GENEDGE - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Innovation Portfolio Director, Bechtel Corporation
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- President, ESI Total Fuel Management
Job Titles:
- Engineer
- Emerging Business Program Manager
- Manager of the GENEDGE Emerging Business Program
Andrae Kirkland is an award-winning engineer and thought leader at the intersection of tech and lean business design who has led transformative initiatives for world-renowned organizations - NASA, Nike, Anheuser-Busch InBev, and Twitter. Andrae has consistently earned recognition for the business impact of the solutions he's delivered.
Andrae is a former Board of Directors member of the Reusable Packaging Association, who advocated for and led the development of sustainable global supply chain solutions. He currently sits as an Advisory Board Member for the CX Network, leading transformations across customer experiences in today's digital-first economy. Andrae further demonstrates his expertise as an Advisory Board Member for the Process Excellence Network. Previously, he served as the Marketing Advisor and Executive Sponsor for Community Consulting Teams, a nonprofit providing management consulting services to other nonprofits.
Job Titles:
- Vice President of Operations
- Vice President, Programs and House Accounts
Anthony (Tony) Cerilli is the Vice President of Operations at GENEDGE. Tony develops and directs a statewide network of practice managers and subject matter experts to serve the needs of manufacturing, research and development, and engineering businesses as they seek to innovate, compete, and grow. He has extensive experience working with the MEP National Network TM, beginning with his previous position as the Director of National Programs. Tony is a Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt.
Prior to joining GENEDGE, Tony worked in automotive fuel system manufacturing with Continental AG, Siemens VDO, and Caterpillar, holding positions in engineering, continuous improvement, and production management. Prior, he worked in the nuclear power industry in Instrumentation and Controls with ComEd and in nuclear propulsion while in the U.S. Navy Submarine Service.
Job Titles:
- Administrative Manager
- Administration
Job Titles:
- Business Services Director, Operations
- Operations
A former manufacturing executive, Eades has led numerous large plant transformations, including performance turnarounds, rapid volume growth and product line changes.
He has extensive experience as a supervisor, engineer, production manager and operations manager. For over 15 years, he served as a plant manager for companies such as Blue Ridge Fireboard, IKEA Industry, Elkay Manufacturing, Mohawk Industries, and Armstrong Flooring.
Eades earned his bachelor's and master's degrees in mechanical engineering from Virginia Tech. A resident of Danville, Va., he is an officer of the Pittsylvania County Public Library Foundation and served on the board of the Danville-Pittsylvania County Chamber of Commerce for several years.
Job Titles:
- Executive Director
- President
- President of Virginia 's
Bill Donohue is President of Virginia's GENEDGE Alliance. The company, in its 27th year, is a Commonwealth of VA political subdivision which is the best public resource in VA helping companies Innovate, Compete and Grow. Bill leads a regionally deployed network of talented consultants who are responsible for improving the competitiveness of the technology and manufacturing sectors in Virginia, representing 12% of the Commonwealth's GDP. Bill's focus is on expanding services regionally to drive Strategic Innovation, Growth and Reshoring opportunities throughout relevant industrial clusters and vertical supply chains. This includes sectors such as medical devices and PPE, cybersecurity, nuclear shipbuilding, water purification and advanced manufacturing technologies. GENEDGE is the Virginia affiliate of the NIST Manufacturing Extension Program.
Bill's career began with GE Plastics and Silicones in the engineered materials business unit. Ultimately, he managed a global investment and technology program for a $2.5 billion annual revenues business. Prior to joining GENEDGE, he completed general management level strategic start up, expansion and turnaround assignments for Fortune 500 companies in sealants, packaging, pressure sensitive adhesive, and electronic films businesses.
Bill is a 1981 graduate of the University of Rochester and in 1983 the GE Chemical Management Program. His active board memberships include the American Small Manufacturers Coalition, the Old Dominion University Batten College of Engineering, and the Commonwealth Center for Advanced Manufacturing Board of Directors. He is the vice chair for the MEP National Network Leadership Team.
Bill enjoys golf, gardening, art, his golden doodle dogs, Virginia Tech and Kansas City Chiefs football. He and his wife Pamela reside in Locust Grove, VA.
Job Titles:
- Office and Security Manager
Job Titles:
- Engagement Consultant, Digital Twin Solutions
- Programs and House Accounts
Chad has 29 years of experience in structural drafting, 2D & 3D design, field engineering
Job Titles:
- Business Services Director, Operations
Job Titles:
- Regional Growth Manager, Southside / Lynchburg
Cheryl Valentine is a Regional Growth Manager at GENEDGE where she will lead business development efforts to support manufacturers to innovate, compete, and grow in Region 3.
