Chairman TAG Holdings, LLC

Mr. Joseph Anderson, Jr. is currently the majority owner, Chairman and CEO of TAG Holdings, LLC which owns several manufacturing, service, and technology-based companies in North America.  These entities serve a variety of industries including automotive, heavy equipment, aerospace and defense.  A consummate strategist, Mr. Anderson has acquired and grown several companies. He began his business career with General Motors in 1979 and later became President and CEO of Composite Energy Management Systems, Inc. 

A highly decorated veteran, Mr. Anderson’s military awards include two silver stars, five bronze stars, three Army Commendation Medals, and eleven Air Medals.  He and his infantry platoon were subjects of the highly acclaimed documentary film, “The Anderson Platoon,” which has been shown in more than 20 countries and has won an Oscar and an Emmy. 

A graduate of West Point with a Bachelor of Science in math and engineering, Mr. Anderson received two Masters Degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles and attended the Army’s Command and General Staff College.  He also is a graduate of the Harvard Advanced Management Program and received an Honorary Doctor of Management from Kettering University and an Honorary Doctor of Commercial Science from Central Michigan University. 

Mr. Anderson currently serves on numerous boards including the Board of Directors of Quaker Chemical Corporation, Meritor, Inc., and Rite Aid Corporation. He is also on the Board of Directors of the Original Equipment Suppliers Association, among others.

Program Manager, Technology Transfer Program Department of Energy

Jeremy Benton is the Program Manager for the Technology Transfer Program for the Consolidated Nuclear Security at the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge, TN and Pantex Plant in Amarillo, TX.  In his 6 years in TT, Benton has overseen innovative changes and improvements to the traditional Technology Transfer process driving growth in organization and making the Technology Transfer process more business friendly.  He is a past member of the Department of Energy’s Technology Transfer Working Group Executive Committee, and currently serves on the Federal Laboratory Consortium’s Executive Board as the Southeast Regional Coordinator.  

Prior to Technology Transfer, Benton has held positions in engineering and private business management.  He is an advocate for small businesses and technology based start-ups and serves as a mentor through the Department of Energy’s Mentor-Protégé program.

President/CEO ANASTEEL & Supply Company, LLC ANATEK, Inc., MassAna Construction, LLC (partner)

Born and raised in the Republic of Panama, Anna R. Cablik first launched ANATEK, Inc., a contracting company that specializes in highway bridges in 1982. After leading ANATEK, Inc. to become one of the largest Hispanic-owned firms in Georgia, Ms. Cablik started ANASTEEL & Supply Company, LLC in 1994. ANASTEEL is the only Hispanic/female owned reinforcing steel fabricator in the Southeast, and possibly the United States. In 2001, Mrs. Cablik joined forces with Mark Massmann and started a third company, MassAna Construction, LLC., which is a general contractor specializing in heavy construction.

Despite her busy schedule, Ms. Cablik makes time for extensive community involvement. She is on the Board of Directors of the Georgia Power Company and a member of the Georgia Advisory Board of Branch Banking and Trust (BB&T), the fundraising committee of the Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the Board of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce and Board of the Greater Atlanta Economic Alliance. She has served on the Boards of the United Way of Metropolitan Atlanta, Latin American Association, Saint Joseph’s Mercy Care, Fulton Atlanta Community Action Authority, Advisory Board of “211”, Woman Looking Ahead, United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and Counselors for the Carter Center.

Cablik and her companies have received numerous awards and recognitions. ANATEK, INC. and ANASTEEL & Supply Company have been listed in the Top 500 Hispanic-owned businesses by Hispanic Business Magazine and in the Top 25 Minority Owned Firms by the Atlanta Business Chronicle. Cablik’s awards include the Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce 20th Anniversary Special Award, Minority Construction Firm of the Year – U. S. Department of Commerce and Minority Business Development Agency – Atlanta Region, Finalist Entrepreneur of the Year/Construction Category for Inc. Magazine, and the FBE Phoenix Trail Blazer Award by the City of Atlanta, among others. She not only works diligently to keep her three companies thriving but also gets involved in helping start-up entrepreneurs with financial support and advice. She has worked with six other Hispanic entrepreneurs to assist them in starting businesses.

Cablik obtained a degree in Medical Technology from the Canal Zone College and is married with three sons.

