Equipment Leasing and Finance Association - Equipping Business for Success

Razi Amin

Partner

Deborah Baker

VP, Global Payment Solutions
HP Inc.

As Head of Worldwide Leasing and Financing, Deborah Baker is responsible for driving contractual business growth through an optimized, profitable multi-vendor leasing and financing Go to Market (GTM) solution.

Deborah is a finance veteran with almost 30 years’ experience supporting captive and vendor financing. She joined HP from Cisco Systems Capital Corporation where she served as Senior Director, Global Portfolio Services, supporting a $12B Global Portfolio of ~5000 lease and loan customers in over 100 countries, maximizing sales enablement and ensuring fiduciary responsibility.

Prior to joining Cisco Capital in 2011, Deborah spent 10 years with Hewlett-Packard Financial Services at their headquarters in New Jersey supporting end user financing products in the US, Canada and US Public Sector as well as internal (embedded lease) financing products. Prior to Hewlett-Packard Financial Services, she held a variety of roles with CIT (formerly AT&T Capital), including roles in Business Development, Sales and Operations. As a Six Sigma Champion and Talent Ambassador, Deborah is passionate about Process Improvements, Learning and Development and Talent Management.

Deborah is a member of the Board of Directors for the Equipment Leasing and Financing Association (ELFA), the Chair of the ELFA Women’s Council, and a member of ELFA Equality. In addition, Deborah is a member of the Editorial Board of The Monitor publication, The Independent Voice of Equipment Finance. In 2019, she was named one of the Top Women in Equipment Finance by The Monitor.

Deborah holds a BS in Business Administration and an MBA from Fairleigh Dickinson University in Madison, NJ. She currently resides in Chapel Hill, North Carolina with her husband Chris. Their son Griffin is studying Cybersecurity at the Southern New Hampshire University. Outside of work, Deb enjoys hiking, bicycling and cooking.

Anirban Basak

CEO
FortifID Inc.

Fellow at MIT Connection Science and a retail financial services expert, Anirban has built the world’s first zero-emission of raw data platform FortifID (www.fortifid.com) to facilitate privacy first customer onboarding and validation for financial institutions, crypto exchanges and property management companies.

Paul Bent

Senior Managing Director
The Alta Group LLC

Paul Bent is a senior managing director of The Alta Group and head of the firm’s Legal Services and Business Quality Assessment Practices. With more than 40 years of experience as an investment banker, equipment leasing CEO, and transaction attorney, Paul has participated in all facets of leasing and corporate financing. As a leader in the consultancy, he provides Alta clients with insight and advice in assessing both strategic and tactical business plans and alternatives, developing and implementing leasing transactions and structures, reviewing business and documentation practices, and analyzing asset-based financing alternatives.

He serves as a testifying expert in legal matters involving leasing, transaction structuring, and contract interpretation; and he provides services as a neutral arbitrator in difficult disputes over leasing and corporate finance. He also works as a professional singer, performing in the Los Angeles area and on multiple motion picture and video game soundtracks, including “World of Warcraft.”

He earned his A.B. from UCLA, with highest departmental honors in mathematics and computer science, and his J.D. from Southwestern Law School, where he was an Associate Editor of the Southwestern University Law Review.

Mike Berry

Director - Strategic Alliances
Interos Inc

Jeffrey Bilbrey

CEO
Leasepath

Introducing Jeffrey Bilbrey, a distinguished professional with a remarkable trajectory in spearheading and advancing enterprise technology products and associated services since the early 1990s. Presently, he assumes the prestigious role of CEO within Leasepath's global business landscape, where he undertakes the pivotal responsibility of ensuring utmost customer satisfaction while propelling the flagship cloud-based finance origination platform to the zenith of the market. Leasepath's exceptional growth journey is underpinned by the augmentation of its product portfolio, heightened market visibility, and the delivery of pioneering market-leading functionalities through an agile cloud infrastructure.

