Executive Profiles
Jacqueline Marcus, CEO and President	In 2002, Jackie Marcus joined PersuadeCafé as CEO and president.  As the company’s first external hire in this position, Jackie has taken a rather conservative approach to growing the company.  Although she’s been adamant about continuing the strategic plan of opening one store per month, she has not historically encouraged or rewarded innovation.  However, now that PersuadeCafé is facing unprecedented financial challenges, Jackie recognizes that the company must change.  She is more open to new ideas but only if they are well substantiated.    With an MBA from Stanford Business School, Jackie is known for her financial rigor and commitment to disciplined business processes.  Jackie’s previous work experience includes twelve years as COO of Peet’s Coffee & Tea.
Christopher O’Connor VP, Business Development	Chris O’Connor joined PersuadeCafé in 2001 as manager of the Anaheim, CA, store, which he grew to one of the top performing stores at $1.3mm in revenue.  As a proven leader, Chris was moved to the corporate office and held several sales management roles with increasing responsibilities.  He was promoted in 2008 to VP, Business Development, and now oversees Sales, Marketing, and Customer Relations.    Chris is an affable manager who values personal relationships almost more than he values profits.  Customers are of primary importance to Chris, who was particularly disappointed with the customer survey results and blames PersuadeCafé’s lack of training as a primary cause.  Chris spends much of his time researching new business opportunities and potential store locations.  He works closely with Dalia Flores, VP, Design and Development, and admires her business savvy and sense of design.    Before joining PersuadeCafé, Chris held store management and sales positions at Starbucks and Gloria Jean’s Coffees.  He holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Westwood College.
Mark Parsons Chief Technology Officer	Mark Parsons is PersuadeCafé’s most recent hire as chief technology officer.  His expertise is in customer relationship management systems, and he’s written a popular book on the subject.    Mark brings experience as the chief technology officer for Waldenbooks (a division of Borders), an IT manager for Amazon.com,  and a technology analyst for the hospitality industry at Deloitte Consulting.  In his previous positions, Mark’s focus was on automating processes, centralizing technology functions, establishing a pervasive online presence, and streamlining technology used by customer-facing employees.    Mark holds a master’s degree in information management from the University of Washington.
Cynthia Robinski VP, Finance	Cynthia Robinski, VP, Finance, has had a successful career with  PersuadeCafé  since 1991, when she started as a part-time barista while pursuing her MBA at The Johnson School at Cornell University.  Cynthia joined PersuadeCafé’s corporate staff as a financial analyst and has since held positions as senior financial analyst; store business manager; investor relations director; and (since 2006) VP, Finance.  Often credited with PersuadeCafé’s successful IPO, Cynthia had a pivotal role in taking the company public in 2000.    After her initial disappointment in not being selected as CEO and president, Cynthia has developed a good working relationship with Jackie Marcus.  They are the most like-minded executives on the team and share a meticulous bottom-line focus on both revenue and expenses.    In addition to her work at PersuadeCafé, Cynthia champions rights for people with disabilities and serves on the board of directors for several not-for-profit organizations.
David Patel VP, Operations	The executive team’s most tenured employee, David Patel has worked for PersuadeCafé since 1989, when he started as a barista in Dallas, TX.  After a stint at Starbucks, David returned to PersuadeCafé to hold two store management positions and a regional director position before joining the corporate staff.    As a purchasing manager with a keen focus on controlling costs, David had developed a reputation as a miser, but he was appreciated for his stringent cost-cutting, particularly during difficult times in PersuadeCafé’s history.  As a result—and because of major process improvements he led between 2002 and 2004—David was eventually promoted to VP, Operations.   David and Chris O’Connor have had several conflicts about PersuadeCafé’s financial situation.  While David focuses on controlling expenses, Chris has little concern for costs and instead prioritizes new business opportunities to increase revenue.    David holds an associate’s degree in business management from Nassau County Community College.
Maggie Simmons VP, Human Resources	Maggie Simmons is no ordinary HR VP.  With a background in investment banking, Maggie prides herself on quantifying the HR function, which she prefers to call human capital, despite resistance among the PersuadeCafé executive team.  She did, however, get approval for a living wage for all employees, believing it was the right thing to do—and that it would make PersuadeCafé more competitive during the recruiting process.  Maggie brings a practical approach and a good sense of humor to HR at PersuadeCafé, much needed during this transitional time.    Before joining PersuadeCafé, Maggie worked for JPMorgan Chase as an asset manager and then moved into the HR organization, working her way up to VP, Recruitment, for the U.S.   She joined PersuadeCafé in 2006 as staffing and selection director, until she was promoted to VP, HR, in 2008.    Maggie obtained an MBA from Georgia Tech College of Management.
Katrina Garza VP, Communications	Katrina Garza joined PersuadeCafé in 2004 as director of internal communications.  In 2007, she was promoted to VP, Communications, and is now responsible for all internal and external communications.    Katrina’s priorities in the past few years have been improving investor communications, establishing the employee intranet, and instituting the customer and employee surveys.  She has recently played a strong role in reputation management for PersuadeCafé because of criticism that they don’t buy fair trade coffee.  Holding a press conference following a boycott and week-long picketing outside the San Diego store in 2009 was a pivotal point in Katrina’s career.    Prior to joining PersuadeCafé, Katrina held communication management positions for Abercrombie and Fitch, Payless ShoeSource, and Burger King.    Katrina earned a bachelor’s degree in corporate communication from the University of Baltimore.
Benjamin Wilson VP, Product Management	Responsible for all food and beverage products and the roasting plant, Benjamin Wilson is VP, Product Management.  He joined PersuadeCafé in 2002, after working in store management and corporate positions at Starbucks for seven years.   Benjamin is a strong believer in PersuadeCafé’s mission and frequently expresses concern about becoming a Starbucks mimic.  With this philosophy, Benjamin has resisted upgrading coffee quality and expanding the food and beverage selection.   This is a point of contention among the executive team, particularly between Benjamin and Chris O’Connor, who sees strong revenue potential from more varied and higher quality choices, and Katrina Garza, who has been on the front line fighting public criticisms of PersuadeCafé’s lack of fair trade coffee.   Benjamin received a bachelor’s degree in business management from Northwestern University.
Dalia Flores VP, Design and Development	Dalia joined PersuadeCafé in 2009 as the VP, Design and Development.  Prior to joining PersuadeCafé, Dalia worked on a city revitalization effort in Buenos Aires, for which she received several design and innovation awards.  She also served as chief designer for Panera Bread Company for two years.    Dalia is frustrated by the staid décor and narrow design standards for PersuadeCafé stores.  She would like to overhaul the brand image but fights resistance from others on the executive team, particularly Benjamin Wilson and David Patel.  She works closely with Chris O’Connor and, as a new employee, tolerates his “good-old-boy” style because she has much to learn from him.   Dalia graduated from the Parsons School of Design in NYC.