Jay Goth, CEO
Mr.
Goth has extensive marketing and sales experience in the energy and
financial services industries. He was one of the founding executives of
Commonwealth Energy Corporation in 1997, and as Sr. VP of Marketing
helped propel the company from a startup with zero revenues to over $200
million in three years, becoming the largest unregulated electricity
provider in the United States. The company is now on the AMEX under the
ticker EGR.
He
has spent much of the last 5 years researching the stored value card
space and serving as a marketing consultant to the industry, taking
interim positions as a President and a Chief Operating Officer of two
different stored value companies. During this period, he has been able
to analyze the business models and marketing efforts of the industry to
date and gain key insights into the successes and failures of the
burgeoning stored value market.
He
currently owns and operates Ascendant Communications Group, Inc., a
marketing agency that provides e-mail newsletter services, public
relations, investor relations, Internet marketing and other key
marketing services to a wide array of industries. Ascendant has been
profitable since being founded in 2003.
James
Oliver, CFO
James
Oliver has over twenty-five years of diversified business management,
finance and accounting experience. His experience spans a wide range of
industries and various levels of product technology in both domestic and
international markets. Mr. Oliver has served in senior financial
management positions for operating units of "Fortune 100"
companies along with having experience with privately held companies.
Jim has been a key contributor in business transformations.
Seven
years of his career were with Emerson Electric Co. as Chief Financial
Officer for two operating units. Emerson has been highlighted in the
Harvard Business Review for its management process and long-term
profitability record. During his tenure at Emerson, he was a major
contributor in the development and execution of strategic plans that
transformed a break-even operating unit to a profitability level near
the top of U.S. peer group companies. The Company's improved return on
capital doubled the "S&P 500" average.
Mr.
Oliver has also served as CFO for a business unit of Smithkline Beckman.
He helped turn around an instrument business of that company that was
incurring substantial losses to profitability. He was also head of
strategic and financial planning for an operating unit of Dresser
Industries.
He
has consulted for a number of diverse companies including the prominent
private equity firm of former U.S. Secretary of the Treasurer William E.
Simon, United Technologies, Snapple, the Stanley garage door opener
business and other companies. Mr. Oliver's assignments included
profitability and cash flow improvement, business analysis and planning
and comprehensive organizational performance measurements.
Jim
created and copyrighted "Value Creation Insights" which is a
profitability improvement and value creation management tool. It
integrates strategy, operations and financial management. The business
analysis, planning and execution management tool consists of twelve
modules. The cornerstone, however, is the business "picture."
It is an 8 1/2" by 11" colored reflection of an organization's
cause and effect components that drive value creation. Another feature
is the ability to determine how a business plan and or alternative
strategies will impact a company's intrinsic value. Two key modules link
the customer value proposition and the business processes that deliver
customer value.
William
Kincaid, CTO
As
the CEO of Kincaid Technologies of Colorado Springs, Mr. Kincaid is
considered to be an expert in the field of payment processing, network
communications, database development and electronic payment gateways.
Starting
with a multi-lane market solution for F.W. Woolworth over two decades
ago, Kincaid Technologies has accelerated development to meet the
challenges of today’s expanding payment and communication methods.
Located in an ultra modern facility, Kincaid Technologies teams
transaction processing experience with superior networking skills to
deliver cutting edge transaction switching solutions while remaining
cost effective.
In
2001, Kincaid Technologies introduced the SmartPay System, a stable
plug-n-play system specifically designed to process I/P transactions.
This system enables merchans to realize 2-3 second response times, and
can be critical in the multi-lane environment where on-line debit is
accepted. The open architecture of SmartPay is scalable and modular to
meet the needs of any customer.
SmartPay
provides for simple integration to point-of-sale applications. SmartPay accepts the following payment transaction types - Credit
Cards, Commercial Cards, Debit (PIN and non-PIN), DUKPT, Fleet Cards,
Check authorization, Check guarantee, Electronic Check Conversion, and
Check Image. The system supports the Address Verification System as well
as CVV2 to help reduce fraud for mail order purchases. SmartPay can be
used in retail, supermarket, and e-commerce, and travel and
entertainment industries.
Clients
of Kincaid Technologies include the New Jersey Transit Authority, Chick
Fil-A, Applebees, and more.
Carlos
Villanueva, Business Development
Carlos
Villanueva founded and runs the successful C&V International
business development company, helping companies build brand recognition
and market share in both the U.S. and Mexico. Past and present clients
include Citigroup, Mexicana, DHL, Western Union, Coca Cola, Aflac,
Nations Health, FAMSA, Aeromexico, and more.