Prior to joining GENEDGE, Cheryl was the director of New Business & Underwriting for Pacific Life Insurance Company. Prior to this Cheryl was previously in the footwear industry where she oversaw sales and marketing and supported over 2,000 independent footwear retailers across the United States. Prior to this she was with Carilion Clinic in Roanoke, Va., where she was on a team that started a new medical school in conjunction with Virginia Tech. At the medical school she managed various functional areas including marketing, communications, strategy, and institutional effectiveness. Cheryl started her career with Coopers and Lybrand (now PricewaterhouseCoopers) as an associate working on buy-side mergers and acquisitions in New York City.
Cheryl has a Master's of Business Administration from the University of Virginia, Darden School of Business and a Bachelor's of Business Administration from the University of Michigan.
Cheryl lives with her husband and two children in Lynchburg, Va. She enjoys cooking for her friends and family and being outdoors, especially if it involves downhill skiing
Job Titles:
- Client Relations Specialist
Job Titles:
- Engagement Manager - Defense
As Engagement Manager - Defense Sector, Dave Bartlow will work with leaders in manufacturing, engineering and technology companies to analyze, plan, execute and evaluate client projects with GENEDGE. He will be responsible for delivering multiple resources, services and partnerships for large-scale program and projects, as well as financial management of the contracts that are executed. His service area includes the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax, Falls Church, Manassas and Manassas Park, and the counties of Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William.
Before joining the GENEDGE team, David founded Pendul Project Management where he worked as President, Consultant, and Program Manager. Previously, he was the Vice President of Programs & Operations for Temeku Technologies (TTi), a Program Manager at L-3 Maritime Systems, as well as an Associate at Booz Allen Hamilton. In addition to these roles, David also served as an Action Officer/Briefer for the Navy Crisis Action Team and a Training Officer/Combat Information Center Officer/Assistant Operations Officer in the USS DOYLE (FFG 39) and USS MCINERNEY (FFG 8) in the U.S. Navy.
David is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and holds Bachelor of Science in Political Science. He also holds a Master of Arts in Homeland Security from American Military University and a Master of Science in Project Management from the George Washington University. David is trained and/or certified in; CMMI Training; PMI - Risk Management Professional (PMI-RMP); LEED Green Associate; Project Management Professional (PMP); and Strategic Architecture/Business Process Modeling.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Professor and Department Head, VT Grado School of Industrial Engineering
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- President, Danville Community College
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- President, Mountain Empire Community College
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- President, Virginia State University
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- President, Southside Community College
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- President, Shenandoah University
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- CEO, Stilwell Technology and Robotics LLC
Job Titles:
- CONNEX Marketplace Manager
Job Titles:
- Growth Manager
- Program Manager for the Virginia Tech Grado Department of Industrial
- Regional Growth Manager, Roanoke / New River Region
James Smith is a Regional Growth Manager in the Roanoke/New River service area that includes the cities of Bristol, Covington, Galax, Lynchburg, Norton, Radford, Roanoke, Salem and includes the counties of Alleghany, Amherst, Appomattox, Bedford, Botetourt, Campbell, Craig, Floyd, Franklin, Giles, Montgomery, Pulaski, Roanoke, and Wythe.
James' role as a Regional Growth Manager is to establish and maintain new relationships with economic developers, industrial associations, and local manufacturing, industrial, and technology companies in his region. He collaborates directly with clients managing the full lifecycle of projects and supporting them in their strategic goals.
In addition, James is the Program Manager for the Virginia Tech Grado Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering (ISE) Senior Design Program. The program is designed to be the capstone, integrative experience that provides the basic skills needed to effectively plan, manage, and implement technical projects. Specifically, students work in teams to apply learned skills to real-world manufacturing opportunities, improving processes and accelerating growth.
With 38 years of industry experience, James has proven expertise in strategic business development, systems process improvement, workforce solutions, project/program management, product design, quality management, fiber optic electronics, and automation controls systems.
James earned his BS in Management and Leadership from Bluefield College and has considerable education in Manufacturing Technology with a focus in Electronics from East Carolina University. He is certified through the Siemens Technik Akademie of Berlin, Germany to teach the Siemens Mechatronics Systems Certification Program, and to assess program graduates.
