renasant bank Archives - Page 30 of 33

Susan Bonds-McCulloch, Dress For Success Atlanta

February 17, 2022 by John Ray

North Fulton Business Radio

Susan Bonds-McCulloch, Dress For Success Atlanta

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Susan Bonds-McCulloch, Dress For Success Atlanta (North Fulton Business Radio, Episode 434)

Much more than a clothes closet, Dress For Success Atlanta works to meet the deeper needs of the women they serve. Executive Director Susan Bonds-McCulloch joined host John Ray to detail the various programs they have and offer some of their success stories. Susan discussed Dressed For Success’s professional training, encouragement, Career Center, the annual Gala that helps keep the work going, and much more. North Fulton Business Radio is broadcast from the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX® inside Renasant Bank in Alpharetta.

Dress For Success Atlanta

The mission of Dress for Success Atlanta is to empower women to achieve economic independence by providing a network of support, career development tools, and professional attire to help women thrive in work and in life.

DFSA is not just a clothing closet, but also boasts a Career Center that is staffed with volunteer companies within our community. These professionals work with Dress for Success-Atlanta’s clients reviewing resumes, conducting mock interviews, helping with LinkedIn and other social media. The goal was for the business community to connect with the clients that Dress for Success serves in a meaningful way. There has been an overwhelming response to this corporate volunteer opportunity and the clients that Dress for Success serves continue to say how unexpected it is to work directly with a volunteer who has taken time out of their workday to help them achieve their goals!

Some of the companies that now work with Dress for Success-Atlanta include Delta Airlines, UPS, Masco, State Farm, Capital One, and many others. Dress for Success and its clients are truly overwhelmed by the desire of others in our community to help them succeed.

DFSA hosts several networking and educational programs such as Career KickStart, Inspire Success, Tools for Success, and Professional Workshops that are invaluable to the women they serve and the Atlanta Community as a whole.

The long-term goals for DFSA include a mobile unit and another Dress for Success location. DFSA’s desire is to help stem the cycle of poverty and to have a generational impact!

Company website | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram

Susan Bonds-McCulloch, President/Executive Director, Dress For Success Atlanta

Because of her passion to give back and help women, Susan Bonds-McCulloch joined Dress for Success-Atlanta (DFSA) as their Executive Director in October 2018. Prior to this Susan had a 20+ year career in the insurance industry as an Employee Benefit Broker working with companies to help them plan, design, and implement their benefit programs. Susan found that her passion was helping others when they needed it most…when they or a loved one needed care.

Since joining Dress for Success-Atlanta, Susan has implemented many changes with the goal to empower more women in our community. DFSA relocated and now boasts a bright welcoming location for the women they serve. DFSA held their very first Gala in November of 2019 and pivoted during 2020 to hold a virtual gala!! The 3rd annual event will be held on September 17th at the InterContinental Hotel in Buckhead. Without these signature events, DFSA could not continue to serve its community.

Susan loves to meet others who wish to be a part of and help with the mission of helping women in our community. This includes businesses that may wish to partner with DFSA along with individuals who may wish to work with DFSA on committees, through volunteerism, or by giving back monetarily.

In addition, Susan is a founding member of a women’s group the Women’s Introduction Group (WIG). WIG is a group designed by women for women to help them navigate their careers, network, and give back to our community. The goal is to always help another woman grow their career path.

Questions and Topics in this Interview:

Tell me about Dress for Success Atlanta? Who you are and the population you serve?
Have you always worked in a non-profit? What led you to Dress for Success?
It sounds like you do more than just dress women, can you tell me a bit more about the programs that you offer?
Can you tell me how the annual Gala event helps the women that Dress for Success Atlanta serves?
What is your 3 – 5 year plan for Dress for Success Atlanta?
What are some of your most urgent needs?

North Fulton Business Radio is hosted by John Ray and broadcast and produced from the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX® inside Renasant Bank in Alpharetta. You can find the full archive of shows by following this link. The show is available on all the major podcast apps, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google, Amazon, iHeart Radio, Stitcher, TuneIn, and others.

