> John Adams; Principal, Towers Perrin
> Laurel Baum; Partner, Hancock & Estabrook
> Brian Bechard; Director of Operations, InfiMed
> John Boger; Patent Attorney, Heslin Rothernberg Farley & Mesiti P.C.
> Andy Clapper; Sr. VP World Wide Operations, Welch Allyn
> Joseph Corasanti; President and CEO, ConMed
> Thomas D'Ambra; Chairman, President and CEO, AMRI Global
> Steve Daley; Attorney, Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation, Bond
       Schoeneck & King
> Joseph Darling; President, Linvatec
> Al Di Rienzo; President and CEO, Blue Highway
> Michael Dwyer; Director Research Relations Office, Rochester Institute of Technology
> Tony Eisenhut; Founder and President, Kensa Group
> Amer El-Kerdi; Director, Clinical Affairs, Carestream Health
> Lorraine Ellis; President and CEO, Research Dynamics Consulting Group
> Tim Evans; Partner, Marjama Muldoon Blasiak & Sullivan LLP
> Ted Farrell; Group Director, Systems R&D, Ortho Clinical Diagnostics
> Dan Fisher; Sr. Vice President Human Resources, Welch Allyn
> David Gately; Managing Partner, UBS Inverstment Bank
> Marc Goloven; former VP and Senior Regional Economist, JP Morgan Chase
> Mark Heller, Partner, Goodwin Proctor and former Associate Chief Counsel, United
        States Food and Drug Administration Presentation
> Holly Hoehner, Partner, Hiscock & Barclay
> Thomas Hook; CEO, Greatbatch
> Shirley Isbill; Consultant
> David Johnson; Vice President Global Operations & Supply Chain, ConMed 
> Gregory Jones; Vice President Regulatory Affairs and Quality Assurance, Linvatec
> Daniel Kerpelman; President and CEO, Bio-Optronics
> Bruce Kirk; Director, Corporate Innovation Effectiveness, Corning
> Steve Lescohier, Senior Vice President, JP Morgan Securities, Inc.
> Dan Maffei, Congressman, US House of Representatives
> Bela Musits; Managing Director, High Peaks Venture Partners
> Nancy Nussmeier, MD, Professor & Chair, Department of Anesthesiology,
        SUNY Upstate Medical University
> Robert Panzer, MD, Chief Quality Officer and Associate VP, Patient Care Quality &
        Safety, University of Rochester Medical Center

> Richard Paul; Partner, Hiscock & Barclay
> Gary Pease, HR Director, International, Corning, Inc
> Paul Powers; Senior Business Advisor, Empire Advocates, LLC 
> Donna Rankin-Parobek; Intellectual Property Director, Carestream Health
> Peter Robinson; Vice Presidnet and COO, University of Rochester Medical Center
> Bill Schwartz; Executive Vice President, TBM Consulting Group
> Joe Serbun, VP Commercial Banking, Community Bank N.A.
> Gerald Shaye; Director of International Trade, Empire State Development
> Julie Shimer; President and CEO, Welch Allyn
> John Tracy; International Trade Specialist, US Department of Commerce
> Thomas Tremble; Associate VP, Government Relations & Regional Affairs, AdvaMed
> Bill Willick; Director, Lean Enterprise Center of Excellence, Greatbatch Medical

 

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Laurel Baum; Partner, Hancock & Estabrook

Ms. Baum brings extensive clinical, operational and regulatory experience to her clients in providing legal counsel. Her practice experience includes Medicare and Medicaid compliance, EMTALA issues, HIPAA privacy matters, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), other education law matters and the various federal and state regulatory initiatives impacting the health care field. Ms. Baum has assisted health care clients with issues involving contract development, physician extenders, bioethics and patient care. Prior to joining the Firm, she served as a compliance officer for a hospital associated with a major academic medical center. Ms. Baum was also a registered nurse with clinical experience in pediatrics and intensive care.

Brian Bechard; Director of Operations, InfiMed

John Boger; Patent Attorney, Heslin Rothernberg Farley & Mesiti P.C.

John W. Boger graduated cum laude from Syracuse University College of Law. Mr. Boger also received cum laude, a Bachelor of Science degree in Biomedical Engineering from Syracuse University and a Master of Science degree in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Utah. Previous to joining Heslin Rothenberg Farley & Mesiti P.C. Mr. Boger was Senior Counsel to Capital District Physicians' Health Plan, Inc. Prior to attending law school, Mr. Boger worked for 8 years at DePuy, Inc. as a product development engineer and product manager specializing in orthopaedic implant design. He also worked for DePuy–DuPont Orthopaedics, Inc. as the venture project manager, focusing on the development of advanced implantable biomaterials. He is admitted to practice in New York and is registered to practice before the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

Andy Clapper; Sr. Vice President Human Resources, Welch Allyn

Darrell A. Clapper (Andy) is Senior Vice President, Global Operations and Supply Chain Management at Welch Allyn. He began his career at Welch Allyn in 2006, after arriving from Eastman Kodak, where he was Director of Global Health Group Flow and Vice President of Global Manufacturing and logistics. During his 27 year career at Eastman Kodak, Andy was recognized as a global operations leader with extensive lean and six sigma experience. His career included six executive leadership roles in a series of diverse and progressively challenging positions within the Fortune 500 company. He earned his B.S. degree in chemical engineering from Pennsylvania State University. Additionally, Andy earned his master's degree in chemical engineering from the University of Rochester.