Prior to joining GENEDGE, he served as Workforce Development Program Manager at Virginia Western Community College in Roanoke. Outside of GENEDGE, James has membership affiliations with various regional organizations including chambers of commerce, city planning commissions, and higher education boards.
Job Titles:
- Director, Marketing & Content Service Delivery
Jeanette has over 10 years of experience in Sales, Training, Marketing, and Client Account Management across the Tech, Financial, and Logistics Industries. She has several marketing certifications and holds a bachelor's degree in Business; received certification in Human Resources Management.
In June of 2020, Jeanette completed an Honors (Alpha Chi, DC Gamma Chapter) MBA in Digital Marketing and Entrepreneurship with a 4.0 from Strayer University's Cheddar Program.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- President & Owner, Tabet Manufacturing Company
Job Titles:
- Engagement Manager
- in 2017 As a Project Manager
Jeff Shook joined GENEDGE in 2017 as a Project Manager with primary responsibility serving clients and partners in the Shenandoah Valley. Today he is currently an Automation and Advanced Manufacturing Manager.
Jeff has over 30 years of experience in a variety of industries. His experience includes lean and six sigma, design for manufacturing, and new equipment and production startup. His specialty is manufacturing process development, incorporating new manufacturing methods and lean processes into manufacturing. Jeff has been responsible for over $7 million dollars in capital equipment sourcing in his manufacturing roles. Often designing entire manufacturing lines as diverse as high-volume consumer electronics, to large chiller HVAC manufacturing facilities, incorporating the latest manufacturing technologies. His background and training as a practitioner and master trainer in kaizen methodologies led his team to a National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) 1st place award for Workforce Excellence in 1997. Jeff learned lean Toyota Production System firsthand in Kawagoe Japan working and training on Pioneer's Lexus (Toyota) production lines.
Jeff earned his BS in Electrical Engineering from the University of Dayton in Dayton, Ohio. He has certifications including Six Sigma Black Belt, DFM, OSHA 10-hour, Kaizen master trainer, and CSCP (certified supply chain professional). His office is located at Blue Ridge Community College's Weyers Cave campus.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- President / Founder, Laser Thermal
Job Titles:
- Business Services Director, Operations
Joseph J. Stark III is GENEDGE's Business Services Director - Operations. In this role, his primary responsibilities are to craft and execute a solutions path to support manufacturers specific needs by consulting alongside GENEDGE Regional Growth Managers (RGMs) concerning value-added solutions to best address a prospective client's situations, challenges, and needs.
Joe also has a supporting role as an expert for manufacturers and manufacturing. He strives to understand emerging trends, technologies, and challenges facing the client base/market in the GENEDGE service regions, leveraging Third-Party resources where applicable, and propose changes to GENEDGE's strategy as appropriate.
He is a major influence in building GENEDGE's Alliance Partner Network through staying knowledgeable of currently approved Third-Party resources of their service areas, expertise, capabilities, and previous project performance, while identifying resource gaps and provide this information to the appropriate manager to address. He provides support in the technical vetting of interested Third-Party resources and onboarding new Third Parties on how to deliver to GENEDGE technical standards/requirements.
Joe brings over 35 years of industrial experience in the operations and manufacturing environment. He has experience developing and leading teams in all functional areas of operations and production with a continuous improvement focus initiating and implementing a culture of change while building high performance teams. He holds a BS in Industrial Engineering from the Pennsylvania State University with a focus in Operations Management.
Job Titles:
- Business Manager
- Chief Financial Officer
Joshua Dawson is currently the Chief Financial Officer and Business Manager based at GENEDGE headquarters in Martinsville.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- CEO & Co - Founder, Micronic Technologies, Inc
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- VP Engineering & Process Development, Circ Earth
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- President, Dante Valve Co
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Lead Salesforce Systems Engineer, MITRE
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- President & Founder, Clarke Precision Machine
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Interim Director of Operations
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- President & CEO, AccuTec Blades, Inc
Job Titles:
- Director of Client Services
- Director Client Services
Sam Wolford is a Director of Client Services in the southwest Virginia service area that includes the cities of Bristol, Galax, Norton and includes the counties of Bland, Buchanan, Carroll, Dickenson, Grayson, Lee, Russell, Scott, Smyth, Tazewell, Washington, Wise, and Wythe.
Sam's role as a Director of Client Services is to establish and maintain new relationships with economic developers, industrial associations, and local manufacturing, industrial, and technology companies in his region. He collaborates directly with clients managing the full lifecycle of projects and supporting them in their strategic goals.
