2016 Honorees

Joshua B. Angell, CFA, ASA, is the senior manager of the Valuation Advisory Services practice of Moore, Ellrich, & Neal, P.A., an accounting and litigation services firm in Palm Beach Gardens, FL.  In his role as manager, Mr. Angell has developed extensive experience valuing privately held companies for a variety of transactional and litigation related purposes including divorce, gift and estate tax, shareholder dispute, and M&A.  Mr. Angell also has experience estimating lost profits, economic damages, valuing intangible assets, and providing consultancy and advisory services for a variety of complex valuation related matters.  Mr. Angell graduated Summa Cum Laude from Florida State University with a double major in accounting and finance.  He is a Chartered Financial Analyst, an Accredited Senior Appraiser  with a specialty in business valuation, and a Registered Investment Adviser.  He is also the co-author of the VPS Discount for Lack of Marketability Guide and Toolkit, a forthcoming book on DLOMs.

Sara Bennett specializes in serving small businesses in rural markets across Nebraska from pre-venture through start-up, growth, and expansion phases as a Business Consultant and Valuation Analyst with the Nebraska Business Development Center.  Recognizing a need for exit planning to be accessible for all markets, she helped spearhead a new online platform designed to expedite the process and lower the cost of exit planning for small businesses.  In an effort to create a cohesive environment to best serve business in the area, Ms. Bennett developed a local Small Business Resource Team, combining several area agencies, to tackle top business concerns and help projects come to fruition.

Ms. Bennett received her bachelor of science degree and MBA from the University of Nebraska, Kearney.  She is a Certified Valuation Analyst, a Certified Exit Planning Advisor, an Economic Development Finance Professional, and a Certified Business Planning Advisor.  Ms. Bennett has earned the “Small Business Innovation and Excellence” award for Nebraska from the Small Business Administration and the “State Star” award for Nebraska from the Association of Small Business Development Centers. 

Brian Burns, CPA, ABV, CFF, ASA, and MAFF, leads the FVS practices of Dixon Hughes Goodman, LLP in the Central Virginia market, and practices in the areas of valuation and forensic accounting.  He has been designated as an expert witness and qualified to testify by report, deposition, and/or trial testimony in various venues in commercial and domestic matters.  Mr. Burns currently serves on the BV Committee of the AICPA and previously served as president of the Richmond Chapter of the ASA.  Mr. Burns frequently presents on FVS to professional/trade organizations and has presented at venues such as the AICPA’s National Forensic and Valuation Services conference and a nationally presented webinar.  

Kelly Byers, CPA, CFF, CVA, CFE, has been involved in numerous valuation and litigation engagements, including: minority shareholder disputes, bankruptcy and insolvency matters, hidden asset investigations, misappropriation of asset investigations, successful representation of clients in criminal investigations by the Internal Revenue Service, commercial damages, and matrimonial litigation, among various others.  Ms. Byers has been accepted as an expert in the field of accounting by the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania and has provided expert witness testimony.  Ms. Byers was recognized by the Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants with the 2014 “Young Leaders” award.  

Robert Carter is the senior manager, and exclusively manages the Forensic & Valuation Services group, at Hertzbach & Company, P.A.  He provides expert opinions regarding business valuations, performs forensic accounting and fraud investigations, and serves as an expert witness in legal matters.  Mr. Carter has helped his department grow from one staff member to nine qualified professionals.  He has held influential positions within his area of expertise as the president of the Maryland Chapter of the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts as well as holding a position on the Advisory Council for the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners. 

Mr. Carter obtained an undergraduate business administration degree from Stevenson University and a master degree from the University of Baltimore.  During his professional career, he has also obtained certifications such as the Certified Public Accountant, Certified Valuation Analyst, and Certified Fraud Examiner designations.  During his master’s program at the University of Baltimore, his team won the regional “Chartered Financial Institute’s Equity Research Challenge” for the Baltimore/Washington area, the first time the University of Baltimore won the competition. 

In addition to increasing his personal knowledge base, Mr. Carter has taught courses for the Maryland Chapter of the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts as well as the National Business Institute.  Furthermore, he is employed by Stevenson University as an adjunct instructor in the Graduate Forensic Studies department.  He has written numerous scholarly articles published by the Daily Record, Maryland Family Law Update, and The University of Baltimore Law Review. 

Mr. Carter has given back to the community throughout his career in numerous ways.  He sits on the University of Baltimore Accounting Advisory Board in order to help develop an accounting program that helps students succeed and transition into the professional world.  Additionally, he has recently offered to join Stevenson University’s alumni mentorship program that provides students with mentors in their professional field to help them understand what is expected and to answer any questions they may have related to their chosen careers.  He was briefly a member of the Finance Committee for the State of Maryland Chamber of Commerce.  Additionally, he has volunteered to raise funds and provide services for various charities, most recently the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation of Maryland and the Susan G. Komen Foundation.

