John Arensmeyer, Founder & CEO
In just a few years, John Arensmeyer has built Small Business Majority into a nationally recognized small business organization and the leading advocate for critical public policy issues facing America’s entrepreneurs—particularly healthcare reform, clean energy, access to capital and job creation.
John was the founder and CEO of ACI Interactive, an award-winning international e-commerce company. Information Week named ACI's signature product one of the nation's top 100 e-business innovations, and the company was cited by the San Francisco Business Times as one of the top 100 fastest growing private companies in the Bay Area. Earlier, John was the chief operating officer of a pioneering multimedia business and an attorney in New York.
John is a frequent speaker on small business policy issues and a regular guest on TV and radio, including PBS NewsHour, Fox News, Marketplace, MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews and CBS Evening News. He served on a panel at the White House healthcare summit in 2009, is a member of the California Task Force on Affordable Care and testifies regularly at congressional committee hearings.
Terry Gardiner, National Policy Director
Terry Gardiner, based in Washington, DC, directs Small Business Majority's national policy development. He spearheads our small business policy and communication strategies related to the establishment of the 50 state healthcare exchanges, and plays a key role in clean energy, access to capital and job creation issues.
Originally a commercial fisherman, Terry founded and spent 22 years as the CEO of Silver Lining Seafoods, later NorQuest Seafoods. He grew the company to over $100 million in sales, with 1,000 employees and markets in 22 countries. After the sale of NorQuest in 2004, he turned to public policy work, focusing on healthcare reform.
Terry is a former Speaker of the Alaska House of Representatives, in which he served for 10 years and authored a host of successful groundbreaking legislation. He is a member of the G.A.O. National Co-Op Advisory Board and has testified at congressional committee hearings.
Kathy Berry, Operations Director
Kathy Berry directs Small Business Majority’s administrative and human resources operations, while also supporting our development efforts and managing special projects. She has more than 10 years management experience in small entrepreneurial environments, having helped grow three small businesses in the arenas of healthcare, interactive technology and online education. She also has held senior positions with companies and organizations focused on technology, law and housing.
Prior to joining Small Business Majority, Kathy served as a director at iMind Education Systems and as Director of Operations for ACI Interactive, where she oversaw administration, human resources and accounting. Most recently, she was Human Resources Manager for Freed & Associates, a boutique healthcare consulting firm.
Rhett Buttle, National Outreach and Government Affairs Manager
Rhett Buttle manages Small Business Majority’s operations in Washington, DC, acting as our liaison with the Obama administration, Congress and national partners, while collaborating with national, state and local business organizations and other groups on targeted small business outreach efforts. Before joining our team, Rhett served in the Office of the President at George Washington University. Prior to that, he worked on President Obama’s 2008 campaign, and in the office of California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, where he was part of the team involved in California’s healthcare reform effort.
David Chase, California Outreach Manager
David Chase manages Small Business Majority's Sacramento office, focusing on relationships with small business organizations and owners across California and working closely with legislators and other policymakers in the state. Previously, he served for more than four years in the office of California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, where he built coalitions with business and other stakeholder groups to advance the Governor's agenda. David was part of the team responsible for building the coalition behind Governor Schwarzenegger's 2007 comprehensive healthcare reform proposal.
Erin Musgrave, Communications Manager
Erin Musgrave manages Small Business Majority's communications functions, including media relations, content and small business owner stories. An award-winning journalist, her experience in the newspaper industry spans both editorial and advertising. She worked as a reporter, editor and advertising executive for a newspaper group in California before launching a weekly newspaper and serving as publisher and editor-in-chief. She then transitioned into public relations, where she managed marcom for a green business in Santa Cruz, CA, while providing PR and marketing support to small businesses on a contract basis.
Jonathan Steed, Writer
Jonathan Steed writes and conducts research for Small Business Majority. Prior to joining our team, he worked on the Clean Energy Works campaign, where he facilitated message development in support of comprehensive climate and energy legislation. With a background in public relations, political consulting and government affairs, Jonathan’s work has appeared in the nation’s top news publications on issues ranging from labor law and the environment to healthcare and foreign policy.
Eszter Szocska, Executive Coordinator
Eszter Szocska manages Small Business Majority's web communications, IT and administrative functions. Before joining us, she worked as an executive assistant and website administrator at Green-Wifi, a small business specializing in the development of solar-powered Wi-Fi grid networks for schools in the developing world. Previously, Eszter spent nine years in Tokyo, Japan, where she cofounded FCC International, a small web services company.
Celia Canfield, Clean Energy Project Director
Celia Canfield manages Small Business Majority’s clean energy research and business outreach. She is a long-time small business owner, and, as a consultant in clean energy and sustainability, has worked with West Coast Green, Sustainable Life Media and several other green media properties and solution providers.
With more than 25 years of print and web publishing experience, Celia developed communication programs for some of the world’s largest brands. She built a successful custom content creation agency as a co-founder of Tendo Communications.
Celia is a charter member of Women’s Energy Efficiency Network (WEEnet), and is a member of Efficiency First. She has first-hand understanding of implementing green design and sustainable products and methods from renovating her home to make it LEED-compliant. She wrote about her renovation experiences and was featured in USA Today.
Ben Geyerhahn, New York Project Director
Ben Geyerhahn manages Small Business Majority’s New York office, while also managing special projects in healthcare and small business workforce management.
Ben co-authored our study “The Impact of Healthcare Reform on New York’s Small Businesses.” He worked with Criterion Ventures on Healthcare Uncovered, a project that tracked the cash market for health insurance services, and has advised social venture capitalists on the purchase of companies that identify and deliver public benefits, such as SCHIP and food stamps. Most recently, he worked with New York State elected officials on the pricing and delivery of Family Health Plus, a state-designed health insurance plan, and with a nonprofit organization on the design of a state healthcare exchange.
Ben is also the managing principal with Hudson TG, a strategic political and policy consulting firm.