Jeffrey Bilbrey's career narrative has been closely intertwined with the realm of Information Technology and consultancy. His affinity for software products transcends mere technicality, driven by a profound appreciation for how technology and automation can adeptly resolve tangible business challenges. His professional odyssey commenced post-university, embarking on a five-year stint as a consultant within the telecom sector across Europe (AMS - American Management Systems). Subsequently, Bilbrey embraced a pivotal role within a Boulder-based startup, contributing to pioneering efforts in online banking and bill-pay technologies (Avolent). His journey encompassed several transformative years within the Property & Casualty Insurance technology arena as a global product manager and delivery lead (Sentry Insurance, Majesco). Carving his path through diverse domains, Bilbrey emerged as a prominent figure in Healthcare IT (Cancer Treatment Centers of America) before assuming a leadership role as a board member and president within a publicly traded multinational engaged in commercial finance software.

Residing in Thousand Oaks, CA, Jeffrey Bilbrey shares his life with his wife and three children. Beyond his professional endeavors, he is an avid outdoors enthusiast, deeply passionate about pursuits such as hiking, hunting, fishing, boating, cycling, running, and triathlons. His exploration of the natural world allows him to relish the serenity and marvels it offers.

Alistair Canal

President
Syndifi Inc.

Anthony Cracchiolo

President & CEO
U.S. Bank

Brian Dewey

Head of Strategic Accounts
EDA by Randall-Reilly

Kristian Dolan CLFP

CEO
Northteq

Kristian has been a technologist in the equipment finance space for almost two decades. Kristian started his career in equipment finance as a software engineer for CapitalStream (System1) out of Seattle, Washington. He started a consulting company E2E Systems in 2005 focusing on building straight through loan origination solutions for the commercial lending industry. They also built loan origination solutions for the mortgage industry. Subsequently, E2E Systems merged with Tamarack Consulting in 2013. Kristian continued to lead the loan origination practice as co-owner at Tamarack until 2020 when Northteq was spun off into a separate entity 100% focused on loan origination technologies and integrating with Fintechs.

Kristian has been actively involved in board, committee, and speaking engagements with the ELFA, NEFA, and the CLFP. Kristian’s passion is identifying 3rd party services FinTech services and enabling them for the equipment finance industry. Kristian has written articles for the industry including “There’s an API for that” (available per request) which has some overlap to this research. As well, Deborah Reuben and Kristian Dolan co-authored the Equipment Finance Software Guide (available per request).

Kristian is the lead researcher in the ELFF study being conducted.

Kristian graduated from the University of Washington in Seattle with degrees in Management Information Systems and Japanese. He lives with his wife and 3 children in Minneapolis, MN.

Jeffry Elliott CLFP

President
Huntington Equipment Finance

Mr. Elliott is President of Huntington Equipment Finance (“HEF”) a division of The Huntington National Bank. Mr. Elliott is responsible for the Business Equipment Solutions Team (“BEST”), which focuses on equipment financing for Huntington’s Regional Banking clients, Huntington Public Capital®, which focuses on lending to the municipal, university, school & hospital (“MUSH”) entities and more recently launched the Renewable Energy Finance group that focuses on solar, wind, battery and other renewable energy generation projects. Additionally, Mr. Elliott is leading the Clean Energy Banking strategic initiative focusing on helping Huntington clients with the energy transition.

Mr. Elliott began his banking career with Security Pacific a Subsidiary of Bank of America in 1993 in the consumer finance division. Prior to Huntington, Mr. Elliott was Vice President with U.S. Bank as Manager of the Indirect Funding Group; he joined Huntington in 2001 as part of the newly established Huntington Equipment Finance Division.

Mr. Elliott specializes in analyzing equipment finance related financial contracts as it relates to wholesale lending activities or merger & acquisition transactions. He is an active participant in the syndication markets, both on the buy and sell side of equipment leasing and loan transactions. Project Finance is another area of focus, primarily in the renewable energy markets working on back leverage term loans, solar sale-leaseback, and tax equity transactions.

