2011 Speakers Scheduled to Appear... |
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ARI WEINZWEIG, ZINGERMAN’S CO-FOUNDING
PARTNER
• Coolest Small Company in America (Inc.)
• Best Business Book for Small Business Owners (Inc.)
• Featured in Small Giants (Bo Burlingham)
Zingerman’s Delicatessan in Ann Arbor, Michigan grew from a small
enterprise started in 1982 into an empire called Zingerman’s Community
of Businesses—eight different businesses (including a mail order
company and a business consultancy), with 17 managing partners, 500
employees, and revenue of $37 million a year. Inc. magazine featured
Zingerman’s as "The Coolest Small Company in America." The company has
even been recognized by the Oprah Winfrey show where Oprah rated a
sandwich from Zingerman's an amazing 11 out of 5.
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RON BRUMBARGER, BITWISE SOLUTIONS
Ron is one of Indiana’s most recognized technology entrepreneurs and
visionaries. He co-founded BitWise Solutions in 1992 and has served as
the company’s president and chief executive officer ever since. Ron
has grown the company from a start-up into one of the state’s most
accomplished and well-respected technology consultancies. As a serial
entrepreneur, Ron has started half-dozen companies and assisted dozens
in their startup and planning phases. He was recently recognized as
one of the seven most influential, young business leaders in Indiana
and as Indy’s Best and Brightest in Technology by KPMG.
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JAMES BURNES, MOBITOPIA, PROJECT
BRILLIANT
James Burnes is CEO of Mobiltopia and Founder and Principal of Project
Brilliant. James brings a unique mix of talents interfacing Internet
solutions with a business minded, entrepreneurial background. He
founded Project Brilliant in December 2009 as an idea factory,
business consultancy, creative agency and business incubator to launch
and develop new digital business ventures. The firm is launching
several new enterprises in 2010 including a mobile-web and social
media company. James leads the team of Mobiltopia, a boutique mobile
app and mobile-optimized web site development firm.
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MATT HUNCKLER, VERGE INDY
Matt Hunckler is the Organizer of Verge and Director of Marketing at
Slingshot SEO by day while co-founding a number of his own online
businesses by night and weekend. He also curates the Indy Startup
Digest. Verge started with just eight members, the group has an active
“Meetup” community with over 660 active members. The casual monthly
meetings attract participants from cities across the Midwest including
Chicago, Bloomington, and Cincinnati. Held at the Earth House in
downtown Indianapolis, the events typically include plenty of time for
informal conversations and three fast-paced business pitches from
software business founders.
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DAVID HOEFT, EXPORT USA
David is currently the CEO of ExportUSA and the Co-Founder and Former
CEO of Premiere Credit of North America, LLC, a debt collection
company honored as one of the fastest growing companies in the country
by Inc. Magazine under David’s leadership. David is a seasoned
entrepreneur, having launched several other successful businesses in
areas such as home healthcare, medical staffing, property management
and fractional ownership of aircraft. As Premiere Credit’s CEO, his
primary focus is strategic planning and new business development.
David has been recognized as one of the top “40 Under Forty” by the
Indianapolis Business Journal.
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MATTHEW JACKSON, POET
Matthew Jackson’s poetry has evoked comments ranging from
“philosophically tenderizing” to “an emphatic knuckle sandwich.”
Drawing on his inspirations—his grandmother, an Edgar Allen Poe bust
he received as a child, Waylon Jennings, The Doors, The Beats, and
Charles Bukowski—Matthew blends spoken word with Indiana home-grown
imagery, and he throws in a soaked bar rag for flavor. He has been
featured at several venues for performances and discussions including
The Americana Music Series and a keynote speaker at W.R.A.P.S.
(Writers, Readers, and Poets Society) Conference. He is positive that
poetry is an inspiring vehicle to bring communities and even planets
closer together.
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MICHAEL KELSEY, MUSICIAN
Michael Kelsey, a talented multi-instrumentalist, has been known to
blend many musical genres with fervour and grace. Whether he’s
creating a song spontaneously, telling a story complete with sound
effects, or letting an inspired moment move his fingers around the
fret board, Kelsey never performs the same show twice. A finalist in
Guitar Player Magazine's national competition and winner of Guitar
Center’s "Guitarmageddon," chosen as best unsigned guitarist out of
over 3000 entrants nationwide says it all. He has toured nationally
with Blind Melon and Dishwalla and has opened shows for many artist of
many styles including The Doobie Brothers, 38 Special, Rodrigo and
Gabriella and the California Guitar Trio.
