James Kernan

CRN Magazine said that James Kernan is "a rising star executive to watch.” And when you review his 20-plus year track record of creating dazzling leaps in sales, profits, and growth for IT companies, you don’t need to wonder why.

“Fast Growth” extraordinaire James Kernan is a no-nonsense, hard-hitting technology entrepreneur with an uncanny ability to build and lead teams, negotiate big contracts, and pilot IT service organizations to extraordinary new levels of success and profitability.

His expertise includes recruiting, building, and compensating “top gun” sales and marketing teams, leveraging IT partners, developing strategic go-to-market plans, managing strong financials and profitability for IT service firms, and in-depth knowledge of commercial, government, educational and medical markets. He has been recognized and written up as an extraordinary “example of success” in industry publications such as CRN, Business Solutions, VAR Business, CRM Today, and Inc. Magazine

More than 20 years experience in Executive Sales Management, Business Consulting, and Information Technology Sales. Knowledge includes Security, Storage, Disaster Recovery, Web Integration, IS Engineering, Server Based Computing, CRM, Business Development, and Marketing. Extensive P&L management experience with successful track record. Possess strong computer skills, and an in-depth knowledge of eBusiness in commercial, government, educational and medical markets. His team oriented, motivating, enthusiastic, and assertive style coupled with his results oriented business experience and technical background make him an excellent Business Coach.

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:

• Developed management, sales and marketing plans for business that
  grew over 3000% in 5years at Networks Plus Technology Group, Inc.
• Grew sales 1000% over a seven-year period at TIG.
• Increased annual sales from 8 million in 1989 to 32 Million in 1993 at OCC
• #1 Fastest Growing Reseller nationally in 2003, CRN Magazine
• Fastest Growing Privately held company in 2004, SD Business Journal
• INC Top 500 in 2005, INC Magazine
• College Marketing Thesis - created marketing campaign that made a lounge in Lincoln Nebraska the largest Schlitz distributorship in the Midwest in 8 weeks.
• Member of The Best CEO Group

Robin Robins

Robin Robins is an independent marketing consultant, sales trainer, and author who specializes in inexpensive and highly effective marketing strategies for small to medium VARs, Systems Integrators, MSPs, Solution Providers, and IT consulting firms. She is the developer and author of the Technology Marketing Toolkit System, which is considered to be the definitive guide to marketing technology products and services.

Robin has been a favorite speaker for IT industry events such as System Builder Summit, SMB Nation, CompTIA’s BreakAway, CT Summit, ASCII Boot Camps, and Strategies for Success and has been interviewed and published in VAR Business and Sales and Marketing Magazines. She currently writes a monthly column for eChannelLine.com, SMB Nation Partner Magazine, Microsoft’s Partner web site, and runs the largest sales and marketing coaching program in the world for IT consulting firms.

In addition to her extensive experience with IT service firms, Robin has also developed marketing strategies for over 1,200 businesses in 14 different industries across North America, Australia, and Europe. This includes both online and off-line marketing strategies for computer training schools & universities, franchise organizations, software companies (Novell, Surf Control, AVG anti-virus, and Microsoft), financial services, seminars and events, member organizations, and a variety of consumer products and services. This vast experience has given Robin a broad knowledge of hundreds of marketing and sales tactics used by some of the most successful and sales driven organizations in the world.

Robin is also an aerobics instructor and a dog lover. She has two adorable Jack Russell Terriers, Ozzy and Zoey.

Tony Peraica

Tony Peraica is the principal and founder of Anthony J. Peraica&Associates. He also proudly represents the 16th District on the Cook County Board of Commissioners.

A true American success story, Tony was born in Croatia in 1957, and was orphaned at the age of 11. He came to the United States when he was 13. He attended the University of Illinois at Chicago, where he earned his B.A., and went on to earn his law degree from the John Marshall Law School. He was admitted to the Illinois Bar in 1984.

Elected to the Cook County Board of Commissioners in 2002, Peraica was a member of the alliance of mostly-freshman commissioners that defeated Stroger’s proposed 2004 budget. Since that time, Tony has championed a reform agenda on the Cook County Board.

He resides in Riverside, Illinois with his wife Nilo and is the proud father of his daughter, Anisa, and son, Marko.