Jonathan Couchman, CPA, ABV, CFF, has extensive experience in providing consulting services related to every phase of the litigation process.  He has testified in federal court on various accounting, economic, and financial issues in the context of damages, and provided assistance to counsel in cross-examining opposing expert witnesses.  In addition, Mr. Couchman has prepared expert reports, performed complex financial modeling, and directed various aspects of the discovery process, including cost audits and document review.

Mr. Couchman’s recent experience includes analysis of economic damages resulting from an alleged breach of contract between multiple nuclear utilities and the United States Department of Energy; economic damages related to an assertion of increased construction costs in a Hurricane Katrina related matter; analysis of the fair market value of fraudulent conduct in the commercial fishing industry; a post-purchase price dispute involving measurement of liabilities under IFRS; analysis of alleged damages related to contaminated pharmaceutical drugs in the context of an insurance coverage dispute; and calculation of lost profits related to misappropriated intellectual property by a teaming partner under a government contract with the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. 

Prior to joining Veris, Mr. Couchman worked at Arthur Andersen in its consulting practice in Washington, DC. 

Mr. Couchman received his bachelor of science degree, summa cum laude with honors, from the University of Maryland. 

In addition to being a Certified Public Accountant, Mr. Couchman also holds both the Accredited in Business Valuation and Certified in Financial Forensics credentials, issued by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

Representative Engagements:
Mr. Couchman has provided expert testimony and consulting services to counsel on a variety of financial, economic, and accounting issues.  His experience includes the following:

•    Engaged by private counsel, Mr. Couchman offered expert testimony in a federal trial related to alleged illegal harvesting of Rockfish from the Chesapeake Bay by a commercial fishing company.  His expert opinion on the fair market value of the alleged overharvest was adopted by the court in its decision.  Mr. Couchman was subsequently engaged to offer an expert opinion in a related case involving the sale of illegally harvested Rockfish by a commercial seafood wholesaler.  Immediately preceding his testimony at trial, the opposition agreed to adopt Mr. Couchman’s opinion on the proper measure of economic harm caused by the illegal harvest.

•    Engaged by United States Department of Justice, Mr. Couchman has conducted numerous accounting examinations of the accuracy and validity of construction and operation costs claimed by many of the nation’s largest nuclear utilities in connection with an alleged breach of contract relating to the storage and removal of spent nuclear fuel.  In more than twenty cases, Mr. Couchman has performed a detailed review of the facts, supporting documentation, and methodology underlying claims for damages brought by each utility.  He has provided assistance to counsel in preparing discovery requests, interrogatories, and deposition and cross-examination outlines.  Additionally, Mr. Couchman has assisted counsel with settlement evaluation and negotiation.  Mr. Couchman has prepared expert reports and assisted with expert testimony relating to cost accounting, auditing, financial analysis, and analysis of economic damages on numerous occasions before the United States Court of Federal Claims.  

•    Engaged by private counsel on behalf of a major insurance company to evaluate and critique a claim for consequential damages that were allegedly incurred in connection with a delay in the reconstruction of an apartment building complex destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.  Mr. Couchman provided assistance to counsel in connection with the deposition of the opposition’s expert witness, leading to multiple admissions that the plaintiff’s damages calculation methodology was incorrect and unreliable.   Mr. Couchman also performed complex financial modeling and economic analyses related to allegations of increased construction costs, increased financing costs, and lost investment income.  His work product was used by counsel in its defense against the claim for consequential damages leading to a successful settlement negotiation immediately preceding a scheduled trial.

•    Engaged by private counsel on behalf of a global technology company, Mr. Couchman assisted in rebutting damages calculated by a variety of experts in connection with a dispute involving losses from the utilization of faulty materials in the production of tankless waterheaters.  His work included reviewing documentation of product failure claims as well as critiquing an opposing expert’s assertion of damages based upon a diminution of company value.

•    Engaged by private counsel on behalf of an information architecture and modeling simulation company, Mr. Couchman provided an expert opinion regarding the amount of lost profits suffered by the company as a consequence of trade secret misappropriation by one of its teaming partners under a contract with the United States Department of Veterans Affairs.  On the eve of trial, the matter was successfully resolved through a settlement agreement.  

Brian W. Crotty is a director with HDH Advisors, LLC with over 10 years of experience in business appraisals, litigation support, corporate finance, and an additional two years of experience in the legal research and support field.  He has testified as an expert witness in various court proceedings throughout the state of Iowa.  Mr. Crotty was the first business appraisal expert in the state of Iowa trained in mediation, collaborative law, and court appointed as special master on valuation and forensic accounting in the Iowa Business Specialty Court Pilot Project.

Prior to joining HDH Advisors, Mr. Crotty was in the Business Valuation and Litigation Support Group of RSM US, LLP (previously RSM McGladrey, Inc.) and the National Valuation Consulting Group of CliftonLaronAllen (previously Clifton Gunderson, LLP).  Mr. Crotty started his career as a clerk for the law firm of Bray & Klockau, PLC.

