THE M.O.B.

Founder and CEO, KCOMM

Sinan Kanatsiz

Joined 2022

Sinan Kanatsiz has effectively made his mark as an entrepreneur. In 1998, while studying for a master’s degree at Chapman University, Kanatsiz followed his entrepreneurial spirit and formalized his first company, KCOMM, a Public Relations and Internet Marketing Agency. The company quickly evolved into a full-service marketing, government affairs and event marketing firm known for its Internet expertise and results-oriented approach. In less than ten years, Kanatsiz grew the firm to several million dollars in revenue, opening various business operation centers and clients. Currently, KCOMM works with dozens of specialized employees and independent contractors and has developed campaigns for hundreds of companies and organizations around the world. These include organizations ranging from innovative start-ups to New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq listed companies such as Oracle, Sony, eBay, T-Mobile, HP, Adobe and the University of Phoenix. As a consummate entrepreneur and philanthropist, Kanatsiz takes his community responsibilities seriously. In addition to mentoring high school and college students, he is often asked to speak about entrepreneurship and the Internet. He has held engagements at several universities, including USC, Chapman University, UCLA, Cal State Fullerton, Pepperdine, UC Irvine, and Cal Tech. Additionally, he has been a keynote speaker at the Future Business Leaders of American (FBLA) National Conference and is often called to speak on a variety of topics including Social Media, Search Engine Optimization, Email Marketing, Modernizing Government and the future of the Internet.

Executive Director, Cushman & Wakefield

Don Yahn

Joined 2017

For over 29 years, Don Yahn has remained passionate and driven. He offers his clients full focus on their project from start to finish. Don navigates around the obstacles that invariably appear in deals. He is highly driven and motivated to ‘win’ on his clients behalf in transaction structures. Mr. Yahn is an expert in market intelligence and trends. He is committed to playing the role of consultant to you–regardless of a real estate transaction.

Don’s clients include: Global Logistics Properties, DCT Industrial, Sares Regis Group, JP Morgan, PS Business Parks, Alere Properties, Three Crowns Properties, Hyundai Motor America, Hyundai Capital America, Hyundai America Technical Center, Kaseya Corp, Franklin Covey, Master Foods/Mars Brands, Porsche North America, Danaher Corp/Keithley/Tektronix, Edmunds.com, First American Title, ITT Industries/Xylem, Freshstart/Galasso Bakeries, Saddleback Valley Unified School District, Fastenal Corporation, Worldpac, Shur-lok/Precision Castparts, Jaguar Land Rover, Penn Mutual Insurance, DaVinci Bioscience and GE Global.

President and Founder, Seaview Investors, LLC

Bob Alter

Joined 2011

Seaview Investors is managed by Robert Alter, one of the premier hotel investment and management executives in the hospitality industry. Mr. Alter is Chairman Emeritus and Founder of Sunstone Hotel Investors (NYSE:SHO). During the 22 year period of Mr. Alter’s position as CEO, Sunstone acquired 125 hotel properties with over 20,000 guest rooms and led the disposition of 80 hotels. Mr. Alter oversaw approximately $1 billion of renovations and brand conversions and built 7 ground-up hotels, including the JW Marriott Cherry Creek, among others. Mr. Alter has received entrepreneurial awards from Ernst & Young as Entrepreneur of the Year in 1998, the Orange County Business Journal in 2006, and the Leland C. and Mary M. Pillsbury Institute for Hospitality Entrepreneurship at Cornell University in 2008. Mr. Alter is a graduate of the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration, and resides with his wife, Joni, in Newport Coast, California; collectively they have four grown children.

Chairman, Ware Malcomb

Larry Armstrong

Joined 2017

Mr. Armstrong is Chairman of Ware Malcomb. Established in 1972, Ware Malcomb is an international design firm providing planning, architecture, interior design, branding, civil engineering and building measurement services to commercial real estate and corporate clients. With office locations throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico and Panama, the firm specializes in the design of commercial office, corporate, industrial, science & technology, healthcare, retail, auto, public/educational facilities and renovation projects. Ware Malcomb is recognized as an Inc. 5000 fastest-growing private company and a Hot Firm and Best Firm to Work For by Zweig Group. The firm is also ranked among the top 15 architecture/engineering firms in Engineering News-Record’s Top 500 Design Firms and the top 25 interior design firms in Interior Design magazine’s Top 100 Giants.

Mr. Armstrong is both an accomplished architect and strong business leader. He is well known for his strategic, visionary approach to the company’s management and growth, as well as his commitment to fiscal discipline to ensure the overall health of the firm. His strong design ability and focus on creativity and innovation greatly influence all aspects of the organization. His philosophy of embracing change and rewarding achievement and innovation has resulted in a highly successful, dynamic firm. In 2008, Mr. Armstrong was selected as an award winner for the Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year Awards, Orange County/Desert Cities Region and was also a national finalist. In 2018 and 2019 he was selected to the prestigious OC 500, a list of the most influential leaders in the community by the Orange County Business Journal. Mr. Armstrong was also nominated as an Innovator of the Year in the Orange County Business Journal’s program recognizing OC innovators creating game-changing ideas and business models.

Mr. Armstrong joined Ware Malcomb in 1984 and shortly thereafter was responsible for running the firm’s Los Angeles office. In 1988, Mr. Armstrong was promoted to Principal of the firm, and then became CEO in 1992. In 2020, Mr. Armstrong transitioned to the role of Chairman of Ware Malcomb. In addition to expanding Ware Malcomb from a Southern California firm to a national and international firm with 25 offices in key markets across North America, Lawrence’s tenure as CEO is hallmarked by an unprecedented 40x revenue growth.
Mr. Armstrong is a licensed architect in over 45 U.S. states, as well as in the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbia and Ontario. He received his Bachelor of Architecture Degree (1980) and Bachelor of Science in Architecture (1979) from Kent State University, where he also spent a semester studying abroad in Florence, Italy. Mr. Armstrong is a member of the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB) and is a LEED Accredited Professional.

Mr. Armstrong is a guest lecturer for USC Lusk Center for Real Estate, Chapman University Argyros School of Business, and UCI’s The Paul Merage School of Business. In 2013, Mr. Armstrong was the keynote speaker at Kent State University’s Spring Commencement for the College of Architecture and Environmental Design. He has been published in a variety of media including OC Metro, OC Register, Orange County Business Journal, Real Estate Business Online, Coast Magazine, Modern Luxury and SIOR’s Professional Report, to name a few.
Mr. Armstrong is also an accomplished artist, including work in a variety of mediums such as paintings, furniture design and sculpture. To view his portfolio, please visit www.LRAart.com.

Mr. Armstrong’s current professional and charity affiliations include the following: Chair, Leadership Council, United to End Homelessness; Board of Directors, Orange County United Way; Co-Chair, Kent State University Comprehensive Campaign; Past Chair, Kent State University Foundation; Member, CEO Leadership Alliance-OC Executive Committee; Advisory Board Member, Chapman University Real Estate Program at the Argyros School of Business and Economics; Member, Ernst & Young EOY Alumni Advisory Council; NAIOP (National Association of Industrial & Office Properties) CEO Leadership Forum Member and National Forum Member (Trends in Real Estate Development II Forum); and International Executive Council for the Internet Marketing Association (IMA).
His previous professional and charity affiliations include: Guest Lecturer, USC Lusk Center for Real Estate, Graduate Real Estate Program 2008-2010; Past Member, Vistage; Advisory Board, Hall & Foreman; Past President, Vice President, Secretary, Board Member, CSP, 1999-2008; Advisory Board, Buzzsaw.com; The United Way Real Estate Steering Committee 1999-2006; Vice President, Board of Directors, Ballet Pacifica; Advisory Board Member, UCI Center for Real Estate; Chancellors Club at UCI; CHOC Corporate Partners; 2015 NAIOP YPG Case Competition Judge; SIOR (Society of Industrial and Office Realtors) Member; Advisory Board Member, Spaceez; Member, Visiting Committee, Hoag Center for Real Estate & Finance in the Argyros School of Business at Chapman University and Founding Member, United Way’s Real Estate Community Builders.

President, Bettinger Law Group

Jay Bettinger

Joined 2022

Mr. Bettinger advises and counsels privately-owned companies, investors, funds, family offices, trustees, advisors, attorneys, entrepreneurs, and executives on a variety of corporate and business matters.

Mr. Bettinger mobilizes and works with teams of attorneys throughout various law firms to respond to client needs. He has represented experienced business attorneys, trust administration attorneys and law firms with complex corporate and business matters.

He advises on domestic and international business transactions, commercial agreements, formations and entity selection, joint ventures, private equity and debt security offerings, mergers and acquisitions (M&A), corporate finance, corporate governance, executive employment and compensation agreements, and regulatory compliance.

