Financial Services
Michael Carter - Dicector, Alcarez & Marsal Disputes and Investigations
He specializes in the area of Financial Crimes which includes Bank Secrecy Act / Anti-Money Laundering, OFAC programs, export compliance, and counter terrorism financing.
He brings more than 13 years of experience providing organizations with advisory, financial crimes, performance improvement, and operational and organizational leadership.
Prior to joining A&M, he was a Senior Consultant at a Big Four consulting firm providing advisory and investigative services in the financial crimes arena. He was a site and project team leader for Global Delivery Service teams for Anti-Money Laundering and Financial Crimes. Additionally, he served as the National Communications Chairman for the firm's Veterans Network.
Mr. Carter began his career in the U.S. Army as an infantry officer, is currently a Major in the U.S. Army Reserves and holds a Department of Defense Security Clearance. He was awarded multiple decorations during his ten year military career.
Mr. Carter earned a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from the University of North Florida and an MBA from George Mason University. He is a Project Management Professional (PMP), a Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS) and a member of the Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists (ACAMS) and Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE).
Edward Cooper, Jr. - Former Chief Finance and Risk Officer, Pruksa Real Estate Company Ltd.
Ed Cooper is a retired Senior Executive with broad based experience in Corporate and Retail Banking, Corporate Finance, Risk Management, and M&A. His experiences are across multiple businesses, customer segments, industries, and countries. Director experience at listed (Hong Kong and Thailand) and non-listed companies in multiple countries.
In 2014 Ed retired from Pruksa Real Estate PCL, Bangkok, Thailand. During his four years there he was a Director and Chief Finance & Risk Officer. He was a member of the Executive, Risk Management and International Investment Committees. Pruksa is Thailand’s largest residential real estate developer and manufacturer with products including town houses, single houses, and condos.
Prior to Pruksa, Ed was President of AIG Consumer Finance Group, a wholly owned subsidiary of AIG. The Consumer Finance Group owned and operated banks and finance companies in Hong Kong, India, China, Taiwan, Thailand, the Philippines, Poland, Mexico and Argentina. The businesses were all sold or liquidated in 2009-10 to repay loans from the Federal Reserve.
Prior to AIG, Ed had a 30 year career at Chase Manhattan Bank, retiring in 2000 as Senior Vice President of Asia Retail Banking. Ed held numerous positions in retail and wholesale banking and lived in Bangkok, Hong Kong, Singapore and Tokyo for 16 years during his Chase career.
David Emanuel - Chief Human Resources Officer, APR Energy
David Emanuel is the Principal at Root to Route, LLC., and the Director of the Florida Human Resources Executive Council. Mr. Emanuel began his corporate career at Citigroup. He has also held leadership positions for CIT, Browne and AEG, Peter Kiewit & Sons, and BCC Mechanical, Inc.
Mr. Emanuel is active in the Jacksonville Community where he serves on the Business Advisory Council of the Coggin College of Business at the University or North Florida. David graduated from Wittenberg University in Springfield OH in 1982, where he studied History and Pre-law.
Pamela Grey, Ed.D., Branch Manager & Financial Advisor - Raymond James
Pamela Grey serves as Branch Manager for an independent financial practice for Raymond James in Jacksonville, FL. She has a well-established practice serving individual clients, service organizations and businesses in a region spanning 10 states. Her community experiences includes non-for-profit board membership, service on area committees and she has a passion for setting up Donor Advised Funds for charitable giving locally and globally.
Pamela has a B.S. in Mass Communications and English as well as her Masters in Human Resource Economics from the University of Utah. She earned her doctorate in higher education with an emphasis in public administration at North Carolina State University. She has served as a Dean for Information Technology, a Director for Distance Learning and had the honor of becoming an Assistant Scholar for Higher Education at the University of Florida. She currently serves as Branch Manager for a Raymond James office established in 2004, has 18 years of experience in the financial services industry and holds her Series 7, Series 9 & 10, Series 63 and 66.