Representative Assignments and Engagement Work
Mr. Crotty has performed numerous appraisals and litigation support services for companies in various industries and sizes, including companies with revenue exceeding billions of dollars per year. 

The primary purpose for these services included:

• Marital dissolution
• Commercial litigation
• Mergers and acquisitions
• Gift and estate tax planning
• ESOP’s 
• Economic damages and lost profits
• Forensic accounting
• Condemnation purposes
• Fairness and solvency opinions
• Patent and other intangible asset damage claims
• Intangible asset valuations and related services for financial reporting 
• Testifying to support the conclusions found 

Mr. Crotty has extensively prepared full appraisal reports that adhered to Revenue Ruling 59-60, the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice, and the American Institute of CPAs Statement of Standards for Valuation Services.  He has also prepared expert reports for wrongful death and injury related damages, lifestyle analyses, and estimated after-tax income available for alimony and child support.  Mr. Crotty provides mediation services as a roster mediator in the Fifth District of Iowa.

Jamie Everman is a vice president at Censeo Advisors, LLC, as well as a Certified Public Accountant, Certified Valuation Analyst, and Master Analyst in Financial Forensics.  Her considerable professional experience includes providing valuation, forensic accounting, and litigation support services.  Through her focus on family law matters, Ms. Everman has established extensive proficiency tracing assets, analyzing tax consequences, quantifying executive compensation, and assisting in mediation and trial preparation.

Ms. Everman is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts, as well as the Georgia Society of CPAs where she served on the Young CPA Advisory Council for the 2014–2015 cycle.

Rachel Flaskey, CPA, ABV, CFF, CGMA, is a vice president with Chartwell Financial Advisory.  She specializes in providing business valuations for a variety of purposes, including: estate and gift, buy/sell agreements, Employee Stock Ownership Plans, ownership transitions, and general corporate planning purposes.  She is a frequent writer on topics related to business appraisals and has won local and national industry recognition for her work.  Ms. Flaskey takes part in many industry organizations, including the American Institute of CPAs and the Minnesota Society of CPAs, where she serves on the Business Valuation Conference Task Force.

Adam B. Freedenberg, CPA, CFE, CVA, is a manager at Santos, Postal & Company, P.C., a leading full-service certified public accounting and business consulting firm located in Rockville, Maryland.  His ten years of experience in public accounting has been concentrated in business valuation services, sophisticated tax planning and preparation, and assurance and attestation engagements.  He leads the firm’s business valuation practice.

Upon joining Santos, Postal in 2014, Mr. Freedenberg has specialized in providing high level business valuations for attorneys, financial advisors, estate representatives, and business owners for the purposes of contemplated liquidity events, estate and gift tax filings, and succession and exit strategies.  During his tenure at the firm, his efforts have grown the firm’s business valuation niche from its infancy to a thriving practice.  He is a Certified Public Accountant, Certified Valuation Analyst, and Certified Fraud Examiner. 

Mr. Freedenberg has been a keynote speaker for business owners/operators on aspects of obtaining well written and supported business valuation reports.  He also enjoys blogging for Santos, Postal about various business valuation and succession planning topics.

Mr. Freedenberg graduated from the University of Delaware with a BS in accounting.  He played on the Men’s Division I Varsity tennis team and continues to enjoy tennis as well as golf and running half marathons in his spare time.  He resides in Gaithersburg, Maryland with his wife, Kate, and their dog, Rosie.

Melissa Kasarjian, CPA, ABV, CFF, CVA, is the principal of Kasarjian & Company CPAs, Inc. and began her career in public accounting in 2004.  Ms. Kasarjian, with her husband, Mike, have two children, Parker and Emily.  Ms. Kasarjian attended California State University, Chico graduating in 2003 with a degree in agriculture business with an option in marketing and management and a minor in economics.  She currently holds four professional licenses.  Ms. Kasarjian is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) licensed by the state of California.  She holds two credentials: Accredited in Business Valuation and Certified in Financial Forensics issued by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.  Additionally, she is a Certified Valuation Analyst by the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts.

She started her professional accounting career at Radakovich, Shaw & Blythe, LLP acting as a tax manager and valuation analyst.  Her excellence in the field of valuation led to her testifying as an expert witness in 2009.  Ms. Kasarjian has become a leading professional in her field acting as one of the only forensic experts in San Luis Obispo County.  In November 2011, Ms. Kasarjian formed Kasarjian and Company CPAs which has expanded to two offices in San Luis Obispo and Templeton, CA.  Ms. Kasarjian has focused her career on business valuation, litigation support services, and income tax preparation.  She offers expert witness testimony for family law purposes related to business valuation, cash flow analysis, and separate property tracing.  She is a member of the California Society of Certified Public Accountants Family Law and Business Valuation Section, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants Forensic and Valuation Services Section, and the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts.

In addition to her excellence in her professional career, she is actively involved in her community.  She has coached her children’s soccer teams and serves on two non-profit boards of directors.  She currently serves as the Templeton Education Foundation Treasurer and the Templeton Chamber of Commerce Treasurer.  In January 2016, she was honored as one of San Luis Obispo’s top 20 under 40 which recognizes the accomplishments and achievements of the honorees who have demonstrated excellence in their professions and commitment to community service.