Mr. Bettinger often structures private investments and negotiates private equity take-overs. Leveraging his tax education and experience, he typically coordinates with private wealth planning specialists, financial advisors, investment bankers and trust and estate administrators to achieve an optimal corporate and trust structure. He works with the team to advise clients on considering and balancing numerous factors such as business ownership, optimal entity organization, business risk mitigation, succession planning, multigenerational ownership, entity financing, exit planning, and tax optimization strategies.

Mr. Bettinger has industry knowledge in technology, software, real estate, professional services, construction, energy, military products, domestic and international manufacturing, and distribution of consumer and durable products. He has significant experience in technology and web-based business such as social networking, second screen, software as a service (SaaS), mobile operating systems, e-commerce, video content and media companies. He has extensive experience working with founders and owners of startups, early-stage companies and startup divisions of larger entities (for new business, joint ventures and spin-offs) on optimal ownership structures, restructuring, and financings.

Mr. Bettinger also has experience with foreign clients, such as licensing arrangements and complex cross-border joint ventures and acquisitions. He has worked directly with clients based in Australia, China, Germany, Holland, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Portugal and Vietnam.

Mr. Bettinger is experienced at crisis management and keep-the-lights-on situations.

To learn more, visit www.bettingerlaw.com.

Managing Partner, Cushman & Wakefield

Mark Bridge

Joined 2022

Mark graduated from California State University, Fullerton with a bachelor’s degree in Finance and an emphasis in Real Estate. He began his career in 2000, and quickly earned the Sales Recognition Award in 2004 and 2005. He also rose to Senior Associate in 2005. He has been a licensed Real Estate Broker since 2008 and a member of the Special Asset Services since 2009. Mark was promoted to Vice President of Investments in 2013, First Vice President of Investments in 2015, and Managing Director in 2018.

Throughout his entire career, Mark has devoted himself to an advisory role in the disposition and acquisition of multi-family investments in Orange County and Southern California. He has continually been a Top Ten Agent in his Orange County office, earning that recognition eight times in the last ten years.

Mark has been featured in multiple newspapers, magazines, and on radio. He offers clients a broad spectrum of services including portfolio analysis, real estate cycle analysis, acquisition and disposition advice, 1031 exchange scenarios, and real-time market information all with the goal of helping his clients create and preserve wealth.

In addition to this, Mark has personally owned multifamily for over 15 years. He has previously managed and operated his own apartments, syndicated the purchase of apartments for investors, and completed multiple of his own 1031 exchanges of apartments.

Owner, LS Carlson Law, PC

Luke Carlson

Joined 2022

Luke S. Carlson always had an interest in business, real estate and the protection of wealth.
During his collegiate career, he realized law was the best way to immerse himself in all three verticals. Today, as owner of LS Carlson Law, PC, he and his team of powerhouse attorneys service clients with their business, real estate, and estate planning needs.

“By nature, I’m a strategist and love analyzing a situation to determine the best solution to a client’s issue,” says Carlson. “The practice of law provides endless opportunities to engage in strategic thinking. Whether it be against an opponent in litigation, which is simply a civilized form of war, or if it comes down to leveraging the laws to protect wealth and legacy, as in estate planning, strategy is essential.”

Founder and Principal, Churm|360

Steve Churm

Joined 2016

Following a career that spanned four decades as an award-winning journalist, media entrepreneur and business owner and corporate communications executive, Steve now provides strategic communications advice through Churm|360 on matters of media relations, public relations, corporate communications, brand and messaging consulting, reputation management, crisis communications, community engagement and coalition building for entitlement and initiative approvals. 

Professional Specialties: Storytelling, content development, media trends, public speaking, marketing, public affairs and leadership training.

Founder, MedLab2020

Matt Collins

Joined 2022

Founder, President and CEO, Venture Strategic, Inc.

Jeff Corless

Joined 2022

As the Founder, President and CEO of Venture Strategic, Jeff is an outside-the-box thinker who oversees his firm’s strategic communications, marketing, media, and public relations services. When most people see a crisis or challenge, Jeff sees an opportunity. He refined his perspective and outlook on communications through his experience serving as Political Director to former Hewlett Packard CEO Carly Fiorina in 2010, as Chief of Staff for a California Legislator, and Chief Deputy for an Orange County Supervisor. He has advised numerous successful high profile executives and individuals, corporate clients, and public agencies on cutting-edge communications, public relations, and marketing strategies.

Jeff holds an MBA from Chapman University and a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Loyola Marymount University. He serves as a director on several non-profit boards and committees in his community.

Senior Vice President, American Business Bank

Al De Grassi

Joined 2011

Al De Grassi currently serves as Senior Vice President Commercial Banking for American Business Bank, a $4 billion commercial bank serving the banking needs of small to medium size businesses in Southern California. Prior to ABB, he served as Director of Commercial Banking for Orange County for Pacific Premier Bank prior to its merger with Opus Bank. He previously worked for Plaza Bank as Group Manager for Orange County and Las Vegas and oversaw the Asset Base Lending team. He joined the bank as part of a team that recapitalized and ultimately sold the bank to Pacific Premier. Previously Al served in commercial banking in community banks in Orange County.

Al has served the Orange County Community in a number of ways. He has been a United Way volunteer for 25 years, serving on the Board of Directors for 10 years and as Chairman of the Board for three years; he is currently a member of the Finance Committee. Al has also served as a volunteer for SPIN (Serving People in Need) a Costa Mesa based non-profit working with transient homeless in Orange County, moving to permanent housing. He served on the Board of Directors and is currently Treasurer.

He obtained his B.A. in Sociology from UC Irvine, and his MBA from the UCI Paul Merage School of Business. Al has been active in the general campus Alumni Association, having served on the Board of Directors and as its Chairman of the Board; he currently serves as the Chair of the Audit Committee. He is a member of the Dean’s Leadership Circle of the Merage School and in 2012 received the School’s Distinguished Alumni Award.

Al has been a member of the Pacific Club in Newport Beach since 1997, serving on its Board of Director’s and as Club Treasurer, current serving on the Finance and Long Range Planning Committees.

Al and his wife Susan live in Laguna Hills and have been married for 33 years, Susan worked for thirty years for Merit Property Management and was their Chief Operating Officer prior to its sale to First Service; she currently works for Antis Roofing as President and Chief Operating Officer. They have four adult children.

CEO, Pedego Electric Bikes

Don DiCostanzo

Joined 2022

Prior to founding Pedego, Don spent over 20 years at Wynn’s, rising to become president of the global leader of innovative products and programs for the automotive industry. When Wynn’s was acquired by Parker Hannifin in 2000, he took over as Group President of Parker Hannifin providing strong leadership in a dynamic marketplace. This proved an exceptional foundation for his entrepreneurial ventures that followed.

Don went on to build several of his own successful companies. Starting in 2002, he acquired Zak Products along with a partner. The company owned and operated 40 car washes and distributed chemicals and automotive service equipment to franchised car dealerships from Florida to California. During that time, he also co-founded Prism Automotive, a very successful trade magazine publishing company.

In 2006 he co-founded Experience Ventures and in 2010, he became the first angel investor in TicketSocket. More recently, he co-founded Bringpro, an on demand delivery service startup.

As the CEO of Pedego, he makes quality, innovation and customer service happen every day and he makes good on his company’s goals to delight Pedego customers and assist Pedego dealers to be successful.

Founder, Anton Development

Steve Eggert

Joined 2022

Steve Eggert leads Anton DevCo. After practicing real estate law for five years, Steve became a successful multifamily community real estate developer, with particular focus on entitlements and financing. He has been a leader in the industry for the past 20 years. He previously served as a U.S. Army officer and Airborne Ranger, stationed in Germany patrolling the Iron Curtain. Steve and his wife have three grown daughters.

Education:

B.A. from Claremont McKenna College
J.D. from UC Berkeley Boalt Hall School of Law

Affiliations:

Policy Advisory Board Member of Fisher Center for Real Estate and Urban Economics
Trustee of Claremont McKenna College
Member of the Board of Overseers of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University
Served as a publicly elected official of a local water district, planning commissioner, and on the board of the California Chamber of Commerce

Senior Vice President, Investor Relations, loanDepot, Inc

Gerhard Erdelji

Joined 2022

Gerhard Erdelji is a detail-oriented financial professional with extensive experience in the capital markets and commercial banking since 1992. Wide-ranging experience in the banking and finance industries as a Federal bank examiner, investment banker, and investor relations officer advising clients on capital raising, M&A, corporate strategy and activist defense.

Founder and President, Engense Inc. dba DFNDR Armor

David Fernandez

Joined 2022

David Fernandez, President and CEO of DFNDR Armor, is an entrepreneur with 20 years’ experience in composite materials engineering and manufacturing of armor products for the defense industry. From 2006 to 2012, David was the Vice President and Director of R&D at Armacel Armor, a family business founded in 1997 by his parents, which produced high performance rifle protection products for the US Department of Defense (DoD). David was instrumental in doubling company revenue every year from 2006 to 2010 and after securing multi-year production contracts with the US government, David negotiated the sale of Armacel in 2010.

