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Mr. Gayle Essary, Founder
Mr. Gayle Essary founded Investrend in 1996, and
served as the company’s President and CEO until he passed away in
2006. He also founded FinancialWire™ (“the third financial news
wire”) during that time, and served as its Editor-in-Chief, until
handing-over the FinancialWire™ reigns to Bob Farley in 2004.
Additionally, Mr. Essary founded the FIRST Research Consortium,
which was (and remains) the first-established, self-governing
organization dedicated to standards-based research firms, and to
promulgating the strictest professional standards and practices in
the issuer-paid research space.
Mr. Essary had equally influential roots in six areas
of expertise and experience: journalism, publishing, advertising,
stock trading, venture capital financings and managing political
campaigns. In the course of his professional life, Mr. Essary
worked, as well as founded and directed businesses in each of those
areas.
Inventing the “Paid-for Research” Model:
Mr. Essary pioneered the paid-for investment research
model, and was the primary force in making that model a respected
source of actionable investment information. Investrend was
originally established as a “forums provider,” providing structured
venues allowing lesser-capitalized public companies to “tell their
own stories” to financial community audiences. In the course of
doing so, the virtual absence of conventional (buy- or sell-side)
equity research coverage for such companies became clearly apparent.
As a result, the now commonplace paid-for research model was
implemented by Mr. Essary, in order to address that disparity.
Investrend’s business model then evolved to become
“research-centric,” with Investrend’s already in-place electronic
journalism entities, web presence, forums programs and partnered
webcasting platforms functioning in support of Investrend’s equity
research.
Championing Industry
Standards & Practices:
Mr. Essary established and spearheaded the movement
toward homogenous standards among research providers, beginning with
the establishment of the “Standards for Independent Research
Providers,” which, to-date, remains the basis for membership into
the FIRST Research Consortium, as well as represents the most
stringent set of standards and practices followed by any research
firms in existence today.
Mr. Essary went on to further champion the need for
such standards to the SEC--- a campaign which led to Mr. Essary’s
testimony to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Advisory
Committee on Smaller Public Companies, and ultimately culminating
with guidance issued by that Committee, endorsing and asking the SEC
to actively encourage company-sponsored analytics for non-covered
companies’ shareholders, as long as their providers ‘disclose and
adhere to a set of ethical standards’--- citing the “Standards for
Independent Research Providers” as the sole example of such ethical
standards.
As a Publisher &
Journalist:
Bob O’ Brien, author of ‘The Sanity Check’, is quoted
as saying, “His writing was some of the most dispassionate and
accurate coverage of the growing naked short selling crisis; long on
facts and short on hyperbole. He was one of the pioneers in sounding
the alarm on the issue, and his articles influenced many, myself
included.” O’Brien continued by saying, “Years before any other
media outlet covered the problem, Gayle was there, and his work can
be seen going back for years. He was instrumental in fostering the
public's growing awareness of the corruption in the markets.”
Mr. Essary
Remembered:
Mr. Essary was born June 23, 1940 in Electra, Texas,
and passed away on July 6, 2006 in Austin, Texas, at the age of 66.
At the time of Mr. Essary’s passing, he was remembered by many
individuals through various publications and public forums. The
following are some quotations from those remembrances:
“He was known for his sense of humor and his knack
for always seeing the details and putting everything into
perspective.”
“He loved to research new things, to make decisions
that would benefit small companies, to connect people and resources,
to bring companies and in reality each of us into the future through
technology and connections.”
“He was a man who was always for the ‘Underdog’, he
was always David and never Goliath, he was inspiring to others, and
always believed that simple ordinary people could accomplish
unordinary things. He always believed in the" little person " and
their potential, he was a gentle giant who could seemingly move
mountains.”
“He was an innovator and could see and organize the
details to make up the whole package, he could organize and
administer (some might say control), and create order out of chaos.”
“He was a man of deep beliefs and convictions. He was
a man of integrity, a man of principle, a man of knowledge, a man
who was involved with his children, a man who was unafraid to take
risks, a man who was a role model for his children, a man who valued
hard work, and a man who left a lasting impression on everyone who
came in contact with him.”
Todd Essary, President & CEO
Todd Essary is President and CEO of Investrend
Communications, Inc., a position that he has held since 2006. From
2003 through 2006, he served as Investrend’s Director of Corporate
Relations, and then as Executive Vice President. Duriing 1997
through 2003, Mr. Essary served as a consultant to Investrend. He
also served as a consultant to Streamedia Communications, an
Internet media broadcast company and content provider, where he
assisted in the build-out of Streamedia’s network of European
partners.
In 1987, Mr. Essary established a fitness
industry-based consulting business, Perfit, Inc., based in Austin,
Texas, which he cultivated successfully during the ensuing 17 years.
