1982

Michele (Bowser) Carroll (’82 MIBS) has been named Executive Director of the International Society of Service Innovation Professionals, the global membership association advancing people-centered, data-intensive innovation to benefit business, society and humanity. Carroll continues to lead the marketing firm she founded in 1994, Carrollco Marketing Services, and serves as advisor and board director for several Silicon Valley/San Francisco organizations.

1983

Laura Watkins Biggerstaff (’83 marketing)’s Iron Elk, LCC received the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Certification by the South Carolina Department of Transportation. Iron Elk, a prominent safety apparel company, earned the certification that reflects the company’s commitment to diversity, inclusion and excellence in safety services. This will allow Iron Elk to participate in a broader range of projects and collaborations, fostering economic advancement across the state. The DBE program aims to provide equal opportunities for small businesses owned and operated by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals. Iron Elk's certification signifies the company's alignment with these goals, enhancing its ability to collaborate on projects that drive economic growth and support local communities.

To learn more about Iron Elk, please contact sales@ironelk.com or 864-770-3323 or visit ironelk.com.  

1986

Greg Williams ('86 marketing) has been elected president of the Colorado Chapter of the National Speakers Association (NSA-CO), one of the largest chapters of the organization. A veteran speaker and trainer, Williams also serves as legislative liaison for the U.S. Space Force’s Space Training and Readiness Command. He specializes in leadership development through “7 Critical Soft Skills” and has been an active NSA-CO member since 2018.

1987

Christopher Payne Robinson ('87 MIBS), CFSP, CCO, of Easley, South Carolina, was installed as the 2024-25 president of the National Funeral Directors Association, the world’s largest funeral service organization. A fourth-generation funeral director, Robinson leads his family’s business, Robinson Funeral Homes, and is widely recognized for his leadership in both state and national funeral service communities. He is also actively involved in civic and educational boards throughout South Carolina.

1988

Melanie Reams Varin (’88 MIBS) published her book Ignite Topline Growth: How RevOps and Go-To-Market Alignment Spark Success as an eBook and a paperback. It is about the superpower that organizations tap into when their revenue-generating teams are working in sync. It is based on Varin’s experience leading a marketing team at GE Healthcare, then being asked to lead a national sales team as well — only to find out that their alignment wasn't where it should be. Varin’s book is available on Amazon and can be ordered where ever books are sold.

1991

Heidi Faber Kerns ('91 MBA) has been honored with the 2025 Lou Thompson Distinguished Service Award by the North Carolina Association of School Business Officials. Currently serving as chief finance officer for Asheville City Schools, Kerns has built a distinguished career in school finance spanning more than three decades — beginning in South Carolina and later serving 12 years as CFO for Rutherford County Schools before joining Asheville.

Known for her servant leadership and collaborative spirit, Kerns shares her expertise generously and plays a key role in shaping school business practices statewide. She represents North Carolina on the Southeastern Association of School Business Officials

Board of Directors and co-chairs the Education Business Systems Advisory Committee.

Beyond her professional contributions, Kerns is an animal advocate and founder of Sassy Old Seniors, a rescue organization for senior dogs. Her dedication to both her field and her community continues to leave a lasting impact.

1993

David Bauman ('93 MHR), Ph.D., was promoted to professor in the Anderson College of Business and Computing at Regis University in Denver. In 2024, he published the leadership book "The Eight Sources of Power: A Tale of Leading with Purpose" with Armin Lear Press.

1994

Kevin Meredith (’94 MBA) published his book Under Penalty of Death in May 2023 with Red Lightning Books, an imprint of Indiana University Press. Available on Amazon, the book concerns the historic but long covered up and forgotten 1932 kidnapping of Howard Woolverton by Machine Gun Kelly. Meredith worked on it in his spare time while pursuing the day job USC educated for him in technology sales and marketing. 

1997

Amy Bashor (’97 USC international studies, ’99 MHR) recently published her first children's book Rascal Takes Responsibility, the first in a series of stories about the Forest Friends, a group of adorable animal characters who live near the Standing Pines Campground in Hartsville, South Carolina. The book follows the adventures of Rascal and his friends as they learn the importance of admitting mistakes, making amends and offering forgiveness. Through beautiful illustrations by local artist Rebecca Powell and engaging storytelling, the book teaches children essential values that will help them grow into responsible and compassionate individuals. Published by Standing Tall Books, Rascal Takes Responsibility is now available for purchase on Amazon. Bashor plans to continue the Forest Friends series, with the second book scheduled for publication later this year. 

1997

Ioana Tudor ('97 IMBA) received the award of Top 100 Romanians living abroad. Tudor considers the education received at the Darla Moore School of Business in the IMBA program as the starting point and foundation of her professional success. So, she wanted to say thank you to our school!

1997 and 1998

Bryan Hudson, ('97 accounting, '98 MACC) CPA, ACI, has been named chairman of the board at Bauknight Pietras & Stormer, P.A., marking his second term in the role. A shareholder since 2013, Hudson leads the firm’s property and casualty insurance practice and is a nationally recognized expert in captive insurance. A Summerville, South Carolina, native, Hudson continues to serve clients across the U.S. on insurance consulting and strategic planning.

1998

Didi Caldwell ('98 IMBA), CEO of Global Location Strategies, was recently profiled in Bloomberg for her leadership in U.S. manufacturing site selection. As the first female chair of the Site Selectors Guild, Caldwell has guided more than $44 billion in investments and helped create more than 15,000 jobs through major industrial projects across the U.S. Her work has been central to the country's manufacturing resurgence, especially in clean energy and advanced manufacturing.

2000

Angela Jones Lewis ('00 finance) is excited to share she launched the Boom-Lennial Podcast, a unique show that explores the dynamic partnership between a Baby Boomer and a Millennial. The podcast highlights the blend of generational leadership, valuable insights and real-world entrepreneurial experiences.