Joseph Corasanti; President and CEO, ConMed

Joseph J. Corasanti is President, Chief Executive Officer, Director of CONMED Corporation. He has served as Chief Executive Officer and President since January 1, 2007, having served as President and Chief Operating Officer of the Company since August 1999 and as a Director of the Company since May 1994. Mr. Corasanti is also a member of the Board of Directors of II-VI, Inc. (Nasdaq: IIVI), a manufacturer of optical and electro-optical components and devices for infrared, e-ray, gamma-ray, telecommunication and other applications, where Mr. Corasanti is a member of the audit committee. He also served as General Counsel and Vice President-Legal Affairs of the Company from March 1993 to August 1998 and Executive Vice-President/General Manager of the Company from August 1998 to August 1999. Prior to that time he was an Associate Attorney with the law firm of Morgan, Wenzel & McNicholas, Los Angeles, California from 1990 to March 1993. Mr. Corasanti holds a B.A. degree in Political Science from Hobart College and a J.D. degree from Whittier College School of Law. Joseph J. Corasanti is the son of Eugene R. Corasanti, Chairman of the Board and Vice Chairman of the Company.

Thomas D'Ambra; Chairman, President and CEO, AMRI Global
Thomas E. D’Ambra, Ph.D. is founder, chairman, president and chief executive officer of AMRI. He began his career at Sterling Drug, Inc. in medicinal chemistry during the 1980’s. In 1989, he co-founded Coromed, Inc., a clinical research organization where he established the chemistry and biology departments and served as vice president, chemistry. In 1991, Dr. D’Ambra co-founded Albany Molecular Research. Dr. D’Ambra received a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the College of the Holy Cross and a doctorate in organic chemistry from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He has authored numerous publications and is inventor on over 35 U.S. patents.

Steve Daley; Attorney, Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation, Bond Schoeneck & King

Joseph Darling; President, Linvatec

Joseph G. Darling is President of CONMED Linvatec subsidiary of CONMED Corporation. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Darling served as Senior Vice President & General Manager at Smith & Nephew, Inc. from September 2006 to April 2008 where he was a member of the executive leadership team for the sports medicine business unit within the Endoscopy division. Mr. Darling had previously held the position of Vice President, Worldwide Marketing at Smith & Nephew, Inc. from October 2005 to September 2006. Prior to Smith & Nephew, Mr. Darling served Baxter International, Inc. in a number of increasingly senior positions from May 1999 to October 2005. His final position at Baxter was Vice President, Marketing II and Integrated Delivery Network Sales within the Medication Delivery Systems division from November 2003 to October 2005. Additionally, Mr. Darling held a variety of senior sales and marketing positions with Abbott Laboratories Pharmaceutical Products Division and Wyeth-Ayerst Laboratories from 1983 to 1999. Mr. Darling holds a B.A. degree in Political Science from Syracuse University Maxwell School of Citizenship.

Al Di Rienzo; President and CEO, Blue Highway

Building his career on a foundation of expertise in scientific, technological, and business leadership, Albert Di Rienzo has contributed significantly to the advancement of commercial, military, and health care applications. In the span of 25 years, his career in industry includes research and development appointments at Welch Allyn, Philips Medical Systems, Siemens Medical Systems, Honeywell/Sperry Aerospace, and General Dynamics Land Systems. Approximately twenty months ago, Albert transitioned from being Welch Allyn’s Chief Science & Technology Officer to being the President & CEO of Blue Highway, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Welch Allyn - focused on science and technology acceleration, primarily from ideation to proof-of-concept for the worldwide health care community. Connecting his expertise to community involvement, Albert has spoken to the U.S. Senate Manufacturing Caucus concerning the impact of Research & Development on Manufacturing Innovation.  He also serves on the Columbia University Center for Advanced Information Management External Advisory Board, Consumer Health World Advisory Board, Excell Partners Technical Advisory Board, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Alliance, National Biodefense Science Board, Syracuse University Center for Advanced Systems & Engineering Advisory Board, Syracuse University College of Engineering & Computer Science Dean’s Council, University of Buffalo Center for Advanced Biomedical and Bioengineering Technology Industry Advisory Board, and the Society of Industry Leaders. Albert is also the Founding Chair of the Syracuse Chapter of Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society as well as one of the Founding Board of Directors for the Continua Health Alliance. He is active in a number of professional organizations including the: Association for Computing Machinery, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Mathematical Association of America, MedTech Science & Technology Committee, New York Academy of Sciences, Product Development and Management Association, and Software Engineering Institute. Albert was also recognized by Frost & Sullivan as a Medical MindXchange Most Valuable Thought Leader, and by the Technology Alliance of Central New York as the Technologist of the Year (2009). 

