Speaker Info

Anirban Basu is chairman and CEO of Sage Policy Group Inc., an economic and policy consulting firm in Baltimore. He is chief economist for Associated Builders and Contractors. The Baltimore Business Journal named him one of the region’s 20 most powerful business leaders in 2010. His radio show can be heard weekdays on WYPR, 88.1 FM Baltimore. He teaches History of Economic Thought at Goucher College as their Distinguished Economist in Residence.

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Jessie Cannizzaro, owner, Milestone Plumbing Inc. Jessie Cannizzaro is the founder and owner of Milestone Plumbing Inc. in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, where she and her team provide residential and commercial plumbing services to homeowners and contractors throughout southeastern Wisconsin. Over the last 13 years, Milestone has grown from a one-woman plumbing company in 2011 to a team of licensed plumbers, registered apprentices, pre-apprentices and administrative support team.

Annie Mecias-Murphy, president and co-owner, JA&M Developing Annie Mecias-Murphy is president and co-owner of JA&M Developing, which she founded with her siblings in 2005. Prior to receiving her license as a general contractor, Mecias-Murphy worked as a teacher and school counselor for more than 10 years. Mecias-Murphy is immediate past chair of the board of directors of ABC’s Florida East Coast chapter.

Chandra Wakeland, Wakeland Electric Inc. Chandra Wakeland founded Wakeland Electric Inc. in 2018, realizing her dream of entrepreneurship. Based in Southern California, the woman-owned business specializes in federal, public works and private commercial projects, including city halls, fire stations and schools. Through her leadership, Wakeland is not only constructing buildings but also breaking barriers in a male-dominated industry, inspiring the next generation of women in construction and demonstrating that with perseverance and vision, anything is possible.

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Lorri H. Grayson, ABC Mid-Atlantic region vice chair, GGA Construction Lorri H. Grayson, founder and partner of GGA Construction, Middletown, Delaware, is the Mid-Atlantic region vice chair of Associated Builders and Contractors. Grayson has been active in the ABC Delaware chapter since 2007 and served as chair of its board of directors in 2015. Since founding GGA Construction, Grayson has led her company to specialize in institutional; hospitality; medical and corporate office; mixed-use; and multifamily housing projects. She provides guidance and oversight in estimating, budget options analysis, scheduling and constructability reviews during preconstruction.

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Haley Moyers serves as director of workforce programs and initiatives at ABC. A passionate mental health champion, she has a deep commitment to destigmatizing mental health issues and is dedicated to championing awareness and support for those facing challenges in the construction industry.

Michael Riegel, Director, AEC Business Strategies Michael Riegel is a certified coach, consultant, author, speaker and trainer working across industries with a focus on technical and process-driven organizations. He has developed an expertise in managing technical professionals, creating high-performing teams and helping leaders grow and exceed their individual and professional goals. As a technical professional himself, Riegel brings insights and perspectives on the challenges and organizational dynamics that can thwart other analytical and structured-thinking professionals.

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Laura Lapidus, Esq., is a risk control director for CNA, managing the development and delivery of employment practices liability and management liability risk control products and services. She also is responsible for coordinating the delivery of risk control resources for CNA’s financial institutions and community association policyholders. Lapidus has more than 30 years of experience in employment law.

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Scot Brown, Account Manager, SR Trident Originally from Ottawa, Canada, Scot Brown moved to the United States in 2008 to pursue the American dream. After studying mechanical engineering for two years, he held diverse roles, including as a performance standards inspector at Enbridge and sheriff's deputy in Louisiana, and working on production platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. With eight years of experience in non-destructive testing, he found his true calling at SR Trident.

Shandi Conner, president and CEO, ABC Training Center, Southeast Texas Shandi Conner has worked in the construction industry for 15 years. She served on the executive leadership team for the Industrial Safety Training Council as director of client relations and was the director of market development for the Health and Safety Council. Conner currently serves as president and CEO of ABC Southeast Texas’ Training Center.

Chris Martinez, President, Central Electric Chris Martinez is president of Central Electric. He and his brother bought Central Electric from their parents almost 10 years ago. When Martinez joined the company, there was a team of seven. Today, they boast a team of over 150 employees. He is most passionate about growing people. Central Electric is constantly working on team engagement and has an over 97% retention rate.