New episodes are released on YouTube every 2nd and 4th Tuesday of the month at 8 p.m. Their goal is to inspire and connect with a million entrepreneurs and business leaders. Lewis would be grateful for your support — please consider subscribing and sharing the podcast with your network!

2000

Dave Rogers (’00 management and marketing) accepted in 2023 the role of Director, Electric Truck Division at Ethero Truck and Energy. Ethero is a zero-emissions commercial truck dealership covering Maryland through South Carolina with additional expansions planned. The dealership represents Nikola and Lonestar SV brands.

2001

Juan Gamboa ('01 management science and marketing) was recently promoted to CEO at BNamericas after four years acting as the chief revenue officer.

2001

Nicholas C. Pizzuti ('01 finance and management) was elected to the Lexington County School District One Board of Trustees in November 2024.

2003

Ben Bomar (’03 MIBS) recently celebrated three years for the company he founded, Lithyus Group. Headquartered in Minnesota, Lithyus helps organizations transform their best practices into common practices by celebrating, retaining and sharing the institutional knowledge of key personnel. Though global in scope, Lithyus maintains strong ties to South Carolina, serving multiple clients in Columbia and Charleston.

2003

Anna Huffman (’03 management and marketing) was re-elected as the Secretary for the National Information Officers Association.

2004

Jerrell Moore (’04 MHR, ’04 J.D.) began a new role as chief human resources and diversity officer on May 1, 2024, and became a member of the company's Management Committee on June 30, 2024. Moore joined the company in 2023 as chief diversity officer, bringing extensive experience in human resources and diversity with brands such as Google, Nike, Assurant, Spectrum and Burger King, and a career dedicated to the people space. The decision to incorporate the company's diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging function within human resources aligns with its overall strategic focus on talent development and sustainability.

2007

Megan Thibault Morris ('07 marketing) named president and CEO of the Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce.

2011

Craig S. Glass (’11 MBA) owns photography business Ambrotype Visuals, which includes artistic architectural images of USC available for purchase and is now an official USC Alumni Association Gamecock Business Directory member. To learn more, visit AmbrotypeVisuals.com or UofSCAlumni.org/gamecock-business-directory.

2013

Sarah Gibbs (’13 management and marketing) recently joined Graduate Columbia, a hotel in the heart of the USC campus, as Director of Rooms. In this role, Sarah serves as director of both housekeeping and front office departments. She is excited to be back in Columbia as she has moved around the East Coast since graduating 10 years ago. Sarah hopes to inspire other young Gamecocks to follow their dreams and passions and always be willing to wait for the right opportunity!

2014

Aseem Gupta (’14 IMBA)’s startup named Sahy electric was incubated at one of India's top universities. Sahy, which means “to do right,” is a venture which aims to make transportation free of cost and emissions by leveraging additional revenue streams. The enterprise was started in 2022 and is currently bootstrapped by the founding team. 

2015

Vanessa Mathews ('15 PMBA) celebrated in October 2024 10 years of business for Asfalis Advisors, the homeland security company she started while attending USC. In June 2024, she and her husband had their first baby, a boy.

2019

Jack Bellissimo (’19 MBA) was named senior vice president of Product Management, Marketing and Strategy by ABB Installation Products, formerly known as Thomas & Betts. Bellissimo is leading the U.S. and Latin America region portfolio of electrification solutions. He will focus on strategically positioning the business in the global marketplace to continue developing, manufacturing and marketing products used to manage the connection, protection and distribution of electrical power in industrial, construction and utility applications.

Bellissimo joined ABB from Hubbell Electrical Products, a division of Hubbell, Inc., where he was the Vice President of Marketing and Product Management. Before that, he held sales and product leadership roles at Hubbell and Michelin, as well as operations and supply chain management roles at GE Power. ABB would also like to recognize Bellissimo's armed forces service. He served five years as an Airborne Army Ranger and Sr. Intelligence Analyst with the 75th Ranger Regiment, U.S. Army. He deployed three times to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and is a recipient of the Bronze Star Medal. Bellissimo earned a B.S. in business management from DeVry University. He relocated to the Memphis, Tennessee, area for the ABB SVP position.

2019

Jason Friedman (’19 finance) launched a startup in May 2022 called AdvisorFinder, which is an online marketplace helping people find and research financial advisors. Friedman co-founded tech startup AdvisorFinder with Drew Keever (’19 USC political science).

2019

Monica Heng ('19 management and marketing) and her husband, Corey Pulley (’19 USC), welcomed their baby boy Jacobi In July 2023. On their son's 13-month birthday, they took him to where it all started for the Red Rivals game! Heng says being in Willy B as a family for Jacobi's first soccer match was a day to remember.

2019

Hannah Marcheschi (’19 operations and supply chain) and Keenan Smith (’18 finance and operations and supply chain) got engaged over Labor Day Weekend in 2023. Both studied operations and supply chain at the Moore School and met as members of Sigma Omega Upsilon International Business Fraternity. They now live in Chicago with their dog, Grizzly.

2020

Daniel Myers ('20 marketing) is excited to announce that he’s joined CWS Insurance, where he'll work in commercial and personal insurance lines. He looks forward to serving the Spartanburg and Gamecocks community. Go Gamecocks!

2020

Rory Silverman (’20 IMBA) and Pooja Subramanian (’20 IMBA) got married on Oct. 28, 2023 in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina!

2022

Spencer Kemp ('22 management and marketing) and his business partner, David Clayton (’22 management), won the Free Times Best of Columbia Award for Best Moving Company. Their business name is Spence & Dave's Junk Removal & Moving. Photo is of their lead team at the "Wild Wild Best" winner's party downtown at the art museum.