A veteran with over 20 years working as an IT Solution Provider, Joe Ussia has built his reputation as a leader in the industry.  Ussia has served on several industry advisory panels such as the Cisco T2 Channel Advisory Board, Cisco Global Marketing Advisory Panel and Associate Director for WAS.  Joe is passionate about technology and how organizations leverage it to increase efficiencies and decrease operational costs while maintaining optimal security posture. 

Joe Ussia has led some of the leading solution providers in Toronto Canada, with the past decade being at the helm of the award-winning Infinite IT Solutions (www.8it.ca).  Under Ussia’s leadership, the firm has won several awards such as “CDN Top 100 Solution Providers”, “CRN Fast Growth 150”, “CRN Tech Elite 250”, “CRN NextGen 50”, “Cisco Customer Satisfaction Star of Excellence (2010-2017)”, “CDN Best Service Organization in Canada”, “CDN Best Solution Provider in Canada”, “CDN Best Security Solution in Canada”, “CDN Best Managed Services Solution in Canada” and more.

Joe Ussia is a scotch aficionado and loves talking about and sharing a scotch with fellow lovers of the spirit.  He is also heavily involved with Swim Canada as a Level 3 FINA Official. Joe Ussia is also one of the three founders and co-hosts of the Podcast series “IT For Whiskey” (www.IT4Whiskey.com) that was designed from the ground up to help fellow MSP’s with insights, tips and tricks of the trade to grow their MSP business.

Jason Rook is the Vice President of Alliances at 10^th Magnitude where he is responsible for developing and executing on strategic relationships that deliver business transforming solutions to 10^th Magnitude customers.  A 19-year industry veteran, Rook has held a broad range of technical, sales, and channel roles.  Prior to joining 10^th Magnitude, he was the Director of US Azure Channel Sales at Microsoft where he led a team of sales professionals responsible for driving Microsoft Azure revenue across the US though a broad network of Systems Integrators, Cloud Software Vendors, and Managed Service Providers.  Prior to Microsoft Azure, Rook was a Partner Territory Manager who was recognized as the top performing territory in Microsoft’s US Subsidiary and whose team was instrumental in building the early channel ecosystem for Office 365.  Regardless of the position that he is in, it is obvious that Rook has a deep passion for helping customers and partners transform businesses through strategic technology innovation and relationships. 

In less than a decade, Luis Alvarez has grown the Alvarez Technology Group from a small two-person consultancy to the premier IT solution provider on the California Central Coast, delivering IT services to more than 200 companies throughout the state. A visionary who never shies away from exploring exciting new technologies that might give his clients a competitive advantage, Alvarez specializes in working with executives and managers of small and mid-sized businesses, sharing his expertise by advising them on trends, analyzing their systems for improved performance and planning how IT can help achieve their business goals.

Stelios Valavanis is the founder and president of onShore Security. He currently serves on the boards of the ACLU of Illinois and We the People Media, and advisory committees for several other organizations. He has appeared as a guest lecturer and panelist for local colleges, non-profits, and various industry events. Stel graduated from the University of Chicago in 1988 with a Bachelor’s degree in Physics. Prior to founding onShore, Stel held a number of technical positions at the University of Chicago.

Stel’s love for things technical has spanned most of his life. By age 15, he was writing dBase code for a market research company, producing an analysis tool for sale to other marketing firms. He formed his first business in 1981, producing and distributing Apple II software packages. Stel also has been involved and remains active in many artistic projects, including audio CD recordings, video compilations, and interactive installations.

Brian Ruschman is the President at C-Forward, an Information Technology company based in Covington, Kentucky that offers consulting services to small and mid-size businesses. He graduated with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Computer Information Systems in 2000 from Thomas More College. He has over 16 years’ experience with computer networking and has achieved many Microsoft desktop and server certifications including Windows Server and Windows desktop operating systems.

Throughout his 13 years at C-Forward, Brian was promoted from a Network Technician role to Sales Manager, followed by Vice President and then his current position as President. His unique pairing of technical knowledge and amiable personality allows him to connect to clients and explain difficult scenarios in a way that is easy to understand.

In 2011, Ruschman was instrumental in setting up the automation of sales, service tickets, invoicing and client services into a combined software package. The efficiencies created by this software has saved 10% in costs for C-Forward. In 2013, Ruschman streamlined a new selling process to better support C-Forward’s growing client base. Becoming a full-service Managed Services Provider, C-Forward was able to create a more productive environment for their clients with far less downtime and, at the same time, was able to bring a proactive approach to network support. This allowed C-Forward’s client-base to accurately budget their IT expenses and simplified billing.

