Dr. Alyncia Bowen currently serves at Franklin University as the Dean of the Ross College of Business, Executive Director of the Franklin University Leadership Center and Co-Executive Director of the Global Center for Healthcare Education.  She earned her doctorate in Organization and Management from Capella University, MSA in Health Care Administration from Central Michigan University and Bachelors of Arts from Capital University.  Dr. Bowen has served as Dean of Doctoral Studies and the School of Nursing, Chair of the Doctorate of Healthcare Administrator, professor in the Healthcare Management, Business Administration, Management and Leadership programs and MBA program at Franklin University where she has taught both domestically and internationally. While at Franklin University she was instrumental in the development and launch of Ohio National University, a division of Franklin University.  Dr. Bowen has also served as an instructor for Mount Carmel College of Nursing where she taught and developed curriculum for their Healthcare Systems, Policy and Economics course.  She has served as a guest lecturer on the topics of research and project management.  Prior to joining Franklin University Dr. Bowen served for over 23 years in the healthcare industry in various leadership and operations management positions.   She is a Certified Six Sigma Black Belt, has trained White Belts, Green Belts and Black Belts.   In 2019 Dr. Bowen was named a Faculty Fellow. She has been recognized in Who’s Who in Black Columbus for 5 years and has received multiple teaching awards. 

Dr. Bowen enjoys presenting and has presented on the following topics:  Developing and Sustaining a Community of Practice, creating a Culture of Learning, Building, Developing and Implementing Best Practices in a Multi-generational Educational Environment, Cultural Competence, Transformational Teaching and Transnational Education, Knowledge Management, Organizational Learning, and various Leadership topics.  As the Executive Director of the Franklin University Leadership Center she is charged with providing relevant topics for exploration and development throughout the year.  She is also responsible for overseeing the Raymond E. Mason Leadership Symposium, a 3-day symposium that deals with relevant leadership topics that empowers leaders at all levels.  Dr. Bowen has publications (articles and book chapters) in the areas of Intellectual Communities of Practice, Knowledge Workers, Integrated Leadership, Tele-Pharmacy, Post-Hurricane Schooling in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands and an Adapted Hierarchy of Needs,  Intersectionality of Black Female Education Leaders Critical Examination of Race, Ethnicity, Class and Gender in Education: Policing and Integrated Leadership Post-Hurricane Schooling in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands and Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and Black Female Education Leaders: Intersectionality of Leadership, Race, Gender, Power and Social Justice.  In May, 2022 Dr. Bowen authored a book, “When God Says Wait”.  She currently serves on various Community and Corporate Boards including Ohio Living, COSI, and the Mount Carmel Foundation Board. Dr. Bowen resides in Columbus, Ohio.

Alissa Amidon-Carbonaro is an experienced real estate professional with a focus on specialty retail. 

Initially drawn to Columbus from Buffalo, N.Y., for a position with Cardinal Health, Alissa accepted a role with The Limited (now L Brands) in 1997, supporting the U.S. growth of multiple brands including Bath & Body Works, Victoria’s Secret, The Limited, Express, and Abercrombie & Fitch. 

Alissa held a variety of roles in real estate as well as in finance and information/data management. Her most recent assignment as VP of international real estate focuses on the growth of Bath & Body Works and Victoria’s Secret across 70+ countries. She works closely with strategic, regional franchise partners to deliver compelling real estate around the globe.  

Alissa holds bachelor’s degrees in history and political science from the University of Rochester, as well as an MBA with a concentration in leadership from Franklin University. 

In addition to her professional accomplishments, Alissa has served on various philanthropic boards and volunteers her time with nonprofit organizations. She is passionate about travel, loves good wine and rides annually in Pelotonia to support cancer research. 

A resident of German Village, Alissa and her husband Joe share their home with their two dogs, Izzie and Gigi.  

Karen M. Fowler is a trusted, business-focused, collaborative diversity, equity and inclusion leader with experience working in domestic and global corporate, nonprofit and higher education environments. She has over 30 years of increasingly complex positions supporting company board members, CEOs, general managers, university presidents and world-wide client groups across most business functions and industries. 

She is an effective strategist and change agent with a proven track record of accomplishment in leading organizational initiatives, building programs, managing change, and influencing employees at all levels.

Karen has certifications in leadership development (DDI), unconscious bias, and disability etiquette and awareness. She has been a featured speaker at national and local conferences on topics ranging from Women in Leadership to People with Disabilities.  

Karen continues to mentor women in college and young female professionals. She is extremely active in the community and holds leadership roles in many organizations including Dress for Success, Jazz Arts Group-Columbus and Women for Economic and Leadership Development (WELD).

She is married to the love of her life and has an adult son, a fabulous daughter-in-law and two grandsons. 

