Keynote Speakers
Sandy Gennaro
Rock and Roll Thought Leader
Beat the Odds in Business and Life
Monday, July 29, 2024
8:00 am - 9:15 am
Residing in Nashville, Sandy Gennaro boasts a storied career as a world-class rock and roll drummer. With a repertoire that spans the globe, Sandy has lent his unparalleled talent to an array of legendary artists such as Cyndi Lauper, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Bo Diddley, and Johnny Winter, among others. Over his remarkable 50-year career, he has graced the stage and studio with his rhythmic prowess, contributing to several Top 10 singles and captivating audiences exceeding a billion fans worldwide.
Beyond his impressive discography, Sandy has made indelible marks on television screens, showcasing his musical finesse on esteemed platforms including The Tonight Show, The Grammy Awards, and The Late Show with David Letterman. His dynamic presence has also illuminated iconic events such as The American Music Awards and The MTV New Year's Ball, solidifying his status as a drumming virtuoso and a timeless figure in rock music.
Marci Rossell
Economist & Financial Expert
The Economy 2024: A Pivotal Year for Inflation, Global Demographics and Technological Disruption from AI
Monday, July 29, 2024
12:15 pm - 1:30 pm
Marci Rossell is a world-renowned economist and financial expert who electrifies audiences nationwide, speaking candidly on the nexus of economics, politics, culture, and the media. She honed her animated style serving as the popular, lively Chief Economist for CNBC, where she became a household name and a must-watch source of financial news. The former co-host of the well-known “pre-market” morning news and talk show Squawk Box, Rossell is revered for taking complex economic issues, often dull in the button-down business press, and making them relevant to people's lives, families, and careers.
Exclusively represented by Leading Authorities speakers bureau, she discusses America’s current and future role in the global economy, factors responsible for recessions, how Washington influences Wall Street and the markets, and the specific forecast for the U.S. economy over the course of the next 18-24 months. She is also well-versed in the stock market, investor behavior, consumer confidence, and what accountable capitalism looks like this year and beyond. With a knack for making complex topics more digestible, Rossell’s authentic, high-energy talks deliver a stimulating and often optimistic economic outlook, providing an insider’s perspective on key factors of economic disruption. Her creative, thought-provoking commentary will ring in the audience members' ears well after she leaves the stage.
Prior to her career in broadcast journalism, Marci served as Corporate Economist and Investment Spokesperson for OppenheimerFunds, one of the nation’s largest mutual fund companies. Her success in the private sector led to her economic commentary being revered and ultimately her appointments on nationally syndicated talk shows. Before moving to Wall Street, she was an expert witness for Deloitte & Touche in court cases involving economic issues. Marci began her career as an economist with the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.
Marci earned a Ph.D. in Economics from Southern Methodist University, where she was named one of the Young Alumni of the Year in 2002. She brings a world of experience — from Main Street to Wall Street — when discussing the U.S. economy, international events, and movements in capital markets.
Nathan Mueller
Fraud Exposed - Lessons Learned from an 8.5 Million Embezzlement
Tuesday, July 30, 2024
8:00 am - 9:00 am
Nathan holds a B.A. in Accounting from Gustavus Adolphus College and was a licensed CPA from 2002-2010. He has over 13 years of public accounting experience and 15 years of corporate accounting experience with a focus on financial reporting, cash processing, tax, and accounting controls.
After the reinsurance company Nathan worked for was purchased by ING for $6 billion, he played a key role in transitioning its operations onto ING’s enterprise resource planning system. Enabled by lax controls and unchecked authority to distribute funds, Nathan began embezzling money to pay off personal debt. What started as a $1,100 check to a credit card, spiraled into an $8.5 million fraud over the next four years. It was only a co-worker’s suspicions that brought the fraud to an end. After being caught, he pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 97 months in federal prison. He was released in September of 2014.
While serving his sentence, Nathan delivered over 60 speeches to a broad spectrum of groups & organizations including college classes, businesses, business organizations and non-profits. Since his release from prison in 2014 he has become a sought-after speaker for Fraud and Ethics presentations for diverse and notable organizations across the United States. His most noteworthy presentation to date was the keynote speech at the ACFE Global Fraud Conference 2015 in Baltimore with upwards of 3,000 attendees. Nathan has spoken for several governmental agencies including the FBI, the FDIC, the FFIEC and the Federal Reserve Bank. Nathan has done fraud awareness presentations for Best Buy, General Mills, and Nationwide Insurance to name a few. He also speaks frequently for many organizations including the IIA, ACFE, IMA, HFMA, IASA, ISACA, ACAMS and state CPA societies.
Speaking and training are not the only avenues Nathan has pursued to bring fraud and ethics awareness to all industries. He also co-authored ""Lessons From An $8 Million Fraud"" in the Journal of Accountancy which won the prestigious Lawler Award as the article of the year for 2015.
Gene Marks
Columnist, Author, and TV Correspondent
From Washington to Your Workplace: Tactics and Strategies the Smartest Leaders are Making to Navigate and Grow in 2024 and 2025 & Silver Bowl Luncheon
Tuesday, July 30, 2024
11:45 am - 1:15 pm
A past columnist for both The New York Times and The Washington Post, Gene now writes regularly for The Hill, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Forbes, Entrepreneur, The Washington Times, and The Guardian.
Gene is a best-selling author and has written 5 books on business management, specifically geared towards small and medium sized companies. His most recent is Want More Cash? 100+ Ideas And Strategies For Increasing Your Company’s Cash Flow This Year.
Nationally, Gene appears regularly on Fox Business, MSNBC, as well as CBS Eye on the World with John Batchelor and SiriusXM’s Wharton Business Channel where he talks about the financial, economic and technology issues that affect business leaders today.
Through his keynotes and breakout sessions, Gene helps business owners, executives and managers understand the political, economic and technological trends that will affect their companies and—most importantly—the actions they can take to continue to grow and profit.
Gene owns and operates the Marks Group PC, a highly successful ten-person firm that provides technology and consulting services to small and medium sized businesses.
Prior to starting the Marks Group PC Gene, a Certified Public Accountant, spent nine years in the entrepreneurial services arm of the international consulting firm KPMG in Philadelphia where he was a Senior Manager.
Meagan Johnson
Multi-Generational Expert & Generational Studies E
ZAP THE GENERATIONAL GAP! Transforming, Recruiting, Retaining and Engaging Multi-Generational Teams
Wednesday, July 31, 2024
10:30 am - 11:30 am
Meagan Johnson is a nationally recognized multi-generational expert and generational studies enthusiast. Since 1997; she has researched, written and spoken about the multiple generations. Her focus is on how to build a culture of multi-generational collaboration… not alienation. Rather than promoting generational stereotypes, Meagan explores what drives a generation to succeed
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