Ben graduated from Duke in 2000 with a degree in Public Policy Studies. At the advice of a much-respected professor, following college graduation, Ben went on to Harvard’s “Radcliffe Publishing Course”-to pursue his love for writing and reading. Since then, Ben has worked as a Web Developer, Professional Ski Instructor, Sales Executive, and Consultant to Fortune 500CFOs.…
Samantha (Sam) Scaffidi is the founder of Project Sweat, a community of fitness enthusiasts, athletes, and like-minded individuals seeking more in the relentless pursuit of reaching their potential — more sweat, more change, more progress, & more connection. Sam is also a Senior Instructor at SoulCycle in NYC. She graduated from Towson University with her B.S.…
Nicholas Schmidt is the CEO of SolasAI, a compliance-focused AI software platform that identifies and mitigates bias and discrimination in algorithmic decisioning. He is also the Artificial Intelligence Practice Leader at BLDS, LLC, where he provides expert guidance in the application of economics and statistics to questions of law and regulation. As head of the AI practice, Nick focuses on algorithmic fairness, explainable AI, and ensuring robust model governance practices.…
Jessica Schnabel was born near the sea in New York and moved to Philadelphia as a young adult, where her business, BloodMilk, is currently based. Having graduated with an MFA in creative writing from the New School in 2007, Jess pivoted into designing jewelry accidentally after an unexpected loss as a method of coping. Her work seeks to both inspire others, as well as to soothe their own grief through thoughtful design as well as story-telling.…
Mitsi Sellers is an international development specialist with nine years of experience driving business growth and social impact across fifteen countries in Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean. Mitsi is principal and founder at Effect LLC, which offers business and NGO clients growth strategies and efficiency gains through new business development, strategic partnerships and stakeholder engagement. She is a certified partnership broker and associate of The Partnering Initiative, a specialist program of the international Business Leader’s Forum based in the UK.
Shannon D. Sentmanis a nationally recognized expert in the field of high-performance, green buildings. As a founder and principal at SOL VISTA, he applies this expertise to assist real estate owners and users with preparing and implementing plans that enhance asset value through high-performance initiatives and onsite renewable energy generation. Before co-founding SOL VISTA, Mr Sentman worked as an attorney, federal lobbyist, and strategic consultant with the national law firm Holland &Knight, where he built a successful practice counselling private and public clients on sustainability-related matters.…
Sema is a serial entrepreneur with close to 20 years of experience in healthcare. She co-founded and led Surgo Foundation and Surgo Ventures, where she led the development of analytic products that solve health problems with greater precision. She was Initiative Lead at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, where she brought innovations in data, consumer insights, and product introduction into large-scale health programs globally.…
Aspire helps companies build better workplaces by providing customized incentives for employees. Our technology assesses individual employee workplace needs and designs creative benefits and incentive packages around them. Ultimately, we strive to combat employee turnover by creating engaging and personalized workplaces.
I am Semil, swimming in the SEO sea since 2005. I moved to Canada in 2019 from India. Begun my career in affiliate marketing then moved to client facing the agency and now most of the work I do as a white label for agencies based in the US & UK. I also worked as a consultant and have a very good experience with work large SEO and development teams.…
I’m Ammar, which means builder in Arabic. It’s fitting because I love building things. From a burger rating app to a summer internship program for college students I’ve built lots of things over the past 20 years. I’m currently a number 2 in a public relations firm. I have helped us transition from freelancer to boutique agency.…
Masha Sharma has 20 years of professional experience. She has co-founded and is currently serving as the Chief Technology Officer of RealAtom, a modern, all-in-one loan management SaaS platform designed specifically for $3B commercial real estate lending industry. She is a member of the Forbes Technology Council where she shares her expertise in information technology, product development, and startups.…
Jana Sharp is the founder and principal of Sharp Insight, LLC, a strategic consulting firm devoted to supporting mission-driven organizations in measuring and strengthening their impact. She is responsible for the vision and management of Sharp Insight and providing each engagement with strategic and content oversight. Jana is well regarded by her clients for her collaborative work style, deep knowledge of evaluation theory and practice, interactive facilitation, and her personal investment in their organizations.…
Carrie, a medical illustrator and health educator, has a particular interest in conveying the first-person perspective of vulnerable patient populations through virtual reality storytelling. After completing her master’s in Biomedical Visualization in 2016, she founded her company Embodied Labs, with the goal of revolutionizing the way health care providers, caregivers, and patients learn about human health.
