Executive Connections mentors

James Madison is CEO (Chief Energy Officer), Speaker, Trainer and Coach at On Purpose Life, LLC. He helps successful and purpose driven senior leaders leave burnout and overwhelm behind to lead winning teams in the achievement of extraordinary results. James is passionate about inspiring and igniting growth in others so they experience the freedom to create their wildest dreams!

In 30+ years of leadership experience, James has enjoyed developing and preparing leaders for successful careers and maximum personal fulfillment. James creates his powerful impact through:

• True North Vision and Strategic Roadmapping
• Winning 1st Team Leadership Development
• 1-1 Executive Coaching and Thinking Partnerships
• VIP Strategy Sessions and Purpose Driven Experiences
• Inspirational Keynote Speaking

James believes that when you live “In Purpose On Purpose” you will never work another day in your life! All Flow, No Hustle is his mantra.

After serving in the Army, James spent 25 years in supply chain leadership, operations management, and customer development roles in Fortune 500 companies. Prior to founding On Purpose Life and becoming an executive coach, he Pivoted On Purpose from the consumer products industry into executive recruiting.

Tracy has over 37 years of accounting, finance and corporate management experience. She spent 17 years with Medtronic Inc. in finance leadership roles supporting the Neuromodulation and Cardiac Rhythm Therapies businesses focused on revenue growth, delivering superior profits, optimizing manufacturing operations and driving long-term strategic R&D investments.

Prior to Medtronic, Tracy was a key contributor in completing the successful spin-off and subsequent IPO of ON Semiconductor in 1999/2000 which included establishing the new companies’ financial/accounting systems and a new finance organization. She held several finance leadership roles focused on executing a major business restructuring, supporting cash liquidity initiatives, re-structuring manufacturing operations and developing a corporate-wide strategy redesign. Her tenure included managing large global finance organizations allowing for extensive global travel to Asia, Eastern and Western Europe and China.

Tracy started her career with Motorola developing a foundation in cost accounting, financial planning/analysis and business support. She went on to hold several leadership positions managing finance organizations focused on global semiconductor manufacturing, business operations, R&D development and factory start-ups.

She holds an MBA and a Bachelor of Science in Accounting, both from Arizona State University, Tempe. In retirement, she enjoys spending time with family in AZ & MN, hiking, biking, gardening and collecting & building LEGO.

As the CEO of Nemschoff Chairs Inc. (Nemschoff), Mark’s innovative and pioneering approach transformed the health care furniture industry. Customer focused marketing, service, and manufacturing enabled health care clients to customize products to meet their needs and differentiate their facilities. Quality, value, and custom products dramatically fueled the Nemschoff growth to the No. 1 position in health care furniture for nine consecutive years.

Mark began his career as a design engineer and team manager for a leading outdoor power equipment company and was awarded two patents for noise and vibration control innovation. Mark then joined the family furniture business, learning every job prior to taking on the leadership role of president and CEO. Recognized as the industry leader, Nemschoff Chairs Inc. was sold to Herman Miller Inc. in 2009.

Mark was known for using the phrase, “people do business with people they like” as a way of instilling the value of human connection in his employees. Always a hands-on leader, he prided himself in being a keen observer and deep listener, as well as a holistic thinker.

Concurrently, Mark founded Colby Metal Inc., a make-to-order contract metal fabricator that supplied Nemschoff Chairs Inc., as well as other regional customers. Under Mark’s leadership, the company experienced significant and profitable growth, and was ultimately sold to Colby Metal management in 2017.

In addition, Mark founded Nemschoff Sports Ltd., which managed his sports car racing and offshore powerboat racing team. Over a nine-year period in powerboats, he won three world championships, two national championships, and numerous speed records.

Mark has served on private and public boards of both local and national organizations. He earned his degree in applied science and engineering, with a minor in business, from the University of Wisconsin.