David has served as a government appointed industry representative to the National Research Council for the Body Armor Testing and Evaluation Committee where he briefed scientist members of the Study Committee as well as senior government officials at the Pentagon and other various military bases. David also lobbied for better protective equipment for soldiers including briefing the House Armed Services Committee and other House Members of the benefits of lighter weight armor systems.

David structured and produced award-winning proposals resulting in multiple year DoD production contracts and government R&D awards. In support of those contracts, David co-developed a unique cost effective body armor torso plate, meeting all stringent quality and performance specifications, which led to millions of dollars in cost savings for the US Army. During his time overseeing production, he served as a professional witness for body armor testing and evaluation, with a 100% success record in Lot Acceptance Testing.

In 2013, David founded Engense Inc. dba DFNDR Armor to address further needs for lightweight military and law enforcement armor. David self-funded the company. After 3 years of internal R&D, he presented new technological improvements to the US DoD. This led to two 3 year Government funded research and development contracts from the Army and Special Operations Forces with a total of $4.5M funded. Both programs were very successful and as a result of meeting the lightest weight specifications with Army, David’s company was awarded a $150 million IDIQ contract with the US Army to produce the ESBI Vital Torso Protection Armor. David’s company has been in production on this contract since 2021 and is expecting revenues to triple in 2022.

Since 2004, David’s other business passion has been sourcing, renovating and owning commercial buildings throughout Los Angeles County. David has served as a board member of the Ventura County Medical Resource Foundation and contributes to institutions and charities including Pepperdine University, Boys & Girls Club, Blue Heron Foundation, Saving Innocence Foundation and CASA for Children.

David earned a degree in Business Management from Pepperdine University in 2007. David is an avid golf player and an instrument-rated pilot. David is fluent in Polish and English and has basic knowledge of Spanish. David resides in Thousand Oaks, California with his wife and daughter.

President, Lyon Air Museum

Mark Foster

Joined 2022

CRO/GC, Hardesty

Bill Fowler

Joined 2022

Senior corporate executive and lawyer whose 30-year career includes a strong background in law, high tech and finance with public and private enterprises as well as public sector entities. Strong focus on complex compliance environments in large-scale domestic and international business as well as start ups and small business. Experienced in business development, intelligence and business process reengineering. Long term work in shared services, and restructuring businesses via internet/new media, software/technology, labor and employee relations and legal/financial strategies.

Founder & CEO, Healthcues

Doug Frederick

Joined 2022

Doug Frederick has had a diverse and seasoned career as a founder, sales executive, investor and advisor to many organizations. Currently, he is an executive advisor to HealthCues, a health and disease prevention company. Recognizing most individuals with the greatest health needs have the least amount of access to disease prevention programs, Doug set out to deliver solutions to employers to help solve this problem. He started HealthCues and amassed a talented team of individuals to create a fully funded insurance indemnity product designed to be affordable, personalized, and effective in engaging employees to take health and disease prevention actions. He is currently also an angel investor and advisor in several other ventures.

Prior to entering the preventative healthcare market, Doug created Blue Ocean Capital Management, LLC. Blue Ocean specializes in purchasing notes and first mortgages on distressed residential and commercial properties across the United States. He started this company in 2012 and is currently the CFO of the company.

Attorney, The Law Offices of Dennis P. Gaughan

Dennis Gaughan

Joined 2022

As an Orange County local, Dennis Gaughan attained an Undergraduate Degree from the University of Southern California (USC). He went on to earn a Law Degree from Thomas Jefferson School of Law in San Diego.

Dennis is a Certified Criminal Law Specialist by The State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization and was with the Orange County Public Defender’s Office from 1995 to 2005. He has over 25 years of experience representing those accused of any crime, from DUI to murder; and is currently a solo practitioner with his office located in the city of Tustin.

Being raised in Orange County, Dennis ultimately moved to Newport Beach in 1973, where he still resides. He is a father of three children, ages 30, 28 and 26 and needless to say, Dennis has plenty of war stories to share.

Founder and CEO, CarDana

Anthony Glenn

Joined 2022

Philanthropist, social entrepreneur, and change driver – Accomplished in automotive and charitable sectors – Enjoy building products & services, teams, partnerships, and relationships that foster innovation – Fueled by a passion for excellence and a drive to make a meaningful impact.

Building CarDana now – CarDana is a technology-driven, for-profit, social enterprise. The CarDana platform provides a transparent, efficient, and ethical charitable car donation process. The CarDana platform provides donors a trusted experience where they understand their impact and opens this source of revenue to ALL charities while netting those charities a higher return (4x the national average).

President and CEO, Mountain View Services, Inc.

Eric Goodman

Joined 2022

As President/CEO of Mountain View Services, Inc., a leading Healthcare supply and distribution company, serving more than 500 Care Facilities for the Developmentally Disabled Adults and Children throughout Southern California, Eric’s mission is to provide the highest quality products and services available to his clients, so they, in turn, can provide the highest quality service to the residents they serve.

Eric fosters his core belief in building relationships within the community as well. He has served on the Board of Directors for several prominent nonprofit organizations:

• Inland Empire Ronald McDonald House, Board Member, 2000 to 2017 – President for three years. Chairman for Advisory Board and Chairman for the Governors Board. Served as a Board Member for Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southern California for three years. The Southern California chapter is the largest chapter in the world.
• Developmental Services Network, Associate Member Chair, 2016 to Present – DSN supports individuals with developmental disabilities and provides a support system for community-based homes through information, training, leadership, and promotion of professionalism within the field.
• Fontana Foundation of Hope, Board Member, 2017 to Present – The Foundation supports nonprofit organizations with donations to enhance the quality of life in the community. The organization is a major donor for the Ronald McDonald House, Boys and Girls Club, Make a Wish, etc.
• American Heart Association of Orange County and the Inland Empire, Board Member, 2020 to present – The American Heart Association is a national nonprofit organization which funds cardiovascular medical research, educates consumers on healthy living, and fosters appropriate cardiac care to reduce disability and deaths caused by cardiovascular disease and stroke.

Eric was The Unforgettables Foundation Heart Award of the Inland Empire in 2020. The Foundation’s mission is to enable low-income families to give their children a dignified burial, and to educate parents and children’s caregivers to confront, control and conquer the primary risks to children’s health and wholeness.

Mountain View Services, Inc. was a Civic 50 Honoree in 2022. Recognized as one of the top 50 community-minded companies in Orange County.

Eric has been married to his wife, Roxanne, for 28 years. They have two children, Vanessa, 28 and Grant, 23.

In additional to his work and family life, Eric holds a passion for photography. He studied Digital Photography at Cornell University. He specializes in landscape photography. His work has appeared in galleries and all proceeds from sales of his work from his website, newportbeachsunsets.com, are donated to charity.

Eric is also a classic car enthusiast. He is President of the Vintage Volkswagen Club of American. The largest vintage VW club in the county with over 50,000 members.

Founder and Chief Technology Officer, Built on Vision

George Goubran

Joined 2023

Retired, Corporate Professional

Scott Griswold

Joined 2022

Scott Griswold spent the bulk of his professional life working for David Murdock, owner of Dole Food Company and self-made billionaire. Throughout his career, Griswold provided investment and financial analysis, along with operational oversight. Griswold started his career within the audit division of Arthur Anderson & Co. and left a decade later as a senior audit manager and CPA.
 
While Griswold retired as Executive Vice President (EVP) of Corporate Development at Dole in 2013, he continued to work at Castle and Cooke, Inc., a private holding company for various enterprises owned by Murdock, as their EVP of Operations. He made his retirement official in 2014 after a 27 year career working for David Murdock. Currently he spends his free time pursuing leisure activities like golf, and by donating his time and skills to various not-for-profit and community organizations.

Griswold was on the Board of Ride On in 2020. He was on the Board of the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (PanCan) from spring 2018 through spring 2021 and also served on the Audit and Investment Committee. PanCan is dedicated to fighting the world’s toughest cancer through research, clinical initiatives, patient services and advocacy. He has also served as a member of the Buck Institute for Research on Aging Impact Circle, an organization responsible for selecting and providing seed money for scientists to do initial testing of their hypothesis. The first two projects received initial funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Formerly, Griswold served as a member of the board of directors of the Hollywood YMCA and as a member of the Los Angeles World Affairs Council.

Griswold lived in the South Bay for over forty years before moving to Laguna Beach in 2022. His late wife Pamela died of lung cancer in 2016. Griswold has two adult children, James who lives in Redondo Beach, CA, and Tracey who lives with her husband and two daughters in Gilbert, AZ. 

