Recruiters / Hiring Managers

Keynote

Career Coaches and Panel

Tony Calabrese (Resume Review & Coach Introduction)

Tony Calabrese is a certified Life and Career Coach.  A lifelong New Jersey resident, he has thrived through a series of life changing events.   Coaching, consulting, facilitating support groups, and writing blogs and newsletters provide the opportunity for him to share what he has learned with others.

After a long and successful career in Project Management and Systems assignments, a series of life events led Tony to shift directions and pursue a new career in coaching.  In 2009, Tony earned his certifications from the Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching (IPEC) in both their intensive coach training program and their Energy Leadership assessment and debrief process.  In August of 2011, he became a Certified Career Coach.  Tony is a member of the International Coach Federation (ICF) and was President of its New Jersey chapter in 2012.

Tony and his wife, Carolina, reside in Maplewood, NJ. 
Telephone: (973) 762-1350 Cell: (201) 306-9811

Mike Callahan (Panel)

Mike Callahan is currently Managing Partner with Callahan & Rose Consulting.

Prior to that, he was Director of Career Planning and Development for the College of Business at U of Michigan – Dearborn. In that role, he worked with employers to develop challenging internship and job placement opportunities.

He was also on the adjunct faculty staff at U of Michigan – Dearborn teaching Career Planning and Development courses within the College of Business.

He is also a published author and has written two books on the subject of Career Planning and Development. His first book, I Inc, is used in the BA 300 Career Planning course and the second one, Tiger in the Office, is designed to help mid-career professionals with their career pursuits.

During his 8 years in the Air Force, Mike was a Bomb/Nav Specialist and supported the computer systems on the B 52 G and H models. He was stationed at Minot, North Dakota, Fairchild AFB in Washington and spent 6 months TDY in Guam during the conclusion of the Vietnam War.

After his time in the military, Mike spent 25 years with Electronic Data Systems in various project management and leadership roles in the US and in Latin America.

Recently, he started a podcast called I Inc and Beyond. (It can be found on Google Podcasts and iTunes Podcasts). The podcast focuses on helping veterans, and returning citizens, become more empowered in the pursuit of their career aspirations.

He is also actively supporting veterans in their career pursuits especially in the areas of program and project management.

Paul Cecala (Coach - The Four Step Interview Process)

Paul Cecala, a Five O’Clock Club Certified Career Coach, has been coaching since 1999 and assisted over 3000 people in either changing careers or starting their professional lives.  He has worked for several post-secondary career schools as Director of Career Services specializing in Biotech/pharmaceutical careers, Green Economy jobs, aviation, allied health, IT and general administrative professions.  Currently, he the Director of Program Development for Fairleigh Dickinson University’s Petrocelli College of Continuing Studies where his responsibilities include identifying developing and managing many of the school's adult, non-credit programming.  Additionally, he helped develop the job search training process for several NJ Department of Labor sponsored job search groups.

Paul has a BS in Psychology from Florida Institute of Technology.  Prior to career coaching, he had a long career in corporate aviation sales.  His final position in this arena was Vice President of Aircraft Charter Sales for a nation-wide industry leader.

Lisa Chenofsky Singer (Panelist & Coach - Preparing and Sustaining Yourself for the Marketplace)

Lisa Chenofsky Singer, founder of Chenofsky Singer & Associates, is all about customizing and personalizing the career development experience.

If you want a coach who will select the tools from her toolbox that suit your particular needs and tailor them to just what you are looking for – whether a mid-career shift to a new field, a first-time career exploration, a resume revamp, or an executive coaching package — she is your Coach.

Lisa's motto, 'love your career, live your talents, treasure your life's successes', is all about being a 'whole' person in how we live.
Balancing our interests, passions, and desire for learning is what keeps our fingers on the pulse. Linking this to how we earn a living is very powerful as when you enjoy what you do, you excel at it and it is not 'work' but rather 'energy' for you throughout the day. When you can look at possibilities, understand the marketplace AND understand how you can translate your skills and abilities into current needs – you can land a job. When you can take your ability to influence beyond what is directly in front of you — then you are driving your career.

