The following members of the Rhode Island business community have volunteered to participate as judges in the 2009 Rhode Island Business Plan Competition. All are highly regarded by their peers and all have extensive business development experience.
Richard L. Bready
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Nortek, Inc.  Richard Bready joined Nortek as treasurer in 1975 and in 1990 was elected chairman of the board and CEO. Prior to joining Nortek, Richard was an independent financial consultant and an audit manager with a major public accounting firm. He serves on the boards of Professional Facilities Management, Inc.; Newport International Film Festival; Junior Achievement; Providence Performing Arts Center; Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council (RIPEC); the National Conference of Christians and Jews; the YMCA of Greater Providence; and is a trustee emeritus of Trinity Repertory Company. He also serves on the Advisory Board of Sterling Investment Partners, and is a corporation member and serves on the National Council, Alumni Executive Forum and Audit Committee of Northeastern University, and a corporation member of Rhode Island Hospital. He holds a bachelor's degree in economics from St. Anselm College, a master's degree in accounting from Northeastern University, and an honorary Doctorate of Business Administration from Johnson & Wales University. He is a Certified Public Accountant in Massachusetts.
M. Cary Collins
Director, The Global Entrepreneurship Program, Bryant University  Cary Collins, experienced in entrepreneurial financing, was invited in 2007 to create a new entrepreneurship academic program at Bryant University as The Trustee Professor of Entrepreneurship, where he also is associate professor of finance. In early 2003, Cary orchestrated the sale of Risk Management Solutions’ technologies to a third-party provider. The following year he negotiated & closed a deal for the migration of RMS’ consulting clients andremaining technologies to ERS Group. As a principal in ERS Group, he oversaw the development, marketing, partnering & strategic positioning of ERS Group’s offerings with financial services firms. He also previously served as a trust investments officer, managing a $300 million portfolio. He earned a BSBA degree in finance from Concord College, an MBA from Virginia Polytechnic Institute, and a Ph.D. from The University of Georgia.
Larry Davidson, CPA
Principal, Kahn, Litwin, Renza & Co., Ltd.  Larry Davidson has more than 35 years of experience in public accounting, including extensive experience serving clients in venture capital and private equity. His responsibilities at KLR include the coordination of all services to a variety of entrepreneurial companies, specializing in financial needs of closely-held, venture-backed, and publicly-owned companies. Larry is also responsible for all Sarbanes-Oxley related services. Larry’s career in public accounting began in 1968 with the Boston office of Ernst & Young. He was a resident with Ernst & Young’s National Office of Accounting and Auditing before transferring to Providence in 1983 as a partner. He has served on the boards of the Better Business Bureau, Rhode Island Philharmonic, Rhode Island Historical Society, United Way Campaign, Urban League of Rhode Island, and the Providence Children’s Museum.
Sixcia Devine
Providence Regional Director, Rhode Island Small Business Development Center  Sixcia Devine provides one-on-one counseling sessions, develops and teaches business related workshops, provides loan assistance, and works with business resources partners throughout Rhode Island. She is also the founder of SpeakNow! Spanish, a two-day Spanish immersion program designed for executives looking to become immersed in the culture and language without leaving the country. Sixcia was formerly the Training and Development Specialist at the Center for Women & Enterprise in Providence. In 2007 she was named one of 40 Under 40 Young professionals of the year by the Providence Business News. In 2006 she was named the SBA Woman in Business Champion of the Year. She is a member of the Leadership Rhode Island Recruitment Committee, and a member of the board of the Providence Latin American Film Festival, Rhode Island International Film Festival, and Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
Margaret D. Farrell
Partner, Hinckley, Allen & Snyder LLP  Peggy Farrell chairs the Hinckley, Allen Securities Practice Group and focuses her practice in the area of corporate and securities law. She advises both public and privately held companies regarding organization, mergers and acquisitions, leveraged recapitalizations and reorganizations, as well as personal and business tax planning and general corporate matters. She has extensive experience in handling public and private equity and debt securities offerings and venture capital financings, ongoing SEC regulatory compliance and reporting and investment company, investment adviser, and broker-dealer registration and regulation. Peggy is also knowledgeable in computer and other high technology law, including software licensing and copyright and trademark protection. She is chairman of the board of trustees of Women & Infants Hospital, a trustee of Butler Hospital, and a director of Care New England Health System.
