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Lycoming alumnus shares challenges, rewards of entrepreneurship

Lycoming alumnus shares challenges, rewards of entrepreneurship

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Lycoming College alumnus Marshall Winters ’07, will return to his alma matter to speak as part of the James W. Harding Executive Speaker Series on Tuesday, March 21, at 7 p.m. in the Trogner Presentation Room, in the Krapf Gateway Center. His talk, entitled “Entry-Level Entrepreneur,” will focus on the challenges and rewards of entrepreneurial endeavors. The event is free and open to the public.

A Williamsport native, Winters got a jumpstart on his career by working throughout his college years, initially at a couple of local hotels, and later for Blaise Alexander at Auto Trakk, with increasing levels of responsibility for the last 17 years. He began by managing analytics and credit risk while navigating debt financing during the credit crisis. Then, as controller, he modernized and streamlined the accounting functions, reporting, and annual audits. Now, as chief financial officer and treasurer, Winters also leads IT, and Legal and Regulatory Compliance.

Working with Alexander provided Winters with an introduction, then a passion, and ultimately an obsession with being an entrepreneur. Although he still considers himself an entry-level entrepreneur, Winters and his wife Jennifer are managing and growing a real estate portfolio, an axe throwing business, and now a barbecue food truck and catering company; all while constantly evaluating new opportunities. The Winters’ top criteria for any venture? It has to be fun!

He holds a bachelor’s degree from Lycoming College where he double majored in finance and economics. While a student at Lycoming, he was a member of both the Lycoming Theatre and Omicron Delta Epsilon.

The presentation is sponsored by Lycoming College’s Institute for Management Studies. The James W. Harding Executive Speaker Series is named for James W. Harding, a 1938 graduate of Lycoming College and an executive with Kemper Insurance. As the result of a grant from the James S. Kemper foundation to endow the series, students have the opportunity to meet and network with some of America's top business executives from numerous internationally-recognized companies and firms.