Fred Abbate is the former President and Chief Executive Officer of the New Jersey Utilities Association, the organization that represents the investor-owned electric, gas, water, and telecommunications utilities in the state.  He holds a Ph.D. from Columbia University, a Master’s degree from Boston College, and an A.B. from Fairfield University.  Prior to joining NJUA in August of 1995, Fred worked for sixteen years in numerous executive positions for Atlantic Energy, the electric utility serving southern New Jersey.  He has chaired and worked with leading key communications, customer research, and industry policy committees for the Edison Electric and the Electric Power Research Institutes.  He is also a graduate of the Cornell University Executive Development Program and the Edison Electric Public Policy Institute, a certified Kepner-Tregoe trainer, and a Blessing/White program leader.  Before joining Atlantic Energy, he taught philosophy at Rutgers University, Iona College, and in the New York City University system.  He is currently Visiting Associate Professor at Drexel University.

As a loaned executive from Atlantic Energy in 1993-94, Fred served as Director of Leadership New Jersey, the state’s best-known leadership program.  For the past several years, he has conducted seminars for College Leadership New Jersey, and has consulted on and lectured in leadership programs for the Principals’ Center for the Garden State and other educational groups.  Fred has managed major consulting projects involving human resources, strategic planning, management development, and communications for many New Jersey and out-of-state business and trade associations, government agencies, and other organizations.  He is the author of Preface to the Philosophy of the State and The Philosophic Impulse, and has published numerous articles on utility decision-making, politics, legal theory, educational reform, and strategic planning.  His play, The Idea of Edison, was produced by New Jersey Public Television, and in 1992 he wrote, directed, and performed in Keeping Time, a play presented by the New Jersey State House Bicentennial Commission.

Fred has been active in a number of state and national associations.  He is a member (and ex-Chairman) of the New Jersey Department of Labor’s Employer Council,  served on the Governor’s Commission on Quality Education, the Arts Task Force on Core Curriculum Standards, and is former Chair of and a member of the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees of Thomas A. Edison State College.  Fred also served as Vice Chairperson of the New Jersey State Council on the Arts (where he also chaired the Grants Committee) and on the Board of Advisors of the Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University.

Additionally, he is a founding member of the Stockton Alliance, a unique partnership of New Jersey business executives and environmental leaders.  He was the founding Chairperson of the Arts and Business Partnership of Southern New Jersey, as well as the Education Committee of the New Jersey Business and Industry Association.  A native of New Haven, Connecticut, Fred lives with his wife, Rosemary, in Moorestown, New Jersey.

Catherine Campbell Events and Sponsor Relations Manager
Catherine has spent the last 20 years specializing in Broadcast Media and securing National Corporate sponsorships for special events and festivals that range in attendance from five thousand to one million patrons.

Her area of expertise is developing and implementing new product campaign launches for Fortune 500 Companies.  Her strategic marketing initiatives consist of street intercept, retail, night club promotions, special events and festivals. 

Jeanne Jespersen, Vice President
As a former small business owner and 10 year veteran of association management, Jeanne Jespersen has a wealth of experience in project management and client relations in both the public and private sectors.
She brings in-depth knowledge of marketing, customer service, database management and publication development to her new position as Project Manager at Association Business Solutions.

Prior to joining ABS, Jespersen helped manage the membership department of the nation’s largest state-level employer association where she was a proven leader in strategic planning, program development, and member retention and recruitment.  During her tenure, the Association enjoyed record member growth and retention, the launch of several new profit-making affinity programs, and the implementation of informative solution-based seminars for members.

Before entering Association work, Jespersen owned and operated all aspects of a profitable retail artist materials store for 20 years where she gained her foundational knowledge of effective business management and client relations.  She credits her experience as a small business owner for her ability to problem solve and meet customer demands on time and within budget.

Jespersen is an active member the American Society of Association Executives.

Elizabeth (Libby) Vinson, Communications & Government Affairs / Regulatory Issues
Elizabeth (Libby) Vinson has spent the last eight years working in government affairs for the nation's largest statewide Member Business Association. As vice president, she coordinated the Association's lobbying efforts in education, workforce development, small business, and federal business issues. For many years, she also coordinated the Association's grassroots activities, including a network of 18 local employer groups.

Vinson remains engaged in public affairs by serving as a consultant on several projects, particularly in the education policy arena. She is very active in local politics and community initiatives and is a graduate of the Christine Todd Whitman Series, a leadership program for women in New Jersey. She served on the Mercer County Community College Board of Trustees from 2000-2004 and continues to be an active member of the Women's Political Caucus.

Vinson is a graduate of Lehigh University in Bethlehem and earned her Master's degree in Politics and Public Affairs from the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University.

April Sette, Project Manager
April’s strong project leadership skills enable her to effectively create and execute communications plans that enhance visibility and credibility to meet a client’s mission and vision.  She can effectively communicate and maintain relationships with key internal and external influencers including stakeholders, media and the general public.

April’s background managing projects in event management, co-op promotions and entertainment marketing has given her the skills required to launch projects with all budgets to completion.

Barry Wise is a Senior Application Architect and Lead Developer with 10 years experience in web-based programming languages and relational database management systems.  His resume includes working for Lucent Technologies, AT&T, and IBM.

There are two very important deliverables that Barry Wise brings to the table on any project, which he has developed over the course of 10 years of building web-based applications: Application Architecture and Database Design.

Outlining all the tools which need to be built for this application as done here is only part of the application design process.  Barry will also provide the intuitive design flow of the software before we begin the programming phase.  This ensures your application is not simply a collection of web tools, but a consistent, easily navigated software package for end users.

The most important factor in building a robust, scalable, data-dependent application such as this is having a solid database structure to build upon.  Without it, the application becomes difficult to upgrade in the future, and may not be as stable when it begins to scale to more users.

Barry literally wrote the book on database structure and design.  The definitive article on Database Normalization and Design Techniques by Barry Wise has been reprinted dozens of times, has been translated into over 10 international languages, and has been used on the teaching curriculum of over 5 different American Universities, including the Harvard MIS Degree.

Additional References:

On the Web:
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=Database+Normalization+Design+Techniques+Barry+Wise&btnG=Search

As used at Harvard:
Developing Web-based Database Applications  (CSCI E-253)
http://www.courses.dce.harvard.edu/~cscie253/resources.html