 Katharine Flynn
Director of Business Development, Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation
Katharine joined RIEDC in 2004 as a business development manager specializing in consumer goods and design, and was promoted to director in 2006. At RIEDC she is responsible for a team of business development specialists who help businesses large and small in Rhode Island as they grow. Prior to joining RIEDC Katharine worked in investment banking in New York City for more than 20 years. She currently serves on the board of Moses Brown School as well as on the advisory board for Year Up Providence. Katharine has a bachelors degree from Brown University in mathematical economics.
Ann-Marie Harrington
Founder and President, Embolden Design  Ann-Marie Harrington launched Embolden Design in 1998 and has developed it into a leading and award-winning web development and consulting firm based in Pawtucket, RI. Today, the firm services 150 local and national clients in the nonprofit, philanthropic, educational, life sciences, and financial services sectors. Ann-Marie, a native Rhode Islander, launched Embolden following successful careers in public policy and social services. She and her team have grown the company by providing unmatched expertise in new and emerging Internet technology, highly personalized service, and a sound business development strategy. Ann-Marie earned a degree in business administration from Bryant College and a Master of Social Work from Rhode Island College.
Garrett B. Hunter
President, Business Development Company of Rhode Island  Garrett Hunter, whose banking career spanned three decades, was named president of the Business Development Company of Rhode Island in 1989. Since then, BDCRI, based in Providence, has provided gap funding, direct funding, and equity financing to more than 200 Rhode Island businesses that collectively created, preserved, or enhanced more than 8,000 jobs in the state. During his tenure as president, Garrett, among other accomplishments, oversaw the infusion to BDCRI of more than $6 million in new capital from local banks, which is unprecedented among business development companies in the United States. Since 1998, he led a major effort to bring venture capital investors to Rhode Island, which made available tens of millions of dollars to local emerging companies. In 2005, he co-founded Cherrystone Angel Group, Rhode Island’s first angel investment group. Garrett has been a board member of Atlantek, Inc. and Andera, both Rhode Island companies, and Lab-Volt Systems, Inc., an education technology company. Garrett earned a B.A. from Brown University and an MBA from New York University.
Stephen Lane
Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Item Group  Steve co-founded Item Group and over two decades has built up a dynamic and entrepreneurial design and development firm. Steve focuses on defining and executing new initiatives, both corporate and long-range planning, capitalization and strategic partnerships. Steve thrives as an active leader in the design, entrepreneurial and venture communities, and is an adjunct faculty member at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) in the department of industrial design. A Rhode Island native, Steve holds bachelor degrees in industrial design and in fine arts from RISD.
David Mitchell
Dean, College of Business, Johson and Wales University  David Mitchell has been involved in higher education for 15 years assuming his current position as dean of the College of Business in 2006. Previous to that for six years, he was the assistant dean of the College of Business, and before that, an associate faculty member for three years in the College. Prior to working in higher education, he worked in the business sector, including owning his own restaurant business for five years. David is a member of the State of RI Knowledge Economy Hot Team and he leads a JWU Experiential Education collaboration effort with TEXTRON and the Governor’s Office.He has also served on the board of directors of the Rhode Island Center for Performance Excellence, and on the advisory board for McGraw Hill Glencoe Publishers.
Lisa Nelson
Consultant, Medical Informatics, Nelson Consulting  Lisa Nelson has more than 20 years experience working with innovative start-ups, established high-tech giants, and local Rhode Island businesses. She has been part of the management team at two entrepreneurial ventures that ranked for several years on the Inc.500 list of fastest-growing privately held firms. As a management consultant she helps local companies deploy new technology to support expansion initiatives. Between 1999 and 2005, Lisa served as Marketing Director for Heartlab, Inc., one of Rhode Island’s entrepreneurial success stories and a pioneer in the development of digital cardiology information management systems. Lisa holds an MBA from Regis University and a BA in Mathematics and Computer Science from the University of Massachusetts, Boston.
Weng Tao
CSO and Vice President, Research & Development, Neurotech USA  Dr. Weng Tao has more than 18 years of experience in research and development, including 16 years with pharmaceutical and biotech industries. For the past nine years, her effort has focused on the development of encapsulated cell technology (ECT). Prior to joining Neurotech USA in 2000, Dr. Tao was Director of Cell Research and the Team Leader at CytoTherapeutics, Inc. where she was responsible for the development of ECT using genetically modified cells. Previously, she held various managerial and research positions in the area of immunological diseases, including inflammation, infectious diseases (vaccine) and cancer at American Cyanamid, M6 Pharmaceuticals, and Regeneron. Dr. Tao received her M.D. from the Capital Institute of Medicine in Beijing, was awarded her Ph.D. degree in cell physiology and biophysics from the University of Connecticut Health Center at Farmington, and received her post-doctoral training at Yale Medical School.
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