National Director of the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA)

In 2014, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker appointed Ms. Alejandra Y. Castillo to serve as the National Director of the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA).  Ms. Castillo is the first Hispanic-American woman to lead the Agency since its creation.  In this capacity, Ms. Castillo directs the Agency’s strategic efforts to enhance the growth and global competitiveness of minority business enterprises (MBEs).  Under Ms. Castillo’s leadership, the Agency has expanded its effort to help MBEs grow and succeed through access to capital, access to contract and access to business opportunities both domestically and abroad.  Prior to assuming this role, she served as National Deputy Director managing the Agency’s day-to-day operations and its national network of 44 business centers.

Under the Obama Administration, MBDA has assisted minority-owned firms in obtaining nearly $15 billion in contracts and capital and creating and saving over 33,000 new jobs.  She has forged important strategic stakeholder relations and key public-private partnerships.

President/CEO, Production Products

Mr. Barry Corona is President of Production Products located in St. Louis, Missouri.  He founded and has been President of Production Products since 1978.    Production Products designs and manufactures advanced composite structures and components, engineered textiles, machined parts, and electronic assemblies and integration serving the military, industrial, vehicle and medical industries.

Under Mr. Corona’s leadership, the company has grown from a 500 square-foot office front, to three plants totaling 361,000 sq. ft.  Most recently, Production Products designed and manufactured the Aeromedical Biological Containment System (ABCS) and Transportable Isolation System (TIS) used by the Center for Disease Control (CDC), the United States Air Force and various allied countries.  These are the only systems in the world certified to air transport patients with highly infectious illnesses (like Ebola).  Production Products has expertise in the design, development and manufacture of life support equipment and is a leader in Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) Collective Protection since 1994.

As a Hispanic American, Mr. Corona has over forty years of industry experience and is active in advocating for the minority community and St. Louis civic and business councils.  Throughout the last 38 years, Production Products has won over 25 contract performance awards from both federal and state government agencies including the following:

• Department of Commerce Minority Contract of the Year in the United States (2015),

• Department of Defense Minority Contractor of the Year in the United States,

• Defense Logistics Agency Minority Contractor of the Year in the United States,

• Outstanding Achievement Award for performance in Desert Shield and Desert Storm,

• Department of Commerce Central Region Minority Business of the Year,

• Department of Commerce Minority Manufacturer of the Year in the United States,

• National winner of the Tibbits Award for Excellence in Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR)

Vice President - Global Quality & Reliability Improvement Club Car

Tyrone Ellis is VP of Global Quality & Reliability Improvement for Club Car, a Strategic Business Unit of Ingersoll Rand. In this role, Ellis leads a commitment to global quality excellence across all aspects of the life cycle of the company’s products and services. Specific areas of responsibility include warranty administration, technical services, product and safety reliability, supplier quality and new product quality.

Prior to joining Club Car in 2012, Ellis held Integrated Supply Chain leadership roles at companies where world-class business quality, reliability and service programs are recognized for their contributions to performance and reputation. He was global director-quality assurance for Apex Tool Group (2011-2012); global director-quality assurance and service sustainability engineering (consumer divisions) in his last role for Bose Corporation (2001-2010); and unit engineering manager for electronics and fuel system products in his last role for Robert Bosch Corp. (1994-2001).  Over his career, Ellis has won leadership and performance awards at each of these organizations.

Ellis earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Clemson University and an Executive MBA from Tulane. He holds professional certifications from SME and ASQ.  In addition, Ellis serves as an adjunct professor for Midlands Technical College, Executive Sponsor for two Club Car employee groups, and a Board member for three non-profit organizations focused on STEM initiatives for children.

Ellis is married to Dr. Jamelle Ellis and they have three children.  He and his family reside in the Columbia, SC area.

President and CEO, Core Technology Molding Corporation

Geoff Foster founded Core Technology Molding Corporation in 2006 where he is the Chief Executive Officer and President.  Core Technology provides parts for BMW, Ford, Chrysler, Visteon and VW.   In 2015, Core Technology was awarded business with Altria, Parker Hannifin, Husqvarna and most recently with BMW as a Tier I supplier providing parts for X5, X3 & X4 SUVs.   Core Technology is the advanced manufacturing STEM partner for Guilford County Schools.

