The Exit Planning Exchange - Connecticut Board of Directors

Joe Pucci – PRESIDENT

Joe Pucci is an advisor in the Bernstein Global Wealth Management‘s New York office. He advises high-net-worth individuals, families and institutions, as well as their respective trusts, estates, foundations, endowments and pension plans. In conjunction with Bernstein’s Wealth Management Group, Joe works closely with his clients’ trusted tax and legal advisors on all investment and wealth planning matters, including tax and estate planning, concentrated stock positions and the sale of privately held businesses.

Prior to joining the firm in 2006, Joe founded a management consulting firm supporting the business development and marketing of new ventures and product launches. Before that he was a general manager with Prudential Financial, where he established the industry’s first comprehensive line of banking products and services designed for the independent investment professional marketplace. Joe began his career with a decade-long tenure with GE Capital, starting with a two-year financial management program and subsequently taking on leadership roles.

Joe earned a BS, cum laude, in leadership and finance from the University of Colorado, Boulder, and an MBA with honors from Columbia Business School.

Joe serves on the boards of the Westport  Arts Center, the Connecticut Food Bank and the Connecticut Chapter of the Exit Planning Exchange, and is a member of the Association for Corporate Growth and the development committee of the Westport Public Library. He is active in the Soundview Club of Stamford and the Unitarian Church in Westport, where he served as chair of the endowment committee.

Robert Moquin, CRPS – VICE PRESIDENT

Rob brings a unique 24 year financial services background to Morgan Stanley Smith Barney. After receiving a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from Le Moyne College in 1986, he joined General Motors Acceptance Corporation. While achieving his Masters of Business Administration from Syracuse University with a concentration in Finance and Organizational Behavior, Rob applied his education to family owned businesses that were growing, transferring or liquidating. Rob’s experience in commercial lending and liabilities management provide a resource to the business owner clients in the operation of their business and the planning for its eventual transference or growth.

Rob, his wife Beverly, a high school mathematics teacher, and their three daughters live in Marlborough, CT. The family enjoys dramatic theater and other youth activities that Rob coaches.

Joseph Bazzano, CPA, CVA – TREASURER

Joe Bazzano of  Private Equity Transitions, LLC, a Certified Valuation Analyst, bring nearly 20 years of experience in public accounting and valuation services, to closely-held companies of all sizes. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Connecticut Society of Certified Public Accountants and National Association of Certified Valuation Analysts. He is the former chair of the Connecticut Society of Certified Public Accountants’ Manufacturing Committee. Joe’s areas of expertise include financial reporting, mergers and acquisitions, exit strategies and tax planning and compliance with individuals and business entities in the manufacturing, construction, wholesale and real estate industries.

Joe is a graduate of Bentley College.

John Lawrence – SECRETARY

John Lawrence practices in the areas of corporate, private equity, insurance and health law matters, including mergers and acquisitions, corporate securities and venture capital financings, and joint ventures at Shipman & Goodwin. John has extensive experience in mergers and acquisitions of both public and private companies, recapitalization transactions and corporate divestitures.  He is a former Lieutenant in the United States Naval Reserve.

John received his bachelor’s degree from Washington and Lee University and his law degree from the University of Virginia’s School of Law.

Ken Ducey – MEMBERSHIP CO-CHAIR

Ken Ducey is President of Fairfield Capital, a boutique investment bank focused on Mergers & Acquisitions. Ken has been involved in multiple transactions as a business owner, investor and intermediary and currently utilizes those experiences to help closely held companies develop and execute their exit strategies. Fairfield Capital specializes in finding strategic and financial buyers for companies with enterprise value between $4 million and $50 million.

Ken has testified to multiple United States Congressional Committees, and presented at multiple investor conferences.  He has appeared on CNBC, Fox News, CBS, ABC, and NBC.  Ken has also appeared in many publications including Business Week and  The Washington Post.

Daniel J. McMahon, CPA – MEMBERSHIP CO-CHAIR

Daniel J. McMahon, CPA has approximately 19 years of experience serving as an external accountant, auditor  and business advisor to small and medium sized businesses. Dan’s primary focus is to advise companies on  strategies and tactics related to corporate infrastructure, financial risks and growth. Dan was formerly an audit  partner with CCR LLP a regional accounting, tax and business advisory firm, where he also served as Partner-in-Charge of Sales and Marketing.

