Scott Cannon / Skanska
Executive Vice President/General Manager Georgia & South Carolina

Scott has 19 years’ experience in construction with Skanska in various leadership roles. As General Manager of Georgia and South Carolina, Scott oversees all office functions, with specific emphasis on implementation of all management control systems, overseeing the preparation of value management studies and cost estimates, as well as field activities, and for the continued development of project management responsibilities. While Scott has most recently served as Account Manager in San Antonio, TX, he is originally from Georgia and has thorough understanding of the market as well as a diverse market background in healthcare, corporate commercial, higher education, K-12, government, and light industrial.

Scott’s project experience includes the $168 million, 600,000-SF replacement hospital Ambulatory Care Center at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio; the $70 million, 181,200-SF Tri-Service Research Laboratory in San Antonio; the $51.9 million, new 215,000-SF building for Alamo Colleges in San Antonio; the $41.3 million 144,000-SF HCA Pearland Medical Center in Houston; and the $40 million, 142,000-SF HCA Alliance Alliance Medical Center in Ft. Worth, TX. Scott has a B.S. in Civil Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

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Jeremy Sharp / Rocket Software

With more than 16 years of Software Sales and Management experience, I am a skilled sales, marketing, business development, and information technology executive with extensive experience in solution selling, channel sales experience, divisional management, program management, systems planning, strategic planning, and services delivery. I have managed sales organizations, as well as regional consulting teams, closed a variety of major software transactions and software service agreements, created personnel training programs, and developed strategic marketing plans.
Throughout my career, I have consistently overachieved quota, increased revenues, enhanced customer relations, and developed valuable staff members.

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Dr. Dionne Colbert / Great Expressions Dental Centers

Dr. Dionne Colbert has been a practicing dentist for 23 years and has been at the Eagles Landing location for the past 6. She is a graduate of Meharry Medical College in Nashville. She also is one of the clinical partners for Great Expressions Dental Centers, overseeing GEDC dental practices in Atlanta.

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Cliff Oxford / The Oxford Center
CEO

Atlanta’s Most Trusted Advisors interviews industry experts from in and around the Metro Atlanta Area. Our goal is to provide valuable information that all business owners and managers can use in their day-to-day work to help them succeed.

Sarah Assalti / Sage

Sarah Assalti has been a member of the marketing services community for almost 20 years. Her experience has run the gamut from nonprofit giants like American Cancer Society, to small startups, to Fortune 500 companies such as Sage. After leaving the nonprofit arena in 2008, Sarah dove into the world of marketing automation, exploring how technology can be a friend, not a foe, to marketing and sales teams. As the Manager for Marketing Automation at Sage, she has enjoyed creating processes where none existed and removing roadblocks so strategies can move forward effectively.

Outside of the marketing world, Sarah enjoys traveling, writing, and spending time with her husband, her young son and their three dogs. Sarah volunteers and raises money for several nonprofits throughout the year including Relay For Life and various humane charities. She hopes that someday soon she will finally understand string theory and master the Rubik’s cube.

Bonnie Buol Ruszczyk (Host) / bbr Marketing
President

Bonnie Buol Ruszczyk has been a member of the creative and marketing services community for over 20 years and does not appear to be leaving it anytime soon. As president of bbr marketing, she has relished the challenges of entrepreneurship as she worked to grow and nurture a new business. Since the firm’s inception in 2009, Bonnie has led the young company to become widely recognized and respected within the professional services marketing niche, with award-winning client websites and an outstanding history of business success having worked with clients in 23 states and 2 Canadian provinces.

Veterans Connect Radio

A spotlight episode of Atlanta Business Radio and powered by Business RadioX. Co-Hosted by Ryan “Redhawk” McPherson and Brandon Skolnick with Gathering Of Angels. Featuring veteran entrepreneurs, support organizations, outreach groups and more in the Atlanta area continuing to serve our families, our communities and our country. 

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Veterans Rally in the Woods
Dec. 09-11 2016

John Philips LTC, U.S. Army Retired / Boots To Loafers
Author, Speaker, Leader / Vice Chairman VETLANTA

John has had a distinguished career in both military and civilian service. John is a retired Lieutenant Colonel from the US Army where he served in the Field Artillery as well as a Financial Comptroller.  With more than 20 years of service, he served  in Corps Artillery, Division Artillery, Army Headquarters and Forces Command, the largest command and the generating force provider for combatant commanders – at home and abroad. He has served in Europe, throughout the Middle East and the United States. Among his awards and decorations are the Legion of Merit, Meritorious Service Medal, and the Air Assault Badge.

Patrick Haddock / VETLANTA
Director of Administration

Patrick Haddock is a Project Manager, User Experience and Digital Services for The Coca-Cola Company. In this role, he manages global initiatives to improve digital platforms across the company, including the internal intranet site and associated content. He joined The Cola-Cola Company in 2006, initially serving as Agency Sales Manager.  In this role, he managed sales and distribution of bottle/can products to independent bottlers. Patrick has held several managerial positions within the Coca-Cola system with experience in supply chain, equipment services, sales support, and project management. He concurrently serves as President of the company’s Military Veterans Business Resource Group, which he co-founded in 2012.

