Danese Cooper
Sun's Open Source Diva, Sun Microsystems

Danese Cooper is Sun's Open Source Diva. She is known in the open source community for her forthright wit, keen analysis, and support of open source. She manages Sun Microsystems' Open Source Programs Office, and has been directly involved in the creation of all of the Sun-Sponsored Open Source projects, including OpenOffice.org, NetBeans.org, JXTA.org, SunSource.net and GridEngine/SunSource.net.

Danese was instrumental in Sun's adoption of the Sun Public License for NetBeansTM software, the creation of the Sun Industry Standards Source License and the new Joint Copyright Assignment, and in the adoption of a dual-licensing strategy, including selection of the LGPL (the GNU Lesser General Public License) for OpenOffice.org. She is on Sun's Developer Strategy council and works within Sun on teams that design Products and Services for Developers.

Cliff Conneighton
CEO, Conneighton Group

For 25 years, Cliff Conneighton has created products and companies that dominate their markets. His focus is strategic marketing and business operations. Currently, as CEO of Conneighton Group, Cliff works with Venture Capital firms and CEOs to help both emerging and expanding small businesses to target lucrative markets, focus their business strategies and build profitable operations. Cliff is also a Partner with Aptec Group, which provides business and technical due diligence services to major institutional investors.In 1997, Cliff co-founded iCOMS, an Internet infrastructure services company. As Chairman and CEO, he built it from scratch to over 150 employees with high-profile customers in the US and Europe, including Lycos, Sony and France Telecom. He raised $40 million from VCs, achieved profitability and ran headfirst into the buzz saw of the market collapse. Learning much more from the hard times than the soft ones, he sold the operation in late 2001.

Previously, Cliff was one of the founding vice presidents of BBN Planet, one of the first and largest Internet services companies. He wrote the business prospectus for its IPO and later helped prepare for its sale to GTE. It now operates as Genuity. While at Planet, Cliff’s team built and operated the AOL network and WorldNet, AT&T’s business Internet service. Prior to BBN Planet, Cliff ran marketing for Lotus Notes at Lotus Development, where he grew this landmark product from launch to over $500 million in revenue before selling to IBM. Before Lotus, Cliff was Vice President and Service Director for Gartner Group, and held various positions at Digital Equipment and Texas Instruments. Cliff has spoken extensively at seminars and conferences around the world, including keynoting several international Gartner events, as well as keynoting the first major nationwide conference series introducing the Internet to business users, sponsored by BBN, Sun and Netscape. Cliff has a Bachelors and Masters in Systems Engineering from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio.

Get Cliff's book

At our conference last week, Cliff Conneighton delivered the afternoon keynote address. He is the author of Venture Management Handbook: An Entrepreneur's Practical Guide to Stock, Finance and Contracts. It can be ordered online at www.venturebooks.biz. Cliff says, "This book is full of all the things I wish I had known, and had to learn the hard way, when I started my company five years ago. We raised $40 million and hired 200 people. We dealt with angels, VCs, valuations, termsheets, preferred stock, founder disputes, stock options, financial reports, warrants, convertible notes, bridge loans, bank loans, IPO planning, lawyers, CPAs, auditors, investment banks, bad sales forecasting, layoffs, disgruntled employees, sales agreements, vendor contracts, offer letters, unscrupulous customers, creditors trying to lock up our cash, cash flow, making payroll, negotiating with creditors, buying a company, selling our assets, and winding down. Now, with the help of some of the best lawyers, CPAs and VCs in the business, I've documented what I think every member of the management team of every high-tech or high-growth company needs to know."

Even those with an MBA will find the tips, real-world pitfalls and anecdotes go far beyond what you can possibly know until you've been through it. And those bewteen jobs will find it a great way to improve their prospects by improving their business knowledge.

Those well past the start-up phase can use it to stay out of trouble. Beth Perdue (nationally-known contracts authority) says it is "a real eye-opener -- chock-full of useful information, sound advice and common sense. It will guide you correctly through the most important sales, purchasing and personnel issues a new venture will face. Everything you need and nothing you don't need."

Seasoned entrepreneurs should consider using this book to bring their management teams up to speed on business issues - from Accounting 101 for managers (not accountants) to avoiding casual statements to employees that can get you sued.

Please see more information on this 368-page book at www.venturebooks.biz: table of contents, list of 73 figures, sample pages, and great reviews from well-known CEOs, VCs, lawyers and others. You can also order a free whitepaper excerpted from the book: "How VCs Work; What VCs Want".

