerging technology into commercially successful products across B2C, B2B, and B2B2C channels. Currently Executive in Residence at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, advancing healthcare and research ventures toward real-world impact. Previously, Dave founded and led product, technology, and growth initiatives at several ventures, including: • Fixle – CEO & Founder of a PropTech platform he spun-out of American Family Insurance. • Roamie – CTO & Co-Founder of a personalized travel platform developed alongside AAA. • HOMEE, Inc. – Founder, CTO, CRO, and Director, a PropTech and InsurTech platform, where he drove product, sales, and marketing strategies to fuel rapid growth. • inno360, Inc. – Chief Product Officer & VP of Technology, where he pioneered enterprise innovation management solutions leveraging IBM Watson AI/ML technologies. Dave is a named inventor on U.S. and international patent filings across three ventures - HOMEE family (U.S., PCT, European, Canadian), an inno360 filing (2011), and two pending Cincinnati Children's applications (2025, 2026). He began his career as an Engineering Analyst in GE’s Technical Leadership Program.. Dave holds a Bachelor’s in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Dayton and a Master of Engineering in Structural Engineering from the University of Cincinnati. His work has been recognized with multiple awards, including CIO Review’s 20 Most Promising Insurance Tech Solution Providers (2020) and Forbes’ Top 10 America’s Best Startup Employers. Passionate about leveraging technology to solve complex, real-world challenges, Dave’s career reflects a consistent commitment to entrepreneurship, innovation, transformation, and creating positive change at scale.

Dave Hutten is an entrepreneur and product leader with 25 years of experience building companies across media, digital health and early-stage innovation. He is currently Entrepreneur in Residence at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center within the Innovation Ventures group, where he works with clinicians and researchers to turn promising technologies into investable, market-ready ventures. Dave has spent his career on both sides of the table. He was employee #1 and ultimately VP of Product at Hugo Health, where he helped raise close to $6 million and scale the company from concept to a 40-person team serving Mayo Clinic, Yale, the FDA, Medtronic and Johnson & Johnson. He founded and led Sequel Media, a medical content production company, and later served as an executive in residence at CincyTech, working inside a venture fund to support Cincinnati Children's spinouts. Earlier in his career, before moving into health tech, he was an executive producer at a WPP digital agency in New York, leading global campaigns for Microsoft and InterContinental Hotels Group. Dave is a graduate of DePaul University and advises digital-health startups on product, positioning and fundraising.

The lady in purple, you can’t miss her. That’s Bethany George, owner and founder of The Sales Mystique. With decades of sales experience, Bethany helps small business owners and B2B professionals stop following scripts that don’t fit and start selling in a way that feels natural to them. Her clients describe the same shift: from dreading every sales conversation to approaching them with calm confidence, not because they learned a new script, but because they finally started selling as themselves. Practical, playful, and genuinely invested in your success.

With more than a dozen years of non-profit experience and twice as long as an entrepreneur, Jill Morenz is leading Aviatra Accelerators into its 16th year. Jill has created three businesses in her career and leverages those insights as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Aviatra, as she works with women entrepreneurs to set them up for business success.

Helping women dream BIG!... I support & spotlight women business owners by connecting them to the resources and creating space where women shine and thrive. I'm focused on digital marketing, branding, and talking about your business in a succinct and engaging way.

Dr. Christin Godale is a scientist, innovation strategist, and ecosystem builder with experience spanning academic research, venture capital, early-stage company development, and nonprofit innovation infrastructure. Trained as a neuroscientist, she brings a dual perspective as an academically trained scientist and a builder of programs, partnerships, and platforms that help scientific innovation move into the real world. She is the founding Executive Director of LifeSciKY, a nonprofit life sciences lab in Kentucky, where she leads strategy, partnerships, and infrastructure development to support early-stage biotech, diagnostics, and health innovation companies while strengthening the life sciences ecosystem. Christin’s expertise spans therapeutics, cell and gene therapy, neurology, drug-delivery systems, and emerging biomedical technologies. She is known for translating complex science into clear, actionable strategy and for aligning research, venture insight, policy, capital, and talent to accelerate impact. She is deeply passionate about using innovation infrastructure as an economic development tool, expanding access to labs, talent pathways, and STEM education, reducing barriers for scientists and founders, and ensuring that breakthrough research can create jobs, companies, and healthier communities, especially in regions that have historically been overlooked.

Kelly Kucharczyk is a Principal Consultant who partners with startups to help navigate the complexities of medical device development, with a strong passion for developing commercialization strategies that look across regulatory, reimbursement, and clinical to align with the overarching business objective. She serves as a strategic ally helping companies intentionally scale for sustainable growth or position for a successful exit. With extensive expertise in global market entry and FDA negotiations, Kelly is experienced in building "acquisition-ready" Quality Management Systems (QMS) and Design History Files (DHF). Her leadership background includes serving as a Director at NAMSA, where she guided global teams across Regulatory, Quality, and Medical Writing. Prior to this, Kelly spent nearly a decade at Stryker, driving regulatory strategies for new product development and managing complex M&A activities from initial due diligence through full post-acquisition integration. Outside of the Medtech world, she is an outdoor enthusiast and avid gardener who can frequently be found foraging for wild foods, experimenting with new recipes in the kitchen, or collaborating on "toddler art" masterpieces.