Geoff Foster was awarded a U.S. Patent for a Sealed Electric Connector for the Ford Motor Company.  Ford has used over 31 million of these parts in the Ford, Lincoln, Jaguar and Mercury models.  The company recently signed a long-term contract with Merck’s Vaccines division and will be utilizing its certified Class 10,000 and Class 1,000 Clean Room.  Other customers include Newell Rubbermaid, Consolidated Metco, Volvo/Mack, Freightliner, Peterbilt, and Kenworth.

In 2009, Core Technology Molding Corporation was named the Minority Supplier of the Year Class I by the Carolinas Virginia Minority Supplier Development Council (CVMSDC) and Minority Supplier of the Year Class II in 2014.  In 2015, Foster was named the Minority Small Business Man of the Year by the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce.

Foster is currently an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Applied Engineering Technology and a faculty advisor for the Society of Plastics Engineers at North Carolina A & T State University.  He received his MBA from the Babcock Graduate School of Business at Wake Forest University and a Master of Science and Bachelor of Science degrees from North Carolina A&T

Director of Membership Engagement Digital Manufacturing & Design Innovation Institute

Jacob Goodwin is the Director of Membership Engagement for the Digital Manufacturing & Design Innovation Institute, or DMDII. In that capacity, Goodwin is responsible for recruiting new industry and academic partners for the Institute, and ensuring that partners remain thoroughly engaged in the Institute’s Research & Development (R&D) and outreach activities.

Prior to joining DMDII, Goodwin wrote about the homeland security sector for more than a decade as the founding Editor-in-Chief of Government Security News, a trade publication. Earlier in his career, he was author of Brotherhood of Arms: General Dynamics and the Business of Defending America, a non-fiction book about the U.S. weapons procurement process published by Random House, and a longtime reporter, editor and radio producer. He has also held sales and marketing positions with large companies in the defense, telecommunications and security sectors. 
 

Director of Supplier Diversity Owens & Minor

Dr. Dannellia Gladden-Green is a seasoned leader with strong entrepreneurial instincts. She has demonstrated success in varied professional capacities that include: procurement & supplier relationship management, marketing and communications, engineering and consumer electronics, as well as operations and general management.  Dr. Gladden-Green’s expertise lies in her transformative abilities for driving the strategic planning and execution process achieving market relevant impact. She places a strong focus on her transferrable skills and core competencies as a means to deliver positively impact across diverse disciplines and industries.

Dr. Gladden-Green is the Director of Supplier Diversity for Owens & Minor (O &M), a leading healthcare logistics company. She represents O&M within the external community and engages key organizational leaders in capacity-building efforts that benefit diverse suppliers supporting O&M’s Supplier Diversity Initiative. The scope of her responsibilities centers on the development and execution of the Initiative’s Strategic Plan.

Dr. Gladden-Green has a great appreciation for the value that diversity of thought, culture, and geography bring to all successful endeavors. Her personal philosophy regarding supply chain diversity is based on a belief that suppliers of diverse distinction tend to be more agile, innovative and responsive. With this purpose-driven perspective, Dr. Gladden-Green spent 15+ years in the electronics industry’s most dominant high-tech companies holding positions of increasing scope and responsibilities. These companies included Texas Instruments, Freescale Semiconductor and Dell Computers. Prior to joining Dell’s Worldwide Procurement organization, she founded SAGEsse Consulting LLC, a marketing and management strategy firm.

Dr. Gladden-Green earned a B.S. in Engineering Physics from North Carolina A&T State University; a S.M. in Electronic Materials from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; and a Ph.D. in Electronic Materials from North Carolina State University. She is also an alumnae of the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas in Austin and has authored two books. She is married to Minister Kelvin Green and has four children.
 

Executive Director, Manufacturing Diversity Institute (MDI)

As Executive Director, Dr. Grenell is responsible for overseeing technical assistance to under-served innovative early stage and second stage manufacturing entrepreneurs in addition to leading the development and designing of stronger and sustainable manufacturing education and workforce systems to prepare individuals from under-served communities to succeed in manufacturing careers and businesses.  He is also the CEO and a founding partner of the Global Capital Group, LLC a global business intelligence trans-disciplinary entrepreneurship and economic development consulting firm located in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin. 

