Regional Association: New York City

Welcome to the NYC Alumni/ae Association! Did you know that there are more than 500 BB&N alumni/ae in New York City? This dynamic group holds local events and activities to provide a networking vehicle for social and career development, and to promote alumni/ae involvement in the life of the School. We are always looking for new membership in our Executive Committee to help us plan our program; if you would like to get involved, please contact us!

BB&N in New York Executive Committee
Click on any committee member's name for his/her networking bio and contact information.

For information about the New York City Association or on how to join the executive committee please contact Laura Moberg at the office of Alumni/ae Affairs via email at laura_moberg@bbns.org or by calling 617-800-2722.

Click here to visit our online discussion forums to chat with other NYC Alumni/ae!

SUMI PAEK '93 - PR / Marketing / Advertising

sumi.paek@pepsi.com College: Bryn Mawr College, AB 1997 Major: Growth & Structure of Cities, minor in History Post-graduate work: New York University & the International Center of Photography, MA candidate in Studio Arts/Photography Current job: Manager, Industry Relations, PepsiCo, Inc. Previous positions: Customer Marketing Manager, Pepsi-Cola Company; Advertising & Marketing Manager, Wrenchead, Inc; Account Executive, Saatchi & Saatchi; former Board Member, Minds Matter, Inc.

I currently work in PepsiCo's Industry Relations group, representing PepsiCo and its Pepsi-Cola, Frito-Lay, Gatorade, Tropicana and Quaker divisions in the Foodservice and Hospitality industries. Previously, I worked in Customer Marketing at Pepsi-Cola on the Wendy's, Metromedia Restaurant Group (MRG), Papa Gino's, D'angelo and Subway businesses for three years. Before that I was on the Marketing team at Wrenchead, Inc, an online auto parts retailer and software solutions provider for the automotive aftermarket industry. There I managed consumer and business-to-business advertising and promotional activities for the company, in addition to covering the media portion of the CBS equity relationship. My first job out of college was in Account Management at Saatchi & Saatchi Los Angeles' NYC office where I worked with 4 regional Toyota Dealers Association clients. In addition to working full-time at PepsiCo, I am attending a joint program between NYU and ICP for a MA in Photography. I've also had experience as a Board Member for Minds Matter, an organization that helps gifted, disadvantaged high school students in NYC and at the Den for Grieving Kids in Greenwich, CT.

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TED ALT '67 - Financial Services

College: Brown University, B.A. Post-graduate work: MBA from the University of Chicago Business School, a MSc(Econ.) from the London School of Economics. He is currently pursuing a CFP ® program at New York University . Current job: Investment Advisor Representative at Advanced Business Planning Group

Ted is an Investment Advisor Representative and a Registered Representative of 1717 Capital Management Company. He has been a leader in the financial services industry for more than 30 years. Over this period of time, he has advised clients in the management of their investments totaling in excess of $10 million dollars. Ted focuses on investment management, retirement planning, and estate planning. Before joining Advanced Business Planning Group, LLC he managed his own investment advisory and financial planning practice for four years and worked for a number of major banks and finance companies in corporate finance and secured lending. Ted is NASD registered with his Series 7 and 66 registrations. He is licensed in the states of New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Utah, California, Michigan, Minnesota, and Virginia for Life, Accident/Health and Variable Insurance and Variable Annuities.

Ted holds a B.A. from Brown University, a MBA from the University of Chicago Business School, and a MSc(Econ.) from the London School of Economics. He is currently pursuing a CFP ® program at New York University.

Mr. Alt is a member of Who's Who in Finance, the American Chemical Society, the Association for Corporate Growth, an advisory board member of Murphy & Partners L.P., and a volunteer with the Association to Benefit Children. He has been a resident of Manhattan for over 20 years with his wife Katherine and their daughter Anastasia. He is an avid downhill skier, bicyclist, and kayaker.

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KAREN KALINA '81 - Finance & Marketing

karen.kalina@siemens.com College: Wesleyan University '85 Major: German Post-graduate work: Columbia Business School '94, major: Finance Current job: Manager, Finance & Marketing, Siemens Hobbies/Interests : Opera whenever I have the time to go.