Albert is degreed in Computer Science from Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA. Dedicated to the ideal of lifelong learning, Albert has focused on continued professional development over the course of his career, successfully pursuing an extensive list of managerial, leadership, and technical skills courses.

Michael Dwyer; Director Research Relations Office, Rochester Institute of Technology

Mike joined RIT in 2002 to focus on the development of the “First in Class” research program through the creation of Industry and Government Partnerships. With more than 25 years in engineering, marketing, and business-unit management, Mike has worked closely with RIT’s key researchers to identify and build relationships with our strategic research sponsors. Before joining RIT he was vice president and general manager for Signaling Products at ALSTOM Signaling, prior to that, he was vice president of marketing for ABB Automation. Mike received his bachelor's degree in computer science from Clarkson University and is a double alumnus of RIT—master's of science in engineering technology, and an M.B.A. in technology management.

Amer El-Kerdi; Director, Clinical Affairs, Carestream Health

Amer EL-Kerdi is Director, Clinical Affairs for Carestream Health, Inc., responsible for global clinical research and operations. Prior to that, Dr. EL-Kerdi was part of the senior management of Spawn Technolgies, Inc., a biopharmaceutical innovation management company. Dr. EL-Kerdi has a over 12 years experience in product development and clinical marketing in the medical device and biopharmaceutical industries. Dr. EL-Kerdi holds a doctorate degree in Experimental Biomedicine from the University of Bern, and MBA in Management of Technology jointly offered by the University of Texas at Austin, University of Lausanne and Swiss Federal Institute of Technology."

Lorraine Ellis; President and CEO, Research Dynamics Consulting Group

Lorraine D. Ellis has over 30 years experience in the pharmaceutical industry. She has worked at several pharmaceutical companies in positions ranging from Associate Pharmacologist to Director, Medical Project Planning and Development. She has worked in various parts of the development process from pre-clinical labs clinical studies and FDA submissions. Lorraine has developed and taught clinical research training programs to for over 20 years. Realizing the impact technology can have on clinical trial methods, she designed and implemented one of the first CTMS systems, IMPACT, over 15 years ago. Lorraine has a BA (Biology) Hofstra University, MS (Biology) Adelphi University, and MBA Rochester Institute of Technology. Continuing her work in education she is an Adjunct Professor at RIT and on the RIT Clinical Advisory Board to develop a new Masters Degree in Clinical Research Management and an Adjunct Assistant Professor for MGH IHP Graduate Program in Clinical Investigation. She is active in professional organizations: DIA, ACRP, and Women President Organization (WPO). Her organizational volunteer work includes serving on several committees and advisory boards. She was a member of the ACRP board of directors for 5 years. She is founder and President/CEO of Research Dynamics Consulting Group, Ltd. since 1993. The company is a privately held CRO conducting Phase I-IV clinical trials for the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device industries using state-of-the-art technology. As one of the top training companies in the industry, the company conducts training courses throughout the country for clinical research professionals.

Tim Evans; Partner, Marjama Muldoon Blasiak & Sullivan LLP

Mr. Evans’s practice focuses on patent, trademark, and copyright matters, with an emphasis on the preparation and prosecution of patent and trademark applications in the general fields of mechanical, electro-mechanical, and electrical arts. Prior to and during law school, Mr. Evans held a range of engineering positions serving the automobile and steel industries. In these positions Mr. Evans gained significant expertise in assembly joint design, cutting tool materials and anti-wear coatings, the heat treatment of metals and ceramics, machining techniques, metallurgy, friction modifiers for threaded fasteners, corrosion preventative coatings, electronic controls for AC and DC drive systems and small AC and DC servo motors. Mr. Evans taught Basic CNC Programming and Machining Techniques at Kent State University in Ohio as an adjunct instructor, and is a Professional Engineer licensed in Ohio and New York. After becoming a practicing Patent Attorney, Mr. Evans has gained significant experience in additional technologies through the preparation and prosecution of patents in the fields of, piezoelectric / electrostrictive actuators, semiconductor manufacturing devices, semiconductors, ceramic honeycomb design and manufacturing, medical equipment, liquid crystal display devices, air traffic control systems, snow boards, and alpine skis.

