The CYP Club is delighted to host The Power Lunch, a collaborative event experience with the Conway Center for Family Business, generously sponsored by Stolly Insurance Group. Mark your calendars for Friday, August 23, 2024 from 11:30 am to 1:30 pm, as we invite you to join us at Ohio Dominican University’s Alumni Hall for this exclusive event!
Esteemed community leaders from various family-owned and operated businesses in Columbus will serve as table executives, offering their expertise and experiences to enrich the conversation, including:
• Alison Marker, President + CEO at Marker Construction
• Ben Stratton, CEO at Corrotec Inc.
• Chip Chapman, President at Integrated Building Systems
• Christina King, CEO at C&A Benefits Group
• Jeffrey Price, CEO at PLAN Logistics Solutions
• John Martin, President at Martin Painting & Coating
• Kevin Oakes, President at Citicom
• Melanie Guzzo, Founder/Owner of Virtue Vegan Salon (Instagram)
• Sharon DeLay, President at Go-HR
• Tim McCord, President at DaNite Sign Company
• Tony Durieux, Founder and CEO at Future PolyTech
The primary aim of this gathering is to facilitate connections between young professionals in Columbus and prominent family business owners and entrepreneurs from the area. Participants will have the opportunity to share success stories, impart insightful leadership tips, and seek valuable career guidance within a tailored roundtable luncheon setting. During the luncheon, each executive will engage with a select group of emerging leaders seated around the table. Lunch will be provided by the catering team at Ohio Dominican University, including vegetarian, vegan, and gluten free options.
Our agenda is as follows:
• 11:30-11:50am: Check-in. Social networking. Grab lunch.
• 11:50am-12pm: Welcome & Table Introductions.
• 12-1pm: One-hour of facilitated small group conversations over lunch with your table's executive.
• 1-1:30pm: Final leadership thoughts & 30 minutes of open forum questions with all executives.
Ticket cost: The early-bird price is $20 per person (or $15 for Premium members) through August 20, 2024. On August 21, the price will increase to $30 per person. Catered lunch is included (incl. vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free option)
Venue and parking: Our event will be hosted at Ohio Dominican’s Alumni Hall (view the campus map). **You’ll also need to print out and display this parking pass to park for free.
This event will sell out, so don’t wait until the last minute to register! Attendance will be capped at 80 to allow for maximum interaction between our attendees and executives. Attire is business or business casual.
Executive Bios for The Power Lunch
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Known for being thoughtful, compassionate, and committed to the organization and its people, Alison Marker provides vision and steady leadership for Marker Construction, a full-service, certified women-owned, commercial construction firm with offices in Columbus and Bellefontaine, Ohio. After spending 10 years in the mental health industry, she left her career as a private practice psychotherapist to join the construction firm in 2012 and continue the family’s legacy. Her background in working with people on their own growth and development provided a strong foundation and perspective for the organization’s focus on recruiting and development during a time of growth and expansion into the central Ohio market. With her strong drive and eagerness to provide equitable opportunities for others to grow, succeed, and achieve their goals, Alison advanced through the organization and become a proven leader. A third-generation family member, Alison carries on the values and ethics that Marker has been known for throughout their nearly seven decades of business.
Alison’s education includes a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a Bachelor of Arts in Women’s Studies from Miami University, a Master of Clinical Social Work degree from The Ohio State University, MBA courses at Capital University, as well as various executive leadership courses and programs. Married with three children, Alison and her busy family reside in Columbus. Alison is active in community volunteerism and philanthropy and has volunteered her time in numerous organizations through Board and/or committee involvement, including the Builders Exchange of Central Ohio, Associated Builders and Contractors, Urban Land Institute, Community Shelter Board, the United Way of Logan County, and Huckleberry House.
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Ben Stratton joined Corrotec Inc 2013 as the third generation of the Stratton Family operating the company. An attorney by trade, he is a regular speaker at multiple industry events and is the immediate past Chair of the NASF SUR FIN Steering Committee. In Ohio, as an advocate for small business, Ben volunteers with the Ohio EPA Small Business Compliance Advisory Panel, is a past member of the Dayton Regional Manufacturing Association (DRMA) Associate Board and is a past chair of the Columbus Bar Association’s International Law Committee. He speaks Japanese and coaches club soccer. His favorite Caribbean Island is Puerto Rico so if you are planning a future conference he might attend, please hold it there.
