Beyond Business Speaker Packet Fall 2015

7/21/2019 Beyond Business Speaker Packet Fall 2015

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Event SpeakerBiographies



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MASON AYER

KERBEY LANE CAFEChief Executive Officer

Biography:

I was born and raised in Austin, Texas, graduating from Austin High Schoolin 1999. I attended college and law school on the east coast with theintention of one day returning to Austin. In 2007, I did exactly that andbegan practicing law at Andrews Kurth. In 2010, I made a major career

change and entered the restaurant business. Today, I characterize myself asa recovering attorney and I consider the change in careers one of the verybest decisions of my life.

Education:

BDFS from the GeorgetownUniversity School of ForeignService (2003)

JD from the University ofVirginia School of Law (2007)

Past Work Experience:

Associate, Andrews Kurth, LLP,Corporate and Securities Group,Austin, TX



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Q&A:

What are the different ways to break into the current career/industry you are in, andwhat got you interested in that line of work?

My parents started Kerbey Lane Cafe in 1980 and I was in and around restaurants allthrough my childhood. I always expected I might end up in the family business, but Inever quite knew when or how the transition would occur. Making the change was abit like ripping off a bandaid (unfamiliar environment, no knowledge of how to run abusiness, major pay cut at first), and my first few years in the business were prettychallenging. But there's something to be said about having a job where it feels likewhat I do matters and having the ability to chart my own path and the path of theorganization.

If you could give one piece of advice to a current student, in light of your personalexperiences, what would it be?

Don't allow money or the perception of prestige drive your decision making. In myexperience, no amount of money is worth working 80 hours per week and having thecourse of your life decided for you by your boss. I reached the decision to exit Big Lawa bit earlier than others, but as we approach the 10 year reunion for our law schoolclass, a very small minority of my friends are still practicing at big firms while mostmade the decision somewhere along the way to go do something else that is fulfillingand meaningful to them.



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CHRIS CHILEK

VICTORY CTOFounder

Biography:Chris Chilek is a veteran businessman with three successful startups under his beltspecializing in building teams and businesses around large-scale, data richapplications. In his previous experience, Chris has founded multiple companies,including Pick-A-Prof and MyEdu, where he pioneered the world’s first socio-

academic platform for education planning and managed the team that architectedapplications and decision support systems to leverage the world's largest academicdata warehouse.

Education:

Computer Engineering at TexasA&M University


• MyEdu/Pick-A-Prof

• ImageIndxr



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Q&A:


If my industry can be described as "building businesses", then the keys to breaking inare communication and an insatiable desire to learn (and lots of hard work) (and areliable business partner). I graduated with a degree in computer engineering butover the course of years and starting companies my interests moved from engineeringto business and later to marketing. Learning and communication go hand in hand: themore you learn, the more you are able to effectively communicate with businesspeople in various disciplines.


Never stop learning.



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JOHN CUNNINGHAM

VICTORY CTOCo-Founder

Biography:John Cunningham is a veteran entrepreneur with two successful startups under his belt specializingin operations while building and delivering large-scale, highly availability consumer facingapplications. Currently John serves as the Chief Technology Officer at W2O Group and is based out ofAustin, TX. In this role John leads the software and solutions arms of WCG, Twist and Brewlife as wellas the development of Nextworks and a number of developing opportunities for W2O while workingwith some of the most interesting companies in the Fortune 100.

In his previous experience, John has co-founded two Education Technology companies, MyEdu.comand Pick-A-Prof.com, where he architected the infrastructure behind the world's largest academicdata warehouse, designed and built the cloud-based automated data collection platform whichserved both companies, and co-designed their products.

Specialties include consumer product development, real-time SaaS infrastructures, enterprise-classdatabase design and implementation, high availability cloud computing environments, data collectionand storage, robust web search methods and indexing approaches, and large-scale systemdeployment. John is proficient in numerous programming languages, system administrationtechnologies, and server architectures.

Education:

Marketing at Texas A&MUniversity


• Founder of Pick-A-Prof andMyEdu

• Chief Technology Officerand CISO of W2O Group

• CTO of NextWorks



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Q&A:


These days people with technical chops are in high demand, so the real question ishow do you excel in tech? The ability to excel in tech really comes back to your abilityto communicate and interact with everyone else in the company. If you have tech skillsand you can follow the principles in How to Win Friends and Influence People then youwill do well.