Jeffrey Belanger
Boston Intelligence Group
54 N. Main Street
West Brookfield, MA
(508) 867-4293

Jeffrey Belanger, the President and CEO of the Boston Intelligence Group, leverages several years of project management, organizational learning and technology communications strategy in the commercial sector to help clients understand and maximize the effectiveness of their business communication goals. His areas of specialized expertise include knowledge management, online branding, digital marketing, customer relationship management human factors engineering and instructional technology development, and he is a regular project management instructor for PWC Consulting.

Tim Brooks
Integra Strategic Technologies Consulting, LLC
164 Middle Street, Ste 3
Portland, ME
(207) 871-8008

Timothy Brooks founded Integra Strategic in 2001, after spending the previous seven years helping a wide variety of organizations formulate their Web strategy and design. Having practiced law for three years in Washington, D.C., and then three years in Portland, Maine, Tim set aside the full-time practice of law in 1995 when he co-founded New England Internet Services, a full-service ISP providing Internet connectivity and Web development services to businesses throughout New England. After selling NEIS in 1999, Tim joined Portland-based VIA Inc as Principal of Web Strategy, and in 2000 Tim became Vice President of Product Development for Gofish.com (now Seafax), a company providing business-to-business e-commerce and credit services to the seafood industry. Today, through Integra Strategic, Tim provides consulting services regarding Internet and Web strategies, user interface design, usability analysis, product development, Web site and information architecture, and the integration of technology into operational processes

Don Bulens
Trellix Corporation
300 Baker Avenue
Concord, MA
(978) 318-7200

Don Bulens is the president & CEO of Trellix – the leading provider of web publishing solutions for individuals and small businesses. Trellix is an OEM provider to fifty companies, including Earthlink, Verizon, Terra Lycos, C|net, and TMP Worldwide. Over four million web sites have been created with Trellix products.

Bulens is a voracious blog reader and sporadic family blogger. To the dismay of his wife, Bulens blogged the arrival of his first son from the delivery room.

Before joining Trellix, Bulens ran a consulting firm advising software and Internet companies, was the CEO of a collaborative software firm and worked as a senior executive at Lotus Development Corp. At Lotus, Bulens led the creation of the Lotus Notes third-party industry – a vibrant community of over 18,000 companies that became an engine of growth for Notes.

Chris A. Caseiro
Verrill & Dana, LLP
One Portland Square
Portland, ME 04112
(207) 774-4000

Chris A. Caseiro is counsel to the firm and a member of the Intellectual Property and Technology Group. Chris is a former engineer and was recently in-house patent counsel with a New Hampshire-based network technology company. He concentrates his practice on patent prosecution and analysis, trademark and copyright protection, and intellectual property licensing. Chris is registered to practice before the U.S. Patent Office. He has written and lectured on a variety of patent-related issues, including the protection of software-based inventions.

Jason Chase
VIA Group
39 Danforth Street
Portland, ME
(207) 761-0288

Jason joined The VIA Group in 1999 as an Engineering Team Lead. VIA, founded in 1993, is a strategic communications firm delivering clear marketing and Internet strategies, effective brand positioning and intelligent design. Jason has 7 years experience as a software developer and systems manager. In the past three years, Jason has been technical lead on projects for Ohio Health, Fairchild Semiconductor, eSprocket.com, and the Banknorth Group. In his free time, Jason has re-implemented VIA's critical systems using Debian GNU/Linux. Prior to joining VIA, Jason was Lead Software Developer for New England Internet Services.

Jesse Chunn
Standard I-O
208 Fore Street
Portland, ME 04101
(207) 541-4746

Jesse Chunn is the President of Standard I-O, Inc. Standard I-O builds and integrates custom software/Internet systems. Jesse is also on the board of directors for the Maine Software and Information Technology Industry Association (MESDA), and the board of directors for Parco Merged Media, Inc.

David P. Crocker
Attorney
158 Pleasant Avenue
Portland, ME
(207) 879-0708

David P. Crocker is a Portland, Maine, attorney carrying on a multistate and multinational practice in software, tech and intellectual property law with a particular emphasis on representing software developers and others in the IT industry. Mr. Crocker is the current President of MESDA, the Maine software and IT trade association and is a regular columnist for Interface Tech News and Interface Business News. Mr. Crocker is a magna cum laude graduate of the University of Maine School of Law where he was production editor of the Maine Law Review and is a former law clerk for the Maine Supreme Judicial Court. He also holds degrees from Gordon College and the University of Durham, England.

