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PureSafety's Executive Management and Board of Directors

PureSafety is led by an experienced team of professionals who understand the challenges our customers face and the results they need to achieve. Our leadership team maintains a high level of knowledge and expertise in our industry, as well as in the industries we serve.

Executive Management

William A. Grana, Jr., President and Chief Executive Officer
Mr. Grana is a seasoned technology professional with a diverse background in corporate development, law, finance, and other business functions. He has led or been a top consultant to a number of early-stage and high-growth private and public technology companies, including serving as Senior Vice President, Acquisitions, for iXL, Inc., a leading Internet solutions provider, and as Chairman and CFO for Zoaport, Inc., an animal health Internet start-up. Mr. Grana earned a J.D./M.B.A. from Washington University in St. Louis with a concentration in Corporate Finance and a B.A. from the University of Virginia.

Mike Kroll, Senior Vice President – Sales
Mr. Kroll has over 17 years of corporate training sales and management expertise. His prior experience includes six years as Director of Industrial Sales with PRIMEDIA Workplace Learning, a global information, education and training company. Most recently, Mr. Kroll served as the Senior Director of Sales for eLearning at Ninth House, Inc. and as a National Sales Director for Vcampus Corp. Mr. Kroll earned a B.S. in Industrial Distribution from Texas A&M.

Ron A. Kirsch, Ph.D., Vice President – Business Development
Mr. Kirsch has over 20 years of experience with occupational, environmental, health, and safety issues. He was formerly the President and CEO of OHS Associates, Inc., a Nashville-based training and consulting firm. Prior to that, he served as the Director of Industry & Governmental Relations and Director of R&D Operations for MDL Information Systems, Inc., a provider of research, software, data, and discovery solutions to the life sciences and chemistry industries. Mr. Kirsch earned a B.S. in Chemistry from Middle Tennessee State University, and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Occupational Health & Safety from LaSalle University.

Tom Gaudreau, Vice President – Marketing
Mr. Gaudreau has over 14 years of technology marketing, sales and consulting experience. He spent nearly seven years in the wireless telecommunications and Internet consulting sectors, most recently as the Director of Marketing for Aerial Communications Minneapolis (now T-Mobile). Mr. Gaudreau studied International Business and Intercultural Communications in Moss, Norway and earned a B.A. in Marketing and Management from the University of North Dakota.

Dennis M. Hines, Vice President – Technology
Mr. Hines has over 10 years of information systems experience with companies ranging from multinational corporations to small, privately-held consulting firms. His areas of expertise include IT management, systems administration, network design and implementation, policy development and information systems security. Previously, he worked as a consultant for Raytheon Engineers and Constructors, assisting them with a large-scale network migration and administration of their local and wide-area networks. He also worked with Columbia HCA as a security analyst, administering the company’s security infrastructure and assisting with the development of security policies.

Salome Isbell, Vice President – Finance, Controller
Ms. Isbell is a CPA with over 15 years of experience in public accounting, financial management, mergers & acquisitions and IPOs. She has held leadership and consulting roles with publicly traded and private companies, including Manager – Middle Market Sector for PriceWaterhouse Coopers, CFO for ECC International Corp., a $75 million government contractor, and CFO for Q-We Get It, a privately held live event production company based in Nashville.

Mike Jones, Director – Human Resources
Mr. Jones has over 15 years of corporate human resources experience in the technology, legal, and healthcare sectors, with expertise in recruiting and talent acquisition, human resources process improvement, employee performance management, compliance, and implementing HR technology. He spent five years leading employment-based programs with FileNet Corporation, a software development company in California. He was also Senior Manager of Recruiting with Healthways, where he received his Lean Six-Sigma Green Belt through the practical application and implementation of Six-Sigma principles to the recruiting process.

Rob Blackford, Director – Content Development
Mr. Blackford has over 10 years of experience as a graphic designer and small business owner in the technology industry. Before founding his own Internet design and consulting firm, he was Manager of Employee Communications for Gaylord Entertainment. He is also an adjunct professor in the Art Department at Belmont University, teaching advanced principles of web design. Mr. Blackford earned his B.S. in Public Relations from Western Kentucky University.

Shane Austin, CSP, Director – Safety & Risk Management
Mr. Austin is a board-certified safety professional with more than 12 years of experience in the field of occupational safety and health. He has served in a variety of safety capacities for companies such as General Electric, Schneider Electric and Keystone Foods. He earned a B.S. degree in Industrial Hygiene and Chemistry from the University of North Alabama as well as an M.B.A. from Lipscomb University.

DeWitt C. Thompson, V, Chairman
Mr. Thompson has served as PureSafety’s Chairman since its inception, and was Chief Executive Officer from 1999 to 2001. He is currently President of Thompson Machinery, a regional Caterpillar dealer in Tennessee and Mississippi. Additionally, Mr. Thompson serves as the Chairman of the Board of the Nashville City Paper and is on the boards of FCC Equipment Financing and Thompson Machinery. He earned a B.S. from the Engineering School at Vanderbilt University.

Philip M. Pfeffer, Director
Mr. Pfeffer is currently President of Treemont Capital. Previously, he served as CEO of Borders Group, President and COO of Random House, and Chairman and CEO of Ingram Micro. From 1977 to 1996, he led Ingram Distribution Group, which grew from $36 million to $11 billion in sales during that period. Mr. Pfeffer earned a B.S. in Mathematics and Chemistry and a Masters of Economics from Southern Illinois University.

Craig L. Leipold, Director
Mr. Leipold is currently the owner of the Nashville Predators, a National Hockey League team. He serves on the Board of Directors for the LaCrosse/Rainfair Safety Corporation, a maker of protective footwear, as well as Gaylord Entertainment Corporation and the Levy Corporation. He is also the founder of Ameritel Corporation, a business-to-business telemarketing firm. Mr. Leipold earned a B.A. from Hendrix College.

Dewitt C. Thompson, IV, Director
Mr. Thompson is currently PureSafety’s Secretary. He is also Chairman and CEO of Thompson Machinery Commerce Corporation, and a co-founder and Vice Chairman of FCC Equipment Financing, Inc. Mr. Thompson earned a Bachelor of Engineering degree from Vanderbilt University and completed U.S. Air Force Flight School.

David Bartholomew, Director
Mr. Bartholomew is currently CEO at Staffmark, which he co-founded in 1996 and has helped grow into one of the largest staffing companies in the United States. Mr. Bartholomew has held leadership positions in many professional organizations and associations. He was Chairman of the American Staffing Association (ASA), Southern Chapter Chair of the Young President’s Organization (YPO), and served on the Executive Committee of the Middle Tennessee Workforce Investment Board. A Leadership Nashville alumni, he is on the Advisory Board for Brentwood Capital, the Board of Directors for Fraction Air, and previously served on the Board of the Nashville Rotary Club.

William A. Grana, Jr., Director
See biography under Executive Management.