Ted Farrell; Group Director, Systems R&D, Ortho Clinical Diagnostics

Ted Farrell is Group Director, Systems R&D at Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics (a Johnson & Johnson company), responsible for development of new in-vitro diagnostic analyzers. Since coming to OCD in 2000, Ted has focused on the application of systems engineering approaches to development of medical diagnostic equipment. He is also head of a center of excellence in software and electronics for the Johnson & Johnson medical device companies, and a member of J&J’s open innovation initiative. Before coming to J&J, Ted was technical director and senior program manager at BBN and General Electric for a variety of defense R&D programs including real-time signal processing and system performance modeling for sonar, radar, speech detection, nuclear test monitoring and computer network defense systems. Ted is a graduate of the GE Edison Engineering program and has an MSEE from Syracuse University.

Dan Fisher; Sr. VP World Wide Operations, Welch Allyn

Dan Fisher is senior vice president, Human Resources and Organization Leadership. In this role, he has responsibility for Welch Allyn's global human resource and organization management policies and programs. In 1980, he began at Welch Allyn as director of human resources, after starting his career at Mobil Oil. In 1985, Dan assumed the role as vice president, human resources. And from 1988 through 1992, Dan led the company's Total Quality Improvement process. Engaged as a leader of many not-for-profit organizations over the course of his career, Dan is currently vice chair of the Onondaga Community College Foundation Board of Trustees; he is also a member of the (William H.) Seward House Museum Board of Trustees, the CNY Episcopal Diocese Investment & Finance Committee, and the National Association of Corporate Directors. Dan earned his A.B. from Hamilton College, his M.I.L.R. from Cornell University and his M.B.A. from Syracuse University.

David Gately; Managing Partner, UBS Investment Bank

Marc M. Goloven was the senior regional economist at JP Morgan Chase until his retirement in late 2004. In this capacity, he directed the regional research efforts, focusing primarily upon the nation’s largest state economies, especially the tri-state New York, New Jersey and Connecticut region. This effort was undertaken principally for the Commercial Banking/ Middle Market Division of the Bank, but the analysis was also utilized by the Retail, Small Business and Mortgage Services segments of the Bank. He was the author of the Bank’s widely distributed external newsletter, the ‘Financial Digest”, several internal publications and was a frequent speaker at public and private sector gatherings. He was also a member of the New York State Budget Division’s Economic Advisory Board; a member of New York City’s Economic Forecasting Advisory Group and was the Chair of the Business Survey Committee of the National Association of Purchasing Management- New York. Prior to joining JP Morgan Chase on 1978, Mr. Goloven received his graduate degree in economics from Georgetown University and was a policy analyst at the Export-Import Bank of the United States. Since leaving JP Morgan Chase, Mr. Goloven has continued to write and speak about economic trends in the tri-state New York, New Jersey, Connecticut region; has worked with the business development boards of local community banks; and currently serves as an economic consultant to the Mayor of the city of Yonkers and its Industrial Development Agency.

Mark Heller, Partner, Goodwin Proctor and former Associate Chief Counsel, United States Food and Drug Administration

Mark Heller is a Partner in the law firm of Goodwin Procter LLP, Washington, DC and is chair of the firm’s FDA Group and is a member of the Life Sciences Practice. He focuses on Food and Drug Administration and Federal Trade Commission laws and enforcement counseling and litigation. Mr. Heller represents a broad base of clients in all aspects of the FDA’s product approval processes, and in compliance matters ranging from administrative notices of violation to enforcement actions. He also represents clients in obtaining device and drug approvals and in responding to agency investigations, for example, those concerning device and drug promotion, good manufacturing practices, product importation, and in filing comments within the agency to help shape regulatory and policy initiatives. Mr. Heller works closely with clients to develop strategies to maximize their effectiveness in dealing with the FDA’s processes. Previously, he spent almost 10 years in the FDA’s Chief Counsel’s office, where he was actively involved in offensive and defensive litigation. During his last six years with the FDA, Mark was Associate Chief Counsel for Medical Devices. He is listed in Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business; The Best Lawyers in America; is prominently featured as one of three “leading” lawyers in the 2006/2007/2008 PLC Cross-border Life Sciences Handbook in the USA Regulatory (medical devices) category; Legal Times of Washington, as one of the top 11 FDA lawyers; the FDA Practice Area section of the Washington D.C. Super Lawyers, March 2007 edition; and in the Washingtonian magazine, as one of the top FDA lawyers. Mr. Heller received his B.A. and J.D. from the University of Wisconsin.

Ms. Hoehner’s practice focuses on corporate, commercial and securities matters. She is experienced in handling various complex business transactions from conception to execution, such as in-licensing and out-licensing of software and other intellectual property, purchasing and selling businesses and their products and services, and drafting and negotiating agreements integral to business operations. She also specializes in ethics and corporate compliance matters, especially in the areas of healthcare fraud & abuse and federal lobbying & election law compliance.  Previously, Ms. Hoehner was assistant general counsel at Taro Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc., a publicly traded multinational pharmaceutical company, where she handled several joint venture and acquisition transactions, and worked closely with the purchasing, sales and marketing, research and development, and operations departments to prepare, review and negotiate agreements for the supply of components, sale of finished products, contract manufacturing, and clinical trials, among others. In addition to practicing in the above described areas, Ms. Hoehner designed, developed and implemented a worldwide ethics and corporate compliance program and served as chair of Taro’s compliance committee.

