ROI’s Into the Corner Office Podcast: Powerhouse Middle Market CEOs Telling it Real—Unexpected Caree...

Eric Rieger is the Founder and CEO of WEBIT Services, Inc. (www.webitservices.com). WEBIT is an Employee-Owned, People-Focused, IT Strategy, Service, & Support company serving organizations in 8 counties in Northern Illinois along with our remote workforce around the country. In addition to providing Managed IT Services, the SecureBIT managed security team helps organizations identify and reduce risk and our Upstream Impact software division creates applications that help non-profit organizations achieve their mission.  Our most recent application PantryEasy, (www.pantryeasy.com) is an online market that helps food pantries get their goods to their clients quickly and efficiently. Our goal is to positively impact 1200 organizations by the year 2030.

Steven Sashen is a serial entrepreneur who has never had a job, a former professional stand-up comic and award-winning screenwriter, and a competitive sprinter -- one of the fastest men over 55 in the country (maybe the fastest 55+ Jew in the world!). He and his wife, Lena Phoenix, co-founded the footwear company Xero Shoes, creating "a MOVEMENT movement" that has helped hundreds of thousands of people Live Life Feet First with happy, healthy, strong feet in addictively comfortable footwear. Steven and Lena also appeared on Shark Tank, where they turned down a $400,000 offer from Kevin O'Leary. 

Dr. Thomas J. Dammrich, DBA Former CEO, National Marine Manufacturers Association and IPC-Connecting Electronic Circuits Business Strategist, National Association of Healthcare Quality Advisor, Global Marine Business Advisors Thomas Dammrich was president of NMMA for 21 years.  When assuming the role, he knew he had to get the industry working together and focused on things everyone could agree to work on.  One of the first things he tackled was focusing on market expansion efforts that were also measurable.  Dammrich’s leadership helped unify the industry to do just that with the Discover Boating campaign, now entering its sixteenth year.  Dammrich also served as President of IPC, an international trade association of companies producing printed circuit boards and doing electronics manufacturing services. After retiring from NMAA in 2019, Dammrich continued his service on a number of Boards of Directors and has chaired or served on over 15 Boards of Directors including both non-profit and for-profit companies.  He is currently engaged as Business Strategist for the National Association for Healthcare Quality and as a founder of Global Marine Business Advisors Thom can’t help but look forward.  He has said, “I constantly scan the environment in which industries operate to anticipate challenges and identify opportunities to keep the industry healthy, growing, and working together.” Dammrich is a builder, having doubled revenues and members in every organization he has led. Dammrich has a BA in Economics, an MBA in Finance, an MS in Accountancy, and a Doctorate of Business Administration, all from DePaul University in Chicago.  He is a member of the NMMA Hall of Fame, ASA Sportfishing Hall of Fame, and Boating Safety Hall of Fame and has been recognized for lifetime achievement by the Water Sports Industry Association.  He is a member of the Board of Directors and Chairman of the Management Committee for the Center for Sportfish Policy and serves on the Board of Directors of Niven Marketing.

Amy Pyles is the President at Saxum, an integrated digital agency obsessed for good. Amy excels in solving complex problems for brands and organizations using technology, insights and creativity. She oversees the execution of Saxum’s business strategy, operational strategy and the overall quality of services, and champions the alignment of people, business and clients. Throughout her career, Amy has delivered data-driven strategies across industries and brands including Walmart, Gathering Place, Walton Family Foundation, Williams, Procter & Gamble, and Anheuser-Busch. Prior to joining Saxum, she also led agency operations for WPP’s Rockfish Digital (now part of VML/Y&R).

Mary joined the MTI team in 2020 as Chief Executive Officer (CEO), and in January 2021, she joined the MTI Board of Directors. She has an extensive background as a passionate business leader and operational expert. She brings 30 years of experience developing, commercializing, delivering, and supporting technology-related products, services, and companies. She values integrity, a purpose-driven and compassionate company culture, sustainability, and diversity as key factors in every company’s success and leads consistently with these values. Mary has served as CEO, CTO, COO, CSO, VP, board director, board chair, founder, consultant, and advisor for private and public companies from early-stage startups to Fortune 500 across a variety of industries. A licensed Professional Electrical Engineer, P.E., Ms. Jesse holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Electrical Engineering, and nineteen technology-related patents. She is a frequent advisor, speaker and writer on technology, innovation and diversity, and is passionate about supporting underserved populations in STEM, technology, and business.

A Flagship founding partner, Mike is an IT industry veteran with over 25 years of experience, who takes pride in finding the right technologies to meet clients’ requirements. His basic philosophy drives the company: “Understand clients’ business challenges and deliver valued insights and outcomes through IT.” Mike served for many years on Dell Computers’ Advisory Council, and prior to founding Flagship was Vice President at CONNECT Computer Corporation. He graduated from Fairfield University with a bachelor's degree in Business Management and Information Systems.

Geoff Alexander joined Chicago-based Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises (LEYE) in 1993 and following his work on multiple concepts within LEYE’s portfolio, including he took over LEYE’s Asian concept, Wow Bao in 2009. A pioneer in both technology and social media, Geoff redefined the fast-casual space by implementing mobile ordering, self-ordering kiosks, bicycle delivery, and nationwide shipping. Geoff has overseen Wow Bao’s inclusion into airports, major sports stadiums, university campuses, music venues, and grocers around the country that sell Wow Bao’s frozen retail line.   Shortly after being named to both Nation’s Restaurant News’ Power List and Most Influential Restaurant CEOs in the country, Geoff changed the game in the restaurant industry once again by creating Wow Bao Now; launching more than 500 Wow Bao Dark / Virtual Kitchens in more than 400 cities in less than 18 months.   

