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SPEAKERS |
We are currently soliciting qualified speakers for the 2006 America-China Women
Business Leaders Conference. To nominate yourself or others as a speaker,
please
CLICK HERE for Speaker Nomination Form.
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AWARDS |
America-China Women Business Leaders Conference will recognize the
individuals who have demonstrated remarkable achievement and leadership
in select areas. The following awards will be presented to qualified
recipients (Each award goes to one recipient from each country):
- Lifetime Achievement Award
- Business Development and Growth Award
- Business Innovation Award
- Social Responsibility Contribution Award
- Supporter of Women Entrepreneurs Award
- Ambassador of US-China Trade Award
If you would like to nominate yourself or others as Award recipient,
please
CLICK HERE for Award Nomination Form.
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SPEAKERS' BIO |
Marilyn D. Johnson
Vice President, Market Development, IBM Corporation
Marilyn Johnson is Vice President of Market Development, IBM Corporation. In this capacity, she leads an organization responsible for developing IBM's strategy for and marketing to businesses owned or operated by Asians, Blacks, Hispanics, Native Americans and Women in the Americas. She recently expanded her mission to include women owned and women led businesses in selected global markets.
She is an executive with extensive management experience in sales and marketing in the information technology industry. Previously, Johnson has had executive positions in a number of key business units and has had management and operational responsibility in North America, Asia and other parts of the world.
With her leadership positions in and continues to be a member of the Executive Board of Directors for the National Council of Negro Women, Johnson also has served as Board of Director, the Co-Chair , mentor and coach for various organizations. Being a featured speaker who spoke widely at conferences/forums in and outside of the US.
In recognition of her sales achievement, she has received numerous awards, and was named one of "The Top 25 Influential Black Women". Marilyn has been featured in Working Mother Magazine, and several other magazines.
Gay Warren Gaddis
President/CEO, T3 (The Think Tank)
Gay Warren Gaddis is president and CEO of T3 (The Think Tank). She started her company in 1989 with a cashed in IRA and two employees. Today, T3 is the largest independent advertising agency wholly-owned by a woman in the country, with offices in Austin and New York, over $150 million in capitalized billings, and a staff of 150. Organized as a marketing and creative think tank, T3 works with clients including Dell, Marriott, JCPenney, MSN, John Deere, Universal, i3 Research, MTV, Nortel and Baker Botts.
Her dynamic business acumen and corporate culture has led to national recognition. In the January issue of Inc. magazine, Gay was featured for her success as an entrepreneur and the ways in which she balances her personal and professional life. She has been recognized as one of Fast Company's "Top 25 Women Business Builders," Inc. magazine's "Top 10 Entrepreneurs of the Year" and 25 Advertising Working Mothers of the Year by Working Mother magazine. T3's family-friendly workplace programs have been recognized by the White House, NBC's Today Show, The New York Times and most recently in the May issue of Fortune Small Business.
Gay is an active industry spokesperson and entrepreneurial advocate, a business mentor , a columnist and publisher.. In addition, she's a member of the Texas Governor's Business Council's executive board, the OPEN from American Express Customer Advisory Council and the Committee of 200 (C200).
Paula Beroza
Managing Director, Sierra Asia Partners
Paula Beroza is the Director of Sierra Asia Partners, and Former Head of China Investment Banking Division for Merrill Lunch.
Paula Beroza has more than 20 years of experience in investment banking and investment management originating, structuring, and marketing over $26 billion of acquisitions, debt and equity issues of U.S.and international companies (China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, Germany, and Latin America).
While working at Merrill Lynch in the mid-1990's. as head of the Greater China investment banking group, she Completed the first international equity offering of a Chinese Company, structured and placed innovative financial products, and educated the government and Chinese enterprises as to the operation of the international capital markets, including investor expectations, regulatory practices, transparency, after-market trading, etc. In all, Beroza has helped raise over $2 billion in financing for Chinese enterprises.
Beroza has a vision that China and U.S. Embrace Two-Way Foreign Investment Opportunities, and which will provide new challenges for women business leaders. The issues she will address include: "The new opportunities are driving success on both sides of the Pacific ", "China: Bridge to a New Global Private Equity and Venture Model",ect.
Maxine Westaway
Executive Director, The International Alliance for Women (TIAW)
Maxine Westaway, Executive Director of The International Alliance of Women (TIAW), past President of TIAW and the first non-American President of TIAW. Westaway has been an entrepreneur for 20 years, and has worked in over 25 countries. In 1993 Maxine established an International Business Development Consulting firm, CEO Marketing Associates Ltd, to assist clients with business development and market entry into Asian markets. In 1995. Westaway entered into a partnership with several partners in China, and took on the role of Managing Partner responsible for all business aspects outside of China. Westaway developed a diverse international client base. Previously Westaway founded an import company and wholesaled product across Canada and the USA. Westaway imported product from several Asian countries and established a strategic partnership in Korea to meet manufacturing requirements with expansion into the US retail industry.
Since 1998, Ms. Westaway has been an advisor to the Canadian Government on policy and trade issues for Small and Medium Enterprises particularly were women entrepreneurs are concerned. Westaway continues to represent Canadian interest at annual Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings, which includes business and government leaders from all 21 countries who boarder the Pacific Ocean.
Debra Ruh
TecAccess
As the winner of the US Department of Labor's "New Freedom Initiative," TecAccess is among the leaders in accessibility, Section 508, Section 255 and Section 504 compliance solutions. We serve clients in government, industry and education throughout the world. Our mission is to help organizations meet their immediate and long-term accessibility goals; in turn increasing their profitability, fiscal efficiency and widening their customer base to include people with disabilities, senior citizens, and the growing "Baby Boomer" population.