Chad Kellar is a partner in Crowe’s Advisory Services business unit focusing primarily on transaction advisory, valuation, and model validation services in the financial services industry.  In addition to his experience with advisory services, Mr. Kellar has extensive experience leading financial statement audits for public and private financial institutions.  Mr. Kellar is the co-head of the firm’s transaction advisory services for financial services companies. In that role, he is a subject matter expert on the valuation and accounting for financial instruments, and is in-charge of Crowe’s CECL Implementation Services.  

Robert (Rob) D. King, Jr., CPA, ABV, CFF, CVA, received a bachelor of accountancy degree from the University of Mississippi in 2008.  He is a shareholder in The Koerber Company, P.A., where he is responsible for valuation and litigation support services for clients.  The valuation services are primarily for estate and gift tax purposes, purchases and sales of businesses, and equitable distributions related to divorces.  The litigation support services consist of estimating damages in personal injury and wrongful death actions.  Mr. King has assisted in preparing expert reports as they relate to economic damage calculations for personal injury and wrongful death. 

Mr. King is licensed as a Certified Public Accountant in Mississippi and Louisiana.  Additionally, he became a Certified Valuation Analyst through the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts, and completed the requirements to be classified as Accredited in Business Valuation and Certified in Financial Forensics by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.  He is a member of the Mississippi Society of Certified Public Accountants (including member of the Business Valuation and Litigation Services Committee; Millennial Chair), Society of Louisiana Certified Public Accountants (including member of the Business Valuation and Litigation Services Committee), American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (including the Forensic and Valuation Services Section), and National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts (including current president of the Mississippi Chapter).  In November 2015, Mr. King was named by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants as one of the “Top Young CPAs in Forensic and Valuation”.

Justin Kuczmarski, MBA, CPA, CVA, CIRA, ABV, CFF, is the president of NAV Valuation & Advisory, LLC (NAV).  Prior to founding NAV, Mr. Kuczmarski served as a NYC practice leader in Financial Advisory Services for a top 10 accounting and advisory firm.  He also has senior M&A investment banking experience as a valuation practice leader for a leading M&A boutique bank. 

Mr. Kuczmarski possesses a unique background combining senior practice leadership experience in both M&A investment banking and financial advisory services.  He brings a strong, real-world M&A experience to his delivery of valuation services, financial advisory, forensic support, and corporate finance.  He has participated in over 150 transactions during a 17-year career from a M&A investment banking or financial advisory standpoint. 

In 2011, he was a finalist for “Crain’s New York Top 40 under 40”.  He is frequently approached to serve as a litigation expert consultant or litigation expert witness, and he has been retained in several billion dollar commercial cases throughout his career. 

Mr. Kuczmarski is the sole author of the 300-page guidebook entitled, The Executive’s Guide to Business Valuation: Essentials for Advisors and Business Owners.  Downloaded annually by thousands, the guidebook is one of the leading e-books for attorneys and business owners.

Mr. Kuczmarski received a BA in politics from Princeton University.  He also received an MBA from Fordham University in both finance and professional accountancy, where he attended on full academic fellowship.  He holds five professional certifications across accounting, bankruptcy, corporate finance, and valuation. 

Yaw Appiah Lartey is an associate director in the Corporate Finance practice of PwC Ghana.  He has over eight years’ experience in providing transaction advisory services on business valuations, forensic investigations, mergers and acquisitions, financial modelling, and business analysis to both private and public sector clients.

His experience spans across various sectors including financial services, energy, telecommunications, manufacturing, and infrastructure in Sub-Saharan African countries.

Mr. Lartey is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, UK and a member of the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analyst, USA.  He also holds a master degree from University of Cambridge, UK.  

Tara A. Marino, ASA, is a senior manager in CohnReznick Advisory Group’s Valuation Advisory Services practice based in the Bethesda office.  With more than 15 years of experience, she provides valuations of entire businesses, business interests, equity securities, and intangible assets for financial reporting, tax, and advisory purposes, including: purchase price allocations (ASC 805, Business Combinations), goodwill and other indefinite-lived asset impairment (ASC 350, Intangibles—Goodwill and Other), common stock valuations (ASC 718, Compensation—Stock Compensation and IRC 409A), estate and gift tax, and strategic planning.  

Ms. Marino has experience providing business valuation services to clients across multiple industries, including but not limited to: technology and life sciences, government contracting, media and entertainment, retail, and manufacturing and distribution.  Prior to joining CohnReznick, she worked for a Big 4 accounting firm as a senior consultant within its Valuation and Financial Advisory Services practice. 

Ms. Marino has earned the professional designation of Accredited Senior Appraiser from the American Society of Appraisers.  

