Chairman
Hans Hess
Hans Hess is the founder of Elevation Burger, Elevation Burger Franchise Ventures and, with his nephew, a founding partner of enviroCAB. He began his career as a fund-raiser for an internationally active non-profit and then began to develop management skills in the call center operations of a major domestic airline. As he became interested in public policy and its relationship to business he obtained a position as a legislative aid to a member of the House of Representatives in Washington DC. He later worked as a real estate consultant and planner, helping develop over $3 billion of mixed-use projects using public, private and public/private financing mechanisms. In 2005, after three years of research and planning, Mr. Hess founded Elevation Burger, a restaurant specializing in healthier fast food. Elevation Burger represented a long standing desire to be in a guest oriented business that could give back to the community in a tangible way. Because of this, Elevation Burger uses ingredients like grass-fed, organic beef and fresh cut fries cooked in olive oil in order to reduce the negative health impact of the classic American meal. Elevation Burger also purchases clean-source offset credits in order to be completely carbon-neutral in its daily operations. Other environmentally friendly practices include converting waste oil into bio-diesel and seeking LEED certification for new stores. Elevation Burger began selling franchises in March 2008 and has sold 24 franchises since that time. Elevation Burger will continue to expand nationally over the next several years.
Treasurer
George Connors
George W. Connors is the President and Chief Lending Officer and a founding board member of Washington First Bank. He has been in commercial banking for 28 years, serving in executive management positions at Century National Bank and its successor, United Bank, between 1990 and 2004. Mr. Connors is currently on the Boards of Directors of The Entrepreneurs Institute, United Cerebral Palsy of Washington and Northern Virginia, and the Center for Financial Training. He currently serves on the faculty of the Center for Financial Training, and as Treasurer and First Vice President for United Cerebral Palsy and Treasurer for The Falls Church of Falls Church, VA, and Chairman of the Life to Eagle Committee for Boy Scout Troop 106, Arlington, VA.
Secretary
Kwang Kim
Kwang is a strategy and competitiveness advisor to cabinet ministers, the U.K. Department for International Development (DFID), and Fortune 500 companies in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean. He is currently based in the World Bank Group’s private sector development network. Kwang’s recent engagements include developing risk management strategies to Mozambique’s agricultural sector and leading a team of advisors on economic growth strategies to the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Mr. Kim’s recent publications include the Pakistan Competitiveness Report and authoring a chapter in the World Bank’s Central America Trade and Competitiveness Report (forthcoming). Mr. Kim is a member of ICAP, a leadership network affiliated with the Aspen Institute.
Graham Wells
Graham is a consultant with Cambridge Associates, a global investment advisory firm. Previously, Graham worked for Barclays and was an aide to a former Majority Leader of the United States Senate. Graham received an AB from Harvard University and a MBA from the Darden School of Business, University of Virginia.
D.J. Smith
Over the past 15 years, D.J. Smith has developed digital communications services for a diverse array of corporate, government, non-profit and media organizations – assuring that they can reach critical audiences the right way at the right moment. He has also launched business ventures in a number of markets including online communications, news, publishing and fashion. Over the years, his clients have included the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Department of Defense (DoD), numerous Fortune 500 companies and several start-up ventures. DJ is Foudner and CEO of the web design firm Creative idea Ventures (CiV) as well as co-founder of WebDriven™, a digital marketing and communications consulting firm based in Boston. D.J. also invests significant time and energy in social good projects and he serves as advisor to several non-profit organizations including Blood:Water Mission, Art Music Justice 2010, and NY WEB Center (PRIDE), a school-based movement in New York City which employs hip hop media to create opportunity and hope for inner-city youth.
Evan Loomis
Evan Loomis currently serves as Founder and Vice President of Business Development for TreeHouse Green Home Improvement, an environmentally friendly building supply store. He previously served as the Chief Operating Officer of Wedgwood Circle, a national angel investment group based in Washington DC. Evan also worked on Wall Street as an investment banker in the retail, home building, and building products sector at Citigroup. He was selected to be one of Citigroup’s representatives to the Council on Foreign Relations. Prior to joining Citigroup, he worked in China and organized efforts at the American College to map villages along China’s Southwest border with Tibet. This experience in China cultivated a strong interest in the region and led to a job at the Asia-Pacific headquarters of Chevron in Singapore. Evan worked for President George H.W. Bush in Houston, TX. He is a native Texan and lives in Austin, TX with his wife, Brandi. He holds a BBA in Finance from Mays Business School at Texas A&M University, enjoys discussing foreign affairs, flying, scuba diving, and anything outdoors.