Renasant Bank has humble roots, starting in 1904 as a $100,000 bank in a Lee County, Mississippi, bakery. Since then, Renasant has grown to become one of the Southeast’s strongest financial institutions with over $13 billion in assets and more than 190 banking, lending, wealth management and financial services offices in Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia and Florida. All of Renasant’s success stems from each of their banker’s commitment to investing in their communities as a way of better understanding the people they serve. At Renasant Bank, they understand you because they work and live alongside you every day.

Special thanks to A&S Culinary Concepts for their support of this edition of North Fulton Business Radio. A&S Culinary Concepts, based in Johns Creek, is an award-winning culinary studio, celebrated for corporate catering, corporate team building, Big Green Egg Boot Camps, and private group events. They also provide oven-ready, cooked from scratch meals to go they call “Let Us Cook for You.” To see their menus and events, go to their website or call 678-336-9196.

Peter Carpenter, Thoroughbred Design Group

February 16, 2022 by John Ray

North Fulton Business Radio

Peter Carpenter, Thoroughbred Design Group

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Peter Carpenter, Thoroughbred Design Group (North Fulton Business Radio, Episode 433)

Peter Carpenter, Owner and Creative Director at Thoroughbred Design Group, was in the studio with host John Ray to discuss branding and design. He talked about how to create impactful branding, how he works with schools and school systems to take the seed of their ideas to branding which connects with the community, the unique branding challenges of educational institutions, his work with the FoCAL Center, his thoughts on work and life balance, and much more. North Fulton Business Radio is broadcast from the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX® inside Renasant Bank in Alpharetta.

Thoroughbred Design Group

Thoroughbred Design Group is a creative agency headquartered in Alpharetta, GA.

They provide award-winning graphic design for their clients, and help take their marketing efforts to the next level.

Whether your needs range from direct mail and advertisement or identity development and annual report design, Thoroughbred Design Group will provide creative options to satisfy the most discriminating tastes. Working together with their clients, they produce winning results.

Company website | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram

Peter Carpenter, Creative Director, Thoroughbred Design Group

Peter Carpenter is the owner and creative director at Thoroughbred Design Group. His dream of building a branding and creative agency stems back to high school when he worked for the various industry-related businesses in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

His time spent at an ad agency fueled his fire. Looking over the shoulders of art directors and photographers as they designed ads for Harley-Davidson and seeing the finished work of art in print was his Disney World! Peter worked for 8 years after college in corporate and small agency settings when in 1998 decided to break out on his own!

Thoroughbred Design Group had designed for almost every industry and collected several national awards for their work. Peter has 2 daughters. One in the marketing field and the other recently graduated from Georgia! Go Dawgs! She is about to enter some post-graduate education in order to become a nurse anesthetist.

In his free time, Peter enjoys music, good company, and football!

Questions and Topics in this Interview:

FoCAL Center opening (design of various elements to help brand and market the grand opening)
Supply chain issues related to Covid
Focus on the educational industry as we grow.
Embrace eNewsletter and Social Media presence for TDG – Engage/Inform/have fun!
Work/Life Balance – Continuing to hone the ideal balance
Branding and visual development of the Wellness Program within the Forsyth County school system.

Julie Zweig, MD

February 16, 2022 by John Ray

North Fulton Business Radio

Julie Zweig, MD

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Julie Zweig, MD (North Fulton Business Radio, Episode 432)

Julie Zweig, MD joined host John Ray to discuss her specialties of sleep issues, hormone optimization, wellness, functional medicine, and allergies. Dr. Zweig left a large practice after twenty-one years to open her own practice so she could spend more time with her patients, enabling her to utilize all her areas of expertise and offer more integrated answers for her patients’ health issues. Dr. Zweig discussed the dangers of sleep apnea, how allergies and the gut are related, what functional medicine is, and much more. North Fulton Business Radio is broadcast from the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX® inside Renasant Bank in Alpharetta.