Education
•    University of Maryland, College Park: bachelor of science, finance
•    Accredited Senior Appraiser, Business Valuation (American Society of Appraisers), 2013

Professional Affiliations
•    American Society of Appraisers
•    Northern Virginia Technology Council (NVTC)
•    Mid-Atlantic Venture Association (MAVA)

Professional Experience
•    CohnReznick, LLP; Bethesda, MD
Senior manager, Valuation Advisory Services, July 2011–Present
Manager, Valuation Advisory Services, June 2006–July 2011
Senior associate, Valuation Advisory Services, May 2004–June 2006

•    Deloitte & Touche, LLP; Washington, D.C.
Senior consultant, Financial Advisory Services, September 2003–May 2004
Consultant, Financial Advisory Services, June 2002–August 2003

•    Arthur Andersen, LLP; Vienna, VA
Associate, Financial Advisory Solutions, January 2001–May 2002
Intern, Financial Advisory Solutions, May 2000–December 2001

CohnReznick—Firm Involvement
•    CohnReznick Technology & Life Sciences Industry Practice
•    CohnReznick WomenCAN: The Collaborative Advocacy Network for Women
•    CohnReznick Executive Women’s Forum
•    CohnReznick Advisory—Learning & Development Task Force
•    Internal presentations: “Technology & Life Sciences Clients—Valuation Advisory Services Capabilities” and “Auditing Fair Value Measurements” 

Cory Martin, managing director with SHG since 2009, began his professional career in the late 1990’s at Ayco, a business unit of Goldman Sachs & Co.  As a senior financial analyst/advisor, Mr. Martin advises high net worth clients on all aspects of their personal and professional financial and life planning.  

In 2005, Mr. Martin started The Kalos Group, an independent business advisory company to broker deals between entrepreneurs and venture capital investors, angel investors, and merchant banks.  In addition, he provided advanced financial analysis and business valuations to privately held companies to assist in mergers and acquisitions; estate and gift tax planning; and other complex financial, marketing, and business planning.  Other positions held have included commercial credit analysis for a community bank and a sales director role for a media barter business unit of a large multi-billion dollar advertising agency in New York City.  

Mr. Martin holds an MBA in finance from Sage Graduate School and a BS in finance from Siena College.  He is a member of the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts and is CVA certified.

John O’Grady is a manager in the Forensic, Litigation, and Valuation Services Group in EisnerAmper LLP’s New Jersey office.  He specialized in fraud and forensic accounting, business valuations, commercial damages assessments, and family and civil court matters.  Mr. O’Grady earned his bachelor degree in accounting from The College of New Jersey and his master degree in accounting from St. Peter’s University.  He is an associate member of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners; a member of the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts where he previously served as treasurer of the New Jersey chapter; and an associate member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.  In addition, he is a member of the Ridgefield Park Volunteer Fire Department and the Freehold Volunteer Fire Department, where he serves as treasurer.

Nicole Podendorf is a senior manager in the Forensic, Litigation, and Valuation Services practice of EisnerAmper LLP.  Ms. Podendorf has over 15 years of experience specializing in business valuation, complex commercial litigation, and forensic investigations. 

Ms. Podendorf has extensive experience consulting on specific valuation issues and preparing valuation reports for transaction advisory, domestic and international tax, financial reporting, and litigation purposes.  Ms. Podendorf has led complex commercial litigation matters involving claims for lost profits and post-closing purchase price adjustments.  She has also performed in-depth forensic investigations of occupational and financial statement fraud.  Over the course of her career she has worked with clients in a broad range of industries, including: consumer and industrial products, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, energy, publishing, financial services, real estate, and technology.  

Prior to joining EisnerAmper, Ms. Podendorf held positions in the valuation and transaction advisory departments of several major public accounting firms, including Ernst & Young and KPMG.  Ms. Podendorf was also a credit analyst at Moody’s Investors Service covering issuers in the food and agricultural cooperative industries. 

Ms. Podendorf received her BS in finance from The College of New Jersey and an MS in global affairs with a concentration in international finance and economics from New York University. 

Matt Rampe, ASA, is a senior manager in the Forensic, Valuation, and Litigation Services division at Beene Garter, LLP, a regional accounting firm.  Mr. Rampe has valued hundreds of companies for a variety of purposes, including: shareholder buyouts, litigation support, stock option pricing, purchase price allocation, impairment testing, and gift and estate purposes.

Mr. Rampe co-founded the Fair Value Exchange (FVE) in 2012.  The FVE is a multi-state group of experienced business valuation professionals who meet regularly to discuss and debate best practices in the business valuation profession.  Mr. Rampe served as a FVE board member and has also been a regular presenter to the group.

Mr. Rampe helps elevate the field of business valuation by publishing various valuation articles, and is a regular speaker on valuation topics to accounting conferences, business groups, and law firms.  He has presented to students interested in business valuation at colleges including Santa Clara University, San Jose State University, and Grand Valley State University.

In addition to his professional activities, Mr. Rampe is a mentor through the Cook Leadership Academy program at Grand Valley State University.  Formerly, he was the treasurer of the San Francisco Parents of Multiples non-profit. 

