Donald L. Darnell
Donald L. Darnell is a Management Consultant and Engineer with 25 years of industry experience that includes strategy development, process redesign, market research, business planning, and technical project management. Don holds a degree in Electrical Engineering from Michigan Tech. University, and an MBA from the Wharton School. His professional experience involves 75 companies ranging from heavy industry to high technology, and from emerging ventures to mature multinationals. Don specializes in assisting clients to research, develop, and implement effective commercialization plans for emerging technologies. These have included advanced technologies for alternative energy production (e.g. fuel cell, bioethanol, gasification, solar), power storage (e.g. battery, ultracapacitor, and flywheel storage), and manufacturing (e.g. process monitoring and controls, laser inspection, and automation).

Don has worked directly with executive management on most projects, but also has experience facilitating mid-level management and client technical teams through the redesign of business processes and the implementation of new strategies. Although he has independently completed market and industry research projects, as well as formal strategy recommendations and business plans, Don’s most successful assignments involve collaborative work with client management. A cooperative approach more effectively leverages a client manager’s expert knowledge, and it provides the opportunity for constructive coaching and advising which may ultimately reduce the need for future consulting assistance. The mutual education that comes with a collaborative approach can be particularly helpful when firms seek to raise venture capital or to establish industry alliances.


David K. Jamison
Jamison Advisory Services, LLC provides a diverse portfolio of services tailored to the client’s needs. Dave Jamison, Principal, has over 30 years’ experience in government and private business, with 10 years focused on entrepreneurial business ventures.

Mr. Jamison gained his experience in the private sector while serving as the Manufacturing Plant Superintendent for CPS Industries, Inc., the Director of Industrial Programs at Teledyne-Lewisburg, Inc., the President and CEO of Ross-Kinkaid Engineering, Inc., and as a consultant to Maxima Corporation and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

Mr. Jamison joined Oak Ridge National Laboratory in 1988, where he served first as Director of Alliances and Partnerships, creating collaborations and joint research ventures with GM, Ford, Chrysler, Coors, Texas Instruments, Pratt & Whitney, and others toward developing the National Transportation Center, supported by DOE, the U.S. Department of Transportation, and six national laboratories. Subsequently, he served as Director of the Resource Center for Innovation, where he secured over $4 million in new funding for the operation of an entrepreneurial resource center and established a not-for-profit consortium of over 30


Marti Elder
www.martielder.com
Marti Elder of Marti Elder, Inc. guides innovation to connect with commercial success. Her background in technology management started in the Montana R&D industry in the 1980s as the business director and financial officer of YES Technologies. During her tenure, YES achieved millions of dollars of Small Business Innovation Research funding; prosecuted dozens of patents; and negotiated licenses for their proprietary mining, packaging, software and sensor technologies. This experience formed the foundation for Elder's current consulting practice, which is focused on commercialization planning and licensing of innovative technology.

As an "inventor mentor" to clients on three continents, and a licensing specialist for TechLink on behalf of the U.S. Department of Defense’s technology transfer efforts, she helps clients maximize the potential of their intellectual property. Elder facilitates about 10 to 15 patent licenses each year in a wide variety of industries. Her efforts contributed significantly to TechLink assistance on nearly half of all the patent licenses for Department of Defense technology in 2007.  

Elder is a member of the pre-eminent Licensing Executives Society and her articles have been published by the leading national publications for inventing, including PatentCafe.Com and Inventors' Digest.


Jeff L. Birkby
For the last 20 years, Mr. Birkby has served as a program manager with the National Center for Appropriate Technology. With extensive experience in managing large federal government programs in the energy and sustainable development sectors, Mr. Birkby advises the company on government contracting as well as strategic planning. Highlights of his work include directing the Energy Information Division of the Montana Energy Office (1980-1987), managing the national energy information clearinghouse for the U.S. Department of Energy (1987-1993), and managing several national and international web sites for federal agencies (1995-present), including the acclaimed U.S. Department of Energy's Smart Communities Network.


Christopher Allen
www.chrisallenassociates.com
Christopher Allen, Principal of Christopher Allen + Associates, has over 18 years experience in providing strategic/management services to private sector, public agency, and nonprofit clients. Specializing in research and analysis, strategic planning, and sustainable development, he holds a bachelor's degree in International Business from the University of Texas.

Mr. Allen has managed projects for a variety of private sector clients as well as the U.S. Department of Energy, the National Center for Appropriate Technology, and the United Nations Man and Biosphere Program. His international experience includes work and studies in Europe, Southeast Asia, and Mexico. He also serves on the Board of Directors of A World Institute for Sustainable Humanity. Additionally, he is managing partner of CROMO Developments LLC, a real estate development firm with a membership of the North Texas Chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council.


Josh Turner
Founded in 1993, Turner and Associates is an enterprise-development consulting firm based in Helena, Montana. We work with private enterprise, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations to: • clarify enterprise goals, conduct current assessments, and develop positioning strategies including business plans, staffing plans, marketing plans, and communication plans;

• plan, manage, and coordinate programs, projects, and events;
• design and implement public relations and communications plans and campaigns;
• compose and conduct market surveys and opinion polls;
• monitor, assess, and evaluate projects, programs, and enterprises; and
• research, compose, edit, and produce a wide range of publications, including proposals, position papers, reports, guidebooks, manuals, brochures, fact sheets, speeches, scripts, and advertising copy.

Chester Allen, PhD
Dr. Chester Allen is Professor Emeritus in Finance at California State University Sonoma and specializes in financial analysis and modeling. His 30-year university teaching and publishing experience is complemented by a broad array of management consulting engagements with the State of Texas, Indian Rivers International, International Tours Inc., Commercial National Bank of Texas, Ravenswood Winery, the University of California at Berkeley, Glenn Ellen Winery, Sonoma County Economic Development Board, and Course Co. Inc., among others.


John English
John English has 15 years’ experience administering Linux and Windows Web server technologies. His scripting skills include Perl, PHP, ASP, Python, Bash and Rails. Mr. English has Web site design experience and is versed in HTML, CSS, MySQL, Apache, and IIS. He is also well experienced in Web site marketing and usability skills. His latest obsession is XML/XSL programming and its application toward RSS feeds and Content Management Systems. Mr. English is currently employed by the National Center for Appropriate Technology and serves on the board of the George Grant Chapter of Trout Unlimited.


Leesa Nopper
www.nicheworx.com
Leesa Nopper is the principal of Marketing Works, a consultancy founded in 2002 and specializing business development and helping industrial companies grow their sales and enter new markets. Leesa’s experience and proven approach focus on identifying and understanding her clients’ customer values and leveraging those values to reap market rewards, while anticipating future customer preferences.

Marketing Works’ clients include manufacturers first and foremost, as well as universities and state and local economic development organizations. Among Leesa’s clients are numerous national, regional and Montana companies, including Kraft Foods, Inc., Hershey Chocolate USA, Hi Country Snack Foods, Inc., Air Design Inc., and the Montana Manufacturing Extension Center (MMEC), to name but a few.

Nopper is a certified Eureka Winning Ways Coach of Doug Hall’s nationally acclaimed Eureka Ranch and has taught marketing courses at Montana State University for six years. She has held positions as sales representative, sales manager, plant manager, and marketing manager in various companies with products in the marketplace.