Dan has served as the workplace coordinator for the Greater Hartford Arts Council United Arts Campaign and as a  member of the Marlborough, Connecticut Board of Finance. In addition to his role as a Board Member of the Exit Planning Exchange, Connecticut Chapter, Dan is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the Connecticut Community Investment Corporation and as a member of the Board of Directors of The Sam & Elizabeth Colt American Cultural Heritage Foundation. Prior to relocating to Connecticut in 2006, he resided in Chicago where he served as a member of the Accounting Principles Committee for the Illinois CPA Society and as Treasurer  for the DePaul University Young Alumni Association.

Dan received his Bachelor of Science degree in Accountancy from DePaul University’s College of Commerce. He is a certified public accountant in the State of Connecticut and is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Connecticut Society of Certified Public Accountants and the Institute of Internal Auditors.

Robin Ann Bienemann – DIRECTOR

Robin Ann Bienemann is chairman and founder of Crimson Rook, a CT based firm specializing in helping small and mid size companies increase value through improved business processes and innovation.

She has served in an executive capacity for companies with revenues as small as $1M and as large as $8B. At age 24, she founded Ocean Industries, a quality control equipment manufacturer in Manchester, NH. Prior to creating Crimson Rook, she was Senior Vice President of Operations with Blue Arc Corporation, a $30M computer storage manufacturer in San Jose, CA. Robin’s assignment at Blue Arc included the creation of strategic alliances and outsourcing strategies.

Robin Ann is a great believer in the power of innovation. Recognizing the challenges small and mid-size companies face in generating cash flow to fund innovation, Crimson Rook helps companies gain access to funding through its relationships with key sources like Connecticut’s Small Business Innovation Research program.

Robin Ann received her bachelor’s degree from Springfield College and her masters as a Sloan Fellow at MIT. The University of Connecticut’s School of Engineering recently tapped her to be its first Entrepreneur in Residence. She will help lead an effort to strengthen ties between the School and the small and mid-size business sector.

Dave Leibell - DIRECTOR

David Leibell is a partner in the Private Client Services Department at Wiggin and Dana and divides his time between the firm’s Stamford and New York offices. David focuses his practice on representing wealthy individuals and families, along with business succession and charitable planning.

David has given several hundred lectures and webinars to lawyer and nonlawyer audiences throughout the United States and has authored over one hundred articles on charitable, estate and tax planning. David has a monthly column on charitable giving for Trusts and Estates Magazine, as well as on the web-based e-newsletter Wealth Watch. David has also written for Estate Planning Magazine, the Exempt Organization Tax Review, Registered Representative and Financial Advisor magazine. David has been quoted in numerous publications, including The New York Times, Business Week, Investment News, and Bloomberg Wealth Manager and has appeared on CNBC’s “Closing Bell with Maria Bartiromo.” David serves as the Chairperson of the Philanthropy Committee for Trusts and Estates Magazine and is listed in The Best Lawyers in America for two practice areas — Trusts and Estates and Charities/Non Profits.

David received a B.A. from Trinity College, a J.D. from Fordham Law School and an LL.M. in taxation from New York University. David is admitted to practice in New York and Connecticut. David is a member of the Estates and Gifts Committee of the New York City Bar and is on the advisory board of the Central Park Conservancy. David lives in Easton, Connecticut with his wife and two children.

Jim Malski - DIRECTOR

Jim Malski is the Founder and President of Next Level Strategies, an ActionCOACH licensed firm. He is an international speaker, trainer and award winning business coach. Jim began his career at PriceWaterhouseCoopers. Since then he has bought and sold 16 businesses. Jim co-founded a commercial passenger airline at age 26 that he grew into the fourth largest national airline in the United States generating over $200 million in annual sales. He has held a number of senior management positions, including, president, COO, CFO, and controller. Since 2001, Jim has successfully coached thousands of entrepreneurs on how to profitably grow their organizations using practical and proven business-building strategies through his seminars, workshops and 1-2-1 mentoring programs. He is the author of a number of published columns on business leadership topics.