US Navy
Lieutenant

Matt Brusch is President and CEO of NIRI: The Association for Investor Relations. He was previously COO, led professional development programs, credentialing, publications and communications for NIRI. Prior to this, he led the investor relations and corporate communications functions for several public companies, and he served in regulatory and marketing roles with the Nasdaq Stock Market.

Brusch began his career as a Surface Warfare Officer in the United States Navy. He was Ordnance Officer and Combat Information Center Officer onboard USS Taylor (FFG-50) and received the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal for participation in Operation Earnest Will in the Persian Gulf. He also served onboard USS William H. Standley (CG-32) as Battery Control Officer, and as Officer in Charge, Department of Naval Science, Texas A&M Maritime Academy, where he was awarded the Navy Achievement Medal for superior performance.

He holds an M.B.A. from the University of Maryland, a B.S. from the Pennsylvania State University, and he is a Certified Association Executive.

Mark Otto
President/Executive Director
United War Veterans Council

 Marine Corps
Corporal
Team Leader - Tactical Remote Sensor Operator

Mark Otto is a combat veteran of the United States Marine Corps who currently serves as President/Executive Director of the United War Veterans Council. In this capacity, Otto is also the Senior Official and lead organizer of the New York City Veterans Day Parade, which is the largest parade that honors veterans’ service in our country.

From 1988 to 1992, Otto served on 5-man surveillance teams, gathering intelligence and targeting enemy movements as part of the 2nd Surveillance Reconnaissance and Intelligence Group. Otto served in combat in both the Panama Invasion and in Desert Storm. He later led two cross agency, counter narcotics operations alongside Federal Agents on the U.S. southern border. Highlights of his many awards and achievements include Airborne Wings, the Marine Corps Combat Action Ribbon with Gold Star, and the Joint Meritorious Unit Commendation.

Otto transitioned from the Marines to Wall Street where he had a successful 27-year career as a trader on the New York Stock Exchange. As a volunteer leader, Otto served as a Senior Floor Official of the NYSE’s self-governing body, Co Chairman of the NYSE Security and Safety Committee and Co Chairman of the NYSE Veterans ERG. Through this work, he began acting as a mentor and assisting transitioning veterans from the Post 9/11 generation, which compelled him to become more actively involved in the veterans community.

In 2016, Otto founded what would become the United War Veterans Council’s Veterans Health and Wellness Program which is focused on healing at-risk veterans who are dealing with a multitude of issues including Post Traumatic Stress, Traumatic Brain Injury, Homelessness and Substance Abuse by way of holistic, therapeutic and social fitness outings that include equine therapy, art therapy, hiking, sailing and boating. Over the past eight years, many hundreds of veterans have engaged in many thousands of positive experiences through this program.

Otto is the sixth New Yorker in his family’s lineage to serve in wars dating back to WWI.

 U.S Army, Quartermaster Corps
Captain
Division PBO 1st Infantry Division

Deborah Pawlowski, IRC®, is a proven entrepreneurial business leader with more than thirty years’ experience in investor relations, capital markets, marketing, strategic planning, leadership coaching and management. Ms. Pawlowski has a demonstrated track record of success with communication deployments of successful strategic shifts, market perception alignments, crisis management, and capital raises. She is committed to excellence in managing market perceptions for organizational change. With a proven ability to instill a common vision and understanding of strategic direction and opportunities of her client companies, she builds respect and credibility for management with investors and analysts. Her experience base comes from both the corporate perspective, while leading the investor relations program at National Fuel Gas Company (NFG), a diversified energy company, and American Precision Industries Inc., a diversified manufacturing company, and as a consultant with more than twenty years as founder of Kei Advisors LLC.Ms. Pawlowski’s breadth of experience and dynamic energy combine to provide counsel to executive management and Boards of Directors in investor relations initiatives and capital markets positioning. Known for strategic foresight, she coaches executives through challenging issues and provides crisis planning and executive team development with creativity and ingenuity.