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In 1993, Chip Chapman co-founded the technology firm he leads today, Integrated Building Systems, with this enduring mission: to help people communicate better by making buildings smarter. Chip’s expertise in the telecommunications industry spans 40 years and hundreds of projects for commercial, nonprofit, K-12, university, government, public utility, and industrial clients.
With expertise in low-voltage cabling, audio-visual, security, communications, and wireless systems —and a drive to learn and innovate – Chip has led his team at Integrated Building Systems to many notable accomplishments:
First firm in Columbus to be certified in 802.11 wireless networks
Design-build for one of Central Ohio’s first high-rise distributed antenna systems
Consulting and design of Ohio’s first enterprise gigabit passive optical network
Early adopter of ERRS protocols, including design-build installations since 2015 and educational presentations to local and national audiences
Chip’s achievements have earned prestigious recognition, including the Wall Street Journal Entrepreneurial Award, Business First Forty Under 40, Columbus CEO Rising Star, Smart 50, and BizTech Entrepreneur of the Year.
Certified through BICSI as a Registered Communications Distribution Designer (RCDD), Chip is a past President and a 27-year member of the Columbus Rotary Club. His community involvement also includes the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, American Red Cross, and Junior Achievement.
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Christina King has over 20 years of insurance experience, specializing in Employee Benefits. After working with some larger agencies in central Ohio, Christina founded C&A Benefits Group in early 2009 to better assist organizations. Soon after, she added C&A Business Services to provide payroll, human resource support and other services to make it easier for companies to operate more efficiently. In her elusive downtime,
Christina enjoys walks in the woods and unwinding with a good book on a beach.
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Jeffrey Price is a passionate businessman, logistician, coach, and consultant who equips leaders to be catalysts for transformation in the marketplace. Known as the “Chief Encouragement Officer”, he founded Kingdom Coaching Services. Kingdom Coaching Services is a global coaching/consulting firm that inspires, teaches, mentors, motivates, and advises executives, entrepreneurs, and leaders on how to unleash the lion within and how they can empower other leaders within their sphere of influence.
Jeffrey is a charismatic speaker and leader who focuses on positivity in organizational leadership and change. His speaking style is felt by audiences with a majestic tone and a burning desire for positive ideology. Jeffrey’s words and presence have been known to inspire a room. He possesses a unique combination of pleasantry in his personality, and calmness in his demeanor!
Furthermore, he is also the owner of PLAN Logistics Solutions and is known as a visionary leader who has a proven track record of success. He graduated from the United States Army School of Transportation as a Distinguished Graduate scoring an unheard-of 100 PERCENT on every test. During his tenure in the United States Army Reserves as a Transportation Management Coordinator, he was deployed to Afghanistan, and received numerous Army Achievement Medals for his hard work, courage, leadership, discipline, drive, and character.
He lives in Columbus, Ohio with his beautiful wife Alexandra, three children Jaidyn, Julianna, Jeffrey, and their loyal dog, Bella. His hobbies include: reading, charity work, fitness, and attending his local church.
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Kevin Oakes is the CEO of Citicom, an award-winning digital print company based in Columbus, Ohio.
Since acquiring the company in 2012, Kevin, along with his brother Michael, have grown Citicom’s revenue by over 1000%, and increased number of employees from 10 to 55.
Along the way, they have also started a Commercial Signage division, focusing on interior corporate office spaces and retail graphics, and have recently started a new kitting and fulfillment business under the same Citicom umbrella.
Kevin is a philosophical leader responsible for the vision, strategy, and growth of the corporation. He believes that through automation, innovative technology, and treating both their customers and employees with kindness and grace, Citicom will continue to build on previous successes and achieve its future goals.
