Families in Business Conference Speakers

Doug Baumoel is the Founder of Continuity, LLC and offers an extensive background in family business operations and executive management in his work with clients. He served as a second-generation executive in his own family’s business and has held key executive positions in other family and non-family businesses. Doug started and ran businesses in both the U.S. and Europe, and lived overseas for six years while establishing and managing the European offices of his family’s business. He has applied more than 20 years of business experience to the development of a process for analyzing key variables affecting family business conflict. Doug is the co-author, with Continuity Managing Partner Blair Trippe, of Deconstructing Conflict: Understanding Family Business, Shared Wealth and Power.

Doug earned an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a BS in Electrical Engineering (78) from Cornell University. A dual certificate holder in both Family Business Advising and Family Wealth Advising from the Family Firm Institute, he has been awarded the additional distinction of FFI Fellow. Among Doug’s numerous professional achievements, he holds a certificate in Civil Mediation from MCLE and is a graduate of the Director Professionalism program of the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD), which recognized him with Fellow status. Doug also served as President of the New England chapter of the Family Firm Institute.

After graduating from Cornell University with a degree in Business Management and Marketing, Jeremy went on to obtain a law degree from Rutgers University. Jeremy then joined The Espoma Company as the fourth generation of family ownership and management. Espoma is now celebrating 95 years in business as the leading organic fertilizer manufacturer for the lawn and garden industry.

Cathy Choi is President and CEO of BULBRITE, a leading manufacturer and supplier of energy-efficient lighting solutions.  Founded 53 years ago by her parents, Bulbrite is a family-owned business renowned for its commitment to innovation, education and exceptional service.  Choi oversees all aspects of the company’s operations including sales, marketing, operations, manufacturing and product development.

Recipient of the 2021 Women in Lighting Leadership Award and Residential Lighting Industry Leadership Award in 2010, Choi is an active leader in the lighting industry, current serving as a Board of Governors of the American Lighting Association (ALA) as well as a Co-Chair of the ALA Women in Lighting Committee.  She is an ALA Certified Lighting Specialist and requires that her team receives ALA certifications to provide the highest level of industry expertise and customer service.

Choi has an MBA from New York University and a BA from Cornell University.  She serves as a NYU Stern Alumni Council member and is Co-Chair of the NYU Stern Women in Business (SWIB) Alumnae Group.  She also served on the President’s Council for Cornell Women (PCCW) and sits on several corporate boards for both public and private companies.  She supports her local community by serving as a former Board of Director for the Ridgewood Public Library Foundation.  She lives in Ridgewood, NJ with her husband, two daughters and pandemic “puppy”.

CK is the Managing Director of Wong Chu King Holdings, Inc., a family office based out Manila, the Philippines with interests in logistics, petroleum, real estate, and food industries. In his position, he oversees operations in the logistics and real estate businesses and while functionally oversees Treasury, Corporate Finance, and Corporate Planning functions for the whole group.

Prior to joining Wong Chu King Holdings Inc., he was based in Bangkok, Thailand and served as the Country Director of The Kraft Heinz Company for both the Philippines and Thailand. His background spans extensive experience in the Investment Banking, Corporate Finance, and Venture Capital fields.

In 2020, he turned his passion for Coffee into a business by establishing Exponential Concepts Group. Today, Exponential Concepts is one of the leading independent green coffee traders in the country. Additionally, it is also one of the leading specialty coffee roasting companies and cafe operators in the Philippines.

CK obtained his Bachelor of Science in Management from the Ateneo de Manila University and his Master’s in Business Administration from the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University, where he was part of the Family Business Club. He is currently finishing his joint Masters in Global Finance at the New York University Stern School of Business and Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Business Schools.

Rochelle Clarke is the CEO and Founder of Succession Strength and Continuity Strength, where she leads global efforts to help businesses navigate leadership transitions and protect against operational disruptions. With a focus on Risk Management and Business Continuity, Rochelle has dedicated her career to ensuring that businesses remain resilient and thrive through significant changes.

Rochelle is also an Entrepreneur in Residence at INSEAD and serves on the board of directors for the Risk Management Association. Her thought leadership is recognized worldwide, with contributions to prominent publications such as Forbes and The New York Times.

At Cornell University, Rochelle mentors family businesses, sharing her expertise in succession planning, business continuity, and maximizing value during transitions. She holds a Master’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and is committed to helping the next generation of business leaders succeed.

Virginia is a seasoned executive and third-generation leader at Molinos San José S.A., a prominent food company from Argentina, specializing in milling wheat flour and manufacturing dried pasta. With 15 years of dedicated service, she has spent her entire career at Molinos San José, joining as an undergraduate and steadily advancing through every division to reach the executive ranks.

