Meet Our Mastermind Facilitators

World-class experts and thought leaders in artificial intelligence

Canay Deniz

CEO and Co-Founder

Ren

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Canay Deniz

CEO and Co-Founder of Ren

Canay Deniz is the CEO and Co-Founder of Ren, the AI-powered relationship intelligence platform that helps client-facing professionals at firms like DSG Global, Riviera, and Klein Hersh, act on the moments that matter in their networks before their competitors do. Prior to Ren, Canay was the US MD at Teralytics, a data analytics company specializing in machine learning. He holds a master’s degree in industrial engineering from ETH Zurich.

Expertise

Tim Hogwood

CEO and Co-Founder

SourceWhale

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Tim Hogwood

CEO and Co-Founder of SourceWhale

Tim Hogwood is the CEO and Co-Founder of SourceWhale, a recruitment technology company helping recruiting and exec search teams reduce time spent on admin through AI-driven automation- built by recruiters, for recruiters. Before founding SourceWhale, Tim led the company through an unconventional path, starting as a search firm and leveraging their own technology to drive efficiencies, before pivoting into a full software company, giving SourceWhale a unique practitioner’s perspective. Prior to SourceWhale, Tim worked across B2B software and at PwC. He holds a degree from the University of Oxford and an MBA from Quantic School of Business and Technology. Under his leadership, SourceWhale has been named a Sunday Times Top 10 Company to Work For, ranked by the Financial Times as the 18th fastest-growing company in Europe, and recognized by Deloitte as the 4th fastest-growing tech company in the UK.

Expertise

Joe Ewing

Chief Technology Officer

Clarion

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Joe Ewing

Chief Technology Officer at Clarion

Joe builds secure, scalable AI and technology platforms that deliver real-world impact. Over the past 20 years, he has led enterprise and AI modernization across commercial, highly regulated, public-sector, and defense environments, working at the intersection of engineering, governance, and policy to turn complex, high-risk initiatives into trusted, mission-critical systems.

Over the past 20 years, Joe has built, modernized, and scaled complex technology platforms across commercial, highly regulated, and defense environments. His experience includes large-scale enterprise implementations, AI-enabled and data-integrated systems, and modernization efforts supporting mission-critical workflows. His work spans generative AI, advanced analytics, automation, cloud platforms, and enterprise application modernization.

Expertise

Vladimir Mitevski

Chief Information Officer

ZRG Partners

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Vladimir Mitevski

Chief Information Officer at ZRG Partners

Vladimir Mitevski is Chief Information Officer at ZRG Partners, where he leads the firm’s Technology and Engineering teams and helps drive innovation across core platforms, AI, machine learning, and operational excellence. With more than 28 years of global experience, he is known for turning complex business needs into scalable technology solutions that support growth and strengthen competitive advantage.
Before joining ZRG, Vladimir held senior leadership roles at State Street and Charles River, Amazon, Nasdaq, FEVO, and Thomson Reuters. He holds 24 patents and has been speaker at the first AWS re-invent, HP World and featured in The Wall Street Journal and CIO.com. His career reflects deep technical expertise and a strong track record of building high-impact platforms.
He is bringing a fresh perspective into the search industry, along with ideas that will clearly challenge the status quo.

Expertise

KEN VANCINI

Founder & CEO, Innova International

Host & Facilitator, Executive Search AI Mastermind Summit

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KEN VANCINI

Founder & CEO, Innova International

Host & Facilitator, Executive Search AI Mastermind Summit

Ken Vancini is operating at the center of the transformation reshaping executive search. As Founder of ZRG Partners, he built a top-seven global search firm, leading delivery, technology integration, and expansion across 22 countries. Today, through Innova International and a network of peer roundtables spanning more than 50 firms, he has a real-time view into how the industry is navigating AI, shifting economics, and evolving client expectations. Ken’s focus is helping firms move from experimentation to execution. His perspective is clear: this is not a technology problem, it is a judgment problem. As Host and Lead Facilitator of the Innova Connect AI Mastermind Summit, he leads hands-on working sessions designed to help senior practitioners cut through noise, sharpen decision-making, and apply AI in ways that improve real outcomes.

Expertise

Stephanie PicoStark

Customer Success

Ren

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Stephanie PicoStark

Customer Success | Ren

Stephanie PicoStark brings a relationship-first approach to customer success, helping clients turn technology into practical, everyday value. At Ren, she works closely with firms to support adoption, improve workflows, and ensure teams get meaningful results from the tools they use.

With experience leading customer success at Everlance, Stephanie combines client advocacy, training, and change management in a practical, human-centered way. She holds a Master of Science in Digital Age Learning and Educational Technology from Johns Hopkins University and a Bachelor’s degree in English Writing from the University of Colorado Denver.

At the AI Mastermind Summit, she brings a focused perspective on adoption, user experience, and the human side of AI-enabled workflow.

