Members
Current Officers
Each year a chair, vice chair and treasurer are selected from among the members of ECO to serve as the organization’s officers. In addition, the Director of the U.S. Department of Commerce U.S. Commercial Service acts as the executive secretary of ECO. The current officers of ECO, and the full membership are as follows.
Chair: Shiau Yen Chin-Dennis
Vice Chair: Russ Monk
Treasurer: Sara McCausland
Executive Secretary: Kellie Holloway Jarman
Current Members
ECO members service a four-year voluntary term. Current ECO members, listed in alphabetical order, encourage contact from businesses in Oregon and Southwest Washington regarding export-related matters. A member email link is provided for this purpose. Otherwise, inquiries will be directed to the Executive Secretary for screening and referral.
Jonathan Berndt- District Sales Manager, Expeditors International
Jonathan brings more than 18 years of supply chain logistics experience to his managerial role with Expeditors International of Washington. Jonathan has worked in a variety of positions since 1997 involving the management of international transportation (Air and Ocean), domestic transportation (Air, Truck, and Rail), sales & marketing, and account management. During this time Jonathan has been responsible for product P&Ls, business development, organization/process efficiency, employee development, and vendor management.
Richard Biggs- CEO, Director North America
Richard has a proven track record (20 years) of starting new businesses in Europe and the U.S., and driving them to rapid worldwide growth through innovative strategies. Richard has extensive business development experience which spans diverse industries and cultures including software, consumer electronics, automotive, medical device, banking, industrial products, manufacturing, retail & distribution. He has lived in four countries and worked out of UK, US, Japan, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands and Spain. In his current role, he supports businesses in international market entry and revenue growth consulting.
Rose Braden- President, Softwood Export Council
Rose, prior to her current position leading the Softwood Export Council, worked as an analyst at the Center for International Trade in Forest Products for over 19 years, and served simultaneously as a director of the Evergreen Building Products Association working to promote US building materials and design services internationally for over 15 years. She is a graduate of the University of Washington and got her master’s degree from Western Washington University.
Brad Buchholz- Vice President, Banner Bank
Brad is an experienced commercial banker, SBA liaison and former business owner. He has extensive experience in export lines of credit, and is a Certified Global Business Professional. He enjoys assisting small and medium sized businesses and actively networking with other professionals to ensure they get the best advice available. Additionally, he recently became a member of the Oregon Department of Agriculture RURAL Food/Crop Export Steering Committee. Brad is a graduate of University of Southern California with a Master's degree in Business.
Shiau Yen Chin-Dennis - Managing Partner, K&L Gates LLP
Shiau Yen Chin-Dennis is an associate in the firm’s Portland office. She focuses her practice on corporate transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, post acquisition integration, joint ventures, restructuring, corporate governance and other international transactions. Shiau Yen has extensive experience working on cross-border matters, particularly in the Asia Pacific region, including market entry, expansion and exit, government contracting, intellectual property, and licensing agreements.
In addition to corporate matters, Shiau Yen has experience with executive employment matters in the Asia Pacific region, including employment and severance agreements, transfers of employees, and trade secret, non-compete and non-disclosure agreements. She has also worked on issues stemming from the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
Janice Cooper- Managing Director, Wheat Marketing Center, Inc.
Janice has spent her life in trade promotion and policy, working in diverse industries such as high technology, banking and agriculture. Currently, Janice is the Chair of the Federal Gain Inspection Advisory Committee. She previously chaired on the Northern California DEC and served on the Emerging Markets Advisory Committee at USDA. She plays an important role in raising the profile of the trade community and in providing support and advice for companies that are new to exporting.
Mauricio Esteves - Director, Performance Management, Nike, Inc.
Mauricio leads the performance reporting and analytics function for Nike's Global Sourcing and Manufacturing organization. Nike sources from 640 factories in over 40 countries and distributes to over 140 countries. In previous roles at Nike, Mauricio led strategic partnerships for energy contracting and new materials development, negotiated intellectual property and project finance agreements in more than ten countries. Prior to Nike, Mauricio was a managing director at a global private equity firm, investing in environmental services and infrastructure globally. In that role, he led the expansion of portfolio companies throughout Latin America, either establishing local presence in country or via joint ventures.
