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Administration
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Irene Spanos
Director, Economic Development & Community Affairs
spanose@oakgov.com
248-858-9099

Irene Spanos serves as the Director for the Department of Economic Development and Community Affairs for Oakland County, Michigan. The Department focuses on two main areas: community development and business support services. She served Oakland County for seven years as a Senior Business Development Representative where she specialized in working with companies in the bio-technology and medical devices sectors and with companies headquartered in Europe.

A 1993 graduate of Wayne State University, Spanos has a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a major in marketing.  She was born and raised in Ferndale but now resides in Sterling Heights with her husband John and children Bill, 5, and  Vanessa, 3. She is a member of the Michigan Economic Developers Association, the Swedish American Chamber of Commerce, and Southfield's Healthcare Corridor board.  Spanos also has been asked to sit on the Mechatronics advisory board for Oakland Community College.

Daniel P. Hunter
Deputy Director, Economic Development & Community Affairs
hunterd@oakgov.com
248-858-0764

Dan Hunter oversees a team of 40 professionals who work on County-wide planning initiatives in areas such as land use, environmental stewardship and commercial revitalization.

Activities include being a member of Michigan Economic Developer's Association, member of American Planning Association, Michigan Chapter Board Member, Automotive National Heritage Area Partnership Board Member, and Manufacturing Academy of Plastic Sciences.

He was previously employed by the City of Reading, Pennsylvania, focusing on business retention/expansion and downtown redevelopment efforts. Received a B.A. degree from West Virginia University in Morgantown, West Virginia, and a Master of City and Regional Planning from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.

David Schreiber
Chief Strategist
schreiberd@oakgov.com
248-858-0792

David Schreiber is involved in the creation and implementation of new economic development strategic initiatives.  He is currently working on the County's newest economic development initiative, Medical Main Street. Other successful Oakland County programs David has been involved in include Automation Alley, the Great Lakes Interchange SmartZone, the Automation Alley Technology Accelerator and the Oakland County Emerging Sector program.

Prior to his current responsibilities David managed a staff of ten in the areas of business recruitment, business retention, and small business counseling for Oakland County.  His responsibilities also included business recruitment of Asian businesses.  During that time he was the Vice Chairman of the Michigan Global Partnership – Asian Division which organized six trade missions to Japan and Korea.  Under his supervision, the Business Development Group averaged over 1,960 new jobs and $195 million of new capital investment per year.

David is very active in the Michigan Economic Developers Association (MEDA).  He currently serves as Chairman of the Advocacy Committee. Other positions within MEDA included being a board member and chairman of the Education Committee. 

David’s professional awards include:
2002 Michigan Economic Developer of the Year
President's Award for Outstanding Contributions to MEDA in 1994 and 2003
Mike Conboy Professional Development Award for Outstanding Leadership for MEDA in 1992 and 2005

Schreiber has a Bachelors Degree in General Studies from the University of Michigan and a Masters Degree in Urban Planning from the University of Michigan.

Business Development Team 
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Mark Adams
Senior Business Development Representative (North America, Communication and Information Technology and Homeland Security Sectors)
adamsm@oakgov.com
248-858-5439

Mark Adams assists Oakland County companies and those seeking to locate in Oakland County through a wide range of programs and services.  He specializes in working with companies in the communications, information technology and homeland security sectors and with companies headquartered within North America.

James H. Dingeman
Senior Business Development Representative
dingemanj@oakgov.com
248-858-1354

Jim Dingeman is responsible for assisting companies that are seeking to locate or expand in Oakland County. His primary focus is on retention, expansion and attraction of businesses. The key component of these duties is to develop relationships with businesses and provide education on available programs and services offered by Oakland County and the State of Michigan. These programs include financing assistance, incentive coordination, workforce development assistance, municipal problem resolution, small business assistance, site location assistance, and other activities.

Today, Dingeman plays an integral role in attracting Film & Digital Media companies using the most aggressive incentive program in the nation. He is a member of the Association of Film Commissioners International (AFCI) and is a Film Commissioner.

Lynda Earhart
Senior Business Development Representative (Alternative Energy Sectors and India)
earhartl@oakgov.com
248-975-4468

Lynda Earhart assists Oakland County companies and those seeking to locate in Oakland County through a wide range of programs and services.  She specializes in working with companies in the alternative energy sector and with companies headquartered in India.

Michele Eaton
Senior Business Development Representative (European, Medical Main Street and Aerospace Sector)
eatonm@oakgov.com
248-858-0978

Michele Eaton assists Oakland County companies and those seeking to locate in Oakland County through a wide range of programs and services.  She specializes in working with companies in the Medical Main Street and aerospace sectors and with companies headquartered in Europe.

Charles A. Holmes
Senior Business Development Representative
holmesca@oakgov.com
248-858-1991

Chuck Holmes assists Oakland County companies and those seeking to locate in Oakland County through a wide range of programs and services.  He specializes in working with companies in the automotive supplier and advanced electronics sectors and with companies headquartered in the Asia/Pacific region.

Cindy McMahon
Business Development Representative (Robotics, Advanced Materials Sectors and Asia)
mcmahonci@oakgov.com
248-975-9683

Cindy McMahon assists Oakland County companies and those seeking to locate in Oakland County through a wide range of programs and services.  She specializes in working with companies in the robotics and advanced materials sectors and with companies headquartered in the Asia/Pacific region.

Nancy Nagy
Technical Assistant (Emerging Sectors)
nagyn@oakgov.com
248-858-8706

Nancy Nagy assists the division in preparation for trade missions and researches prospective Emerging Sectors companies. She also provides assistance to Business Roundtable Economic Development Committee and Capital Growth Taskforce.

