Dina Finta has 20+ years of experience working with Fortune 500 companies, business leaders, executives and entrepreneurs to train and educate their teams for maximum impact. As an entrepreneur herself, she uses her real-world experience to create impactful programs to support long-term organizational growth and individual learning with the goal of changing behavior. Prior to launching ThrivePoint Programs, Dina helped create the John F. Kennedy University Institute of Entrepreneurial Leadership, a program designed to mentor entrepreneurs. Serving as the director, she led dynamic teams, teaching and mentoring over 200 entrepreneurs who now lead companies with annual revenues totaling over $1.8 Billion. Currently, Dina runs ThrivePoint Programs while living with her family in the beautiful Pacific NW. In addition to running ThrivePoint Programs, Dina is a certified yoga instructor and certified wellness and nutrition coach. She loves doing yoga, hanging out with family, dogs and learning to grow her own food.

Nancy Slocum is the Program Administrator at ThrivePoint Programs, showcasing a career steeped in education and entrepreneurship. Her impressive journey includes the co-founding and successful exit of several enterprises. Nancy has demonstrated her ingenuity by custom-tailoring educational modules for esteemed organizations such as Exxon, Dow Chemical, and the federal government, expanding her enterprise to encompass five training centers across three states. With a Microsoft Certified Trainer certification, Nancy assumed pivotal roles in training colleagues and spearheading curriculum development. Following the sale of her thriving business, Nancy heeded her inner calling, embarking on a 16-year vocation as an esteemed high school U.S. History educator. Her tenure at a leading fine arts school included time as an AP history teacher, educational administrator, and curriculum writer. Today, as the Program Administrator for ThrivePoint Programs, Nancy continues to inspire and shape the landscape of education and personal development, showcasing her enduring commitment to excellence.

Savern Varnado brings over 18 years of experience in leadership, learning and development as a thought leader, change agent and practitioner. Having partnered with major financial services institutions, as well as telecommunications and wholesale distribution/manufacturing firms nationally and internationally, Mr. Varnado has a unique combination of knowledge and technical skills that have enabled him to provide practical, cost-effective solutions to his customers. Also, Mr. Varnado holds the distinguished CPLP (Certified Professional in Learning Performance) certification, issued by ATD. A well-versed professional, he specializes in mentoring on employee engagement, leadership, and sales training and development with organizations of all sizes.

Jim Finta is a Risk Management and Compliance professional with a background in Aviation, program management, loss control, safety and leadership. Mr. Finta served for 24 years as a helicopter pilot and aviation professional in the United States Coast Guard. In his career, he amassed over 3,000 hours of flight time and led several standardization programs to maximize training effectiveness and enhance the standard application of policy and practices in a highly exacting discipline. Involved in a catastrophic helicopter crash as a young pilot, he used that experience to develop an aviation leadership program that was adopted by the Coast Guard as part of its core aviation curriculum. Mr. Finta most recently served as the Safety and Compliance Director for Amerit Fleet Solutions, the largest national commercial motor fleet management provider. As a mentor, he focuses on leadership, process analysis and management, loss control, risk management and motivation.

Cigdem Gencer, founder of Fazilet Consulting, is an inspirational leadership coach with extensive experience and demonstrated success in coaching and guiding tomorrow’s leaders. She has coached and built high-performing international teams — strategically, financially and competitively. Previously, Mr. Gencer held progressive roles at Wells Fargo, including CFO of Wealth Management and Head of International HR.  Her earlier career includes the role of CFO at Intrax Cultural Exchange, executive roles at a B2B startup (ADPM) and a decade of management consulting with First Manhattan Consulting Group and Mitchell Madison Group, where she helped establish the Madrid, Spain office. Her business acumen, emotional intelligence, communication and analytical skills have contributed to her success. She holds an MBA from the Wharton School of Business, a degree in Economics from Harvard University and a patent in analytic methodologies. In addition, she serves as the Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors of the SF-Marin Food Bank.

Chris Gonzalez’s career has been shaped by a mix of teaching, military and government consulting experience. He co-founded A-G in 2008 with a focus on providing strategic planning, program design and evaluation, stakeholder engagement and data analysis services. A-G is now a multi-million-dollar consulting firm and leads several large-scale Public Health initiatives. As a Marine, his work with the host-nation governments earned him the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal and the Navy Commendation Medals, along with several others. Mr. Gonzalez currently sits on the Board of Directors for Health Care Access Maryland and Mentoring Mentors. He is a certified WholeScale Change™ facilitator and Project Management Professional (PMP). Today, Mr. Gonzalez serves as mentor for transitioning servicemembers and others in the Project Management community. As a mentor, Mr. Gonzalez focuses on building the necessary capabilities, relationships and infrastructure to be successful in the government contracting space.