Widely recognized for expertise in accessibility issues, TecAccess employs a diverse, skilled team of professionals, most of whom are people with disabilities. This uniquely positions us to realistically evaluate compliance, accessibility, and usability from the perspective of people with disabilities.
Ruh believes whole-heartedly in employing persons with disabilities and in fact has built her whole business around this award-winning model. For these efforts, Ruh has been invited to speak before members of the European Union, she was appointed to Virginia Governor Tim Kaine's Olmstead Board for disability rights, she is the Small Business Administration's "Small Minority Owned Business Person of the Year," and she was awarded the New Freedom Initiative - given by the President and the US Department of Labor.
Karen Maples
President/Founder, Myutiq, LLC
Known for her strategic planning and marketing capabilities, Karen Maples worked with a broad range of Fortune 500 firms including AT&T, Northrop Grumman, VeriSign and Verizon Communications. Her experience and knowledge of the technology marketplace, electronic commerce, internet applications development, telecommunications, and IP networking makes her much in demand as a speaker and consultant in the international business community.
As part of her commitment to her community, Karen founded and serves as executive director of the Northern Virginia chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) and she is a founding partner of Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP). She chairs WIPP's Alliances Council and has testified before Congress on a range of issues including business taxation, broadband technology and health care reform. She is also a member of the Global Brain Trust of Quantum Leaps, an international network of leaders focused on advancing women's entrepreneurship worldwide.
Cheryl Sill
Global Trade & Supply Chain Solutions Executive,
Global Treasury Services, Bank of America
As head of the Global Trade & Supply Chain Solutions for Bank of America, Cheryl Sills oversees 65 American associates who provide support to the bank's commercial and business banking clients. She is credited with rolling out Bank of America Direct Trade Services, one of the industry's first global web-based trade systems. Bank of America is one of the world's largest financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management, and other financial and risk-management products and services.
Her professional experiences include management of programs in commercial treasury sales, U.S. correspondent banking, global banknotes, and foreign exchange payments. Cheryl currently serves on the Board of Directors for the California Council on International Trade, a nonpartisan, public policy organization that advocates trade.
Wendy Cai
Firm Director, Chinese Services Group, Deloitte & Touche USA, LLP
Wendy Cai and the Chinese Services Group are dedicated to working with American companies investing in China and assisting Chinese companies to access American markets. She brings to her position experiences in financial services, consumer business and technology industries including the successful exit venture investors for the software company she founded.
Based in New York, Wendy has traveled extensively in China and the U.S. working with Fortune 500 companies on issues related to investing and operating in China. She serves on the Board of Asian Women in Business and chairs the Committee for Corporate Leadership. Wendy is an active participant on the China Committee of the U.S. Council on International Business. Wendy speaks several Chinese dialects.
Nancy Cheng
Senior Vice President/Global Trade Officer
Group Global Trade & Supply Chain Solutions,
Bank of America
Nancy Cheng joined Bank of America in 2002, and has been responsible for the Bank's Northeast Market, especially in the New York area. She advises and assists the Bank's corporate clients and prospects with their global trade businesses. She liaises with Bank of America overseas branches to provide various credit facilities and other bank products to the global clients.
Prior to Bank of America, Nancy Cheng worked as a Relationship Manager at Standard Chartered Bank, New York for 5 years, managing the Bank's global commodity and corporate clients. Nancy Cheng also worked as an Asia Specialist in the International Banking Group at CoBank, assisting US agricultural commodity export to overseas, primarily to Asia.
Susan C. Chaires
Owner/Attorney - Chaires & Associates
As experienced attorney on intellectual property law and business transactions, Ms. Chaires has worked extensively with commercial and creative clients both in the United States and internationally, including in particular, small and mid-size businesses, internet businesses, manufacturers and distributors of products, writers and publishing companies, visual artists, and film, television, video and multimedia producers. She represented the sculptor Frederick Hart in Hart et al. v. Warner Bros. et al, a copyright infringement case involving the film Devil's Advocate.
As a long time member and former General Counsel of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO), Ms. Chaires has actively worked with entrepreneurs and business owners in the formation of their businesses and handling of their business transactions, including extensive experience in the preparation of license agreements and business contracts, both in the U.S. and internationally. Ms. Chaires works with several clients who conduct business with China or use Chinese manufacturers for their products.
Ms. Chaires is on the Board of Directors of the Network of Entrepreneurial Women Worldwide (NEWW), a recently formed international network of women business owners of which NAWBO is a founding member. Ms. Chaires currently serves on NAWBO's International Forum and focuses on planning seminars and programs on international business topics for NAWBO's International Forum members.
Barrie Zucal
President, Global Coaches Network
Barrie has spent thirty years helping leaders to develop their human potential as their therapist or as their coach. She is now the global leader of Global Coaches Network, a worldwide alliance of global leadership coaches she has personally chosen and trained to coach global leaders to gain a competitive edge in the marketplace. Because Barrie has lived and worked in the Middle East and Asia, and traveled the world, she knows how to minimize the impact of experiences such as culture shock and relocation stress into opportunities for leaders to expand their personal capacity for leadership, learn essential global leadership competencies, and become culturally competent. Her clients say that she provides exactly what is needed at exactly the time they need it. Her colleagues say she is a visionary leader. Her client list includes General Electric, IBM, Merrill Lynch, the U.S. State Department, and the U.S. Navy, Training Management Corporation.