Noel Nevshehir
Automation Alley, Export Specialist
nevshehirn@oakgov.com
248-457-3288

Noel Nevshehir helps companies identify the best markets for products, develop global marketing plans, establish distribution channels, and locate trade finance. He is an information resource on a target country's political, economic and social climate. Noel also provides access to global video conferencing, educational seminars and trade missions.

For more information, browse Programs & Services, International Business on the Automation Alley web site.

Nicole Thomson
Business Development Representative
thomsonn@oakgov.com
248-858-7995

Nicole Thomson assists Oakland County companies and those seeking to locate in Oakland County through a wide range of programs and services. She specializes in working on the Medical Main Street Program and with companies headquartered in Europe.  

Nicole has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Public Administration from Oakland University. She is a graduate of Leadership Oakland XX and serves as a Board Member for The Baldwin Center in Pontiac.

Oakland County Business Center - MI-SBTDC
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Lola Aré
Supervisor Oakland County One Stop Shop
Center Director/Senior Business Consultant MI-SBTDC
arel@oakgov.com
248-858-2021

Lola Aré oversees the Business Center andOne Stop Shop staff. Her business consulting focus is on brand management, marketing and market research. Her clients are established and second stage businesses (9 to 99 employees; $750,000 to $50 million in annual sales.) Lola is a certified Michigan Small Business Counselor, was awarded 2011 SBA Michigan Counselor of the Year and has 19 years of consulting experience.

Lola is a certified FastTrac Facilitator, NxLevel Trainer, Entrepreneur class instructor, and Adjunct Faculty member at Walsh College. She is a graduate of Leadership Oakland XVIII and sits on the Junior Leadership Oakland planning committee. She is a member of the Michigan Women's Business Council (MWBC) Certification Review Committee and sits on the Advisory Committee for the Entrepreneur Initiative of Southeast Michigan (EISEM) at Automation Alley.

Lola received her Masters of Business Administration with concentrations in Marketing and Finance from The University of Michigan's Ross School of Business. She earned her Bachelor of Business Administration from The University of Michigan - Flint.

Lola was born in Lansing, Michigan and raised on three continents (Africa, Europe and North America.) She is married and resides in Farmington Hills with her husband and two daughters.

Karen Deaver-Lear
Small Business Analyst
deaver-leark@oakgov.com
248-858-0783

Karen Deaver-Lear assesses business callers needs and refers them to the appropriate resources. She coordinates appointments with resident and partner business consultants and provides small business information.

Greg Doyle
Business Consultant
248-858-0783

Greg Doyle provides business feasibility counseling to new business owners. He offers business consulting, contextual problem resolution and business/marketing plan evaluation. He is a certified FastTrac NewVenture facilitator and a Michigan PeerSpectives CEO Roundtable Facilitator.

Greg also facilitates employability workshops for the Troy Career Center and networking sessions for senior executives seeking new opportunities. He is the founder of Corporate Links Inc. (The Entrepreneur’s Source.)

Greg has over 18 years experience as a small business consultant and 10 years experience consulting women and minority owned businesses. He experience includes consulting small businesses from start up to over $1 million in annual revenue.

Greg holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Resource Development from Michigan State University.

Chris Olzem
Finance & Strategy Specialist
olzemc@oakgov.com
248-858-0783

Chris Olzem assists second stage businesses (9 to 99 employees; $750k to $50 million in annual sales) with financial planning. He performs financial assessments of working capital and fixed assets, analyzes company financials, critiques business plans and makes introductions to lenders. Chris is a client/lender liaison; he ensures clients are prepared to approach lenders. He also assists with post funding financial consulting. 

Chris has 11 years of lending experience as a Commercial Loan Officer and two years of experience as a Credit Analyst. He handled a variety of loan requests including commercial/residential construction, marine floor plans, revolving lines of credit, commercial real estate financing, equipment financing, real estate development and letters of credit.

Chris has experience identifying federal government solicitations and preparing proposals which include detailed job costing, balance sheet/income statement submissions, construction time-line schedules and strategic planning. Chris worked with federal government contracting officers to ensure project timeliness and compliance with federal and state safety and wage laws.  

Chris received his Bachelor of Business Administration Degree from Eastern Michigan.

Erick Phillips
Business Consultant
phillipse@oakgov.com
248-858-0783

Erick Phillips provides feasibility counseling to new and growing business owners. He has a specialty in market research and provides business data, detailed maps, and advanced analysis to help you make more accurate decisions about your business, customers and marketplace. Erick has worked for Oakland County for over 16 years and has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Architecture from Lawrence Technological University.

Financial Services
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Mary P. Langhauser
Supervisor
langhauserm@oakgov.com
248-858-0879

Administers SBA 504 loan program and Tax-Exempt Revenue Bond (IRB) Program.

Joan Coon
Loan Officer
coonj@oakgov.com
248-858-0794

Servicing of the the SBA 504 Loan Portfolio.

Catherine Rasegan
Loan & Finance Officer
raseganc@oakgov.com
248-858-5101

Markets and Packages 504 loan program and the Tax-Exempt Revenue Bond (IRB) Program.

Kevin Congdon
Loan Coordinator
congdonk@oakgov.com
248-858-0868

Closing Officer for the SBA 504 Loan Program and provides technical assistance to staff.

Bill Zaglaniczny
Business Analyst/PTNE
zaglanicznyw@oakgov.com
248-858-2016

Provides technical assistance to staff.

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