Derek Grosso is an entrepreneur, connector and community-builder. He founded the Columbus Young Professionals (CYP) Club in 2005 and has grown it into the nation’s largest association for young professionals – with more than 30,000 members – while maintaining a focus on advancing careers, community, conversations and culture for emerging leaders across central Ohio. Through his leadership, the CYP Club has helped create thousands of personal and professional connections, contributed more than 100,000 volunteer hours, and raised more than $600,000 for charity since its inception. In 2020, Columbus Business First named the CYP Club No. 7 on its Corporate Citizenship Top 100 list, having donated $225,520 of in-kind donations to charity. 

He is also co-founder and CEO of Virventi, a tech startup that brings virtual events and people together with a focus on the social experience. 

He studied entrepreneurship and small business management at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C., and holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration. He proudly serves the community through his volunteer work. He lives in Upper Arlington with his wife Nicci and daughter Hannah.

Jeffrey Lawler, Senior Financial Advisor with Huntington Financial Advisors, serves his community by designing complete financial plans using strategies that will enable clients to prepare for and live in retirement.

Jeff is a lifelong resident of Columbus, Ohio, and graduated from The Ohio State University with a bachelor’s degree in political science. He spent three years with PaineWebber serving clients directly, before joining Nationwide in 2003. Jeff earned his Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) in 2004, Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC) designation in 2011. Jeff prides himself on being a lifelong learner and always seeking to understand before providing solutions. For the past 25 years, Jeff has served financial firms, advisors, and clients in building solutions to their goals and dreams. 

Jeff lives with his wife Jaime and four children Sam, Will, Addie and Jack. He has completed a marathon and four half marathons. Jeff’s passion’s lie in spending time with his family and giving back to his community. An avid sports fan, he spends much of his time at fields, diamonds, and basketball courts supporting his favorite athletes.

Maureen Metcalf is a highly respected executive advisor and the visionary founder and Chief Executive Officer of the Innovative Leadership Institute. Committed to creating a better world through exceptional leadership, Maureen guides her clients in elevating the quality of their leadership talent pool.

Recognized as a Fellow of the esteemed International Leadership Association, Maureen is also an accomplished author. Her international award-winning book series on innovative leadership, including the acclaimed "Innovative Leaders for Health Care," received the prestigious International Book Award.

Beyond her writing achievements, Maureen extends her influence through her captivating international podcast, "Innovating Leadership: Co-creating our Future," ranked in the top 1% of podcasts globally. As the host, she leads engaging discussions on cutting-edge leadership practices, garnering a wide and appreciative audience.

Maureen's expertise is highly sought after in leadership, as evidenced by her regular contributions as a writer and expert contributor to Forbes.com. Her esteemed Forbes Coaches Council membership further solidifies her role as a trusted authority in the field.

With a passion for education, Maureen has imparted her knowledge to students across various universities as an esteemed educator. She serves as the Vice President of James Madison University’s School of Strategic Leadership Studies Advisory Committee and Franklin University’s Mason Leadership Center, demonstrating her commitment to advancing the study and practice of strategic leadership.
 

Sean McKibben is a senior executive healthcare leader with a proven record of accomplishment leading successful growth, expansion and operational improvements of healthcare organizations. His significant achievements include safety, quality, and patient experience improvements, leadership development and building high-performing teams, service line expansion and enhancement, business development, physician relations and recruitment, profitability improvement, graduate medical education and community relations.

After a successful tenure as president of Mount Carmel Grove City (previously Mount Carmel West Hospital), Sean currently is a business advisor for Rev1 Ventures, a Columbus-based incubator and investor that provides strategic advice and capital to help scale start-up companies. He currently is advising four healthcare start-up organizations. 

Sean has been honored numerous times for his professional achievements including Lifeline of Ohio’s Administrator of the Year and ViaQuest’s Business Partner of the Year. A frequent speaker at many state and local events, he was included in Crain’s Cleveland Business’ 2008 Forty Under 40 class and is distinguished as a Fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives. 

Sean and his wife Cindy reside in Dublin, Ohio and are proud parents to four children. He enjoys a wide variety of activities including serving on nonprofit boards and community organizations, watching his children’s athletic events, golf and tennis.

Stephanie Revish is currently the vice president of Finance Transformation at Cardinal Health, a Fortune 16 company. In this role, she is responsible for partnering across the enterprise and with the business process outsourcing partner to drive multimillion-dollar efficiencies and insights by leveraging process standardization and data and analytics while also integrating digital tools and technology. Prior to this role, she supported various areas within Cardinal Health’s medical segment including Medical Solutions, a multibillion dollar commercial, product and services organization.  

A graduate of Leadership Columbus, Stephanie participates in a number of leadership efforts focused on the advancement of the Columbus community, mentorship and diversity in the workplace. She serves on the board of directors for both Lutheran Social Services and Pacesetters Unlimited. She is the recipient of the 2020 Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association Luminary Award, the 2020 National Diversity Council’s Top 50 Financial Leaders Award and the Fischer College of Business Project Thrive Alumnus of the Year Award.