Mr. Elliott holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Finance from the Richard T. Farmer School of Business at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio and a Master of Business Administration from the Williams College of Business at Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Mr. Elliott is a Certified Lease Finance Professional (“CLFP”) and was formerly an active member of the CLFP Board of Directors. Mr. Elliott was formerly involved with the Mid America Association of Equipment Lessors (“MAEL”), where he served as Vice Chairman/Board of Director. Currently he is Treasurer and a board member of the Equipment Leasing & Finance Association. Mr. Elliott is a former Chairman of the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation and former Chairman of the Research Committee and a member of the Board of Trustees. Mr. Elliott is a current board member of the Association for Governmental Leasing and Finance (“AGLF”). Mr. Elliott is also a retired member of the Ohio High School Athletic Association as a High School Basketball & Football Official.

Mr. Elliott enjoys the pursuit of the culinary arts, wine appreciation and collecting and golf, where he is a member of Avon Oaks Country Club. He resides in Bay Village, Ohio with his wife and two children.

Julia Gavrilov

Partner
Moritt Hock & Hamroff LLP

Julia Gavrilov concentrates her practice in equipment leasing, secured finance, asset-based lending and all areas of complex commercial litigation. On the transactional side, Ms. Gavrilov specializes in the drafting of equipment lease and loan documents in various secured financing transactions on behalf of secured lenders, banks and lessors, and in representing both buyers and sellers in syndication and capital market transactions. Based on her steady rise throughout the leasing and finance industry, Ms. Gavrilov has been invited to speak on numerous industry panels, including the Legal Forum for the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association (ELFA), the ELFA Annual Convention, the ELFA Credit & Collections conference and the National Equipment Finance Association’s Finance Summit.

As a seasoned litigator, Ms. Gavrilov’s commercial litigation practice includes the enforcement and/or preservation of lender/lessor’s rights under defaulted equipment lease and secured loan transactions, and in regularly representing both institutional and individual clients in actions involving breach of contract, fraud, shareholder derivative disputes, trademark infringement, counterfeiting, trade diversion, Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act (RICO), attorney malpractice and bankruptcyrelated disputes before the Federal and State courts, as well as various arbitral bodies.

In addition to her daily practice, Ms. Gavrilov also Chairs the Firm’s Women’s Initiative program: “MHH WINS” – “Women’s Initiative for Navigating Success”, and serves as a member of the Firm’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee.

Education:

• New York Law School, J.D. 2006
• Barnard College, Columbia University, B.A. 2002

Admissions:

Ms. Gavrilov is admitted to practice in New York, as well as before the United States District Courts for the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and the Supreme Court of the United States.

Affiliations:

Ms. Gavrilov is a member of the American, New York State and Nassau County Bar Associations. She is also member of the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association (ELFA), where she serves on its Service Providers Business Council Steering Committee as well as on the Research Committee of the Equipment Leasing and Finance Foundation. Additionally, Ms. Gavrilov is a member of the Secured Finance Network's (SFNet) Women in Secured Finance Committee, as well as a member of GGI-Worldwide Alliance of Independent Law Firms.

Recognitions:

• 2021 - Top Women in Equipment Finance (The Monitor)
• 2021 - NextGen Leader / 40 Under 40 (The Monitor)
• 2020 - SFNet Top Women In Commercial Finance
• 2020 - SFNet 40 Under 40 Award

Languages:

Russian

Lovern Gordon CLFP

National Business Development
Boston Financial & Equity Corporation

Edward Gross

Shareholder
Vedder Price P.C.

Edward K. Gross is a Shareholder at Vedder Price and a member of the Global Transportation Finance team.

He established the firm’s Washington, DC office and has over 30 years of experience representing bank-affiliated and large, independent equipment financing companies in all aspects of equipment finance transactions, including documenting, structuring, negotiating, syndicating and enforcing these transactions. Mr. Gross handles all types of equipment finance matters and structures, including single-investor, leveraged financings, true/ tax motivated leases, synthetic leases, TRAC leases, “bundled” and other vendor-originated financings, and domestic and cross-border financings, primarily for transportation equipment, but also for other types of equipment, including: manufacturing and assembly line, construction and drilling, energy-related and other facilities, medical and health-related facilities, high-tech equipment (including “bundled” financings), trucks and trailers, modular units and vessel repair equipment.

