Executive Council
Jeremie Bacon
CEO, The Forge Adventure Parks
Mr. Bacon is an entrepreneur, educator, advisor, and investor across software, recreation, media, and experiential hospitality. He serves as an Adjunct Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship at the University of Chicago; Co-Founder of The Forge Adventure Parks; Co-Founder of The Wilder World Trust, a 501(c)(3) focused on environmental restoration; and Operating Partner at Mudita Venture Partners. He also advises and serves on boards for multiple venture capital, private equity, and growth-stage technology firms.
Across his career, Mr. Bacon has founded, grown, and sold companies in CRM, investor relations, marketing automation, trading technology, and document management. He was CEO of Imagineer Technology Group, sold to Dynamo Software in 2020. Before that, he co-founded Synap Software Labs, served as President of Itiviti USA, and spent ten years as President and CEO of Backstop Solutions Group, which he co-founded after beginning his career in Goldman Sachs’ Institutional Equities Division.
His civic work includes board service at 1871 and past leadership of the Illinois Technology Association. Mr. Bacon holds degrees from the University of Maryland, University of Tsukuba, and Brigham Young University.
Arthur Carlos
CEO, EOS
Mr. Carlos brings 30 years of healthcare experience in various leadership and entrepreneurial roles. Currently, he serves as CEO of EOS, a Medicare insurtech distribution company in partnership with a global P&C firm. He is also founder and owner of Social Call, an AI voice based social networking platform designed to combat mental health implications of the global loneliness epidemic by fostering human connections through technology.
Previously, he was founding CEO of Clear Spring, a national health insurance company offering indemnity, Section 125 and Medicare Advantage plans. Mr. Carlos also served as founding President and CEO of Symphonix Health Insurance, a national Medicare prescription drug insurer built from start-up to over $2 billion in pharmaceutical sales within three years of founding the company prior to exit. He has also served as President and CEO of The Vitality Group, an early-stage consumer directed health insurer and one of the largest population health companies in the U.S.
Mr. Carlos’s prior experience includes 16 years with Aon and Hewitt Associates, where he served in various leadership roles, including chair of the U.S. actuarial practice and member of Aon Consulting’s executive committee with responsibility for global strategy.
Mr. Carlos earned a B.S. in Actuarial Science from the University of Illinois and is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries.
Michael Clogg
Retired President, Industrial Parts Depot
Mr. Clogg has served as an executive in multiple industrial manufacturing/distribution businesses, growing the top line and improving bottom line results through a combination of organic growth, successful M&A integration, and financial management. Mike has led turnarounds as well as growth businesses. His background includes significant international experience and brand building. Prior to his role as President and COO of Industrial Parts Depot, Mr. Clogg served as a VP at Federal Mogul, was President of FP Diesel, a Fel-Pro company, and currently serves on several mid-market advisory boards. Mike earned a B.A. in Marketing from Michigan State University.
Caralynn Nowinski Collens
CEO, Dimension Bio
Dr. Collens is the CEO of Dimension Bio, a regenerative medicine company harnessing the power of a patented 3D-printing biomaterials platform. Previously, she was co-founder and CEO of UI LABS, a research and commercialization collaborative that launched MxD, the national digital manufacturing institute, and City Tech, a digital innovation hub for cities.
Dr. Collens spent her early career in venture capital and corporate finance, focusing on technology-based university spin-outs. She was a Principal with early-stage venture capital firms ARCH Development Partners and Midwest Venture Partners, and SVP of Sikich Investment Banking. As a graduate student, she co-founded SanoGene Therapeutics, an early-stage biotechnology company. In addition to her executive leadership, she serves as a board member and advisor to organizations dedicated to creating meaningful impact. She is a member of the Chicago Chapter of YPO, the Commercial Club of Chicago, and The Chicago Network. Dr. Collens earned a B.S. in Human Communication Sciences at Northwestern University and both an M.B.A. and M.D. from the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Grieg Coppe
Former CSO, Intuit
Mr. Coppe is an independent advisor and early stage investor, and has served on the boards of directors of or as an advisor to several companies, including Accuvant, Fuhu and Xero, as well as many start-ups he has invested in. Most recently, he was the Chief Strategy and Corporate Development Officer of Intuit, where he led a team setting strategy for the company’s $4B business and oversaw several key acquisitions. Prior to that, Mr. Coppe was a senior partner with Accenture for over 20 years, with several responsibilities including serving on the firm’s Global Leadership Team, and as Managing Partner, Corporate Development and Strategy. He worked with a broad spectrum of high tech companies, including component suppliers, computer and networking manufacturers, consumer electronics and software companies, to formulate corporate and business unit-level strategies. Mr. Coppe earned a B.S. in Engineering with Highest Honors from the University of California at Berkeley and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.