Scott Goddin - Advisor, Export Council of Oregon
Scott Goddin served as the Director of the U.S. Export Assistance Center in Portland from 1997 - 2018. Upon retiring from government service, he continues to bring his deep international trade experience and expertise to the Export Council of Oregon in an ex-officio capacity. Scott worked for the International Trade Administration of the Department of Commerce for over twenty five years, working in the Office of the China Economic Area, the Office of Multilateral Affairs during the Uruguay Round multilateral trade negotiations, and as Director of the Korea/Taiwan division. While Scott has traveled repeatedly to Asia for trade negotiations, his overseas experience also includes two years as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Zaire and short-term assignments in the Commercial Section of the U.S. Embassy in Korea, Kenya and the Czech Republic. Goddin has also undertaken short assignments in the Office of the United States Trade Representative and as a Legislative Fellow with the Subcommittee on Trade of the House Ways and Means Committee. Scott holds an MA in International Affairs from Georgetown University and a BA in History from Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut.
Cindy Harling- Sales Director, Lucky Foods, LLC
Cindy is a sales professional with extensive marketing experience in the food and beverage industry. She is a globally-minded leader who thoughtfully intuits nuances across corporate cultures worldwide and translates lessons learned into effective selling techniques for each unique local market. She joined Lucky Foods in 2019 to help this 30-year company bring their authentic and healthy Asian foods to a wider customer base in the United States and open new sales channels, distribution partnerships, and markets across the world.
Eric Heid - CEO, USIA Corp.
Eric leads USIA Underwater Equipment Sales Corp. in all facets of operation. His favorite role is establishing direct customer and distributor relationships and building distributor networks for domestic and international, government, recreation and military sales for the company's diving and maritime operations equipment. He began his career in the United States Special Forces in 1979 and was deployed throughout Central and South America the Caribbean as well as South East Asia. Eric holds numerous Commercial, Public Safety and Civilian Diving Instructor Trainer Certifications, and continues to train Military Combat Divers around the Global.
Kellie Holloway Jarman - Director, U.S. Commercial Service - Oregon
Kellie Holloway is the Director of the U.S. Commercial Service office located in the Portland World Trade Center, which serves as a “one-stop shop” for federal export support services offered by the International Trade Administration, Small Business Administration and US Export-Import Bank. In this role, Kellie supports Oregon and Southwest Washington businesses and trade partners, helping to develop and implement plans related to global growth strategies. Kellie taps more than two decades of international trade experience, formerly directing the Commerce Department's China Business Information Center, serving as a Foreign Service Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, among other international assignments in Shanghai, The Netherlands and Canada. She's earned the Director General’s award for deepening and broadening exporter success in the China market, among other Department accolades. Kellie previously served as a board member of the Arizona Governor directed Arizona Bio-industry and Environmental Technology Clusters, and while with the private sector, worked as a management consultant supporting high tech and energy sector clients in Asia joint venture activities, along with teaching English in Japan. Kellie has a bachelor’s in Marketing from the University of Arizona supported with studies at the University of Copenhagen and a Master of International Management from Thunderbird School of Global Management.
Barry Horowitz - President, CMS Consulting Services
CMS Consulting Services was created in 2003 to serve the needs of companies requiring independent advice on the full range of supply chain management and international trade programs. Barry has successfully completed projects for importers, exporters, forwarders, ports and others and is currently working with the Port of Portland and other Oregon traded sector agencies to develop international trade strategies and programs and to raise the Port’s visibility within the international transportation and trade environment. His previous experience at the Port of Portland includes leading initiatives to attract new ocean carrier services, to develop new shipper-based programs utilizing Portland’s container facility and the Port’s abundant real estate and distribution center assets, as well as the Port of Portland’s superior intermodal capabilities. Barry has served as Vice-President of Direct Line Cargo Management Services (1994-2001), General Manager – Europe for the CMS unit of DanzasAEI (2001–2003)and Director, International Transportation for NIKE, Inc.(1991-1994) with responsibility for Nike’s global product movement and management. His earlier experience includes senior positions at leading international ocean carriers, including Hapag-Lloyd and Zim as well experience in forwarding and customs brokerage. For more than 30 years, he has taught and written on International Supply Chain Management, Logistics, Transportation and Trade topics for UCLA, Washington State University, The Journal of Commerce, Containerisation International, Marine Digest and others.