As a leader at Honeywell International, a Fortune 100 technology company, Tina Oliver has led the company's global Mechanical New Product Introduction, Subcontract Management and Supplier Development teams in the Aerospace Integrated Supply Chain (ISC) division for the past 24 years. She has also been the site lead for the Aerospace Women's Council which focuses on the career growth of women in the Aerospace Industry. In addition, she developed and launched a mentor program and Diversity of Thought program within Honeywell that focused on improving Inclusion and Diversity. Tina has held an expat position in Puerto Rico and has worked extensively throughout the United States, China, Mexico and Western Europe. She holds a Master of Business Administration, Bachelor of Science and a Certificate in Project Management.

Tina is a 1st generation U.S. citizen, the daughter of an Air Force veteran and the first in her family to earn a master's degree. She is a native Arizonan, a loyal ASU alumni and a self-proclaimed ambassador of Tempe. Tina volunteers for several local agencies – Tempe Community Action Agency (TCAA) food bank, Lost Our Homes (LOH) pet rescue, Frank Elementary School STEM mentoring and Hospice of the Valley. She is an alumni of Tempe Leadership and serves on the board for the Tempe Youth Leadership program. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling, cooking, hot yoga, any activity involving water, reading and riding her bike. She is her happiest when she is on the beach watching the sun set and toasting the sun with "thank you for today, I'll see you tomorrow".

Amy Parsons is a senior strategy and business growth executive with deep digital and mobile payments expertise. She helmed Discover’s global acceptance growth in over 200 countries and earned recognition as the third-largest and fastest-growing global payments network. She has demonstrated excellence in strategic planning, business development, and digital commerce, having pioneered three significant strategic shifts in the payments business which created multiple new avenues for growth.

Amy was a senior executive at Discover Financial Services, a Fortune 500 company, for over 25 years, successfully leading multiple functional and global business units such as Sales, Business Development, Product and the Discover Global Network.

Amy was responsible for diversifying Discover revenue streams influencing billion-dollar revenue. She led the build out of innovative mobile payment solutions with the largest tech companies such as Apple, Google, and Samsung as well as brand-building promotions with Amazon and Walmart. Amy spearheaded digital transformation including the enterprise implementation of the Discover-exclusive ApplePay Cash solution.

Honored as one of the Most Influential Women in Payments for three straight years, Amy has been invited as a speaker at industry conferences such as Money20/20, Merchant Payment Ecosystem, Transact, Women in Payments and Paytech Women.

Amy earned an Executive MBA and a bachelor’s degree in marketing from ASU’s W. P. Carey School of Business. She has been a member of World 50 Innovation, Women in Payments, and Paytech Women and a former Board Member of the Merchant Advisory Group, the Electronic Transaction Association, and Lambs Farm.

Bill Pesch is a board director and retired CEO who led five businesses for private equity, selling three to strategic buyers. He is now very active in the Arizona start-up community and serves on several not-for-profit Boards. Previously, Bill served as a director for Hall Technologies, a professional audio/visual manufacturer, the Board of Governors for the Aerospace Industries Association (AIA), the Boeing 737 Interiors Council, and the Dean’s Advisory Boards of the University of California, Irvine, Merage School of Business and the University of California, San Diego, Rady School of Management. Bill has strong private equity, manufacturing, marketing, and sales experience in the aerospace/defense, technology manufacturing, and energy management industries and has extensive international experience. He served until 2017 as CEO of the B&E Group, a precision aerospace manufacturing and MRO company sold to StandardAero and Cadence Aerospace. Previously Bill served as CEO of Able Manufacturing, CEO of McBride Electric, and President of Driessen Aircraft Interiors USA, a manufacturer of Boeing and Airbus commercial aircraft galleys, now part of Safran. Earlier, Bill served as President of Anacomp Inc. (ANMP), President of FP Mailing, VP of the international division of AB Dick (now Mark Andy), VP of International Business Development for Maytag Corp. (now Whirlpool), and Director of Global Marketing and Director of Manufacturing for Siemens Building Technologies. Bill earned an MBA from Harvard Business School and a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the University of New Mexico. He grew up in Santa Fe, NM and is an avid global traveler, alpine skier, and scuba diver.

