PTCE

The mission of MAGNET, the Manufacturing Advocacy & Growth Network, is to support, educate and champion Northeast Ohio manufacturing with the goal of transforming the region’s economy into a powerful, global player.

As Director, Entrepreneurial Services, Dave is one of a handful of regional entrepreneurial experts working with high growth potential technology startups to help accelerate them toward commercialization. Activities include strategic planning, business plan coaching, connections to suppliers, partners and customers, and access to funding sources.

Dave’s previous role at MAGNET was that of Director of Business and Information Systems. In that role Dave was responsible for setting strategic goals and aligning MAGNET’s business and technology programs toward them. Business initiatives included a Quality Systems rollout, Business Continuity planning and business process simplification. Technically, migration of MAGNET’s systems to the web was a key component driving a shift toward a knowledge-based organization.

Before joining MAGNET, Dave spent 12 years at Cap Gemini America (now Sogeti), in senior consulting, business development, and sales positions. While at Cap Gemini, Dave was a member of several international work teams tasked with developing new worldwide service offerings. Dave also has 9 years experience at The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. where he held a variety of roles, including 3 years as a worldwide EDP Auditor.

As part of the general management team at both Cap Gemini Ernst & Young and MAGNET, Dave developed or helped develop market penetration strategies, multiple websites and blogs, and several new product offerings.

Dave is a graduate of Miami (OH) with a B.S. in Systems Analysis & Design.

Laura Pettit Rusick
President
OPTSolutions

As President and Founder of OPT Solutions, Laura provides expertise in business process and technology optimization to small and mid-size businesses wanting to grow their business, improve efficiency, and reduce costs. She works with her clients to align their IT department with the vision and goals of the business, assists with software and technology selection and implementation, and maximizes business efficiencies by streamlining processes and reducing the amount of overall effort while improving quality.

Following a successful 21-year career in technology and business operations, Laura founded OPT Solutions, Inc. to make strategic management available to smaller businesses who may not be able to afford hiring a full-time CIO. Laura combines her 10 years of CIO experience with her business management expertise to help her clients align IT with business strategy, increase internal and external customer satisfaction with technology, and build strong IT teams and vendor relationships.

Ms. Rusick holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Case Western Reserve University, Weatherhead School, and a Bachelor of Science degree in computer science from Cleveland State University. She is an active board member of the Northeast Ohio Chapter of the Society for Information Management, and a member of the Northeast Ohio Software Association. Ms. Rusick is a certified Project Management Professional.

Prior to founding OPT Solutions, Inc., Ms. Rusick was the VP of Information Technology at Franklin & Seidelmann Radiology, Director of Information Technology at Family Heritage Life Insurance Company of America, Senior Manager of Information Services at Cole Managed Vision and Senior Consultant at Deloitte & Touche Management Consulting. She began her career working as a Service Consultant for Progressive Insurance.