Kiffani Iverson- Global Trade Compliance Program Manager at Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Kiffani is an experienced global trade professional passionate about regulatory compliance that compliments operational excellence. Experience in process engineering and change management surrounding compliance initiatives. Experience managing inbound and outbound freight (all modes), FMC compliance and project cargo. She has served on the Columbia River Customs Brokers and Forwarder's Association Board of Directors, actively participated in the Pacific Coast Council of Brokers and Forwarder's trade policy initiatives advocating for Oregon business interests in Washington DC.
Dr. Christopher Jacobs- President, Genteel LLC
Christopher is the CEO and Chief Research Engineer at Genteel. In the past, he has been an Engineering Instructor at Portland State University, and the founder of Atmospheric Impurities Reduction (A.I.R.). He is highly experienced in areas such as product development, strategic planning, and biomedical engineering. Christopher graduated with a Ph.D. in Biomedical/Medical Engineering from Southern California University.
Virginia Joplin- CEO, Verbio
Virginia has merged her skills as an entrepreneur and translator to establish a fast-growing language communications company known as Verbio. She believes that translation and interpretation are the "windows" to international business strategies, and this insight allows Virginia and her company to apply creative solutions to their exporting customers. She applies her multidisciplinary experience as a translator, web consultant, and corporate trainer to foster healthy, informed and cooperative relationships, both in Oregon and globally. Virginia is the Official Translator for Consulates of France and Spain as well as a voting member of the American Translators Association. She is the former co-owner of a multi
David W. Kohl - Small Business Develop Center's Global Trade Center
David is the state wide international trade liaison for the Small Business Development Center's Global Trade Center. He coordinates outreach and training among the 19 SBDC's in the state of Oregon. In addition, David is a cultural intelligence consultant, an entrepreneur, and East Asia specialist with a mission to identify and realize global opportunities for individuals and organizations, facilitating success through connecting, educating, and coaching. David has extensive international network experience working with fortune 500 companies, top-ranked universities, and government agencies around the world. He uses his experience to provide clients with a unique set of resources and opportunities that create a distinct advantage in a dynamic and competitive world. He graduated with honors from the Master of International Management program at Portland State University and has also earned diplomas from Beijing Language and Culture University as well as the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing, China. David has functional, conversational fluency in Mandarin Chinese.
Akana Ma - Shareholder, Buchalter / Ater Wynne LLP
Akana Ma offers clients from around the world practical, creative solutions to business and legal issues involving different cultures, legal systems, and business. He is the Chairman of Ater Wynne’s Global Trade Group, and assists companies structure international joint ventures, comply with foreign laws and regulations, license and protect intellectual property, establish foreign offices, license and finance exports, comply with customs and import laws and regulations, and negotiate and draft commercial contracts. He has practiced international law for more than 25 years. Akana is a founding member of Legal Counsel International, a global alliance of international lawyers and law firms helping clients engaged in a wide range of international business transactions.
Sara McCausland - Commercial Portfolio Administrator, Columbia Bank
Sara McCausland began her banking career in 1995. Throughout her time in commercial banking, Sara has provided solutions to the financial needs of her business clients. Her interest in international issues and travel fostered a desire to learn how to assist clients with their exporting and importing activity. It has also allowed her to serve as a resource to her coworkers regarding international financing options. Sara received her undergraduate degree in history from Willamette University. She resides in Portland.
Russ Monk- Director of Operations, High Impact Technology, LLC
HIT, or High Impact Technology, has protected America’s soldiers since 2004. Russ is the current COO of HIT, and has been for the last 8 years. Russ works tireless to create solutions for the American military’s largest problems. Russ has pioneered the developments that created self-healing coatings, self-absorbing blast structures, and recently, protective infrastructure.
Edgar A. Navas - CEO, CLIQA Inc.
Edgar Navas is the Founder and CEO of CLIQA, Inc., a technology company. Formerly with the Nafta Group and responsible for strategic development and implementation of international trade projects. He brings more than 15 years of experience in the areas of trade agreements, customs procedures, logistics management, and economic analysis. Mr. Navas is a member or the American Economics Association, an active member of Vista Research Society of Industry Leaders (International Logistics), and currently serves as Advisory Council Member for the Latin America Business Council at Texas State University in addition to the Export Council of Oregon (U.S. Department of Commerce – District Export Councils). Mr. Navas earned his MBA in International Economics from SDA Bocconi School of Management in Milan, Italy. He also holds a post-graduate diploma in International Trade Law and Economics from the World Trade Institute in Bern, Switzerland and a Bachelor in Business Administration with a focus on Economics from Texas State University. He is fluent in Spanish, English, French and Italian.
