EMP-70

Brian Lees accepted a new position as a manager, global cost management, for John Deere’s agriculture and turf division.
Sanjay Ambekar and his wife welcomed a second daughter into the world named Esha. His oldest daughter, Ava, is 2 ½ years old. Sanjay has since moved his family into their new home in Allen, Texas. On the professional front, Sanjay was able to sell his business unit at United Commtel. Once the transfer is complete , Sanjay will lead the new entity, which will be called Scarlet Wireless.

Kevin Galvin has had a busy few months. His oldest daughter made him a grandpa. His second daughter got married. His third daughter graduated from college. Kevin was again selected as one of the top financial advisors in St. Louis and was invited to be featured in Forbes magazine. Kevin and his wife also will celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary in November.

John Greene embarked on a new professional adventure on Jan. 4. He joined a small, fast-growing company called Translation (translationllc) as a senior partner and chief strategy officer. Translation was founded by Steve Stoute, an entrepreneur who came up through the music industry prior to moving into the world of marketing. With Jay-Z as a co-chairman, Translation is an agency built to help brands thrive in contemporary culture. John states: “Though our work spans from strategic consulting to advertising to new product development and beyond, in everything we do we seek to create value by creating ideas that shape culture. Our client mix ranges from big brands (State Farm, McDonalds, Target, The Coca-Cola Company, Nokia, Wrigley) to big names in contemporary culture (Lady Gaga, Rihanna).” Big brands and big names. Totally sounds like something John would find a groove in.

Alex Samano still is at T-Mobile pending any interruption in the merger with AT&T. He recently got his startup, Life Dreams Inc., the first free online financial planning tool for families and individuals, up and running. He must have thought all of while feeding his new born Sebastian through some early morning hours.

Sreenath Reddy and his wife, Aravinda welcomed a new addition to our family. Vibha, their second daughter, arrived on Feb. 22.

Jeffrey Hoss reports: “Recently in-persons reunions have included running into George Kucera on the streets of San Francisco in August. He moved from HP to Salesforce.com. Still waiting for the phone call for that drink, George. Also, we had a small reunion of sorts during a quick stopover in Chicago in October. Met up with Peter Hammond (still with Bank of America) and wife Julia, John Greene and Baiju Shah and enjoyed a Sunday at Soldier Field with tailgating and a Bears victory. Earlier that weekend we also met up with Chris Hopkins, Varasparad Manne, Shuk Ng and Stephanie Shum. Chris is enjoying his role in the startup Viva Beverages, a creative beverages concept with quick starts and organic drinks. Shuk is enjoying motherhood and I can honestly say that I have never seen her look more radiant and glowing. Stephanie has moved into a boutique consulting company as a principal consultant with Daugherty Business Solutions in Oakbrook. And Manne is still being Manne. I enjoyed our time together and look forward to future events without the last minute notice.

“I, myself, am into year two with Hoss Marketing Group. Business has picked up and we had our first million dollar revenue month this past July. I have also entered into the technology/cloud arena as HMG has introduced Host Connection, a sales contact management tool for the casino industry and have launched at seven different casino locations throughout the U.S. We are also doing systems integration and customization of CRM/Sales/Loyalty Management/Service for hospitality companies. Between the VIP Concierge concepts and the CRM customizations, I am hopeful that I can continue to pursue my passion of data analytics and loyalty marketing. One other note, Chris and I completed our third trip sailing the British Virgin Islands this past July. Photos taken during the trip are not suitable for Kellogg World magazine content, but based upon your knowledge of the history of our time together, you can be assured that a good time was had by all. We are planning our next adventure for 2012. Please keep in touch!”