Abel Harding - North Florida Market President, IBERIABANK-First Horizon
Recent Work Experience
North Florida Market President, IBERIABANK-First Horizon (2015-Present)
- Leads the bank's commercial, business banking, private banking and retail banking teams in the greater Jacksonville market.
Senior Private Banker, Wells Fargo (2013-2015)
- Served as a credit advisor to high net-worth families. Developed solutions for investment real estate acquisitions and provided jumbo residential mortgages, lines of credit and other specialty credit products.
Commercial Lender/ Vice President, First Citizen Bank (2004- 2009, 2011-2013)
- Served as a solutions provider for small and medium-sized businesses seeking to acquire real estate, equipment, or expand operations. Clients included: religious institutions, medical practices, manufacturers and professional service providers.
Director of Communications, City of Jacksonville (2011)
- Served as senior advisor to the mayor. Developed communications strategies for the mayor of the nation's 11th largest city and managed a communications department of 15 professionals that spanned numerous city departments.
Journalist, Florida Times-Union (2009-2011)
- Award-winning reporter, covered politics and business and investigative stories. Wrote twice-a-week columns on local and state politics and appeared regularly on First Coast News, and WJCT.
Nathaniel Herring Jr. - Area Developer, Florida Clubstore Outlet LLC
Nathaniel Herring Jr. is a senior executive with more than twenty years of demonstrated success in commercial, private and consumer banking. Mr. Herring began his career with Wachovia (now Wells Fargo), serving in a variety of positions including Business Banking Relationship Manager, Director of Business Banking & Senior Vice President in Tampa Bay, and Director of Retail Banking & Senior Vice President for Eastern Georgia. More recently, he served as Senior Vice President and City President for Fifth Third Bank. Over the years, Mr. Herring has overseen an employee base of up to 750 and exercised P&L responsibility for up to $125MM in revenues and $3.3 BB in assets.
Mr. Herring recently embarked on a new professional and entrepreneurial venture with Clubstore Outlet. He remains active in the community serving on the Governing Board of Baptist Beaches Hospital, the Business Advisory Council for the Coggin College of Business, the Board of Directors for United Way of Northeast Florida as well as involvement with Hand of Hope Missions.
Joey Janssen - Chief Employee Benefits Specialist, Benefit Advisors
"Benefit Advisors allows me to make an impact in my community. Day by day, business by business, we partner with our clients to build benefits, to engage our community, and to change lives."
Joey’s lifelong passion has been connecting people. His belief that collaboratively, our community can build something great have allowed him to flourish at Benefit Advisors. Connecting clients with the right support team is at the heart of all he does.
Born in Orlando, Joey is a rare native Floridian who may love the Red Sox, but would never trade in his flip-flops for snow boots. A graduate from the University of North Florida, Joey and his wife Adrienne live in Jacksonville while raising their two young daughters.
Dedicated to challenging the status quo, Joey can often be found on his computer scouring professional literature at all hours of the day to learn everything he can about his profession. Or he’s setting his fantasy football line-up. Sometimes it’s hard to tell.
Faris Kishek - McKennson, Lean Six Sigma Black Belt
Faris Kishek is a certified Lean Six Sigma Black Belt at McKesson Corporation, a Fortune 500 company. McKesson distributes pharmaceuticals and provides health information technology, medical supplies and care management tools. Faris has worked high complexity, cross-functional process improvement projects which generated millions in financial savings, mentored and coached Green Belts on award-winning projects, and trained hundreds of Yellow Belt and Green Belts on Lean and Six Sigma methodologies. Also, Faris is an Adjunct Instructor at Florida State College at Jacksonville where he teaches in the areas of Project Management, Logistics, Operations Management, and Supply Chain Management. In 2013, Faris achieved a Bachelor in Business Administration degree, with a concentration in Transportation and Logistics, from the University of North Florida. He was a board member on the Transportation and Logistics Society. In 2015, Faris achieve a Master of Business Administration degree from Jacksonville University.