Kerry Philipovitch is currently serving on the boards of public and private companies. She joined the board of Apollo-owned Sun Country Airlines in December 2020 as the company was preparing for IPO. She served as interim chair of the Audit Committee, currently chairs the Nominating & Governance committee and is a member of the Audit and Safety Committees. She has been a key leader in the company’s governance evolution to build a diverse and effective board and to meet public company regulations. She recruited and onboarded four new directors to meet independence requirements, ran a successful board chair selection and transition process, and led the board to adopt corporate governance guidelines and new committee charters. She also serves as an independent director for Avianca Airlines, where she chairs the Safety Committee and is a member of the Nominating & Governance Committee. Kerry is a board member at Intervine, an international wine management company, where she is working to help the company restructure as it recovers from loss of business during the pandemic. She is also serving on the board of technology start-up OptIn, a revolutionary solution for today’s hourly workforce giving workers flexible scheduling opportunities and enabling enterprises to better understand and engage their workforce. The company is seeing high demand for its solution and is raising capital to fuel its growth.

Kerry brings more than twenty years of airline operations, commercial, and customer experience achievements. In her prior executive role, she served as Senior Vice President - Customer Experience for American Airlines where she oversaw airline operations impacting critical measures of customer value, including worldwide airport customer service, ramp, and baggage operations; onboard flight service and catering; global call centers; cargo; customer planning; and service recovery. She supported a team of 70K global team members and managed a $7B operating budget. In addition to her operating responsibilities, Kerry worked with the NAACP and other important community partners to develop an inclusion and diversity strategy for the airline. She frequently served as a subject matter expert in educating government officials on important industry issues and offered expert testimony in two congressional hearings.

Kerry was selected as an honoree for the Dallas Business Journal’s 2019 Women in Business Awards, an award that recognizes business leaders for impressive professional achievements and proven track record. Profiles in Diversity Journal named her as a Woman Worth Watching, and the Phoenix Business Journal selected her as one of the most influential business leaders in the Phoenix area. She graduated with a Master of Business Administration from the Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan and received her Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Tulane University. She earned her Directorship Certification through the National Association of Corporate Directors and co-chairs the Arizona chapter of Women Corporate Directors.

With over 20 years of experience in the auto warranty industry, Joan Saunders excels in all aspects of this specialty insurance business, from sales to operations to IT. As CEO for two leading auto warranty companies, Joan managed highly successful teams focused on growth through customer and employee satisfaction and strategic use of information technology.

Joan began her career as an industrial engineer, improving business processes and tracking results for a computer manufacturer. With an interest in information systems, Joan spent 10 years as a designer of business applications and developed a proprietary, enterprise-wide contract and claim processing system for CNA National Warranty Corporation. Ultimately ascending to the position of CEO, Joan expanded the product offerings, strengthened customer relationships, and reduced expenses which resulted in three consecutive years of record-setting profits for the company. In early 2008, Joan accepted the challenge of interim CEO of private equity-owned GWC during a time of stress for the auto industry and focused GWC on improving cash flow, reducing expenses, and re-training the sales force to strengthen their knowledge and relationships with customers.

Utilizing her well-established network, Joan has taken full-time positions assisting struggling businesses including SilverRock and Door Works. As COO of SilverRock, Joan led this startup affiliate of DriveTime Used Cars in establishing the vital systems, employees and strategic partners that allowed SilverRock to sell service contracts and provide excellent service to customers. As COO of Door Works, Joan supported manufacturing and installation teams by implementing systems that enabled the company to double headcount and revenue. Through her management consulting practice, Joan uses her experience to improve profitability by focusing on customer needs, simplifying, and automating processes, and implementing operational best practices.

Joan received a BS in engineering/business and a master’s degree in information management, both from Arizona State University. Her personal hobbies include hiking with friends and family, gardening in the Arizona heat, and skiing.