Perfit’s business involved numerous aspects of the fitness industry,
including equipment design, management consulting, program
development, physical therapy programming, location scouting,
facility construction and membership relations. Perfit also acted as
an agency for industry professionals, and was recognized for
establishing a number of highly profitable personal fitness training
and corporate fitness programs. His success in the areas of
management, programming and client relations led to his involvement
with Investrend. His subsequent experience as a consultant to
Investrend and Streamedia, as well as post-graduate business
studies, laid the groundwork for his first official position with
Investrend and, later, to his current role.
Mr. Essary graduated from Texas Lutheran College in
1984 with a B.A. degree in Biology and Kinesiology, and he holds a
Lifetime Texas Teaching Certificate. Mr. Essary has also pursued
post-graduate studies in Business and Anthropology. He played
collegiate football, competed as a decathlete for 10 years, studied
Shaolin martial arts for seven years, and remains an avid surfer.
Mr. Essary has served as a teacher and sports coach in his hometown
of Austin, Texas. He has also acted and directed in the theatre
since 1999. Mr. Essary currently resides in the Wall Street
neighborhood of New York City.
Elizabeth A. Newell, Company
Secretary
Ms. Newell became an Officer of Investrend in 2008,
and, in addition to serving as Secretary, assists in directing the
activities of Investrend's Administrative Offices in Austin, Texas.
Although officially retired from her long-time career
as a high school teacher, Ms. Newell still teaches correspondence
courses in science and math.
Ms. Newell holds a Master's degree from the
University of Texas, and is the acting President of the National
Delta Kappa Gamma Sorority of women educators.
Marshal Shichtman, Esq., Company
Counsel
Ms. Newell became an Officer of Investrend in 2008,
and, in addition to serving as Secretary, assists in directing the
activities of Investrend's Administrative Offices in Austin, Texas.
Although officially retired from her long-time career
as a high school teacher, Ms. Newell still teaches correspondence
courses in science and math.
Ms. Newell holds a Master's degree from the
University of Texas, and is the acting President of the National
Delta Kappa Gamma Sorority of women educators.
Marie Swanson, Managing Director of
Programs
Ms. Swanson has worked with Investrend since 2003.
Prior to that, she worked for over 20 years with 3 major financial
communications firms, primarily as an Executive Assistant and as a
Project Manager. Ms. Swanson is a graduate of New York University.
Renee Hemple, Managing Director of
Communications
Ms. Hemple has worked with Investrend since its
inception in 1997. Prior to that, as a freelance journalist, she had
numerous articles published in such publications as the New York
Times, Wall Street Journal and McClatchy News. Ms.
Hemple is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin.
Jason “J.B.” Carlisle, Vice
President of Outreach & Marketing
Mr. Carlisle has worked with Investrend since 2006.
Prior to that, he was a Campaign Manager for the GSD&M advertising
agency, as well as a Broker for Bear Stearns. Mr. Carlisle is a
graduate of Michigan State University.
Jordan Innis, Research Coordinator
Mr. Innis has worked with Investrend since 2002.
Prior to that, he worked as analyst for Goldman Sachs, providing due
diligence and technical market analysis. Mr. Innis is a graduate of
Indiana University.
Gary Vassalotti, StreetIntel™
Managing Director
Mr. Vassalotti has worked with Investrend since 2001,
and has his own equity analysis and portfolio management practice,
as well. He previously worked with First American Bank, NA, First
Union National Bank, and Montag Management, and has an overall
interest in global markets. Mr. Vassalotti is a member of the North
Carolina Society of Financial Analysts, the CFA Institute, and the
North Carolina Investment Advisors Association (and was a former
board member). Mr. Vassalotti has a B.S. in Finance with an emphasis
in Economics from The Pennsylvania State University. He is currently
completing his CFA.
Marcus Fulbright, Forums-Broadcast
Coordinator
Mr. Fulbright has worked with Investrend since 2005.
Prior to that he worked as an Events Coordinator for The Four
Seasons hotel chain. Prior to that, he worked as a Production
Assistant and occasional performer for KLBJ radio in Austin, Texas.
Rebecca Marshall, Office Manager
Ms. Marshall has worked with Investrend since 2004.
Prior to that, she was completing her Business Administration &
Management degree from CUNY-Baruch College.
Chris Markham, Managing Director of
Information Technology
Mr. Markham has worked with Investrend since 2008. He
also currently works as a key Project Manager for Point-N-Click PCS,
in New Rochelle, NY.
Helen Yankwitt, Accounts
Comptroller
Ms. Yankwitt joined the Investrend team in 2002. She
has over 25 years experience as a CPA, and has worked as CFO for
four start-up companies, all of which were successfully taken
public. Ms. Yankwitt received her Bachelor’s degree in from Yale
University, then went on to receive a Master’s degree in finance
from Colombia University. |