William Koch - Managing Partner, Northwestern Mutual
Bill Koch is Managing Partner for Northwestern Mutual in their Jacksonville, Florida office. The office’s territory has expanded from Jacksonville and Gainesville to include Savannah, Tallahassee and Pensacola, as well.
He began his career in financial services in 1986 as a Financial Representative with Northwestern Mutual in Indianapolis, Indiana. He held several positions within the Company before he was appointed as a Managing Partner in 1998; he has overseen the growth and development of a field force from 47 Financial Representatives to 90 Financial Representatives and Financial Advisors. His territory serves over 40,000 clients with $3 billion in assets under management and $17 billion of life insurance in force.
Mr. Koch holds a bachelor’s degree in Business from Indiana University.
Laurie Lee - The Legal Department For Service Professionals, PA CEO/Attorney
Laurie started her law firm in 2015 recognizing the need for a different kind of law firm; she wanted to share knowledge and create long-term relationships with clients as their trusted advisor changing the narrative of attorney-client relationships. Laurie’s deep understanding that relationships are essential to the success of the business owner; whether it’s relationships between owners, clients and customers, or community partners, a business must develop and adopt good business practices. In 2019, Elevate Business Law, PA was rebranded as The Legal Department for Service Professionals, PA. The new identity capitalizes on Laurie’s desire to serve others through the exchange of information and relationship building.
Kevin C. Mackiewicz – SVP | Sr. Client Partner Finacial Services Group, Merkle
As Senior Vice President and Sr. Client Partner, Kevin is responsible for leading complex multi-dimensional engagements that combine marketing agency services, strategic consulting, data management, analytics, real-time decisioning, and large technology deployments.
Leveraging over 20 years of finance services experience his focus is on the development and execution of People-based Marketing strategies and services to optimize personalized marketing for financial services companies; specifically banking, payments and fintech. Prior to Merkle, Kevin was a Director at Fifth Third Bank where he held a variety of marketing leadership roles during his near 14-year tenure. His responsibilities included leading the marketing functions for Wealth & Asset Management, Mortgage, Branch Distribution Strategy, Execution and Ops.
Prior to Fifth Third Bank, Kevin led several successful Consumer Finance loan production offices for Wells Fargo in Jacksonville, FL. He holds an MBA from St. Leo University and a Bachelor of Business Administration in Management from the University of North Florida.
Dan Martin, Senior Finance Executive - KPMG
Strategic and forward-thinking Senior Finance Executive with extensive experience leveraging advanced accounting acumen to enhance financial operations and drive business growth across a dynamic roster of client industries. Proven track record of evaluating and responding to rapidly changing financial and regulatory environments through work with SEC reporting and Sarbanes-Oxley compliance. Possesses diverse subject-matter expertise in all aspects of accounting and auditing services needed to achieve firm goals for financial reporting and auditing. Sterling history of achievement at two of the Big Four auditors, leading public-accounting projects that received optimal reviews from PCAOB. Noted leader adept at recruiting and mentoring cross-functional teams to ensure successful operations. Certified Public Accountant in the State of Florida with MBA from the University of North Florida.