Craig Ostbo - CEO, Koopman Ostbo Marketing Communications
With a degree in International Business, Craig Ostbo devotes his day-to-day activities to promoting the concept of borderless marketing. As a professional speaker, educator, and board member of Portland State University's Center for Retail Leadership, he encourages brands around the country to look beyond their fears and focus first on the "why" of export. He has conducted consumer-specific marketing studies in the EU, attended trade missions in SE Asia, and led consumer focus group sessions in China on behalf of brands seeking to expand their global reach.
Mark Peters - Research Security Officer, ECO, FSO, Oregon State University
Mark holds numerous compliance related responsibilities at OSU supporting the university's research and academia professionals. As the Export Compliance Officer, he is versed in export controls and a national leader and member of the Association of University Export Control Officers (AUECO.org). In the course of his career, Mark has assisted multiple research institutions develop export compliance programs and consult corporate clients on export compliance operational practices. Previously, Mark served as the Director of the Montana Export Assistance Center, among other responsibilities with the U.S. Commercial Service.
Ron Schneberger- President, Corban Consulting, LLC
Ron is the current President of Corban Consulting, LLC a company based out of Tigard, Oregon who focuses on the fluid handling industry. Ron is knowledgeable on natural resource transport, and his publishings include a 2009 paper on Corrosion and Fluid Control Equipment. He is a graduate of Corban University, Aspen University, and holds an MBA focusing on Project Management.
Doug Smith- International Trade and Development, Port of Portland
Doug is the Business Development Manager for the Port of Portland and previous Chief Financial Officer for InSpec Group. He has worked in various international settings for almost two decades, and was the Chair for the Japan-America Society of Oregon until 2013.
Steve Thompson - VP Business Development, Andrea Jones Consulting
Steve leads business development for a multi-disciplined consulting firm focused on outsourced project management for software/systems implementations, process improvement, change management, organizational development, and Lean/Scrum/Agile support. Previously, he served as a strategic advisor to the Health Technology Collaborative (HTC), a Digital Hub and Inventor Space which is a confluence for digital health and the “Internet of Things” (IoT) technology, and as Vice President of Business Development at Automation Solutions, an Oregon based industrial automation controls manufacturer. Prior to that, Steve spent six years as the City of Beaverton's Business Development Manager where he created and managed the city’s Export Assistance and Workforce Training Assistance programs. With more than $800 Million in completed deals and broad experience in business development, economic development, sales, technology, finance, and real estate, Steve offers a unique and broad spectrum of business insight. He has been involved in the development of several start-ups, has exposure working with early-stage and growth phase businesses.
Amanda Welker- Global Strategies Officer, Business Oregon
Amanda recently joined Business Oregon as the new Global Strategies Officer. She leads Business Oregon’s Global Trade team to assist Oregon small business continue to export their products. Amanda has been a member of the trade community for over a decade. Her work as an International Trade Manager with the Oregon Department of Agriculture was crucial to helping Oregon’s food and agriculture companies implement their marketing and export strategies across the globe.
Steven White - Export Division Director, Bob's Red Mill Natural Foods
Steve leads Bob's Red Mill's export division, currently directly exporting to over 60 countries. Through his sales and marketing expertise, energy, and deep familiarity with the export process, Steve has helped the company produce double digits sales growth year over year for the past six years. Steve works in conjunction with internal QA, production, and marketing teams to navigate and support each countries individual needs. He travels extensively across Asia and the Middle East in this capacity, and is excited to share what he has learned with others.
Mark Zanmiller- Director of Business Development, SightLine Applications
Mark’s notable positions include the Director of Sales and Marketing for Sagetech Corporation, CEO of Small Planet Travel Cards and his current position as Director of Business Development at SightLine Applications, LLC. At SightLine, Mark works with domestic and international markets, increasing sales and providing customer support. He is knowledgeable of the aerospace, UAV, and business development sectors.