If you could give one piece of advice to a current student, in light of your personal

experiences, what would it be?

If you could give one piece of advice to a current student, in light of your personalexperiences, what would it be? It sounds hokey, but it amazes me how many peoplemiss this: Put people first and never make a promise you can't keep.



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REBECCA FEFERMAN

SXSWHead of SXsports & Convergence

Biography:Rebecca Feferman is the Head of SXsports, the three-day sports-focused track ofSXSW Interactive & Film that features panels, screenings & events, and explores thefuture of sport from a cultural and technological perspective. In her role at SXSW, shealso oversees the broader Convergence footprint and team. Prior to spearheading thelaunch of SXsports in 2014, she served as the Head of Media Relations as well as a

Programmer for SXSW Film since arriving in Austin in 2008. She began her career inNational Publicity at Warner Bros. Pictures, followed by five years representing actorsas a Personal Publicist at IDPR in Los Angeles. An avid softball player and Captain ofthe SXSW Swingin' Narwhals, Rebecca originally hails from Albuquerque, New Mexicoand bleeds Maize and Blue.

Education:

University of Michigan, BAPsychology


• SXSW Film, Head of MediaRelations & Programmer

• ID Public Relations, PersonalPublicist

• Warner Bros. Pictures,National Publicity Assistant



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Q&A:

What are the different ways to break into the current career you're in, andwhat got you interested in that line of work?

Interning is always the one of the best ways to break into any line of work. There'struly no better opportunity to immerse yourself in a business and soak in everythingtaking place around you, as well as make a lasting impression - if you have a positiveattitude and work hard even when you're doing something menial. Seems simple butfewer people succeed at it than you might expect.


No matter your role or level of success and stature, your fundamental job is to makeyour boss's job easier, and to add to the greater good of your organization.



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JILL HUSAK

ESPN/LONGHORN NETWORKDirector, Marketing

Biography:Jill Husak is the Director of Marketing at Longhorn Network/ESPN in Austin, TX.

She started her career at Verizon, then transitioned into the agency world working forAvenue A | Razorfish and Atmosphere BBDO in NYC.

As a sports lover and former UT athlete, working in the sports world was always Jill’saspiration. She joined ESPN in 2006 and worked in Consumer Marketing supportingmultiple sports properties. Given Jill’s passion for the Longhorns and her ESPNmarketing expertise, she was tapped to relocate to her hometown of Austin to helplaunch Longhorn Network in 2011. Jill led the brand development and marketing launch

of LHN and continues to oversee marketing strategy and promotional plans for thenetwork.

Jill earned a Bachelor of Business Administration from The University of Texas.

When not working on or watching Texas sports, she enjoys exercising, the outdoors,and teaching her toddler The Eyes of Texas.

Education:

Bachelor of BusinessAdministration from TheUniversity of Texas at Austin(Marketing)


• Verizon

• Avenue A | Razofish

• Atmosphere BBDO

• ESPN

• ESPN/Longhorn Network



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Q&A:


It's important to get relevant internships, work experience, and to network.My personal background and interests, desire to move from agency to client side, myprofessional work experience, along with some good fortune, positioned me for theESPN opportunity.


Keep an open mind about your career journey.



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ANNIE LIN

A LITTLE BUNDLEFounder and CEO

Biography:Born in Texas, I left my southern roots to attend high school in Northern California. My passion for arts and

creativity drew me to Parsons, The New School in NYC, where I studied Illustration and Graphic Design. Withinthe seven years in the City, I've created my own women's contemporary clothing line, AIRA, with my sister,Karen and worked continuously in the fashion industry during the entire time. I worked with big and smalldesigners to create their runway collection and soon got tired of the cold, cold winters. In the midst of living inthe Big Apple, I also lived in Oahu, Hawai'i for 8 months starting a small franchise business, Yogurtland. InSeptember 2013, my husband, Kyle, and I found our way back to my Southern roots in good 'ol Austin, Texas(He's a New Yorker). I've always had a nomadic soul and will never turn down an opportunity to explore!

My passion for design and creating a fulfilling job inspired me to create my second Small Business, A LittleBundle. A Little Bundle is a monthly curated subscription bundle service especially for the mom and the baby.We specialize in creating exclusive design products just for our customers and offer a unique collection in ouronline shop: A Little Shop. Recently, we've opened our doors locally in Austin, Texas with a small retailshowroom and a place to host events. If you're in town, be sure to pop in and say, "Hi!".