Mary Schnack
President, Mary Schnack Media Services, Inc.
A specialist in communications for almost 30 years, Mary Schnack owns a variety of businesses focusing on communications and is an award-winning writer, reporter, public relations professional and advocate. She was the recipient of the 2004 U.S. Small Business Administration's Women in Business Advocate award for the Arizona District and Region IX
Mary started out as a journalist, she has written for major newspapers and national magazines and newspapers, including Newsweek, McCall's and the Los Angeles Times. She also was a television field producer and director for Newsweek Video.
Mary owns Mary Schnack Media Services, Inc., a full service public relations firm based in Sedona, AZ, which represents associations, corporations, entrepreneurs, government entities, small businesses, and non-profit organizations.
She recently created a partnership with Color Creations Communications in Nairobi, Kenya, to do communications training in Africa, and formed Asia Business Connections with two Chinese-American businesswomen in Shanghai and Beijing, China, to help businesses who want to do business between the U.S. and Asia.
She also serves as a spokeswoman on communication issues at domestic and international conferences. She also supported the global growth of women micro enterprises throughout the world. Mary has involved in community and Business world extensively.
Judy A. Matthews
Regional Sales Manager, JOHN S CONNOR INC
Judy Matthews has enjoyed a varied career in logistics for over 25 years. She began her career with an East Coast Port Authority before earning her Customs Broker license in 1983. She held positions with logistic companies as Vice President, Director of Transportation, Branch Manager and International Consultant before starting her own logistics business in 1989. Her client base included Toyota Manufacturing, Georgetown, KY, Enro Shirt, New York, NY, General Electric, and Brown Forman Worldwide Beverages (Jack Daniels) in Louisville, KY. She has extensive experience importing textiles, coffee, shoes, machinery, liquor, firearms, trade show exhibits, and personal effects from all major trading countries worldwide. Judy worked as Corporate Traffic Manager for a major retail chain, responsible for international transportation of sourced products from China.
In 1998, she completed her BA in Economics from Indiana University, graduating sigma cum laude. She was a member of The National Honor Society and earned several financial awards in recognition of her scholastic achievements.
She is currently Central Regional Sales Manager for John S. Connor, Inc., a locally owned logistics firm with offices in Louisville, KY and Norfolk, VA. Her primary responsibility is trade coordination with their recently-opened Shanghai office. She is responsible for Sales in the Midwest States of OH, KY, IN, IL, and TN.
Judy Zakreski
Vice President, U.S. Operations
CHINDEX INTERNATIONAL, INC.
Judy Zakreski has been with Chindex International, Inc., the largest independent U.S. distributor of healthcare equipment in China, since 1994. As Vice President, U.S. Operations, she oversees the company's export, business development, regulatory, and U.S. administration operations. She also oversees operations of the company's subsidiary in Germany. In this position, she is involved with many aspects of Chindex's healthcare businesses, from identifying and bringing online new clients and products, to managing the sale of equipment to China, including through Export-Import Bank and other ECA-sponsored programs, to ensuring regulatory compliance on all goods sold in China, to assisting in the planning and establishment of Chindex's hospitals. Prior to her current position, Ms. Zakreski served as Chindex's Manager, Business Development for eight years. She has published and spoken on various topics related to the logistics of selling healthcare products in China. She speaks Mandarin Chinese.
Linda J. Denny
Vice President-Program and Business Development, WBENC
Linda Denny is Vice President-Program and Business Development, for the Women's Business Enterprise National Council, the nations' leading advocate of women owned businesses as suppliers to America 's corporations. She is responsible for business development and membership services, programs, special events, branding, marketing, communications and media. WBENC is the largest third party certifier of businesses owned and operated by women in the United States.
Prior to joining WBENC Linda founded and developed both marketing and recruiting programs targeting women for three of American's largest financial services companies, New York Life and Aetna Financial Services, which became part of ING Insurance Company of American in 2000. Denny spent 23 years in this industry serving New York Life as an agent/registered representative, agency general manager, assistant vice president--compliance officer and supervising registered principal and corporate vice president-- women's recruiting and marketing. At Aetna/ING she was the national director of marketing, Domestic Growth Markets where she was responsible for the marketing to women business owners.
She sits on the boards of many organizations including the National Women's History Museum , the Women's Leadership Board of the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and was a founder of the Association of Women's Business Development Centers. She is a popular speaker, writes articles and frequently is quoted in the media
Dr. Sharon G. Hadary
Executive Director, Center for Women's Business Research
Dr. Sharon Hadary is the Executive Director of Center for Women's Business Research, a premier non-profit research institute. At the Center, Hadary leads major initiatives to improve the quality and comprehensiveness of the knowledge on the role of women business owners and their enterprises in economies and societies around the world. She also leads the Center's information dissemination strategies to share this knowledge with policy makers, corporations, financial institutions, media and women business owners in a way to expand entrepreneurial opportunities for women worldwide.
Hadary has been an adjunct professor and lecturer in several prestigious universities, and has served various leading roles to Boards and Committees She is active in the community and spent 21 years with IBM, where she was an executive in communications and public relations.
She is frequently quoted by print, broadcast, and on-line media on women business owner issues and has appeared on major TV and radio networks, including ABC, CBS, CNN, and CNBC. . She is also a frequent speaker at conferences.
Hadary has received numerous international and domestic awards in recognition of her leadership among global enterprising women and Center for Women's Business Research's impact worldwide in bringing recognition to women business owners and their enterprises as an economic and social force.
