Wisconsin Ambassadors

Green Bay, Wisconsin

A native of Racine, Barkley attended the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay and graduated in 2009. After a successful career in banking and wealth management, Cordero joined Titletown Tech as a Partner and Director of Finance and Investments in 2019.

People in the region and the country are taking notice to opportunities and talent in Wisconsin. It is no longer a secret. I believe as companies continue to grow and scale here; the ripple effects will be tremendous.

Read Cordero’s take on Wisconsin’s business climate.

Madison, Wisconsin

Native of northeast Wisconsin, after completing her bachelor’s degree at UW-Stevens Point, Eckerly moved to Madison where she worked closely with a variety of different biotechnology startups, many of which were started through UW-Madison. From there, she co-founded Forward BIOLABS and earned an MBA and MS in biotechnology from UW-Madison.

“There is an increasing recognition of the favorable economics and talent pools Wisconsin has from more mature companies headquartered out of state. Companies that once thought to grow in other states are not only staying in Wisconsin but building here.”

Read why Jessica decided to stay in Wisconsin.

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

A Midwest native, Dr. Hirschmugl received her PhD from Yale University in Physics. After working around the world, Carol decided to move to Milwaukee in 1997 where she later made the discovery of new, carbon-based material for lithium-ion batteries and co-founded COnovate.

“There is a real can-do attitude here in Wisconsin in the startup community. I have been heartened by the amount of support we receive from Wisconsin resources and early-stage investors. I see a lot of momentum around the community and that is creating a culture and network of success.”

Read Dr. Hirschmugl’s take on Wisconsin building a successful startup community.

Hayward, Wisconsin

A native of Phillips, Wisconsin, Ben Popp serves as the Executive Director of the American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation (ABSF). Popp currently lives in Hayward, Wisconsin with his wife and their twin boys.

“I love that we live in a state where I can pursue my professional career, as well as live a lifestyle with endless outdoor opportunities.”

Discover Ben’s commitment to outdoor experiences.

Madison, Wisconsin

Indian immigrants, Sara and Partha are Co-founders of Flavor Temptations – an authentic spice kit production company that teaches their customers how to easily cook traditional delicious Indian recipes from scratch. Sara and Partha currently reside in Madison, Wisconsin.

“Wisconsin is a place that is open for business. There are so many opportunities for business training, mentoring and funding to help Wisconsin businesses grow.”

Read their complete Ambassador profile.

Waunakee, Wisconsin

A Mexican immigrant, Showaki is the founder and president of Octopi, a contract beverage facility in Waunakee. Octopi is a one-stop shop for brands, from packaging materials, collaborating on new recipes, designing new brand identities, to helping navigate regional distribution channels.

“Wisconsin is both a manufacturing and brewing hub which helps in talent recruitment.”

Read Isaac’s take on recruiting top-area talent.

Green Bay, Wisconsin

A native of Michigan, Tyink moved to Appleton, Wisconsin at a very young age. After moving to New York to pursue a career in classical music, Alex started volunteering at an urban farm. It was this experience that convinced Alex to start Fork Farms in 2010. Alex now lives back in Appleton with his wife and son.

“To accomplish my goals of growing a business, I knew the best place to do this was in Wisconsin.”

Read about Alex’s mission to provide affordable fresh food.