Each year a chair, vice chair and treasurer are selected from among the members of ECO to serve as the organization’s officers. In addition, the Director of the U.S. Department of Commerce U.S. Commercial Service acts as the executive secretary of ECO. The current officers of ECO, and the full membership are as follows.
Chair: Shiau Yen Chin-Dennis
Vice Chair: Russ Monk
Treasurer: Sara McCausland
Executive Secretary: Kellie Holloway Jarman
Current Members
ECO members service a four-year voluntary term. Current ECO members, listed in alphabetical order, encourage contact from businesses in Oregon and Southwest Washington regarding export-related matters. A member email link is provided for this purpose. Otherwise, inquiries will be directed to the Executive Secretary for screening and referral.
Jonathan Berndt- District Sales Manager, Expeditors International
Jonathan brings more than 18 years of supply chain logistics experience to his managerial role with Expeditors International of Washington. Jonathan has worked in a variety of positions since 1997 involving the management of international transportation (Air and Ocean), domestic transportation (Air, Truck, and Rail), sales & marketing, and account management. During this time Jonathan has been responsible for product P&Ls, business development, organization/process efficiency, employee development, and vendor management.
Richard Biggs- CEO, Director North America
Richard has a proven track record (20 years) of starting new businesses in Europe and the U.S., and driving them to rapid worldwide growth through innovative strategies. Richard has extensive business development experience which spans diverse industries and cultures including software, consumer electronics, automotive, medical device, banking, industrial products, manufacturing, retail & distribution. He has lived in four countries and worked out of UK, US, Japan, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands and Spain. In his current role, he supports businesses in international market entry and revenue growth consulting.
Rose Braden- President, Softwood Export Council
Rose, prior to her current position leading the Softwood Export Council, worked as an analyst at the Center for International Trade in Forest Products for over 19 years, and served simultaneously as a director of the Evergreen Building Products Association working to promote US building materials and design services internationally for over 15 years. She is a graduate of the University of Washington and got her master’s degree from Western Washington University.
Brad Buchholz- Vice President, Banner Bank
Brad is an experienced commercial banker, SBA liaison and former business owner. He has extensive experience in export lines of credit, and is a Certified Global Business Professional. He enjoys assisting small and medium sized businesses and actively networking with other professionals to ensure they get the best advice available. Additionally, he recently became a member of the Oregon Department of Agriculture RURAL Food/Crop Export Steering Committee. Brad is a graduate of University of Southern California with a Master's degree in Business.
Shiau Yen Chin-Dennis - Managing Partner, K&L Gates LLP
Shiau Yen Chin-Dennis is an associate in the firm’s Portland office. She focuses her practice on corporate transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, post acquisition integration, joint ventures, restructuring, corporate governance and other international transactions. Shiau Yen has extensive experience working on cross-border matters, particularly in the Asia Pacific region, including market entry, expansion and exit, government contracting, intellectual property, and licensing agreements.
In addition to corporate matters, Shiau Yen has experience with executive employment matters in the Asia Pacific region, including employment and severance agreements, transfers of employees, and trade secret, non-compete and non-disclosure agreements. She has also worked on issues stemming from the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
Janice Cooper- Managing Director, Wheat Marketing Center, Inc.
Janice has spent her life in trade promotion and policy, working in diverse industries such as high technology, banking and agriculture. Currently, Janice is the Chair of the Federal Gain Inspection Advisory Committee. She previously chaired on the Northern California DEC and served on the Emerging Markets Advisory Committee at USDA. She plays an important role in raising the profile of the trade community and in providing support and advice for companies that are new to exporting.
Mauricio Esteves - Director, Performance Management, Nike, Inc.
Mauricio leads the performance reporting and analytics function for Nike's Global Sourcing and Manufacturing organization. Nike sources from 640 factories in over 40 countries and distributes to over 140 countries. In previous roles at Nike, Mauricio led strategic partnerships for energy contracting and new materials development, negotiated intellectual property and project finance agreements in more than ten countries. Prior to Nike, Mauricio was a managing director at a global private equity firm, investing in environmental services and infrastructure globally. In that role, he led the expansion of portfolio companies throughout Latin America, either establishing local presence in country or via joint ventures.
