About

Issam "Sam" Bakir
Issam "Sam" Bakir, a Certified Financial Planner, has been president of TNT Financial Services, Inc., since 1989, and president of TNT Asset Management, LLC since 2010. He holds a BS in Electrical Engineering from The University of Texas at Austin and worked in the Middle East as a consultant in the oil and gas industry. Returning to Texas, he made a career shift to the financial industry. Sam co-founded the Austin Associate Society of The Institute of Certified Financial Planners and served as president for three years. He has been a member of the Round Rock Momentum Club for over ten years, and serves/has served on the board of Goodwill Central Texas, The Greater Round Rock Community Foundation, Texas Asian Foundation, the Rotary Club of Austin - University Area, and the Greater Austin Asian Chamber of Commerce. He is a history buff as well as a world traveler.

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Michael Dodd

Michael Dodd is an Austin-based attorney with over 45 years of experience in multiple areas of practice. A former adjunct lecturer at the University of Texas at Austin, Michael developed the International Business Fellows Seminar in the MBA program, a multi-disciplinary seminar course that brings together graduate students and faculty from the McCombs School of Business, the LBJ School of Public Affairs, and other other graduate programs to study the reasons for and implications of the changing global landscape. Michael has served on the Board of Directors of several other educational and non-profit organizations, including the Board of Advisors for the University of Texas’ Center for Global Business (formerly known as the Center for International Business Education and Research), the Austin Foreign Trade Council, and the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce. Additionally, Michael and his wife, Mary, were founding board members of Austin Habitat for Humanity.

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David Firestein

David J. Firestein serves as president and CEO of the George H. W. Bush Foundation for U.S.-China Relations and is a current, and founding, member of its board of directors.  A decorated former U.S. career diplomat and near-native speaker of the Chinese language, Firestein has specialized in U.S.-China relations for most of his thirty-year professional career.  For the last twelve years, Firestein has worked in the non-profit and academic sectors and has served as a member of the graduate faculty of The University of Texas at Austin, where he taught courses on U.S.-China relations and U.S.-Russia relations.  Firestein currently serves on the boards of directors or advisors of about a dozen mostly U.S. non-profit entities in a variety of fields.  He is the author or co-author of three books on China – including two China-published, Chinese-language bestsellers – and nearly two hundred articles in major U.S. and overseas media publications.  Firestein is a native of Austin, Texas and currently resides in the greater Austin area.

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Aditi Joshi

Aditi Joshi serves a dual role of Project and Business Development Manager at WebTek Interactive, a Google Premier Partner based out of Austin & Salt Lake City. Upon arriving in Austin in 2006, she co-founded Redesigned Marketing which merged with Webtek in 2011. Originally from India, Aditi brings with her experience from being the Hewlett Packard’s Channel Program Sales Specialist & Channel Certification Program Manager for the Middle East and North Africa region and Sales Development Manager for the UAE. Aditi received her Bachelor of Commerce Degree from the University of Mumbai, India followed by a MBA in Strategy and Marketing from the University of Wales, United Kingdom. She is fluent in English and Hindi and also has studied French and Arabic. Aditi believes in equal opportunities and that bringing people together can only make the world a better place, two principles she incorporates in her daily life. She is the President of the Austin Chapter of the United Nations Association (nonprofit arm of the United Nations). In 2018, she co-founded the JoshiMiscall Family Foundation to advocate for human & animal rights.

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Kannan Kaliyur

Kannan Kaliyur has been the CEO of Connecttel, Inc. since 1996.  He has over 30 years of experience in the technology area. He has founded multiple companies which includes a sports broadcasting company that was acquired in 2018. He has a M.S degree in Electrical Engineering from UT Austin and an MBA from St. Edwards University. He serves on the board of the Austin Community College Foundation, Greater Austin Asian Chamber of Commerce and a number of startups. He has served as the President of TiE Austin. He enjoys running and hiking and has completed a number of marathons and half marathons and has also hiked the Grand Canyon multiple times.

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Mohan Kharbanda

Mohan Kharbanda is a seasoned executive with a successful track record of managing businesses within several Fortune 100 companies, He brings over 35 years’ experience in P&L Management, Turn arounds, Business Strategy, Acquisitions, Startups, and Off-shoring. Mohan has held key leadership positions in both the emerging and developed world. He has Built and operated Greenfield businesses in Brazil, India, China and Japan in addition to managing business units in the United States. Mr. Kharbanda received a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Minnesota. He has been a guest speaker for the executive marketing program at the Columbia Graduate School of Management in New York and has advised the governments of Ghana, Bangladesh, Mexico and Nepal through World Bank. Mr. Kharbanda has served on the boards of MedData, eMids, Utopia Inc, Goodwill Industries of Central Texas, and two Cummins JV’s, and is the past Chairman of the Texas Asian Chamber of Commerce. 

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Margaret Moten

Margaret’s professional career comprised thirty years of domestic and international business experience as a marketing, consulting, and financial professional, including broad exposure to the military and government sectors. She served in leadership roles from risk management to auditing and banking having worked for a Fortune 100 company, a Big Four accounting firm, and international banks abroad. Having been a member of the Army Family for thirty years, she was privileged to work with and for the special men and women who dedicate their lives to service to our nation. Living on four continents and traveling throughout the world taught her to be adaptable, to work with people from all walks of life, to communicate effectively, and to serve others. She shares her time between a home in Austin and a ranch in Oakalla where they raise grass-fed, grass-finished beef and Spanish goats. She is also a 500-hour Kripalu yoga instructor and has served on the board of Goodwill Central Texas for 5 years, currently as Board Chair. Mat and Margaret have been married for 37 years and are blessed to be the parents of two amazing people – Stephanie, an HR professional with Microsoft and Marshall, a Captain in the Army.

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