Julie Zweig, MD

Julie Zweig, a physician in Alpharetta, is Board Certified in both Ear Nose and Throat Surgery and Sleep Medicine. She also has advanced training in aesthetics, hormone optimization, and Functional Medicine. Dr. Zweig had been practicing with a large group for over 21 years but has recently started her own solo practice.

Dr. Zweig grew up right here in Atlanta Georgia. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, her Medical Degree from Emory University, and her Specialty training at the Eye and Ear Institute in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania. Dr. Zweig enjoys spending quality time with her husband David and has three children. When she is not with her patients, Dr. Zweig loves to hike with her two very energetic Standard Poodles. She also loves Horseback riding and traveling. Unfortunately, she just lost the last of her 15 chickens.

Dr. Zweig is one of only a few Integrative Sleep and ENT physicians in the entire country, and to her knowledge, the only one in the southeast.

Company website | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram

Questions and Topics in this Interview:

Why did you leave your big practice that you were with for 21 years?
Tell us a little bit about your practice and what you offer?
Tell us why you got interested in Sleep Medicine
How does it work when a patient comes in to see you for snoring or a sleep problem?
How do you treat Snoring and Sleep Problems?
I understand you have expertise in hormone optimization. Why Hormones… what are they? How do they help with sleep?
Can you explain what Functional Medicine is and how it related to Sleep and ENT?
What happens during a Wellness appointment?
There are quite a few Ear nose and throat and sleep physicians in the area as well as functional medicine doctors. Can you tell us how you are unique?
How can people find out more about your practice, both the more traditional side as well as the Wellness side

Renasant Roots Entrepreneurial Success Series, with Antonio Henson, Renasant Bank, Mia Martin, Modern Creatif, and Trenton Carson, TC Productions

February 14, 2022 by John Ray

North Fulton Business Radio

Renasant Roots Entrepreneurial Success Series, with Antonio Henson, Renasant Bank, Mia Martin, Modern Creatif, and Trenton Carson, TC Productions

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Renasant Roots Entrepreneurial Success Series, with Antonio Henson, Renasant Bank, Mia Martin, Modern Creatif, and Trenton Carson, TC Productions (North Fulton Business Radio, Episode 431)

The Renasant Roots Entrepreneurial Success Series is a capacity-building program designed to assist small business owners with business development, marketing, networking, and many other benefits. Two participants in the most recent Atlanta-based cohort, Mia Martin of Modern Creatif and Trenton Carson of TC Productions, joined Antonio Henson of Renasant to discuss how the program came to be, their experience with it, the benefits they have realized, and much more. North Fulton Business Radio is broadcast from the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX® inside Renasant Bank in Alpharetta.

Renasant Roots Entrepreneurial Success Series

Renasant Bank is proud to introduce the Renasant Roots Entrepreneurial Success Series to the Atlanta market. The capacity building workshop is a four-week program customized to help small business owners sharpen their business development skills and fill gaps in their knowledge and experience to make their enterprises stronger. Renasant Roots was created in partnership with the Birmingham Business Resource Center four years ago.

With the program having great success in the Birmingham market, Renasant’s Birmingham team and the BBRC are sharing the Renasant Roots template with the Atlanta Renasant team to share with small business owners in Atlanta. “We are excited to bring the Renasant Roots program to the Atlanta market. After watching the success and growth of the program in Birmingham, we decided that it would be a great opportunity to share these business resources with the Atlanta community as well,” said Zennie Lynch, Atlanta Market President. “In addition to the skills development and powerful information these participants will receive, they will also be provided with a small business development grant of $2,500 when they complete the program.”

The workshop will focus on business development and planning, marketing and branding, accounting principles and tax preparation, funding options, and resource development. Speakers for the sessions will be provided by Invest Atlanta, Access to Capital for Entrepreneurs, LiftFund, and Atlanta Black Chambers.

There is no cost to participate in the program other than committing 10 hours over five weeks. 10 participants will be selected through an application process.