Alex Freund (Panel)

Known as “The Landing Expert,” Alex Freund helps his clients land new positions and get promotions through effective interviewing. As a former director at Honeywell, Sanofi and Tyco International, Alex is an experienced hiring manager.

Currently, Alex is a career coach, specializing in helping his clients improve their interviewing skills and making them confident and comfortable throughout the interviewing process. For the last 12 years, Alex has helped more than 750 clients ranging from managers to CEOs in a variety of industries.

Alex is volunteering in several job-search networking groups where he is an occasional presenter. He conducts workshops on interviewing, resumes, LinkedIn, Value Proposition, Personal Branding and alike in addition to weekly publishing a blog written specifically for job seekers. His blogs are posted on many LinkedIn groups, appeared in Inc. Magazine, Entrepreneur Magazine and Business Insider.

For over eight years, Alex has been teaching a course for people in transition via the Princeton Adult School and publishes The Landing Expert List, a free directory of job-search networking groups via his website at landingexpert.com.

Alex is a Cornell University graduate and speaks five languages.

Marian Janes (Coach - Mental Fitness — Turning Saboteurs into Super Powers)

Igniting Personal and Professional Growth and Transforming Vision Into Reality

MarianMarian Janes is a passionate and dynamic leader, coach and speaker possessing an innate ability to help people discover and apply their core potential and make progress towards their vision. She inspires her clients to consider possibilities in their lives and connect with opportunity amidst ongoing change and uncertainty through a creative process that unleashes untapped potential.

Marian is an astute and creative thinker capable of processing complex challenges and addressing them with practical, real world solutions. She is well respected as a coach and well liked as a leader. She attributes her ongoing success to continually coaching and guiding others towards their vision by empowering them to embrace opportunity within circumstance.

Marian is currently the President and Owner of Jancom Associates and Ignite Growth Coaching. She is committed to making a difference in the lives of those she meets and serves. Marian spends much time coaching and mentoring people with Lyme disease and chronic illness.

Marian has had the distinct privilege of leading organizations while stimulating growth in varied business environments amidst constant market and cultural changes. Previously, Marian founded a corporate university within a large technology company that became a model for success both domestically and internationally. She holds an ACC Associate Certified Coach accreditation from Philosophy IB and Rutgers University. She is also a certified Café Style Master Facilitator, providing experiential learning and change interventions to accelerate business growth. In addition, she teaches at Rutgers University in the Professional and Continuing Education department.

Marian possesses a Master’s Degree in Education from Indiana University and is an active member of Toastmasters International. She is involved with Bryan’s Dream Foundation in support of pediatric brain cancer families, Special Olympics and Disability Olympics. She enjoys working with teens and young adults she meets as a youth ministry and mission trip leader. Marian is an outdoor junkie who regularly participates in adventures in the great outdoors.

Steven Meyer (Panel)

As a PMO Delivery Analyst, Steven is responsible for educating/supporting over 200 PMO Recruiters in the United States and Canada for the nationally-based talent acquisition strategies of the Apex Systems PMO, Business Analysis, and Agile Practice. With over 12 years of experience in IT Staffing & Services, he brings a wealth of Recruitment, Interview Preparation and Project Management skillset knowledge from holding roles such as a Senior Professional Recruiter and Delivery Lead during his career with Apex Systems. He brings subject matter expertise in various career coaching areas for PMs, BAs and Agile practitioners, including job search strategy, upskilling/skills development, branding (i.e. resumes and LinkedIn profiles), delivering effective interviews, and more.

Currently working remotely in a rural community in NW Missouri he spent the vast majority of his career in Apex’s Kansas City Office supporting Fortune 1000, Federal and Healthcare clients across the Midwest Region. He has been involved in the Kansas City PMI Chapter and Professional Development Days event for almost 10 years as a Corporate sponsor and a regular volunteer with local Career Fairs.

