About Bloggers
NOVEMBER GUEST BLOGGER
Rieva Lesonsky
CEO, GrowBiz Media
Rieva Lesonsky is CEO of GrowBiz Media, a content and consulting company specializing in covering small businesses and entrepreneurship. Before co-founding GrowBiz Media, Lesonsky was Editorial Director of Entrepreneur Magazine. A nationally known speaker and authority on entrepreneurship, Rieva has been covering America’s entrepreneurs for more than 26 years and has appeared on hundreds of radio shows and numerous national television programs, including the Today Show, Good Morning America, CNN, Fox Business News, The Martha Stewart show and Oprah and can regularly be seen on MSNBC’s Your Business. Lesonsky has written several books about small business and entrepreneurship, including the bestseller, Start Your Own Business. She is an editor-at-large at AllBusiness.com and contributes to numerous business Web sites. She served on the Small Business Administration’s National Advisory Council for six years, and was honored by the SBA as a Small Business Media Advocate and a Woman in Business Advocate. The Collegiate Entrepreneurs Organization honored her for helping drive “the entrepreneurial revolution in secondary education.” The ASBDC awarded her a “Champion of Small Business” award. In 2003, Lesonsky was inducted into the Business Journalism Hall of Fame. View posts by SCORE’s guest bloggers.
SCORE BLOGGERS
Julie Brander
Business Mentor, SCORE New Haven
Julie Brander has been a SCORE volunteer since 1997. She has 20 years of experience in business, starting a manufacturing, wholesale and retail jewelry company. After selling her business in 1996 she became a dedicated advocate for small business with vast experience and knowledge in helping entrepreneurs start and expand their business. As the chapter chair of SCORE New Haven, she facilitates and organizes the small business workshops, seminars and conferences. She has her MBA and teaches business basics to entrepreneurs on a college level. She founded a non-profit organization THIS CLOSE for Cancer Research with expertise in fund raising. She also has her Real Estate License and specializes in Investment and Commercial real estate. Listen to Julie’s podcast, Marketing Your Biz in a Weak Economy. View posts by Julie Brander.
Peg Corwin
Business Mentor, SCORE Chicago
Peg Corwin has extensive professional experience in sales, marketing, finance and management. She has worked in real estate, financial services and investment consulting firms, as well as nonprofits. She has held licenses as an insurance agent, securities broker, investment advisor and CPA. Corwin is also an avid user of social networking, managing a business blog and a Web 2.0 small biz marketing blog, as well as a social networking group. Recently, she was listed as one of the 73 Women Bloggers to Watch. As a SCORE counselor, she further assists budding entrepreneurs in the greater Chicago area. Find Peg on LinkedIn and Twitter. Listen to Peg’s podcast, Estimating Expenses for Your Start-up. View posts by Peg Corwin.
Peggy Duncan
Business Mentor, SCORE Atlanta
Peggy Duncan is a personal productivity expert, professional speaker, blogger and author of The Time Management Memory Jogger(TM), Conquer Email Overload with Outlook 2003, and Just Show Me Which Button to Click in PowerPoint 2003. She travels internationally helping small teams work smarter, and also speaking to audiences on organization, time management, and technology tips, tricks and strategies. Peggy has appeared on the TODAY Show, PBS and the Black Enterprise Business Report. She has been a SCORE Atlanta volunteer for five years and received a Distinguished Service Award in 2006. Peggy has a BBA in marketing and a train the trainer certification from Georgia State University in Atlanta. She was formally trained at IBM and was recognized by the chairman for streamlining processes that saved the company close to a million dollars a year. Listen to Peggy’s podcast, Get More Done in Less Time. View posts by Peggy Duncan.
Betty Otte
Business Mentor, SCORE Orange County
Betty Otte is an entrepreneur with an MBA from Harvard and 16 years of franchise experience. During her extensive career, she owned, operated, grew and sold numerous franchises. She is also a marketing and management expert, as well as a content contributor for www.score.org. Currently, Betty is a District Director for SCORE Orange County and serves on the SCORE Advisory Council. She is also a Platinum Service Award recipient for volunteerism. View posts by Betty Otte.
Vernita Naylor
Business Mentor, SCORE Ft. Worth
Vernita Naylor is the founder, President and CEO of Jabez Enterprise Group (JEGroup). She specializes in project management, artist development, image and brand development and public relations in the entertainment industry. As the CEO of JEGroup, Vernita has also provided music reviews and online marketing services for Random House and their affiliates. Vernita is on the board for several organizations. She is active with the Greater Dallas Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (GDHCC); Dallas/Fort Worth Minority Business Council (DFWMBC); Marketing WorkGroup, Marketing Plus; Annual E Award and ACCESS Expo Committees; Dallas/Fort Worth Minority Business Economic Input Committee (MBEIC) Vice-Chair; and the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences (NARAS)/GRAMMYs Education Committee. Vernita received her Project Manager Certification from University of California, Berkeley and a B.S. in Business Management from San Francisco State University. View posts by Vernita Naylor.
Christine Banning
VP of Marketing and Communications, SCORE Association
Christine Banning is a marketing expert. She leads strategic brand management, marketing, marketing alliances and PR & communications for SCORE nationally. She has successfully led SCORE’s digital marketing strategy, reaching nearly 3 million people each year. Christine reaches an audience of 500 million annually through SCORE’s PR efforts. Christine speaks nationally on branding, entrepreneurship, small business identity and marketing. Christine serves on the Board of Directors of Dress for Success, Washington, DC. She received her graduate degree from The American University in Washington, DC. She was recently named an Honorary Member of SCORE New York City. View posts by Christine Banning.