Dr. Genell is the former Vice President and Dean of Diversity and Associate Professor of Africana and Latin American Studies at Colgate University, Associate Provost for Diversity and Associate Professor of Political Science at Marquette University, the Interim Assistant Provost for Diversity for the Office of Diversity and Multicultural Affairs and Director of the Master of Public Administration Program at Auburn University.

Prior to a career in higher education, Dr. Grenell served as a human resources administrator with Entergy Operations (now Entergy Nuclear) a business unit of Entergy Corporation, one of the nation’s largest electrical utility companies.  His primary responsibilities involved recruitment and staffing at corporate and plant sites including Grand Gulf Nuclear Plant and Arkansas Nuclear One in addition to serving on the system-wide career development task force charged with developing an executive and middle management succession planning program.  

Dr. Grenell is a Global Fellow at the Institute of Innovation, Creativity, and Capital (IC²) at the University of Texas at Austin, an internationally recognized think and do tank dedicated to advancing the theory and practice of wealth creation.  He currently serves on the Digital Manufacturing and Design Innovation Institute’s workforce development advisory committee, the Mid-West Energy Research Consortium’s workforce development committee and the advisory board of the Wisconsin Small Business Development Centers Network.  He earned a B.A. in Political Science from Tougaloo College, a Master of Public Policy & Administration (MPPA) from Mississippi State University, and a Ph.D. in Political Science from Northern Illinois University. 

President and CEO, Golden Technlolgy Services

President and CEO Carl Hill founded Golden Technology Services, Inc. (GTS) in 2012.  He is transforming the company from its original status as an IBM only security services agent to a global provider of security services.   Hill recently spearheaded identifying and leveraging multiple partners to recently launch the InteproIQ Insider Threat Training Course.   This strategic initiative further enhances GTS’s ability to deliver total security solutions to customers within the context of its CyberXtra Security Services. 

Hill brings his expertise to many security forums focusing on the primary topic, “Cyber Security Threat Landscape".  These include the Department of Homeland Security Finance Forum, North Carolina Military Business Center, Black Data Processing Associates (BDPA) National Technology Conference, National Minority Supplier Development Council National Conference, North Carolina Defense Business Association, and the Information Security Systems Association Triangle Chapter.  
  
Prior to GTS, Hill served as an IBM Sales Executive leading multiple national and global organizations.   He is the BDPA Triangle Chapter President (ww.bdpa.org), Board Member of the United Minority Contractors of North Carolina (www.umcnc.org), and a graduate of Rhodes College in Memphis.
 

Chief of the Office of Business Development Minority Business Development Agency

Joann J. Hill, a native of Columbia, South Carolina is the Chief of the Office of Business Development for the United States Department of Commerce MBDA.  Hill has served at MBDA for more than a decade and in her current capacity has oversight of the Office of Business Development. She also serves as the lead federal program officer for the nationwide network of more than 40 Business Centers that generate $4 billion in performance goals annually.

Hillis responsible for the creation and implementation of strategies for business development in the areas of access to capital, access to contracts, access to emerging domestic and international markets and global supply chains. Additionally, she facilitates stakeholder collaboration with chambers of commerce and trade associations. Hill also engages in international business initiatives both domestically and abroad, designed to promote business to business linkages.  

Hill has served as Conference Director for the National Minority Enterprise Development (MED) Week Conference, the nation’s largest federally sponsored conference on minority business enterprise.   She holds a Masters of Business Administration degree from Emory University’s Goizueta Business School and a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Benedict College.  Prior to joining MBDA, Hill worked in the areas of operations management, banking, and finance.

Director of Design & Innovation, Georgia Tech School of Mechanical Engineering

Dr. Jariwala is responsible for enhancing corporate support for design courses, managing design/fabrication facilities and mentoring student design teams. His primary focus is on creating and enabling multidisciplinary educational experiences. Over the past four years in this role, Dr. Jariwala has stewarded over $1M of donations from corporate sponsors in support for design education. He oversees the planning and execution of the nation’s largest Capstone Design Expo – a showcase of Georgia Tech Senior Design projects that address challenges and requirements of corporations. In addition to his primary responsibilities, Dr. Jariwala serves as a faculty advisor for the Georgia Tech Invention Studio, a cross-disciplinary makerspace, and Gamma Beta Phi, an on-campus honor society. He is also the President and Chief Technology Officer for AlpZhi, Inc., a university startup based on his Ph.D. research, focused on manufacturing of precision optics.

