Executive Advisors
Josh Berry
CEO and Co-Founder, ECONIC
An innovation, transformation, and strategy consulting group. Josh guides people as they discover and expand behaviors and practices that empower growth for them and their companies.
Through the process of building innovation labs and programs, workshopping, coaching,
management consulting, and creating resilient strategies, Econic helps teams and organizations realize tangible results. Their current and past partners include US Bank, John Deere, Procter & Gamble, Nelnet, Farm Credit Services of America, and Blue Cross Blue Shield.
Prior to starting Econic, Josh worked in global talent management consulting for a variety of
clients including The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, H&R Block, and Stanford Medical Center.
Josh also mentored and led workshops for early stage startups at seed-stage accelerators. His areas of expertise include Lean Startup, innovation management/governance, change
management, organizational transformation, leadership development, and business model
innovation.
A Nebraska native, Josh enjoys reading, triathlons, learning the piano, and spending time with
his wife and four kids. In all that Josh does, he continues to celebrate the potential already
within people and their ability to grow and change.
Kara Bunde-Dunn
Executive Vice President Sales & Marketing, Slingshot
Kara has 20 years of experience leading people and organizations through significant times of change. Kara applies her experience in service excellence, talent development, product positioning, and sales growth to expand on the innovation at Slingshot. She focuses much of her time on strategies that are in the best interest of the student. Providing value to the student is at the center of her leadership and decision-making.
Prior to joining Slingshot, Bunde-Dunn served as Senior Vice President of Sales, Marketing, and Customer Success at Nebraska Book Company, advocating for the independent campus store. Prior to that, she served as the Vice president of business development for National Research Corporation (NRC), a company known for its customer-centric care model. Before NRC, Bunde-Dunn held several senior-level positions at Talent Plus, Inc.
Bunde-Dunn resides in Lincoln, Nebraska, with her husband and daughter.
Jeff Foster
Professor of I/O Psychology, Missouri State University
Jeff Foster is an Assistant Professor at Missouri State University and Independent Consultant specializing in employee assessments for selection and development. Prior to becoming a Professor, Jeff was the VP of Science at Hogan Assessment Systems. He has consulted for numerous organizations throughout the world, ranging from I/O organizations, to Fortune 500 companies, to small specialty firms.
Jeff has conducted or lead teams responsible for over 800 validation studies, has authored over 200 technical reports and white-papers, and has participated in dozens of professional presentations and publications. He has also coached hundreds of consultants around the world on practices and techniques for using assessments with both individuals and teams. Jeff holds a Ph.D. in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from the University of Missouri-St. Louis.
Peter Kressaty
Chief Commercial Officer, LW Hospitality Advisors
Peter Kressaty serves as Chief Commercial Officer at LW Hospitality Advisors (LWHA) responsible for the strategy and development of the firm’s service offerings and geographic footprint. Mr. Kressaty, who is based in New York, has more than thirty years of lodging sector experience commencing his career in operations with Hyatt Hotels before serving as Club Manager at The Yale Club of New York, General Manager of the iconic luxury Lowell Hotel New York, Senior Vice President of Carino Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, and Regional Vice President, Sales & Marketing with Highgate. More recently, Mr. Kressaty was Executive Vice President of Forbes Travel Guide, consulting with the world’s top luxury brands and independent properties and served as Global Director of Residences for a private entity where he ensured the cohesive oversight of the properties, staff, operating procedures, service standards and day-to-day management.
In the past decade, Peter has traveled the world assessing and shaping delivery of service levels at the finest and most awarded luxury hotels, resorts, restaurants, spas, residences, private clubs and cruise lines. As a passionate hospitality professional, his effective leadership drove profitable growth and gained him rare exposure to a vast and unmatched variety of best practices across cultures, governments, suppliers and labor pools. His career has been centered on building trust and rapport with employees, partners, guests and clients. Above all, Peter enjoys motivating and inspiring his team and his customers.
Peter serves on various hospitality industry boards and is a frequent guest lecturer at many prestigious hospitality schools and organizations around the world. Peter’s best days are spent with his wife, three sons and their dog at home and on the road.