Virginia’s academic journey includes a major in accounting and advanced studies in finance in Italy and Germany. In 2018, she further enhanced her expertise by earning an MBA from Cornell University’s SC Johnson College of Business.

As Chief Strategy Officer and board member, Virginia plays a crucial role in steering the company’s financial operations, accounting, and innovation, ensuring the facilities are equipped for the future. She is a key driver of strategic initiatives, leading the development of new business ventures and expanding the company’s product portfolio.

Balancing her demanding career with motherhood, Virginia is deeply devoted to her 3-year-old daughter, Michella, who is the biggest fan of the company’s noodles. The business is truly a family affair—Virginia’s parents, who established the company, and her husband are also deeply involved in its success.

Deborah is the third generation to lead a 75-year-old multi-national real estate development and asset management business founded in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She serves as the Chief Executive Officer of her family’s single family office, Servenco Management Inc., based in Old Greenwich, CT. Since joining the family office in 2011, Deborah has focused on international trust and estate planning, corporate restructuring, family governance, and modernizing internal financial reporting platforms. She co-manages Servenco’s U.S. real estate portfolio that has acquired commercial and multi-family assets in Denver, CO and Dallas, TX. She leads her family’s philanthropic foundation and serves on the board of their Rio de Janeiro based foundation, Instituto Rogerio Steinberg, which has received awards from the United States Department of State.

Prior to joining the family office, Deborah was a litigator with a focus on commercial and employment law. She received her B.A. from Duke University with highest distinction and her J.D. from The George Washington University School of Law. She earned a Certificate in Private Wealth Management from the Wharton School, Institute of Executive Education.

Born in Rio de Janeiro, Deborah currently resides in Old Greenwich, Connecticut with her husband and three children.

Lola earned her bachelor’s degree in clinical laboratory sciences from Stony Brook University and an Executive MBA/MS in Healthcare Leadership from Cornell University. As a teenager, she volunteered at her father’s photography studio, Muyis Photography, which he established in 1978 in Nigeria after graduating from the School of Visual Arts. Her father’s work focused on capturing the rich tapestry of Nigerian culture, including still life, traditional attire, and woodcraft.

Lola currently works at Cerus Corporation as Market Development Director. She holds a New York State license and is board-certified with the American Society of Clinical Pathology (ASCP) as a Specialist in Blood Banking (SBB). Lola is also a member of the American Association of Blood Banks (AABB) and its journal club. She serves as a volunteer Transfusion Medicine Inspector for the College of American Pathologists (CAP).

Lola lives in New York City and is a proud mother of a twelve-year-old son.

As the national leader of RSM’s Global Family Enterprise (GFE) team, Art leads a team of professionals that serve the unique and challenging tax needs of cross-border individuals, families, and family offices.

Art has almost 30 years of experience advising both U.S. and international high net-worth individuals with their tax planning and structuring, as well as, advising on family governance/business succession matters. He joined RSM in 2017 after working in the legal and international banking sectors.

Art began his career as a Florida international estate planning and asset protection attorney. Prior to joining RSM, he practiced law with a South Florida law firm, later joining a Big Four accounting firm in Miami where he managed their private client services practice. He later joined Citi Private Bank in Miami where he managed the U.S. and Latin American estate and tax planning teams. In 2012, Art was recruited to lead Banco Itau’s (Brazil’s largest bank) non-Brazil wealth planning team.

Stefanie is a former 4^th generation CEO who took the helm of her family’s 100-year-old business, Vassilaros Coffee, amidst a succession crisis. Merging her corporate experience with family business realities, Stefanie turned around and reorganized her family’s interests, unlocking multi-generational value while ushering in a new era of family cohesion.

Prior to joining her family’s business, Stefanie was a global executive focused on international corporate law and finance in shipping and commodities. She began her career as an attorney with Norton Rose Fulbright before moving to Jefferies as an investment banker.  Stefanie then joined Poten & Partners, a leading ship and commodity broker, where she was a member of the senior management team. In these roles, she served corporate and family enterprises with a focus on complex ownership structures and strategic and capital solutions in a variety of industries.

Today, Stefanie heads the family office she established and serves as Trustee. She is also an independent advisor to other family-owned entities. Stefanie supports the next generation of family business leaders through her work with Cornell Business School’s Smith Family Business Initiative. She serves on the U.S. Board of Bocconi University, Milan, Italy where she has lectured on family business strategies.

