Headquarters Staff
Carol Lopucki is the State Director of the Michigan Network of Small Business and Technology Development Centers, a partner program of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) with 12 regional and 30+ satellite offices statewide. Carol has worked numerous years in the non-profit, education, and government sector. She has a B.A. in Education from Michigan State University and a M.A. from Central Michigan University. As a Certified Business counselor through Capital University of Columbus, Ohio, Carol has worked in the small business arena with SBA since 1991. This includes four years serving women business owners, five years as a Regional SBDC Director serving West Michigan, and her current sixth year as the State Director of the MI-SBTDC. Carol has assisted in the launch and growth of thousands of small businesses over the course of fifteen years of work with SBA, growing both traditional and technology-based companies.
Carol serves on the Michigan District Export Council, the Advisory Board of the Michigan Main Street Program, Biotechnology Business Consultants LLC, and the Michigan Certified Development Corporation. She has just completed a ten-year tenure on the Board of Directors of Northview Public Schools in Grand Rapids, and a two year term on the national board of the Association of Small Business Development Centers. She is a graduate of Leadership Grand Rapids and has received numerous local, state and national recognitions in both the nonprofit and for profit sector. Carol has received the ATHENA leadership award, the ASBDC Michigan's Star Performer Award, and was recognized as one of the 50 most influential women in West Michigan.
Designation of capability to serve technology companies, the second in the US to be named so, is by far the greatest achievement as state director. The MI-SBTDC is currently playing a key role in commercialization assistance to Michigan's entrepreneurs.
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Elaine Benoit, Secretary for the MI-SBTDC, is a seasoned MI-SBTDC employee, as she moved to the State Headquarters from the MI-SBTDC regional office and previously served as Lopucki's secretary. Benoit came to Grand Valley State University in 1995, working for the Seidman School of Business, Office of Economic Expansion and transferred to the SBTDC Regional Office in 1999. She is currently responsible for a variety of duties including the coordination of special projects, special events and network correspondence.
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Jennifer Deamud, MI-SBTDC's Marketing Manager, is responsible for creating and developing marketing campaigns for the state headquarters and the 12 region network. Her primary responsibilities include creating identity pieces, writing and designing annual reports, developing an advertising campaign, assisting in event planning and promoting and serving as a liaison with key stake holders and statewide partners with the MI-SBTDC.
Jennifer is an accomplished marketing professional with over 12 years of broad marketing and media relations experience, encompassing public relations, direct marketing and creative development. Jennifer has the capability of visualizing, designing and implementing creative ideas that get companies recognized on a local and national level.
She graduated from Grand Valley State University's School of Communications with a degree in Advertising and Public Relations, with emphasis on Marketing.
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Nancy Boese is the Business Tools Specialist for the MI-SBTDC. The MI-SBTDC has many advanced tools for existing businesses and Nancy's role is to help the network utilize these tools in the region. She has assisted many small business owners with assessments, analysis and prioritizing opportunities for growth.
Nancy earned her MBA from Western Michigan University. She has owned her own business in marketing consulting and has worked in various capacities with non-profits. She has served on the board for Habitat for Humanity; volunteered with Grand Rapids Opportunities for Women (GROW), has been a member of the Athena Planning Committee. In the past she has also been a board member and President of the Alliance of Women Entrepreneurs and Athena Board of Directors. She is currently involved in the Lakeshore Advantage Advisory Board, National Business Incubator Association, Michigan Business Incubator Association and serves on several committees with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC).
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| Cathleen Kaiser |
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Cathleen Kaiser has over twenty years of corporate, education, and independent business experience, in a variety of functional areas that include marketing, training, and career counseling. She has worked with industrial, consumer, service, and educational organizations, implementing strategic marketing projects, market research focus groups, sales training seminars, corporate planning sessions, small business training and counsel, and personal development workshops.
Ms. Kaiser holds an M.B.A. in General Business from Grand Valley State University and a B.A. in Liberal Arts from Central Michigan University. She also has a teaching certificate from Aquinas College.
As a Facilitator and Training Manager for the Michigan Small Business and Technology Development Center, Cathleen utilizes creative, adult-focused, and practical techniques for stimulating learning among new and existing entrepreneurs.
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| Carole L. Williams |
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Carole Williams, MI-SBTDC's Finance Manager, is responsible for financial operations of the State Headquarters and the 12-region network, including budgeting, reporting, funding, and audit oversight, as well as federal and state compliance and reporting. She also serves as the contract administrator and liaison with Grand Valley State University (GVSU) financial and grants management operations.
Prior to joining the SBTDC, Carole served as a federal grant manager for Grand Valley State University for 3 years. She also has seven years of experience teaching accounting at the university level. Finally, she earned 10 years of national and international corporate finance experience with IBM, where she also worked in their federal system division with federal contract funding.
Carole is a CPA, who earned the M.B.A from Clark Atlanta University (Atlanta, GA) and the B.B.A. from the University of Michigan - Flint.
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| Zara Smith |
Zara Smith serves as the MI-SBTDC Technology Coordinator. In this position she is responsible for anticipating and meeting the various technological needs of the network; the implementation of key software, and the development of custom tools.
Zara's professional background includes experiences ranging from a project manager at a small software and website development agency, to a business planning specialist at a large healthcare system. Her unique set of skills allows her to work within the complex MI-SBTDC network and be able to relate to our small business clients.
In 2001 Zara graduated from the MBA program at Grand Valley State University. While attending the program she was the graduate assistant at the MI-SBTDC, putting her overall time with the network at 5+ years.
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| Sienna Mavima |
Sienna Mavima, Information Manager and Assistant to the Director, is responsible for routine collection of data and development of numerous network reports of financial and narrative nature. Mavima comes to the MI-SBTDC from another department of Grand Valley State University where she served as an instructional design consultant. Prior to her tenure with Grand Valley State University, Mavima served as a teaching assistant at Florida State University. There she taught a graduate course in systems approach to management change and was responsible for research and data collection, data analysis and report writing. Mavima received a Bachelor of Arts in Education from the University of Zimbabwe and earned her Master's in Instructional System Design from Florida State University. She also holds a Graduate Certificate in Education from the University of Zimbabwe.
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Harry S. Blecker serves as the Director of the Accelerating Michigan Entrepreneurs (AME) virtual incubator project at Grand Valley State University. The AME project is dedicated to building successful entrepreneurs in Michigan. This project is a partnership between the Michigan Small Business & Technology Development Center and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. The AME project will help business owners set strategic direction, develop leadership skills, round out their teams, and establish beneficial relationships with other companies.
Mr. Blecker has received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Physical Geography and a Master of Urban Planning degree from the University of Michigan. He has been employed at a community development corporation for about 12 years as a business development project manager, a community development and applied environmental research program director at the University of Michigan, Flint campus for ten years, instructor at a community college, and private consultant. Mr. Blecker has received certificate training in Strategy Matrix and Implication Wheels from Joel Barker and Seven Habits for Small Business Managers from Franklin Covey.
Mr. Blecker has been engaged in a number of community service activities including: the University of Michigan-Flint Alumni Society, Flint River Watershed Coalition, Flint Downtown Development Authority, Flint West Village Neighborhood Association, Automobile National Heritage Association, GLIMAeast, Michigan Senior Service Network Agency, Manufacturer's Innovation Council, Career Alliance, Inc., Jobs Central, Inc., Michigan Partnership for Economic Development-MSU, Salem Housing Task Force, and Flint Township Planning Commission.
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