Board of Advisors

Mike Carlton

Mike has spent most of his life in and around advertising agencies. For over a quarter of a century he served in various agency functions, including general management and ownership in a 150-person shop. Along the way he held offices in the American Association of Advertising Agencies, agency networks, and became a frequent writer and speaker on agency issues.

In the 1980s he founded Carlton Associates Incorporated, a consulting firm that focuses on agency business issues and other leadership challenges. He was also a founder of World Systems, a first generation accounting system supplier for agencies, and 600 Monkeys (now a part of Computer Associates), a provider of new technologies for agencies and other professional service firms. In addition, he founded Centre for International Business, which has assisted advertisers and agencies globally.

His consulting, systems and international work has taken him to agencies and marketers all over the world. The client roster numbers more than 100, including strong, mid-size independent agencies, offices of global agency organizations, as well as successful smaller shops. He currently serves on the advisory or corporate boards of a number of agencies and related firms

Mike is a former Army Officer and holds a business degree from The University of Delaware.

Dan Blair

Dan graduated with a BS in physics from Creighton University, in Omaha, NE. There he did research with Dr. Dave Sidebottom trying to maximize Creighton's upcoming solar installation including component testing and placement. Currently a master's candidate at Case Western Reserve University and in the Physics for Entrepreneurship Program under faculty advisors Bruce Terry and Ed Caner. Dan’s extensive research has been focused on solar inverters and the disruptive technology known as micro-inverters in theory and application.

Ken Roller

Mr. Roller was the Sr. VP of the midwest region for Inegrated Power Services, a Greenville SC national provider of large industrial electric motor and generator repair service.Mr. Roller joined IPS in 2008 after his company Monarch Electric Service of Cleveland, Ohio was acquired by IPS. Mr. Roller had served in many capacities at Monarch over his 35 year career, the last 20 as President.

Mr. Roller was the vision behind taking a small family busines, through acquisition and growth, to become a major factor in the large motor repair service industry. The company had (4) locations with 245 employees in (3) states and revenues of approx $50 m when acquired. Mr. Roller contributes his success to (3) factors: God’s blessing, surrounding himself with the best people, and that the answer is never ’ NO ’ rather we simply don’t ’ KNOW ’ yet!

Mr. Roller and his family are very active in community. They founded the Cleveland Make a Wish foundation, and have worked with a variety of organizations from Cystic Fibrosis to the First tee, as well as many others. A 40 year multi engine instrument pilot, avid golfer and metal sculptor, Mr. Roller graduated Hawken School in 1969 and George Washington University in 1973 with a BA in Economics.

Stefanie Spear

Stefanie Spear is founder and president of Expedite Renewable Energy. Expedite Renewable Energy helps companies with the many steps associated with investing in on-site renewable energy projects. From determining what type of renewable energy project is best for your company to applying for grants to help fund your project to negotiating your interconnection contract with your utility company. Stefanie has been working on environmental/energy issues for more than 20 years. As project manager of the Pearl Wind Project at Pearl Road Auto Parts and Wrecking, Spear helped the first Cleveland business to capture the wind to generate electricity. This company installed a 120 Kw remanufactured Vestas wind turbine that generates nearly 100% of the company's energy needs. Spear is now working with Sheoga Hardwood Flooring to install a 750 kW turbine that will generate nearly 90% of the company's electricity usage. The Sheoga Wind Project is a marquee project for the region, state and nation.

Spear was instrumental in helping write the City of Cleveland's wind turbine zoning legislation and is working to encourage other Northeast Ohio communities to pass similar legislation. Spear is actively lobbying for the passage of other policies that will help ignite the transition to renewable energy sources and create green jobs. Spear is founder and executive director of EcoWatch, a nonprofit organization working to encourage individuals, businesses and governments to adopt sustainable lifestyles, business practices and policies, and editor of EcoWatch Journal.

Spear is on the Green Team at Fairmount Temple and Village of Moreland Hills. She is on the advisory committee for GreenCityBlueLake and Tri-C’s Green Academy and Center for Sustainability, and steering committee member for the Advanced Energy Generation for Sustainable Cleveland 2019.