I grew my small business solely on Instagram and Pinterest. I never invested much in marketing and utilize myskills, creativity and hours and hours of every day navigating through all the social media platforms. Some maysay I'm lucky, but I believe there's a tactic to it. Over time, I've learned more and more each day. I'm excited toshare what I've discovered as well as helping other small businesses grow and put their best foot forward.

You can often find me snuggling my furry babies, Maddie & Macaron, hiking and spending park time all overtown, catching yoga + pilates classes, trying the newest eateries and browsing my latest fashion obsession,sharing a bit about my experience in running A Little Bundle and a glimpse into my journey into motherhoodover at Hello Annie.

Education:

Parsons, The New School ofDesign


• Event Planning and Project

Manager STOLL• Owned her own fashion line

with my sister named AIRANYC for 3 years.

• Opened, managed operatedYogurtland in Honolulu,Hawaii



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Q&A:


I held positions in the fashion world for about 8 years in New York City before startingmy own business - A Little Bundle. I wanted to find something that married my skill setand passion for design with an industry I was passionate about: kids.


You have to simply start and believe in yourself. If you can do those two thingspassionately and consistently, your journey into your professional career will be anamazing experience.



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HOWARD LIPSON

ALIGNMENT ARTIST CAPITALCo-Founder

Biography:Howard Lipson has a 25 year-track record as a successful private equity investorwith a focus on the media and entertainment industries. As an entrepreneur, Mr.Lipson combined his lifelong passion for music and experience drivingsophisticated financial transactions to help conceive of and found AlignmentArtist Capital. He was essential in structuring and launching Octone Records andwas a principal financial backer of the company. Prior to Alignment, Mr. Lipsonwas a Managing Director in Pilot Group, a media-oriented private equity firmstarted by Robert W. Pittman. Before Pilot Group, Mr. Lipson was a Partner andmember of the Investment Committee at The Blackstone Group, which he joinedin 1988. Mr. Lipson graduated with honors from the Wharton School of theUniversity of Pennsylvania.

Education:

Wharton School of the Universityof Pennsylvania (With Honors)


Managing Director in PilotGroup, Partner and member ofthe Investment Committee atThe Blackstone Group



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Q&A:


Breaking into my current career (specialty finance start up) is a long road... at least forme. I continue to believe that for any kind of finance work, it's best to start at a majorfirm where there is tremendous deal flow and infrastructure to train. Graduallyspecialize (in terms of industry and area of finance) from there.In terms of music business/entrepreneurial endeavors, I followed my passion and itworked out. The record label was a side project that turned into a real business.Eventually, merging your formal training (in my case finance) with your passion projectto start something that incorporates both is a good plan.


One piece of advice - be confident, focused, and aggressive but don't be in such ahurry. Though it may not seem this way at the time, being in your mid 20's with a fewyears’ work experience and little money saved isn't the ideal time to strike out on yourown. Despite the successes that get all the press, they are exceptions to the rule. Mostcan benefit from some structure, scale and learning opportunities that an establishedplace can give before going the entrepreneurial route.



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CHELSEA MCCULLOUGH

INTERCAMBIO / WAKE UPPrincipal / Co-Founder

Biography:Chelsea has founded several companies focused on creating connections and positive social and civicimpact. She is founder of Intercambio, a consulting firm focused on uniting people around ideas, policyand economic opportunity. She is Co-Founder and Director at Wake Up, an Austin based company thathosts personal and professional development workshops. She is also Co-Founder of Impact Hub Austin, alocal effort to connect the global community of purpose-driven enterprises. Previously, Chelsea served asExecutive Director of Texans for Economic Progress, where she worked with the statewide technologycommunity and elected officials to advocate for greater access to tech education, entrepreneurship andinfrastructure.

