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Wayne Goshkarian

Wayne Goshkarian

Senior Advisor

Wayne Goshkarian is a born entrepreneur. His entrepreneurial journey started at age 11 when he sold Amway cleaning products to his 50-home paper route, Wayne was “cross selling” at a young age. While in High School, he secured his insurance licensed, his Series 6 and 63 and lived in Oxford England doing financial planning for American’s living in England. AFEUSA is excited to have Wayne as the Director of Communications to bring his years of entrepreneurship experience to the team. Wayne has continually redefined standard industry practices and adapted to changes before they occur. He has been working in the marketing industry for over 45 years, identifying opportunities that have been overlooked by most. Wayne has consulted, enrolled and provided services to companies like Safeway Foods, Children’s Hospital, Rio Hotel and Casino, Ameristar Casino and many other large national companies.

Chris Dueringer

Chris Dueringer

Advisor

Chris is an experienced banking professional with an extensive background in credit, risk management, and sales enablement. He joined GCU’s Colangelo College of Business in 2022 and currently serves as full-time faculty, teaching courses in Finance and Risk, and leading efforts to expand CCOB’s B.S. in Risk Management program.

Previously, Chris served as a Sales Performance Consultant, Commercial Trainer, and Relationship Manager with U.S. Bank, supporting Payments, Wealth Management, Commercial, and Business Banking segments. His education includes a B.S. Business Administration from the University of New Hampshire, an M.B.A from Northern Illinois University, and a M.S. in Finance from Auburn University. He also holds Risk Management Association and Omega Performance certifications.

John Fleming

John Fleming

Advisor

John T. Fleming is a researcher, writer and advocate of micro enterprise opportunities that enable flexibility in how and when work can be accomplished. His many years of involvement with the direct selling business model includes experience as an independent contractor, owner of a direct selling company, officer, and pacesetter within one of the world’s largest direct selling companies, Publisher/Editor- in- Chief of Direct Selling News, Consultant, Speaker, and Advisor.

Acknowledgement of John’s accomplishments, advocacy and understanding of the direct selling business model is best summarized by the three most distinguished awards he has received: The Direct Selling Education Foundation’s Circle of Honor – 1997, the Direct Selling Association Hall of Fame in-duction in 2016 and the first Direct Selling News Lifetime Achievement Award.

John is author of Ultimate Gig, published by Emerald Publishing and LEVERAGE, published by Ideas & Design Group as a FREE eBook download from the website. Ultimate Gig was recognized as sole finalist in the category of Business, Finance & Management for 2022 PROSE Awards sponsored by American Publishers Association.

Jeff Fromm

Jeff Fromm

Advisor

Jeff Fromm has spoken literally all over the world sharing actionable insights on how sustainability, innovation, employee engagement and brand purpose create powerful brands. The brands that do this best “Win Inside to Win Outside” and balance driving profits with positively impacting people and planet or triple bottom-line thinking.

In 2010, Jeff led the first public study of Millennials through a research partnership with the Boston Consulting Group. That research informed his first book “Marketing to Millennials (2013).” He has since co-authored five books — his most recent “The Purpose Advantage 2.0 (2021). The model primarily used by brands featured in this book is called “The Purpose Profit Loop.”

Jeff has written 500+ articles at Forbes, serves on the board of directors and or invested in high-performance companies including Barkley, Service Management Group (SMG.com), Tickets For Less (Ticketsforless.com) and Three Dog Bakery.

Matt Wilson

Matt Wilson

Website & Video Production Manager

Matt Wilson has over 20 years of design industry experience in web, mobile apps, print, video, 3D modeling and animation, photography and illustration, Matt has a proven record of delivering first-class marketing, advertising, training, communications, and promotional materials in any medium serving as both part of an integrated team, as well as design-lead.

Matt has a Bachelors of Fine Arts degree from the University of Washington.

Shannon Severson

Shannon Severson

Staff Writer

Shannon Severson is a journalist with more than 25 years of experience in writing, editing, public relations and marketing communications. Her work has appeared in both local and national magazines. Shannon’s industry experience includes work in professional sports, luxury lifestyle, entertainment, architecture and design, fine arts, non-profits, automotive and hospitality. Her specialty is telling the stories of individuals and organizations in compelling and creative ways. Shannon has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Pepperdine University and grew up in California’s Bay Area.