Derek Dresser
Gould Academy
PO Box 860
Bethel, ME
(207) 824-7777

A 1987 graduate, Derek Dresser is no stranger to Gould Academy where he is the Director of Technology. In his current role, Dresser has recently managed a complete migration of Gould's academic computing services from Netware/Windows to Linux. During his thirteen-year absence from Bethel, Mr. Dresser has taught secondary school physics and biology and hiked the Appalachian Trail from Springer Mountain, Georgia, to Mount Katahdin, Maine. Prior to returning to Gould Academy, Dresser was Vice President of Internet Services for New England Internet Services (NEIS.NET) and also conducted software development and network engineering work for Yankee Microwave, Inc. Mr. Dresser holds a BS from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Arthur Fink
Arthur Fink Consulting
10 New Island Avenue
Peaks Island, ME 04108
(207) 766-5722

Arthur Fink, a consultant specializing in user interface and database design, focuses on involving users in the overall system development process. He is considered to be a "guru" in using the Progress relational database system, and is sought after as a speaker and trainer at Progress conferences around the world.

During the 1970's, he designed manufacturing resource planning (MRP) systems for companies in America, Europe, and Japan. Then, when Progress Software was formed, he began using Progress to develop applications for mail order, insurance management, health care tracking, service dispatching, and other areas. His most recent project is a paging and messenging system for hospitals that integrates telephone functions, database management and message delivery through paging and other technologies. The Christian Science Monitor spotlighted his "Center for Appropriate Computing" in the 1980's, and the workshops he ran on "Computing and Religious Values".

Peter Baer Galvin
Corporate Technologies
3 Burlington Woods Drive
Burlington, MA
(781) 273-4100

Peter Baer Galvin is the Chief Technologist for Corporate Technologies, a premier systems integrator and VAR. Before that, Peter was the systems manager for Brown University's Computer Science Department. He has written articles for Byte and other magazines, and previously wrote Pete's Wicked World, the security column, and Pete's Super Systems, the systems management column for Unix Insider. Peter is coauthor of the Operating Systems Concepts and Applied Operating Systems Concepts textbooks. As a consultant and trainer, Peter has taught tutorials and given talks on security and systems administration worldwide.

Jeffrey Hoffman
Starlit Software
29 Casselton Road
Raymond, ME
(207) 655-2300

Jeff Hoffman has enjoyed nearly 20 years of software development experience. For most of the past 13 years he has been a freelance software consultant, building everything from workflow utilities to a factory automation system. Jeff was a very early adopter of C++ and distributed object programming. He currently specializes in J2EE development but is always watching for the next “big thing”. He earned a Computer Science degree from Dartmouth College and participates on the USM Computer Science Advisory Board.

Dana Hutchins
Image Works
537 Congress Street, Ste 301
Portland, ME
(207) 774-6399

For over twenty-four years, Dana has created multi-media products, interactive systems and user interfaces. Dana founded Image Works in 1977, initially as a video production company, later evolving to multi-media and 3D animation projects. For the past five years, Dana has led the transition to effective Internet development, with a passionate focus on creating a highly effective experience for Web users. The company’s track record of success for more than two decades is a testament to Dana’s creative brilliance and visionary blending of art and technology.

Curtis Ingraham
L.L.Bean
Freeport, ME
(207) 865-4761

Curtis Ingraham is an Information Technology Senior Project Manager with L.L.Bean where he has worked for 25 years. Over that time, he has served the Finance and Retail Divisions of the company as well. His primary role currently is to conduct legal and financial negotiations for IT acquisitions. Areas of expertise for Ingraham are specific to telecommunications and software contracts as well as vendor relations. Prior to joining Bean, Ingraham was a corporate accountant and a retail systems manager. He holds a BA in Accounting and Finance.

Stephen C. Jordan
Verrill & Dana, LLP
One Portland Square
Portland, ME 04112
(207) 774-4000

Stephen C. Jordan is a member of Verrill & Dana's Intellectual Property & Technology Group, and he concentrates his practice in the areas of intellectual property, business law, the Internet and mergers and acquisitions. Mr. Jordan has published several articles and lectured on intellectual property issues and the Internet. He designed and founded MaineBusinessLaw.com, and is currently the Editor of the website. Mr. Jordan is admitted to the Maine State Bar and New Hampshire State Bar.

Sharon Kaiser
Wright Express
97 Darling Avenue
South Portland, ME
(207) 773-8171

Sharon Kaiser joined Wright Express in early 2000 from CITGO Petroleum Corporation. Sharon managed CITGO’s application development department, as well as spending time as a Manager of their Product Management group. Kaiser was also actively involved in several major initiatives within CITGO, primarily to develop solutions to optimize the Supply Chain. Her background gives Kaiser an understanding of “both sides of the house: technology and business." Since moving to Wright Express, Sharon has been in charge of WEX’s largest single investment – a project called e.BEST, Building Enhanced Systems and Technology. e.BEST is a multi-year initiative that will totally replace the technical architecture and business applications for the entire corporation. Kaiser holds a BS in Data Processing and Quantitative Analysis and an MBA, with an emphasis in Finance. She is currently a Board member of the South Portland / Cape Elizabeth Chamber of Commerce.