Thomas Hook; CEO, Greatbatch

Thomas Hook is President & CEO and Board Director of Greatbatch, Inc. (NYSE: GB), a leader in the design and manufacture of products for the implantable medical device industry. He joined Greatbatch in September 2004 as Executive Vice President & COO based in Clarence, New York. He restructured the company and drove the consolidation of thirteen facilities into four new and expanded manufacturing locations.   In 2007 Mr. Hook led the recapitalization of Greatbatch to facilitate seven acquisitions across the globe.   These deals rapidly expanded Greatbatch’s technology and operating footprint.   He currently is leading the global consolidation of Greatbatch and expanding the Company’s presence technologically and globally.  Before joining Greatbatch, he was Strategic Advisor to CTI Molecular Imaging (NASDAQ: CTMI), headquartered in Knoxville, TN, just prior to its acquisition by Siemens Medical. He served at CTI in multiple operating roles including President of CTI Solutions, President of PETNET Pharmaceuticals, and Chairman of Mirada Solutions, one of multiple acquisitions by CTI. Mr. Hook lead the growth of all CTI operating divisions following CTI’s IPO and doubled CTI’s sales within a two year period. Prior to CTI, Mr. Hook was with GE Medical Systems in Waukesha, WI starting as Manager of Business Development in March 2000 responsible for acquisition growth. Following his leadership of several acquisitions & investments, Mr. Hook was promoted to General Manager of the Positron Tomography business. His leadership in commercializing new imaging technology generated 100% sales growth. After his promotion to General Manager of Functional & Molecular Imaging, GE Medical achieved the market leadership position in global Positron Tomography sales.  Prior to GE Medical Systems Mr. Hook was a successful entrepreneur. In 1996, together with several business school classmates, he founded the Van Owen Group to acquire high-tech manufacturing companies in the semiconductor and electronics automation industries. Following multiple acquisitions of semiconductor automation companies, he consolidated operations in Grand Prairie, Texas where he served as President.   He sold his interest in the Van Owen Group prior to joining GE Medical.

His business career started at Duracell in Bethel, CT as a Product Engineer & Battery Scientist in July 1991. After a series of successive promotions, he served as the Technical Manager and Manufacturing Manager of Duracell’s Cleveland, TN operations.  Mr. Hook served as a US Navy Officer for 7 years as a nuclear engineer aboard aircraft carriers. He attended St. Bonaventure University under an athletic scholarship and earned his Bachelors degree in chemistry with a secondary concentration in mathematics in 1984. He was awarded a Fellowship to the State University of New York at Buffalo where he completed his Masters degree in Chemistry in 1986. He completed nuclear power training at the prestigious Navy Nuclear Power School in Orlando, Florida in 1987. Under the sponsorship of Duracell he completed his MBA studies at Vanderbilt University in May of 1997.

Thomas Hook resides in Clarence, New York with his wife and four children. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of St. Bonaventure University, Health Now and the Buffalo Niagara Partnership.

Shirley Isbill; Consultant

He was previously a Supervisory Investigator assigned to the North Brunswick, NJ office of FDA.   He has over 16 years of field investigation experience and over 20 years experience as a supervisor. He spent the last 10 years conducting audits of clinical investigation facilities in the U.S., Canada, Germany, Finland, England and other countries. The specific types of studies audited included infertility, angioplasty, bioequivalence, hemophilia, endometriosis, defibrillators, children’s vaccines, arthritis, cryoablation, leukemia chemotherapy and congestive heart failure. He also supervised other FDA Investigators who conducted similar audits in New Jersey and foreign countries.  He was FDA’s Bioresearch Program Manager in New Jersey.   His duties involved scheduling inspections and audits of drug companies who plan new drug trials, Investigational Review Boards who approve the trials, CROs who monitor the trials and Clinical Investigators who conduct the trials.   He evaluated FDA inspection reports to determine if any violations found warranted official agency action such as a Warning Letter or Disqualification. He has a B.S. degree in Biology from Carson-Newman College Jefferson City, TN and has attended multiple training courses involving FDA regulated processes and products. He has participated in internal audits of FDA district office functions in Minneapolis and Baltimore. He taught FDA investigators in Florida and Minneapolis how to use FDA's computer software to develop reports of FDA inspections.   Most recently, he presented this training at FDA's Advance Bioresearch Training Course with specific emphasis on clinical study site inspections.