Kevin Leichter is CEO of Premier Paint Roller Co LLC, located in Queens, New York. Premier is a third-generation manufacturer of premium paint rollers, paint brushes, and related accessories, with offices and/or factories in New York, Phoenix, Mexico City, Ireland, and China. Kevin is a 1997 Graduate of the Cornell Hotel School with a Bachelor of Science. He often lectures in both the Cornell Engineering and Dyson Schools on topics such as Global Supply Chain, Family Businesses, and Global Strategy.

Kevin Currently lives in New York City with his family.

Alessandro Magnani is a BBA Graduate in Business Administration at Universitá Cattolica in Milan, Italy, and an MSc Graduate in International Business at IESEG School of Management in Lille, France. After completing the studies, He decided to join the family’s business, along with his older brother, representing the 3^rd generation involved in the company. Alessandro started doing the so-called italian “gavetta” (apprenticeship) working as a sales rep in the NYC market and now as a Business Developer for Asia & Pacific. Davines Group was founded in 1983, in Parma, by Alessandro’s grandparents, his current bedroom is the old laboratory of the company. The company started as a research lab producing high-end hair care products for renowned cosmetics companies worldwide. Today, led by Davide Bollati, Alessandro’s uncle, Davines Group, home to skincare brand Comfort Zone and haircare brand Davines, has an international presence in more than 90 countries and has 9 offices worldwide. The company distinguished itself throughout the years leading the sustainable movement in the beauty industry.

Cristina Mariani-May is the CEO and president of Banfi, a global wine brand that includes the internationally renowned Castello Banfi vineyard estate in Montalcino, Tuscany; leading US importer Banfi Vintners; and US Northwest wine specialist Pacific Rim & Company. The youngest daughter of Banfi Chairman Emeritus, John F. Mariani, Jr., Ms. Mariani-May, represents the third generation of family leadership in the company founded by her grandfather, John Mariani, Sr. in 1919. Soon after completing her studies at Georgetown University and Columbia University’s Graduate School of Business, Mariani-May joined Banfi in 1993.

A “pursuit of excellence” serves as a personal mantra for Mariani-May. It extends to every aspect of her work, in particular her family’s wines and nowhere more so than with the Brunellos for which Castello Banfi is renowned. Alone among producers of Brunello di Montalcino wines, Castello Banfi has conducted groundbreaking research aimed at defining and isolating the finest clones of the Sangiovese Grosso grape.

For Mariani-May and Banfi, innovation extends beyond winemaking – it begins in the vineyards, and includes responsibility and respect for nature. For her many eco-friendly initiatives, Mariani-May was named one of “The Most Innovative Women in Food and Drink” by Fortune and Food & Wine magazines in 2015.

Mariani-May’s immediate family includes her husband, Marshall May, and their three children. A hands-on mother, she divides her time between Montalcino and Long Island, NY, home to Banfi Vintners.

Chris is co-owner of Noblehurst Farms, a diversified multi-family farm located in western New York. Noblehurst milks 1,800 dairy cows and crops over 3,000 acres of farmland in Livingston, Genesee and Wyoming counties. Noblehurst also participates in a number of affiliated businesses where Chris currently spends the majority of this time. Those businesses include Noblehurst Green Energy, a state-of-the-art complete mix anaerobic digester that creates renewable electricity, and Natural Upcycling, a food waste collection business that counts Wegmans Food Markets among its major customers.

Lloyd is a business owner serving as President of AWISCO, a leading distributor of welding, safety and industrial supplies. Lloyd has been at AWISCO since 1990 and became the president and owner in 2000.

Lloyd has served, and currently serves, as an officer and director of many not-for-profit organizations. Of particular note, he is the current President of the New York Welding Supply Distributors Association, Board Member and past President of the Gases and Welding Distributors Association, and a former Trustee of the AWS Foundation. In addition, Lloyd is very involved in the NYC PENCIL program, past President of Temple Israel of New Rochelle and past Vice-Chair and Board member of the New Rochelle Industrial Development Agency. Lloyd is currently a Vice-President of the Giving Circle of Lower Westchester and a CAAN Alumni Ambassador.

Lloyd lives in New Rochelle, NY with his two sons Ari and Ben. He is a long-time member of Bonnie Briar Country Club where he is an avid golfer and tennis player.

Alan Rosen: the third generation of the Rosen family to lead the venerable brand. Born and raised in New York, he grew up watching his father, Walter, run the original Junior’s restaurant.

After graduating from Cornell University’s School of Hotel Management in 1991, Alan spent three years working at other restaurants before returning to Junior’s as the Director of Marketing, with a goal towards expanding the business beyond the original Brooklyn location.