Prior to joining Coca-Cola, Patrick served as an officer in the United States Army, where he led military organizations from 12 to 157 personnel responsible for multiple aspects of logistics and supply chain.  His service has included three combat tours in Iraq, Kuwait, and Afghanistan.

He earned his undergraduate degree in economics and business from the Virginia Military Institute, where he now serves on the board of directors of the VMI Alumni Association. He earned his Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree from University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business, where he continues to support student-veterans.  Full Bio Here 

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Patrick Griffith / Team Red, White and Blue
Southeast Regional Program Manager

Patrick Griffith is a Program Manager for the Southeast Region. Prior to joining Team RWB, Patrick was an Operations and Logistics Manager for Target’s Food Distribution Center in Lake City, FL where he managed a team responsible for production flow. Patrick served as an Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician with the US Army, including a tour in Afghanistan. Patrick earned his Bachelor of Science from Bethel University where he also served as an assistant coach in Bethel’s football program. He now resides in Atlanta with his wife, Brittany, and their two dogs. He enjoys functional fitness, being outdoors, and all sports.

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Lornett Vestal / Sierra Club
Southeastern Military & Veterans Coordinator

Lornett Vestal was born and raised in Chicago, IL. He joined the United States Navy at the age of seventeen. He served four years honorably and was deployed during Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003. He’s traveled to over ten different countries including; Mexico, Brazil, Estonia. He has BA in Sociology from Northern Illinois University and Master’s Degree in Social Work from University of Chicago. He spent several years working in education and social work at Chicago Public Schools and non-profit organizations.

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Jorge Valentin-Stone / U.S. Small Business Administration
Georgia District Officer

Jorge is a native of the USA Island Commonwealth of Puerto Rico;

Graduated from Louisiana State University (LSU)/Baton Rouge, Louisiana with a B.S. Degree in Business Administration and a major in International Trade / Economic Development, Spent more than 30 years in the economic development / industrial promotion business in Puerto Rico, Atlanta and Chicago USA. 

Veterans Help with SBA

Jeffrey Keppen / CBRE
Senior VP

As a Senior Vice President for CBRE’s Atlanta Brokerage Group, Jeff Keppen, oversees the marketing and leasing for a number of office projects located throughout the metro area including Piedmont Center 5-8, Wildwood Center, University Office Park, 201 17th Street, 271 17th Street, Royal Ridge and Peachtree Center.

Since joining Asset Services in 2005, he and his team have completed more than 3.5 million rentable square feet of office leasing consisting of more than 600 transactions. Clients include CBRE Global Investors – Strategic Partners (CBREGI), Parkway Properties, KBS Realty Advisors, Granite Properties and DRA Advisors.

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Dyron Dinsmore / Shorenstein Properties
General Manager Bank of America Plaza

Dyron’s career in the real estate industry spans almost three decades. He began his career just out of College in 1985, with Noble Properties-Aplomb; the firm that developed Lenox Square Mall in 1956. Shortly thereafter, Dyron joined Cadillac Fairview – now Prentiss Properties – in the development and opening of what was then referred to as the IBM Tower; known officially as One Atlantic Center. Still with Prentiss, he relocated to Irvine-Newport Beach, CA to join the Prentiss team in fee management for a portfolio of office properties run by The Irvine Co. Dyron’s next move brought him to Dallas, TX where he joined the management team for what was then First City Center, now 1700 Pacific. In 1990, he returned to Atlanta and joined Cousins Properties in the opening of 191 Peachtree Tower and what was then called C&S Plaza, now Bank of America Plaza. After a few years’ hiatus working in land brokerage, Dyron has returned to his former profession at Bank of America Plaza, some 20 years after having opened the project in 1992.

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Kevin Bray / Deputy
Director of Customer Success

Talented sales professional with a strong background in mobile Internet, telecommunications and information systems. Proven track record in developing high profile customer relationships and delivering creative solutions to complex business problems that result in positive ROI. Strong problem-solving, project management, communication, and negotiation skills.

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Bryan Stillwagon / Sherman & Howard
Labor & Employment Partner

Bryan Stillwagon is a partner in the Labor and Employment Department at Sherman & Howard. He is based in Atlanta. His experience covers a broad spectrum of issues affecting the employer-employee relationship. In addition to defending against numerous claims brought by plaintiffs and the EEOC under Title VII, the ADEA, and the ADA, Bryan has spent significant time advising and defending clients in exempt status and independent contractor matters under the FLSA on both an individual and collective action basis. His litigation experience also includes representation of companies and high-level executives in lawsuits involving the enforcement of employment agreements and restrictive covenants.

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