Dr. Melissa Smith is an Associate Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics at the University of Louisville. After earning her PhD in Virology at Harvard and completing immunology training at the Institut Pasteur, she helped develop long-read single-molecule sequencing methods at Pacific Biosciences. She later served as Associate Director of Technology Development at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Her start-up, Clareo Biosciences, founded in Louisville, Kentucky, in 2024, leverages proprietary genomics approaches and AI modeling to profile immune variation and predict therapy responsiveness and autoimmune risk from these "immune fingerprints" to support patient stratification in clinical trials, discovery of novel immune biomarkers, and implementation of precision medicine approaches.

Dr. Meisam Naeimi is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Bone Marrow Transplantation at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center ranked the #1 pediatric cancer hospital in the United States and at University of Cincinnati. He also serves as Director of Innovation in the Center for Cell and Gene Therapy at Cincinnati Children’s. Dr. Naeimi's research focuses on the development of next-generation gene-edited immune cell therapies, including γδ T cells, NK cells and T cells for cancer immunotherapy, as well as innovative gene therapy approaches with translational and clinical potential. Previously, Dr. Naeimi was Director of Gene Editing and Assistant Professor at Nationwide Children’s Hospital and The Ohio State University. He received his Doctor of Veterinary Surgery degree in Iran, earned his PhD from the University of Perugia in Italy, and completed advanced training as an Erasmus Scholar at the University of Oxford, UK. He is also the inventor, founder and CSO of CARTx Therapeutics.

Laurkita Sheffield is an accountant, CFO strategist, financial empowerment educator, and founder of Sheffield Accounting & Financial Services. She helps small-business owners understand their numbers, improve cash flow, strengthen profitability, and make informed decisions about pricing, taxes, hiring, and growth. Through CFO-level advisory services, financial education programs, workshops, and strategy intensives, Laurkita transforms complex financial concepts into practical strategies entrepreneurs can confidently apply within their businesses. Laurkita is also the creator of the C.A.S.H.F.L.O.W. Framework™, a financial leadership system built around Clarity, Accountability, Strategy, Habits, Foundations, Leadership, Ownership, and Wealth, and the author of *The C.A.S.H.F.L.O.W. Framework™: Take Control of Your Cashflow*. Her work is rooted in helping entrepreneurs move beyond financial survival and develop the clarity, confidence, and control necessary to build businesses that are profitable, financially stable, and prepared to last.

Stephanie is the founder of Ascension Analytics, where she helps growing businesses turn fragmented data into clear, confident decision-making. With nearly 20 years of experience in analytics leadership, she most recently led the Marketing Analytics team at Amazon Web Services (AWS) before founding Ascension Analytics. She specializes in translating complex data into practical business insights, helping founder-led businesses build simple measurement systems, align teams around meaningful metrics, and drive sustainable growth through clarity and action.

Casey Sprague is the Founder and CEO of SpectC Technologies Inc, a Cincinnati-area startup building an Execution Intelligence platform that helps organizations turn strategy into measurable execution. SpectC gives leaders greater visibility into project health, risk, priorities, and performance so teams can identify problems earlier and make better decisions faster. Casey brings more than 15 years of experience across technology, aerospace and defense, SaaS, project and program management, and organizational leadership. A retired U.S. Army Major, PMP, CSM, and Georgetown University graduate, he has built his career around solving complex execution challenges and helping teams move from planning to results. He is also the owner of Constructive Curiosity, a project management, training, and advisory firm, and is passionate about building companies, developing people, and contributing to Cincinnati’s growing startup ecosystem.

Courtney Keeney is a Senior Client Liaison at Insperity. She works with small and medium-size business owners, executives, and HR leaders on their human capital development strategy. She brings her passion for building strong relationships and community engagement to her work with her clients.

John Bentley II is the founder of Product Journey Group, where he works with founders on the decision in front of them — what to build, what to fix, what to stop — before any of it becomes code. A practitioner for 35 years, he spent the last eight as founder and CTO/CPO of 10XTS, building and shipping the same decisions he now helps founders make. He runs AI and agents across definition, development, and operations under accountable human authority rather than in place of it. Through the Product Journey — Define → Build → Launch — he helps early-stage founders cut decision waste and reach an MVP that's easier to launch, operate, and evolve, and helps scaling teams get a live product back under control. He takes fractional CTO engagements where a bounded leadership mandate is the right answer.

Abby Grimm is a civic-minded connector, community builder, and one of the driving forces behind StartupCincy Week. At Cintrifuse, she stewards the StartupCincy community - convening entrepreneurs, investors, support organizations, and community partners to move Cincinnati’s innovation ecosystem forward and ultimately advance the region as a whole. Her passion for building a more connected, vibrant Cincinnati extends to her role as Vice Chair of the OTR Chamber of Commerce, and Founder of RADICO, a civic impact studio taking bold concepts from idea to action. Across her work, she’s happiest at the intersection of big dreams, interesting people, and making Cincinnati the best place to build and to thrive.