Chelsea is active in several organizations that encourage economic solutions to global challenges

including the World Economic Forum Global Shapers, UnltdUSA (social entrepreneur accelerator),LeadershipAustin and The Seton 50. She previously served as a City of Austin Tech & TelecommCommissioner and a Founding Member of ImpactTexas, a conference on impact investing. She wasfounding Director for RISE (an annual entrepreneurs conference), Marketing Director at MPOWER Labs(financial services for the underserved) and served in the Governor’s Office in Economic Development. Shereceived the Austin Under 50 Award in Science & Technology (2015), BPE Ascendant Award (2013), was anABJ Profiles in Power Finalist (2013). She is a Leadership Austin graduate (2010). In her spare time, she islaunching Mable, which will provide modular, eco-friendly furniture that is manufactured in the USA.Chelsea has masters and bachelor degrees in Advertising from the University of Texas at Austin.

Education:

• UT BS Communications/AdvertisingDec 97

• UT MA Communications/Advertising08


• Executive Director at Texans forEconomic Progress (TEP)

• Marketing Director at MPOWER Labs,Inc.

• Program Director at RISE Global

• Creative Manager at Texas LotteryCommission

• Marketing Specialist at the Office of theGovernor, State of Texas



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Q&A:

What are the different ways to break into the current career you're in, andwhat got you interested in that line of work?

Being curious and open for adventure. Showing up and asking how you can help.Listening.

My line of work is constantly evolving and each day is different. It can be scary to jumpinto the unknown and follow your inspiration but the rewards are incredible.


Be open. Hang around people who have values that align with your values. Do notaccept mediocrity from yourself or anyone else but also be compassionate withyourself and with others. Everything in life is a fine line and you get to decide if you aregoing to be honest, kind, real.



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JAYSON RAPAPORT

BIRDS BARBERSHOPCo-Founder

Biography:American University graduate Jayson Rapaport moved to New York In 1999to work in sales and trading at Herzog, Heine & Geduld, a firm that thendealt in more share volume than any other in the nation. HHG was acquiredby Merrill Lynch in 2000. In 2003, Jayson moved to Austin, opened twounderperforming restaurant franchises, and turned both around. Itching forhis own thing, he partnered with Michael Portman in 2006 and createdBirds Barbershop to fill a mid-priced niche they felt was under served inAustin. There are currently 7 Birds locations with plans for further growth.

Education:

BSBA American University


AVP Merrill Lynch GlobalMarkets & Investment Banking



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Q&A:

What are the different ways to break into the current career you're in,and what got you interested in that line of work?

With regards to being an entrepreneur, the barriers to entry have been loweredto a level that makes bringing an idea to fruition closer than many may realize,however there is no replacement for hard work, hustle, and the ability to raisefunds. My interest in Hair Products/Services was that the market was extremelylarge and extremely fragmented.

If you could give one piece of advice to a current student, in light of your

personal experiences, what would it be?

My advice would be not to skip any steps. The first few years out of school is inmany ways like a an advanced degree. You’re learning all sorts of new skill sets.Most importantly you’re learning what you like and don’t like. This knowledge isoften the fuel you need to start your own business.



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Education:

Business Honors Program andMasters in Public Accounting at TheUniversity of Texas at Austin


• Accenture

• PwC

• Mackinac Partners

• Abbott Pharmaceuticals

• 512 Realty

• ALM Financial Services

• BMT Group Ltd.

Biography:Henry is a founder of several businesses in the Texas area and has a passion forinvesting in brick & mortar businesses as well as building quality brands. He currentlyserves as a Co-Founder for Indy Coffee Co. (www.indycoffeeco.com), the Austin PanicRoom (www.austinpanicroom.com), the San Antonio Panic Room(www.sapanicroom.com), and the Dallas Panic Room (www.dallaspanicroom.com).

In his spare time, Henry also serves as the VP of Student Affairs for the Houston chapterof Ascend, a non-profit Pan-Asian organization for business professionals in NorthAmerica, and is passionate about giving back and mentoring students.

INDY COFFEE CO. + TEXAS PANIC ROOMCEO (Indy) + COO (TPR)

HENRY SHI



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Q&A:

What are the different ways to break into the current career you're in,and what got you interested in that line of work?

Bootstrap or Raise funding (equity or debt)

I've always been interested in running my own business and after working atseveral different companies in various industries, I 1) crossed them off the list asplaces I wanted to work at and, 2) gathered experience for a variety of situations.

If you could give one piece of advice to a current student, in light of your

personal experiences, what would it be?

Expand your scope beyond your class walls. The amount of resources at auniversity like UT is incredible and yet most students seem content just going toclass.

Beyond Business Speaker Packet Fall 2015

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