Mr. Gross is considered an industry leader in business aircraft and helicopter finance. These transactions vary in structure and include tax and non-tax lease, operating lease and secured loan financing of managed and/or chartered aircraft, fleet aircraft and helicopters operated in various service capacities (e.g., air ambulances, oil and gas service, flight schools, etc.) and engine pools, aircraft operated under fractional and “pay card” arrangements and progress payment, completion and other multi-funding structures. Clients include market-leading aircraft and helicopter financing providers, investors or operating lessors, as well as large publicly or privately held businesses, governmental entities or high-net-worth individual users. Many of these transactions involve foreign registered aircraft.

Many clients rely on Mr. Gross in syndication transactions, including large portfolio purchases, “one-off” sales and assignments, discounting, back-leveraging and participation transactions. He has worked with Vedder Price’s Capital Markets team on securitizations of diverse asset classes. Mr. Gross has prepared lease, loan and syndication forms for many of the most active financing providers in the industry. Working with Vedder Price’s well-regarded bankruptcy and creditors’ rights practice, Mr. Gross has assisted financing providers, including various creditor groups, with workout, restructuring, bankruptcy and enforcement matters.

Mr. Gross has been selected for inclusion in numerous editions of Who's Who Legal’s The International Who's Who of Aviation Lawyers, including the 2014 edition in which Mr. Gross participated in a roundtable discussion. In the 2013 edition of that publication, Mr. Gross is named one of the top 500 aviation lawyers in the world, and is cited as “a go-to lawyer for finance, insolvency and restructuring…well-respected by commercial clients.” In 2016 through 2020, Mr. Gross was ranked Band 1 in Private Aircraft (Global-wide) in Chambers High Net Worth, which recognizes the world’s leading high net worth advisers. In addition, in 2013 Mr. Gross was ranked in Chambers USA in the Nationwide Banking & Finance: Equipment Finance & Leasing category. He was selected by his peers for inclusion in Washington DC Super Lawyers (2007–2020) and The Best Lawyers in America (2007–2021) in the field of Equipment Finance Law. Mr. Gross was elected as Fellow to the American College of Commercial Finance Lawyers in 2011, and elected as Regent to the College in 2012. He has been recognized by the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association (ELFA), receiving the Distinguished Service Award in 2008 and ELFA’s Legal Committee Edward A. Groobert Excellence in Leasing Award in 2011.

A client respondent in Airfinance Journal’s 2011 Guide to Aviation Lawyers mentions, “Vedder Price can turn a deal in a day or two if necessary. Ed Gross is our go to person for time-sensitive matters.” He also recognized among the world’s leading aviation attorneys by in Euromoney’s Expert Guides “Aviation Guide” from 2013 to 2020.

Mr. Gross obtained his B.A. from the University of Maryland and his J.D. from the University of Baltimore School of Law.

Mitch Helman

Sales Manager
Sandhills Global

Michelle Henkelman

VP Credit & Risk
Oakmont Capital Services

Michelle Henkelman

VP Credit & Risk
Oakmont Capital Services

Valerie Jester

Jesse Johnson

President
Consult Disrupt LLC

I am Founder of Equipment Finance Cares and President of Consult Disrupt.

Michael Jones

President, Equipment Finance
First Citizens Bank Equipment Finance

Dominic Liberatore

Deputy General Counsel
DLL

Dominic A. Liberatore is the Deputy General Counsel for DLL, a global provider of leasing and business finance solutions, including vendor finance.