With over 24+ years of experience, Sam has expertise in leading, mentoring, developing, managing, and implementing solutions in engineering, technologies, emergency operations, process improvement, organization development, workforce development, and project/program management.
Sam has a personal narrative of strategic innovation, and creative collaboration, leading to successful operational and program management, and project delivery. He has tackled complex challenges and provided programmatic solutions for many clients and organizations across the region he serves. This is evident from having successfully led GENEDGE programs including the Trade Adjustment Assistance for Firms (TAAF) program in partnership with the MidAtlantic Trade Adjustment Assistance Center (MATAAC), the regional Heart of Appalachia Collaborative Economic Transition Project, and GENEDGE itself through an internal organization improvement program.
Prior to joining GENEDGE, he supported Tazewell County by leading the operation of Public Safety, Technology, Workforce Development, and by providing special project coordination across various governmental disciplines. Tazewell County received two Governor's Technology Awards for Innovative Use of Technology in Economic Development and in Government through Sam's program work during his time there. Sam holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Architectural Engineering Technology from Bluefield State College School of Engineering Technology & Computer Science and holds competencies in Lean Six Sigma Blackbelt
Outside of GENEDGE, Sam is actively involved in non-profit organizations as a member of boards of directors and advisory boards for both educational institutions and service organizations.
Scott Schein is GENEDGE's Chief Operating Officer (COO). He works directly with senior leaders in manufacturing, engineering, and technology companies as well as partner and affiliate organizations and is responsible for leading client engagement, services, and delivery by managing a professional team of business advisors, subject matter experts, and qualified third parties to maximize impacts. Prior to his current role, Scott was Director, National Network & Supply Chain Programs, managing national network programs, including supply chain, as mandated through the Manufacturing Extension Partnership National Network™ (MEPNN) for centers like GENEDGE. Scott brings over twenty-three years of work experience in the defense, aerospace, & aviation industries. Prior to joining GENEDGE, he was President of United Equipment Corporation, a mid-market aerospace and defense supplier located in Richmond; the Director of Strategic Planning and Analysis at Airbus North America's military business unit in Herndon; the Director of Aerospace and Defense at Highland Capital Management, an investment management company; and the Director of Business Development for the airframe systems division of Honeywell Aerospace in Phoenix, Arizona. Scott holds a BS in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Michigan and an MBA specializing in General Management from Georgetown University.
Job Titles:
- Senior Executive
- Regional Growth Manager, Hampton Roads
Sean Storan is a Regional Growth Manager at GENEDGE where he will lead business development efforts to support manufacturers to innovate, compete, and grow in Region 5.
Sean is an accomplished senior executive with an extensive record of achievement across trade, international, and organizational boundaries, building and leveraging strategic partnerships with individuals, companies, grassroots organizations and targeted demographics to achieve market expansion. Diverse business development experience in both public and private sectors, including planning and executing successful political campaigns, winning over $600M in foreign direct investment for the Irish government, and growing a start-up from inception to $20M in contracts in less than 2 years.
Prior to working for GENEDGE, he was the Senior Vice President of Business Development at Integrity ISR, LLC, where he played pivotal role in growing the start-up to over $6M in annual revenue with over 50 highly skilled employees in 2023.
Sean received his Bachelor's Degree in 2004, from Sligo Institute of Technology in Sligo, Ireland, where he graduated with honors.
Job Titles:
- Regional Growth Manager for the Shenandoah Valley / Blue Ridge Region
- Regional Growth Manager, Shenandoah Valley / Blue Ridge
Steve Dalton is the Regional Growth Manager for the Shenandoah Valley/Blue Ridge Region. Steve's role as a Regional Growth Manager is to establish and maintain new relationships with economic developers, industrial associations, and local manufacturing, industrial, and technology companies in his region. He collaborates directly with clients managing the full lifecycle of projects and supporting them in their strategic goals.
His service area includes the cities of Buena Vista, Charlottesville, Harrisonburg, Lexington, Staunton, Waynesboro, Winchester and includes the counties of Albemarle, Augusta, Bath, Clarke, Culpeper, Fauquier, Fluvanna, Frederick, Greene, Highland, Louisa, Madison, Nelson, Orange, Page, Rappahannock, Rockbridge, Rockingham, Shenandoah, and Warren.
Steve is a results-oriented, client-driven Sales Professional, Team Leader, Business Coach and Entrepreneur with over 30 years of proven results. An effective communicator who is skilled at assessing needs and providing profitable solutions.