And grown it has. Today, Alan oversees five restaurants, retail bakeries, and wholesale and mail order operations, which generate over $100 million in sales annually. Junior’s serves over 5,000 customers daily and sells approximately 30,000 cheesecakes every week.

As the public face of Junior’s, Alan appears on QVC 30 times every year and has also appeared on dozens of national TV shows. He is also the co-­‐author of three books, including the best-­selling Junior’s Cheesecake Cookbook: 50 To-­Die-­For Recipes for New York Style Cheesecake.  He is on the Board of Fulton Mall Improvements Association as part of the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership, a member of the Food Service Establishment Advisory Board in the City of New York, and on the Dean’s Advisory Board of Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration.

Luis Carlos Sarmiento is a 2020 MBA graduate of Cornell’s Johnson School of Management, with a double concentration in corporate finance and investment banking. He graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Miami, with a degree in Management Administration and minors in Finance & Accounting. He is currently employed as Vice President of Investment Banking at Corficolombiana and was previously employed at JP Morgan as an Investment Associate

His family business, Grupo Aval, is one of the largest financial groups in Colombia, a leader in the traditional banking business through its four banks (Banco de Bogotá, Banco de Occidente, Banco Popular and Banco AV Villas), in the investment banking business through Corficolombiana and in the private pension and severance administration business through Porvenir. Additionally, it has a presence in Panama through the operation of Multi Financial Group.

Professor Wesley Sine is the John and Dyan Smith Professorship of Management and Family Business. His research focuses on the emergence of new economic sectors and entrepreneurship in the United States, Latin America, the Middle East, and Asia. He explores issues related to institutional change, industry and technology evolution, technology entrepreneurship, and new venture structure and strategy. He has examined a diverse set of economic sectors, including the electric power industry and the emergence of the internet. Teaching interests include entrepreneurship, commercializing university technology, new venture growth, the management of technology and innovation, and organizational change. He has consulted and taught executives in Latin America, Asia, and the Middle East.

Sine has published papers in the following journals: Administrative Science Quarterly, Academy of Management Journal, Management Science, Organization Science, Strategic Management Journal, and Research Policy. Sine is currently a senior Associate editor at Organization Science and is the book review editor at Administrative Science Quarterly.

Dyan has served on the board of directors of Hillcrest Holdings since 2012. She began her career as a teacher conducting educational research. Dyan is currently active on several nonprofit boards, including Mount Mercy University and the Czech and Slovak Museum, and she was a founding member of Opera Cedar Rapids.

Dyan graduated from the University of Iowa with a Bachelor of Arts in Education and a Master of Arts in Educational Psychology and Statistics.

John Smith earned his Johnson MBA in 1974. His son, Ian Smith, also earned an MBA from Johnson in 2014.

Mr. Smith is the chairman and president of Hillcrest Holdings, which operates trucking, real estate, and security companies, including Great Plains Casualty, Southgate Companies (Ian Smith, chairman), Converged Security Solutions, and CRST International, Inc., the largest long-haul trucking carrier in Iowa and one of the top ten largest carriers in the country. His parents founded Cedar Rapids Steel Transport in 1955, growing the business and acquiring others, leading to their consolidation as CRST International in 1995. He has been with CRST since graduating from Johnson in 1974. He has been actively involved in the transportation industry, including leadership with the American Trucking Association, the Truckload Carriers Association, and the Iowa Motor Truck Association.

He and his wife, Dyan, have given generously to Johnson over the years. In 2014, they made a gift to establish the John and Dyan Smith Family Business Initiative, which has done much to strengthen and advance Johnson’s and Cornell’s research, teaching, and outreach in areas related to family business, as well as to engage a growing network of family business owners, advisors, and other practitioners.

Bryan Wong is a seasoned executive with extensive experience in digital strategy, business development, and strategic partnerships. Currently serving as the SVP and Head of Digital Strategy at Papillon Ribbon & Bow, Inc., a family-owned business specializing in packaging ribbon and boxes, he led the launch of a B2C application that increased sales revenue by 400% within six months. His responsibilities include overseeing logistics, maintaining cost structures, and cultivating key partnerships, which resulted in a 20% sales increase and strengthened the company’s market position. His family business has sales offices in 6 countries and manufacturing facilities in China and Myanmar.

Before joining Papillon Ribbon & Bow, Bryan held leadership roles at Liberty Mutual Insurance, where he drove significant growth in the Hong Kong Motor division, boosting topline growth by 57% in 2019 and achieving market leadership. His background is rooted in strategic planning, team management, and digital transformation, supported by an MBA from Cornell University and a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from McGill University.