Julie Kirkpatrick is President & CEO of meetNKY and currently serves as Interim President & CEO of Visit Cincy, helping lead tourism and destination strategy across the Cincy Region. With more than 30 years of experience in hospitality and destination development, Julie is a champion for regional collaboration and for leveraging tourism as a driver of economic growth, community vibrancy and regional identity.

Co-Founder of Swirley's Soft Serve

Kara Willis is a marketing, events, and community engagement professional with a career focused on bringing people, ideas, and experiences together. She currently serves as Program Manager for RedHawk50 at Miami University’s John W. Altman Institute for Entrepreneurship, where she works with alumni entrepreneurs and the broader Miami University entrepreneurship community. Kara also serves as Marketing Director at The Mercantile Library in Cincinnati, leading marketing, membership engagement, programming, and communications for one of the country’s oldest member-supported libraries. Throughout her career, she has worked across marketing, events, entrepreneurship, community building, and brand strategy, with a particular passion for creating memorable experiences and developing programs that help people connect. Her work is driven by a belief that great marketing is about more than promotion. It is about building communities, telling meaningful stories, and creating opportunities for people to engage with organizations in authentic and unexpected ways.

Max Dworin serves as a Vice President at Cintrifuse Capital, a $180mm AUM fund, where he leads investment into seed-stage companies in the Cincinnati region. Immediately prior to joining Cintrifuse, Max served as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Northern Kentucky-based startup hub Blue North. Max is a seasoned startup operator, having co-founded and served as COO of Onda, a tequila seltzer brand that scaled to national distribution and raised over $20 million in venture capital funding. Prior to working in startups, Max served as Press Secretary to U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer. Max received a BA from The Johns Hopkins University and an MBA from Yale School of Management. He is a recipient of the Cincinnati Business Courier’s 40 Under 40 Award and is a member of the 50th cohort of the Cincinnati Regional Chamber’s Leadership Cincinnati program.

Mark Wood is the Director of Venture Growth at Cintrifuse Capital in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he focuses on scaling early-stage startups and empowering Midwest founders.

I’m a Cincinnati-based founder, product leader, and technologist. I’m currently building Wayside, a modern operating system for independent venues and experience-driven businesses. My work sits at the intersection of company strategy, product design, and software development—taking ambitious ideas from early concept through launch.

Co-founder of Wayside a patron operations platform for experience driven venues

John Hurley leads marketing at Notion, where he runs product marketing, demand, content, and regional go-to-market as the company scales. Before Notion, he built product marketing at Amplitude through its growth from $50 million to $250 million ARR and its IPO. He started even earlier as a first go-to-market hire at Radius, joining pre-seed and staying through acquisition. He has spent fifteen years in the middle of product and go-to-market, usually sitting next to founders.

Zac Strobl is the Director of Northern Kentucky University’s Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship and an entrepreneurship professor. He is a cofounder of The INKUBATOR, NKU’s award winning pre seed accelerator, and one of the founders of INVENT, a statewide startup internship program connecting students with emerging technology startups. His work focuses on developing entrepreneurial talent and strengthening connections between universities, startups, and the Greater Cincinnati tri-state region.

tbd

Amelia is a senior biomedical engineering student at the University of Cincinnati. She is the Founder of TissuTrak, a mobile app for patients with Hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (hEDS) and Long-COVID that helps patients identify correlations between lifestyle factors and their symptoms so they can have better communication with their doctors and eventually feel better.

Marketing and Entrepreneurship Senior at Xavier University

Senior at NKU studying Marketing and Entrepreneurship Marketing Associate in the Construction Industry

Lexi Keith is a senior at Miami University’s Farmer School of Business studying Human Capital Management and Leadership with a minor in Social Entrepreneurship. She is incredibly passionate about the intersection between business and community impact. During her summer internship with Flywheel Social Enterprise Hub, Lexi helped plan and execute Impact Catalyst Midwest, connecting entrepreneurs, investors, and community leaders across Cincinnati.

Senior at Miami University- Managing Director at Redhawk Ventures

William Butler-Croutwater is a finance student at the University of Cincinnati and Managing Director of Bearcat Ventures. In his role, he works with students to develop their skills as early-stage investors while leading the organization’s approach to startup diligence and investing. His broader experience in venture capital has shaped an interest in how emerging technologies influence both company building and investment decisions. Outside of his work in venture, William serves in the Ohio Army National Guard.

I'm a senior at Northern Kentucky University studying Finance, Entrepreneurship, and Human Resources and I've spent the last year doing something that didn't exist before I showed up. As the first Student Venture Analyst at Norse Ventures, NKU's student-run venture fund, I was handed a blank slate and told to build. So I did. I developed the fund's investment process from the ground up, building a custom deal flow platform using Claude Code, creating the scorecard we used to evaluate our first investment, and leading recruiting efforts to grow awareness of the fund across campus. Being first means there's no playbook. You figure it out, you ask the right questions, and you build something you're proud of. Beyond Norse Ventures, I recently accepted a position with Flamel.ai as an intern, and I'm constantly showing up to events across the Northern Kentucky and Cincinnati startup ecosystem. This region has real momentum, and I want to be part of it. I'm passionate about connecting with founders, capital, and community in a way that moves this ecosystem forward. If you're building something, investing in something, or just love the NKY/Cincy startup scene, let's connect.