Before joining the GENEDGE team, Steve worked: as a Sales Manager Consultant & Leadership Coach at Peak Performance Coaching LLC; as the Owner/Entrepreneur & Product Designer for HOUSEHOLDSUPPLIES.COM LLC; as Senior Team Leader at Allstate Insurance Corporation; and as the VA Territory Manager/Developer for Diamond Paper Corporation.
Steve holds an Bachelor of Arts in Marketing from Averett University of Danville and an MBA from Radford University. Certifications and affiliations include ACC Leadership/Business Coach ICF (International Coaching Federation), ITIL certification, and Chamber of Commerce Import / Export certification.
In his free time, Steve enjoys spending time with family at Smith Mountain Lake, biking, coaching sports, and boating.
Steve Holcomb is a GENEDGE Project Manager for projects with the USN, Huntington Ingalls Industries - Newport News Shipbuilding and other manufacturing, industrial and technology companies in Virginia. He joined GENEDGE in 2018 as the Regional Growth Manager for Hampton Roads, where he supported development and success of these types of organizations in Hampton Roads.
Steve Holcomb has decades of experience as a Performance Excellence practitioner, consultant, facilitator, and coach. He holds a BS degree in Ocean Engineering for deep ocean systems from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy and retired from the Coast Guard after 20 years of service. Steve is a PMP, a Jonah master facilitator, Theory of Constraints expert, TRIZ (innovation) engineer, and a former Baldrige Award examiner. He has helped many organizations meet their most challenging goals. His qualifications include expert level training and experience in project portfolio management, advanced process improvement, variation reduction, pattern recognition and prediction, measurement and data analysis for decision support, supply chain performance, organizational assessment, cash velocity improvement, critical thinking, and strategic plan development and deployment. Steve has helped clients reduce process variation, increase throughput, shorten cycle times, decrease costs, and increase capacity and profitability, all while honoring existing resource, policy, and regulatory constraints. These efforts have translated into tens of millions of dollars of bottom-line benefit. In the past, Steve has served as a performance excellence professional and consultant at Reed Integration, Inc. (Federal government consulting), the Old Dominion University Business Gateway (mid-size business consulting), Huntington Ingalls Industries (naval ship design, construction, and repair), Case New Holland (con/ag equipment design and manufacture), the American Supplier Institute (Taguchi and six-sigma consulting and training) and the U.S. Coast Guard. However, if you talk to Steve, he might tell you that he only knows how to do five things:
Identify the "wicked problems" limiting an organization's performance,
Then helping them get control and make better decisions,
Enabling them to execute better, free up hidden capacity,
And "Do More Good, Without More Resources",
To accomplish their most challenging goals and enjoy greater success.
Steve resides in Suffolk, Virginia where he enjoys spending time with family, including his five grandchildren and great grandson.
Job Titles:
- Director, Human Resources
- Human Resources Director
Teddy Martin is the Human Resources Director based at GENEDGE headquarters in Martinsville.
In his new role, Teddy will strive to support the development of employees and trusted third party associates through direct coaching as well as advisory services to the management team. He will also assure that processes are compliant with Commonwealth of Virginia, federal and local law in addition to managing delivery of required and optional trainings for the business, among other duties.
Before coming to GENEDGE, Teddy had been working in human resources for over seven years beginning as an Assistant Recruiter only later to be promoted to Associate Recruiter at The Results Companies in Martinsville. He then advanced his career by moving to AmeriStaff Employment & Staffing Solutions overseeing recruiting efforts for seven regional offices as their Recruiter. His next advancement took him to Patrick & Henry Community College beginning as HR Benefits Specialist and Business Office Specialist before his last role as the HR Generalist. While at P&HCC, Teddy contributed significantly to the growth of the college, as well as GENEDGE.
Teddy has a passion for education and continues his 5+ year tenure as a member of the Henry County School Board. Simultaneously, he serves as the President of the Virginia School Boards Association (VSBA).
Teddy is a graduate of Western Governors University/Salt Lake City, Utah and holds a Master of Science in Management and Leadership. In addition, he holds a Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies in Elementary Education (PK-6) from Old Dominion University/Norfolk, Va. He earned an Associate of Arts and Sciences in Business Administration from Patrick & Henry Community College/Martinsville, Va.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Secretary of Education
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Secretary of Labor
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Deputy Secretary of Commerce and Trade / Interim President, Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation
Job Titles:
- Executive Assistant
- HR Assistant
Job Titles:
- Vice Chair / Director of Operations, Integrity Windows and Doors