Dr. Jariwala graduated with a Bachelor of Engineering in Production Engineering from the University of Mumbai, India with honors in 2005 and received a Masters of Technology in Mechanical Engineering in 2007 from IIT Bombay, India. He earned his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Georgia Tech in 2013, with minors in Entrepreneurship. During his Ph.D. studies, he was a participant of the innovative TI:GER® program (funded by NSF:IGERT), which prepares students to commercialize high impact scientific research results. Dr. Jariwala has over ten years of research experience in modeling, simulation, engineering design, and manufacturing process development, with a research focus on the design of polymer based micro additive manufacturing processes. He has been a recipient of several funded projects by the National Science Foundation, the State of Georgia and industry. Dr. Jariwala enjoys mentoring design teams working on high impact projects as well as research in additive manufacturing and engineering education.bout? What makes it interesting? Write a catchy description to grab your audience's attention...

Chief Executive Officer, Center for Civil and Human Rights

Derreck Kayongo is Chief Executive Officer of the Center for Civil and Human Rights and founder of the Global Soap Project, a program which takes partially used soap from hotels, recycles them into new bars of soap, and redistributes the new bars to vulnerable populations around the world.

Kayongo's Global Soap recycling enterprise has partnered with Clean the World to create recycling plants in Las Vegas, Orlando, and Hong Kong with new recycling plants forecast for China and Italy. Today, the Global Soap Project’s distribution operation is active in over 90 countries and the list of participating countries continues to expand. Within the Global Soap Project Recycling program there are over 5,000 membership hotels in the United States alone.

The Global Soap Project earned an endorsement from the American Hotel and Lodging Association in 2013. Kayongo has won several awards including CNN's Top Ten Heroes award in 2011 and the prestigious MAXX entrepreneurship award. His highest accolades include receiving the Certificate of Congressional Recognition by Congressman John Lewis and accolades from Nobel Peace Prize winner Archbishop Desmond Tutu for his work with Global Soap.

Kayongo has been featured as a TEDx speaker and recently coauthored, “The Roadmap to Success,” with Dr. Deepak Chopra and Dr. Ken Blanchard. He is a graduate of the prestigious Fletcher school of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University.

MRO Services & Indirect Procurement Manager Honda Manufacturing of Alabama

Larry Melton has worked in manufacturing and at Honda for over 20 years beginning at Honda Lock of America, a Honda Motor Company.  He became a member of the Honda Manufacturing of Alabama Project Team in 2001 where he has worked in several divisions.  Melton became MRO Services & Indirect Procurement Manager in 2015 after serving as HMA Parts Quality Department Manager.  He is highly experienced in production and quality and has a wealth of knowledge about Honda’s procurement process.  Melton studied business at Wallace College in Selma, AL.

Georgia Tech | Office of the President

Dr. G.P. "Bud" Peterson is the eleventh president of the Georgia Institute of Technology. In this capacity he oversees a top-ten public research university with more than 21,500 students and research expenditures of more than $730 million.

Throughout his career, Dr. Peterson has played an active role in helping to establish the national education and research agendas, serving on numerous industry, government, and academic task forces and committees. A distinguished scientist, Dr. Peterson was selected in 2008 by President George W. Bush to serve on the National Science Board through 2014. The Board oversees the National Science Foundation (NSF) and advises the President and Congress on national policy related to science and engineering research and education.

Dr. Peterson earned undergraduate degrees in mechanical engineering and mathematics as well as a master's degree in engineering from Kansas State University. He earned his doctoral degree in mechanical engineering at Texas A&M University.

Dr. Peterson was born September 1, 1952, in San Francisco, California. He and his wife, Val, have four adult children, two of whom are Georgia Tech graduates. 

Director of Supplier Diversity, Novant Health

Kevin joined Novant Health, an industry leader in providing quality healthcare services, in 2006 after spending a number of years in banking.  He is responsible for diversifying the procurement spend base by the development and implementation of Novant Health’s Supplier Diversity initiative.  Working with various lines of business, Price identifies certified and qualified diverse suppliers, ensuring that they are given an opportunity to compete for Novant Health’s business.  As a result of his efforts, Novant Health has increased its diverse supplier spend more than 300% utilizing over 400 diverse suppliers.  His latest endeavors include the refinement of the Tier II program, encouraging more majority/minority joint ventures and expansion of the Tuck School of Business Minority Executive training program to include a healthcare component.  In recognition, Novant Health has won the 2010 CVMSDC Gov’t/Non-Profit Sector Entity of the Year award, 2012 VHA National Leadership Award for Supplier Diversity and most recently placed 3rd among the 2014 top 10 hospitals nationally, according to DiversityInc magazine.