Steven has Degrees from the University of Kansas (Go Jayhawks!) and Saint Louis University (go Billikins). Any free time outside of work is currently spent chasing a 4 year old and 18 month old around the house

Janelle Razzino (Panel)

Janelle Razzino, President and CEO of Razzino Associates, Inc. discovers the right talent for the right companies at the right time. She is passionate about bringing big ideas to life, motivating and empowering candidates and partnering with companies to make great things happen!

As a boutique firm and premier search organization, Razzino Associates, Inc. brings nearly 30 years of experience in corporate recruiting and management specializing in C-level, executive level, and mid-level placements for The Fortune Global 2000 marketplace. Its core disciplines are Accounting, Finance, and Information Technology. The firm also places candidates in Marketing, Sales, Human Resources, and Business Development.

Clients have described Janelle as energetic, passionate, tireless, refreshingly honest, and committed. She not only closes the deal, but she opens the relationship. Janelle has built and strengthened countless relationships while promoting top-tier executives to the most premier positions in the tri-state and greater Metro New York areas.

Janelle is a regular speaker at many corporate outplacement firms and networking groups. She is the founder of the Hillsdale Network Career Resource Ministry in Hillsdale, New Jersey which now includes over 1900 members.

She has also presented programs to students and professors at Mount Saint Vincent College in New York, County College of Morris and Bergen Community College in New Jersey and has been a guest on the talk radio show, Your Career is Calling, broadcast live on Sunday mornings from Rider University.

Merrill Rutman (Resume Review)

Merrill Rutman is a professional resume writer and job search coach who crafts resumes and LinkedIn profile summaries that answer the key questions on the minds of all prospective hiring authorities, “What can you do for me?  Why should I hire you rather than another equally qualified candidate?”  Merrill helps each client express his or her unique value proposition, which answers those key questions in logic that resonates with corporate executives and business owners alike, an appeal they cannot afford to ignore.

Merrill is a former executive recruiter and award-winning technical writer.  His full background is on his https://www.linkedin.com/in/merrillrutman/ profile.

Terry Seamon (Coach - Discover Your Strengths)

Career Transition Consultant - 2019 As an Executive Career Transition Consultant with The Ayers Group since 2009, Terry helps professionals and executives as they make their way through the career transition process toward their career goals.

Terry’s approach is to focus on each person, tailoring the process to fit their needs and objectives. As he guides them through the challenges of job search and career change, Terry supports them with customized tools and strategies. His goal is to help them quickly galvanize into action and thereby accelerate their searches.

In addition to working with individuals, Terry also gives presentations on job search topics to professional networking groups in New Jersey.

An active writer, Terry writes articles on many aspects of the career transition process such as networking, interviewing, and personal branding. He publishes them frequently on LinkedIn where he is an active user of the networking platform.

Before joining The Ayers Group, Terry was a Training & Development professional for many years in the corporate world, specializing in leadership and management development, as well as organization change and development.

Terry holds a BA in Human Communication from Rutgers University, and a Masters degree in Education from the Rutgers Graduate School of Education.

He lives in Somerset, NJ with his wife Joan. His interests include family, music, theater, and film, as well as travel, food, and wine.

Marc Strano (Coach - How to Create Your Job Search Network)

Through the work of SHIFT Leadership Development LLC, Marc delivers Leadership Development and Manager Training. Marc's events have been transformational experiences, improving self-awareness and interpersonal dynamics, ultimately enhancing business results.

Marc has been a contributor to the masters in executive coaching program at Columbia University, and is a career transition coach for the New Start Career Network at Rutgers University. He has presented his Leadership programs at the Harvard Business School and the Leadership Institute at Montclair State University.

Marc earned his master's in International Finance and Trade from the Thunderbird School of Global Management (ASU), and a bachelor's in Linguistics and Psychology from the University of Rochester.