David A. Johnson; Vice President Global Operations & Supply Chain, ConMed

Gregory Jones; Vice President Regulatory Affairs and Quality Assurance, Linvatec

Daniel Kerpelman; President and CEO, Bio-Optronics

Dan Kerpelman has 20 years of management experience, mostly in healthcare technology. He is currently President & CEO of Bio-Optronics, Inc, a Rochester, NY based software company specialized in healthcare workflow. He was recently CEO of the Société Générale de Surveillance in Geneva, Switzerland where he led a $3.5B services company of 46,000 employees, including a life science division engaged in clinical research. Prior to SGS, Dan was President of the $2.7B Kodak Health Imaging Group in Rochester, NY, and Senior Vice-President of the Eastman Kodak Company. Dan joined Kodak after 17 years with GE Healthcare, most recently as General Manager of the Global X-Ray business, based in Paris, France. Previously, he held executive positions in Six Sigma, Services and Engineering, in the USA, France and Italy. Dan is a member of the boards of the University of Rochester Medical Center, XCounter AB (Sweden), Cotecna SA (Switzerland) and VirtualScopics, Inc (Rochester, NY). Dan has an MBA from Northwestern, an MS in Computer Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, a BS in Computer Science from the University of Maryland, and a two-year degree from the Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers in France. He is a citizen of the USA and Italy, co-resides in the USA and Switzerland, and speaks four languages.

Bruce Kirk; Director, Corporate Innovation Effectiveness, Corning

Bruce Kirk is responsible for the advancement of Innovation Effectiveness throughout the corporation. His responsibilities include innovation process development and deployment, employee education and training, global benchmarking, next generation process development and the implementation of the Innovation Black Belt role across Corning. He is the corporate process owner of Corning’s Five Stage Innovation Process and the Roadmapping process. Bruce led the Revitalize Innovation Globally (RIG) initiative for the Corporation since 2005. Previously, he led the innovation process portion of Corning Competes re-engineering from 1995 to 1997. His focus was on Innovation Project Management and its deployment in Corning’s faster new

product and process R&D environment during the telecom growth period. Bruce has extensive experience teaching the principles and practice of the innovation process to teams in Corning’s worldwide network. He is also skilled in facilitating the development of roadmaps and business technology strategies with the business units. Bruce joined Corning in 1976 and has held various leadership positions in sales, sales management, marketing management and business management. His career experience has spanned several Corning divisions including Medical Products, Science Products, Human Resources, Photonic Technologies, and Science and Technology. Bruce holds a bachelor’s degree in business finance from Susquehanna University.

Steve Lescohier, Senior Vice President, JP Morgan Securities, Inc.

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Dan Maffei, Congressman, US House of Representatives

Congressman Dan Maffei was sworn into office on January 6th, 2009 and is serving his first term as U.S. Representative to New York's 25th Congressional District, which includes all of Onondaga and Wayne counties and parts of Cayuga and Monroe counties. He sits on the House Financial Services and Judiciary Committees. A proud graduate of Syracuse's public school system, Congressman Maffei believes that every child should have the necessary resources to succeed just as he did. After high school, Congressman Maffei earned a Bachelor's Degree in History from Brown University and Masters Degrees from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism and Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government. Congressman Maffei is a former staff member for U.S. Senators Daniel Patrick Moynihan and Bill Bradley and served as a senior staff member on the House Ways and Means Committee for seven years. Congressman Maffei understands the challenges facing families and businesses in Upstate New York and is committed to honest and open government that is accessible to all.
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Bela Musits; Managing Director, High Peaks Venture Partners

Bela L. Musits is a Founding Managing Director of High Peaks Venture Partners, L.P. High Peaks is an early-stage technology venture fund that focuses on making investments across New York State. Prior to High Peaks, Bela was the Director of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's Incubator Program. He is the founder of two venture-backed companies and has held senior management and technical positions at the corporate research labs of IBM and GE. Bela also managed the successful spin-off of technology from IBM Research, serving as co-founder and president of a computer-guided robotic surgery company. He raised over $17 million in capital and positioned the company for a successful IPO in 1997.

Nancy Nussmeier, MD, Professor & Chair, Department of Anesthesiology, SUNY Upstate Medical University

Robert Panzer, MD, Chief Quality Officer and Associate VP, Patient Care Quality & Safety, University of Rochester Medical Center

Robert Panzer, M.D. is Chief Quality Officer for the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC), Strong Memorial Hospital, and the Strong Health system. He is also Associate Vice President for Patient Care Quality and Safety for URMC and Associate Medical Director of Strong Memorial Hospital. In these roles, he is responsible for overseeing and supporting quality, patient safety, and clinical improvement activities.  He is also Professor of Medicine, and of Community & Preventive Medicine at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry. Based in the General Medicine Division, he practices part-time as a board-certified general internist. He is an editor of the book “Diagnostic Strategies for Common Medical Problems”, published by the American College of Physicians. Dr. Panzer actively collaborates with national organizations working to improve the state of the art of quality improvement. He also chaired a statewide work group to redesign hospital incident reporting that developed the New York Patient Occurrence Reporting and Tracking System (NYPORTS).