Co-founder and CEO of Modus Create, Inc., a digital consultancy that provides enterprise training and mobile product development for clients such as Ogilvy PR Worldwide, Bloomberg, NBC/Universal, Time, Inc., Level3, Intuit, and many others. Patrick has over 15 years of entrepreneurial and consulting experience leading new product development engagements for early-stage companies and technology-enabled enterprises.
Rich Siegel founded MainLineDelivery in 2008, an app and delivery service for high end restaurants in the Philadelphia suburbs. After growing to over 5 million in annual revenue and over 200 drivers in 4 states, MLD was acquired by Square to become part of Caviar in 2016. Rich also founded Cleaversoft in 2008, a software development company making iPhone apps and games.…
Dave Simnick is the co-founder and CEO of SoapBox Soaps, a company with a mission to empower customers with the ability to change the world through everyday, quality purchases. SoapBox products are currently shelved in hundreds of stores across the United States and beyond. As an Eagle Scout, Dave’s dream was to found for-profit companies with a social mission at their core.…
My name is Mary Smith and I am a psychotherapist. I have been practicing in the DC area for over 6 years. I see individuals and couples working through anxiety, depression, and relational issues. I work from a holistic framework, incorporating every aspect of the mind, body, and spirit. I am eccentric, ADHD, and very passionate about helping people.…
Shawn Smith is the Chief Executive Officer for 1 True Health. He has over 35 years of experience in corporate operations, executive management, sales/marketing, and business development, primarily in the healthcare, public health, emergency response, humanitarian aid, and information technology industries. Shawn has a proven ability to understand market requirements and to design and deliver strategic solutions.…
I am an Aerospace Engineer that has turned greeting card entrepreneur. My career started in the Department of Defense and grew within large defense contractors. I left my engineering career as the Senior Manager of a department of 150 systems and software engineers. I joined my sister in a greeting card company, we had been building together since I was working on my MBA in 2006.…
Rob Sokol graduated from the Seattle University Matteo Ricci college with majors in pre-law and International Relations, specializing in economics and Chinese. He moved to China for two years to learn the language. While there, he managed Fosters Beer for the city of Nanjing and developed new business relationships across the province. From China, Mr. Sokol moved to Washington, DC, where he began working at the Library of Congress as the creative director for the Librarian.…
I’m Faton Sopa, the Co-founder/CEO of Manaferra, an SEO Agency for Education.
I have started my career in 2005 as self-taught developer and then I gradually moved to SEO as part of the agency we founded along with my partner (Granit Doshlaku) in 2014. I do have a marketing education background (BA and MA), and Digital Marketing is a field where I connected the dots between my technical abilities and marketing education.…
Hi, I am Juliana! I first moved to the DMV 21 years ago from the Midwest, following a career path in environmental policy. I worked a little over 10 years in the field, specializing primarily in marketing communications – my most senior position as Senior Marketing Manager of Oceana, an international ocean conservation group headquartered in DC.…
Jamey is an executive leadership coach and seasoned learning and development professional with 25 years of experience. His coaching clients include leaders in nonprofit organizations, the federal government, corporate and start-up environments, and graduate students in Executive MBA and Public Policy programs. Jamey is an ICF Professional Certified Coach, a Certified Professional Co-active Coach, and an advanced facilitator in the Interpersonal Dynamics program at Stanford GSB.…
Justin Sullivan has over 20 years of experience in the construction industry as a tradesman, cost estimator, consultant, and business owner. This ground-up experience has enabled him to successfully execute projects of diverse sizes and backgrounds – from small residential renovations to large-scale government facility endeavors. He has worked with clients including the US National Park Service and the Department of Homeland Security, where he played a critical role in establishing new strategies to improve and manage the environmental and economic performance of their facilities and building Finding a lack of qualified ‘green’ and customer-oriented builders and consultants in the marketplace, Justin founded Impact Construction and Consulting, LLC.…
Swatee Surve, Litesprite Founder & CEO, is a pioneer in the field of Health Entertainment and has led the development and launch of disruptive technology-based healthcare businesses for Microsoft, Nike, T-Mobile, Premera Blue Cross and Eastman Kodak. These commercialization projects led to several patents including Nike’s first wearable technology patents. She is one of Puget Sound Business Journal’s Innovators of the Year and is recognized as an international healthcare leader by organizations such as the U.S.…