Joe Michaud
MaineToday.com
50 Monument Square, Ste 302
Portland, ME
(207) 822-4060

Joe Michaud is president of MaineToday.com, the internet division of Blethen Maine Newspapers, which also includes the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram, Kennebec Journal in Augusta and Morning Sentinel in Waterville. MaineToday.com is recognized in the newspaper industry as an innovator in interactive media, and has received numerous national awards. Joe was a finalist in nationwide voting for the title of 2001 New Media Pioneer from the Newspaper Association of America. In addition to enhanced sections on news, sports, business, etc, the services under MaineToday.com include 20Below, a section by and for Maine teens; a powerful interactive events calendar; an Outdoors section for enthusiasts; and other niche features. The division¹s 20 employees include specialists in online journalism, sales, technology, marketing and design. Joe has over 25 years in media, including launching two magazines. In 1995, as city editor of the Press Herald, he led the launch of MaineToday.com, one of the first such newspaper efforts in the U.S. He graduated from the University of Maine with degrees in journalism and TV/film production. Joe has been using interactive online services since 1989, and working with the Web since 1994. He was named president of the division in 1998 when the Seattle Times Company acquired Guy Gannett Communications' Maine properties.

John Petrey
Banknorth Group
Two Portland Square
Portland, ME
(207) 761-8500

John Petrey is Executive Vice President and Chief Information Officer at $23 billion Banknorth Group of Portland, Maine. With over 350 banking offices across six states, Banknorth is the third largest banking company in New England and is growing rapidly through acquisition. Mr. Petrey has twenty-five years experience in bank information technology services. Prior to joining Banknorth, Mr. Petrey was Senior Vice President at ALLTEL Information Services, a global provider of bank information technology products and services. John earned his BS from Arizona State and his MBA with emphasis on Management of Technology from Georgia Tech.

Christian Ratliff
DeLorme
Two Delorme Drive
Yarmouth, ME 04096
(207) 846-7000

Christian works for DeLorme as a Senior Technology Architect in the Core Libraries Group. Over the years he has studied all aspects of networking from the cables through to loosely coupled distributed systems. He is currently working hard to learn Microsoft Intermediate Language (MSIL) and to comprehend how STL algorithms make his life easier.

Juergen Renger
J. Renger Associates
5 Wainwright Drive
Cape Elizabeth, ME
(207) 741-2820

Juergen Renger, founder and principal of J. Renger Associates, brings over 20 years of diversified IT consulting experience in program management, project management, system definition, architecture, methodology, design, development, systems and business process re-engineering, and system implementation across a broad spectrum of technologies, development methodologies and business applications. He recently implemented an Enterprise Program Office for a leading web-based software development firm.

Andrew Robinson
net/main infosecurity
145 Newbury Street, 2nd Floor
Portland, Maine 04103
207-780-6381

Andrew T. (Andy) Robinson has over eleven (11) years of information security experience and is the President of net/main infosecurity. In 1990, Andy detected a hacker from Taiwan who had gained unauthorized access to a customer's mainframe system. After this experience, he started NMI, offering Internet security, integration, and software engineering consulting services to companies throughout the U.S. In addition to the MESDA conference, Andy speaks regularly at national conferences including the Computer Security Institute Conference, National Information Systems Security Conference, Vanguard Security Expo, and SHARE.

Fred Robinson
L.L.Bean
Freeport, ME
(207) 865-4761

Fred Robinson is a Senior Leader of Strategic Technology with L.L.Bean where he has worked for 10 years. Robinson’s main role is to plan enterprise technology direction and initiatives and conduct TCO reviews for all corporate platforms. Prior to joining Bean, he gained a great deal of experience in networks, desktops and servers. Robinson holds a BA in Math.

Paul Stubbs
UNUMProvident
2211 Congress Street
Portland, ME
(207) 575-2211

Paul Stubbs is a senior .NET architect and developer for UnumProvident Corporation. He is a Microsoft Certified Trainer and has recently presented at the Microsoft Financial Forum 2002 in Redmond Washington. Paul is co-founder of www.MaineBytes.com one of New England’s first .NET users group. He has been developing .NET applications and web services for almost two years under the Microsoft .NET early adopter program. Paul is currently working with Microsoft on developing enterprise Pocket PC applications using C# and the .NET Compact Frameworks.