Richard Paul; Partner, Hiscock & Barclay

Mr. Paul has experience in all facets of business and commercial law, with a particular emphasis on international transactions. He advises clients on international business matters and counsels them on the unique issues companies contend with when doing business overseas. Mr. Paul has a lengthy representation of one of the leading U.S. Defense Contractors in support of their international business pursuits. He has traveled extensively to conduct negotiations and assist clients in pursuing business opportunities in numerous countries around the world. In doing so, he has forged relationships with lawyers in many countries which enable him to obtain country-specific legal advice on behalf of clients. Mr. Paul frequently speaks on international contract and legal issues, and has developed and conducted international contract training courses for companies doing business overseas.

Gary Pease, HR Director, International, Corning, Inc

Paul Powers; Senior Business Advisor, Empire Advocates, LLC

Paul Powers has a wealth of experience in dealing with government at all levels, having spent 10 years in the New York State Assembly as a research analyst and 12 years with the New York State Public Service Commission in various management roles. Most recently, Mr. Powers served as the Executive Deputy to the Chairman of the PSC. In this capacity he provided guidance to the Chairman of the New York State Public Service Commission on all policy matters coming before the Commission and all matters pertaining to the supervision of the Department of Public Service. He also managed all department activities of more than 500 legal, technical and administrative employees. Prior to the Executive Deputy position, Mr. Powers held several Director positions within the agency, including that of the Office of Electricity and the Environment. In these positions, he served as the agency representative for numerous interagency and intergovernmental efforts, including the drafting and implementation of the 1998 and 2002 State Energy Plans, the Governor's Greenhouse Gas Task Force and the Coalition of Northeastern Governors.

With Empire Advocates, Mr. Powers will focus on providing governmental relations and policy guidance to energy and telecommunications companies, including business/project strategy and direction, crisis and risk management, policy design and development and client relationship management.

Donna Rankin-Parobek; Intellectual Property Director, Carestream Health

Donna Rankin-Parobek is the Intellectual Property Director for Carestream Health, Inc., responsible for overall strategic and technical management of a portfolio of over 1,000 US and foreign issued patents and pending applications. Donna works with worldwide R&D teams on patent filing strategies, new invention evaluations, competitive assessments, patent valuation and licensing, inventor training and portfolio maintenance. Prior to this role, Donna worked for 15 years at the Eastman Kodak Company as an intellectual property manager, research scientist and project engineer in the Kodak Research Labs and Government Systems Division. She received B.S. and M.S. degrees in Imaging Science from Rochester Institute of Technology. Donna is a patent agent registered with the US Patent and Trademark Office. 

Peter Robinson; Vice Presidnet and COO, University of Rochester Medical Center

Bill Schwartz; Executive Vice President, TBM Consulting Group

A partner with TBM since 1991, Bill Schwartz is head of TBM’s Medical Products and Pharmaceutical Practice. He has introduced lean principles at dozens of companies over the past 18 years at numerous clients including leading medical products companies such as: ConMed Corporation, Hill-Rom, LeMaitre Vascular, and Johnson & Johnson Medical, Inc. An engaging speaker and effective trainer, Bill often presents at major trade conferences and helps launch LeanSigma® initiatives for senior management teams with companies getting started with lean. Bill has a widely recognized expertise in Policy Deployment and translating lean principles for business processes in manufacturing and service companies. During his career he has consulted with private equity firms, portfolio clients and several leading companies including Pella Corporation, Hayward Pool Products, Bunge, Danaher Corporation, Saint-Gobain, and Carlisle Companies. Bill has specific expertise in business process kaizen, senior management lean awareness training, and value chain visioning.  Earlier in his career, Bill was a senior consultant with Howell Management Corporation and was Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Medallic Art Company. He started his career as a marketing representative with IBM Corporation after graduating from Colgate University with a degree in mathematics. He later earned an MBA from the Stern School of Business at New York University.

Gerald Shaye; Director of International Trade, Empire State Development

Gerald Shaye was born in Albany, New York and educated at Dartmouth College and the Columbia University Graduate School of Business. Mr. Shaye entered the Peace Corps after his education and served in Venezuela. After his Peace Corps service, Mr. Shaye and several partners founded the first commercial mushroom farm in Venezuela. He subsequently worked for ten years with a Venezuelan trading and manufacturing company and his last five years in Venezuela were spent as general manager of Venezuela's largest agricultural cooperative.  In January 1990, Gerald Shaye joined The New York State Department of Economic Development. He was named Director, International Trade Development in 1999. Mr. Shaye has assisted several hundred New York State companies to initiate or to expand their exports. Currently Mr. Shaye is responsible for the promotion of exports from New York State manufacturers and service providers. Mr. Shaye has delivered creative export education programs to small and medium-size businesses across New York State.  He is the Chairman of the Albany-Tula Alliance, a successful sister city program with Tula, a city similar to Albany located two hours south of Moscow, Russia. He serves on the board of the Tech Valley Global Business Network and the International Center of the Capital Region and is a member of the Upstate New York District Export Council. Mr. Shaye teaches International Business and International Marketing in the MBA programs at Union Graduate College and the State University of New York at Albany. He has also consulted and given seminars in Mexico, Spain, Argentina, Russia, China and Venezuela. In 2003, Gerald Shaye was awarded the Special Recognition Award for Excellence in International Trade from the Tech Valley Global Business Network.