Mike Hobbs
Former CEO, Engineered Glass Products
Mr. Hobbs is a strategic and operational business leader with a track record of optimizing value in the manufacturing space. He served as CEO of Engineered Glass Products, where his vision resulted in sales and profit growth exceeding 500% from 1995 to 2007. During that time, Mr. Hobbs orchestrated a management buyout of the company and significantly modernized corporate structure and processes. Prior to that, he was a successful commissioned salesperson in the wholesale glass business, and earlier served as General Manager of a 22-store retail auto glass installation business. In addition to his involvement with charitable organizations focused on providing educational and professional development to disadvantaged youth, Mr. Hobbs serves on several boards of directors, including Iowa Glass Depot, Bellarmine University, LIFT, E2C, ANEW, New Covenant Community Development Corporation and Veterinary Pharmaceutical Solutions. Mr. Hobbs earned both a B.A. in Philosophy and an M.B.A. from Bellarmine University.
Stephen Izzo
CEO, Zonatherm
Mr. Izzo serves as CEO of ThermFlo Inc. and Zonatherm Products Inc. a 50 year old company providing concept to completion, Electrical and Thermal management design build and service for mission critical facilities. They represent Generac standby power systems, Vertiv, and StarLine. Mr. Izzo earned a B.S. in Mechanical engineering from Northwestern University and is an alumnus of Harvard University’s Owner president management (OPM) program. He is a professional engineer licensed in Illinois.
Kim Kamin
Principal & Chief Wealth Strategist, Gresham Partners, LLC
Ms. Kamin is a principal at the wealth management firm, Gresham Partners, where she serves as the Chief Wealth Strategist, leading Gresham’s development and implementation of estate, wealth transfer, philanthropic, educational, and fiduciary planning activities. Previously she was a partner at Schiff Hardin LLP where she practiced in the Private Clients Trusts & Estates group. Ms. Kamin is also an adjunct professor at the Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law and on faculty with the University of Chicago Booth School of Business Executive Education. She is on the Editorial Advisory Board of Trusts and Estates Magazine, President for the Chicago Estate Planning Council, a Regent with the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, and on the Advisory Board and Leaders Council for the UHNW Institute. She is a member of The Economic Club of Chicago and serves on advisory boards for the Chicago Community Trust, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Northwestern Memorial Foundation Council for Philanthropy, the Goodman Theatre, and the Chicago Foundation for Women. She also serves on the Executive Committee for the Lurie Children’s Legacy Partners and on the Board of Leaders for the Stanford Club of Chicago. Ms. Kamin received a B.A. in Psychology, with distinction and departmental honors, from Stanford University and a J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School.
Pamela Forbes Lieberman
Retired CEO, True Value
Ms. Forbes Lieberman serves on the Boards of Directors of Standard Motor Products, Inc. and John B Sanfilippo & Son. Ms. Forbes Lieberman served as President & CEO of True Value Company, where she led a successful turnaround. Additional leadership positions include Interim COO Entertainment Resource Inc. and Chief Financial Officer positions at True Value Company, ShopTalk, Martin Brower and Fel-Pro Inc. Ms. Forbes Lieberman additionally serves on boards for Rush University Medical Center, Morrow Sodali, National Association of Corporate Directors – Chicago, and Villanova University Widger School of Law’s Girard-diCarlo Center for Ethics. Ms. Forbes Lieberman is a member of The Chicago Network, International Women’s Forum, The Economic Club of Chicago, and the Private Directors Association. Ms. Forbes Lieberman began her career at Price Waterhouse, is a CPA, and holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and a B.S. in Accountancy from the University of Illinois.
Jon Morris
Founder and CEO, Fiscal Advocate Inc
Mr. Morris is the Founder and CEO of Fiscal Advocate Inc, a technology-enabled professional services company powered by EngineBI software. Prior to Fiscal Advocate, he established Rise Interactive in 2004 with prize money from his second-place finish in the University of Chicago’s prestigious New Venture Challenge. Over the next 16 years, he grew Rise from a one-person shop to one of the largest independent marketing agencies in the world. After selling Rise, Mr. Morris pondered his next move and realized that he was most energized when connecting and helping fellow entrepreneurs grow their businesses.
Fiscal Advocate is the product of this inspiration. Mr. Morris recognized that focusing on insights-driven finance was instrumental in Rise’s success and understood that other agencies—indeed, nearly any professional service company—could benefit from it. So, like at Rise, he developed a proprietary, tech-enabled approach for surfacing the hidden financial insights that drive critical business decisions.