Areas of Expertise
Strategic Planning – Executive Communications – Financial Modeling – Internal Controls – P&L -SEC Reporting - GAAP – GAAS Risk Management – Forecasting & Budgeting-Sarbanes-Oxley Internal Controls - Project Management - Audit Compliance Financial Reporting – Cash-Flow Analysis - Corporate Taxation – Team-Building & Leadership
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
SENIOR MANAGER – AUDIT & ASSURANCE
Recruited to direct audit engagements for dynamic roster of clients across multimillion-dollar enterprises. Collaborate with C-level executives to identify client needs in order to design and implement service offerings and solutions. Lead multiple audit teams in-parallel, ensuring accuracy and timeliness of client engagements. Generate detailed audit reports citing potential performance improvements, technical accounting solutions, internal controls, and operational challenges, presenting all findings to audit committees and external Boards of Directors. Recommend improvements to public-filings including 10K, 10Q, S-1, and S-8 in compliance with GAAP and SEC reporting standards. Counsel internal-audit directors in opportunities for improvement to risk-based audit plans, identifying service gaps and recommended changes to internal- control processes. Prepare accurate GAAP financial statements, including balance sheets, income statements, equity statements, cash-flow statements, and additional footnotes. Research and analyze complex accounting and auditing issues related to Sarbanes-Oxley compliance, IFRS standards, internal controls, stock-based compensation, equity transactions, revenue recognition, and inventory costing to determine resolutions that mitigate procedural problems.
- Nominated and served over six years as team member of National Audit Quality Review Team which is part of KPMG National Office, rating peer KPMG audit engagements for quality and compliance with firm standards and best practices.
- Spearheaded KPMG recruiting efforts as Recruiting Manager at the University of North Florida, interviewing students, delivering presentations, and serving as on-site representative for recruiting events.
- Served as Audit Team Leader during PCAOB and KPMG peer reviews of client engagements, consistently resulting in no material findings and top-flight review scores from PCAOB and KPMG National Quality Review Teams.
- Improved financial-statement audit results by designing internal process that tracked engagement progress against forecasted budgets and project pipelines.
- Awarded Jacksonville office Community Service Award for two consecutive years.
- Selected as KPMG National Educational Instructor, instructed courses for over four years as part of KPMG National Office.
- Representative client list includes: Publix Supermarkets (fortune 100 Company), Fanatics, Fidelity National Financial, Citi Trends, Tree of Life, Winn-Dixie, Lender Processing Systems & Consolidated Tomoka.
MANAGER – AUDIT & ASSURANCE, SENIOR AUDITOR, SENIOR ASSISTANT
Engaged through a rapid series of promotions to manage audit and assurance engagements. Reviewed, researched, and generated narratives and resolutions for reporting and disclosure issues related to 10K and 10Q reports. Led presentations with C-level executives and Boards of Directors to communicate technical accounting and audit issues, as well as solutions needed to improve processes and mitigate further escalations. Supported SAS 70 internal-control review engagements focused on detailed documentation and recommendations for financial- and computer-control improvements. Orchestrated due diligence on several engagements, overseeing comprehensive acquisition activities and directing purchase-price reviews. Delivered performance reviews of audit staff, identifying professional-development needs and counseling career- development action plans.
- Selected as Jacksonville Learning Advisory Coordinator for two consecutive years, leading national accounting and auditing training, as well as coordinating multiple learning seminars for internal staff.
- Reduced volume of audit hours necessary per engagement by reprioritizing audit events to focus on key risk areas, dramatically improving overall efficiency.
- Improved comprehensive audit activities by optimizing budget-forecast procedures, staff scheduling, and client relationships.
- Representative client list includes: Rayonier, Handy Way & Lil’ Champ Food Stores, Ring Power Corporation, Ryan’s Steakhouses, Florida Rock and King & Prince Seafood.
Samuel Peluso, Retired Director, Risk Manager - Merrill Lynch and Co.
Experience:
Merrill Lynch Credit Corporation • Director/Manager of Securities Based Lending Department, Jacksonville, FL
Responsible for managing and leading the loan pledge process for MLCC's mortgage customers.
Director, Risk Manager
Secondary Marketing Department, Merrill Lynch Credit Corp, Jacksonville, FL
Designed and executed hedging strategies for mortgage pipeline and warehouse.
- Created new Risk Management function within Merrill Lynch Credit Corporation. Responsible for developing a risk plan and trading limits.
- Successfully managed one billion dollar long and short hedge position.