Mr. Liberatore has been practicing law for 35 years focusing on leasing and asset based lending, and has served in a variety of senior in-house legal positions with DLL, IOS Capital, Inc. (the captive finance subsidiary of IKON Office Solutions, Inc.), Copelco Financial Services Group, Inc. and the FDIC. Prior to going in-house, Mr. Liberatore was an associate at Cravath, Swaine & Moore in New York City and Wolf Block in Philadelphia. Mr. Liberatore is a past chairman of the ELFA Legal Committee, current ELFA Subcommittee Coordinator and a past chairman of the Subcommittee on Leasing of the Uniform Commercial Code Committee of the ABA Business Law Section. Mr. Liberatore is also a member of the Editorial Review Board for the Journal of Equipment Lease Financing.

Mr. Liberatore holds a J.D. from Vanderbilt University and a B.A. from the University of Buffalo.

Scott Lubischer

Corporate Sales Executive
Sandhills Global

Sean McKenna

National Sales Manager
Great American Insurance Group, Specialty Equipment

Sean has over 10 years of new business development and marketing experience. Currently, he works with clients in developing insurance programs to help mitigate risk and protect valuable asset portfolios.

He presently serves on the ELFA Emerging Talent Advisory Council (ETAC) and as the ETAC liaison to the ELFA Service Provider Committee and was identified by the Monitor as a member of the Next Gen 40 under 40 in 2022.

Sean earned a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from Tiffin University. He resides with his family in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Scott Nelson

President & Chief Digital Officer, Board Member
Tamarack Technology, Inc.

A well-recognized expert in technology strategy and development including Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity, Scott Nelson leads the company’s efforts to expand its impact on the industry through innovation with new products, system level thinking, and the application of new technologies with a design thinking methodology.

In his dual role at Tamarack, Nelson is responsible for the company’s vision and strategic planning as well as business operations. Since joining Tamarack in 2020, Nelson has led efforts to refocus the business strategy around investment in digital technologies in order to provide greater value across the equipment finance industry.

Nelson joined Tamarack with more than 30 years of experience leading product development, product management, and entrepreneurial business growth as a technology and business leader. After beginning his career at Honeywell in the Corporate R&D center, Nelson spent the next 15 years at Logic PD as CTO and EVP. More recently, Nelson served as the Chief Product Officer and Vice President of Product at Digi International, a leading global provider of business and mission-critical IoT products and services and the Chief Technical Officer (CTO) and Executive Vice President of Corporate Development at SkyWater Technology Foundry, where he led strategy, growth, and new-offering development.

Steve Oliver

National Director of Sales
Taylor & Martin Auctioneers and Appraisals

Steve Oliver
Vice President of Business Development – Taylor and Martin Auctioneers
Steve Oliver has been the National Director of Sales for Taylor and Martin Auctioneers since 2017 and was recently named the Vice President for Business Development. Steve heads a sales team that generates over $500 million in transportation truck and trailer sales, at over 50 live consignment and dispersal auctions annually. Prior to working for Taylor and Martin, Steve spent the bulk of his career in the auto dealership space, most recently as a General Manager for a large dealer group in Omaha.
Taylor and Martin is an employee owned auction, remarketing, appraisal, and consulting company based in Fremont, Nebraska. Taylor and Martin counts some of the country’s largest fleets, dealer groups, and transportation lenders as customers in both the auction and appraisal sides of the business. In business since 1935, Taylor and Martin is dedicated exclusively to the transportation equipment business.

Joshua Patton

Vice President
Verdant Commercial Capital LLC

Joshua Patton recently joined forces with Verdant Commercial Capital to strengthen their Renewables & Energy Efficiency division. As Vice President | Energy Efficiency, Joshua brings not only his expertise in this industry, but that of his team accompanying him over to Verdant. Together, out of their Rochester Michigan satellite office, they passionately seek to help energy service companies eliminate customer objections to energy efficiency projects. His main focus is to design, build, and implement energy efficiency financing programs for utility companies, manufacturers and contractors of energy efficiency equipment, and government sponsored programs. Over the years, Joshua is responsible for the funding of hundreds of millions of dollars of small and medium ticket financing while at Lease Corporation of America, Ascentium Capital, and now Verdant Commercial Capital. He graduated with his bachelor’s degree from Oakland University, majoring in Marketing with a minor in Economics while playing NCAA Division I Baseball.