Scott Jower operates a Wealth Management practice providing a holistic approach to the accumulation, preservation and distribution of wealth. His pragmatic approach to mentoring professionals and corporate growth is attributed to his work experience at bootstrapped startups, hyper-growth organizations, and publicly traded companies. In addition, his work experience at two of the Big Four accounting firms provides his clients valuable insight related to business performance and tax mitigation. He has an entrepreneurial mindset emphasizing the importance of human capital in an organization, emotional intelligence and the application of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) principles. Mr. Jower has an aptitude to quickly learn new technology, recognize shifts in market trends, synthesize abstract concepts and apply acquired knowledge to measurable solutions. His strong curiosity to understand human behavior and its influence on the development of products, services and business models is what makes him a valuable business partner.

Laurel Mintz J.D., M.B.A. is the CEO and Founder of award-winning, Los Angeles-based marketing agency Elevate My Brand serving both startups and blue chip global brands like Facebook, Verizon Digital Media Group, PAW Patrol, and Zendesk. Using her experience working with more than 200 companies in the CPG and technology spaces, Laurel launched Fabric VC, in 2022, to weave together diverse founders with the funding they need and deserve. Laurel sits on the Board of Directors for NFTE (Network For Teaching Entrepreneurship), the Women Founders Network, and the UCLA Restaurant Conference. She is a mentor for The Women's Global Leaders Initiative and advises LAVA (Los Angeles Venture Association). Laurel wrote a weekly Inc. Magazine column appropriately entitled "On Brand” for three years. Her published work can be found in Entrepreneur, USA Today, The American Marketing Association and C-Suite Quarterly Magazine.

John Lettko is the Chief Executive Officer of Talisys. With more than 34 years in the financial and technology services industries, Mr. Lettko has held a variety of senior executive positions for high-growth service delivery organizations. Before joining Talisys, Mr. Lettko was the COO and General Manager for All Weather Insulated Panels from 2008 to 2012. Prior to serving as the President and CEO of MedAvant Healthcare Solutions in Atlanta, he was Chairman and CEO of Viewpointe Archive Services in Houston. He was President of Xpede in Oakland from 1999 to 2001. Prior to that, he was a senior executive with EDS in the financial services industry. As a mentor, he focuses on growth strategy, business viability, M&A, technology and finance.

Stephanie Lindsly currently serves as President of Bratan Business Solutions Inc., a certified woman-owned business providing advisory and consultant services. At Bratan, Mrs. Lindsly focuses on diverse supplier development as well as corporate supplier diversity strategy and execution.  Before starting her own company, Mrs. Lindsly held a variety of leadership positions in Sales, Operations and Supplier Diversity throughout her 30-year career at AT&T. As Associate Director of Supplier Diversity, Mrs. Lindsly played a key role in the most recent enhancements of AT&T’s diverse supplier advocacy program. Mrs. Lindsly earned her bachelor’s degree in Business Management at Dallas Baptist University. 

Rob Lippincott is a market-leading innovator and entrepreneur in digital and online learning content, product development for home and school, teacher preparation and professional development, and new media and publishing technologies. He is both a compassionate leader and a lifelong educator. Mr. Lippincott has served as CEO of TEACH-NOW, SVP for Education for the national public broadcasting station, and SVP for Discovery Education. As VP of the Family Education Network, he engineered several acquisitions preparing the company for sale to Pearson where he then served as Senior Vice President and General Manager. He also co-founded the eCommerce consulting division of Perot Systems Corporation. Mr. Lippincott taught at the Harvard University Graduate School of Education, as the Assistant Headmaster of the Stowe School, and in three Pennsylvania schools. His mentoring focus includes education, digital technology, mergers and acquisitions, and growth strategy.

​Carm Lyman has a decades-long career in communications and marketing. She is the principal of Lyman Agency, a boutique marketing agency that she founded in 2000. She's a consultant for numerous startups — and is passionate about helping them grow — and has led marketing for business units of a public company and other more established private companies.  She's a contributing writer for both Forbes and Thrive Global, a past contributor to Entrepreneur.com, and is a trained crisis management expert.​

​Tamara Monosoff is a social entrepreneur, best-selling author, inventor, speaker and leading voice for women in business. She is the founder and CEO of Mom Invented®, the globally recognized consumer brand. She is a former Clinton White House Advisor and U.S. Department of Education Chief of Staff for Adult Education. She is a mentor and expert in the field of marketing, including digital and social marketing, enrollment and engagement. Currently based in Portugal, Mrs. Monosoff enjoys exploring her new country, walking in nature, playing tennis, reading great novels and practicing yoga to refuel.

David Morse is President and CEO of New American Dimensions, LLC, and author of the book Multicultural Intelligence: Eight Make-Or-Break Rules for Marketing to Race, Ethnicity and Sexual Orientation. He is a frequent speaker on U.S. multicultural markets and is known for having worked with some of the most successful companies in America in developing innovative and profitable multicultural marketing strategies. Mr. Morse has over 30 years of experience in market research, brand management and strategic planning in the United States and Mexico.

Sangita Patel is a financial consultant who partners with startups and mid-sized companies to establish financial systems and explore financing options that fuel organizational growth. Having spent over 15 years in corporate finance, Mrs. Patel understands that well-developed and well-executed financial systems lead to continued organizational success. Most recently, Mrs. Patel has worked with companies in the diamond, electronics, security and Internet of Things (IoT) industries. When mentoring, Mrs. Patel focuses on strategy, technology and finance. A San Francisco native, Mrs. Patel loves grabbing a bite to eat from the city’s best eateries before catching Giants and 49ers games with her family. Her teenage children have made sure she earns her “mommy” title and she would have it no other way.