Kevin obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science/Psychology from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.  He also completed his Masters in Health Administration and Masters in Business Administration from Pfeiffer University.

Novant Health is a not-for-profit integrated group of hospitals and physician practices, caring for patients and communities in North Carolina, Virginia, Georgia and South Carolina.  The Novant Medical Group consists of over 1,000 physicians in 400 clinic locations.  Novant Health owns 13 hospitals.  Other facilities and programs include nursing homes and assisted living, outpatient surgery centers, medical plazas, rehabilitation programs, community health outreach programs and MedQuest, an affiliate diagnostic imaging organization.

President/CEO, Kerma Medical Products

William “Joe” Reubel is the President and CEO of Kerma Medical Products, Inc.  Kerma is a Veteran-Minority Owned Company (VOSB) located in Suffolk, Virginia (Corporate and Manufacturing location) with a division in Miramar, Florida (Direct Sales location).  Reubel is an Army veteran and a second generation, minority, small business entrepreneur.  He launched his first business in 1984 providing helicopter service for oil exploration, reforestation and seismographic surveys.  He later incorporated a telecommunications division, and a wholesale healthcare division. 

Reubel began working with Kerma at the company’s inception and in 2006, he purchased the company from his aunt and uncle, who founded the company in 1991.  Over the past 25 years, Kerma has established itself in the healthcare industry as a company that manufactures, assembles, and packages medical products, along with the direct delivery of Small Cap Equipment and Supplies.  Kerma is now one of the largest diversity manufacturer/supplier companies in the private sector.  It has received numerous awards including the 2014 Savor the Success from the Carolinas Virginia Minority Supplier Development Council, 2014 HealthTrust Vendor Excellence Award, and the 2013 MedAssets Gold Supplier Award.

Vice President, Global Nonwovens Kimberly-Clark Corporation

As Vice President of Global Nonwovens for Kimberly-Clark Corporation, Bob Stargel leads the $1 billion internal sector of the company responsible for development, commercialization and supply of materials used to support Kimberly-Clark's branded personal health and hygiene products.   In his current role, Stargel oversees four manufacturing facilities, including 20 nonwovens machines, a centralized research and engineering team, as well as the planning, finance and manufacturing operations for the sector.

Throughout his Kimberly-Clark career, Stargel has championed efforts to drive innovation at the intersection of his various roles in engineering, research, manufacturing and marketing.  Early in his career, he helped design and startup two new Greenfield nonwovens sites in the LaGrange and Lexington Mills, and went on to lead several first-of-a-kind nonwovens machine designs and rebuilds at Kimberly-Clark.  Prior to his current role, Stargel held the roles of vice president of research, engineering and global growth for Kimberly-Clark Professional, and vice president of product and technology development for Global Nonwovens.

In addition to his corporate responsibilities, Stargel is on the boards for the College of Engineering at Georgia Tech, Women in Engineering at Georgia Tech, a Trustee for the Georgia Tech Foundation, and past chair for the Georgia Tech Alumni Association.  He serves on the finance committee for the Georgia Council of Economics Education, and the board of the Georgia Ensemble Theatre.  He is also a member of the European Disposables and Nonwovens Association (EDANA) Board of Governors.

A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, Stargel holds a bachelor’s of science degree in Electrical Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) in Atlanta.  He was honored with the Rodney Chip Memorial Award in 2007 by the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) for his lifetime support of women in engineering.  In 2014, Stargel was inducted into the Distinguished Engineering Alumni for Georgia Tech.

Stargel is married to Jocelyn (Cooper), who is also a Georgia Tech graduate.  They have two children, Sean (26) and Chloe (22).

President, Capitol Advisors on Technology, LLC

Capitol Advisors on Technology, LLC was established to address the need for industry, academia, and government to identify opportunities, develop strategic partnerships and leverage their resources associated with technology development, commercialization, education and outreach activities.