Scott Goddin - Advisor, Export Council of Oregon
Scott Goddin served as the Director of the U.S. Export Assistance Center in Portland from 1997 - 2018. Upon retiring from government service, he continues to bring his deep international trade experience and expertise to the Export Council of Oregon in an ex-officio capacity. Scott worked for the International Trade Administration of the Department of Commerce for over twenty five years, working in the Office of the China Economic Area, the Office of Multilateral Affairs during the Uruguay Round multilateral trade negotiations, and as Director of the Korea/Taiwan division. While Scott has traveled repeatedly to Asia for trade negotiations, his overseas experience also includes two years as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Zaire and short-term assignments in the Commercial Section of the U.S. Embassy in Korea, Kenya and the Czech Republic. Goddin has also undertaken short assignments in the Office of the United States Trade Representative and as a Legislative Fellow with the Subcommittee on Trade of the House Ways and Means Committee. Scott holds an MA in International Affairs from Georgetown University and a BA in History from Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut.
Cindy Harling- Sales Director, Lucky Foods, LLC
Cindy is a sales professional with extensive marketing experience in the food and beverage industry. She is a globally-minded leader who thoughtfully intuits nuances across corporate cultures worldwide and translates lessons learned into effective selling techniques for each unique local market. She joined Lucky Foods in 2019 to help this 30-year company bring their authentic and healthy Asian foods to a wider customer base in the United States and open new sales channels, distribution partnerships, and markets across the world.
Eric Heid - CEO, USIA Corp.
Eric leads USIA Underwater Equipment Sales Corp. in all facets of operation. His favorite role is establishing direct customer and distributor relationships and building distributor networks for domestic and international, government, recreation and military sales for the company's diving and maritime operations equipment. He began his career in the United States Special Forces in 1979 and was deployed throughout Central and South America the Caribbean as well as South East Asia. Eric holds numerous Commercial, Public Safety and Civilian Diving Instructor Trainer Certifications, and continues to train Military Combat Divers around the Global.
Kellie Holloway Jarman - Director, U.S. Commercial Service - Oregon
Kellie Holloway is the Director of the U.S. Commercial Service office located in the Portland World Trade Center, which serves as a “one-stop shop” for federal export support services offered by the International Trade Administration, Small Business Administration and US Export-Import Bank. In this role, Kellie supports Oregon and Southwest Washington businesses and trade partners, helping to develop and implement plans related to global growth strategies. Kellie taps more than two decades of international trade experience, formerly directing the Commerce Department's China Business Information Center, serving as a Foreign Service Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, among other international assignments in Shanghai, The Netherlands and Canada. She's earned the Director General’s award for deepening and broadening exporter success in the China market, among other Department accolades. Kellie previously served as a board member of the Arizona Governor directed Arizona Bio-industry and Environmental Technology Clusters, and while with the private sector, worked as a management consultant supporting high tech and energy sector clients in Asia joint venture activities, along with teaching English in Japan. Kellie has a bachelor’s in Marketing from the University of Arizona supported with studies at the University of Copenhagen and a Master of International Management from Thunderbird School of Global Management.
Barry Horowitz - President, CMS Consulting Services
CMS Consulting Services was created in 2003 to serve the needs of companies requiring independent advice on the full range of supply chain management and international trade programs. Barry has successfully completed projects for importers, exporters, forwarders, ports and others and is currently working with the Port of Portland and other Oregon traded sector agencies to develop international trade strategies and programs and to raise the Port’s visibility within the international transportation and trade environment. His previous experience at the Port of Portland includes leading initiatives to attract new ocean carrier services, to develop new shipper-based programs utilizing Portland’s container facility and the Port’s abundant real estate and distribution center assets, as well as the Port of Portland’s superior intermodal capabilities. Barry has served as Vice-President of Direct Line Cargo Management Services (1994-2001), General Manager – Europe for the CMS unit of DanzasAEI (2001–2003)and Director, International Transportation for NIKE, Inc.(1991-1994) with responsibility for Nike’s global product movement and management. His earlier experience includes senior positions at leading international ocean carriers, including Hapag-Lloyd and Zim as well experience in forwarding and customs brokerage. For more than 30 years, he has taught and written on International Supply Chain Management, Logistics, Transportation and Trade topics for UCLA, Washington State University, The Journal of Commerce, Containerisation International, Marine Digest and others.