Partner and National Leader, BDO

Ryan Guthrie

Joined 2022

Having nearly 25 years of middle-market transaction advisory, investment banking and management consulting experience, Ryan leads the firm’s Transaction & Business Advisory practices nationally in addition to leading Private Equity for Advisory services. In these roles, Ryan is responsible for the overall strategy and coordination of the deal advisory suite of services as well as business restructuring, turnaround, and various operational consulting services BDO USA offers its clients.

Previous to his current roles, Ryan led West Region operations for BDO USA’s Transaction Advisory Practice and was a Director within BDO Capital Advisors, where he was chartered with originating and executing buy and sell-side mandates. Prior to BDO Capital Advisors, Ryan spent seven years with a middle-market investment banking division of Citigroup Global Markets, Inc. and began his career at a leading merchant banking firm.

Founder and CEO, Hardesty, LLC

Karl Hardesty

Joined 2022

Karl Hardesty is the Founder & CEO of Hardesty, LLC, a national executive services firm specializing in providing experienced C-level executives and financial management executives (typically CFOs) to emerging growth and middle market companies. Hardesty has over 30 years of experience in leadership roles in corporate financial management and professional services firms. Karl was formerly the Regional Managing Partner for Tatum prior to founding Hardesty, LLC. Hardesty maintains offices in Los Angeles, Orange County, Atlanta and the San Franciscio Bay Area and also has affiliates in New York, Toronto, Dallas, Seattle, Portland, Miami and Tampa. Karl can be contacted at 949-407-6625 or khardesty@hardestyllc.com

Hardesty, LLC is affiliated with GlassRatner Advisory & Capital Group, a nationally-recognized, specialty financial advisory services firm with offices in seven major US Cities. GlassRatner provides restructuring, litigation support and other advisory services to middle market companies. This affiliation allows for significant sharing of resources to fulfill our client needs regardless of the circumstances.

Specialties: Hardesty provides both family and investor-owned companies with “on-demand” interim executives as well as permanent executive search services. We also provide financial consulting and strategic planning services staffed by real executives and financial managers. We provide project-specific talent whenever and wherever the need arises. Our partners and industry veterans have the knowledge, experience and connections to complete the assignment no matter how difficult. Our sweet spot includes the positions of CEO, COO, CFO, VP of Finance, VP of HR, Controller and Senior Financial Analyst. We also place other C-Suite positions. We have deep industry expertise in private equity backed companies, healthcare, education, restaurants/food, manufacturing, aerospace & defense, retail & hi tech.

Vice President, Interior Architecture & Design, Ware Malcomb

Ted Heisler

Joined 2022

Ted is a member of Ware Malcomb’s executive team and leads the firm’s Interiors Advisory Group. He is responsible for national business development and the firm’s corporate accounts program for interiors. Ted also has expertise in Workplace Strategy. With Ware Malcomb since 1994, Ted brings over 30 years of experience in interior architecture and design including client development, staff management, project design, and account and project management. Under Ted’s direction, the Interiors Practice produces responsive and creative spaces for our clients, as well as service excellence on every project.

Ted has been featured in several publications and presented at conference panels on his extensive knowledge on Office Trends and Workplace Design. Ted served on the Board of Directors for CoreNet Global, Southern California Chapter and has spoken nationally and internationally with the organization. He is also actively involved with NAIOP and presented at the NAIOP Development Conference on Ware Malcomb’s award-winning Interior Design/Build-Out of the Future design concept.

Director, Eide Bailly

Sven Johnston

Joined 2023

Thrives in challenging and changing environments

Motivated by the words “it can’t be done”. Resulted in LinkedIn recognizing Orange County as its own region and gaining Jim Carrey as a client

Skilled at building relationships and gaining the trust of executives around the world

Strategically manages communication between sales, marketing, and operations to maximize revenues

Known as an authentic and widely successful connector with a pay-it-forward mentality

Sought after for introductions across industries

Taught and trained over 3000 executives and MBA students at Chapman on maximizing LinkedIn and Networking Practices

If any of the above sparks your interest, please send me a message via LinkedIn.

Founder & CEO, TV Liquidator

Reggie Judah

Joined 2022

Founder and CEO of TV Liquidator. TV Liquidator is an industry leader in high quality digital signage. They sell thousands of LED signs and touch screen computer kiosks direct to businesses, schools, churches, government and military entities throughout the United States and Canada. They also supply over a thousand sign companies.

President and CEO, miraDry Inc.

Arash Khazei

Joined 2022

As President & Chief Executive Officer of miraDry, a company based in Newport Beach, CA, in the field of medical esthetics, Arash brings over 30 years of experience building teams and leading companies. Working with both private equity backed and publicly traded companies, he has built his expertise across industries such as beauty, cosmetics and medical device. As CEO of Envy Medical, a medical device and skin care company, he built and led a strong management team through its sale to Allergan Pharmaceuticals in 2019. As a part of the founding management team of NYX Professional Makeup, he led the company’s expansion to over 50 countries and spearheaded its sale to L’Oreal in 2014. He stayed on with L’Oreal as Senior Vice President for a number of years. 

Prior to these, he served as the Chief Financial Officer of United PanAm Financial Corporation, a publicly traded consumer finance company, and in his early career, worked with Walt Disney Company as well as Arthur Anderson.

Executive Director, Cushman & Wakefield

Rob Lambert

Joined 2022

As an Executive Director in Cushman & Wakefield’s Irvine, California office, Robert Lambert advises corporations and professional firms in the leasing, acquisition, and disposition of commercial real estate on a national and global basis. As Chair of Mentoring & Training on the firm’s Tenant Advisory Group Executive Committee, he also designed and leads a mentoring initiative that fosters the career development of more than 90 mentees annually.

Mr. Lambert received his B.S., magna cum laude, from the University of Southern California in 2001 and his J.D. from the UCLA School of Law in 2005. In 2014 he received his Master of Corporate Real Estate (MCR) designation from CoreNet Global. Prior to joining Cushman & Wakefield, he practiced law as a finance and restructuring attorney with Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker, LLP. He is a member of the State Bar of California (inactive, but eligible to become active) and holds a California real estate broker license. He is also a member of the Real Estate section of the Orange County Bar Association.

VP and General Manager, Retired, Alcon Laboratories, Inc.

Ken Lickel

Joined 2011

Kenneth Lickel retired in July 2010, after a 40 year technical leadership career in the Medical Equipment business. Prior to retirement held the position of Vice President and General Manager at Alcon’s Irvine Technology Center.

Alcon is an international organization, headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland with corporate offices in Ft. Worth, Texas having worldwide sales of $7+ billion. The Irvine Technology Center is the worldwide R&D and Manufacturing hub for Alcon’s surgical equipment business contributing over $1 billion in sales annually. During the 10 years prior to retirement contributed to doubling equipment sales thru significant innovation and expansion of Alcon’s product offerings.

Alcon develops, manufactures and markets innovative products for ophthalmology, including highly sophisticated surgical equipment used in cataract, refractive and vitreoretinal surgery, contact lens and solutions.

Education:

• BEEE, 1970, Electrical Engineering, Union College, Schenectady, New York
• MSEE, 1977, Engineering Administration, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, New York
• Executive MBA, 1998, Stanford University, California

Community Involvement:

• OC Habitat for Humanity, Board Director 2011-present, Volunteer Crew Leader
• OC Habitat for Humanity, Board Chairman 2019-2021
• Vineyard Community Church, Member and Volunteer
• OC United Way, Board Director 1997-present
• OC United Way, Board Chairman 2004-2006
• OC United Way, Countywide Campaign Chair, 2007-2009
• Former member of Union College Dean of Engineering Advisory Council
• Former member of UCI’s CEO Roundtable
• Former member of UCI’s Eye Institute Research Consortium

Family:
52 years of marriage to JoAnn
40 year resident of south Orange County
Two sons Dan and Jason both married
Grandfather of five great children

Hobbies:
Home Repair
Woodworking/ Cabinet Making
Golf
Computers/ Electronics

President and CEO, Tangram Interiors

Joe Lozowski

Joined 2022

Joe Lozowski is the CEO + President of Tangram Interiors. In 2002, Joe acquired a failing dealership, yet under his leadership, Tangram has grown to become one of the largest interior solutions providers in North America. A natural-born go-getter, Joe encourages entrepreneurship throughout the organization; and ultimately, has created a culture focused on customer satisfaction, but also employee growth.

Tangram’s mission is to curate destinations that empower people to work, learn and heal. In the 19 years that Joe has led Tangram, he has helped grow the company’s offerings from solely commercial office furniture to include Studio Other – a custom furniture division, Tangram Technology, Tangram Construction Trades, Tangram Move, and Onsite – a refurbishing and cleaning division.

