EDWARD S. ROSENFELD

President

After selling his second generation family residential and office furniture rental business of which he was CEO to Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway Corporation, Ed is now a financial and  business advisor. Ed has diverse business management and entrepreneurial expertise in the retail,manufacturing, distribution,real estate, and energy management businesses.

His  practice focuses on advising family and other entrepreneurial businesses and their owners on strategic and succession planning, governance and wealth management.

He has been active in the Family Firm Institute, The Estate Planning Council of New York and the Association for Conflict Resolution.Ed has Bachelors and Masters Social Science degrees from Columbia University He received mediator training through the Bar Association of the City of New York, The Center for Mediation in Law and New York University’s Mediator Training Program and has been active in several progressive business organizations including Business Leaders for Sensible Priorities, Business for Social Responsibility and The Small Business Majority and currently serves on the Advisory Board of Cleantech Corridor.

Grant Robinson,

Co-Founder The SuccessCare® Program

A member of a family accounting business for a number of years, Grant Robinson founded his own public accounting practice in 1986. Having coached many entrepreneurs and their families through the process of planning for the future, Grant acted upon his passion for family businesses and launched The SuccessCare® Program in 1996.

His objective is to ensure that business owners have a choice around the eventual ‘sale’ of their business and that their goals and objectives are met. For families that choose to transition the business to the next generation, Grant focuses on ensuring that all parties are treated fairly and equitably.

Grant has facilitated the family business transition process for many clients including both high profile and medium-sized Canadian businesses. The following are examples of some of Grant’s consulting work:

• Development of a family vision and a related business vision
• Creation of a decision-making process for families who work together
• Creation of the owner’s estate plan
• Design of a comprehensive succession plan that meets the objectives of all
• Creation of a detailed business plans for growth.
• Design and implementation of a Family Council with regular facilitated meetings
• Development of a Family Charters that included a family participation plan
• Design and implementation of an ownership advisory boards
• Design and implementation of a management boards
• Review of the family business governance structure

Grant is an ongoing contributor to various magazines and publications. As the technical editor for the CA Magazine’s Business Advisory Team, he regularly publishes articles that support and motivate business owners. He earned his economics degree at the University of Guelph is a member of • CAFÉ, the Canadian Association of Family Enterprise, member of the National Business Advisors’ Steering Committee and a Family Firm Institute member and has completed its Family Business Advisor Certification Program.

Gary Brooks

Family Business Advisor

Gary Brooks is nationally recognized as a turnaround and crisis management professional. He hasover 35 years of diversified executive management and consulting experience. He has counseled and provided interim management services to more than 400 companies. Clients are referred principally by those who may be at financial risk (e.g. lenders, investors, directors, etc.) if an enterprise fails to meet performance expectations and by members of the professional community.

Gary also serves as a facilitator to help family members benefit from alternative means of dispute resolution. Gary’s involvement in cases often offers a new (sometimes only) means by which the barriers among all concerned parties, particularly lenders, creditors, employees, customers, and family members can be lowered and efforts toward resolving the issues can begin.

Currently, Gary is a member of the Board of Directors of Diomed Holdings, Inc., a medical products company specializing in minimally invasive therapies, Chairman of the Board of VRSim, Inc., developers of virtual reality technology and serves as the Managing Director of the Central Fund of the Community Development Venture Capital Alliance.

Gary was a founding member of the Turnaround Management Association (TMA), and served as first President of the Association of Certified Turnaround Professionals. He also served as Director and as national Chair of the Institute of Management Consultants (IMC). He was graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and received an MS degree from the University of Rochester. . Credentials include election as a Certified Management Consultant (CMC) and as a Certified Turnaround Professional (CTP).

Mr. Brooks writes frequently for publication in Journals serving the profession and lectures often, having spoken to the Family Firm Institute, Turnaround Management Association and at numerous private wealth conferences. He has also served as Visiting Professor at Schools of Business Administration of the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, Long Island University, Pace University and the University of Rochester..