Kiffani Iverson- Global Trade Compliance Program Manager at Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Kiffani is an experienced global trade professional passionate about regulatory compliance that compliments operational excellence. Experience in process engineering and change management surrounding compliance initiatives. Experience managing inbound and outbound freight (all modes), FMC compliance and project cargo. She has served on the Columbia River Customs Brokers and Forwarder's Association Board of Directors, actively participated in the Pacific Coast Council of Brokers and Forwarder's trade policy initiatives advocating for Oregon business interests in Washington DC.
Dr. Christopher Jacobs- President, Genteel LLC
Christopher is the CEO and Chief Research Engineer at Genteel. In the past, he has been an Engineering Instructor at Portland State University, and the founder of Atmospheric Impurities Reduction (A.I.R.). He is highly experienced in areas such as product development, strategic planning, and biomedical engineering. Christopher graduated with a Ph.D. in Biomedical/Medical Engineering from Southern California University.
Virginia Joplin- CEO, Verbio
Virginia has merged her skills as an entrepreneur and translator to establish a fast-growing language communications company known as Verbio. She believes that translation and interpretation are the "windows" to international business strategies, and this insight allows Virginia and her company to apply creative solutions to their exporting customers. She applies her multidisciplinary experience as a translator, web consultant, and corporate trainer to foster healthy, informed and cooperative relationships, both in Oregon and globally. Virginia is the Official Translator for Consulates of France and Spain as well as a voting member of the American Translators Association. She is the former co-owner of a multi
David W. Kohl - Small Business Develop Center's Global Trade Center
David is the state wide international trade liaison for the Small Business Development Center's Global Trade Center. He coordinates outreach and training among the 19 SBDC's in the state of Oregon. In addition, David is a cultural intelligence consultant, an entrepreneur, and East Asia specialist with a mission to identify and realize global opportunities for individuals and organizations, facilitating success through connecting, educating, and coaching. David has extensive international network experience working with fortune 500 companies, top-ranked universities, and government agencies around the world. He uses his experience to provide clients with a unique set of resources and opportunities that create a distinct advantage in a dynamic and competitive world. He graduated with honors from the Master of International Management program at Portland State University and has also earned diplomas from Beijing Language and Culture University as well as the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing, China. David has functional, conversational fluency in Mandarin Chinese.
Akana Ma - Shareholder, Buchalter / Ater Wynne LLP
Akana Ma offers clients from around the world practical, creative solutions to business and legal issues involving different cultures, legal systems, and business. He is the Chairman of Ater Wynne’s Global Trade Group, and assists companies structure international joint ventures, comply with foreign laws and regulations, license and protect intellectual property, establish foreign offices, license and finance exports, comply with customs and import laws and regulations, and negotiate and draft commercial contracts. He has practiced international law for more than 25 years. Akana is a founding member of Legal Counsel International, a global alliance of international lawyers and law firms helping clients engaged in a wide range of international business transactions.
Sara McCausland - Commercial Portfolio Administrator, Columbia Bank
Sara McCausland began her banking career in 1995. Throughout her time in commercial banking, Sara has provided solutions to the financial needs of her business clients. Her interest in international issues and travel fostered a desire to learn how to assist clients with their exporting and importing activity. It has also allowed her to serve as a resource to her coworkers regarding international financing options. Sara received her undergraduate degree in history from Willamette University. She resides in Portland.
Russ Monk- Director of Operations, High Impact Technology, LLC
HIT, or High Impact Technology, has protected America’s soldiers since 2004. Russ is the current COO of HIT, and has been for the last 8 years. Russ works tireless to create solutions for the American military’s largest problems. Russ has pioneered the developments that created self-healing coatings, self-absorbing blast structures, and recently, protective infrastructure.
Edgar A. Navas - CEO, CLIQA Inc.
Edgar Navas is the Founder and CEO of CLIQA, Inc., a technology company. Formerly with the Nafta Group and responsible for strategic development and implementation of international trade projects. He brings more than 15 years of experience in the areas of trade agreements, customs procedures, logistics management, and economic analysis. Mr. Navas is a member or the American Economics Association, an active member of Vista Research Society of Industry Leaders (International Logistics), and currently serves as Advisory Council Member for the Latin America Business Council at Texas State University in addition to the Export Council of Oregon (U.S. Department of Commerce – District Export Councils). Mr. Navas earned his MBA in International Economics from SDA Bocconi School of Management in Milan, Italy. He also holds a post-graduate diploma in International Trade Law and Economics from the World Trade Institute in Bern, Switzerland and a Bachelor in Business Administration with a focus on Economics from Texas State University. He is fluent in Spanish, English, French and Italian.
