Staff

Colette Hart is the Senior Director of the Centers for Outreach and Engagement in the Monte Ahuja College of Business at Cleveland State University. In her capacity as Senior Director, she is responsible for designing and developing innovative interdisciplinary programs and outreach initiatives that serve students, faculty, alumni and the Northeast Ohio business community. Colette played a leadership role in establishing the Global Business Center, Sustainable Business Center and the Professional Development Center.

Most recently, Colette has focused on expanding the capacity of the CSU Entrepreneurial Ecosystem by securing funding and establishing the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, the Small Business Development Center (SBDC), the Small Business Development Center Export Assistance Network (EAN), Startup Vikes and the Weston Ideation Lab in the Monte Ahuja College of Business.  

Throughout her tenure she has secured more than six million dollars in funding to support these strategic initiatives. Colette brings a global frame of reference to her work through her extensive experience in economic development, small business development, trade and her work with education initiatives throughout Europe, China and Chile. Colette serves on the U.S. Commercial Service District Export Council (DEC) and the JumpStart Higher Education Collaboration Council (JSHECC).

Colette completed the Lean Launch Pad Educator Program at Stanford University. She earned BA in International Relations and Political Science at the University of Wisconsin and is also a Cleveland State alumna of the Executive MBA program. 

Connect with Colette at c.hart@csuohio.edu.

Meghan is the Assistant Director for the Centers for Outreach & Engagement in the Monte Ahuja College of Business at Cleveland State University.

In her role, she is responsible for providing exceptional operational support to the Centers for Outreach and Engagement, Small Business Development Center, Global Business Center, Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and the Weston Ideation Lab. Meghan manages planning, logistics, finance and communications for many of the Centers for Outreach and Engagement’s gifts and grants, programs, workshops, conferences, special events and day-to-day operations. Meghan is also instrumental in coordinating, planning and providing support for the Centers for Outreach and Engagement larger, university-wide events such as Show Her the Money, Startup Vikes and TEDxClevelandStateUniversity.

Connect with Meghan at m.a.salkin@csuohio.edu. 

Lynn Buchinsky is an entrepreneur, Manager for the Weston Ideation Lab and Business Advisor for the Ohio Small Business Development Center at Cleveland State University.  She created, ran and sold her business Little Racquets and has advised solo-preneurs, start-ups and small businesses. Lynn has successfully grown regional and national brands: Weston Ideation Lab-Cleveland State University, Goldman Sachs 10KSB, LaunchNET-Kent State, Young Launchers, Little Racquets, Sealy, Rubbermaid and Cystic Fibrosis.  She holds an MBA from the Case Western Reserve University Weatherhead School of Management, a master’s degree from the Ohio State University and a bachelor’s degree from Washington University in St. Louis.

Connect with Lynn at L.Buchinsky@csuohio.edu.

Tyler Kohrt is an experienced startup strategy professional who leverages a multifaceted entrepreneurial perspective to cultivate early-stage startups in Northeast Ohio. Through his prior experience across tech startups, venture capital and consulting, Tyler is deeply knowledgeable in health-tech incubation and commercialization, startup ecosystem analysis, business development, primary and secondary research, and founder mentorship.

Tyler founded the Cleveland Young Health-Tech Professionals Meetup and developed Cultiv[AI]te, a Natural Language Processing tool that matches early entrepreneurs to local business development resources. He proudly supports local events such as CLC’s Accelerate, YEI’s Pitch Challenge and EEC’s Tech Side Hustle.

Tyler earned a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and a Masters of Engineering and Management from Case Western Reserve University.

Connect with Tyler at westonilab@csuohio.edu.

Chairman, Weston Inc. 

Anthony Asher began his career working at a title agency while attending law school at Cleveland Marshall School of Law. While still enrolled as a student, he formed Guardian Title and Guaranty Agency with his father. Guardian Title subsequently grew to be one of the largest title agencies in Greater Cleveland. Mr. Asher then formed Weston Inc., an industrial real estate ownership firm, which is the largest owner of industrial property in northeast Ohio. Upon retiring in 2006, Mr. Asher transferred the company to his three sons, Edward, TJ, and James, and two daughters, Michelle and Suzanne. The company thrives under their leadership today, owning properties across the United States. Mr. Asher is also the owner of Graystone Properties, a real estate company headquartered in downtown Cleveland and operated by his daughter Michelle.  