Company website | LinkedIn | Facebook

Antonio Henson, MBA, First Vice President – Community Lending Relationship Director, Renasant Bank

**Antonio Henson, MBA, First VP- Community Lending Relationship Director, Renasant Bank**

Antonio Henson has over twenty years of experience in business and banking. He has facilitated training sessions for staff aimed at enhancing product & credit knowledge and regulatory procedures.

Antonio has structured project financing designed to spur neighborhood revitalization efforts in the low-income communities throughout the State of New Jersey and Metro Atlanta. This action involved community outreach and working with elected officials, government agencies, quasi-public agencies and the private sector to promote revitalization and commercial development.

He has provided expertise and assistance to various community-based organizations, to assist them with meeting the financial needs of their respective organizations.

Mia Martin, CEO, Modern Creatif

Modern Créatif was founded in 2013 by Mia D. Martin because of her passion to educate and help professionals position themselves as subject matter experts with their professional brands and businesses. Mia worked in sales and marketing for a Fortune 10 Consumer Package Goods company for 14 years. During her professional career, she developed hundreds of employees throughout the country and managed thousands of retail and wholesale relationships.

Mia is passionate about taking her professional experiences and transferring it to her clients through effective strategy development for marketing, branding, and professional presentation.

Modern Créatif takes pride in not just providing deliverables but also effective education and strategy development. To date, Modern Créatif has served hundreds of Atlanta entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs throughout the country. Modern Créatif is passionate about workforce development in Atlanta and has provided free online training resources through our free Agency Academy. We have also developed educational resources for Access to Capital for Entrepreneurs to service the NPU-V and developing businesses.

Our Mission is to provide premium-level services that empower entrepreneurs to best represent their business and brand.

Mia has worked with SBDC UGA at GSU, SCORE, the Women’s Entrepreneurial Opportunity Project, General Assembly, Atlanta Business League, 21st Century Leaders, The Network of Executive Women, The Commerce Club-Marketing Club, Georgia Power Supplier Diversity Council, and more to help educate entrepreneurs and professionals on Professional Presentation, and Branding and Marketing Strategy as a strategist and professional speaker.

Mia is a proud member of the Harvard Business Review Advisory Council and a board member for the Kettering Executive Network.

Company website | LinkedIn | Facebook

Trenton Carson, President, TC Productions

TC Productions Video Production Company is a full-service video production company that partners with marketing executives and business owners. They develop and execute highly customized video marketing campaigns focused on driving leads, awareness, brand loyalty and retention. Their focus is in Branding, Marketing and Testimonial video production.

The two areas their company specialize in:

They produce videos specifically for your intended audience – Video Production.
They get those videos in front of your intended audience – Video Marketing.

They have helped their clients:

*Build brand awareness and establish an influencing presence online
*Effectively use video as a tool in their marketing strategy
*Create evergreen content that enhances their marketing message
*Become comfortable with the growing demand the market has for videos

What they learned:
Stories are in everything you do. Your brand and the story it tells impacts people, what they believe, how they feel, and the decisions they make. The combination of visuals and sound evokes emotions more effectively than text alone. If you want to draw your viewers in, connect with them emotionally, and move them to take the next step, working with TC Productions to produce your next video will make you the company hero.

Company website | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram

Questions and Topics in this Interview:

Antonio Henson
Renasant Roots and how it started
Mia Martin and Modern Creatif
Trenton Carson and TC Productions
Applications for the next Cohort

North Fulton Business Radio is hosted by John Ray, and broadcast and produced from the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX® inside Renasant Bank in Alpharetta. You can find the full archive of shows by following this link. The show is available on all the major podcast apps, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google, Amazon, iHeart Radio, Stitcher, TuneIn, and others.