Founder and President, Tyrone C. Taylor possesses a highly unique mix of skills that enable him to assist organizations achieve their goals. He also holds a unique balance of private, non-profit and public sector experience which includes over 20 years of experience at NASA in a variety of senior management positions. While at NASA, he was one of the first 100 employees selected to support the Space Station program and rose quickly through the ranks to become a member of the Senior Executive Service.

At the request of the NASA Administrator, he served on several special project teams that included assessing the organizational structure of the Space Station program following the Challenger accident, and leading the National Technology Initiative interagency effort. His experience also includes three years as the Washington, DC representative for the Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer, a congressionally chartered organization, where he represented the Nation's federal research and development community. While in this position he led the charge for federal agencies to collaborate with industry in the development and transition of manufacturing, assistive, and information technologies as examples tot the marketplace.

Additionally he served as President of Government Operations and Senior Vice President for Marketing and Business Development, for Unisphere Inc., a technology commercialization firm. He was the principal liaison for Defense and Civilian research and development laboratories, Congress and the small business community. In this role he collaborated with private sector firms to facilitate the identification, development and commercialization of promising defense dual-use technologies. These experiences enable Capitol Advisors to understand the challenges and opportunities working with the public and private sectors.

Director of Strategic Partnerships and Program Development, Hollingsworth Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP), National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)

As Director of Partnerships and Program Development (PPD) for the MEP, Mark Troppe leads a team responsible for working with MEP centers, and federal, state and industry partners to develop and deploy programs and services to help manufacturers enhance their competitiveness. These include efforts to accelerate technology adoption by small/midsized enterprises (SMEs), deliver supply chain optimization services, connect manufacturers with potential suppliers, and address workforce issues.  Troppe and the PPD team play an important role in MEP’s initiatives for transforming manufacturing in the United States. 

Troppe has held a variety of economic and workforce development positions in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. In addition to nearly 13 years at NIST MEP, he worked with the White House Council on Automotive Communities and Workers from 2009-2010. From 2000-2007, he served as Director of Economic and Workforce Development at the National Center on Education and the Economy (NCEE).  At NCEE Troppe wrote about, developed courses, and delivered training on the nature of and opportunities for effective collaboration between workforce and economic development organizations.  His prior jobs include Director of Training for US Web’s internet hosting division and Director of Kids and the Power of Work (KAPOW), a nonprofit program that promoted career awareness with elementary school youth. Troppe started his career working for ten years in the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration.

President / CEO, Summit Container Corporation

Adam C. Walker began serving as Summit Container Corporation’s Chief Executive Officer through an acquisition strategy in January 2014.  Walker has implemented a growth strategy focused on technology, innovation, new market expansion and mergers and acquisitions to accelerate the growth of Summit Container.  He has focused relentlessly on revenue growth, customer satisfaction and shareholder value creation.  Throughout his career, Walker has served as a high-impact strategist with experience spanning global manufacturing operations, business development, marketing, strategic business unit leadership and turn-around assignment.  He is an accomplished business executive with over twenty years of packaging expertise serving technology, automotive, beverage, and other industries. 

Prior to acquiring Summit Container Corporation, Walker co-founded and led Homestead Packaging Solutions, an innovative and award winning packaging manufacturer with facilities in Tennessee and Michigan.  Under his leadership, the company received numerous awards including the NMSDC Supplier of the Year and the United States Department of Commerce, MBDA Regional Manufacturer of the Year.  Walker launched his career as a running back in the National Football League (NFL) where he played for seven consecutive seasons beginning and ending with the Philadelphia Eagles in 1990 and 1996 respectively.  He also played for the San Francisco 49ers from 1991 to 1995 and was a member of the 1994 49ers Super Bowl XXIX championship team.  Recognized for his leadership on and off the field, Walker served as special teams captain from 1994-1996 for both the 49ers and the Eagles; received 1994’s post-season special teams MVP; nominated for the Ed Block Award for Courage in 1995; received the 1996 special teams Player of the Year award; and the NFL’s Player Network Events (PNE) Executive of the Year. 

Currently, Walker serves on the Board of Directors of the National Minority Supplier Development Council, Gwinnett Technical College, the Georgia Small Business Center, and is a member of the Young Presidents Organization (YPO).   He received his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration degree from the University of Pittsburgh and completed the Advanced Management Executive Program from Northwestern University – Kellogg School of Management.