Virginia L. P'an
Chairman & CEO, TransCapital Group LLC
As an experienced banker. advisor and Manager Director ,Virginia L. P'an is currently the Chair and founder of the TransCapital Group. It a leading international business development and investment firm.specializing in establishing new global businesses through strategic alliances partnerships, joint ventures and wholly owned enterprises for U.S. and European multinational companies and companies located in the Greater China .
With an intimate knowledge of the Pacific Rim economies, and as the first woman Vice President at American Express International Bank, she was the architect of the national debit card banking system for Taiwan and facilitated the creation of the current Hong Kong Stock Exchange which is the eighth largest in the world today. P'an also served as the Senior Asian Advisor to PricewaterhouseCoopers LLC. At the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, P'an managed 15 Asian central bank investment portfolios She is actively engaged in the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games infrastructure projects for her clients.
P'an has been frequently profiled and featured in numerous major television and print media such as Wall Street Journal Television, Business Week, New York Times, South China Morning Post, etc. She was cited as one of the 500 most influential Asian Americans by Avenue Asia Magazine. She was honored in 2003 with the prestigious "The Leading Women Entrepreneur of the World" Award.
P'an is actively involved with numerous educational institutes and professional organizations, She is fluent in Mandarin and several Chinese dialects, and has been a frequent keynote speaker.
Joy Leong
Partner, Sidley Austin LLP
JOY LEONG is a graduate of Harvard College and Yale Law School. She is a partner in the Washington, D.C. office of Sidley Austin, LLP, one of the largest law firms in the world. She has substantial experience litigating regulatory proceedings at U.S. government agencies and negotiating contracts with the U.S. government. She has represented clients in ratemaking, rulemaking, and complaint proceedings before agencies such as the Federal Communications Commission, the Postal Rate Commission, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and state commissions. Ms. Leong has litigated competition and ratemaking issues relating to regulated monopolies in the postal, delivery, telecommunications, and energy fields, in both the domestic and international arenas. Currently, she is handling economic and regulatory litigation relating to postal and delivery services, logistics, and other supply chain matters.
Ms. Leong has counseled clients on legislative reform policies and on compliance with government regulations; she has led negotiations with U.S. agencies and has obtained regulatory approval for those agreements. In addition, Ms. Leong has represented clients in federal and state court commercial litigation, including complex insurance coverage and bad faith matters. Ms. Leong has published articles and papers on international delivery services reform relating to the logistics and supply chain management industry, the UPU terminal dues system, EU postal liberalization, and the Japan Post privatization.
Prior to coming to Sidley, Ms. Leong practiced in Washington D.C. as a litigation partner at another national law firm and as a staff attorney at a public interest law firm, where she briefed and argued several class actions. She also served as an adjunct professor at the George Mason University School of Law. Ms. Leong lived abroad for several years and speaks English, French, and conversational Mandarin.
Xiaohui (Sharon) Yu
Principal and Attorney at Law, Law Offices of Yu & Associates LLC
XIAOHUI (SHARON) YU is an international lawyer qualified in both China and the U.S. She obtained a Master of Law (LLM) from New York University School of Law and a Bachelor of Law (LLB) from East China Institute of Law and Politics, one of the leading law schools in China. She worked as a legal counsel at China's central bank, the People's Bank of China, advising banks and financial institutions on legal issues arising from the operations. After receiving her advanced degrees in the U.S., Ms. Yu joined several top international law firms including White & Case, B&H, and Herbert Smith in the U.S. and U.K.
Ms. Yu specializes in foreign direct investment, cross-border M&A work, private offering of securities, international trade, customs compliance, banking, project finance, technology transfer and IP licensing. She has particular expertise in structuring cross-border investment and dealing with antidumping cases initiated by the U.S. She has represented a number of foreign corporations in their direct investment projects in China and handled disputes arising from international transactions and intellectual property infringement. Ms. Yu's provides a broad range of services, including feasibility study, due diligence, documentation review and preparation, participation in negotiation, issuing legal opinion, and assisting clients to communicate with government authorities. Her working languages are Chinese and English.
Ms. Yu has published several legal articles and book chapters including the "International Law Dictionary". She also has delivered speeches on "China Trade and Logistics" and other international conferences on the topics of foreign investment in China and international trade with China.
Runan Zhang
Founding Partner of Law Offices of Runan Zhang
Ms. Runan Zhang is the founding partner of the Law Offices of Runan Zhang. She is specialized in immigration and corporate law practice representing corporate and individual clients on their immigration matters and business transactions. Ms. Zhang is a frequent speaker on the US regulations concerning immigration and corporate law issues and how to do business in the United States. She worked on a billion dollars transactions to assist a Chinese corporation to purchase an iron ore mine in Peru, helped US companies to raise millions of dollars to start their business. She has been representing a great number of U.S. and Chinese companies to open and operate their business in the United States.
Ms. Zhang's immigration law practice has been assisting U.S. corporations and companies to meet their needs of skills by filling openings and positions with qualified foreign nationals. She successfully represents a large number of foreign nationals with outstanding professional accomplishments and achievements to qualify as priority workers by extraordinary ability, outstanding professor/researcher and national interest waiver, thus to establish their permanent residency in the United States. Her expertise also helps foreign companies on transferring their stuff to the US operations.
Prior to establishing her own firm in 1998, Ms. Zhang was a foreign law associate for Kirkpatrick & Lockhart LLP and Dickstein, Shapiro, Morin & Oshinsky LLP on international business transactions. Her legal expertise, language skills, training for legal and business practice and multicultural background have benefited all her clients. She is a highly regarded and respected attorney.