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CATHY LANGHAM, LANGHAM LOGISTICS
Cathy Langham launched a career in transportation immediately after
graduation from Indiana University. Prior to starting her own,
independent company, she owned franchises for Thurston Motor Lines,
Pilot Air Freight and Dynamic Air Freight. She has over 25+ years of
logistics expertise with business leaders in a wide spectrum of
industries including pharmaceutical, food & beverage, automotive, and
other industries with complex supply chains. She splits her time among
three key areas: Company Presidency, Customer Relations, and Civic &
Industry Leadership.
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DANIEL ORR, CHEF OWNER FARMbloomington
To Daniel Orr, simplicity is beauty. As a Chef, Orr draws from a
lifelong curiosity about individual ingredients combined with
extensive training in the art of finding food’s true essence and
flavor. Orr spent years working his way up the ranks at some of the
top restaurants in New York such as famed French restaurant, La
Grenouille and Guastavino’s. After spending time as the executive chef
of CuisinArt Resort & Spa in Anguilla BWI he returned to Indiana to
open the first Orr-owned establishment FARMbloomington. Now Daniel
spends time developing new products, writing books and traveling the
globe. Inspired each day by 3 more chances to sit at the table & enjoy
food with family and friends.
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TONY SCELZO, RAINMAKERS
Tony Scelzo is the founder and CEO of Rainmakers Marketing Group,
Indiana’s fastest growing, B2B networking group, providing
professionals a forum to meet, learn and grow. He founded Rainmakers
in 2002 which now has grown to over 1,500 small business members. Tony
has served as a VP of Sales, Director of Marketing, Sales Manager and
Director of Business Development for several companies. He has
experience in franchise operations and marketing in the restaurant
business, and has worked in the technology arena. Tony knows how to
utilize guerilla tactics to create awareness and generate sales in a
market place. He has a wealth of knowledge in email marketing and
media planning and buying.
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BRENT TILSON, TILSON HR (Inc. 500
Company)
Brent Tilson founded Tilson in 1995, drawing on his background as a
CPA to create a new kind of HR outsourcing company – one that
addresses HR strategically from a business and financial perspective.
Today, Tilson specializes in providing HR systems, operational
expertise, and strategy to businesses seeking to compete at the
highest levels of performance and profitability. Headquartered in
Indianapolis, Indiana, Tilson serves client companies located in 26
states. Nationally recognized as a leader in the outsourced human
resources field, Tilson has been ranked three times by Inc. Magazine
as one of the 500 fastest growing privately held companies in the U.S.
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CHARLIE WEIKERT, ENTREPRENEUR & YO-YO
ENTHUSIAST
Charlie Weikert, a Columbus native and University of Dayton student,
is making a splash in the yo-yo business. Weikert developed a yo-yo in
a high school class that caught the attention of a major toy company
and Project Lead the Way. His revolutionary yo-yo has the potential to
spin longer than those on the market and is currently working with the
company on prototypes. Charlie has spoken at the National Innovation
Summit about "Inspiring Young Inventors" and "Creating Through the
Classroom.” Charlie is passionate about engineering and
entrepreneurship and believes we should not wait until the workplace
to integrate the two.
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BRAD WISLER, SPROUTBOX
Brad Wisler has been an entrepreneur since childhood. He has started
and run many small businesses in his lifetime, ranging from arts &
entertainment production to apparel design to software design. Brad
first found significant success in 1998, when he co-founded WorldView
Multimedia, the nation’s first new media firm serving clients in
politics and government. Determined to create a better model for early
stage software investment, Brad and two of his colleagues founded
SproutBox. SproutBox offers entrepreneurs a new form of Venture
Capital by investing both cash and services in startup companies in
exchange for equity.
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COLUMBUS INDIANA PHILHARMONIC,
ENSEMBLE
The Columbus Indiana Philharmonic’s mission is to Make Music. They
fulfill this mission by creating performances in pursuit of the
highest artistic achievement and advocating a life long interest and
involvement in music. The Philharmonic and David Bowden, Founding
Music Director and Conductor, have received local, state, national and
international recognition. The Orchestra has performed at the
Governor’s Arts Awards Ceremony in the State Capitol. The American
Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) have recognized
the Philharmonic with 5 national awards.
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