Mitch Rencher, JD, MBA, CVA, MAFF, has spent his entire professional career performing business valuations, quantifying damages, and assessing litigation risk.  Mr. Rencher has supervised and performed hundreds of business valuation engagements for some of the world’s largest law firms, companies, regulators, and alternative investment funds. 

Mr. Rencher is an expert in corporate finance matters, specializing in shareholder disputes, appraisal rights, business divorces, solvency analyses, preference and fraudulent conveyance actions, breach of contract, merger and acquisition disputes, patent copyright and trademark disputes, and other commercial and economic damages analyses. 

Mr. Rencher has been involved in hundreds of business valuation matters and has advised clients on a wide variety of topics, including: business valuation, solvency, financial analysis, investment analysis, fairness and solvency opinions, and complex financial structures analysis. 

Prior to joining Scalar, Mr. Rencher was a Vice President in Duff & Phelps’ Litigation Consulting Group where he provided financial litigation consulting services to some of the world’s largest law firms, regulatory agencies, alternative asset funds, and corporations. 

Mr. Rencher previously performed business valuations and legal risk assessments for a large buy-out fund, a venture capital fund, and a blue-chip technology company.  Prior to completing his post-graduate education, Mr. Rencher worked for a division of Credit Suisse where he provided litigation risk management analysis. 

Education: 
•    JD from the J. Reuben Clark Law School (Brigham Young University) 
•    MBA from the Marriott School of Management (Brigham Young University) 
•    BA in history from Brigham Young University 

Awards and Accreditations: 
•    NACVA’s 40 Under Forty for Litigation Consulting 
•    Certified Valuation Analyst (CVA) 
•    Master Analyst in Financial Forensics (MAFF) 
•    Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) 
•    Member of the Illinois Bar

Meghan Ryan, CVA, is a senior analyst with Carnahan Group.  She is responsible for financial, regulatory, and strategic consulting projects related to physician acquisition and hospital expansion planning, including fair market valuations of physician compensation plans, physician practices, hospitals, and other healthcare entities.  In addition, she plays an instrumental role in developing and launching new product lines, including Carnahan Group’s new Fair Market Valuation Tool, an online compensation compliance tool.  She has strong quantitative analytical skills and has a vast understanding of how to construct and analyze financial models.  Ms. Ryan is highly knowledgeable in national physician compensation surveys and healthcare specific valuation techniques. 

Prior to joining Carnahan Group, Ms. Ryan worked in the commercial banking industry.  Ms. Ryan holds a BA in finance from the University of South Florida.  She is a Certified Valuation Analyst and a member of the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts. 

Aaron Saito leads the M&A Accounting group at Intel Corporation which provides business and asset valuation services, financial due diligence, purchase price accounting, manages the $30B intangible/asset impairment process, Sarbanes-Oxley compliance, and finance and accounting integration process.  Since joining Intel in 2012, Mr. Saito has partaken in 75+ transactions on the buy and sell side for public/private companies in the U.S., Europe, and Asia.  Prior to joining Intel, Mr. Saito was the controller at TransBay Cable, and was a senior manager at PwC. 

Mr. Saito is affiliated with NACVA, AICPA, and Oregon Society of CPAs (OSCPA).  He is currently serving on the AICPA Business Executive and Industry Committee, chair of the OSCPA Accounting and Auditing Committee, treasurer for the University of Michigan Portland Alumni Club, and holds a bachelor of arts in economics and a master in accounting degree from the University of Michigan.  

Additionally, Mr. Saito participates in numerous speaking engagements inside and outside Intel to promote the valuation profession.

Megan Sartor is a manager at SaxBST where she specializes in the areas of business valuation, forensic accounting, and litigation support.  She is accredited in Business Valuations and certified in Financial Forensics through the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

Ms. Sartor serves on the AICPA Women’s Initiatives Executive Committee Champions Task Force and is leader of the NJCPA’s Business Valuation, Forensics and Litigation Support Interest Group.  She has received “Women of Note” recognition from the NJCPA and is president of the SaxBST P.O.W.E.R. women’s initiative group.

Megan holds BS and MS degrees in accounting from Fairleigh Dickinson University.

Ryan Scott leads the strategy, design, and development of the Behavioral Intelligence Platform, which provides people insights for investors, advisors, and enterprises in 123 countries and 11 languages.  In 2015, Mr. Scott designed Market Mood, the world’s first big data application in behavioral finance, which predicts client’s reaction to the market movements in real-time.

Vikas Sekhri is a partner with RSM US LLP's M&A Tax practice and focuses on advising corporate and private equity investors with respect to tax implications of mergers, acquisitions, and restructuring transactions in the middle market.  Mr. Sekhri has advised on more than 350 transactions with transaction sizes ranging from $10 million to $600 million.

Mr. Sekhri is a past chairman of the M&A Committee of New York State Society of CPAs, speaks regularly on M&A tax issues at various public forums and has authored many articles for professional journals.

