A serial entrepreneur, Dave Galbenski founded Lumen Legal in 1992. Together with his wife, Lynn, Dave scaled the Michigan-based legal staffing firm to a national presence before successfully selling it in 2020. He then went on to launch two other enterprises: the Global School of Entrepreneurship and the Living Liver Foundation. He is also a co-founder of Big Rock Leaders. A longtime friend…
Cherie Hebert is a seasoned marketing strategist and founder of BBR Creative, a women-owned, WBENC-certified advertising, design and marketing firm based in Lafayette, Louisiana. Established in 1997, BBR specializes in branding, integrated marketing campaigns and digital marketing for B2C brands, with a focus on healthcare, home and lifestyle, food and beverage and financial services. Cherie’s leadership has helped BBR win…
Dan Ducoté has built a career in the industrial market, specializing in product and technology sales. He also has expertise in team building, corporate culture, operating systems, problem solving and providing innovative solutions to clients. Dan launched his first entrepreneurial venture, Enginuity Global LLC, in 2018. Based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Enginuity Global provides automation and controls, electrical engineering and…
After his wife’s grandmother was ripped off by a remodeling contractor for $2,000, Keith A. Paul launched HandyPro Handyman Services in 1996. Based in Farmington, Michigan, the company provides professional handyman services to residential and commercial clients, protecting them from dishonest contractors. In 2000 the company established HandyPro International to expand through corporate and franchise locations, and today it has…
Cynthia Kay is the founder of Cynthia Kay and Co. in Grand Rapids, Michigan, which produces high-quality communications for organizations from the Fortune Global 100 to small business. A graduate of Michigan State University, Cynthia holds a master’s degree in communications from Western Michigan University. Cynthia is a passionate spokesperson for small business. For more than 35 years, she has…
Tom Martin is co-founder of Pod Pack International LLC, which specializes in manufacturing single serve coffee and tea products for most of the coffee and tea brands in North America. In February 2021, Tom retired from Pod Pack as its president and CEO. Launched in 1996, Pod Pack partnered with LongueVue Capital, a New Orleans private equity firm, in 2018…
Erick Stewart is co-founder of Stewart Industries, a Battle Creek, Michigan-based provider of assembly manufacturing, inspection and foreign trade zone (FTZ) services to automotive, aerospace, medical device and defense industries. Erick launched the company in 2000 with his father and led it for more than two decades, with sales growth of more than $40 million. A skilled culture creator, he…
Barbara Stankowski is a retired naval officer and an experienced serial entrepreneur. Her 28 years in the U.S. Navy included more than seven years in command of large, diverse, geographically distributed shore-based commands. She is the recipient of numerous awards for leadership, corporate growth and business success. Her company, AMTIS Inc., was named to the Inc. 5000 for six consecutive…