Becca Goldsberry, Southwestern Coaching

February 14, 2022 by John Ray

Business Leaders Radio

Becca Goldsberry, Southwestern Coaching

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Becca Goldsberry, Southwestern Coaching

Becca Goldsberry with Southwestern Coaching joined host John Ray to address why a coach can be indispensable for a business owner or executive as they strive for their professional and personal goals. Becca discussed the role of a coach in providing accountability, the value of coaching at all stages of a career, success stories, how she works with clients, and much more. Business Leaders Radio is produced virtually from the Business RadioX® studios in Atlanta.

Southwestern Coaching, a division of Southwestern Consulting

Southwestern Consulting’s story actually begins with another member of the Southwestern Family of Companies—Southwestern Advantage. Established in 1855 in Nashville, Tennessee, The Southwestern Publishing House published and sold Bibles door-to-door, allowing young people to not only learn the sales profession at an early age, but also to earn money to pay for a college education. Southwestern Advantage was developed out of that model, and today, Advantage continues to thrive as the Family of Companies’ core entity, with college-aged entrepreneurs around the world selling and promoting educational study systems.

One of those savvy entrepreneurs, Dustin Hillis, saw the opportunity to take the skills he learned in Advantage and teach them to other sales professionals and leaders, elevating the perception of sales to a true relationship-building profession. Thus, Southwestern Consulting was born. Co-founder and CEO, Hillis, along with other top-producing Southwestern Advantage alumni founded the company on the principles of sales and leadership coaching, establishing the first division, Southwestern Coaching. In the coming years, those principles would be expanded to the newer divisions, elevating events with high-quality, engaging speakers, and empowering people to reach their true potential.

Company website | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram

Becca Goldsberry, Elite Sales and Leadership Coach, Southwestern Coaching

Becca is an Elite Sales and Leadership Coach and an expert at recruiting, lead generation, and business development. She has led a large organization with over 300 team members. As a leader, she is recognized as a top recruiter and loves developing team members to help them achieve their goals and dreams.
She has worked with her family’s five businesses, which included a 65-year-old excavation company, a lake management and treatment company, and a farm management company. While working with the family businesses, she helped develop a family foundation, sat on numerous boards, and helped with business plans and strategies on how to incorporate the third and fourth generations.

Becca worked as a family therapist and school counselor for six years prior before moving into sales. While in sales, Becca has held sales positions focusing on new business development, territory management, recruitment, and retention.

Becca graduated from the University of Louisville with a master’s in social work and an undergraduate degree from Concordia University.

• Was in the Top 50, out of over 10,000 sales associates
• Former top producer in business development by increasing new business sales by over 170%
• Experienced merchandiser for several large Fortune 500 companies including the world’s largest retailer
• Former certified corporate trainer and trained hundreds of new consultants

You can find Becca volunteering her time raising money for cancer research, The Junior League of Indianapolis, volunteering with Church charities, traveling around the world when she can with her husband and kids, cooking up awesome meals for her family and friends to have some quality time together. Becca is an avid parrot head and you can find her at Jimmy Buffett’s concerts when they come into town.

Becca’s mission and purpose is to help others see their greatest potential and pursue their dreams. She is committed to helping people to believe in their ultimate potential in life and inspires them to live a life of excellence, joy and success.

Website | LinkedIn | Facebook

Questions and Topics

What is a coach, why should people in business or salespeople have a coach?
The Power of Perspective
How do you maintain perseverance and focus?
Becca’s passion for helping clients find their why, purpose, and passion for what they do.
How connecting your vision with your day-to-day activities makes you unstoppable
The importance of daily motivation
The various ways Southwestern Consulting can serve companies.

Business Leaders Radio is hosted by John Ray and produced virtually from the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX® in Alpharetta. The show can be found on all the major podcast apps and a full archive can be found here.

Heather Rogers, Simply Organized

February 9, 2022 by John Ray

North Fulton Business Radio

Heather Rogers, Simply Organized

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Heather Rogers, Simply Organized (North Fulton Business Radio, Episode 430)

Heather Rogers, owner of Simply Organized, joined host John Ray in the studio to discuss her packing, unpacking, and professional organizing services. Heather talked about why hiring a professional organizer saves so much time and stress, what to look for when you hire a mover, her own major lesson in self-care, and much more. North Fulton Business Radio is broadcast from the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX® inside Renasant Bank in Alpharetta.