Outside of Tangram, Joe is extremely passionate about giving back to the community. He sits on the board and is a consistent advocate of Orangewood Children’s Foundation, a cause that hits very close to home for the Lozowski’s.

Joe’s credo: “There is no limit to what a man can do or where he can go if he doesn’t mind who gets the credit.” – Ronald Reagan

Executive Chairman, Retired, William Lyon Homes

Bill Lyon

Joined 2022

Executive Director, UC Irvine

Goran Matijasevic

Joined 2021

Dr. Goran Matijasevic is Executive Director of the Chief Executive Roundtable at the University of California, Irvine. In that capacity, he oversees and advances research collaborations and strategic initiatives associated with Roundtable programs, protocol and mission objectives. He also serves as UC Irvine’s ambassador to the local and national business community, establishing partnerships and opportunities that serve to enhance leader-to-leader connections across all campus interdisciplinary fields.

Prior to this position, he was director of research development at The Henry Samueli School of Engineering at UC Irvine, as well as research coordinator of the Integrated Nanosystems Research Facility, where he worked on formation of new industry-university and academic collaborations, especially focusing on new interdisciplinary research initiatives.

Prior to UCI, he worked as a senior engineer at QPlus, a telecommunications start-up company, and Director of Research and Ormet Technologies, a developer of electronic materials and technologies. He managed multiple SBIR projects that led to several industry consortia projects, as well as a license agreement with a Fortune 100 company. He has 4 U.S. patents, 3 book chapters, and over 40 conference and journal publications and has served on the NEMI Industry Roadmap committee. Goran is currently on the OCTANe (Orange County Technology Action Network) Biomedical Industry Leadership Council, the Board of Southern California Biomedical Council, and the advisory boards of 2-1-1 Orange County and TriTech SBDC. He is Vice President of the University Industry Demonstration Partnership (UIDP), a national organization working under the auspices of the National Academies. Goran received his PhD from UC Irvine in Electrical and Computer Engineering and his MBA from Pepperdine University.

EVP & COO, Retired, Assurant

Gene Mergelmeyer

Joined 2022

As the former Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer for Assurant, Inc., a Fortune 300 company, I oversaw all global business units and drove substantial growth in revenues and profitability. I transitioned to an operational COO role overseeing Information Technology, Data Analytics, CX, Operations and Enterprise Transformation, ensuring a coordinated approach to driving long-term, profitable growth. Architected Assurant’s enterprise operating model structure that underscored the company’s commitment to integration, enhanced agility and a stronger brand across the world. Supported the very successful global technology transformation agenda. Spearheaded the company’s “Digital First” initiative and new operational design that continues to produce substantial improvements in customer experience and significant efficiencies. A strong promotor of culture at Assurant, I worked collaboratively to instill our core values of common sense and common decency across the enterprise.

Partner, Gibson, Dunn and Crutcher LLP

Jim Moloney

Joined 2022

James J. Moloney is a corporate partner resident in the Orange County office of Gibson Dunn and serves as Co-Chair of the firm’s Securities Regulation and Corporate Governance Practice Group. He is also a member of the firm’s Corporate Transactions Practice Group, focusing primarily on securities offerings, mergers & acquisitions, friendly and hostile tender offers, proxy contests, going-private transactions and other corporate matters.

Mr. Moloney was with the Securities & Exchange Commission in Washington, D.C. for six years before joining Gibson Dunn in June 2000. He served his last three years at the Commission as Special Counsel in the Office of Mergers & Acquisitions in the Division of Corporation Finance. In addition to reviewing merger transactions, Mr. Moloney was the principal draftsman of Regulation M-A, a comprehensive set of rules relating to takeovers and shareholder communications, that was adopted by the Commission in October 1999.  Mr. Moloney advises a wide range of listed public companies on reporting and other obligations under the securities laws, the establishment of corporate compliance programs, and continued compliance with corporate governance standards under the securities laws and stock exchange rules. He advises public company boards and committees of independent directors in connection with mergers, stock exchange proceedings, as well as SEC and other regulatory investigations. In addition, he works closely with partners in the firm’s Litigation Practice Group on securities litigation matters, including both internal and external reviews and investigations.

Representative clients include advice to: Depomed, Inc. in responding to Horizon Pharmaceutical’s unsolicited exchange offer and consent solicitation to remove the board and acquire the company; a committee of independent directors at B/E Aerospace in connection with the company’s sale to Rockwell-Collins; St. Jude Medical in its merger with Abbott Laboratories; Kraft Foods in its acquisition of Cadbury Plc.; Ryland Homes in its merger with Standard Pacific (renamed CalAtlantic); Hewlett-Packard in its acquisition of Aruba Networks; TRI Pointe Homes in its “Reverse Morris Trust” transaction involving the acquisition of Weyerhaeuser Co.’s home-building business; Third Point in its successful proxy contest at Sotheby’s; Emulex in staving off Broadcom’s hostile bid; PeopleSoft Inc. in its sale to Oracle; as well as numerous other public companies in high profile proxy contests, hostile tender offers and other change of control transactions.

Mr. Moloney has authored a number of no-action requests to the SEC. He oversees the preparation of firm memoranda on securities law and corporate governance issues. Mr. Moloney is a frequent contributor to professional journals and other publications, is listed in the International Who’s Who of Corporate Governance Lawyers by Who’s Who Legal, and regularly serves as a speaker at conferences around the country on a wide range of corporate governance and securities law topics.

In 1998, Mr. Moloney received his LL.M. degree in securities regulation with distinction from the Georgetown University Law Center. He received his J.D. degree cum laude from Pepperdine University in 1994 where he was an editor of The Pepperdine Law Review. In 1992, Mr. Moloney served as a judicial extern for Justice Armand Arabian at the California Supreme Court in San Francisco. He received his B.S. degree in business administration with a major in accounting from Boston University in 1989.

Mr. Moloney has been a member of the California Bar since 1994. Until recently, he served as the Chair of the Proxy Statements and Business Combinations Subcommittee of the Federal Regulation of Securities Section of the American Bar Association. He also serves on the advisory board of the Center for Corporate Reporting and Governance at the Mihaylo College of Business and Economics at Cal State Fullerton.

Founder and CEO, Delarman Technologies

Safa Movassaghi

Joined 2022

Born in Germany with and graduate of Electrical Engineering. Father of 3 children. Been in Computer industry for 30 Years. An enthusiastic/passionate about helping businesses to eliminate all the hassle, waste, and headaches of all technology-based equipment in their office. Delarman IT is dedicated to taking over the support and maintenance of business computers and networks. My vision is simple: to provide businesses with the same enterprise-level IT services, cybersecurity, and support that larger companies have, but at a budget, companies can accommodate.

Please see more here:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1fsj3ad3TZE1ODFxyLy2FelQXgrNJTfbP/view?usp=sharing

CFO, Urbana Holdings

Ed Nolan

Joined 2022

Mr. Nolan has over 25 years of experience in the commercial and residential real estate industries. Prior to joining Urbana he was Chief Financial Officer of SunCal Companies, an Irvine, California, based developer of master planned communities. At SunCal, Mr. Nolan was directly responsible for the company’s accounting, tax and financial reporting, information systems, asset management and risk management functions. He was also involved in SunCal’s capital raising efforts, which included working with notable financial partners such as DE Shaw, Lehman Brothers Real Estate Partners, Lehman Brothers Holdings, Inc., Cerberus Real Estate, Bank Midwest, Credit Suisse, and California Bank & Trust. During his tenure the company’s asset base grew from approximately $250 million to over $4.1 billion.

Prior to joining SunCal, Mr. Nolan was President and Chief Financial Officer of Hudson Advisors in Singapore, where his responsibilities included oversight of the asset management, tax structuring, foreign currency management, and financial reporting for investments made in the Asia Pacific region by Lone Star Opportunity Funds III and IV. His primary focus was the development of platforms supporting non-performing loan acquisition, underwriting and management in Indonesia, Singapore and Taiwan, an effort employing in excess of 225 and managing in excess of 100,000 assets worth in excess of US $2.1 billion. Past experience also includes serving as Vice-President for The Hampstead Group, LLC, a Dallas, Texas, based private equity firm, and as Vice-President of Finance, Treasurer and Director of Investor Relations for Bristol Hotels & Resorts.

Education

Mr. Nolan is a Certified Public Accountant and holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan.

Partner, Ocean Heights

Kevin O’Grady

Joined 2011

Kevin, who is a Partner and Portfolio Manager at Ocean Heights, heads the firm’s investment research.

Kevin has over 17 years of professional experience in the financial services industry. He was a Managing Director at Miracle Mile Advisors, and President and Chief Investment Officer of Palo Capital.