David DeCamillis serves as vice president of sales and marketing for Platte River Networks. He focuses on keeping his company’s brand fresh and vibrant but also staying in front of prospects so Platte River can continue to grow. For two decades, DeCamillis worked in financial consulting and production in a wide range of industries. Starting in the late 1980s, he worked as a syndicate manager and consultant in private equity funding.  After 12 years, DeCamillis transitioned into event production, working as an overseas concert promoter and producer in partnership with MTV Asia.  In 2008, DeCamillis started his tenure as head of business development with Platte River before assuming his current role. Platte River has grown to become a leading national provider of IT managed services and has received numerous technology, service and growth awards.  Outside of work, DeCamillis is an avid runner, biker, hiker, skier, reader and traveler. He enjoys public speaking and spending time at the beach and the mountains with his family.

Lawrence Van Deusen is the Director of the Network Integration Line of Business at Dimension Data. Van Deusen has over 18+ years of experience designing, architecting, implementing and supporting enterprise business solutions in a variety of IT computing environments. Prior to joining Dimension Data, Van Deusen was most recently employed as a Senior IT Architect for IBM Global Services in the IP Connectivity services practice. His primary focus was Cisco WAN/LAN architecture design and implementations. Prior to joining IBM Global Services, Van Deusen was employed as a Senior Consultant at Bearing Point (formerly KPMG consulting) where he was employed in the Network Solutions practice.

Thad Morrow believes that to realize the full value of virtualization and cloud technologies, organizations must put into place strategies that often require the reengineering of an enterprise’s overall approach to IT provisioning. One of those strategies is Entisys Solutions’ Virtualization Oriented Architecture, or VOA™.

As vice president of Business Development, Thad works with Entisys Solutions’ Systems Architects to develop custom tailored solutions for its clients that enable them to transform traditional IT silos into virtual, utilization-based environments, leveraging VOA.

During his tenure at Entisys, Thad has continued to guide the sales team in market development and sales growth efforts, targeting mid-market to enterprise-level organizations. He also leads the team in focusing its efforts on identifying ways to improve the client experience, while driving revenue generation and cost-efficiencies. Additionally, Thad is proactive in identifying opportunities where the Entisys sales team can take part in community service, networking and professional development activities.

Prior to joining Entisys Solutions in 2001, Thad worked in sales for a Bay Area solution provider, and became co-founder of DABCC.com, a technology news Website that covers the virtualization industry.

Thad’s areas of expertise include business development and customer acquisition, relationship building, sales management and strategic planning. He is a Citrix Certified Sales Professional, a VMware Sales Professional and also holds certifications in Network Appliance Sales and Citrix/VMware/Microsoft Cloud Management and Virtualization. He is also a member of The President’s Club for the Sandler Sales Institute.

Allen Falcon is a technologist and entrepreneur with more than 25 years in the industry. Allen's background includes a unique history of software development and marketing, CIO-level consulting, and entrepreneurship. In 2006, Allen launched the firm no known as Cumulus Global, recognizing the need among small businesses for better managed IT services. Allen leads a team of cloud computing experts helping businesses, non-profits, schools, and local governments move to Google Apps and related cloud services. Allen and Cumulus have been recognized as an innovator by CRN and regional business media.

John D. Head, chief evangelist at PSC Group, is a 20-year veteran of collaboration-application development. Head is a frequent speaker at technology events and works with companies to apply application modernization and mobilization to their business processes and applications. PSC Group, a professional services and information technology consulting firm, created the Application Modernization Center to apply a methodology to invested platforms and applications and bring mobile, cloud, social and analytics to business processes. He is a six time IBM Collaboration Solutions & Social Business Champion and an IBM Cloud Champion. Head is also active in the community outside of his work. He was on the executive board and the community outreach director for Chicago’s non-profit Lumity organization which helps the city and local businesses come together to provide STEM education. Head was also a member of the advisory board of the Leadership Circle of the Executives Club of Chicago. Currently he is a board member and secretary of the executive committee of the YWCA of Metropolitan Chicago, embracing the mission to empower women and eliminating racism by providing support to all women along various stages of their journeys.

Phillip Walker is CEO of Network Solutions Provider. He is responsible for all the company's Sales and marketing and business development, Walker was named to this position in Dec, 2009.  Phillip Walker CEO of Network Solutions Provider. He has helped grow the company over 7700% Since he has joined NSP. In 2012 alone the company had a record breaking year of growth of over 2000%. Walker has received numerous awards for his leadership over his past 5 years at the helm of NSP, including the 2011 and 2012 Inc. Magazine's Top Ten Black Entrepreneurs. Walker takes an active role in corporate social responsibility initiatives worldwide. In addition, Walker has been widely recognized for his and NSP's philanthropic leadership, in creating a top corporate social responsibility program.  Creating a launching several green tech, and job growth programs. Walker Started NSP in 2007 as VP sales and marketing, He assumed the role of President and CEO in 2009. Prior to joining NSP, Spent 15 years working in the telecommunications and Information technology industry.