Karen J. Kalina currently works for Siemens One as a Business Manager, part of the division's marketing team. Her work focuses on developing high-level financial value propositions for the various solution areas across Siemens One, such as digital hospitals and supply chain solutions. In addition to financial modeling, she is also involved in customer analysis.    

Prior to joining Siemens One, Karen worked at Siemens Shared Services, where she was responsible for business analysis, assisting with business plans, special projects, business development, and working on the shared services benefit methodology. Before coming to Siemens, Karen spent six years in Europe, working most recently for Winterthur Insurance, part of the Credit Suisse financial group, in Wiesbaden, Germany. There she focused on pan-European market development and mergers & acquisitions. Prior to Germany, she worked in financial consulting for KPMG in Prague, Czech Republic. Before heading abroad, Karen worked for Boston State Street Bank in their Global Custody and Credit and Risk divisions focused on Eastern Europe markets and international banking. Prior to business school, Karen worked for CDS International in New York to support the UNIDO Fellowship program in the U.S.

Karen's hobby is taking care of her 5 ½ and 2 ½ year old boys, and when time allows, attending opera and South Indian dance performances as often as possible.  

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MARK LEEDS '83 - Health Care Consulting

Mark is a Partner with a boutique health care consulting firm called benefitsContinuum. He works with employers to help stabilize the cost of their benefits programs. He has spent more than 17 years in the employee benefits area with companies such as Aetna and UNUM. Mark earned his B.A. from Bowdoin College and his MBA from the Stern School of Business at NYU.

Mark has three children ages 11, 9, and 6, and is an active participant in his community. In addition, he is an avid tennis player and participates in tournaments.

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MELISSA R. MIRKIN '84 - International Affairs & Policy

My career has been varied, yet consistent. I have just left the American Jewish Congress, a 501 (c) 3 public policy advocacy organization, where I had served as the Executive Director of the Northeast Regions and as the Director of Policy Analysis and Advocacy. There I was responsible for both the international and domestic policy issues and programs, including, but not limited to, the China Initiative, the Africa Initiative, the Energy Independence Task Force and the U.N. Task Force. Previously, unsurprisingly to those who knew me at BB&N (hate to be so predictable!), I devoted my energies and expertise to the field of Soviet and Russian affairs. After Columbia, I spent years as a member of the Moscow Arbitration Team (MAT) in the Office of International Claims and Investment Disputes (CID) in the Office of the Legal Adviser (L) at the U.S. State Department. At L/CID/MAT, I analyzed relevant documentation on the various construction and legal issues in the U.S. arbitration claims over the implantation of electronic surveillance devices, defective workmanship and delays during the construction of the U.S. Embassy complex in Moscow. I left the State Department for graduate school.

After Michigan, I worked in financial analysis and litigation at a law firm, where I also conducted forensic accounting and worked closely with banking officials. I worked in New Business Development for mirroring domestic and offshore fixed-income arbitrage funds which focused on Emerging Markets and Global Securitized Debt, and as Director of Research and primary firm liaison with prospective partners on joint ventures into the Russian radio market, researching and analyzing potential investments in various media and real estate ventures, both in the U.S. and the former U.S.S.R. I have also done publicity and press representation of Russian and other international classical artists for a major talent agency.

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VICTORIA HART '92 - Investment Banking

I graduated from Columbia Business School in 2002, and am currently at Merrill Lynch in their equity research department. Prior to that, I was in investment banking for five years.

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KENTON BEERMAN '94 - Business Development & Graduate Work

kbeerman@sent.com College: Harvard University, AB 1998 Major: Government (East Asian social movements) Post-graduate work: Studied Chinese language at Nanjing University, China 1998-1999 Current job: Business Development Manager for TripleHop Technologies Industry Affiliations: New York New Media Association, New York Software Industry Association

I worked for TripleHop Technologies, an enterprise software solutions company, for four years (1999 to 2003). Currently, I am in graduate school navigating a career switch from business development to finance. I spent the summer interning at a hedge fund, and traveling from Finland to China on the Trans-Siberian Railroad. Please contact me if you need advice about finding a business job in New York's software industry, managing a career move while in New York, or studying abroad.

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