Queen City Angels

Interested in becoming an Angel Investor? https://lnkd.in/gQ-2U8Jq

We are thrilled to announce Dinsmore & Shohl LLP (“Dinsmore”) as our Sponsor of the Month! We thank you for your ongoing, generous support of our entrepreneurial mission. Special gratitude for the dedication and partnership of Morning MentoringTM, started almost 20 years ago by the Queen City Angels. Dinsmore was founded in 1908 by Frank F. Dinsmore with its roots on Walnut St. in our very own Cincinnati. The firm’s 750+ attorneys nationwide are trusted advisers to Fortune 500 companies, institutions, associations, governments, firms, individuals, and of course -- startups! Clients count on Dinsmore for high-quality, commercial, cost-effective advice. While Dinsmore has expanded to 35+ offices from coast to coast, its founding principle, #ExceptionalClientService, remains fundamental to its practice. Thank you Dinsmore & Shohl LLP. Your sponsorship allows us to continue supporting Greater Cincinnati’s entrepreneurial community.

Congratulations John Ataman! This week we celebrate you as QCA’s Member of the Week! Before joining QCA, John spent 19 years with PNC Bank, serving the last 12 years as Senior Vice President. Over the course of his career, John has worked in relationship management, business development, loan syndication, marketing, and medical imaging. John’s rich experience has provided valuable insight to QCA since 2021. Due to John’s positive experience with QCA he was inspired to graduate from an Ascent Member to a Regular Member. We thank you, John, for your active commitment to our entrepreneurial ecosystem!

Congratulations Cara Whitehill on being named QCA’s Member of the Week! Cara has been a member since 2020 and is a leader and respected voice in her field of travel technology. She has spent her career helping B2B SaaS companies refine and optimize their Go-To-Market and commercialization strategies. Having held various leadership positions at industry-leading companies like Expedia, Travelocity, Deem, and Traxo, Cara has extensive experience successfully leading early-stage startups from inception to growth and scaling larger organizations. Now the Founder of Unlock Advisors where she is an advisor to and an angel investor in early-stage startups and growth-stage enterprises. Cara’s expertise and leadership provide invaluable guidance to our QCA portfolio companies. Thank you, Cara! Check her out on her Travel Tech Insider podcast! https://lnkd.in/gcdcYE9b   Interested in becoming an Angel Investor? https://lnkd.in/gQ-2U8Jq

We are delighted to recognize Bob Ziek as QCA’s Member of the Week. Congratulations! Bob Ziek is celebrating 5 years as a member of QCA. With over 40 years of experience in the CPG space, he has held executive roles in R&D, operations, and supply chain. Bob has personal experience scaling a business from the ground up; as co-founder of Changing Paradigms, Bob played a key role in driving the sales to exceed $65 million before successfully exiting. More recently, he has founded a consultancy business specializing in innovation and strategy. Besides advising our QCA portfolio companies, Bob also volunteers as a mentor for Cincinnati’s Flywheel Social Enterprise Hub and serves on several non-profit boards, including the Board of Trustees at Clarkson University. Thank you, Bob, your expertise is invaluable!   Interested in becoming an Angel Investor?! https://lnkd.in/gQ-2U8Jq

Interested in becoming an Angel Investor? https://lnkd.in/gQ-2U8Jq

Congratulations Cloverleaf, QCA’s Portfolio Company of the Month! Darrin Murriner, CEO, and Kirsten Moorefield, CSO, founded Cloverleaf in 2017. The company elevates employees and employers to perform at their highest levels by providing access to 10 industry-leading assessments in behavior, culture, strengths, and productivity on a centralized platform that offers a comprehensive view of a team’s unique dynamics. They’ve pioneered the technology of Automated Coaching™ by utilizing DISC, Strengthsfinder, 16Types, etc., and with those assessments sending short nudges right into email, calendar, and Microsoft Teams about how to best partner with the unique people around you that your success depends on. This is scaling true collaboration within the world's most valuable brands. Cloverleaf was awarded Inc's “Best Place to Work and Fastest Growing Company” and was named a Finalist of the 2024 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award, which is a testament to their groundbreaking platform, mission and values.

Congratulations Andy Kaiser, our QCA Member of the Week! Andy has been a QCA Member for over two years. He has extensive experience in the financial sector, notably as the CFO of Cincinnati Bell Inc., a $1.5 billion, NYSE publicly traded company. Andy led Cincinnati Bell through a highly successful $2.9 billion take-private transaction. He also co-founded Howard Roark Consulting LLC, a management consulting firm with a focus on launching new technology ventures, distinguished by its foundational principle to help companies succeed by doing the right things for the right reasons. As a volunteer, Andy served over eight years on the board of CancerFree KIDS. Thank you, Andy, for continuously lending your expertise to service worthy causes!

This week we celebrate Tom Browning as QCA’s Member of the Week! Tom’s career is an impressive array of responsibilities that spans four decades. From his early years as Director of Sales, Planning, and Strategy at The Coca-Cola Company to VP of Customer Development at Organic Girl Inc., his expertise across the corporate and start-up world, especially in CPG sales and marketing, is one of the invaluable resources QCA has drawn upon over his five years of membership. He also dedicates his time and assets to supporting entrepreneurs through his involvement with VentureSouth, The Harbor Entrepreneur Center, Hamilton County INCubator, and H Venture Partners. Thank you, Tom for your years of helping businesses flourish!

So honored to be associated with skilled executives such as Sean Lawless. Proud to be a member of the Queen City Angels family.