Professor, Levin School of Public Affairs & Education and President Emeritus, Cleveland State University

Dr. Ronald (Ron) Berkman is professor in the Levin School of Urban Affairs and president emeritus of Cleveland State University. He teaches Urban Development and Urban Policy. While president of CSU, Dr. Berkman championed a series of innovative student success initiatives. In recognition of these efforts, CSU won the Excellence and Innovation Award from the American Association of State Colleges and Universities. Among the other hallmarks during Dr. Berkman’s presidency were being identified in the top tier of the Brookings Institution, a $500 million campus makeover, expansion of cutting-edge research, increased philanthropic support, including doubling of the university endowment and the successful completion of a $114 million fundraising campaign.

Dealmaker, Weston Inc. 

Suzanne is responsible for both the national leasing and marketing of Weston’s portfolio. She manages leasing department personnel, handles new lease negotiations and renewals, markets properties, increases revenues and coordinates activities with brokers while developing relationships with customers, brokers, tenants, vendors and others. 

A graduate of Ursuline College, Suzanne is a Cleveland native. She and her husband, Dan, have three children and live in Bainbridge, Ohio. 

CEO and Founder, CLE Urban Winery

Destiny Burns is a native Clevelander. Born and raised in Euclid, she recently moved back home after more than 30 years to be near family and to live her dream of opening an urban winery in her hometown. She is a retired U.S. Navy officer who served for 20 years on active duty. Destiny then spent more than 13 years as a business development executive in the defense industry. She is a former volunteer firefighter/EMT and has great love and respect for first responders and for all those who serve our country and communities in uniform. 

Destiny is the founder of CLE Urban Winery, a fun, inviting, upscale boutique winery experience in the historic, urban setting of Cleveland Heights, Ohio. The CLE Urban Winery produces, serves and sells a wide variety of wine, all branded to honor and celebrate the city of Cleveland. CLE Urban Winery is a Federally Bonded Winery and sells their own hand-crafted wine exclusively. The company's wine production facility, a signature Tasting Bar and primary retail outlet are located in the Cedar-Lee District in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. 

Retired Partner, Ernst & Young

James Deiotte, CPA, CMA, JD and MBA, two-time Cleveland State University College of Business alumnus (BBS Accounting in 1980 and MBA in 1984) and recently retired partner of EY. Jim has been an ambassador for EY throughout his career working closely with many of the largest companies in the world, a variety of U.S. governmental agencies and EY colleagues in over 50 countries. Jim most recently served as EY's Regional Tax Leader of Africa and was on EY's EMEIA and Global Tax Leadership teams. Jim was responsible for driving the localization of capabilities and independence of EY tax operations in Sub-Saharan Africa, spanning more than 30 countries. 

Principal, A Doshi LLC

A licensed CPA and a Chartered Accountant from India with global business experience including 10+ years each based in Asia-Pacific (India and China) and the United States. Big-4 public accounting and industry experience at Fortune 125 global manufacturer and with multiple small and medium-sized companies. 
 
Business partner that balances practical finance-based solutions with stringent compliance obligations. Expertise across the range of finance functions with emphasis on US GAAP, SEC and SOX compliance, FP&A, budgetary compliance and FX risk management.  
 
Multi-lingual with significant experience on projects related to capex investments and divestitures, transfer pricing, cross-border tax planning, capital market transactions, treasury operations, investor relations and external stakeholder reporting. In-depth experience supervising managers, facilitating succession planning as well as developing and conducting formal training sessions. 

