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Academic Relations Co-Chairs

Greg Overholtzer

Ravix Group

Communications Co-Chairs

Stuart Alan McFaul

Stuart McFaul and Associates

I am a fractional CMO, consultant and executive coach for startup and fast-growth B2B/B2C companies.  I developed Living Brand™, a proprietary marketing system used with over 200 companies worldwide that has helped take them to IPO or acquisition by such companies as Amazon, Apple and HP.

I believe I am hardwired for marketing.  The first marketing program I created after graduating from college won the best marketing program honors within its industry; the third program I created worked so well that the Smithsonian Institution asked to add my business model to its archives. 

This recognition brought me to realize that many companies could start successfully, but far fewer were able to consistently build on that success to become a leading brand.  To discern this, I spent many years studying over 500 global brands, distilling the elements that helped them maintain their success.  I started my own marketing agency – Spiralgroup – in 1997 and used our clients as the lab to test theories. These theories grew into the Living Brand Marketing Framework™, a step-by-step approach for assured marketing success.

Living Brand has proven to be a predictable and consistently successful marketing approach, yielding terrific results for companies in both boom times and recessions.  While grounded in a proven approach, its versatility helps a variety of organizations reach and exceed their goals, from emerging tech to consumer packaged goods (CPG) to non-profits and government.  My client mix has been comprised of 80% B2B/emerging tech (AI, AR/VR, hardware, software/SaaS, networking/storage, fintech, security, mobile/apps, marketplaces, and communities) and 20% B2C (professional services, consumer goods/services, housewares, real estate, entertainment, and cannabis).You can read several of my case studies at https://stuartmcfaul.com/case-studies/.

With my system, I’ve helped companies grow from unknown to industry leaders, leading to billions of dollars in acquisitions or public offerings.  My goal is to always help make companies better. I am often brought in by company advisors to help focus and package companies to enhance their value; for example, I recently did that for a health tech company which resulted in a 20x increase in valuation.

Today, my mission is – as it has always been -- to guide purpose-driven leaders to succeed.  To help them most effectively, I have chronicled the Living Brand approach in a new book How to Build a Living Brand: The Ten Superpowers of the World’s Most Successful Brands.  Through this guide – which I am happy to share with FEI members -- my goal is to offer insight, support and assured success to thoughtful entrepreneurs worldwide.

Leadership Development Chair

Sunny Arora

Top Finance and Tax, Inc.

Sunny Arora, BSEE, MBA, EA

Founder, CEO, CFO, Board Member, Advisor, Entrepreneur 
Top Finance and Tax, Inc.

Sunny is an accomplished founder, CEO, consulting CFO, finance and business leader with over thirty years of experience working with startups, medium, large and Fortune 500 companies, spanning a wide spectrum of industries, technologies and disciplines.

He loves to build and work with all stages of startups, from the embryonic stage to the pre-IPO late stage, and small to medium sized companies. He brings to his clients, leadership in finance, business strategy, operations, and international business.  Sunny works with companies in SaaS, EV & robotics, B2B, biopharma, biotech, software, hi-tech, semiconductors, networking, IT, gaming, education, insurance, finance, marketing, advertising, event planning, hospitality, food and food service, real-estate and construction.  He is currently a CFO and Strategy consultant working closely with several startups, small to medium sized companies, Founders, VCs, PE firms, and Investors helping them achieve accelerated value and success.

Prior to founding Top Finance and Tax, Sunny has worked for Ernst & Young (EY), Robert Half International, Cisco Systems, Charles Schwab and other premium companies. 

Sunny currently serves on the board of directors of Financial Executives International-Silicon Valley (FEI-SV), Rotary Club of San Mateo, is chair of Leadership Development and advisor to several companies and non-profits. He speaks multiple languages and is well versed in multiple cultures.  In his spare time, he loves to play golf and be involved in community service endeavors.  He holds an MBA in finance, strategy and international business, a BS in electrical engineering and is an EA authorized by the IRS.  

Membership Co-Chair

Ronald Koling

Resource Label Group

Programs Co-Chair

Dave Liebes

Alliant

Special Events Chair

Jan Robertson

SiVal Advisors, LLC

Jan is Managing Partner, CFO and Co-Founder of SiVal Advisors, a technology-focused mergers & acquisitions advisory firm located in Silicon Valley, California. Ms. Robertson, a frequent speaker and author on topics related to M&A, has advised numerous clients and boards of directors on a wide variety of transactions over her thirty-year career. Prior to SiVal Advisors, Jan was Managing Director in Needham & Company’s Menlo Park, CA office, where she built the M&A practice from 1997 to 2002, and prior to that was a Managing Director, M&A at RBC Capital Markets in Toronto. She is a frequent speaker on M&A related topics in the U.S. and internationally. In 2012 Jan was honored as one of Silicon Valley’s “Top 100 Women of Influence”.

SiVal Advisors professionals have completed over 500 transactions worth $12 billion in deal value. Based in Silicon Valley with connections around the globe, we serve clients in a range of technology industries including: software, business services, e-commerce, healthcare, and manufacturing, with valuations, growth funding, acquisitions, mergers and sales of businesses.