Alumni Expert Series: "Starting Your Own Business- How to do an Honest Assessment"
Ever think about going into business for yourself? Join Penn Staters who have started their own businesses and coached entrepreneurs in building successful companies and organizations. The webinar will feature a panel discussion with opportunities to ask the experts.
Panelists:
Kate Alward is the Director of Human Resources & Training at the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Central and Northwest PA. Kate serves as a trusted advisor, coach, and collaborative business partner to the leadership teams at over 55+ companies that are either in the portfolio of Ben Franklin Technology Partners or are headquartered at the Technology Center in Innovation Park. In this capacity, as in previous senior-level HR consultative roles, Kate develops, plans, implements, and leads all HR functions; this includes activating workforce development and planning initiatives that capture, grow, manage, and retain the talent needed to execute the objectives of each company.
Kate has more than 25 years of consulting and industry experience in human resources management working with companies as diverse as Silicon Valley to Fortune 500 corporations. She has also owned and operated a real estate brokerage business, a residential construction company, and an insurance and group benefits brokerage.
Kate is a Penn State graduate with a degree in Labor Studies, and she has earned the Senior Certified Professional (SCP) designation from the Society for Human Resources Management.
Bob Dornich is the Director of the TechCelerator (a Business Accelerator course) as well as an Entrepreneurial Coach at Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Central and Northern PA, located at Penn State University. They work with companies in myriad ways. WE ARE an early-stage (seed) investment company, and they provide classes on how to open a business in our "TechCelerator". They also provide ongoing support for companies through our Transformations Services. Before coming to Ben Franklin Bob was a serial entrepreneur and during that time he operated 8 businesses.
Many people call Bob "Coach" because he has coached soccer for 40 years; from U-5s through Collegiate. Bob played varsity soccer at Lynchburg College and the U.S. Air Force team in Germany. He also played in the German league in Plutsheid, Germany, and has been coaching ever since. While coaching the Penn State Club Soccer they won the Region 1 Championship 4 out of the 5 years and went to Nationals all 5 years. The team advanced to the Sweet 16 four times and the Elite 8 once. Bob and his wife have lived in Happy Valley for over 40 years, raised their family in State College, and have two sons who are Penn State grads.
Ayanna Harris the tech-savvy arts enthusiast and founder behind the digital marketing agency, “The Regal Deviance Company”, is revolutionizing the way creative professionals promote their passions. With “Excellence in Expression” at the core, she champions the importance of designing strategic brands and cultivating a social media presence that represents the best and most authentic version of the individual business.
Ayanna graduated from Penn State with a degree in Advertising and Public Relations and a minor in Spanish. During her time on campus, she was active in various leadership roles as a Resident Assistant and member of the Executive Board for Urban Dance Troupe, Open M.I.C., and the Multicultural Women’s Forum. She also launched the Aya Bella Flor brand, now ABF Perform, which showcased her creative works as a spoken word artist across campus. Following graduation, Ayanna relocated to the New York City Metro Area to pursue her professional career in corporate marketing, branding, and digital reputation management.
Separate from school and work, Ayanna can be found creating and sharing original works in the analog visual arts, podcasting, flute performance, poetry, choreography, and photography.
Brian Magrann is the Co-founder and CEO of Boilerplate, a cloud software platform for managing documentation requests. The idea was inspired by his time at FEMA, juggling paperwork to help communities obtain funding after major disasters.
He has an accounting degree from Penn State and previously worked at J&J, PwC, and IBM. He lives outside Philadelphia where he enjoys biking, sports, concerts, and going down the shore.
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