Before entering the financial services field, Kevin held senior management roles at several healthcare and technology companies. He served as Chief Financial Officer of Valence Semiconductor, President of CHI, (a healthcare data company), Vice President of the Health Data Institute, and Research Scientist in the Department of Economics at The RAND Corporation. His avocational interest in investing led to appearances in Barron’s (a national financial publication), and to his founding of Palo Capital in 2005 which he headed for 14 years.

Kevin graduated from Brown University with a concentration in healthcare economics, and earned an M.D. from Stanford University School of Medicine. He completed internal medicine residency and an M.S. degree at UCLA where he was a Robert Wood Johnson Scholar in Health Policy.

Co-Founder, Hook Hand Rum

Dan Olson

Joined 2022

Executive Marketing Leader of Integrated Agency and Global Brands, CONSULTANT focused on GROWTH initiatives for large and small businesses. Providing strategic development of customer centric marketing, creating better customer experiences, and increasing CUSTOMER LOYALTY. Frequent Conference & Industry Speaker.

• Marketing Consultant: Beginning with strategic planning, helping brands to better understand their customers and how to leverage marketing to create better and longer lasting customer relationships.
• Leading Integrated Teams: Directing agency partners, writing marketing plans, creative and tactical briefs, in both B2C and B2B environments.
• Growth: Developing growth plans from concept to implementation. Creating full funnel marketing programs in omni-channel communications.
• Analytics and Insights: Research and analysis of behavioral data, writing and presenting insights and recommendations.

My Story

My experience in work has been in marketing brands of all shapes sizes and industry. I have had the privilege of working with some of the greatest marketers on the planet as well as work for what I consider the best agency in the world, Wunderman. Now I can bring this experience to you.

In my work I have participated in building an in-flight customer experience for Virgin America, designed a behavior changing program for Southern California Edison to get people to save energy, transformed a traditional agency to an integrated digital powerhouse, developed a loyalty program for Disney that rewarded customers with magic and created a global viral campaign when we flew an airplane using a Land Rover’s GPS system. And what do all these have in common? In each one we solved our client’s challenges and brought them success.

My clients have included, AT&T, Jaguar, Land Rover, Southwest Airlines, SCE, Mattel, SONY, Disney, Oakley, Invisalign, Blue Shield of CA, Health Net, Virgin America, Callaway Golf and many more. I’m ready to help on your project today.

Managing Director, Rockefeller Global Family Office

Robert Panetti

Joined 2018

Robert is a Managing Director and Private Advisor for the Rockefeller Global Family Office. Prior to joining Rockefeller, Robert spent 13 years at BlackRock where he was a Portfolio Manager and a Managing Director responsible for a team that managed portfolios for private clients and non-profits. While at BlackRock, Robert was a part of the Multi-Asset Solutions group that crafted customized solutions for clients that crossed asset classes and often involved synthesizing client objectives in a tax efficient manner. From 2007 to 2008, Robert was Chief Investment Officer for a Private Wealth unit at Tax & Financial Group, a partially owned subsidiary of Securian. Robert began his career with Capital Reserve Advisors, a Registered Investment Advisor in Newport Beach, where he worked as an analyst and portfolio manager from 1992 to 2007.

Robert earned a BA degree, cum, laude, in Economics from the University of California, Irvine in 1992. He is a CFA Charter holder and has served as President of the CFA Society of Orange County and as a President of the Newport Corporate Plaza Building Owners Association.

Robert grew up in Irvine and is a proud graduate of UCI where he played a lot of tennis in between economics and finance classes. He and his wife live in Corona Del Mar and enjoy following the sun to Palm Desert during the winter months.

Real Estate Broker, NextHome Solutions

Jeff Petsche

Joined 2021

I have been a licensed California Realtor® since 2003 and a licensed California Broker since 2008. My experiences in representing sellers/buyers in Residential Real Estate, Client Consulting, Negotiations, Marketing Management, Transaction Management, Handling Distressed Properties, Coaching/Training Real Estate Agents on Business Development and Real Estate Sales Management.

I am a native of Southern California and have lived in Corona since 2001. The majority of my real estate experience has been generated by representing homeowners in Corona and surrounding areas. I have also worked with several buyers who have relocated to the area.

I feel that my professional experience and local knowledge puts me in a position to earn your trust and business, which will allow me to be part of a very important decision in your life and I am excited for this opportunity.

Experience & Affiliations

I have personally helped my past clients sell or buy over $22,000,000 in residential real estate since 2003. I have successfully closed 48 transactions as the hired agent by sellers/buyers and was the Broker of record in another 350+ closed transactions.

I have five years of real estate management experience from 2006-2012 and was responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations of two different real estate brokerages and over 150 agents.

I have been an Area Sales Manager for a nationwide real estate brokerage and responsible for monitoring market trends, handling client related matters and coaching agents on business development.

I am a Member of the California Association of Realtors

I am a Member of the National Association of Realtors

I am a Member of the Inland Gateway Association of Realtors

I am a Member of CRMLS (CaliforniaRegional Multiple Listing Service)

I hold the designation of Short Sale and Foreclosure Resource Certified Specialist

I am Certified as a Probate Real EstateSpecialist (CPRES)

My business philosophy is very simple; “The most important asset to my business success is the client. How I treat my clients and how I help them through the selling or buying process makes my business style unique. Identifying my client’s needs is my #1 goal.”

Regional Executive Vice President, American Business Bank

David Plourde

Joined 2022

As the Regional Executive Vice President overseeing the North Orange County regional office for American Business Bank, I work with some of the best bankers in the industry to seek out and develop quality business relationships throughout Southern California. At American Business Bank, we strive to provide true relationship banking acting as a trusted adviser for our clients utilizing our expertise in lending and cash management to help plan and properly structure a company for success.

Specialties: Providing high quality banking relationships for manufacturers, wholesalers, contractors, professional service companies, machine job shops, automotive aftermarket companies, trucking and transportation companies, to name a few.

Services American Business Bank provides:

• Deposit and Treasury Services
• Cash Management Services
• Working Capital Lines of Credit
• Asset Based Lines of Credit
• Equipment Term Loans and Leases
• Commercial and Industrial Real Estate Loans
• SBA Loans

Representative, Channel Island Logistics

Steve Quackenbush

Joined 2011

CEO, TideRock Financial, LLC

Simon Reeves

Joined 2022

Simon brings 25 years of investment experience to his role as Founder and Chief Executive Officer of TideRock Financial. He specializes in advising high-net worth individuals and families to help them achieve their long-term investment goals, including estate and heritage planning.

As a former trader on the floor of the American Stock Exchange, Simon utilizes his unique investment insight to create globally diversified, tax-efficient portfolios based on solid academic research and an in-depth analysis of economic, political, and social developments around the world. His clients include current and former professionals at the top of their respective fields, including CEOs, entrepreneurs, hedge fund managers, accountants and attorneys.

Simon currently serves on the Board of the Economic Self-Sufficiency Policy Research Institute at the University of California, Irvine, and is a frequent speaker on topics related to global markets and investing at regional and national events. For several years, he served on the Board of Directors of Saddleback Memorial Foundation and, as a member of the Board’s Investment Committee, helped one of Orange County’s leading non-profit hospital systems to invest its substantial portfolio and further its mission.

Prior to becoming an independent wealth manager, Simon was the Founder and President of his own options trading company on the floor of the American Stock Exchange in New York City. There he generated significant profits utilizing risk-averse trading strategies, eventually expanding his company to include traders on the floors of the American Stock Exchange, Chicago Board of Trade and Philadelphia Stock Exchange. As a member of the American Stock Exchange from 1994 to 2002, Simon served as a market maker for some of the Exchange’s most active listings, including Yahoo, Intel, Phillip Morris, and others.

In addition to his options trading career, Simon has enjoyed being a part-time entrepreneur, real estate, and venture capital investor. He is a former nationally ranked chess expert and competitive backgammon player and believes this understanding of game theory allows him to better assess the risk/reward equation inherent in every investment.

Simon holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Michigan with an emphasis on Global Economics. He is also a licensed insurance broker in the state of California (CA Insurance License #0E09410).

Born and raised in New York City, he now enjoys living in Orange County, Calif. with his wife and three children.

Partner, Retired, Gibson, Dunn, & Crutcher LLP

Bill Rooklidge

Joined 2022

Client Executive, Ernst and Young

Derick Roselli

Joined 2022

Derick has a global track record of building relationships and leading revenue generation efforts and high-performing teams with consistent Year-Over-Year growth across numerous Fortune 500 Accounts and leading international consulting and law firms. He is responsible for regional accounts for professional services including Audit, Tax, Consulting, Technology and Transactions. He has led many large scale enterprise software, technology implementations, legal department optimization, information governance, archiving, cyber response, enterprise back-up, data preservation, global investigations, expert-witness, forensics, and eDiscovery initiatives for local, regional, national and global businesses.

