Chief Executive Officer – Shin Szedlak
Shin has a Japanese-Hungarian background and was born and raised in Switzerland. He was Co-Chairman of the GBC 2016 and joined GBF in the same year. Shin graduated in International Affairs and CEMS International Management from the University of St. Gallen (HSG) and the London School of Economics (LSE). He started his career as a Consultant at PwC Switzerland. He is an army officer and deployed as an United Nations Military Expert on Mission to South Lebanon in 2018 and 2019.
Chief Operating Officer – Cara Weikel
Cara joined the GBF executive team in 2012. She is a manager at Accenture and is specialized in the payments industry. She is focused on providing strategic consulting and M&A advisory services for payment networks (e.g., Visa, MasterCard, American Express, etc.), banks, and merchants related to consumer payment products; Cara is an expert on credit card partnerships involving North American merchants in the retail and T&E sectors. Prior to working in the payments industry, her career included a variety of roles in auto, education, luxury goods, mobile and telecommunications. Cara received her MBA from the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, in addition to a Bachelor of Science from Grove City College, located in Grove City, Pennsylvania. Cara resides in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.
Chief Financial Officer – Joe Sciarrino
Joe joined the executive team in 2017. He is a Senior Director at FTI Consulting, where he advises clients on capital raising, due diligence, deal structuring, valuation analysis, and execution of Mergers & Acquisitions, Private Equity, and Venture Capital transactions. He has an MBA from the University of Notre Dame. Joe is currently based in New York.
VP, Graduate Business Conference – Jude Newton
Jude joined the executive team in 2018. He is a consultant at Cube Group, advising public value organisations and co-founder of Third Man Up, a not-for-profit that creates social and sporting events to raise funds for charities that support the health, development and well-being of young people in Australia. Previously Jude worked as a Customer Experience Advisor for National Australia Bank, where he reviewed customer feedback and implemented solutions to alleviate customer pain points. Jude has an MBA from Melbourne Business School, and served as the President of the Student Representative Council. He also completed a Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering at Monash University. Jude currently resides in Melbourne and has enjoyed traveling to 27 countries so far.
VP, Student Relations & Best Practices – Ben Stewart
Benjamin joined the executive team in 2012 with a focus on helping students better understand and develop their leadership skills. He is a Sr. Manager with PacWest Consulting Partners, an IHS company. His group focuses on due diligence for M&A activity and growth strategies for clients in the Oil & Gas industry. Prior to working in energy, Benjamin’s career included a variety of roles in government, not-for-profit, insurance, healthcare and advertising. Benjamin received his dual MBA/MPA from the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business and Ford School of Public Policy, in addition to a Bachelor of Finance from the University of Nebraska. He is currently based in Houston, TX.
VP, Alumni Relations – Nicolai Michelsen
Nicolai joined the executive team in 2017. He is the Executive Assistant to the Global Head of Business Banking at Danske Bank. He graduated from Copenhagen Business School and is currently based in Copenhagen, Denmark.
VP, Corporate Relations – Lisa Stuart
Lisa graduated with her MBA from Manchester Business School in 2012. She led the MBS Energy club to found it’s first ever energy conference as a partnership with Cambridge University, Judge Business School in the spring of 2011. Her post MBA career goal is focused on opportunities in the energy sector in the UK/Europe. Prior to the MBA, Lisa’s career centered on building growth opportunities in the luxury retail sector including business development and product development roles for esteemed companies including Waterford Wedgwood and Fitz and Floyd. She currently resides in London.
VP, Brand, Marketing and Communications – Véronique S. Liverpool
Veronique joined the GBF executive team in 2019 shortly after hosting the 2019 Graduate Business Conference in Paris. Prior to receiving her MBA from ESCP Europe Business School, she worked in the United States in marketing, branding and event management in various sectors including consumer goods and financial services. Veronique is originally from Houston, Texas but is currently based in Paris.
VP, Leadership Awards – Israel Roman Cortes
Israel joined the GBF Executive Team in 2011. He is Director of Business Development of Ingenieria & Supervision Integral in Mexico and at Integrated Monitoring in the United States. He received his MBA from Bocconi SDA and Tuck Dartmouth and currently lives in Mexico City.
VP, Leadership Awards – Rocio Perez Jimenez
Rocio’s first contact with the GBF was in 2009 as a member of the organizing committee for the GBC held in Taipei. In 2011 she attended the Alumni Summit in Barcelona where she decided to join GBF. She then joined the executive team in 2015. She received her IMBA at the NCCU in Taiwan and she also holds a Bachelor in Business Administration from the National University of Asuncion, Paraguay. Her career has taken her education as a consultant and trainer for SME entrepreneurs, and also management positions with non-profit organizations and in a Jesuit private school business.
Rocio’s current goals include building out and managing Kidsbrain, an educational institution focused on young children and to advance the ideals of the GBF. She likes to continue growing through cross cultural experiences while traveling and enjoying her life in Madrid where she resides.