Retired Partner, Deloitte
Chair, Weston Ideation Lab Advisory Board
Previous Chair, Monte Ahuja College of Business Visiting Committee

Dave Fornari is an executive with over 35 years of business experience in management consulting and hands-on corporate management. He has successfully led and grew profitable businesses and consulting practices providing high quality and innovative services to strategic clients. Dave retired from Deloitte after 31 years, 22 years as an Energy Consulting partner with 10 years as the Global or US Energy & Resources Consulting Leader. As a Deloitte Eminence Fellow, Dave was a frequent speaker and author on energy and resources strategy and management. 

An alumnus twice over, Dave earned his Bachelor of Business Administration in 1976 and his Master of Business Administration in 1980 from Cleveland State University. He serves not only as Executive in Residence at the Monte Ahuja College of Business, but also on the College's Visiting Committee. In Fall of 2016, Dave earned the Distinguished Alumni Award for the College of Business. View his video from the event discussing his relationship with Cleveland State University. 

Communications Consultant, Hayes Group Communications

Eleanor Hayes is a journalist and entrepreneur. She is a multi-Emmy Award-winning investigative reporter. Eleanor anchored television news for stations in Nashville, Milwaukee, Columbus, and her hometown of Cleveland, Ohio. She has reported on major news events throughout the United States, Europe, and Cuba. Among her national honors, she received the Death Penalty Information Center’s Thurgood Marshall Journalism Award for enterprise reporting on the imprisonment of an Ohio man whose conviction was described as one of America’s most egregious cases of wrongful conviction. She was awarded Journalist of the Year by the National Association of Black Journalists and inducted into the Ohio Broadcasters Hall of Fame. During nearly fourteen years at Cleveland Clinic, Eleanor served as a director of communications after holding the position of director in the Office of Diversity and Inclusion. Eleanor holds a Bachelor of Science with a double major in government and communications from Oberlin College. Her Master of Business Administration is from Cleveland State University’s Monte Ahuja College of Business, where she participated in the Executive MBA program. While at Cleveland State, she served and later chaired the Diversity Outreach Council by appointment of the dean. In 2024, Eleanor was inducted into the Monte Ahuja College of Business Hall of Fame. She has studied Spanish language and culture at Tecnológico de Monterrey in Mexico and contemporary Arab American relations at The Ohio State University. A freelance writer and voice-over actor, her firm, Hayes Group Communications, provides communications and change management services. She is the associate director/producer of the documentary Trust in Black and White, an examination of the pursuit of social justice through the experiences of friendships between Black and White women. The film screened in Boston and Cleveland in the fall of 2023. As an entrepreneur, she also owned and operated several McDonald’s franchises. Eleanor is a graduate of Leadership Cleveland and a member of The Links, Incorporated. 

CEO, Contract Guardian

Jim leads a SaaS-based hospital contract management solution that saves clients time and money. He has successfully grown the company’s customer base, revenue, and reputation in the healthcare industry. Jim has served as a Foundation Board Member at Cleveland State University since 2018, where he supports the university’s mission and vision through strategic planning, fundraising, and advocacy. He is passionate about giving back to his alma mater, where he earned my BBA in Marketing in 1983. Before joining Contract Guardian, Jim was the President and Founder of UCG Technologies, a cloud backup and disaster recovery provider for IBM i systems. For over 34 years, he built and managed a profitable and innovative business that served hundreds of clients across various sectors. Jim sold UCG Technologies to Focal Point Solutions Group in January 2022, after creating a strong legacy and a loyal customer base. Jim is an entrepreneur, strategic thinker, and problem solver, with skills in customer relationship management, cloud applications, and consulting. He has published articles on cloud backup and disaster recovery, and have a resource library on my website. He has expertise in healthcare contract management and IBM i systems, and is always looking for new opportunities and challenges to leverage my knowledge and experience.

Excecutive Director, Beth E. Mooney Center for Transformative Leadership

Director, Cleveland State University, Tech Transfer

Experienced Director Technology Transfer with a demonstrated history of working in the higher education industry. Skilled in Negotiation, Venture Capital, Legal Writing, Patent Law, and Intellectual Property. Strong research professional graduated from University of Dayton School of Law. 