Les Schmidt is a serial entrepreneur and leader with first-hand experience in the development and growth of enterprises. As a C-level executive, he has led early-stage, middle-stage and public companies. His forte is leading business transformations when companies get “stuck” — i.e. when a company’s growth plateaus and a quest begins for new directions, products or capabilities. Mr. Schmidt directed the Bay Area JFKU Accelerator and mentored many entrepreneurs during that time. In a brief departure from entrepreneurship, Mr. Schmidt even took on transforming the San Francisco 49ers as COO. He specializes in strategy development, product-market alignment, data analysis and forecasting.

Christy Taylor is an executive with a track record of building businesses, delivering substantial sales and profitable growth for large and small companies globally in the consumer-packaged goods and pharmaceutical/OTC healthcare categories and the Specialty Foods realm. Recently, Mrs. Taylor has worked as a consultant for private businesses across a variety of issues, including strategic growth and exit planning, financial strategy, organization and succession planning, and governance. Mrs. Taylor has enabled organizations large and small to transform from startup to formalization, restructure due to poor performance, manage through fast growth, and launch new initiatives, products and services both regionally and globally. Mrs. Taylor is a native Californian, and for the past 15 years, she and her husband have lived in Napa Valley. She loves to travel, entertain, hike and design.

Brian Vandegrift is accomplished in sales, sales leadership and executive leadership. Mr. Vandegrift has sold and led sales teams for most of his 26-year career, selling or driving sales of everything from cars to water to complex technology solutions. In the latter half of his career, he has also been a member of his company’s executive leadership teams, providing strategic guidance and decision-making in addition to leading the organization’s sales teams. Mr. Vandegrift’s strengths are helping organizations with sales process development, comp plan development, sales organizational structure and workflow development. With a strong technology background, Mr. Vandegrift also excels in guiding companies through complicated strategic technology initiatives and challenges with an ability to facilitate communication and decision-making between IT and business leaders.

Brett Yokom is an instructor, presenter and workshop facilitator in business and entrepreneurship programs at UC Berkeley Extension and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. He is also currently working on a Ph.D. in Business Psychology with an emphasis on the experiences of startup founders in the tech ecosystem. He has been active in the Silicon Valley and San Francisco region for four decades, having worked in sales and business development roles in addition to running his own startup in the first dot-com boom. His areas of expertise include entrepreneurship and the founder’s journey, audience engagement and messaging, workplace communication, intercultural communication, organization and management, and almost anything related to “soft” skills.

With over 20 years of experience in the hospitality industry with an emphasis on food & beverage and luxury retail, TaChelle Lawson brings a fresh, no-nonsense approach to diversity, equity and inclusion. She is a dynamic public speaker, award-winning entrepreneur, and enlightened business leader laser-focused on aligning the 3 R’s of DEI (Revenue, Reputation and Retention) with business and brand goals. As Founder and President of FIG Strategy & Consulting, Lawson counsels senior leaders, human resources professionals and communications influencers on DEI and business alignment to address challenges with employees, customers and community. Her services include brand strategy, business management consulting, culture transformation, DEI and leadership training, and strategic sourcing. As a strategic planner and problem-solver, Lawson has lent her extensive expertise in business analysis, strategy and communications management. She is an active mentor to young women entering the workforce and a small business advocate.

Shavonnah Roberts Schreiber is the Founder and CEO of SNR Creatieve. Her passion for marketing, leadership, and personal development comes to life in her one-to-one coaching practice. In her practice, Shavonnah focuses on equipping marketers with tools needed to refine their authentic style and lead their teams with confidence. Additionally, Shavonnah is the co-host of a podcast, Big Ideas | Small Business, which focuses on delivering insights to small business owners to help them scale their businesses. She is also an instructor at the University of Houston Small Business Development Center (UH SBDC). At the UH SBDC, Shavonnah leads marketing classes and workshops geared at helping small business owners uncover the best marketing tactics for their businesses. In her free time, Shavonnah enjoys exercising and reading, consuming an average of five books per month and is the current Natural Athlete Strength Association State of Texas Bicep Curl Division Record holder.

Christine Maddela is the co-founder of Storyville RD and is a journalist, media consultant/coach and voiceover artist. She was named one of VEGAS INC’s 2017 “40 Under 40” honorees and has received numerous Emmy® Awards, Edward R. Murrow® Awards, and National Press Photographers Association Awards for her work. The National Bar Association also named her one of 19 finalists in the country for the 2017 Silver Gavel Awards for Media and the Arts. Christine has served as a news anchor and reporter in Las Vegas, Philadelphia, Nashville, Washington D.C. and El Paso, TX. Christine is active in the Las Vegas community and serves to help and heal child survivors of sex trafficking with The Embracing Project, and is a part of the Nevada Corporate Giving Council as well as sits on the Board of Governors for the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences- Pacific Southwest Chapter.