12/02/09 - Drexel Women in Business Present: Small Business... Thinking Big

Drexel Women in Business Present: Small Business... Thinking Big Date: December 2, 2009 Time: 6:00 p.m. - 7:15 p.m. Location: Pearlstein Business Learning Center (33rd and Market Streets) Room 102 Our panelists have background in advertising/marketing/public relations, financial services, publishing, human resources, healthcare, and strategic consulting. We will explore the challenges and joys of starting, running, and growing a new business, as well as trends in current small business creation and opportunities for tomorrow's entrepreneurs. This event is open to everyone. Networking reception will follow the discussion. Speakers include: * Margot Tohn, Publisher, ParkIt! Guides (New York City parking advice co., New York, NY). * Ellen Edelman Weber, Executive Director, Robin Hood Ventures (Wayne, PA). * Sheila Wexler, President, Wexler Marketing Group, Inc. (Alexandria, VA). Moderator: Gerald Furgione, Executive Director, PhillyCarShare (Philadelphia, PA) About Margot Tohn (Publisher, Park It! Guides, New York, NY) Margot Tohn has over fifteen years' experience in international marketing and product management, specifically managing major start-up projects for the financial services and publishing industries in New York, San Francisco, and Australia. She held positions with News Ltd. in New York and Murdoch Magazines in Australia, Westpac Banking Corporation, and Schwab Fund for Charitable Giving. An avid lover of New York City and passionate that parking shouldn't ruin your day or cost you too much, Ms. Tohn set out in 2006 to create Park It! NYC. Her efforts spanned 18 months of working with the Department of Consumer Affairs, driving every single street in Manhattan, creating maps that are easy to read, and devoting endless hours to organizing and confirming data. Park It! NYC received widespread media coverage, including network television, The New York Times, radio interviews, a AAA-NY endorsement, and articles in NYC newspapers. Park It! NYC is now recognized as the authoritative resource for parking garage information. Ms. Tohn is a graduate of Cornell University (BA in Linguistics) and the Australian Graduate School of Management at the University of New South Wales (MBA in Marketing and Strategy). She has traveled extensively in the Asia-Pacific region, made her own wine, worked on a cattle station in Australia, and sailed on a 72 ft ocean-racing yacht from the UK to France. About Ellen Edelman Weber (Executive Director, Robin Hood Ventures, Wayne, PA) Ms. Weber is responsible for Robin Hood Ventures operations and administration. She is also Vice President of the Human Resource Practice area for Antiphony, a strategic consulting firm that helps entrepreneurial companies create sustainable value. Prior to joining Antiphony, Ms. Weber was a VP at the Mayer Leadership Group, an executive coaching firm. Ms. Weber also was instrumental in the growth of Investor Force, a provider of technology-based solutions for institutional investment professionals, where she created the company's initial human resources department, facilitated strategic planning, and managed the organizational aspects of the company's mergers and acquisitions. Additionally, she spent twelve years at Shared Medical Systems where she was responsible for initiatives encompassing organizational development, customer support and corporate communications. She also has served as a senior consultant for Andersen Consulting. Ellen graduated from The Wharton School with a B.S. in economics. Robin Hood Ventures consists of Greater Philadelphia Region entrepreneurs/investors who have joined together to fund and aid the development of local companies through their collective business experience and contacts. Skill sets include depth in all functional areas, including general management, marketing, sales, product development, marketing communications, and finance. The company helps entrepreneurs refine marketing strategy, complete the management team, develop financing strategies and introduce them to key contacts. About Sheila Wexler (Founder & President, Wexler Marketing Group, Alexandria, VA) Ms. Wexler brings over forty years of client and agency experience to Wexler Marketing Group she founded in 1985. WMG is a full-service marketing agency, handling marketing research, strategic planning, and promotional programs with expertise in marketing audits and overviews, strategic planning, competitive studies, new product development, marketing research planning/supervision, pricing and distribution, and promotion planning/execution. Prior to finding WMG, Ms. Wexler's roles included positions as VP/Director of Marketing & Client Services at Morgan Burchette Associates(Alexandria, VA), Account Supervisor at Abramson/Himelfarb (Washington, D.C.), Marketing Director of the Jax Navy Federal Credit Union, and Advertising & Public Relations Manager for the Jacksonville Area Chamber of Commerce. As an academic, Ms. Wexler taught Advertising and Marketing Communications courses at West Virginia University, George Washington University, and the University of Virginia. She has been a speaker for the American Society of Association Executives, The Greater Washington Board of Trade, and New York University. Her work has won CLIO and ADDY Awards. Ms. Wexler received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Advertising Design from Florida State University, a Master of Arts degree in Advertising and Marketing from the University of Florida, and completed post-graduate work in management at the University of Georgia. She was inducted into Phi Kappa Phi, the academic honor society About Gerald Furgione, Executive Director, PhillyCarShare (Philadelphia, PA) Gerald has experience in a variety of industries providing business leadership, strategic planning, and decision support systems for both Fortune 500 companies and start-up ventures. At PhillyCarShare, he launched the corporate solution side of the car sharing business and realized vision of integrating the concept into the transportation plans of more than 1200 companies and non profits in the city. Prior to PhillyCarShare, Gerald served in sales consulting and advertising roles at Lennar (homebuilder), Verizon Information Services, and Mercedes Benz USA. Gerald got his Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration from Rutgers University

Date: 12/02/09 6:00pm
Location: Pearlstein Business Learning Center, Pearlstein Business Learning Center 3218 Market Street Philadelphia PA 19104 (directions)
Contact: Cassandra Brown, 215.895.6294
View Event: http://www.lebow.drexel.edu/Event/dwibsmallbiz

LeBow Calendar

12/02/09 - Drexel Women in Business Present: Small Business... Thinking Big