Our guest today is Mike Lui. Mike is CEO at G&G Laboratories. Mike is a first generation, Chinese-American born and raised in NE Philadelphia.

He majored in Economics in Penn State in 1998. He enlisted in the U.S. Army at age of 19 after his sophomore year at Penn State. He joined for a mixture of gratitude and service to his country. He also wanted to stretch is personal boundaries and he wanted to engage with people he wouldn’t have normally met.

Mike served as a Civil Affairs Specialist. The part of the Army that engages in nation building and reconstruction during and after conflicts.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_affairs#United_States_Army

Mike deployed to an area south of Baghdad for his combat deployment, where he managed Civil Affairs team and engaged in reconstruction efforts. You can find more details here.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelluiprofile/

Mike left the Army in 2008, shortly before starting his MBA program at UCLA

Mike has been a management consultant, product manager and a technology researcher. Mike has a broad business and technology foundation. 

He has a good idea on what drives performance in teams, organizations and businesses.The next logical step for Mike was to start a business of his own and make it one that he could be proud of and that stands for something.

For Mike, Healthcare is a natural fit because everyone is affected by their personal health. G&G Laboratories deals with proprietary R&D in the cannabis space. The compounds within cannabis yield much potential as traditional health therapies. But not enough research is being done to determine the exact effects and to tailor products to treat specific conditions.

Dan is the Co-Founder and a portfolio manager of Triple Summit Advisors, LLC. Dan brings institutional asset management, wealth management, and client service experience to the team. Prior to Triple Summit, Dan worked in business development and operations at Zipline, a venture-backed robotics startup. Previously, Dan worked as an investment associate at Prudential Capital Group, where he conducted credit analysis and portfolio management for a multi-billion-dollar portfolio of investment grade, high-yield, and mezzanine debt. Dan also served as a field artillery officer in the U.S. Army, with overseas service in Iraq and Korea.  Dan graduated cum laude from Harvard University with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and holds a Master of Business Administration from the University of California, Berkeley. Dan lives in the Seattle Area with his wife, daughter, and their lively Yorkie, Casey.

Jessica Vittorio is the Managing Attorney of The Law Office of Jessica Vittorio, an Adjunct Professor of Business Law, and host of a weekly business related podcast. She received her B.A. from Southwestern University, and earned her J.D. from Baylor Law School. Her practice is based in Dallas, TX and focuses on providing startups and small business owners with the insight and experience they need to properly grow their business. Jessica is active in the startup and entrepreneurial community throughout Texas, and regularly helps to advise companies on formation, fundraising, M&A, governance, and other daily operational issues. 

Jessica is a strong believer that  by understanding a company’s philosophy and values she can empower her clients to establish and grow their business in ways that will enable future success. In addition to her work within the business community, she also serves on the Board of various organizations, and is an active member of the Law Practice Management Committee of the State Bar of Texas.

Christopher Molaro is a 2010 graduate of USMA where he graduated with a degree in Engineering Management and commissioned as a Field Artillery Officer.  He deployed with the First Cavalry Division as a platoon leader to Iraq in 2011 and was awarded a Bronze Star.  Concurrently as a Captain in the Army he co-founded the non-profit Things We Read focused on enhancing the quality of lives of his Soldiers and inspiring them to pursue a lifetime of learning.  In 2017 he earned his Masters in Business Administration from The Wharton School at The University of Pennsylvania.  He is now the founder and CEO of NeuroFlow, a digital mental health technology company that was recently named a top mental health company by MedTech Boston and most innovative technology by the 2018 Psych Congress.  He resides in Philadelphia with his wife, Erica.

Steven Matly of SM Diversity was recently named one of Seattle's most influential people for 2018 by Seattle Magazine.

This is a rerelease of a previous episode we did with Steven to help celebrate this.