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Nick Jackson

POSITION: Founder and Chief Inspiration Officer at Nick Jackson Speaks and Speakers of Love and Certified Coach at Five Capitals.

FOCUS: Entrepreneurship; Social Entrepreneurship, Startups

Nick Jackson is the owner and creator of  and . Nick was honored with the TEDxCincinnati People’s Choice Award in 2014 for his inspiring speech at Memorial Hall. To date, he has enlightened, entertained, and championed the lives of over 1 million people.

In 2003, Nick earned a bachelor's degree in Special Education and Teaching from Mount Saint Joseph University. He began his career as the first African-American male teacher and coach at Reading and Norwood City Schools in Ohio, and later taught and coached at Fort Thomas (Highlands) Independent School District in Kentucky, and goes down in history as their first Afro-American educator. While at those schools, Nick coached two high school football teams to state championships and never had a losing season.

He was also elected by NBC, Showtime, and Fox Sports’ Cris Collinsworth to become the national spokesperson for UGive, a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering the next generation of volunteers. Nick believes his crowning achievement in life is orchestrating volunteer groups that have generated over 100,000 meals and 2,500 haircuts for homeless neighbors, single mothers, and friends.

John McIlwraith

POSITION: Co-Founder and Managing Director of .

FOCUS: Entrepreneurship; Startup and High Growth Strategy; Venture Capital; and Seed-, Early-stage and Growth Stage Funding

John McIlwraith co-founded Allos Ventures in 2010 to focus on investments in early-stage software and tech-enabled service companies based in the Midwest. Since then, Allos has invested in over 50 high-growth companies and achieved several successful exits.

John started his career as a corporate lawyer with Jones Day, where he co-founded the Private Ventures Group to serve the needs of entrepreneurs and venture capital investors. After several years of representing VC firms and early-stage companies, he joined publicly-traded Quantum Health Resources, a provider of drugs and related therapies to individuals with rare, chronic diseases, as SVP of strategic planning and general counsel.  After leading Quantum’s sale to Olsten Health Services in 1997, John joined Blue Chip Venture Company, an early-stage venture firm based in Cincinnati.

During his career, John has been involved in over 100 venture capital financings and served on over 40 boards of directors. John also served as board chairman of publicly-traded Meridian Bioscience, a Cincinnati-based provider of innovative diagnostic tests and related technologies that was sold in 2023 for $1.5 billion.

John holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and Business Administration from Hillsdale College and Juris Doctorate from Case Western Reserve University.

Holly N. O’Driscoll

POSITION: Founder and CEO at , and Former Global Design Thinking Leader & Innovation Strategist at P&G.

FOCUS: Entrepreneurship, Corporate Innovation, Creativity, and Design Thinking.

Holly O’Driscoll is an industry expert in the field of Design Thinking and human-centered innovation. She has enabled the transformation of organizations through teaching the method and mindset of Design Thinking. As Global Design Thinking Leader at P&G, Holly partnered with teams across the company to program and facilitate more than 250 Design Thinking experiences, often at the request of C-suite executives. Holly’s passions include problem framing, the application of Design Thinking to organizational strategy, unleashing the diversity of people, leadership philosophy, and creating conditions that allow human creativity and curiosity to thrive.

Throughout her 20+ year career, Holly has built a reputation as a master human-centered innovation strategist, trainer, and facilitator. She is the founder and CEO of Ampersand Innovation, LLC, a Design Thinking and human-centered innovation strategy consultancy focused on unleashing the diversity and potential of people and ideas via workshops, design sprints, and capability development.

Holly is the faculty chairperson and lead instructor of the Rutgers University Design Thinking Executive Education program. She has guest lectured on the topic of Design Thinking at The Parsons School of Design, Harvard Business School, Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business, Michigan State University, University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Business, and more. In January 2018, she was named one of Michael Bloomberg’s Design Thinking Coaches for the Bloomberg Philanthropies USA Mayor’s Challenge project, and one of her cities was awarded a $1 million prize to take their idea to the next level.

Holly holds a bachelor’s degree in Chemistry and an MBA in Business Administration and Management from Thomas More Community College.

Eric Weissmann

POSITION: Executive Director of

FOCUS: Entrepreneurship, Entrepreneurial Ecosystem-Building, Startup, Venture Capital.

Eric Weissmann is the Executive Director of NextGEN, a Greenville, SC-based organization focused on economic development through fostering innovation and entrepreneurship. Over the past decade, Eric has become an expert in the field of entrepreneur ecosystem building.  He was on the founding team of Cintrifuse and a leading voice in StartupCincy – one of the most respected startup communities in the country.  Weissmann’s background combines corporate marketing for one of the world’s most-beloved brands (the Walt Disney Company) with the hand-to-hand combat that comes with being on the leadership team of several productive small businesses. ALL of that muscle memory comes together through his unique voice and ‘collaborate first’ mentality. You’ll rarely find someone more passionate about startups, their employees, and the positive impact they have on the greater community.

Mark Sancrant

POSITION: Partner, eGateway M&A Advisors, LLC

FOCUS: Succession and Exit Planning, Entrepreneurship by Acquisition, Valuation and Due Diligence

Mark Sancrant is a Co-Founder and Partner at , where he leads the firm’s M&A Advisory practice. With 28 years of experience across investment banking, corporate strategy, and M&A, Mark has advised entrepreneurs, management teams, and investors across high-growth sectors, including eCommerce, consumer products, marketing, and logistics. He has led or supported more than 130 transactions with an aggregate value exceeding $4.5 billion.

Mark’s background uniquely blends Wall Street investment banking with hands-on operating experience. His investment banking and advisory career includes roles at Prudential Securities and Blue Stone Capital in New York, as well as founding Blue Ash Capital. Operationally, he has served in senior and executive strategy and M&A positions for leading consumer, ecommerce, and media organizations, including D2C Brands, Empower Media, and iNET Interactive.

Mark has been active in board and community leadership, previously serving as President of the Board of Trustees for Children’s Meeting House Montessori School, Vice President of the Board of Trustees for St. Peter Claver Latin School for Boys, and a Board Member of the Cincinnati Chapter of the Association for Corporate Growth. He has also been a guest speaker at the DAV Patriot Bootcamp and remains actively involved with the Farmer School of Business Department of Entrepreneurship at ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University.

Mark holds a dual MBA in Finance and Accounting with Honors from Fordham University’s Graduate School of Business in New York and a BS in Finance from ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University