Kathryn Homeyer
Corporate Supplier Diversity Coordinator
UPS Corporation
Kathryn "Kathy" Homeyer is Corporate Supplier Diversity Coordinator for the UPS Supplier Diversity Program. She manages internal and external programs designed to increase representation of small, minority- and women-owned businesses in UPS's supplier network. In addition to her Supplier Diversity responsibilities, Homeyer is also involved with Corporate Procurement Commodities purchasing opportunities.
She was appointed to the Corporate Supplier Diversity team in August 2002. In this position, Homeyer works with UPS managers nationwide to implement initiatives that identify potential suppliers and provide them with critical information and access to UPS's purchasing process. She also is responsible for the establishment of new and the development of existing UPS relationships with small, women, and minority business organizations.
Homeyer currently serves as the chairperson for the Membership Committee and serves on the board for the Georgia Women's Business Council (GWBC). She also has served on the board of the Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC), and on the certification committee for the Woman's Business Council for the Southwest. She is currently an Enterprising Women magazine advisory board member. In its May/June 2006 issue, Women's Enterprise magazine honored Homeyer by naming her one of the "100 Women Impacting Supplier Diversity."
Mei Xu
owner and president of Pacific Trade International, Inc. (PTI)
Mei Xu is the owner and president of Pacific Trade International, Inc. (PTI), designer, manufacturer and global distributor of Chesapeake Bay Candle , and Blissliving . PTI's home fragrance and home fashion brands are distributed in the US and in Europe by key retail chains and are known for their great designs, fabulous fragrances, and affordable prices.
Mei Xu and her husband, David Wang, founded PTI in 1994. Through Mei and David's vision, creativity, and relentless drive for excellence, PTI has experienced unparalleled growth - averaging 40 percent annual growth over the last 10 years - and was named twice by Inc. magazine as one of America's fastest growing company.
In 2005 Mei Xu established Blissliving , a home textile design, wholesale and retail brand. In the same year she brought Blissliving to the China market. Today Blissliving has 15 retail stores throughout China, including Beijing, Shanghai, and Hangzhou.
Mei Xu earned her MA in Journalism and Communication from the University of Maryland. She received her BA in English Literature from Beijing Foreign Studies University. Upon receiving her BA, she worked as a Project Officer for the World Bank in the Water and Environment sector in Beijing, China.
Patti Ross
SMB Market Executive, Global Women Business Initiatives
And Central Region Market Development Executive
IBM Corporation
Patti Ross is the IBM Market Executive for Global Women Business Initiatives. She is also assigned as the Central Region Market Development Executive. In these capacities, she is responsible for developing IBM's strategy for and marketing to businesses owned or operated by Asians, Blacks, Hispanics and Native Americans. Her global responsibilities cover women owned and women led businesses in North America, Brazil, Russia, India and China.
Patti has extensive first and second line management experience in the information technology industry. Ms. Ross's previous IBM positions, with U.S. responsibility, include assignments in the Field Engineering Division, Chicago Regional Support Center and Chicago Parts Distribution Center. She held the position of Business Unit Executive at various geographic locations within the Midwestern geography, with responsibility for customer satisfaction, achievement of expense and revenue objectives, technical performance and the morale of over 200 employees. In her assignment as Career Business Executive she had responsibility for skills acquisition and development, productivity and salary administration and equity for over 150 Client Executives and Marketing Representatives. Patti has had several other assignments including operations management.
As a strong leader and advocate for women business owners, Patti serves on the Board of Directors for the Empowering Women Network (EWN) and Enterprising Women Magazine. She is on the National Advisory Board for the Women's Leadership Exchange. Patti also serves on the Advisory Board of The Center for Women's Business Research and the Women Presidents Organization (WPO).
Vicki Marks
Marketing Director,Small Business & Emerging Markets
UPS Capital
Vicki Marks has worked at UPS for over ten years. She began her tenure with the company in 1996 as a Marketing Manager with what is now UPS Supply Chain Solutions. She has held a variety of positions with UPS, most recently with UPS Capital, the financial services business unit of UPS where she is Marketing Director, Small Business & Emerging Markets.
Ms. Marks has over twenty years of b-to-c and b-to-b marketing experience with Fortune 500 corporations in the manufacturing and service sectors.
In 2006, Ms. Marks was honored as a UPS Women of Distinction. In 2005, Ms. Marks was selected to lead UPS's SCS Group employee campaign (16,600+ employees in US, Canada and Puerto Rico) for United Way which raised over $2 million dollars. She also was selected to serve on UPS's Neighbor 2 Neighbor steering committee which works to heighten awareness for community needs, promote volunteerism and mobilize UPS employees and their families to serve as volunteers in their communities.
Ms. Marks' has a BA in Economics from Dartmouth College, an MBA in Marketing from the University of Chicago and a certificate in Strategic Marketing Management from the Emory University Goizueta School of Business, Executive Education Program.
Bernadette G. Musselwhite
Business Development Manager
Montgomery County Department of Economic Development
Bernadette G. Musselwhite is a Business Development Manager for the Montgomery County Department of Economic Development. Montgomery County, Maryland, situated just North of Washington, D.C., boasts a combined base of cutting-edge biotech and high-tech enterprises, an extraordinary federal presence generating billions for private-sector contracts and research, the highest-trained labor pool, and first-rate educational institutions.