William Phelan

President
Equifax

Deborah Reuben CLFP, DES

CEO & Founder
TomorrowZone

Deborah "Deb" Reuben, CLFP, DES, is CEO and Founder of TomorrowZone, a technology strategy consultancy inspiring fresh ideas and collaborations to shape the future of business. She encourages new thinking to explore the art of the possible through her extensive technical knowledge, equipment finance experience, and passion for challenging the status quo. Her expertise will enhance and broaden your company's products and services and create efficiencies that will produce a competitive advantage for your company.

Her view on digital transformation and future-readiness is radically different with over two decades of innovating, speaking, and most importantly, real-life, in-the-trenches innovation experience in finance and software industries. Deborah appreciates and shares with clients and audiences that digital transformation is less about the digital and more about the people. When it comes to thinking about technology, innovation, and the future, you can choose to act today to shape your future. The best investment you can make is investing in what's between your ears by taking ownership of your personal growth. Everyone, regardless of role, must stay on top of technology and trends to stay ahead of tomorrow.

What surprises most clients is her ability to combine big company thinking and entrepreneurial ideas to create marketplace success. Deb's clients and audiences include companies like PNC, Wells Fargo, DLL Group, Huntington (TCF Bank), Dell, Mitsubishi UFG, Caterpillar, Key Equipment Finance.

She currently serves on the CLFP Foundation Board of Directors and authored The Certified Lease and Finance Professionals' Handbook, 6^th – 9^th editions. She served on ELFA's Board of Directors and is the founder and chair of the ELFA Innovation Advisory Council. In partnership with ELFA, she and her team moderate quarterly industry innovation roundtables for the ELFA to bring forward-thinking insights and fresh ideas to ELFA Members.

Reuben also served on the Monitor Editorial Advisory Board and co-founded the Disrupted+ innovation conference series with Monitor. She is the recipient of both the CLFP Foundation Cindy Spurdle Award of Excellence and the ELFA Michael J. Fleming Distinguished Service Award. Monitor Magazine honored her as one of the 50 Most Powerful Women Leaders in Equipment Finance, named TomorrowZone one of the most innovative companies in the equipment finance ecosystem and honored her as an Industry Disruptor Icon. Learn more at tomorrowzone.io.

Eldon Richards

CTO
Solifi

Bob Rinaldi CLFP

President
Rinaldi Advisory Services

Bob Rinaldi is a lifelong entrepreneur with a sizable history of success in banking and commercial equipment finance.

President of Bob Rinaldi Advisory Services, Bob provides advisory services to independent lessors, banks, industry service providers, manufacturers and international firms entering the US equipment finance marketplace.

Managing Director of Amembal & Associates

Advisory Board Member of Orion First

Advisory Board Member of Mintaka Financial

Past Board Member of FintruX Pte. LTD

Past-Chairman and Director of the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association (ELFA)

Past CEO of Commercial Industrial Finance (“CI Finance”)

Past SVP and Board Director of CBank, (acquirer of CI Finance)

Past SVP of CSI Leasing, responsible for its organic and inorganic growth strategies.

Past EVP of National City Commercial Capital Company, acquirer of Provident Bank (NC4), now PNC Equipment Finance

Past President of NC4 Canada

Past SVP of Provident Bank, acquirer of Information Leasing Corp. (ILC)

Past EVP, Principal and a founding partner of ILC

Barry Ripes

SVP, Financial Services Leader
Equifax

Nancy Robles

President
Eastern Funding LLC

Nancy Robles is Chief Operating Officer of Eastern Funding LLC where she is responsible for all of the company’s day-to-day operational and administrative functions.

Nancy joined Eastern Funding in 2005 from Fleet Healthcare Capital Leasing/Bank of America. During her tenure at Eastern Funding, she has managed the company’s operations functions including credit, compliance, documentation, funding, loan servicing, legal and work-out, and human resources.

