Meet the Growth Team.
Dale Anderson, MBA
Product Development, Marketing, Sales & Finance
Dale is a marketing and corporate strategy professional who has many years’ experience of new product development, product rationalization and creating marketing organizations. He began his career in corporate finance and corporate strategy positions before spending 20+ years managing marketing for national brands and running his own marketing consulting firm. He joined the SBDC in 2017. Dale earned an MBA from the University of Wisconsin School of Business and a BBA from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. He also holds FINRA Series 7 and Series 66 licenses.
David Beeson, MBA
Business Growth Consultant, Human Resources, Organizational Development, Change Management
David has more than 20 years of Human Resources and Operations experience in the healthcare industry. Working in managerial and executive roles throughout his career, David has gained extensive experience in policy development and implementation, compensation, employee benefit plans, process improvement, employee relations, organizational development and strategic planning.
As a result of his leadership in hospitals and physician practices, he has an established record of mitigating exposure to liability through proactive risk management measures, improving quality measure scores, enhancing community access to care, reducing employer benefit costs through successful plan design, and increasing employee satisfaction and retention. David welcomes the challenges and opportunities to assist Michigan’s Small Businesses to grow and improve operations through one-on-one and team-based consulting. David holds an MBA as well as an undergraduate degree in Human Resources Management from Ball State University.
Dan Brophy, MBA
Access to Capital, Financial Management
Dan Brophy comes to the MI-SBDC with over 27 years of experience working in the banking industry. In addition to his extensive knowledge of small business lending, Dan also owned and operated his own small business for seven years, and has experience teaching corporate finance at the college level. He has held positions with NBD Bank, the Community Bank of Dearborn/Fidelity Bank, Huntington Bank and H & R Block Premium. Dan has been active with Habitat for Humanity, and is involved with Georgetown University’s undergraduate admissions program including holding the position of state Chairman for many years. Dan serves the Southeast Michigan area. Dan received his MBA from the University of Detroit Mercy, and his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Georgetown University.
Bernard Drew
Access to Capital, Sales, Real Estate, Faith-based & non-Profit organizations
Bernard Drew is a consummate entrepreneur and has owned and managed several small businesses in a wide variety of industries, most recently concentrating his efforts in commercial real estate investing, redevelopment & rehabilitation in downtown Flint. He also has deep experience advising churches & non-profits on financial management and business matters. He is a skilled networker and salesperson, an advocate for racial justice, a recognized public speaker for mission-based entrepreneurship, and a pastor of the Church of God.
Bernard earned an undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Michigan and is a licensed real estate salesperson and a licensed minister.
Jim McLain
Marketing, Sales & Communication Solutions
Jim McLain joined the SBDC after a +25-year career at Amway which took him all over the world in various marketing roles. He has deep and broad experience developing & executing cross-functional marketing strategies and customer experiences that drive Growth, including digital and social media activities, marketing analytics and insights, strategic planning, team leadership & collaboration, networking and presentation, user interface/user experience development, and CRM implementation. His passion for small business and gifted ability to help entrepreneurs connect with their target market, hear the voice of the customer, and tell their story through words and images across multiple channels makes him an incredibly valuable thought partner at every stage of the business journey.
Julie Oldham, CPA, CGMA
Accounting, Financial Analysis, Succession Planning
Julie serves Macomb, Oakland and Wayne counties’ small businesses. She analyzes a company’s financial performance to determine impending issues in the next stage of growth. Julie provides strategic analysis and information on international exporting and SBA loans. Recipient of 2014 “Out of the Box” award for the highest amount of capital formation in the SBDC’s history and associated with the SBDC Excellence and Innovation Award to the Michigan SBDC Southeast Region by the Small Business Administration Michigan District office and in 2015, “Outstanding Oakland County Volunteer of the Year” by the Great Lakes Women’s Business Council, “Excellence Award” by SBDC Michigan and “SBDC Consultant of the Year” by the Small Business Administration.
Prior to the SBDC, Julie provided accounting services in various industries, including advertising, health insurance, hospitality, and information technology. She is currently involved in the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants, Canada and United States Business Association, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Accounting Aid Society – and is a NASBITE Certified Global Business Professional.
In addition to financial accounting and counseling experience, Julie holds two Master’s degrees (Management, Public Accounting) from Walsh College and an undergraduate degree in Hospitality Management from Michigan State University. As a college professor, she helps companies learn how to use accounting data as a management tool – and has facilitated classes domestically and internationally at Oakland Community College- Babson College-Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses, Henry Ford Community College and other universities.
Jeff Punches, MBA
Retail, Service/Hospitality, Family-Owned, Business Transition, Access to Capital