In his spare time, Mr. Morris enjoys spending time with his wife, three daughters, and two dogs. He loves soccer, having played on his alma mater’s team, Kenyon College, and is fascinated with studying data-driven approaches to developing youth players.
Craig Moughler
Retired Senior Vice President & Chief Supply Chain Officer, Valvoline, Inc.
Mr. Moughler was the Senior Vice President and Chief Supply Chain Officer at Valvoline, Inc. for almost 34 years. Moughler began his career at Valvoline in 1988 as manager of plant engineering. In 1990, Moughler moved into a series of vice president positions including Valvoline Instant Oil Change, global manufacturing and distribution, e-business and business transformation. From 2002 to 2019, Moughler was the president of Valvoline International, the business unit responsible for all of Valvoline’s operations outside the US and Canada. Moughler has held long term board positions in all of Valvoline’s International joint ventures as well as leadership positions in several industry and charitable organizations including the Petroleum Packaging Council, the World Trade Center of Kentucky, and the Opportunity Workshop of Lexington. Moughler holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Purdue University and an MBA from the University of New Orleans.
Henry Park
Chief Investment Officer, Summit Point Capital
Mr. Park, Chief Investment Officer of Summit Point Capital, brings 25 years of experience successfully investing in the mining, metals and commodities sector. He has built a career overseeing commodity investing in equities and futures for multiple investment firms including Vulcan Mining, The Electrum Group, and Soros Fund Management. Mr. Park began his investing career at GE Capital where he was Assistant Vice President in the distressed debt businesses, followed by a stint as a long/short equity analyst in the basic materials sector for Highlander Fund Management. He received a B.S. in Economics from the University of Chicago and an M.B.A. from Columbia University.
Cory Sexson
VP of Marketing - Hydration, Kraft Heinz
Mr. Sexson is a seasoned CPG/Food & Beverage Executive with over 15 years of transformative leadership experience, currently serving as the Vice President of Marketing – Hydration at Kraft Heinz.
Previously, Mr. Sexson was the Vice President & General Manager of Emerging Brands & Breakthrough Innovation for Tropicana Brands Group. In 2022, he was recognized by Brand Innovators as a top consumer marketer in the Midwest, as he has consistently demonstrated his prowess in innovation, team leadership, and delivering strong P&L results. He holds an MBA from Northwestern University – Kellogg School of Management and a BA from Hastings College.
Marc Shiffman
President & CEO, SMS Assist
Mr. Shiffman serves as the president and CEO at SMS Assist, in addition to serving on the board of directors. During Marc’s tenure, SMS Assist has grown to more than 750 employees. In June 2016, SMS Assist raised $150 million at a $1 billion valuation from Goldman Sachs Investment Partners, the same team that invested in Uber, Facebook, Pinterest, and Spotify.
Before joining SMS Assist, Marc provided strategic, financial, and operating support to entrepreneurs leading early-stage startups as they transitioned to hypergrowth mode. Prior to that, Marc worked as a senior executive in corporate finance and general management at MacAndrews and Forbes-owned-and-operated companies including Revlon, The Coleman Company, and Sunbeam Household Products.
Marc earned his bachelor’s degree in economics from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and his MBA from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business. Marc currently serves on the Chicago Innovation Board of Advisors and in July 2019 Marc was named to the Crain’s Chicago Business Tech 50 list.
Michael Wandell
Chief Commercial Officer, BSE Global
Mr. Wandell oversees the ticketing, suites, sponsorship, and marketing departments across all BSE Global teams and venues. He is also responsible for the development and growth of the Brooklyn Nets and Barclays Center brands. Wandell joined BSE Global after spending more than three years as the Senior Vice President of Global Partnerships with the Los Angeles Dodgers, where he oversaw all corporate partnership sales and service and was responsible for directing and developing joint sales strategies with the team’s media partners. Prior to joining the Dodgers, he was Vice President of International Business Development at the National Basketball Association where he focused on creating large-scale global partnerships. Over the course of his career, he has generated more than $1 billion in total sponsorship revenue. A native of Champaign, IL, Wandell graduated from Northwestern University with a B.A. in History.
Jeffrey Wellek
President, NJB Investments, LLC
Mr. Wellek is a partner at TRO Investment Partners, a private investment firm; President of NJB Advisors, LLC, a management advisory firm; and the owner of two bicycle stores. He has a 35-year career in business and law. He has owned, operated, and acquired many businesses, the majority of which were consumer products businesses that supplied major retailers, including Wal-Mart, Target, Bed Bath & Beyond, Dicks, and Walgreens. Jeff received a B.S. in Accountancy from the University of Illinois and a JD from Northwestern University.