Advisor to Bearcat Ventures and an ML engineer with a soft spot for early-stage AI startups.

Max Dworin serves as a Vice President at Cintrifuse Capital, a $180mm AUM fund, where he leads investment into seed-stage companies in the Cincinnati region. Immediately prior to joining Cintrifuse, Max served as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Northern Kentucky-based startup hub Blue North. Max is a seasoned startup operator, having co-founded and served as COO of Onda, a tequila seltzer brand that scaled to national distribution and raised over $20 million in venture capital funding. Prior to working in startups, Max served as Press Secretary to U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer. Max received a BA from The Johns Hopkins University and an MBA from Yale School of Management. He is a recipient of the Cincinnati Business Courier’s 40 Under 40 Award and is a member of the 50th cohort of the Cincinnati Regional Chamber’s Leadership Cincinnati program.

Jimmy Sauter works on growth and partnerships at Pay Theory, a Cincinnati payments startup, where he helps with go-to-market, outbound, and brand. He started out learning most of it on the job. He mentors students through a fellows program and spoke at StartupCincy Week in 2025.

Kevin Harnist is CEO and Co-Founder of FNDRYx, the evaluation layer between founders and capital that turns founder signals into a compounding capital-readiness record. He also co-founded EngageWIT, an AI-powered platform for K-12 educators. With a background in derivatives markets and CME compliance, he mentors founders on product development and go-to-market strategy.

Mark Voytek is Founder and Managing Partner of Voytechnology Partners and a strategic advisor to enterprises and high-growth technology companies based on his Founding Partner role with Next Stage Trajectory. A former EY Partner, Mark has spent more than 25 years leading and advising on business transformation, global business services, technology, and go-to-market growth. He is also an active startup advisor, investor, author, and guest lecturer who is passionate about mentoring the next generation of founders and business leaders.

Lekha Challappa is the Founder of Aurat, a venture-backed company using AI to understand and predict how the brain responds to sensory inputs. Aurat is starting with scent, working with leading CPG and fragrance companies to transform how products are tested with consumers. Lekha’s vision is to build a broader platform for simulating human perception across the senses. She holds a graduate degree in AI from Emory University, focusing on computational neuroscience.

Ann Mooney is Executive Director of the Sedler Xavier Center for Experiential Learning (XCEL) in Business at Xavier University. She is a longtime business strategist, advisor, and investor. Ann spent 18 years at Procter & Gamble in brand, marketing, innovation, and global leadership roles. Since 2009, she has been working extensively with executives, entrepreneurs, students, and emerging businesses. Ann is also an active angel investor and board advisor, with a particular focus on turning real-world business challenges into experiential learning opportunities and unlocking business growth.

Emily Wiser is a Client Advisor in Bernstein’s New York office. She joined the firm in March 2025 and works with high-net-worth families and business owners. Emily focuses her practice on helping families quantify and qualify their goals and values, and develop and implement comprehensive investment plans that align with their highest priorities. She helps business owners evaluate exit opportunities, navigate complex transactions, and utilize unique investment and planning strategies to maximize the after-tax proceeds of a sale.

I'm a senior at Northern Kentucky University studying Finance, Entrepreneurship, and Human Resources and I've spent the last year doing something that didn't exist before I showed up. As the first Student Venture Analyst at Norse Ventures, NKU's student-run venture fund, I was handed a blank slate and told to build. So I did. I developed the fund's investment process from the ground up, building a custom deal flow platform using Claude Code, creating the scorecard we used to evaluate our first investment, and leading recruiting efforts to grow awareness of the fund across campus. Being first means there's no playbook. You figure it out, you ask the right questions, and you build something you're proud of. Beyond Norse Ventures, I recently accepted a position with Flamel.ai as an intern, and I'm constantly showing up to events across the Northern Kentucky and Cincinnati startup ecosystem. This region has real momentum, and I want to be part of it. I'm passionate about connecting with founders, capital, and community in a way that moves this ecosystem forward. If you're building something, investing in something, or just love the NKY/Cincy startup scene, let's connect.

Amelia is a senior biomedical engineering student at the University of Cincinnati. She is the Founder of TissuTrak, a mobile app for patients with Hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (hEDS) and Long-COVID that helps patients identify correlations between lifestyle factors and their symptoms so they can have better communication with their doctors and eventually feel better.