Specialties: Entrepreneur, Business Development, Leadership, Corporate Development, M&A, Brand Marketing, Legal Industry Expert, Project Management, Software Development, Sales and Operations Management, Public Relations, Advisory Board, Social Media, Document Management Consultant, Litigation Support, Investigations, Regulatory Response, Forensic Accounting, Business Process Outsourcing, Legal Department Operations, Business Intelligence, Information Governance, Compliance, Cyber, Data Collection & Preservation, Legal Hold, Early Case Assessment, Document Review, Panelist, Speaker, Moderator, Adjunct Professor

Retired, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

J. Steven Roush

Joined 2011

Steve retired from PricewaterhouseCoopers in 2007 after 39 years, 30 of those as a Partner. Over his career, Steve has experience in a diverse number of industries ranging from manufacturing, nonprofits and retail (restaurants) with a concentration in real estate (office, residential, retail, hospitality and commercial), telecommunications and pharmaceuticals. He has a background in dealing with both private and public company Board of Directors

Over the years, he had served as an office managing partner, a Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) review Partner (over 20 years) and for the last 5 years, a Risk Management Partner. This was in addition to his direct client responsibilities. For the last 15 years, Steve has served on a variety of public, private and nonprofit Boards.

Just a few of Steve’s strengths that he brings to a Board of Directors are:

• Experience of working with many diverse Boards, both publicly held and private family owned, running across varied industries
• Thirty plus years of dealing with the Securities Exchange Commission and its various regulatory filings
• Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX 404) implementation and maintenance
• Approach to solutions that combined a strong technical background with practical business experience

Steve is currently is Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chairman of the Audit Committee of  W.E. Hall Company, a privately held manufacturer and distributor of corrugated steel and plastic pipe and related drainage products. He is Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chairman of the Audit Committee of Summit Healthcare REIT (public non-traded) which currently has ownership interests in 53 senior housing facilities. Steve is also Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chairman of the Audit Committee of Fieldpiece Instruments, Inc., a privately held designer and manufacturer of hand-held test instruments for HVAC/R technicians.

Steve previously served on the Board and was Chairman of the Audit Committee of AirTouch Communications, Inc, a public telecommunications device company as well as Chairman of the Audit Committee of STAAR Surgical Company (publicly traded). He also was on the Board of Directors of Rowe Enterprises, a large privately owned business holding a Toyota dealership in Tucson, Arizona

Steve is a founding member of the Private Directors Association-Orange County chapter. For many years, he was a mentor for a National women’s organization, Women Unlimited which provides programs to help move women from middle management positions to the next level in their careers.

He also serves on the Board of Trustees, Executive Committee, Treasurer and Chairman of the Audit Committee for the Orange County Museum of Art. He is on the Board of Directors for the American Heart Association-Orange County and Chairman of the Board’s leadership development committee. He is also a member of the Corporate Cabinet for the Orange County United Way Tocqueville Society.

Steve previously was Chairman of the Budget Review Committee and a member of the Corporate Operations Coordinating Committee for the National American Heart Association in Dallas where he had served on their Audit Committee for six years.

Education

Drake University – Bachelor of Science, Accounting

Executive Masters Professional Director Certification from the American College of Corporate Directors

Credentials and Memberships

• Certified Public Accountant in California (with an active license)
• Performed accounting expert witness work
• Completed course at UC-Irvine/Paul Merage School of Business-Effective Boardroom Leadership for New Directors
• ISS Accredited Director Education Programs
• Member of the Forum for Corporate Directors (FCD)
• Masters Professional Directors Certification from the American College of Corporate Directors
• Mentor to Women Unlimited
• National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD)

CEO, Miramar Health

Tom Sauer

Joined 2022

A 2006 graduate of the US Naval Academy and an 18 year Navy and Marine Corps Veteran, Tom Sauer is the majority owner of MacArthur Group, Inc., and CEO of its subsidiary company, Miramar Recovery in Orange County, CA. He holds MBAs from the UCLA Anderson School of Management and the National University of Singapore Business School. MacArthur Group is a behavioral healthcare firm focused on mental health and addiction treatment for America’s Veterans. Behavioral health became a deep passion of Tom’s following the loss of his father to an overdose after decades of struggle, just like so many millions of Americans suffering from our country’s disastrous drug epidemic.

Partner, Snell and Wilmer, LLP

Jim Scheinkman

Joined 2018

Jim Scheinkman is a practice group leader of the firm’s Corporate and Securities Group. His practice focuses on assisting mid-market companies and their owners in mergers and acquisitions, financings, joint ventures, corporate governance and shareholder dispute resolution, securities offerings, technology development and transfers, executive compensation and other corporate and commercial matters. Jim also serves as a trusted advisor for a variety of mid-market businesses.

President and Founder, KAP7 International Inc.

Brad Schumacher

Joined 2022

Partner, Swarts, Manning & Associates

Tim Shank

Joined 2022

Starting in 2001, Tim has built his risk management practice by establishing strong relationships within the business community. He has developed a network of underwriters, industry professionals, and strategic partnerships that enable him to consult clients on complex challenges and transformative initiatives. He has obtained the Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC) and Certified Risk Manager (CRM) professional designations.

Tim spends most of his time in San Clemente, California where his home and office are located. He enjoys surfing and free diving.

Partner, Reed Smith LLP

John Simonis

Joined 2017

John Simonis focuses his practice on real estate law. He represents institutional investors, owners, developers, and users in connection with complex real estate transactions and development matters, and has substantial expertise in connection with real estate joint ventures, funds, purchases and sales, leasing, development and construction matters, and entity structuring. He has represented clients across a broad spectrum of industry segments, including office, retail, industrial, multi-family, detached residential (for sale and rental), infrastructure and alternatives, with particular expertise with respect to data centers and technology-related facilities. He also has substantial experience in connection with large scale construction and development projects and a variety of sophisticated mixed use, master planned and entitlement-contingent projects.

John is a frequent speaker and writer regarding real estate transactions, development matters and telecommunications and power issues impacting the real estate industry.

Director, Safran

Craig Strombom

Joined 2022

Certified Treasury Professional with extensive experience devising and implementing global cash forecasting and reporting systems, with a focus on driving continuous improvements around efficiencies, cash position, data security and planning accuracy. Expert in modeling business scenarios to inform strategic decision making and achieve growth. Able to articulate risks and deliver solutions to improve financial operation practices. Focused, analytical, and systems-savvy with core capabilities in:

Financial Modeling • Cost Benchmarking • Financial Planning & Forecasting • Credit Risk Management
Cash Management • Process Improvement • Budgeting • Cash Forecasting • Debt Compliance
Capital Markets • Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable (AP/AR) • Team Leadership

Field Representative, Supervisor Wagner's Office

Al Tello

Joined 2018

Partner, Kearny Real Estate

Graham Tingler

Joined 2022

Highly motivated and intuitive real estate executive with 32 years’ experience specializing in the development, acquisition and management of warehouse/distribution buildings. Deep knowledge of major distribution markets nationally and the drivers of e-commerce fulfillment trends both locally and nationally. Skilled at consensus and team building to complete successful projects. Provides a unique perspective on the warehouse/distribution/e-commerce fulfillment business thru an extensive legislative knowledge and participation in the goods movement arena nationally, at the State and at the local level.

Senior Vice President, Hughes Marino

Will Tober

Joined 2022

Will Tober is a senior vice president at Hughes Marino, an award-winning commercial real estate company. Working out of the firm’s Orange County office, Will and his team exclusively represent tenants and buyers delivering no-conflict brokerage, construction management, lease auditing, and lease administration services to companies and organizations across California. Business leaders look to Will to develop real estate strategies that will help them achieve their business objectives whether they plan to renew their lease, relocate, expand, contract, or purchase commercial property.

Will combines his strong market knowledge and Hughes Marino’s tenant-focused discipline to create leverage and opportunities, aligning his client’s real estate goals with their business plan to deliver the most strategically correct, cost-effective, and risk reducing project outcomes possible. His expertise in site selection, strategic planning, financial analysis, negotiation, and transaction structuring have allowed him to create great results for his clients throughout Southern California.

In addition to representing business leaders in their lease and purchase transactions, Will serves on the board for two incredible nonprofit organizations, one of which he co-founded while attending the University of Southern California. A native of San Clemente, Will was a defensive back on the USC Trojans football team and he also held executive positions in the Sigma Chi fraternity.

Will and his wife, Kaylin, currently reside in Newport Beach where they attend Rock Harbor Church in Costa Mesa. They enjoy going to the beach, traveling, and listening to country music in their free time. An avid sports fan, Will loves to watch the Lakers, Angels, and Trojans as much as he can.