Bob Sopko

Manager Strategic Technology Partnerships Information Technology Services
Case Western Reserve University
Bob began his career with Revco Drug/CVS Pharmacy and continued for over 18 years. This included marketing responsibilities with a strong emphasis on the creative use of technology. Bob was then involved in growing 30 - 40 High Tech recruiting events and development of over 600 employment sites. The company was sold to the Washington Post and Chicago Tribune. Since the inception, Bob has been involved with the top level domain .jobs - www.goto.jobs. Currently, Bob works with an outstanding team at Case Western Reserve University Information Technology Services helping to manage the relationships with key partners including Dell, Apple, Sprint, att.

Chris Langmack

Chris is the Director of Niagara Systems LLC which manufactures a wide variety of industrial washing systems used in the solar, renewable energy, automotive, electronics, military and aerospace industries. Niagara exports to over 40 countries around the globe. Chris is the Danish counsul for the state of Ohio as well as having served on Northern Ohio Export Council, Cleveland’s Mayor’s International advisory board and was president of the Cleveland World Trade Association.

Jeffrey Mann

Jeffrey Mann received a Bachelors of Science in Electrical Engineering from Case Western Reserve University, where he earned an award for “Senior Design Project of the Year”. While he presently remains a software engineer at Embedded Planet, Jeffrey additionally joined GCA as a managing partner in 2008. Determined to become an inventor when he grew up, he now also leads research, development and engineering activities for GCA portfolio companies. He examines the technical aspects of their ideas and then oversees general engineering during the initial phase of development and testing. As a managing partner with an engineering background, Jeffrey looks for innovation in projects proposed to GCA, as he sorts through the engineering challenges. and asks the most important question, "What problem does it solve?"

While engineering at Case Western Reserve University (and his previous university), he took engineering classes in areas outside of his major including aeromechanics and material properties. It is the broad engineering knowledge he learned in many of those classes, including the class he calls the "rocket science class" that permit him to consult on engineering in the wide variety of fields GCA encounters.

In 2008, Christopher Clark brought his Miami University senior management project to GCA with the dream of realizing the project: a company which uses solar electricity to bring electricity and its benefits to developing countries in a way that is cheaper and more robust than the current methods. On this project, Jeffrey took a premise from the Miami graduate's project, manually rotating the solar panels, and studied the concept with a computerized simulation. The simulation was used to further refine the concept and devise the panel mounting and rotational geometry for a prototype he designed using Autodesk's 3D modeling software, Inventor. Jeffrey worked with Chris and the companies' other partners to design and test a first prototype. And in June 2009, the two traveled to Rwanda and Kenya to install the first two units.

Ironically, Jeffrey's first use of "rocket science" was in engineering Sunflower's solar panel mounts. All sorts of geometry and coordinate system manipulations were required to create the computerized efficient simulation, and were precisely what he learned in an aeromechanics class six years prior. Chris is planning to deploy a demo on the Case campus of the next version of Sunflower's solar panel mount.

Dr. Corttrell Kinney

Dr. Corttrell Kinney was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. A graduate of John Hay High School and Morehouse College, Corttrell holds a bachelors degree in Biology. He completed his doctoral degree in the Departments of Physiology and Biophysics at Case Western Reserve University and Cell Biology at The Cleveland Clinic.

He is very active in the community as a tutor and mentor. He started The Corttrell Kinney Scholarship Fund through the Cleveland Scholarship Programs. He has helped in the early stage development of numerous small businesses and non-profit organizations. His interests include: helping develop youth, teaching, film, travel, writing, tennis, golf, basketball, baseball, football and starting businesses. His goal is to help give back to others, uplift the community and help people to see themselves better in the world. Dr. Kinney is currently director of Richmond Heights City School District.

Sudhir Raghupathy

Since graduating with an MBA in Entrepreneurship and Organizational Behavior from Case Western Reserve University, Sudhir continually develops and advises expertise in advanced energy technologies and their potential for positive change. Sudhir is Senior Sustainability Consultant for Idgroup, which specializes in whole systems change processes that move entire organizational cultures toward true sustainability. He also serves as EcoTuesday Ambassador for Cleveland and co-chair of the Sustainable Cleveland 2019 Steering Committee. He also consults for several social enterprises in challenged communities in his spare time and actively advises companies on applications of solar and renewable energy technologies and practices. Sudhir is a firm supporter of Sunflower Solutions' direct and simple approach to solar tracking and their advancement of practical solar solutions.