- Achieved zero trading errors for years consecutively.
Director BCC, Head of Trading
Broadcort Capital Corp., Fixed Income & Equity Trading Desk, New York, NY
Coordinated and executed orders for BCC's introducing Firms, as well as Citation soft dollar accounts.
- Recognized as one of the top three soft dollar firms on Wall Street.
Vice President, Head of Trading
Government Retail Trading Desk, New York, NY
Managed short and long position limits and Profit and Loss for Trading Desk.
- Managed and trained six traders.
- Never had a year where the desk lost money.
Vice President, National Product Manager
Corporate, Government, and Mortgage Bonds, New York, NY
Responsible for coordinating each of the trading desks with the institutional sales force.
- Staffed, managed, and trained 18 specialists to market desk inventory to Merrill's accounts.
Vice President, National Sales/Marketing Manager
Federal Financing Department, New York, NY
Directed the national sales/marketing and origination effort for all Federal Financing Programs, including SBA, Farm Credit, and Title XI Ship Financing.
Assistant Vice President
Government Securities Trading, New York, NY
As a Market Specialist, key area of responsibility was to expand government coverage nationally.
- Developed and conducted a 5-day Bond Seminar for Merrill Fixed Income sales force and clients.
- Trained over 2000 portfolio managers representing Banks, Savings &Loans, Money Managers, Insurance Companies and International Governments.
- Created a highly effective 15-minute training tape for Ginny Mae securities for sales force and clients.
Retail Sales Department, Newark, NJ
Responsible for successfully developing and maintaining accounts at the retail level.
- Ranked in top quintile for both production and opening new accounts.
Education and Licensure and Military Service:
Xavier University, Cincinnati, OH
- Bachelor of Science; Economic Major, Accounting Minor
Licenses
- Series 7, Series 63, Series 66, Series 24 General Principal
United States Naval Officer
Professional Associations:
- Member Merrill's Quarter Century Club
- Member of Board of FINRA Arbitrators
- Member of the Navy League of the U.S.
- Past Member of Foster Care Citizen Review Panel in Jacksonville
Robert Riva - Holland & Knights LLP, Partner
Robert E. Riva, Jr., Esq. is a partner at the law firm of Holland & Knight LLP where he is a member of the Real Estate, Corporate and Sustainable Development practice groups in the firm's Jacksonville office. Mr. Riva practices in the areas of real estate financing and restructuring, development, leasing, acquisitions and dispositions. He also represents clients in complex finance transactions, including loans guaranteed by the Export-Import Bank of the United States. In addition, Mr. Riva has experience assisting clients in a variety of corporate matters, including mergers and acquisitions, asset sales and corporate governance.
Kelley Shaw - Client Executive, Hylant
INDUSTRY EXPERIENCE
A proven professional, Kelley delivers competitive and strategic employee benefit solutions for her clients. With 13 years in the healthcare and insurance industry, Kelley is recognized for her business acumen and industry knowledge. As a client executive, she provides personalized service that exceeds her clients’ expectations.
Prior to joining Hylant, Kelley represented St. Vincent’s HealthCare where she was responsible for employer relations including designing and implementing population health management programs to manage corporate health risks and healthcare costs. She also worked for Baptist Health System and Wolfson Children’s Hospital as the Regional Manager for Outreach and Development where she acquired the knowledge and skills needed to build enduring and effective partnerships in her current role with Hylant.
INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS
Kelley is a member of The Rotary Club of Jacksonville. Kelley is a member of the LifeWork Leadership 2017-2018 Class. She is the Programs Officer for the Board of Directors for the Jacksonville Chamber Health Council. Kelley was asked to serve on the 2017 Board of Governors for the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce. She has also served on the Executive Board for the Women's Board of Wolfson Children's Hospital for the last six years.
EDUCATION
Kelley received her bachelor’s degree from Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado.
She is a licensed Health and Life Agent.
