Georgia State’s Robinson College of Business Archives

North Fulton Studio

Wellstar Chamber Luncheon Series: 2021 Economic Outlook with Professor Rajeev Dhawan, Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University

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Wellstar Chamber Luncheon Series: 2021 Economic Outlook with Professor Rajeev Dhawan, Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University (GNFCC 400 Insider, Episode 55)

Georgia State University’s Dr. Rajeev Dhawan joined this GNFCC WellStar Chamber Luncheon to offer his perspective on the metro Atlanta, Georgia, and national economies. He also commented on singular advantages which North Fulton possesses which aid in recovery, and why he believes a national recovery will not begin in earnest until 2022.

The host of “The GNFCC 400 Insider” is GNFCC CEO Kali Boatright, and the show is presented by the Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce and produced by the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX®. John Ray and North Fulton Business RadioX served as the media sponsor for this event.

Professor Rajeev Dhawan, Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University

**Professor Rajeev Dhawan, Georgia State University**

Professor Rajeev Dhawan wears a dual hat as holder of the Zwerner Chair of Economic Forecasting and as Director of the Economic Forecasting Center at the Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University in Atlanta, Georgia.

As director of one of the country’s premiere forecasting centers, Dhawan develops forecasts for the U.S., Southeast regional and local metro Atlanta economies. These forecasts are regularly published and presented to business executives and the media at the Center’s popular, well-respected quarterly forecasting conferences.

Dr. Rajeev Dhawan has served as an advisor to several local and state government agencies and numerous publicly-held companies such as Coca-Cola, Georgia Power, Raymond James and Turner Broadcasting, among others. He currently serves as the chair of the advisory committee for regional growth for the Atlanta Regional Commission and is also a member of the Georgia Governor’s Council of Economic Advisors since 2003.

Dr. Dhawan’s academic research analyzes U.S. business cycles with a special emphasis on the role of credit markets on growth and survival of small firms.

About GNFCC and “The GNFCC 400 Insider”

**Kali Boatright, President and CEO of GNFCC**

“The GNFCC 400 Insider” is presented by the Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce (GNFCC) and is hosted by Kali Boatright, President and CEO of GNFCC. The Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce is a private, non-profit, member-driven organization comprised of over 1400 business enterprises, civic organizations, educational institutions and individuals. Their service area includes Alpharetta, Johns Creek, Milton, Mountain Park, Roswell and Sandy Springs. GNFCC is the leading voice on economic development, business growth and quality of life issues in North Fulton County.

The GNFCC promotes the interests of our members by assuming a leadership role in making North Fulton an excellent place to work, live, play and stay. They provide one voice for all local businesses to influence decision makers, recommend legislation, and protect the valuable resources that make North Fulton a popular place to live.

For more information on GNFCC and its North Fulton County service area, follow this link or call (770) 993-8806. For more information on other GNFCC events such as this North Fulton Mayors Appreciation Lunch, follow this link.

For the complete show archive of “The GNFCC 400 Insider,” go to GNFCC400Insider.com. “The GNFCC 400 Insider” is produced by John Ray and the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX®.

Atlanta Business Radio

Tommy Marshall with Georgia Fintech Academy and Brian Jennings and Davisha Patel with Robinson College of Business and Daniel Hadgu with Ethiopay

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Tommy Marshall, Executive Director, Georgia Fintech Academy, University System of Georgia, has spent his 20+ year management consulting career focused on digital financial services and fintech. He works to bring his depth in payments, banking, capital markets, finance & regulation together with the Georgia and global fintech ecosystem to lead and support the objectives of the Georgia Fintech Academy.

Tommy is a graduate of Davidson College and holds an MBA from Vanderbilt University. He has called Atlanta home for the past ten years.

Connect with Tommy on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Brian Jennings is the Associate Dean of Graduate Programs and Executive Education at Georgia State’s Robinson College of Business.

In this role, he has overall responsibility for the growth, go-to-market strategy and delivery of Robinson’s two MBA degree programs (Flexible and Executive) and a broad portfolio of 14 specialized masters’ offerings, overseeing the programs’ recruiting, admissions, financial aid, student experience, student advisement and alumni engagement functions. In addition, he leads the College’s non-degree executive education business and works closely with senior management teams and talent development executives at a number of Fortune 500 companies.

Prior to his appointment at Georgia State, Brian was an Associate Dean at Georgia Tech for 9 years, providing overall leadership for the expansion of Scheller College of Business’ Full-time, Evening and Executive MBA programs and non-degree executive education portfolio.

Before to moving to Atlanta in 2010, Brian held dual roles at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania – as Senior Director at the Aresty Institute of Executive Education and as Managing Director of the Mack Center of Technological Innovation. His responsibilities at Wharton included assessing talent development needs at global Fortune-class companies in the manufacturing, energy and technology industries and aligning the School’s thought leadership and research capabilities to clients’ interests.

Prior to moving to academia, Brian had an extensive career in the technology consulting industry, spending 17 years in client-facing and business development roles at global firms such as Accenture, PwC and IBM.

Connect with Brian on LinkedIn.

Davisha Patel is currently finishing her last semester as an MBA student at the Robinson College of Business at Georgia State. During her time, she has participated in the Graduate Mentoring Program as well as been a part of the Graduate Business Association and Graduate Management Consulting Club.

Prior to joining Georgia State, Davisha attended Mercer University for both her undergraduate degree and Masters in Public Health. Her focus in healthcare allowed her the opportunity to intern at the State Capitol during a legislative session as well as perform research on telemedicine usage in rural Georgia.

With the combination of healthcare and business, Davisha plans to begin her career in the consulting industry after the completion of her program.

Daniel Hadgu has interned at several financial services companies such as IFS securities one of Atlanta’s Largest African American-Owned Broker Firms and Nomura Holdings on Wall Street. This summer he will be joining Vanguard as an Investment Management Intern one of the few students from a nontarget to be selected for that position. He is currently an Equity Research Analyst at BLK Capital Management one of the largest student-owned non-profit hedge funds.

Daniel is also a founding member of a Fin-Tech company, EthioPay which specializes in cross-border payments to Ethiopia he is currently in TYE competing to win funding for EthioPay. In his journey of understanding what it truly means to help others, he has uncovered the power of innovation. Innovation is the act or process of introducing new ideas, devices, or methods. Through his own life experiences of being a first-generation Eritrean American, he has found at the crossroads of innovation and entrepreneurship lies impact. This is what led him to my current pursuit of understanding the increasing global challenges faced in Ethiopia cross border payment. Ethiopay, is his entrepreneurial project to address this issue and develop a global payout platform.

Connect with Daniel on LinkedIn.