Outside of Eastern Funding, she serves on the board of the Berkeley College Scholarship Foundation, The Coin Laundry Association Diversity and Inclusion Committee, the Berkeley College MBA and Legal Studies Committees.

Nancy has been recognized by Monitor Magazine as a Top Woman in Equipment Finance for 2020. She has also been featured in Hispanic Executive Magazine.

Rafe Rosato

Senior Vice President

Jennifer Sablowski

Jennifer Sablowski is the SVP, Truck and Equipment Leasing at Wheels(formerly LeasePlan USA) and manages the commercial team consisting of direct originations, syndications, and client services. She has 22 years of equipment leasing experience at LeasePlan with various prior roles including Accounting Director, Corporate Controller, Pricing Director, and VP Remarketing & Portfolio Administration. She holds a BS Finance from University of Florida, a MS Finance from Georgia State University, and most recently a MS Accounting from University of North Carolina. Jennifer enjoys mentoring and actively volunteers at her daughter’s school.

Jourdan Saegusa

Independent Consultant
Suru Consulting

Jourdan Saegusa is an industry veteran with a proven background developing and executing successful business strategies, leading cross-functional teams to maximize efficiency and exceed financial objectives. During his 20+ years in the equipment finance industry, Jourdan has held leadership roles in sales, capital markets, and was the founding member and Chief Operating Officer of two Monitor Bank 50 companies. In his current role as an independent consultant, Jourdan helps equipment finance companies improve operating environments, enhance the customer experience and drive innovation throughout the lending lifecycle.

David Schaefer CLFP

CEO
Orion First Financial, LLC

Eli Sethre

CFO
Channel

Eli Sethre has been involved in small-ticket commercial finance since 2004. He joined Channel in 2016 where he serves as Chief Financial Officer and oversees the administrative, financial and risk management operations, and reporting for the company. Prior to his current role, Eli was CEO and founder of aFundia, a data analytics and modeling firm he founded in 2014 which worked closely with Channel. Eli served in senior roles at CAN Capital in Sales and Marketing, Finance and Business Planning, and Risk Analytics. There he was responsible for risk management, portfolio performance, scoring model development, annual budgeting and reforecasts, ensuring financial objectives were met. Eli graduated from Kennesaw State University and was chosen as the 2004 University Scholar in Economics.

Moorari Shah

Partner
Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLC

Moorari K. Shah is Partner in the Orange County and San Francisco offices of Sheppard Mullin. He represents banks, equipment finance companies, fintechs, mortgage companies, auto lenders, and other non-bank financial institutions in transactional, licensing, regulatory compliance, and government enforcement matters covering mergers and acquisitions, consumer and commercial lending and leasing, and supervisory examinations and enforcement actions involving state and federal agencies.

Mr. Shah received his J.D. from Boston University School of Law (cum laude) and his B.A. from Duke University. He is a Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP) and a certified Six Sigma Black Belt.

William Stephenson

CEO
PEAC Solutions

Tawnya Stone CLFP

Vice President, Strategic Technology
GreatAmerica Financial Services

Tawnya Stone, Vice President, Strategic Technology, is responsible for the overall strategic direction, oversight and implementation of customer-facing tools and products across various GreatAmerica business units. She works in close collaboration with business unit and functional leadership and external technology partners. Tawnya joined GreatAmerica in 2011 as an IT Project Manager and eventually evolved into subsequent roles that blended technology and customer facing activities. Prior to joining GreatAmerica she worked for Philips Electronics and Verizon Communications in the Washington DC metro area.

Tawnya was the previous President of the Managed Print Services Association (MPSA) and Executive Council member of CompTIA’s Technology Lifecycle Services (TLS) Community and past Chair of CompTIA’s Managed Print Services (MPS) Community. She was recognized by ENX as Difference Maker in 2016 and 2018. Tawnya also is a member the Technology Innovation working group and Chair of the Operations and Technology committee within the ELFA.