Rev. Dr. Kenneth V. Daniel, President and Chief Executive Officer of United Church Homes.  Rev. Dr. Kenneth V. Daniel joined United Church Homes as President and Chief Executive Officer in 2011. Over the past 30 years, Rev. Daniel has worked in a variety of positions in senior healthcare and housing services and as a licensed nursing home administrator. Prior to joining UCH, Rev. Daniel served 19 years as executive director of Ingleside at Rock Creek, a Presbyterian retirement community in Washington, D.C. Rev. Daniel also has spent extensive time in senior living, affordable housing and skilled nursing leadership positions within Phoebe Ministries in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Rev. Daniel holds a master’s degree in public administration from Marywood University and earned master’s degrees from United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities and from Moravian Theological Seminary. Additionally, he received an honorary doctorate from Heidelberg University in Ohio. Rev. Daniel has earned Fellow and Certified Nursing Home Administrator status with the American College of Health Care Administrators and previously served as a Senior Examiner with the American Healthcare Association’s Quality Award program. Rev. Daniel currently serves on several community, church and professional boards and is the immediate past Chairman of the Board of LeadingAge Ohio. About United Church Homes United Church Homes is the 21st largest multisite nonprofit senior living organization in the U.S. according to the 2021 LeadingAge Ziegler 200 ranking, serving more than 5500 residents in its owned and managed communities in 15 states and two Native American nations.

ANNA FABREGA is Chief Executive Officer for Freshly, the $1.5B D2C fresh meal delivery service that was recently acquired by Nestlé USA.  Anna is a growth-oriented leader with over 22 years of business, operations and organizational leadership experience at high growth early-stage businesses as well as large, scaled organizations. Her experience spans across brand/marketing, distribution and supply chain, ecommerce, physical retail, technology and CPG. During her career, she has built a reputation for operational excellence, innovative strategic thinking, leading leaders, working with the highest level of integrity, and a deep and passionate commitment to putting the customer first.   Upon completing her undergraduate studies at the University of Florida in 1999, Ms. Fabrega started her career at McMaster-Carr, managing various distribution operations at a 300,000 sq ft facility carrying over 500,000 products. She earned an MBA in 2004 from Kellogg School of Management and took a leadership role at Stripes, a 500+ store convenience store chain (now owned by 7-11), where she spent time in field operations, category management and ultimately led brand, marketing, PR and merchandising for over 500 stores, while also building and leading a wholly-owned financial services subsidiary.   In 2008, Ms. Fabrega migrated to Microsoft, where she served as part of the global brand strategy team and led the strategic brand migration of all on-premises server-based products to the cloud, before transitioning to Amazon in 2011.  At Amazon, she ran the $4B Sports and Outdoors business before joining the Amazon Go team in 2014 as the business leader responsible for developing and operating stores using Just Walk Out technology. As she built the organization from the ground up over the next six years, she took on increasing levels of responsibility, ultimately serving as the leader of the entire Amazon Go store organization (merchandising, marketing, field ops, supply chain, product management, research science, real estate, construction and design) and the Amazon Kitchen (fresh prepared private label) organization (700+ people in total). During her six-year tenure leading Amazon Go, she scaled the business to 28 stores across four cities and launched Amazon Go Grocery, the first full Just Walk Out grocery store.   Anna is a big thinker that balances scrappiness with operational and financial rigor. She has a high degree of curiosity and is well-known for her ability to ask the right questions, look around corners, and to be clear and concise with her direction and advisement. She is based out of NYC.    

Markus Reinmund is the founder and CEO of Knocking, a content and commerce company for all media. Throughout his career, Markus has held senior executive positions within P&L management, corporate strategy, marketing and consumer analytics for several Fortune-500 companies.  Prior to founding Knocking, Markus worked for Aetna, a Fortune-100 healthcare company, as a full-time executive advisor reporting directly to the General Manager of the company’s $1 billion Consumer Business. In this role, Markus led the definition and implementation of Aetna’s customer experience governance and operations for the launch of Aetna’s B2C business.  Before Aetna, managed corporate strategy, consumer analytics and marketing functions at New York Life, a Fortune-100 insurance company, where he worked directly with senior leadership and the company board on key initiatives around business operations, investment management and corporate planning. Markus has held roles at Medtronic (formerly Covidien), a Fortune-500 healthcare company, where he was responsible for the company’s $150 million bariatric surgery and trocar businesses, and Fonar Corporation, a NASDAQ-traded medical device company whose founder, Dr. Damadian, invented and first commercialized the MRI scanner in the 1970s. Reporting directly to Fonar’s CEO, Markus successfully restructured the company’s European sales and service operations, and was responsible for obtaining the company's first contract with the U.S. Department of Defense. Markus grew up in Munich, Germany, and began his career as a financial analyst at Siemens AG, a German electrical engineering and electronics company. He holds a BA and MA in Economics from Cambridge University and an MBA from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.