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Jane Gimler, president and CEO, ABC Southeast Texas Chapter currently serves as president of ABC’s Southeast Texas chapter. With over a decade of experience in leadership roles within the construction industry, she has been instrumental in advancing the chapter’s mission of promoting free enterprise and merit shop principles. Under her leadership, ABC Southeast Texas has seen significant growth in membership, expanded workforce development initiatives and strengthened advocacy efforts for the local construction community.

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Caitlyn Cook is vice president of marketing for Emery Sapp Construction, a 100% employee-owned civil construction enterprise. Over the course of her career in construction, Cook has led a wide range of marketing and business development activities. In her current role, Cook leads the marketing, communications, creative and media teams that support the firm’s 2,600 employee-owners and four operating brands—Emery Sapp & Sons, Achen-Gardner Construction, Rummel Construction and Premier Testing Laboratories.

Samuel Fredeking is a forward-thinking operations and human resources professional with over a decade of leadership experience across various industries, including industrial, aviation, nonprofit and healthcare. His expertise lies in identifying opportunities to optimize business efficiencies, implementing effective change management strategies and developing comprehensive strategic plans. Fredeking is also passionate about fostering a culture of continuous training and development, committed to driving positive change and long-term success for the companies he serves.

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Irma Wehmeyer, Division Manager, Large Capital Industrial Projects, hth cos. inc. Irma Wehmeyer is the division manager for large capital industrial projects at hth cos. inc., where she plays a pivotal role in overseeing all aspects of industrial capital projects across the Midwest, from initial conception to final completion. Additionally, she contributes to the hth’s operations management team. Wehmeyer has been an active member of ABC’s National Inclusion, Diversity and Merit Committee since 2011 and currently serves as its chair.

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Neal Sweeney focuses exclusively on construction law and government contracts. Drawing on more than 30 years of experience with the construction industry, Sweeney counsels clients on major infrastructure and P3 projects such as transit, airports, highways, wastewater treatment and tunnels. He is also involved in energy and industrial projects linked to clean technology and renewable sources, including hydro, solar, wind, geothermal, integrated gasification combined cycle and landfill gas.

Brian Perlberg serves as AGC of America’s senior counsel for construction law and contracts. He also serves as senior counsel and executive director for ConsensusDocs, a coalition of over 40 leading construction organizations. He has been recognized as a top legal voice by Engineering News-Record magazine and recognized by Who’s Who Legal for Construction. Perlberg is the only construction attorney in the United States who’s certified as a CM-Lean for lean construction.

   Speakers Info

Neal Sweeney focuses exclusively on construction law and government contracts. Drawing on more than 30 years of experience with the construction industry, Sweeney counsels clients on major infrastructure and P3 projects such as transit, airports, highways, wastewater treatment and tunnels. He is also involved in energy and industrial projects linked to clean technology and renewable sources, including hydro, solar, wind, geothermal, integrated gasification combined cycle and landfill gas.

Brian Perlberg serves as AGC of America’s senior counsel for construction law and contracts. He also serves as senior counsel and executive director for ConsensusDocs, a coalition of over 40 leading construction organizations. He has been recognized as a top legal voice by Engineering News-Record magazine and recognized by Who’s Who Legal for Construction. Perlberg is the only construction attorney in the United States who’s certified as a CM-Lean for lean construction.

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Micah Rodman is COO and co-founder of Kojo, the industry-leading construction procurement platform that has raised $84 million from leading venture capitalists and industry partners. Kojo brings the pen-and-paper world of materials procurement into the 21st century by streamlining the way materials are planned for, ordered and paid for, reducing costs and saving valuable field time. Rodman started his career as a manager on Ray Dalio’s team at Bridgewater Associates.

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Patrick Scarpati is ABC’s director of construction technology and innovation. In this role, Scarpati researches current and developing tech trends and provides construction technology education to ABC members and chapters. A licensed HVAC-R journey-level worker by trade, Scarpati previously led construction technology initiatives with a general contractor and trade partner, where he ensured collaboration, purpose and process resulted in successful implementations.