Julie Shimer; President and CEO, Welch Allyn

Julie Shimer, Ph.D., is chief executive officer and president of Welch Allyn, a privately-held, manufacturer of frontline medical equipment and diagnostic solutions headquartered in Skaneateles Falls, New York. Shimer joined the Welch Allyn family in 2002 as a member of the board of directors, bringing with her over 20 years of leadership experience in the computer networking and wireless communications industries. Shimer’s business expertise and exceptional grasp of technology proved to be an invaluable asset to the company, earning her the title of president and CEO in 2007 – becoming the first woman to hold this post in the 95-year history of the company. In her first two years at the company, Welch Allyn won “Best Places to Work™” accolades in Ireland and Mexico, began developing an innovative new platform of connected devices, and broke ground on a $30 million expansion project at its global headquarters in Skaneateles Falls.  Most recently, Shimer served as president and CEO of Vocera Communications, a leading wireless communications company based in Cupertino, Calif. While at Vocera, she led the company in securing more than $29 million in capital funding, shipped the first Vocera Communications Systems, and added key talent to the executive, marketing, and technical teams. As a result of her leadership, the company experienced explosive growth; and its communication system was deployed in leading hospitals in the United States and Europe. Shimer also held executive positions at 3Com Corporation, serving as vice president and general manager of its networking products. Before joining 3Com, she held executive positions at Motorola, where she was vice president and general manager in the paging division and, prior to that post, vice president in its semiconductor products sector. Shimer also held leadership positions at AT&T Bell Laboratories and Bethlehem Steel Company. Along the way, Shimer was issued a US patent and authored more than 10 technical papers. Shimer currently holds board positions with Welch Allyn, Netgear, the Engineering Information Foundation and the Metropolitan Development Association. She is actively involved in programs that encourage women to enter engineering fields and is a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and Society for Women Engineers.  Dr. Shimer holds master’s and doctoral degrees in Electrical Engineering from Lehigh University and a bachelor’s degree in Physics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.  She resides in Skaneateles, NY with her husband, Jary.

John Tracy; International Trade Specialist, US Department of Commerce

John Tracy is an International Trade Specialist with the U.S. Department of Commerce. Prior to coming to Commerce he worked for an international logistics, freight forwarding and Customs brokerage company in Rochester, NY, for a Hong Kong-based steamship line in New York, and managed international logistics for a chemical manufacturing company in New Jersey. A native of Utica, NY, he earned a BS in Economics from Clarkson University and an MS in International Transportation Management from the New York Maritime College. He holds a Chartering Certificate from the Association of Ship Brokers and Agents and is a NASBITE Certified Global Business Professional (CGBP). 

Thomas Tremble; Associate VP, Government Relations & Regional Affairs, AdvaMed
As AdvaMed's Associate Vice President of Government and Regional Affairs, Tom Tremble is responsible for state government relations and liaison with state and regional device groups.  In directing the state program, he works closely with the state affairs committee to identify, track, and influence priority legislation that would impact patient access to medical technology. Among issues that he is involved with are technology assessment, treatment guidelines, and marketing restrictions. He has also played a major role in the association's involvement in state health care reform, clinical laboratory licensure, facility licensure, and product liability.  In addition to state government relations, Mr. Tremble played a key role in establishing the association's political action committee, and has also been involved in activating grassroots advocacy on key federal issues.  Prior to coming to AdvaMed, he worked in the U.S. Senate for the Select Committee on the Iran-Contra Affairs and the Arms Control Treaty Office, where he worked with committee staff reviewing the intermediate nuclear forces treaty with the Soviet Union. He also worked as a Legislative Assistant in the Maine Legislature.  He is a graduate of the University of Maine with a B.A. in Political Science.

Bill Willick; Director, Lean Enterprise Center of Excellence, Greatbatch

Bill Willick is responsible for driving lean improvements throughout all functions of the Greatbatch enterprise including the manufacturing operations and business processes. Key responsibilities include helping area leaders diagnose business opportunities, create action plans, and provide support in the execution of these plans to help realize bottom line results. Lean Enterprise is viewed as a strategic enabler to achieve customer excellence and gain a competitive advantage.  Prior to joining Greatbatch, Bill spent more than 10 years in the automotive industry holding a variety of positions in operations and engineering gaining extensive experience in the Toyota Production System. Bill holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and doctorate degree in Industrial Engineering: Operations Research from the State University of New York at Buffalo.