President, Ware Malcomb

Jay Todisco

Joined 2022

Jay Todisco is the President of Ware Malcomb. Established in 1972, Ware Malcomb is a contemporary and expanding full service design firm providing professional architecture, planning, interior design, civil engineering, branding and building measurement services to corporate, commercial/residential developer and public/institutional clients throughout the world. With office locations throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico and Brazil, the firm specializes in the design of commercial office, corporate, industrial, science & technology, healthcare, retail, auto, public/institutional facilities and renovation projects.. Ware Malcomb is recognized as an Inc. 5000 fastest-growing private company for the fourth year in a row and a Hot Firm by Zweig Group. The firm is also ranked among the top 15 architecture/engineering firms in Engineering News-Record’s Top 500 Design Firms and the top 30 interior design firms in Interior Design magazine’s Top 100 Giants.

Jay joined Ware Malcomb in 1998 as Regional Director for the Irvine Corporate office. In 2001, he was promoted to Principal and relocated to San Ramon, California to grow the Northern California office. In 2005, Jay relocated to Chicago to lead Ware Malcomb’s expansion in the Midwest and East Coast markets. In 2007, Jay took on the role of overseeing the growth of our first Canadian office in Toronto, Canada. In 2012 he was promoted to Executive Vice President, and in 2020 to President. As President, he oversees the overall growth and business development for Ware Malcomb, with a focus on exceptional client service and relationship management. An accomplished architect with over 40 years of commercial real estate industry experience, Jay is also highly engaged with Ware Malcomb’s Design Studio and oversees all aspects of design from the executive level.

Jay has extensive expertise in architecture and planning of various building types including industrial, distribution/logistics, office, retail, healthcare, parking structures and hospitality. He has managed large scale projects throughout the United States and abroad for major developers and corporate clients. He is focused on building and maintaining client relationships on an international scale, while providing hands on architecture and planning services to North America’s leading development companies.

Recognized by Real Estate Forum Magazine as an Industrial Influencer twice, Jay has proven to be an industry thought leader in industrial trends. He has been a guest speaker at commercial real estate events throughout the United States, and has also authored several articles relating to architecture and design, including NAIOP’s Development Magazine’s cover story “Industrial Buildings Go Vertical”, linked here.

Jay studied Architecture at the Boston Architectural Center in Boston, Massachusetts. He is a licensed Architect in the State of California and nine other states. Jay is an active member of NAIOP, a member of the Board of Directors for NAIOP LA/orange County Chapter, the Chairman of the NAIOP National Forum (e-Commerce III), a general associate member of SIOR (Society of Industrial and Office Realtors), a LEED Accredited Professional, and has been a member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) since 1989.

CEO, INK Games

Robert Towles

Joined 2022

Robert is a seasoned entrepreneur with multiple, multi-million dollar exits. He has led several investments in the mobile gaming space — one of which attracted 2.7 million active monthly users and generated $72 million in annual run-rate revenues. Robert helped guide this company to a $100+ million exit to Caesars Interactive Entertainment

Prior to this, Robert founded and grew a social-driven, health and fitness company. Under Robert’s leadership, the company established a platform of more than 65,000 users and drove over $45 million in product sales despite intense, well-funded competition in the space. Robert and his team accomplished this by leveraging social selling — including crafting viral, influencer led Facebook marketing campaigns.

President and CEO, Cubex Systems

Anton Visser

Joined 2022

Head of Real Estate Portfolio Strategy, Pacific Life Insurance Company

John Waldeck

Joined 2022

Mr. Waldeck began his career at Pacific Life in 1997 as a network support analyst in the Real Estate Division, following four years of experience as a computer systems consultant. In 1998, Mr. Waldeck transferred to the real estate underwriting group. In 2005, he was promoted to director and was promoted to Assistant Vice President, Real Estate Underwriting in 2006. In March 2008, Mr. Waldeck was named Vice President, Real Estate Underwriting & Construction Services. In 2012, Mr. Waldeck was named Vice President, Commercial Mortgage Investments. In 2017, Mr. Waldeck was named Vice President, Commercial Mortgage Portfolio.

In 2021, Mr. Waldeck was named the Head of Real Estate Portfolio Strategy. In this role, he provides direction and support to the underwriting, analysis, and structuring processes for real estate debt investments. In addition, Mr. Waldeck is responsible for 3rd party program investments. Mr. Waldeck has oversight for the training and development program for investment analysts and coordinators. He is also responsible for the division’s documentation, implementation, and maintenance of commercial mortgage underwriting guidelines.

Professional Memberships:
Chartered Realty Investor Society (Board Member)
Certified Mortgage Banker Society
Life Mortgage Real Estate Officer’s Council (Board Member)
University of California, Irvine – Real Estate Alumni Association
University of California, Irvine – Center for Real Estate (Board Member)
The United Way of Orange County Tocqueville Society (Board Member)
Pacific Life Political Action Committee

Professional Designations:
Chartered Realty Investor charter holder
Commercial Certified Mortgage Banker designee

Other:
President – Ladera Ranch Education Foundation

Managing Partner; Founder and Creator, HK3 / LVSL

Torrey James Ward

Joined 2022

Torrey James is the founder, creator, and managing partner of HK3. His entrepreneurial background is diverse and extensive. Torrey’s groundbreaking concept for a live/work wave-healing sanctuary and casino featuring cutting edge surfing technology, futuristic wellness spa, art, and entertainment facilities was borne of his extensive knowledge of these industries, his business acumen, and his foresight of future human trends and demand.

Torrey’s extensive network of professional associates and influential powerful friends in the wellness, design, surf, art, and building industries – as well as his past successes in music, television, film, tech, and the arts – make him a visionary in a diversity of fields that make him the perfect leader for his HK3 project. Torrey’s continuous quest to discover and harness the most unique and powerful healing innovations is a challenge he enjoys daily.

CEO, Ware Malcomb

Ken Wink

Joined 2022

Ken is CEO of Ware Malcomb and a member of the firm’s Board of Directors. Established in 1972, Ware Malcomb is an international design firm providing planning, architecture, interior design, branding, civil engineering and building measurement services to commercial real estate and corporate clients. With office locations throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico, the firm specializes in the design of commercial office, corporate, industrial, science & technology, healthcare, retail, auto, public/educational facilities and renovation projects. Ware Malcomb is recognized as an Inc. 5000 fastest- growing private company and a Hot Firm and Best Firm to Work For by Zweig Group. The firm is also ranked among the top 15 architecture/engineering firms in Engineering News- Record’s Top 500 Design Firms and the top 30 interior design firms in Interior Design magazine’s Top 100 Giants.

Ken joined the firm in 1994 and was promoted to Regional Director in 1997. As Regional Director, he was responsible for opening our Northern California office and helped successfully grow and expand this regional office. In 1999, Ken was promoted to Principal, Vice President in 2001 and Executive Vice President in 2012. In his current role as CEO, Ken leads the overall company vision, growth and management of Ware Malcomb.

With over 35 years of experience in all aspects of architecture including master planning, design, and project management, Ken has experience in a variety of building types including commercial office, industrial, retail, education/institutional, automotive and public facilities. He has also worked with many of the leading developer and corporate clients in the United States.

Ken received his Bachelor of Architecture Degree from California Polytechnic State University, Pomona. He is a member of the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB). His current professional and charity affiliations include: Committee member since 2006 of BBFF (Building Block Foundation Fund), and an active member and sponsor of NAIOP (National Association of Industrial & Office Properties).

CEO, Primior, Inc.

Johnney Zhang

Joined 2017

Founder of USPC. USPC is a cryptocurrency designed to provide fractionalized ownership in a diversified real estate portfolio located in high demand urban markets throughout United States, created in response to volatility associated with utility tokens, and inflation-impacted fiat currencies, dollar-backed stablecoins, and algorithmic-backed coins, USPC is expected to benefit from current income generation and long-term appreciation of real estate assets, and function as a more reliable store of value and more efficient medium of exchange. Johnney Zhang has been working in the real estate industry for more than a decade. He is the Executive Director of Zhang Group, a family office funded by his father Henry Zhang and CEO of Primior Inc. an development and asset management firm specializing in commercial real estate. As CEO at Primior Inc. he focuses on finding prime investment deals with excellent returns for his clients and educating them on the typical myths of investing as well as the pitfalls and traps even astute investors may fall into with real estate investing.

CEO, VizAeras Inc.

Carl Tautenhahn

Joined 2022

Prior to founding VizAeras Inc., Carl has had more than 19 years of hands-on entrepreneurial experience. He is a co-founder of Photo Booth Options, Inc., the largest “in venue” photo booth operator in the U.S., and has owned and sold several small businesses, including a Long Beach, CA-based tourism company that was acquired in 2011, and Third Coast Construction, Inc. At 21 years old, his Texas-based concrete company achieved nearly $2M in revenues. He is also a successful mass media commercial actor appearing in many local and national advertising campaigns. Carl was born and raised in Fairchild, Texas, and has been residing in Newport Beach for the past 17 years.