CFO and CCO, Cyprium Investment Partners

Ted Laufik is the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Compliance Officer with Cyprium Investment Partners, a private equity firm investing in profitable middle market companies. 

Ted began his career in public accounting with Touche Ross and Company (now Deloitte LLP). He has more than 30 years’ experience in the Private Equity and Venture Capital industries including more than 25 years as the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Administrative Partner for Morgenthaler, a national private equity and venture capital firm. Ted helped raise more than $3.0 billion of investment capital that has provided financing to more than 350 companies. He also consulted with several early stage and middle market companies providing financial and strategic support. Ted is a Certified Public Accountant (Active) and a member of the Ohio Society of CPAs. 

He earned both a Bachelor of Business Administration degree and MBA degree from Cleveland State University. Ted serves on the Finance and Audit Committee of JumpStart Inc. – a nationally recognized economic development organization. 

President and CEO, Channel Products

Teresa is the CEO of Channel Products, a privately held, global manufacturer of gas and electronic systems and technologies. Under her decade of leadership, the Company has experienced global expansion and several years of record-breaking revenue and profit. She lives by the mantra of leading people while managing process. True to her passion for seeing women develop and thrive, Teresa recently launched, Everyboob™, a curated, membership-based business that offers monthly product, education, and inspiration for women in all walks of life.  An accomplished business executive, she serves on the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Board, the Visiting Committee of Cleveland State University's Monte Ahuja College of Business and the Advisory Board for the Weston Ideation Lab. She holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree and a Master of Organizational Leadership degree.  In addition to her career, Mrs. Lindsey has earned a following as a keynote and panel speaker on issues of leadership, personal development, and business culture.  She resides in Cleveland, OH with her husband, with whom she shares a family of five children and three grandchildren. 

CEO and Founder, SmartShape Design

Mike Maczuzak has been helping clients shape the future with new product innovation through impactful design and development for more than 30 years. He is passionate about helping clients create competitive advantage and grow businesses with strategy and winning brand experiences. 

With broad and deep experience and perspective, Mike enjoys working at the forefront of emerging technology and anticipating trends. He is most passionate about creating meaningful innovation that improves lives, such as innovation in healthcare systems and delivery and innovation that promotes sustainability, like electric vehicle technologies. 

Mike has a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Design and a Master’s in Business Administration with emphasis in international business. With a global perspective, he learned to speak Mandarin Chinese in the early 1980’s and helps US-based clients develop strategies for success in the Chinese market. He is invited to speak internationally on innovation and design and recently spoke on design for human variability at the International Meeting of Human Factors and Ergonomic Society.  

Jeff Pecon earned his Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering in 1977 and his Master of Science in Industrial Engineering in 1982 from Cleveland State University. He began his career at Reliance Electric and served as a Plant Manager. From there, he went on to Cleveland Motion Controls as Senior Vice President of Operations and then to PeopleSoft. Today, Jeff is a retired sales and marketing executive at Oracle and serves on the Monte Ahuja College of Business Visiting Committee as well as mentors business students at Cleveland State.

Jeff and his wife, Anne Marie, generously pledged $30,000 to create an endowed scholarship designed to support College of Business students. The fund will provide one scholarship per year to any qualifying student of any major within the Monte Ahuja College of Business. Jeff and Anne Marie regularly attend major events at Cleveland State and have been proudly recognized on the Donor Wall of Recognition within the Student Center. In addition to his philanthropic activities, Jeff is an accomplished musician and has a polka band that plays regularly at social events in Cleveland.

President, Seasoned Brands

Claude Zoghzoghi currently serves as President for Seasoned Brands, a management company for a regional restaurant group (Aladdin's and others) and food manufacturing/distribution in the Cleveland area. Claude interned in Manhattan in 2016 at Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation's Investment Banking - Leveraged Finance division prior to graduating from Cleveland State's school of business in 2017. Shortly after, he joined Seasoned Brands as an FP&A Analyst later to become President. Claude has been focusing on building a corporate structure as well as enhancing the technology infrastructure to better position Seasoned brands and its subsidiaries to grow and expand their regional presence.