As the Founder of ImpactCincy Bill collaborates with ecosystem partners to support entrepreneurial leaders building impactful ventures. At Miami University Bill facilitated connections between alumni and entrepreneurship programs to empower the next generation of entrepreneurs. Bill is a member of QCA Ventures, an early stage venture investing group. Previously in his role as Executive Director of Flywheel, Bill led the development of programs that support entrepreneurs building sustainable business that deliver both profits and purpose. Bill also had a successful career in the printing business where he held a variety of executive leadership positions at RR Donnelley. Bill earned a B.A. in Marketing from Texas Tech University and is an alumnus of the Kellogg School of Management’s Advanced Executive Program. He is on the boards of Queen City Book Bank, Ellequate, and the Women’s Business Centers of Southwest Ohio. bill.tucker@impactcincy.org

Dr. Christin Godale is a scientist, innovation strategist, and ecosystem builder with experience spanning academic research, venture capital, early-stage company development, and nonprofit innovation infrastructure. Trained as a neuroscientist, she brings a dual perspective as an academically trained scientist and a builder of programs, partnerships, and platforms that help scientific innovation move into the real world. She is the founding Executive Director of LifeSciKY, a nonprofit life sciences lab in Kentucky, where she leads strategy, partnerships, and infrastructure development to support early-stage biotech, diagnostics, and health innovation companies while strengthening the life sciences ecosystem. Christin’s expertise spans therapeutics, cell and gene therapy, neurology, drug-delivery systems, and emerging biomedical technologies. She is known for translating complex science into clear, actionable strategy and for aligning research, venture insight, policy, capital, and talent to accelerate impact. She is deeply passionate about using innovation infrastructure as an economic development tool, expanding access to labs, talent pathways, and STEM education, reducing barriers for scientists and founders, and ensuring that breakthrough research can create jobs, companies, and healthier communities, especially in regions that have historically been overlooked.

Mike Venerable is Director of Healthcare & Life Sciences and a founding partner of The O.H.I.O. Fund, where he focuses on identifying and investing in companies with the potential to scale, create jobs, and drive long-term economic growth across Ohio. Mike brings more than two decades of experience as an entrepreneur, investor, company builder, and advisor. Prior to joining The O.H.I.O. Fund, he spent roughly 17 years with CincyTech, ultimately serving as President & CEO. During his tenure, he helped build and invest in emerging technology and life sciences companies and worked closely with entrepreneurs, research institutions, investors, and regional partners to strengthen Southwest Ohio's innovation economy. Before entering venture investing, Mike built his career as a software entrepreneur and investor. His professional journey has taken him from Ohio to California, South Korea, and the Washington, D.C. region, giving him a firsthand perspective on how technology, capital, talent, public policy, and strong networks can transform regional economies. An Ohio native, Mike returned to the state in 2004 and has spent much of the past two decades helping build its entrepreneurial ecosystem. Today, he leads The O.H.I.O. Fund's healthcare and life sciences efforts, connecting promising companies with the capital, expertise, and relationships needed to grow. A native of Hamilton, Ohio, Mike's passion for economic development is also personal. He has watched his hometown evolve from the decline of its traditional manufacturing base into a community experiencing renewed investment and growth, an experience that informs his belief that innovation and entrepreneurship can create opportunity throughout Ohio.

Co-Founder of Swirley's Soft Serve

Rob is a member of the Cincinnati Commercial Products Practice and the Market Sector Leader for Tech and Services Sector for the firm’s Cincinnati, Louisville and Evansville markets. He has over 14 years of experience providing assurance and consulting services to companies in technology and services, manufacturing and consumer and logistics spaces. He is a member of the American Institute of CPAs, The Ohio Society of Certified Public Accountants, and Association for Corporate Growth. Rob is active in the community, having previously served on the board of the Nashville Sports Council and is a recent graduate of Leadership Northern Kentucky. He is a graduate of University of Dayton, Ohio, with an M.B.A. degree and a B.S.B.A. degree in accounting.

Ryan has over 18 years of diversified public accounting experience providing tax and consulting experience to emerging, mid-market, and large multi-national companies. As a partner in the firms Federal Tax Specialty group, Ryan focuses on providing tax planning solutions to companies in a multitude of industries including manufacturing and distribution, energy, technology, real estate, retail, financial services, and health care. Ryan is a member of the American Institute of CPAs, and Tennessee Society of CPAs. Ryan is a graduate of Illinois Wesleyan University with a B.A. degree in accounting and DePaul University with a MBA and M.S. in Taxation.

COO @ Pantomath

Sue Bevan Baggott is a human-centered Executive Advisor, Innovation Catalyst, and Intentional Investor. Sue is dedicated to empowering leaders to create positive impact, accelerate life-improving innovation, and invest in transformative change. Her career spans global innovation leadership at Procter & Gamble (growing mega-brands from Pantene and Pampers) to founding Power Within Consulting, a firm focused on human-

centered strategies for meaningful leadership and business success.

As an “accidental angel investor” and startup advisor, Sue supports diverse portfolios of innovative startups addressing critical global challenges. She also advocates for inclusion in entrepreneurship and investing as an Associate Producer of Show Her the Money, a multi-award-winning documentary promoting investment in underrepresented

founders. Through speaking, writing, consulting, advising, and board roles, Sue strives to inspire purposeful leadership and meaningful innovation. She also encourages more open discussions about money confidence and investing to encourage more people to build wealth through investing with their values to drive positive change.