Ms. Pawlowski is an independent leadership coach as well, working with up-and-coming leaders, executive management and Boards of Directors to assess individual personality and skills using various tools including 360’s, behavioral interviews and Hogan assessments. She aids in the understanding of an individual’s impact on the success of an organization or team, develops plans to drive excellence in their performance and helps in the discovery of how change can unleash their full potential.

Ms. Pawlowski is a graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, where she received her B.S. in General Engineering. She received her M.B.A. from the University at Buffalo, The State University of New York. She currently serves as a member of the Board of Directors of Allegany Insurance Group and as a member of NIRI: The Association of Investor Relations Investor Relations Charter (IRC) Certification Counsel. Ms. Pawlowski is a former member of the Board of Directors of NIRI and past President of the NIRI Virtual Chapter. In her spare time, Ms. Pawlowski also serves on the Board of Directors of Combat Wounded Veterans Challenge..

Ms. Pawlowski founded Kei Advisors LLC in July 2000.

Laura J. Guerrant-Oiye
Pattern Computer, Inc.
Investor Relations & Corporate Communications

Laura Guerrant-Oiye is a senior investor relations practitioner with over 25 years of experience in the design and implementation of successful IR programs. She has advised clients in a wide variety of industries including artificial intelligence, technology, EV / battery technology, healthcare, biotech, drug discovery, consumer products, REITS and financial services industries; and has deep experience in crisis communications and transactional communications, including IPOs, M&A, proxy fights and secondary equity and debt offerings.

For 21 years, Laura was the owner and principal of Guerrant Associates, an investor relations and corporate communications firm, providing financial communications, investor relations, financial media relations and strategic counsel to publicly held and pre-public companies. The firm offered a range of services from financial communications & corporate counseling to full-service IR programs.

Presently, Laura is the VP IR & Corp. Comm. for Pattern Computer, Inc., a start-up in artificial intelligence and machine learning. She has also served as the VP IR & Corp. Comm. for Aspen Aerogels, Inc. (NYSE:ASPN) and IR Manager at Asyst Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: ASYT), where she launched the first internal IR department for both companies. Additionally, Laura was an account executive for leading international IR & financial communications firm FD Morgen-Walke’s San Francisco office. As a capital markets consultant to sell-side firm Edison Research, she worked with a global team responsible for introducing the firm’s international client base to US investors. For 15 years, she has been the co-chair of the Summit Investor Conferences, bi-annual events that feature SMID-cap technology companies. She is a member of the BOD for Intro-act, an artificial intelligence platform reinventing targeting and corporate access in the post-MiFID II era, and is a strategic advisor to InvestorCom, a leading independent full-service shareholder intelligence and proxy solicitation firm.

Laura is a recognized leader in the investor relations community. She served on the Silicon Valley Chapter’s Board of Directors for the National Institute of Investor Relations (NIRI). She is a founding member of the NIRI Virtual Chapter, the largest chapter in the organization, and served as Chapter President for the program year 2005 - 2006. Under her presidency, the chapter won Best Overall Chapter – Large Chapter and Best Member Services – Large Chapter. She is a 2006 recipient of the NIRI Leadership Award and served on the 2006 NIRI Annual Conference Planning Committee. She also served on and co-chaired the advisory board for the Semiconductor Capital Equipment Trade Association’s (SEMI) Investor Relations Committee and is a speaker at Investor Relations conferences.

Laura is involved with the community and has worked pro-bono with diverse organizations: Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, a program of the Society for Science & the Public (Intel ISEF), the world’s largest pre-college science fair; and communications consultant to the United Nations Millennium Campaign, dedicated to eradicating extreme poverty and hunger throughout the world. Laura holds a BA degree from Allegheny College (Meadville, PA) and has completed courses toward an MBA - Finance and Marketing degree at Golden Gate University (San Francisco, CA).

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Fees:
This event is open to all NIRI Members at no charge.
Non-NIRI Members and Guests: $35.00