Mr. Sekhri also has significant experience with cross border transactions, especially in the U.S.–India corridor.  

Mr. Sekhri earned an MS degree in taxation from Pace University in New York and a bachelor in commerce degree with honors from the University of Delhi, India.  He is a Chartered Accountant and a Cost Accountant from India, and a CPA in New York and Colorado. 

Apart from being a 2016 NACVA/CTI “40 Under Forty” honoree, Mr. Sekhri is also a recipient of the 2016 “Emerging Leaders” awards from M&A Advisor.

Kateryna Shpir has extensive experience collaborating with experts from insurance, legal, and medical fields to determine cost-effective, fair valuations of damages in civil litigation and tort cases.  She obtained a master of arts in economics with a focus on labor and welfare economics.  Integrating professional experience from different fields of business development, art and human resources, and combining theoretical knowledge through research in game theory, labor economics, and public policy, Ms. Shpir finds the most effective economic models and their implementations.

Ms. Shpir is a member of the National Association of Forensic Economists.  In addition, she belongs to the Toronto Association for Business and Economic, Canadian Association of Business Economists, and a recipient of the Wolodymyr Klish Memorial Scholarship for Economics. 

Michael Size is the president and founder of Portside Advisors, a national valuation and financial consulting firm.  Mr. Size has more than 17 years of experience analyzing financial value for very diverse companies, and has completed more than 2,000 business valuations for a variety of purposes, in a variety of industries. 

Before becoming an appraiser, Mr. Size worked for GE Capital and Wells Fargo Bank.  At GE, he sourced corporate, asset-based loans for multi-million dollar companies on the West Coast.  As a banker for Wells Fargo, he worked with smaller business owners, sourcing, underwriting, and closing conventional and SBA loans. 

Mr. Size is a Certified Valuation Analyst by the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts and an Accredited Senior Appraiser by the American Society of Appraisers.  He is a graduate of the State University of New York at Buffalo, where he rowed on the portside.  

Schaeffer Smith, MPH, CPA, CVA, is a manager in the healthcare practice group of HORNE, LLP.  His primary focus since joining HORNE in 2007 has been consulting for the valuation and implementation of hospital/physician arrangements.  Mr. Smith specializes in the valuation of physician compensation under employment agreements and professional services agreements for clinical services, call coverage, medical directorships, clinical co-management, and other physician services provided for various healthcare entities. 

Mr. Smith is a graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi with a bachelor of science in business administration and a master of public health with an emphasis in health policy and administration.  Mr. Smith is a licensed Certified Public Accountant in the state of Mississippi, as well as a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts, and the Healthcare Financial Management Association.

Kimberly Tavares, CVA, founded PacWest Accounting in 2008.  With more than 15 years of accounting and business valuation experience, Ms. Tavares is a trusted advisor to entrepreneurs and established businesses in the health and nutrition, construction, automotive, law, and medical industries.  She works side-by-side with her clients to strengthen their financial position by reducing costs and better managing their working capital.  She leads a team that executes finance function operations, including outsourced CFO and advisory services.
 
As a Certified Valuation Analyst, she specializes in business valuations for buy-sell agreements and consulting business owners in partnerships on their exit strategies.  In the area of family law, she provides litigation support and forensic analysis as well as asset tracing, business valuation, controllable cash flow analysis, marital standard of living analysis, and other financial areas of concern in dissolution of marriage.  
 
Ms. Tavares is a 2016 Orange County Business Journal “Women in Business” nominee and serves on the executive board of the Newport Beach Chamber of Commerce.

Kara Tess specializes in providing practice valuation, practice transition, and doctor recruitment services to the dental industry.  She is credited with combining recruitment, valuation, and project management skills to successfully assist clients in reaching their goals.  Ms. Tess cultivates a fresh and personable philosophy in developing and maintaining dental networks throughout the Midwest region.  Her specialties include: practice valuations, mergers and acquisitions, doctor recruitment, contract review and negotiation, and development of HR policies and procedures.  Before her work in the dental sector, she gained experience in the worlds of recruiting and project management with firms in the safety and compliance and engineering fields.  Ms. Tess frequently speaks at, and attends, various industry and dental school events; sharing her passion for helping people accomplish their career goals. 

Ms. Tess earned her degree from Concordia University in Management and Communications.  She resides in Green Bay, Wisconsin with her husband and son. 

Anna Townsend, CPA, ABV, ASA, is a senior manager with the Valuation Services group at Cherry Bekaert and has extensive experience providing business valuation and financial modeling services.

Prior to joining the firm, Ms. Townsend held business valuation and modeling roles with both Big Four and regional accounting firms where she performed financial reporting consulting activities, including: purchase price allocations under ASC 805 and ASC 350 analyses, valuations for tax purposes, including legal entity valuations and non-compete valuations for 280(g), and litigation support consulting services, such as business valuations for divorce, cash flow assessments, and calculation of damages.