Zoe Maung

Zoe Maung

Content Writer and Researcher

Zoe Maung is an undergraduate student pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Business Analytics at Grand Canyon University. Striving to be a distinguished student and woman, Zoe aims to secure opportunities that will accelerate her academic, professional, and personal development. After completing higher education, Zoe envisions a life where she is able to make a meaningful impact in her community, including returning to her parents’ home country Myanmar to help improve living conditions for its struggling citizens.

Katie Hoge

Katie Hoge

Content Writer and Researcher

Katie Hoge is a sophomore pre-law major at Grand Canyon University. She moved to Scottsdale from LA County, California in the summer of 2022 with her family to begin school. After college, she hopes to attend law school and eventually become an intellectual property attorney to protect the work of all kinds of artists. Outside of writing, Katie is a dancer and spends lots of time in rehearsal and hanging out with her friends. She enjoys the beach and listening to music.

Christian Peterson

Christian Peterson

Content Writer and Researcher

Aspiring Venture Capitalist experienced in Startups, marketing, consulting, and executive leadership. Christian is a passionate creator who has experience in multiple mediums including illustration, animation, and videography. His drive is to not only help people on their ventures, but inspire other individuals to find and strive for what they enjoy in life. Throughout Christian’s time as a leader, he has been recognized for his success in the role with accolades such as the presidential service award and winner of an MIT entrepreneurial pitching competition. From student body president to owner of small businesses he has been able to demonstrate and improve his skills as an effective leader and imaginative creator.

Ava Collins

Ava Collins

Content Writer and Researcher

Ava is about to begin her junior year in college, studying business. She hopes to be a business owner one day, owning her own clothing store. Originally from Washington State, Ava relocated to Tucson, AZ in 2020 for school. In between classes and working full time, Ava enjoys spending time with friends and family outdoors, relaxing by the pool and keeping up to date with her numerous YouTubers.

Joel Weldon

Joel Weldon

Contributing Writer of Inspirational Wisdom

Joel Weldon has amassed a global following as one of the most respected speakers in North America. Not unlike most entrepreneurs, Joel’s success was discovered through trial by fire. It’s by such reliability that we find him such a refreshing source of strength and wisdom.

The timeless principles Joel echoes are not only practical, they are unforgettably illustrated in his true stories and examples. Joel’s message generates positive action. Each story is specifically designed to meet the audience’s needs, help them conquer their fears and reinforce their victories. We are so happy that Joel has chosen AFEUSA as his platform to reach the new Entrepreneur.

Board of Directors

A man in a dark suit, a blonde woman in a red jacket, and a dark haired woman in a dark top. The AFE board.

Jack Diehl

President

Jack Diehl graduated from the Rochester Institute of Technology with a bachelor’s degree in Manufacturing Engineering. His initial 10-year career included new factory set-up of Maverick missile seeker head assemblies and project engineering & procurement for Hughes Aircraft Missile Systems Group.

After leaving Hughes, Jack developed an auto repair operation of 9 different auto repair centers. He was responsible for initial site selections, property development, business financing, staffing, quality control and other necessary aspects of owning and operating a successful small business for over 20 years.

Originally from a rural farming community in upstate New York, Jack now lives in Tucson, AZ. His interests include domestic and international travel, motor sports and Jazz music.

Ashley Goshkarian

Vice President

Ashley Goshkarian is attending Arizona State University with a major in business law. She brings a younger viewpoint to the association’s focus. This is a generation that has grown up with the modern day Entrepreneurship and social media. The internet is very much part of Ashley growing up and bring valuable insight to the board. She was raised in Scottsdale Arizona, and attended Notre Dame Preparatory School and then attended Boise State during her freshman year. She currently has a online store and provides the board a balance to the goals of the association. Ashley will also be collaborating with area colleges students on some projects to diversify our content and see what our younger generation has to contribute.

Susan Lahargoue

Secretary

Susan is originally from Santa Fe, NM where she studied Business Administration at the University of New Mexico. Susan is a passionate entrepreneur owning several of her own businesses as well as assisting with non for profit education efforts to help turn state dollars into educational scholarships and resources for public and private schools.

Susan has worked as a primary Controller for publicly-reported companies with operations in the US and Asia. She has also severed as bookkeeper and assistant controller for technology firms, builders and real estate professionals giving Susan a wide and diverse perspective on controlling finances for large enterprises as well as small family-owned businesses. Her diverse background and skills make her a perfect fit for AFEUSA!