In addition to Cardinal Health, she has worked at Henry Schein, PricewaterhouseCoopers and OCLC. Stephanie earned a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree from The Ohio State University. 

Stephanie lives in Powell with her husband Jerome and two daughters, Madison and Sydney.

Dr. Doug Ross is a professor and chair of the Business Administration Program at Franklin University. Dr. Ross has extensive experience in the marketing field, both from a corporate and academic background. 

With 25 years in the academic sector, Dr. Ross is a distinguished international speaker, on a range of topics. Additionally, he’s recognized for his consulting experience in both large and small corporate settings as well as in the goods and services marketing. 

He received his doctorate in business administration from New Mexico State University, and his master’s and bachelor’s degrees from Colorado State University.

As a respected faculty member at Franklin University, Dr. Ross has earned the distinction of being the only educator to receive the Columbus American Marketing Association Marketing Professor of the Year honor, a record five times (1999, 2005, 2008, 2010, 2014). In addition to his many awards for marketing excellence, Dr. Ross was awarded the Robert L. Bailey Teaching Award at both the graduate and undergraduate levels, a distinction bestowed by Franklin students each term to acknowledge the professor who was most influential in their programs. A top-ranked professor, Dr. Ross was also awarded the Franklin University Teaching Excellence Award.

Dr. Christine Seebon joined Franklin University as an adjunct almost two decades ago. She teaches in the business graduate and undergraduate programs and has taught extensively in the marketing program. Christine enjoys teaching both domestically and internationally. She facilitates reflective discussions, manages collaborative classrooms, and provides constructive feedback. With over twenty-five years of business expertise, Christine also brings practical examples and insights into her courses. She provides motivation and positive reinforcement through coaching, accountabilities, and action plans. Christine readily adapts to diverse environments and is culturally sensitive. She also serves as an instructional coach to new university adjuncts.

Christine is forward-thinking and results-oriented, with a strong record of accomplishment. She is a consultant and has held roles as a chief administrative officer, leadership coach, marketing director, business strategist, product manager, and relationship manager. Given this wide array of responsibilities, she has experience forming alliances with colleagues, providing thought leadership with senior leaders, managing large budgets and sales plans, developing business strategy, creating employee engagement initiatives, leading professional development, driving change initiatives, spearheading system integrations, dealing with complex projects, communicating openly, launching and rebranding products, and delivering organizational strategic planning. Christine is a proven leader who developed and nurtured clients while managing diverse relationship needs effectively. She created thought pieces, generated marketing messages, developed public relations, and fashioned sales campaigns. Christine developed innovative marketing plans, aligned budgets, managed vendors, and refreshed brand identity through positioning, social media, surveys, and materials.

Christine obtained her Doctorate in Business Administration (DBA) from Franklin University, her MBA from the University of Dayton, and her BS from The Ohio State University. She continues her education through professional and academic conferences. Christine has four rescue dogs and enjoys family, travel, kayaking, off-roading, and being athletic.

Sam Sharp is an inspirational leader, mentor and collaborator with a consistent track record of excellent results over 25 years in enterprise technology. 

He possesses global expertise in product management, technical sales, business development, sales strategy and channel management. Sharp was responsible for $4 million in channel revenue at start-up Elastic representing 300% growth. 

At Oracle, he drove global strategy for $1.6 billion of channel revenue for Middleware and Business Analytics and was responsible for building Middleware Sales organization up to $300 million annual revenue. 

Sam’s experience spans federal, state and local, and commercial markets working for Oracle, Elastic, Microsoft, ConsenSys and Blue Yonder. He has focused his career on enabling enterprises across industries to leverage software in transformational solutions. His knowledge areas include technical depth in cloud (IaaS, SaaS, & PaaS) enterprise architecture, business intelligence, integration and big data. 

Sam is a graduate of George Mason University with a degree in design and management of information systems.

Ricardo Vanella delivers more than 30 years of expertise in advising global corporations, institutions and NGOs on business development, marketing, communications and international engagement. He is an experienced speaker, speechwriter, author, TV and radio producer, and presenter.

He is a member of The SPECTRUM Group and supported diverse projects funded by the United Nations, European Union, U.S. Department of Commerce, USAID and Inter-American Development Bank.

In addition to his consulting work, Vanella serves on the boards and in the executive leadership of several professional member organizations. Previously, Ricardo was a board member of Global Ties U.S., the American national office for 100 councils that work in partnership with the U.S. State Department’s International Visitor Leadership Program.  

Vanella has a law degree from the National University of Cordoba, an MBA from Bocconi University in Milan, and a specialization in international business from The American University of Paris.

He is a graduate of the National Defense University’s Strategy and Defense Policy Program at the William J. Perry Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies, as well as the U.S. State Department’s International Visitor Leadership Program on Globalization and International Trade.