Simply Organized

Simply Organized was founded to help people simplify their lives. Their typical client usually feels overwhelmed in their home or office or wants more time in their day and less stress in their lives.

They specialize in helping people who work from home, anyone who is getting their home ready to sell, needs packing or unpacking help, and in time and routine management coaching. We serve the Atlanta metro area, including Cherokee, Cobb, Dawson, North DeKalb, Forsyth, North Fulton, Gwinnett, and Hall.

The Simply Organized team has the training and skills to help you organize everything from your hectic schedule, family, home, and office in all metro Atlanta areas. We only hire experienced professional organizers so you can be certain anyone from Simply Organized knows how to de-clutter, sort, pack, unpack, pre-stage, and help with spatial planning.

Company website | LinkedIn | Facebook

Heather Rogers, Owner, Simply Organized

Heather Rogers is a professional organizer, owner of Simply Organized and author of “A Simplified Life”. She and her team specialize in helping people decrease the clutter in their lives, create a more organized environment, manage their time more effectively, increase productivity and maintain calm in the midst of a busy life.

Her clients include professionals and entrepreneurs who work from home, anyone who is getting their home ready to sell, individuals and families who need help packing or unpacking, and busy professionals and families who need assistance with time management and space maintenance coaching.

A Georgia native, Heather has worked in the insurance and financial services industries, as well as in customer service and sales. She has a passion for helping people and a keen sense of spatial planning and organizing. Ironically, she earned a bachelor’s degree in risk management from the University of Georgia. Isn’t being disorganized one of the greatest risks in life?

She is the past president of the National Association of Professional Organizers Georgia (NAPO) and frequently speaks to groups about the benefits of time management and the costs of disorganization.

Questions and Topics in this Interview:

How to take the stress out of moving
How to hire a mover
Packing and unpacking services
Certified professional organizer
National Association of Professional Organizers, or NAPO

Brian Falony, Inovautus Consulting

February 8, 2022 by John Ray

Business Leaders Radio

Brian Falony, Inovautus Consulting

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Brian Falony, Inovautus Consulting

Brian Falony with Inovautus Consulting joined host John Ray to discuss marketing for accounting firms. Brian has extensive marketing experience with multiple accounting firms, and he shared his thoughts about how accounting firms can excel by updating their marketing perspective and processes. He and John discussed how marketing in the accounting industry has evolved, the role of marketing in talent acquisition and succession, why he’s active in the Association for Accounting Marketing, his work with Inovautus, and much more. Business Leaders Radio is produced virtually from the Business RadioX® studios in Atlanta.

Inovautus Consulting

Inovautus helps firms assess their marketing and business development strategy, customize practical growth plans and guide the execution of those plans through leadership, coaching and training services.

The Inovautus Consulting Complete Professional Advisor™ offers accounting and advisory professionals the comprehensive set of programs they need to grow their practice while still providing their clients with top-quality service.
In collaboration with the Association for Accounting Marketing, the Inovautus Consulting Growth Outlook Survey takes an annual pulse check on the state of marketing and growth across the accounting firm profession.

The name Inovautus is a creative combination of the English word innovate, and the Latin word autus, which means growth. The mission of the company is to help firms grow faster and in the right direction.

They proudly represent and provide for a full range of accounting firms and work hard to stay on top of trends, while integrating best practices with practical application. All their business development consultants have worked inside accounting firms as marketing professionals with a seat at the leadership table.

Company website |LinkedIn | Facebook

Brian Falony, Inovautus Consulting

Brian Falony is a Consultant with Inovautus Consulting. He works with clients to develop a strong market identity and brand as well as create marketing plans and strategies tailored to the client’s specific needs and capabilities. He also helps clients improve lead generation and conversion.