Michael Knight is the CTO at Encore Technology Group and responsible for company go-to-market strategies, technology and sales strategies, vendor relationships, technology partnerships, research and development, cloud building, enterprise architecture and consulting. Knight has been previously employed as the CTO and senior vice president at Computer Software Innovations, Inc. He has worked as the CTO of SDI Networks and as the CIO of American Control Systems, Inc., with over two decades of IT experience.

Chad provides project management expertise to the Patriots Honor Board of Directors. A highly skilled business leader, he leverages prior military experience as a U.S. Marine with a successful consulting firm career to bring commitment, invaluable perspective and strong community connections to the breadth of Patriots Honor programs.

“I’m ready to hit the ground running with Patriots Honor Organization,” said Chad. “My company, Enterprise Networking Solutions, Inc., has proudly supported Patriots Honor with donations from the proceeds of our annual golf tournament. It’s time to step up my personal involvement with this outstanding charity. Patriots Honor is doing good things for our injured military veterans and service members, and I want to personally be a part of that.”

Chad is a native of Sacramento, Ca. and a father to three amazing and talented children. He joined the Marine Corps in 1995, serving around the world as part the Marine Corps Marine Expeditionary Forces. During service to his nation, Chad returned to school, earning a degree in Computer Applications and Networks from Coleman College, San Diego, Calif. In 2001, he returned to Sacramento to pursue a career in IT consulting.

Driven by a mission to share knowledge and empower his peers to recognize their full potential, Chad has been Vice President of Business Development at Enterprise Networking Solutions, Inc., since joining the business in 2006. As a skilled and diligent Project Manager and Systems Engineer in infrastructure technologies, Chad leverages more than 18 years of experience assessing needs, gathering requirements, and deploying systems in an Enterprise environment. Today, ENS-Inc, is an instrumental partner with the State of California, working to increase efficiency in IT by leveraging technology to do more, while reducing costs and increasing productivity.

In 2010, Chad founded HSB Solutions, and serves proudly as its President. HSB is a Disabled Veterans Business Enterprise. Providing staffing and hardware and software resell services to the State of California and larger firms looking for active participation from

Following his passion for fellow veterans, children and health, in 2013, he is founded The Urban Gym in Sacramento. This organization follows a simple premise, get outside and get active. All activities are free of charge and Chad considers this organization a small way for him to give back to his community and share the lessons he himself learned regarding fitness and healthy living.

Michael Lomonaco is the director of marketing and communications for OST. He joined the $160 million leading solution provider in 2011.  Michael honed his marketing and communications skills while attending Michigan State University. His career has included positions in local, state and federal political and policy work, corporate and nonprofit consulting, and customer relations, public relations, and marketing in the manufacturing sector.  These days, Michael leads the Marketing and Communications team at OST. In this role he is responsible for leading OST’s brand strategy, marketing programs, market insights, and public relations. He has a passion for creating wild outcomes and experiences through his abilities to connect and strategize across the organization, and with customers, partners, and colleagues.

Michael also has a deep connection to service and can be found working with any number of the boards of directors he serves In 2013, 2015, and 2016  Michael was selected as one of Grand Rapids’ “Top 40 Under Forty” business and community leaders.

New Bio needed

George Pashardis is Regional Vice President of Sales for ePlus Technology, inc. a leading provider of integrated solution suites for enterprise networking, security, unified communications, data center and storage, and also offers complete IT sourcing and fulfillment services.  ePlus Technology serves a side variety of organizations in both the public and private sectors, including the Fortune 500, Healthcare, Federal, State and Local Government, K12 and Higher Education, as well as many other vertical markets.  The diverse set of IT solutions offered by ePlus Technology are complemented with a suite of on-demand supply chain solutions, a variety of leasing and financing services, and a range of Consulting expertise.

ePlus has been recognized by the Channel Company as one of North America's top technology integrators.

George brings over 25 years of experience in Sales & Marketing, with over 20 years in Sales Management to his role as Regional Vice President of Sales for ePlus Technology.  George joined ePlus in May 2004 with ePlus’ acquisition of Manchester Technologies, where he was Director of Sales. Prior to Manchester, he served as Area Director for Elcom Intl.

George has served on several Advisory Boards in the past such as Comptia, Samsung, NEC, 3COM, Hewlett Packard and Lenovo and is also a former Member of the International Who’s Who of Information Technology. George is a current member of the Advisory Board for the Channel Company.