STUDENT REGISTRATION
BUSINESS SPECIALISTS
Talley Flora
CEO, Red Seat, HR Specialist
Talley has two decades of experience helping businesses improve the way they hire. A graduate of Iowa State University, she started Red Seat in 1999 after she hit on the idea while working at a small human resources firm—hiring assistance was something her clients asked for again and again.
Mark Hegstrom
Marketing & Sales Specialist
Mark has a passion for retirement income planning. He works with several companies to put in place a retirement plan. He meets with every employee, every year, as he feels it is his responsibility to help people saving in a company retirement plan to maximize the benefit and to work toward their retirement goals.
Mamie Segall
Legal Specialist
Mamie is an attorney and has over 30 years of experience in health care and pharmacy benefit management executive leadership positions including public policy, legal, compliance and strategy roles. She moved to Minnesota to begin her legal practice by serving over 10 years as an Assistant Attorney General in the Office of the Minnesota Attorney General prosecuting health care fraud and vulnerable adult abuse and neglect and leading health law legislative policy efforts.
Joe Traxler
Operations Specialist
His industry experience has given him the opportunity to perform buy and sell-side financials and complete due diligence work to provide insight and meaningful analysis for clients. He has supervised and performed assurance engagements, assisted with the development and implementation of proper internal control procedures. He enjoys providing due diligence services for clients on businesses in several industries, including: manufacturing and distribution, technology and retail services.
Sam Thompson
Marketing & Sales Specialist
Sam Thompson is president and owner of Transitions In Business, an Edina, MN based business intermediary firm. Sam’s firm works with business owners to help them sell or merge their businesses.
Sam has been in the business intermediary industry for 5 years. Prior to that he was founder and owner of metroConnections, a Minneapolis based conference and event company.
Jean Morrison
HR Specialist
Jean Morrison is President of Morrison & Associates, Inc. a human resource
management consulting firm serving the human resource management needs of businesses and organizations for twenty-five years. Jean specializes in conflict resolution, executive/individual coaching, leadership development, team building, employer/employee relations, performance and people management and organizational change.
Randy Sparling
Financial Specialist
Randy Sparling practices commercial law and estate planning. He has substantial experience in representing clients engaged in business acquisitions and dispositions. Randy also has assisted clients in debt and equity financing transactions and advised businesses with respect to compliance with franchise and distribution regulations. Prior to entering private practice, he served as Compliance Officer for the First National Bank of St. Paul.
Deidre Kvale
Legal Specialist
Deirdre Kvale is an intellectual property attorney with several decades of experience. She has worked for several local law firms and recently opened her own firm to provide legal advice and assistance to clients with respect to intellectual property matters. Deirdre counsels clients regarding strategies to protect their intellectual property. Her practice focuses on representing clients before the Patent and Trademark Office and obtaining patent and trademark protection.
Patrick Joyce, CIO
Information Technology
Patrick Joyce is Vice President of Information Technology and Chief Information Security Officer at Medtronic. In this role, he is responsible for the company’s global strategies, operations and initiatives related to security and privacy functions and services, including IT/cybersecurity, physical/facility and travel security, identity and access management (AM), product/device security programs and data privacy.
Kate Smith
Marketing & Sales Specialist
Kate Smith is the Vice President of Ascendancy Research, a top-rated national marketing consumer insights and research firm. Over the past 5 years with Ascendancy, Kate has facilitated connecting consumers opinions with worldwide brands such as Amazon, Netflix, MAC Cosmetics, Apple, Microsoft, and Hilton Hotels. Kate operates in the conviction that companies are only as strong as their connection with their consumers, and the most successful brands continue to invest in the competitive advantage of consumer insights and research studies. Kate gives her clients the ability to market and sell a purpose rather than a product.