He has over 30 years of experience in accounting marketing. Prior to joining Inovautus, he led the marketing functions for two of the top 50 CPA firms in the U.S. and has consulted with firms across North America on improving their marketing programs. In 2013, he was inducted into the Association for Accounting Marketing Hall of Fame.

Questions and Topics

Tell us your story
What led you to choose to work at Innovatus?
What are some of the differences in marketing from the larger firms to the smaller firms?
Do you hear objections to updating marketing to include social media?
What short-term things can firms do to realize results from their marketing?
What elements does a firm need to have to take the next step in their marketing?
Talk about the shift towards being an advisory firm and what’s required to do that
Tell us about the Association for Accounting Marketing
Tell us about what Inovautus offers

Thomas Storteboom, i2e Solutions

December 10, 2021 by John Ray

North Fulton Business Radio

Thomas Storteboom, i2e Solutions

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Thomas Storteboom, i2e Solutions (North Fulton Business Radio, Episode 422)

Thomas Storteboom, CEO of i2e Solutions, joined host John Ray to discuss the innovation and product development consulting he does for a variety of companies. Thomas and John talked about how i2e Solutions helps companies take their ideas to fruition, avoid stagnation, identify roadblocks and bottlenecks, assess the costs involved, and much more. North Fulton Business Radio is broadcast from the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX® inside Renasant Bank in Alpharetta.

i2e Solutions

i2e Solutions can help you clarify opportunities that impact your future.

Utilizing a holistic team approach, i2e Solutions helps explore, solve, and implement solutions to your most intriguing ideas and opportunities, from Idea to Execution.

Do you have limited resources looking for new ideas and bringing them to life? i2e Solutions has the expertise to help.

Company Website | LinkedIn

Thomas Storteboom, Founder and CEO, i2e Solutions

i2e Solutions was founded by Thomas Storteboom to help companies discover answers to questions they do not know how to solve.

Thomas brings decades of leadership experience at industry-leading companies to i2e Solutions. He built a career leading cross-functional teams that designed the future for their customers and team members.

Thomas has managed global R&D and product development teams, created innovation programs from the ground up, and re-designed nationwide processes. His experiences can help you solve your most complex issues.

Questions and Topics Discussed in this Episode

What is i2e and what do you do?
What is your background?
How do you manage risk?
How do you assist owners with the business challenges of innovation?
Spending a little to learn a lot
Success Stories

Dr. T. Ramon Stuart, President of Clayton State University

November 5, 2021 by John Ray

North Fulton Business Radio

Dr. T. Ramon Stuart, President of Clayton State University

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Dr. T. Ramon Stuart, President of Clayton State University (North Fulton Business Radio, Episode 409)

Dr. T. Ramon Stuart, recently installed as President of Clayton State University, joined host John Ray to offer his vision for Clayton State University, the students it serves, and the broader Laker Nation. Dr. Stuart also shared the inspiration for his education journey he received from his mother, some of the high points from his recent “State of the University” address, and much more. North Fulton Business Radio is broadcast from the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX® inside Renasant Bank in Alpharetta.

Clayton State University

Clayton State University is a public university in Morrow, Georgia. Clayton State University is a part of the University System of Georgia. The campus is located fifteen minutes from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. The University has 208 full-time faculty and 356 full-time staff.

The institution was founded in 1969 and was originally known as Clayton Junior College. When the school became a four-year institution in 1986, the institute took on the name Clayton State College. In 1996, the Georgia Board of Regents renamed many higher-ed institutions, with Clayton State becoming Clayton College & State University. In 2005, the name was changed to Clayton State University.

University Website | LinkedIn | Facebook | Twitter

Dr. T. Ramon Stuart, President, Clayton State University

Dr. T. Ramon Stuart assumed the role of Clayton State University’s fifth president on July 1, 2021. As the first African American to hold this position, Dr. Stuart joins the university after serving as the provost and vice president of Academic Affairs at Fort Valley State University (FVSU) in Fort Valley, Georgia.