Ms. Musselwhite works with local and international companies on expansion and retention issues. She has been very successful in attracting new high-tech and biotech companies to set up in Montgomery County. She also helps local companies export their goods and services, and links them to partners and capital abroad. Ms. Musselwhite has extensive experience working with high tech companies especially in the life science, IT and communications, aerospace and defense industries.
Previously Ms. Musselwhite was an International Marketing Executive for the Department of Business and Economic Development of the State of Maryland. In that capacity she brought several high-tech companies to the State.
Prior to that Ms. Musselwhite worked at the Embassy of Belgium promoting U.S. direct investment in Belgium.
Ann Marie Plubell JD, LLM, MBA
The Plubell Firm LLC
Ms. Plubell is an international attorney and business consultant practicing in Washington, D.C. and Beijing. Ms. Plubell's expertise includes a deep and current understanding of China and how to do business in China. It also includes an understanding of how to form and implement financial infrastructures to attract capital in China and the U.S., and how to comply with global corporate governance standards. In addition, her expertise includes a thorough understanding of the policy oversight structure of certain technical aspects of the international Internet including domain name system and IP addressing.
Ms. Plubell's clients include Chinese enterprises wishing to do business outside of China as well as companies wishing to do business in China. Her areas of international expertise include asset-backed securities and education finance, corporate governance structures for effective decision-making, and international Internet technology policy with specific applications in China.
Ms. Plubell holds a Juris Doctor JD and LLM in taxation from Georgetown University and an MBA in international business with a focus on the management of innovation and technology from George Washington University.
Ms. Plubell is a Vice Chairman of the American Bar Association (ABA) China Law Committee, a member of the Society of Corporate Secretaries and Governance Professionals, Corporate Practices Committee, The Chinese Finance Association, and the Georgetown University Law Center Corporate Counsel Institute Advisory Board.
Elizabeth A. Vazquez
Executive Director of Quantum Leaps, Inc.
Elizabeth A. Vazquez is the Executive Director of Quantum Leaps, Inc., a non-profit organization created to promote women in business globally, and the President and Co-Founder of TradeBuilders, Inc., a company that helps clients use information and communication technologies to facilitate international trade and professional networking, improve organizational development, build global alliances, and share best practices in areas such as eCommerce and eGovernment.
As the Executive Director of Quantum Leaps, Inc., Ms. Vazquez works with a powerful global network of leaders who are working to advance women in business through international conferences, best practices exchanges, videoconferencing, study tours, expert roundtables, and eLearning forums. Quantum Leaps works on critical issues for businesses at all stages of development including research, data and statistics; entrepreneurial education and training; access to microcredit, debt and equity finance; access to networks and to corporate, government and international markets; technology as an entrepreneurial enabler; and advocacy and constituency building.
Lana Bian
Manager, Marketing and Communications
China Telecom USA
Lana Bian is Manager, Marketing and Communications, at China Telecom USA (CT USA). In this role, Ms. Bian is responsible for developing and implementing the company's marketing and communication strategies. She has worked in the fields of international education and training, working and traveling in more than 20 countries. She has been in the telecommunications sector for more than six years. Prior to her joining CT USA, she worked for PatriotNet, an Internet Service Provider, which was headquartered in Fairfax, Virginia. She was the manager of the Global Initiative membership group at the Personal Communications Industry Association (PCIA), a trade association for the wireless communications industry.
Glynis Long
Program Manager-Asia
Office of International Trade, US Small Business Administration
Glynis Long heads up the Asia sector for the US Small Business Administration's Office of International Trade www.sba.gov/international promoting trade for US small businesses. While at the US Securities & Exchange Commission, Glynis helped place EDGAR, the stock market annual reports online, and help federal agencies create websites and portals. She was GE's Regional Administrator in Germany for tank simulators and Flying Tiger's Finance Manager-Europe, while teaching business courses part-time for UMD. Glynis is currently developing a new initiative for a Globally Accessible Database for Small and Medium Enterprises (GADSME) which will allow small businesses to find each other across country lines.
Pat Zakian Tith MS, MA
President
Global Workplace
Pat is President of Global Workplace, a firm specializing in leadership and performance effectiveness that helps businesses and organizations 1. internationalize and develop an effective and productive multicultural workforce and 2. become an employer of choice.
Clients contact her when they need help to stay competitive in the crowded and fast-paced global marketplace and multicultural business environment.
She has been working in China since 1979. She developed and facilitated AT&T's first training programs in leadership and management development in China as part of an Asia-Pacific roll out of these programs. She designed and delivered programs for Sr. Management Retreats in China for Lucent Technologies.
Some of her other clients have included corporations -Acterna, AT&T, Fedex, Lucent Technology, Procter and Gamble, Dupont, IBM, Global One, Furama Hotels in China; international organizations - World Health Organization, INTELSAT, Pan American World Health Organization, World Bank; government agencies - US Federal Executive Institute, Library of Congress, GAO, US Foreign Service Institute, USIA, US Department of Education, China's Ministry of Education, Chinese Academy of Sciences; associations - American Society of Association Executives, American Society for Training and Development, Mortgage Bankers Association, Food Marketing Institute, National Speakers Association; and universities - Georgetown University, George Washington University, Beijing Normal University (Beijing, China), Fudan University (Shanghai, China).
Janny Leung
Executive VP of MESA Technology
Janny is currently the Executive VP of MESA Technology. In this role, Janny provides marketing and management consulting services to clients including how to utilize technology to grow their business. As business partner of IBM, MESA Technology markets IBM products to constituent groups such as the Asian American, Hispanic and Women segments.