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Melanie Guzzo has been in the hair industry as a hairdresser for 21 years. She started behind the chair at the age of 17 and has been in the industry ever since. Although she considered being an art teacher and earned a degree at The Ohio State University, hair has always been what fueled all of her love and creativity. Once it became apparent that hair was meant to be the medium of her art, she started to do photoshoots and think outside of the box while pursuing her life as a hairdresser. After working as a cosmetology instructor for 2 years, she decided to launch her own salon in order to mentor young hairdressers in order to make a difference. Virtue Vegan Salon was born in 2010 and started as a tiny space with one hairdresser. Today Virtue is a force of giving back to the community, building relationships and fostering creativity. The team at Virtue is now full of over 40 powerful, creative souls that love to give back to the salon community and create incredible art together all while serving the community in a real way. LevelHead Academy is Virtue Vegan Salon’s passion project led by Melanie. LevelHead exists for the purpose of providing education and inspiration for the local salon community. Melanie feels like things are just getting started as Virtue Salon enters the 15th year in business.
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Sharon DeLay, MBA, SPHR, SHRM-SCP, CPCC, HR consultant, business owner, national HR speaker, and trainer, is the owner and President of GO-HR, an HR consultancy working almost exclusively with small and micro businesses across five areas: HR strategy and compliance, recruiting and on-boarding, training and development, non-traditional benefits and consulting, and career and corporate outplacement. The company also provides HR project work for larger companies, with their biggest client being a $1B oil and transportation company with 1,500 employees. GO-HR has clients throughout the U.S.
Sharon holds an MBA, as well as undergraduate degrees in HR, Education, and Communication. She maintains Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) and SHRM-SCP professional HR certifications, and Certified Professional Career Coach (CPCC) and Certified Professional Résumé Writer (CPRW) certifications. She is also a certified EEO investigator. She honed her professional career in the direct sales, higher education, and communication industries before creating her business that focuses exclusively on small businesses. Sharon is an Everything DiSC Certified Trainer, and an Authorized Partner for Everything DiSC®, and PXT Select.
Currently, Sharon is the Treasurer on the board of HRACO, Central Ohio’s HR trade membership organization and is a board and committee member of the Westerville Area Chamber of Commerce. She received the 2021 Business Person of the Year award from the Westerville Chamber. She trains new attorneys about HR through the Columbus Bar Association, and HR professionals working toward their professional certification as a SHRM certification instructor. She facilitates the HR Roundtable for the Conway Center for Family Businesses, highlighting HR-related issues important to family-owned businesses. In 2023, Sharon was recognized by Columbus Business First as an HR Impact awardee. In 2022, she received Business Person of the Year from the Westerville Chamber of Commerce. She received the Lifetime Achievement award for Excellence in HR by “Columbus CEO” in 2019 and GO-HR was also recognized as a Best in Business in 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022. She finished a four-year term on the board of Camp Wyandot in 2021, a two-year term as the VP of Communications for the NAWBO Columbus board in April 2017. She received the NAWBO Columbus 2015 Women’s Business Champion and the 2019 WSBA Emerging Leader awards. She was on the Board of the Women’s Small Business Accelerator from 2012 to 2016, managed the In-transition Committee for HRACO (2014-2016), and is a member of SHRM and HRCI. She served as a mentor for SEA Change, working with a local startup social enterprise business, and was a mentor for 4 years for YEA Columbus and is currently a mentor through the Conway Center for Family Businesses. In addition to being quoted and noted in Fast Company, Huffington Post, Monster.com, Recruiter.com, The New York Times, Workspan, The Ladders, and Mashable (among others), she is also the author of the award-winning E-Cruiting, and Career Boot Camp, a self-contained full career transition program.
She lives in Columbus, OH with her husband Kevin, and their 3 dogs.
You’re invited to learn more at www.go-hr.biz
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In December of 2006, Tim McCord felt called to put all his experience on the line and seek a business to own and operate. In March of 2007, Tim was introduced to the owner of Dā Nite Sign Company over lunch. Just a few months later, due diligence and financing were completed, and he became the President and majority shareholder. Dā Nite has proven to be the perfect fit for Tim to utilize the skills and experiences gathered all throughout his professional life. The company designs, fabricates, installs and services signage for businesses predominantly in Central Ohio. Signage for clients like Ohio Health, Heartland Bank and thousands of smaller businesses and churches have originated from DaNite's 33,000 square foot facility located in Columbus.
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