During his six-year tenure at FVSU, Dr. Stuart led the academic colleges and degree programs, aspects of enrollment management such as retention, and other major administrative areas that included a sponsored research portfolio that was the fifth-largest among 26 institutions within the University System of Georgia (USG).

Under Dr. Stuart’s guidance, FVSU witnessed an average retention rate of 75%, increased enrollment, improved the graduation rate by 15% over a two-year period, and led the USG in the number of first-time, full-time freshmen who enrolled in at least 15 credit hours per semester.

Prior to joining FVSU, Dr. Stuart was a faculty member and administrator at West Virginia State University in Institute, West Virginia. His accomplishments there included developing an engineering 2+2 program, aiding in increasing retention by almost 10% over four academic years, serving on the self-study reaffirmation steering committee responsible for achieving a 10-year reaffirmation of accreditation, and helping to increase overall enrollment.

Dr. Stuart is known for his commitment to student success in the classroom and beyond. At the age of 24, he began teaching computer science at West Virginia State Community and Technical College also located in Institute, West Virginia. He excelled in this role and during his second year, peers named him Professor of the Year. Later that year they unanimously elected him to serve as the faculty senate president making him the youngest person to hold that position in the history of the institution. He held that post for two consecutive terms.

Raised in the small coal-mining town of Welch, West Virginia, Dr. Stuart realized at a very young age the transformative impact that education could have on one’s life, one’s family, and ultimately one’s community. That realization has been the driving force behind his motivation to provide opportunities for students to not only obtain their degrees but to excel in their chosen fields.

While serving at FVSU, Dr. Stuart secured over $4 million in grants and scholarship funding to reduce the cost of expenses for students and to help prepare them for careers in coveted STEM fields such as genome engineering, computational data science, and biotechnology.

Identifying the need for talent in the local multi-million dollar film industry and recognizing a shortage of financial technology professionals, Dr. Stuart developed minors in those fields to equip students with the skillsets needed to quickly fill voids in the workforce.

Committed to enhancing community partnerships, Dr. Stuart collaborated with Robins Air Force Base to develop an employment pipeline for students majoring in supply chain management; established an agreement with Georgia Power to create a 100-acre solar farm with a 9,000 square foot demonstration center that serves as a living laboratory for FVSU students and professors; fostered an articulation agreement with Grand Valley State University to offer an engineering transition program; developed 13 articulation agreements with Georgia Technical College System institutions; and worked with Atrium Health Navicent, Houston Healthcare and Phoebe Putney Hospitals to launch health science degrees.

In addition to enhancing their classroom experience, Dr. Stuart recognizes the value in providing students with mentorship and academic coaching to help them overcome challenges which lead to a 6.8% increase in the institution’s six-year graduation rate.

With a focus on the university’s strategic priorities, all steeped in the mission of providing an exceptional student experience, Dr. Stuart increased the number of full-time faculty by 20%, established training to help more than 50% of the university’s faculty develop online courses that met or exceeded Quality Matters requirements and created a Center for Teaching and Learning which increased the number of faculty development opportunities by 127%.

Dr. Stuart received his education in McDowell County Public Schools before going to West Virginia University where he earned undergraduate and graduate engineering degrees from the Benjamin M. Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources where he was a National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health Fellow. He later went on to earn his doctorate in higher education administration from the Gladys W. and David H. Patton College of Education at Ohio University where he was the institution’s first Southern Regional Education Board Fellow.

It was from his humble beginnings in McDowell County that Dr. Stuart learned the power of the words that reminds us that to whom much is given, much is expected. Those words stuck with him throughout the years and are at the root of his commitment to student success, in and out of the classroom.

Many who encounter Dr. Stuart quickly recognize his dedication to helping others to be their best selves. A true servant leader, Dr. Stuart embodies the American dream, the belief that regardless of where you are born, you can determine and attain your own version of success.

Dr. Stuart resides in south Atlanta with his wife Jamilah, a graduate of Howard University and general manager of a Hilton Hotel in Macon, Georgia, and their daughter, Kayleigh Grace.