Expertise

Breck Armstrong

Managing Partner

17 Oranges

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Breck Armstrong

Managing Partner at 17 Oranges

Breck Armstrong, Managing Partner at 17 Oranges: A former CIO of Boyden with nearly 20 years of leadership experience in executive search. Breck has led global digital transformation programs spanning AI, automation, and complex M&A integrations. Having operated inside a partner-driven search firm, he understands the commercial, cultural, and operational realities of change. Today, he advises leadership teams on building scalable, AI-ready operating models that improve productivity, protect margin, and deliver measurable technology ROI.

Expertise

Matt Wright

Founder

Woven Research

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Matt Wright

Founder of Woven Research

Matt Wright is the Founder of Woven Research, where he helps companies build analytics and AI capabilities that improve decisions, reduce costs, and accelerate growth. His work focuses on operating model design, commercial analytics, and AI-enabled workflows that help leadership teams turn strategy into practical, measurable results. Before launching Woven Research, Matt held leadership and consulting roles with SBI, Maine Pointe, Genesis HealthCare, Newmark, and Grubb & Ellis. Across healthcare, professional services, commercial real estate, supply chain, and private equity-backed environments, he has built a strong reputation for helping organizations improve execution, strengthen visibility, and create competitive advantage through smarter use of data and AI.

Expertise

Dan Kalish

Director of Recruitment Operations

Maven Partnership

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Dan Kalish

Director of Recruitment Operations – Maven Partnership

Dan Kalish, Director of Recruitment Operations – Maven Partnership Based in Maven’s New York office, Dan is the recruitment operations director, focusing on optimizing business activities, streamlining processes, and ensuring the smooth execution of search projects. With over a decade of experience in finance and a specialized focus on executive search over the past three years, Dan brings a strategic, systems-driven approach to search operations, process optimization, and team development. He plays a pivotal role in refining how top talent is identified and placed, drawing on a deep understanding of the evolving executive search landscape to deliver world-class experiences to clients around the globe. Known for his passion for leadership and professional development, Dan is dedicated to building high-performing teams and fostering a culture of continuous improvement. Before joining Maven, Dan led high-impact search initiatives that reimagined the retained executive search experience for private equity-backed businesses-delivering measurable efficiency gains and elevating client outcomes.

Expertise

Mark Distaulo

Senior Advisor and Fractional CTO

17 Oranges

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Mark Distaulo

Senior Advisor and Fractional CTO at 17 Oranges

Mark Distaulo, Senior Advisor and Fractional CTO at 17 Oranges: Mark previously served as Chief Technology and Transformation Officer at Russell Reynolds Associates, where he led global technology strategy and pioneered practical AI adoption within executive search. Today, he advises firms on translating technology, data, and AI into measurable performance and competitive advantage.

Expertise

Trip Flail

Vice President of Information Technology

JM Search

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Trip Flail

Vice President of Information Technology at JM Search

Trip Flail is Vice President of Information Technology at JM Search, where he has spent more than 12 years helping lead the firm’s technology function. Over that time, he has advanced from IT Manager to Director of Information Technology and now serves as a key technology leader for the organization. He brings deep experience in cybersecurity, project management, and enterprise technology operations, and is a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP).
Before JM Search, Trip held IT leadership roles at Pennco Tech and PayAll Solutions. He is also an active voice in executive search technology conversations, including industry discussions on AI, recruiting technology, and the evolving tech roadmap for search firms.

Expertise

Max Woolger

Vice President Revenue

Ezekia

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Max Woolger

Vice President Revenue for Ezekia

Max is VP Revenue for Ezekia. Having spent 12+ years in executive search running BD, Data and CRM for the founders of 3 global search firms, using a range of CRMs, he is well placed to advise and assist prospective clients as they make their CRM choice. His experience in executive search firms has also helped him lead Ezekia’s in-house deployments with executive talent teams at corporates and PE/VC firms. Prior to joining Ezekia, he spent 3 years in a B2B relationship technology business selling in to search firms, law firms, consultancies, insurance brokers and underwriters so he has an in-depth understanding of relationship selling and the technologies needed to support it, across sector.

Expertise

Manan

Co-Founder & CEO

Recruiterflow

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Manan

Co-Founder & CEO of Recruiterflow

Manan is Co-Founder & CEO of Recruiterflow, an AI-native CRM for search firms. Before Recruiterflow, he led his previous software company retention.ai throug a venture round and eventually to an exit via acquisition.

Expertise

Sanket Chauhan

Co-founder

Stardex

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Sanket Chauhan

Co-founder of Stardex

Sanket Chauhan is Co-founder of Stardex, an agent-native ATS and CRM built for executive search firms. Stardex helps capture the candidate and client context that often lives in partners’ heads, while automating workflows such as research calibration, client reporting, and database search.

Sanket works closely with search firms on AI-enabled workflows and regularly leads sessions on practical AI adoption. Before Stardex, he was a consultant at McKinsey & Company and began his career as a software engineer.