Prior to joining MESA Technology, Inc. Janny held numerous executive positions in the technology, banking and healthcare industries. Janny served as Marketing and Account Executive for IBM till 2003 and during that period, she founded the IBM Midwest Asian American Network, conducted training and marketing projects focused on the Asian cultural. Before joining IBM, Janny was an AVP with Household Finance, Consulting Manager for Digital Equipment Corporation, Baxter Health Care and several Nebraska corporations. Janny is instrumental in bringing cultural awareness to several corporations and assisted them with developing successful marketing messages.
Lucy Chan
Senior Project Executive, Global Services
IBM Corporation
Lucy is a Senior Project Executive in IBM Global Services. She is responsible for the Strategic Outsourcing Services in the Financial Markets industry. She owns account management and client relationships at functional and executive levels. She provides business direction to achieve revenue, profitability, growth objectives, and client satisfaction.
She started her career with IBM 26 years ago as a software programmer. She held assignments in product design and development, market support, business and product strategy, market development, systems integration, and services. She has worked with companies in Asia, Europe and North America, and has delivered first-of-its-kind industry solutions to corporations such as Hong Kong Telecom, Telecom Italia, Warner Bros., Time Inc., and Morgan Stanley.
In 2005, Lucy and team received an Emmy Award from the National Television Academy. It is the premier award for excellence in the television industry.
In 2006, Lucy was named one of the 50 Outstanding Asian Americans in Business by the Asian American Development Center.
S. Tien Wong
Chief Executive Officer, Opus8
Tien Wong's company specializes in middle market buyouts, private equity and venture capital investment and is a Maryland-based private investment firm. He had previously co-founded one of the largest privately held customer relationship management (CRM) companies which was acquired by a NYSE firm in 2003.
A nationally recognized expert in CRM, he has also a depth of experience in business process outsourcing (BPO) and direct marketing. He is both a frequent speaker at industry events and a contributor of articles on CRM and BPO.
Tien Wong is chairman of the Executive Leadership Committee for the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship in the Greater Washington area; serves as CEO for the Tien and Beverly Wong Foundation which supports youth, education and social services charities. He is a member of the Association for Corporate Growth, the DC Tech Council (he is co-chair for its 2006 Early Stage Capital Forum), the Direct Marketing Association, and the Technology Council of Maryland.
Keith B. Segerson
Keith Segerson has an extensive professional background in business development, business incubation/acceleration, and in the high-tech market. He has overseen large and diverse domestic and international information technology operations and business incubator/accelerators. Keith is the Assistant Dean for the School of Public Policy at George Mason University and Managing Director of the Mason Enterprise Center, a university outreach program providing business assistance consulting and training services to over 10,000 business entrepreneurs annually.
He has traveled widely: China, Central and Eastern Europe, Ireland, Canada, Spain, Vietnam, Russia, South Korea, Japan, Mexico, India, and Chile. And he has visited most of the 50 United States.
Thomas W. Morris III, CMF
Founder/President, Morris Associates, Inc.
One of only 136 Career Management Fellows (CMF) worldwide, Thomas Morris heads a DC-based consulting, training and development firm. His firm specializes in career management issues--especially recruitment and retention for growing firms.
This summer, he published Career Mechanics I: Solutions to Common Career and Employment Issues to be followed by Career Mechanics II: 101 Trust about Attitude, Assessment, Resumes, Networking, Negotiating and Interviews this fall.
Tom is a former president of the Washington area chapter of the Association of Career Professionals and served for two years on the Government Board of the Institute for Career Certification International from which he received his CMF certification.
Amir Clayton Powell
Director, DC Chamber of Commerce Business Resource Center
Amir Clayton Powell leads the DC Chamber of Commerce Business Resource Center [BRC], a division of the DC Chamber of Commerce Foundation. The BRC uses a unique partnership with the DC Chamber of Commerce, the District of Columbia Department of Housing and Community Development, and Verizon to lend a hand in keeping the District's economic environment vibrant and robust. The BRC serves entrepreneurs and small business owners by offering access to relevant educational resources, counseling, and a secure, hi-speed wireless Internet connection.
Irwin J. Drucker
Program Director
GLBT and International Programs
Supplier Diversity, IBM Global Procurement
Irwin joined IBM as a Software Contracts Administrator in Boca Raton, Florida in 1983. After numerous assignments in the Software Contracts organization, including the lead role on the Microsoft team, Irwin became manager of the department in 1989. In 1995, Irwin was appointed global sourcing manager for Software, with global responsibility for the procurement of all software by IBM, including both internal use and purchase for resale. After four years in that role, Irwin was appointed Program Director of Gay and Lesbian Supplier Diversity. This role, a first for Corporate America, continues IBM¡¯s long tradition of leadership in the area of supplier diversity. In 2006, Irwin assumed his current role as Program Director of GLBT and international Programs in the Supplier Diversity organization. In the role, Irwin has overall responsibility for the coordination of all of IBM¡¯s supplier diversity programs outside the US, as well as global responsibility for the GLBT program.
Irwin is also Chairman of the Corporate Advisory Council of the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce. And, he is a member of the IBM GLBT Executive Taskforce.
Xiaochen Zhang
General Manager, Kingsound & Partners
XIAOCHEN ZHANG started practice in 1985, having witnessed and participated actively in the evolution of the modern China intellectual property protection history and acquired extensive and in-depth knowledge and practical experience in the intellectual property protection, especially in mainland China. His specialties include
trade mark application; licensing; infringement; unfair Competition; IPR administrative and judicial enforcement proceedings.