Sue is a member of multiple early-stage investment groups and funds including: QCA Ventures, Next Wave Impact (Investment Committee member), Kachuwa Impact Fund, Mindshift Capital (LPAC member), Ohio Impact Fund (LP), H Venture Partners (LP), Fireroad Ventures (LP), SoGal Ventures (LP), Emmeline Ventures (LP), and Sage Growth Capital (LP). She’s also an Advisor for Accelerating Angels and several

purpose-driven startups.

Donna Zaring is a dynamic leader dedicated to empowering entrepreneurs and innovators who make the world a better place. Prior to joining Flywheel Donna held leadership roles in economic development, corporate innovation and marketing at organizations including Cintrifuse, Fifth Third Bank, and Burke Inc. She is also an entrepreneur, leading communications campaigns for prominent regional and national brands as founder of her own marketing and PR firm. During her career, she has served on non-profit boards including The Cincinnati Museum Center and Mercy Health, and has been named to the Business Courier 40 Under 40 as well as the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Woman of the Year.

Jackie Reau is the CEO and Co-Founder of Game Day, a media and marketing agency founded in 2002. She is the author of the book, The Power of Hustle, to be released in March 2027. Reau is a proud graduate of Ohio University.

With more than a dozen years of non-profit experience and twice as long as an entrepreneur, Jill Morenz is leading Aviatra Accelerators into its 16th year. Jill has created three businesses in her career and leverages those insights as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Aviatra, as she works with women entrepreneurs to set them up for business success.

Helping women dream BIG!... I support & spotlight women business owners by connecting them to the resources and creating space where women shine and thrive. I'm focused on digital marketing, branding, and talking about your business in a succinct and engaging way.

Catherine Lentz is the Director of Lending for Southern Ohio at Economic and Community Development Institute (ECDI). She helps entrepreneurs and small business owners realize their dream of owning and growing their small business by providing resources and small business financing. Catherine has over 25 years of experience in the financial services industry and prior to joining ECDI in 2021, she was a Business Relationship Manager and Private Client Branch Manager with JPMorgan Chase. Catherine grew up in the Dayton, Ohio area, is a graduate of the University of Cincinnati, Co-Chair of the Emerging Leaders for the Cincinnati Parks Foundation and a sustaining member of the Junior League of Cincinnati.

Norlynn Story is an Assistant Vice President and Business Access Advisor with U.S. Bank, bringing more than 20 years of banking experience to her work with entrepreneurs and small business owners across Ohio. Serving Cleveland, Columbus, and Cincinnati, she helps business owners navigate financial systems, access capital, strengthen financial readiness, and build sustainable banking relationships. A passionate advocate for economic opportunity, Norlynn regularly leads financial education workshops and collaborates with community and economic development organizations to connect entrepreneurs with the resources, relationships, and tools needed to grow their businesses. She is known for her relationship-driven approach and commitment to helping individuals and communities thrive.

Gino Is one of Hamilton County’s Certified Business Advisors. In this role Gino works with startup companies as well as companies that have been in business for years. Gino started his career early by working in his family’s real estate business of owning and managing a strip mall in the Louisville Kentucky area. After completing his degree program at the University of Louisville, Gino took over the management of the strip mall as the family expanded its business interest by opening an Italian/Deli bakery in one of the stores that had become vacant. Gino is a successful realtor with a local Real Estate company. His focus is on both residential and commercial properties. Gino was also an Account Executive with Sysco Foods. He held the position of Sales Compensation Manager and CRM Administrator with Executive Jet Management. Gino also held the position of Financial Analyst with Milacron.

With more than a dozen years of non-profit experience and twice as long as an entrepreneur, Jill Morenz is leading Aviatra Accelerators into its 16th year. Jill has created three businesses in her career and leverages those insights as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Aviatra, as she works with women entrepreneurs to set them up for business success.

Jeffery Washington is a passionate and dedicated Business Lending & Community Development Manager and Program director at Wright-Patt Credit Union® (WPCU®), where he supports businesses and communities across Dayton, Cincinnati, and Columbus. In this regional role, Jeffery focuses on empowering small businesses to grow, thrive, and succeed by addressing their unique needs with tailored financial solutions and exceptional relationship support. With more than 15 years of experience in financial services, Jeffery brings a strong background in management, relationship building, and commercial lending. His expertise in strategic planning, risk management, and operations, combined with a deep-rooted commitment to community service has helped countless businesses navigate challenges and reach new heights. Jeffery is especially passionate about serving underrepresented communities and small business owners, ensuring they have access to the resources, education, and capital needed to build lasting success. He’s known for his collaborative approach, deep listening, and practical guidance, making him a trusted partner to business leaders across the region. An Ohio native and proud Midwesterner, Jeffery finds joy in helping others unlock their potential. Outside of work, he enjoys quality time with his family and staying connected to his community. “My passion is helping business owners reach potentials they didn’t see as possible. That, to me, is what being a Relationship Manager and community strategist means, looking out for people and being present when they need you the most. That’s what I believe I do best.”