Craig Ostbo - CEO, Koopman Ostbo Marketing Communications
With a degree in International Business, Craig Ostbo devotes his day-to-day activities to promoting the concept of borderless marketing. As a professional speaker, educator, and board member of Portland State University's Center for Retail Leadership, he encourages brands around the country to look beyond their fears and focus first on the "why" of export. He has conducted consumer-specific marketing studies in the EU, attended trade missions in SE Asia, and led consumer focus group sessions in China on behalf of brands seeking to expand their global reach.
Mark Peters - Research Security Officer, ECO, FSO, Oregon State University
Mark holds numerous compliance related responsibilities at OSU supporting the university's research and academia professionals. As the Export Compliance Officer, he is versed in export controls and a national leader and member of the Association of University Export Control Officers (AUECO.org). In the course of his career, Mark has assisted multiple research institutions develop export compliance programs and consult corporate clients on export compliance operational practices. Previously, Mark served as the Director of the Montana Export Assistance Center, among other responsibilities with the U.S. Commercial Service.
Ron Schneberger- President, Corban Consulting, LLC
Ron is the current President of Corban Consulting, LLC a company based out of Tigard, Oregon who focuses on the fluid handling industry. Ron is knowledgeable on natural resource transport, and his publishings include a 2009 paper on Corrosion and Fluid Control Equipment. He is a graduate of Corban University, Aspen University, and holds an MBA focusing on Project Management.
Doug Smith- International Trade and Development, Port of Portland
Doug is the Business Development Manager for the Port of Portland and previous Chief Financial Officer for InSpec Group. He has worked in various international settings for almost two decades, and was the Chair for the Japan-America Society of Oregon until 2013.
Steve Thompson - VP Business Development, Andrea Jones Consulting
Steve leads business development for a multi-disciplined consulting firm focused on outsourced project management for software/systems implementations, process improvement, change management, organizational development, and Lean/Scrum/Agile support. Previously, he served as a strategic advisor to the Health Technology Collaborative (HTC), a Digital Hub and Inventor Space which is a confluence for digital health and the “Internet of Things” (IoT) technology, and as Vice President of Business Development at Automation Solutions, an Oregon based industrial automation controls manufacturer. Prior to that, Steve spent six years as the City of Beaverton's Business Development Manager where he created and managed the city’s Export Assistance and Workforce Training Assistance programs. With more than $800 Million in completed deals and broad experience in business development, economic development, sales, technology, finance, and real estate, Steve offers a unique and broad spectrum of business insight. He has been involved in the development of several start-ups, has exposure working with early-stage and growth phase businesses.
Amanda Welker- Global Strategies Officer, Business Oregon
Amanda recently joined Business Oregon as the new Global Strategies Officer. She leads Business Oregon’s Global Trade team to assist Oregon small business continue to export their products. Amanda has been a member of the trade community for over a decade. Her work as an International Trade Manager with the Oregon Department of Agriculture was crucial to helping Oregon’s food and agriculture companies implement their marketing and export strategies across the globe.
Steven White - Export Division Director, Bob's Red Mill Natural Foods
Steve leads Bob's Red Mill's export division, currently directly exporting to over 60 countries. Through his sales and marketing expertise, energy, and deep familiarity with the export process, Steve has helped the company produce double digits sales growth year over year for the past six years. Steve works in conjunction with internal QA, production, and marketing teams to navigate and support each countries individual needs. He travels extensively across Asia and the Middle East in this capacity, and is excited to share what he has learned with others.
Mark Zanmiller- Director of Business Development, SightLine Applications
Mark’s notable positions include the Director of Sales and Marketing for Sagetech Corporation, CEO of Small Planet Travel Cards and his current position as Director of Business Development at SightLine Applications, LLC. At SightLine, Mark works with domestic and international markets, increasing sales and providing customer support. He is knowledgeable of the aerospace, UAV, and business development sectors.