Xiaochen Zhang founded one of the pioneering private IP firms in China in 1994, which evolved eventually into the present KingSound & Partners with over eighty professionals in the fields of IPR procurement and enforcement in China.
John Allee
A regular visitor to China since 1988, John Allee is the first western professional to work for a major Chinese advertising agency, Beijing Guanggao Gonsi. John comes from the world of advertising, public relations, and market strategies, he has designed campaigns to help multinational firm enter the Chinese market.
In 1988, he joined the Kogod School of Business, American University, teaching international management and marketing courses. He currently travels between China and America, teaching Executive MBA courses at Jingmao Daxue (UIBE) in Beijing and Xiamen Daxue in Fujian.
John's adaptation of portions of Sun Zi's classic Art of War, was translated into Chinese and published by the Military Science Press (Beijing) in 1992. Since then, he has lectured on Sun Zi to groups of business professionals and students in both the U.S. and China. With its focus on strategy, Sun Zi's Art of War is required reading in all his university courses.
Feng Li
Vice Chairman of the board, Institute of Enterprise Development
Mr. Feng Li, currently manages the Asian business program at the DC Chamber of Commerce Foundation. His program assists Asian American businesses in DC area, and consults US companies looking into the Asian market, particularly China, and vise versa. Prior to this, he was the Vice President of Asian Information Resources (H.K.) LTD, a global Internet content provider. He also has extensive management experience in international banking both in Hong Kong and mainland China.
Mr. Li holds MBA in Finance and Marketing from the American University, Washington DC, and International Business Diploma from Zhejiang Universtiy, China.
R. Mallory Starr, Jr.
President, Institute of Management Consultants, Inc. for Washington, DC
Mallory Starr is currently President, Institute of Management Consultants, Inc. for Washington, DC, region. He is also a Director of the Sequoia Presidential Yacht Group, LLC, and a Director of Somerset House Management Association, Inc.
He has U.S. and international experience as a management consultant on assignments with Pharmacia Biotech, Sakae Japan, Beijing Stress Management Company, SAIC, Control Data, and Satellite Business Systems Corporation when it was a partnership company of IBM, COMSAT, and Aetna.
As a consultant he also has extensive family business consulting with U.S. and international family business organizations. His experience history also includes 15 years' experience as a psychologist and internal consultant with a large medical services organization where his work progressed from providing psychological services to consultation on people problems, team development, marketing research and development, program planning, board/staff task group management, and quality assurance organization-wide. He also has some experience with U.S. government agencies and retail companies directing critical incident projects.
Steve Petras
Partner, Baker & Hostetler LLP
Stephen J. Petras Jr. is an international business lawyer with extensive experience counseling clients on domestic as well as foreign legal issues related to international business transactions. He is the head of Baker Hostetler's International Industry Team.
Mr. Petras practices in the business and corporate areas with special emphasis on international business transactions. Mr. Petras began his career in international law in 1978 when he worked in the legal department of a large multinational corporation at its headquarters in Helsinki, Finland, concentrating on European community law relating to contracts, technology licensing and competition policies.
Mr. Petras has acted as counsel in numerous significant transactions, including international/global structuring of business operations for manufacturing, high-tech and services companies, mergers, acquisitions and international securities transactions. The deal size of any transaction varies and includes those exceeding $1 billion (U.S.). His practice also includes representation regarding international regulatory compliance issues and commercial agreements for joint ventures, product distribution and development, agency and distributorships, technology licensing, and sales transactions.
Clay E. Hickson
Chairman and President,Maryland-China Business Council
Mr. Hickson is Chairman and President of the Maryland-China Business Council, the premier private non-profit organization dedicated to helping Mid-Atlantic companies succeed in the China Market. He also is Managing Director of Rhôton Hill Group, a management consulting firm providing market research, strategic planning and cross-cultural communications services.
He has nearly 20 years experience in international business development and educational activities and previously was Director International Business Services/China Programs for International Technology and Trade Associates, Director of International Programs for the World Trade Center Boston and Account Director with Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide (Taiwan).
He serves on the Board of Directors of the Asian Pacific American Chamber of Commerce and the Advisory Board of the Diversity Management Institute. His current and past affiliations include the US Chamber of Commerce/Asia Task Force, Asia Society, Maryland-Anhui Sister State Committee, International Society and BYU Management Society. Mr. Hickson received his MA in International Relations from the School of Advanced International Studies at The Johns Hopkins University, received his BA in International Relations from The George Washington University.
David DeChant
INTERNATIONAL MARKETING CONSULTANT
VISION QUEST INTELLIGENCE, LLC
David DeChant has extensive experience in the conceptualization and implementation of international marketing and communications strategies and economic development programs that have achieved awesome results with premium quality consumer products and higher education programs and services.
He created a comprehensive market intelligence system; and advised dozens of companies on enhancing their export operations, which generated millions in revenues. He has also participated in numerous trade delegations to China.
He has been a student of East and S.E. Asia since his return from two tours of duty in Vietnam as a U. S. Marine and Embassy Courier. His B.A. Degree, a double major in Asian Area Studies & Mandarin is from American and George Washington Universities; and his MBA specializing in International Marketing to China is from the Merrick School, University of Baltimore (Thesis: "International Business Intelligence ~ The Competitive Advantage," 1986). At UB, he was the first government official to serve on the Private Sector Advisory Board where his expertise and passion were focused on the International, MBA Curriculum and Reaccreditations Committees. As a full-time faculty, David was evaluated by his clients, colleagues and deans for five consecutive years as Outstanding and Extraordinary!
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