A trio of local and regional business economic experts will forecast Colorado and national economies during an inaugural State of Small Business luncheon scheduled for April 12 in downtown Colorado Springs.
The event cohosts are the UCCS College of Business’ Southern Colorado Economic Forum and the Pikes Peak Small Business Development Center. Sponsors include Wells Fargo Bank and the Colorado Springs Business Journal.
Alison Felix, vice president and Denver branch executive, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City will be keynote speaker. She will be joined by Tatiana Bailey, director, UCCS College of Business’ Southern Colorado Economic Forum, Aikta Marcoulier, director, Pikes Peak Small Business Development Center and Kelly Manning, deputy director, Office of Economic Development and State Director Colorado SBDC Network.
Felix will focus her remarks on global, national and state economies, Manning will focus on the economic impact of small business from the state level, while Marcoulier and Bailey will comment on the local economy and the role of small businesses.
“We are delighted to bring such notable experts together for this important discussion and forecast,” Venkat Reddy, dean, College of Business, said. “We know our community partners value this data and perspective, and we are happy to help make this event possible.”
The event is scheduled for 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 12, at the Pinery at the Hill, 775 W Bijou Street, Colorado Springs. Tickets are $35 and available by visiting http://bit.ly/stateofbiz.
About the speakers:
Alison Felix. Felix serves as the vice president and Denver branch executive at the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. She is the bank’s regional economist and representative in Colorado, Wyoming and northern New Mexico. She works closely with the branch’s board of directors and is responsible for briefing the Kansas City Federal Reserve president on economic and business activity in the Denver region. Her research focuses on public finance and labor issues with an emphasis on tax policy, state and local government finance and the economics of education. She joined the Federal Reserve in 2007 as an economist in the Regional Affairs Department in Kansas City and was appointed Denver Branch executive in 2012. She earned doctoral and master’s degrees from the University of Michigan and a bachelor’s degree from Kansas State University.
Kelly Manning. Manning oversees the operational management, strategic planning and financial planning of the Colorado SBDC Network, a $3.5 million federal- and state-funded program. Under Manning’s leadership and ability to manage change, the Colorado SBDC has successfully increased the assistance of jobs created/retained by 800 percent; increased capital formation obtained by clients by 275 percent; and increased the return on investment by more than 50 percent, proving the successfulness of Manning’s ability to align her continually changing goals with statewide strategies. Manning attended New Hampshire College School of Business and obtained a bachelor’s degree in business administration. She also holds a master’s degree in communication with a certificate in dispute resolution from the University of Denver.
Tatiana Bailey. Bailey, a leading expert on health economics, policy and urban economic development, directs the Southern Colorado Economic Forum at the College of Business. The forum is a university and community supported research effort of the UCCS College of Business. It is the premier resource for local economic information and brings together experts from the public, private, and academic sectors to report annually on the southern Colorado economy. She was named SCEF director in 2014. Previously, she was an instructor at the University of Michigan and Walsh College and a consultant in health care and economic development fields. She earned doctoral and master’s degrees from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and a bachelor’s degree from Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada.
Aikta Marcoulier. Marcoulier directs the Pikes Peak Small Business Development Center which offers business consulting and training that assists small businesses in El Paso, Park and Teller County. She was named director in 2012 and previously served as director of partnership marketing, Professional Bull Riders. She earned a master’s degree from the University of Phoenix and bachelor’s degrees from the University of Iowa.
— Eric Nissen, College of Business
Leave a Reply