Denis Stypulkoski

Founder and Principal
Reimagine Advisors

Denis Stypulkoski is a seasoned business executive with a successful track record of launching and building a private equity startup into a major industry competitor. Denis is known as a senior executive who bridges the business and technology landscape. He has envisioned, developed, delivered and managed business startups and technology platforms in leading-edge technology environments, with a focus on revenue creation, digitalization, and customer experience.

Denis's leadership experience spans from startups to global companies within the technology, finance and banking industries and includes executive positions with TIAA Bank, EverBank, Tygris Commercial Finance Group, US Express Leasing, CIT Group, Newcourt Credit Group, and AT&T Capital Corporation.

Denis most recently launched Reimagine Advisors, a business transformation consultancy helping organizations reimagine their business to compete in the digital economy. He also serves as an independent director and chair of the technology committee on the boards of both GreatAmerica Financial Services and IFG Companies.

Scott Thacker CPA, CLFP

Chief Executive Officer
Ivory Consulting Corporation

Mr. Thacker is the Chief Executive Officer of Ivory Consulting Corporation, the software and consulting company that has helped define the modern equipment finance industry with the proven software solutions for modeling, analyzing, and pricing equipment leases and loans, managing equipment, and optimizing portfolios.

Scott is the immediate past chair of the Board of Trustees of the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation, where he is founding chair of The 1989 Society, the legacy giving initiative. He is also the founding chair of ELFA Equity, the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association’s (ELFA) diversity, equity, and inclusion initiative.

His previous volunteer roles with the ELFA include being a member of the Board of Directors, a member of the Finance Accounting Committee, chair of the Operations and Technology Committee, and co-director of the Foundation’s Research Committee.

Thacker is a member and DEI lead (leave of absence 2023) of Sand Hill Angels, one of the largest angel investment groups based in Silicon Valley. Previously, he served on the Board of Advisors of StartOut for over ten years and was a judge for the business plan competition for the Wharton Executive MBA program and the Visa Everywhere Initiative. He is a second-generation board member of The Ridgewood School.

Prior to joining Ivory Consulting, he was a partner at Accenture and earlier, a Senior Director at Oracle. Thacker began his career at Arthur Andersen & Co.

Thacker holds an M.B.A. in Finance from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and a B.S. in Accounting from Wake Forest University. He holds the C.P.A. (active) and C.L.F.P. certificates.

Andrew Vering

Director of Appraisal Services
Taylor & Martin Auctioneers and Appraisals

Andy Vering, ASA
Director of Appraisal Services, Taylor and Martin Auctioneers
Andy has been with Taylor and Martin since 2010. Initially starting on the Auction Set up crew, he moved into the appraisal department in 2011. In 2014, he took over a sales territory and sold approximately $85 million worth of trucks and trailers before taking over as the Director of Appraisal Services. Prior to Taylor and Martin, Andy worked as a manager on the family commercial cattle feed yard.
Taylor and Martin is an employee owned auction, remarketing, appraisal, and consulting company based in Fremont, Nebraska. Taylor and Martin counts some of the country’s largest fleets, dealer groups, and transportation lenders as customers in both the auction and appraisal sides of the business. In business since 1935, Taylor and Martin is dedicated exclusively to the transportation equipment business.

Patricia Voorhees

Director
The Alta Group LLC

Stephen Whelan

Partner
Blank Rome LLP

As a partner in three different law firms for 44 years, Steve Whelan practices law in the New York office of Blank Rome LLP, where he concentrates his practice on lease financings, securitization, energy finance and secured lending. He is a graduate of Princeton University and Harvard Law School, has been a member of the ELFA Board of Directors and Legal Committee, Chair of the American Bar Association Subcommittee on Leasing, and a Visiting Lecturer on constitutional law at Princeton University.

Steve is co-author of the ABA Annual Survey on Developments in the Law of Leases. He has authored four books on U.C.C. Article 2A and the “Securitization” chapters in the Matthew Bender & Co. treatises on Commercial Finance and Equipment Leasing. From 2019 to 2022, he was an appointed observer to the ALI-ULC Subcommittee on Bundled Transactions.