Ms. Townsend has served primarily on large financial services clients valuing intangible assets, financial assets, and reporting unit/business enterprises.  She has also worked as a senior analyst in the financial planning and analysis group for a global manufacturing company, where she prepared monthly management reporting, budgets, and forecasts as well as maintaining and managing transaction level data used throughout the organization.

Areas of Expertise
•    Business Valuation for Financial Reporting
•    Business Valuation for Gift and Estate Tax
•    Business Valuation for Litigation
•    Business Valuation for Consulting Purposes

Arik Van Zandt is a managing director with Alvarez & Marsal’s Valuation Services practice in Seattle, Washington.  He specializes in the valuation of closely held businesses operating in a variety of industries for purposes of litigation support, acquisitions, sales, marriage dissolution, buy-sell agreements, incentive stock plans, and estate planning and taxation. 

Mr. Van Zandt also assists clients and counsel by providing expert witness testimony in matters involving complex commercial disputes and allegations of fraud, performs economic analysis for personal injury, wrongful death, and wrongful termination claims.  With a broad base of experience, Mr. Van Zandt’s primary focus is to support clients in business disputes that concern the valuation of a business or economic loss.

Mr. Van Zandt has worked with clients ranging from start-ups to multi-national corporations to distressed entities across a variety of industries, including: manufacturing, software, professional practice, healthcare, construction, distribution, retail, and energy.  

Prior to joining A&M, Mr. Van Zandt spent two separate stints spanning nine years with Grant Thornton where he was most recently a senior manager and practice leader in the Forensic and Valuation Group.  Prior to re-joining Grant Thornton, Mr. Van Zandt was a CFO of a securities broker/dealer whose lines of business included the sales and trading of debt and equity instruments to institutional clients, operations of a money market portal with a leading bank, and the underwriting of agency, municipal, and corporate debt.

Mr. Van Zandt earned a bachelor degree in economics from Stanford University.  Mr. Van Zandt is an Accredited Senior Appraiser under the auspices of the American Society of Appraisers and holds the Certification in Distressed Business Valuation.  He is a member of the American Society of Appraisers, Association of Insolvency & Restructuring Advisors, and is a Financial and Operations Principal (Series 27) FINRA registrant (inactive).

Caridad "Carey" Vasallo is a partner at VMBG Accounting and practice leader for the firm's Consulting Services division.  With almost a decade of experience providing litigation support services, including agreed-upon procedure and consulting services, Ms. Vasallo specializes in assisting high net-worth individuals in marital dispute cases.  She works with clients and their attorneys to provide equitable distribution charts, alimony and child support calculations, business valuations, tracing and identification of concealed assets, and expert testimony in court.  

Additionally, Ms. Vasallo was a recipient of the FICPA's “Top 26 under 36” award, a finalist for the AICPA/FICPA “Women to Watch” award, and NACVA’s “40 Under Forty” award.  Ms. Vasallo also holds a board member position with FIU Accounting Advisory Board, the Women's Fund Young Professional committee, and MMINMP, is a treasurer for the Auto Rental Association of South Florida, former board member for the FICPA Miami-Downtown Chapter, and the Arts & Business Council's initiative with Augusto Soledade Brazzdance.  Additionally, Ms. Vasallo has been featured in various segments of WSVN Channel 7 Dollars & Sense for her expertise in the areas of accounting and community based initiatives.

Ashleigh Wessing, MPA, CPA, CGMA, is a senior manager in the Financial Advisory Services Group at Marks Paneth, LLP.  She provides litigation consulting services in class action securities litigation, as well as cases brought by the SEC, involving financial statement fraud.  She also leads corporate fraud investigations, including: quantifying related damages, consults on internal control systems, and performs acquisition due diligence for private equity firms and corporate clients.

Prior to joining Marks Paneth, Ms. Wessing worked at one of the largest holding companies in the advertising industry.  She also worked for four years in a Big Four accounting firm as an auditor of public and private companies. 

Kyle Wininger, CPA, CICA, CVA, CFE, is vice president of Advisory Services for Harding Shymanski & Company, P.S.C.  As a graduate of the University of Southern Indiana with a bachelor of science degree in accounting, he joined the firm in 2001.

Mr. Wininger has completed business valuations for a wide variety of purposes, including: mergers and acquisitions, estate planning, gift taxes, litigation, and Small Business Administration financing.  He has also served as a reviewer of business valuations performed by other business valuation firms for employee stock ownership plans.  Mr. Wininger is actively involved in the merger and acquisition process, performing such services as analyzing, negotiating, and structuring transactions.  He has earned the designation of Certified Valuation Analyst.

In addition, Mr. Wininger manages the financial institutions team that performs a range of services, including: internal audits and risk assessments, loan reviews, regulatory compliance (including BSA reviews), ACH audits, Sarbanes-Oxley Section 404 documentation and testing, and information technology risk assessment and review.  Mr. Wininger has earned the designations of Certified Internal Controls Auditor and Certified Fraud Examiner.

He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Institute for Internal Controls, the Indiana CPA Society, the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts, and the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.