Carlos
is also the founder and president of AMME, the worldwide association of
Mexicans abroad. As one of the most prominent and influential community
advocate groups in the U.S., AMME has direct contact with hundreds of
local hometown associations throughout the country.
Rafael
Abdo, Community Affairs
Rafael
Abdo owns and operates Abdo & Associates, an advertising and public
relations company in Los Angeles that specializes in the Hispanic
Market. He is also a founder and the Executive Director of AMME. He has
served as the Executive Director of the Ontario CA Hispanic Chamber of
Commerce and has been involved in the media and advertising industry for
over 30 years.
He
has earned several recognitions from the City and County of Los Angeles
for organizing the Mexican Independence Festivities for the Comite
Mexicano Civico Patriotico with the assistance of the Mexican Consulate,
City and County of Los Angeles. In 1976 he was instrumental in winning a
CLIO Award (Best Category in International Advertising Competition) for
a 30-Sec. film, "Drunk Driving," produced for the East Los
Angeles Health Task Force.
As
the community relations director for Arriba, Rafael has a crucial role
in developing and maintaining relationships within the Hispanic
community.
Christopher
Long, Advisory Board, Sales and Marketing
Mr. Long has been a veteran of the Stored Value/Pre-Paid Debit space
since 1998. He helped establish one of the first Industry ISO
relationships with a joint venture group named Cash Cards USA. His group
opened up the first "retail" Pre-Paid Debit Card sales and
distribution channels in the U.S. in Atlanta Georgia in 1999, and had
over 25 retail venues selling and loading "cash cards"
designed and promoted to Atlanta's Mexican-American community.
Chris
then went on to become a partner in another Debit Card group based in
Denver, Planetel. Planetel further expanded on the retail debit card by
creating and implementing one of the first "Payroll Debit
Cards" aimed at the Direct Sales and MLM communities. By 2001
Planetel had over 35,000 active cards in the system including over
20,000 in Europe. Post 9/11, with more regulatory emphasis on Homeland
Security, the BIN was shut down for compliance issues and not re-opened.
He
then became a partner and EVP of a start-up firm named Max Cash, Inc.
establishing numerous domestic and foreign alliances to market and
distribute Pre-Paid Debit Cards.
From
2004 until present, he has been an industry consultant to numerous Sales
and Marketing firms (both in and out of the Stored Value arena) such as;
Safe Bank Card, Unity Pay, Praxell, The Omni Group, Super Dinero Card,
NorthGate Technologies, Worldhub, Entrust America, Globe 7 and many
others.
Before
entering the Stored Value space, Chris was one of the original purveyors
of the Pre-Paid Calling Card in 1992, doing graphic design and printing
for thousands of promotional phone cards. Among his many clients were
IBM, American Cancer Society, The Special Olympics, Helen Keller
Services for the Blind, and many others. Chris developed the first
Braille phone card and designed the first complete line of electronic
greeting cards, called TeleGreetings. He went on to win several awards
for his names and designs, including Tele-Friend and World-Voice, one of
the first international origination products to hit the traditional
markets with service to and from more than 120 countries around the
world. Chris also had the distinction of being a founding partner in the
first MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) company in the Pre Paid
Cellular space named AirPass Wireless.
Prior
to entering the telecom industry, Chris owned and was the President of a
Madison Ave. based Ad Agency, Sales Promotion Essentials Corp.
and the elangroup, ltd., specializing in print production and
custom packaging applications used in advertising, marketing and sales
promotion. Among his major clients were American Express, Merck, Johnson
& Johnson, Hoffmann-La Roche, Squibb, Revlon, Elizabeth Arden,
Cosmair, Estee Lauder, Chrysler, Union-Carbide, Ziff-Davis Publishing,
The US Army, American-Standard and many others.
He
has had many affiliations with various Charitable and Philanthropic
organizations such as the American Cancer Society, Helen Keller Services
for the Blind, the Special Olympics, Big Brothers of America, Feed the
Children, Literacy Volunteers, and Habitat for Humanity.
Brad
Cates, Advisory Board, Regulatory Compliance
Mr. Cates is an international legal consultant with experience in
anti-money laundering laws. He has served as a Chief Judge for the U.S.
Dept. of the Interior, he headed the Justice Department's Asset
Forfeiture unit, was an Assistant Commissioner (Enforcement) in the U.S.
I.N.S., an Assistant U.S. Attorney, and a four-time state legislator in
New Mexico. Brad brings a deep knowledge of the regulatory processes and
trends, along with insight into governmental affairs for the company.
Brad is a member of Arriba's Advisory Board.