Ann Mooney is Executive Director of the Sedler Xavier Center for Experiential Learning (XCEL) in Business at Xavier University. She is a longtime business strategist, advisor, and investor. Ann spent 18 years at Procter & Gamble in brand, marketing, innovation, and global leadership roles. Since 2009, she has been working extensively with executives, entrepreneurs, students, and emerging businesses. Ann is also an active angel investor and board advisor, with a particular focus on turning real-world business challenges into experiential learning opportunities and unlocking business growth.

Scott Jacobs is Executive Director of QCA Ventures, where he helps connect early-stage companies with capital, experienced investors, and practical guidance. He oversees deal flow, member engagement, sponsor relationships, and initiatives that strengthen QCA’s investment process and expand its national reach. Scott has helped advance QCA’s use of artificial intelligence in angel investing. Working with colleagues, he developed the organization’s Deal Hub and Member Hub and introduced AI-assisted tools to review funding applications, match opportunities with members’ expertise, and support more efficient screening and due diligence. He is also exploring how investor groups can learn from their collective deal histories while keeping investment decisions in the hands of experienced people. A focus of Scott’s work is building syndication relationships with other angel groups and early-stage investors. He helps prepare and share investment opportunities beyond QCA’s membership, giving promising companies access to broader networks of capital and expertise. He has also supported QCA’s evolution from Queen City Angels to QCA Ventures, along with efforts to strengthen its funds, investor experience, and founder support. Scott is President of the QCA Education Foundation, doing business as Startup College®, which offers programs including Entrepreneur Boot Camp and Morning Mentoring. He has served on the Angel Capital Association’s Education + Smart Practices and Syndication committees and has spoken about AI, due diligence, and the operation of angel investor groups.

Engineer, Inventor, Entrepreneur. 20 years of business and engineering experience from startups to fortune 500 projects. Named inventor on 27 patent applications, Founder & CEO of KineticArc. Currently focused on bringing the latest advances in Physical AI Agents to help revitalize the manufacturing sector.

Michelle has more than 25 years of finance, accounting, administration and investment experience, in publicly traded, privately held and not for profit corporations, startups and billion-dollar enterprises, regional investment funds, investment advisory service firms and highly performing national funds. Michelle has served as a C-level consultant to early-stage start-up companies since 2013 providing strategic financial services as their contract Chief Financial Officer, advising on a number of complex financial transactions, and to an investment advisory firm as Venture Partner, supporting the investment process for Series B, C and later stage syndicated venture transactions, including due diligence, financial modeling, investment document preparation and portfolio reporting. She launched Book+Street in early 2018 to address a big gap in the startup ecosystem in the Midwest, providing on-demand CFO and controllership services to a growing number of tech and service companies throughout Ohio. Michelle is a Certified Public Accountant in addition to her Certified Equity Professional designation, earned a BS in Business Administration with an emphasis in Service Sector Management from California State University, San Marcos, and an MBA from The Ohio State University.

https://fbtgibbons.com/people/zachary-d-bahorik/

Megan Dollenmeyer is a Managing Associate at FBT Gibbons LLP who advises startups, founders, and investors on federal tax matters, including QSBS, equity compensation, pass-through and corporate taxation, business restructurings, and M&A transactions. She serves as Vice-Chair of the S Corporation Committee of the American Bar Association Tax Section and as Co-Chair of the Cincinnati Bar Association Taxation Section. Megan regularly works with emerging growth companies and provides practical tax planning guidance to businesses and founders from formation through exit.

Torrey Babson is the Senior Director of Innovation Services at BRITE Energy Innovators. Day-to-day, Torrey oversees BRITE's CXO Services, which provides fractional leadership solutions to pre-market energy technology startups.

Zachary Hensley is SVP of Product & Operations at FRAYT, an early-stage tech startup building an on-demand logistics marketplace. He's spent 15+ years in tech and the last seven building venture-backed companies: COO and then President at Livegistics, and VP of Technology & Operations at Astronomer, where he was employee 19 and scaled the company through hypergrowth. Before startups, he was Head of Product at Kroger Digital and a Director at P&G, where he founded Alchemy, an internal startup. He's also an Expert in Residence at Cintrifuse Capital and an early member of X15 with Refinery Ventures.

Jaimin Gandhi is Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer at Redi Health, where he oversees Product, Engineering, Design, and Implementation. His work focuses on modernizing how pharmaceutical patient support programs operate by connecting fragmented vendor ecosystems into unified, patient-centric platforms. He enables faster access to therapy by simplifying enrollment, reducing operational friction, and embedding automated intelligence into complex healthcare workflows. Jaimin brings a systems-level perspective to building compliant, scalable infrastructure that improves patient outcomes and patient support program performance.

Chief Architect at Pantomath, former CTO at VNDLY, all-around hypergrowth technical leader.

Venture Capital Investor with Refinery Ventures, based in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Strategic Account Executive at Databricks, hypergrowth sales guys enabling GenAI, Machine Learning and Analytics.

Mary Mason Boaz is an executive coach and talent strategist who helps leaders build organizations where both people and performance thrive. With nearly two decades of experience spanning education, nonprofits, and high-growth organizations, she has led talent strategy, executive team development, and organizational growth through periods of rapid change. As a former Chief People and Program Officer and current executive coach, Mary Mason works with founders and senior leaders to navigate the leadership challenges that emerge as organizations grow and scale. Her approach combines organizational strategy with human behavior, helping leaders recognize the patterns that drive sustainable growth, not just short-term success. Mary Mason lives in Lexington with her husband and two young children. She is originally from Richmond, VA but has also called Washington, DC, Brooklyn, NY, and Charlotte, NC home. She is passionate about social justice and loves all things Bravo.

Lindsay is a partner in the New Ventures practice at Thompson Hine and chairs the Private Fund Formation group. She advises entrepreneurs, investors, and fund managers on a wide range of venture capital and startup matters, including fund formation, mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, securities compliance, and governance. Before joining Thompson Hine, she was a partner and chief legal counsel at a Midwest-focused venture capital firm, concentrating on deal structuring, portfolio management, fundraising, and exit transactions. Lindsay also managed her own private practice, representing emerging and diverse fund managers, startups, and investors nationwide. Her leadership roles at a venture development organization in upstate New York included serving as COO, CIO, CLO, and Managing Partner, where she helped establish and run one of the most active and largest seed funds in the region. Lindsay’s extensive legal, operational, and investment experience enables her to effectively address client needs. She also teaches at The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law and is a national speaker on topics of socioeconomic impacts on venture capital.

Sierra Hayden is the founder and CEO of We Outside, a Cincinnati outdoor lifestyle brand headquartered at The Basecamp in Over-the-Rhine. Her path runs through graphic design, fine art, and regenerative agriculture, an unusual mix that shapes how she builds brands, spaces, and community. She started the company on a simple observation, most people never picture themselves outdoors because nobody ever showed them how to start, and built We Outside to be that starting point. What began as community hikes has grown into a full lifestyle ecosystem, events, product, community, all built in Cincinnati for anyone who’s ever felt like they needed permission to be outside.

Eric is the founder & CEO of Sprints, a running apparel and accessories brand that makes funner gear for athletes. A fashion obsessed, self-proclaimed "average" marathoner he has dedicated his life to making dope gear for athletes. He started Sprints after 10 years working in brand management at Procter & Gamble.

Sierra Hayden is the founder and CEO of We Outside, a Cincinnati outdoor lifestyle brand headquartered at The Basecamp in Over-the-Rhine. Her path runs through graphic design, fine art, and regenerative agriculture, an unusual mix that shapes how she builds brands, spaces, and community. She started the company on a simple observation, most people never picture themselves outdoors because nobody ever showed them how to start, and built We Outside to be that starting point. What began as community hikes has grown into a full lifestyle ecosystem, events, product, community, all built in Cincinnati for anyone who’s ever felt like they needed permission to be outside.

Co-Founder of Swirley's Soft Serve

Anna-Katharina Lenz is the Lance & Diane White Assistant Professor of Entrepreneurship at Miami University’s Farmer School of Business and co-leads the university’s Center for Social Entrepreneurship. Her work explores how entrepreneurs navigate uncertainty, make sense of complex environments, and move from insight to action. Her research spans entrepreneurship, social entrepreneurship, informal economies, and embodied approaches to organizing and decision-making, and has been published in leading academic journals. In the classroom and through her work with founders and communities, Anna-Katharina is particularly interested in how entrepreneurship can become more human-centered, reflective, and responsive to the realities people face. Before joining Miami University, she lived and worked in Germany, Australia and Brazil and continues to collaborate internationally across research, entrepreneurship, and social innovation.

Christina S. Moss, CPA is the founder of MossFinancials, LLC, a CPA-led advisory and accounting firm that helps business owners uncover what’s actually true about their businesses so they can make better decisions and lead with greater confidence. With more than 25 years of accounting experience, Christina has seen firsthand that many of the challenges entrepreneurs face with money aren't simply accounting problems. They're decision-making problems shaped by uncertainty, fear, overwhelm, and the stories we tell ourselves about our businesses. A passionate financial educator and advocate for underserved entrepreneurs, Christina uses accounting as a tool to replace uncertainty with clarity and help founders move from reacting to leading. Her candid, compassionate, and no-nonsense approach to money, growth, and business decision-making has earned her the nickname “The PitBull of Accounting™.”

Pablo Manuel Martinez is a Cincinnati entrepreneur and a first-generation American. He co-founded Pay Theory, a Cincinnati fintech startup built for families paying for childcare, school, and medical care, where he led marketing and customer success. Today he is building Keeper, a new venture in Greater Cincinnati focused on the largest asset most families own, their home. He also serves on the Board of Trustees at Crossroad Health Center, a faith-based clinic that cares for patients regardless of their ability to pay. He volunteers at his local church and supports his family's work at Ola Immigrant Welcome Center in Price Hill.