College of Business

Connor Achim ’16 

Connor is an account director for Crexi, a commercial real estate tech company based in Los Angeles. He oversees the state of Nevada and works to grow their presence through market penetration and acquisition.

Previously he worked for some of the most well-known tech companies in Los Angeles including Clutter Inc. where he managed a team of 80+ sales agents as well as Compass Real Estate where he was the strategic growth manager for Hollywood and Calabasas.

Outside of his career, he takes a lot of pride in  health/wellness. In the past few years, he's completed six half marathons, three full marathons, two triathlons, and is training for his first Ironman race in California.

Ashley Carboni ’14 

 Ashley is a distinguished manager in KPMG's accounting advisory services practice. She plays a crucial role in leading teams that guide clients through complex accounting challenges, including the adoption of new accounting standards, and supporting clients through acquisitions and divestitures.

Beyond her client responsibilities, Ashley is involved in several initiatives at KPMG. She instructs new staff training and leads the Chicago office's purposeful interactions event series. Her commitment to the accounting profession extends into her active participation in the Illinois CPA Society, she is a valued member of the Accounting Principles Committee, Women's Committee, and Awards Committee. 

Ashley graduated from ISU with a bachelor's in accounting and then went on to earn a Master of Accounting Science from NIU in 2016. After passing the CPA exam, she started her accounting career as a technical associate at the IFRS Foundation in London. During her two-year tenure, Ashley gained valuable insights into international standard-setting processes and had the opportunity to travel to 20 different countries. 

Renee Haning, MBA ’12 

Renee is director of total rewards at COUNTRY Financial, serving in this role since 2020. Haning joined COUNTRY in 2007 as college relations recruiting coordinator. She later served as employee relations coordinator, manager of organizational development, HR business partner and manager of compensation. Prior to COUNTRY, she worked as the program and event director at McLean County Chamber of Commerce.

Renee earned a bachelor's degree in psychology from the University of Illinois, Urbana before her MBA at ISU. She holds the Professional in Human Resources (PHR) and SHRM Certified Professional (SHRM-CP) designations. She has previously served as president of the local BNHRC SHRM chapter and ILSHRM conference director.

Renee and husband Tyler live in Minier, with their three children Teagan, Ainsley and Tagg. In her free time, she's usually cheering on her kids at a softball/baseball field or on basketball court.

Ellen Janssen ’16         

Ellen has been at TEKsystems since 2016. She has served in several roles including recruiter, senior recruiter, onboarding coach, and specialized recruiter
lead. She manages her own network of professionals to help with their career opportunities while also leading a pod of other recruiters to do the same for their networks for their career success. She enjoys coaching new recruiter training sessions and being a co-pillar lead in her company's health and well-being program.

She is a member of the local alumnae chapter of Alpha Omicron Pi. Ellen and her husband, Henry, are expecting their first child in November.

Nicole Jones ’18, MPA ’18 

Nicole is in her third season as a senior accountant with the Chicago Cubs (yes, they talk in seasons vs. years). She is responsible for the rooftop and hotel businesses along with managing the accounting for the charitable organization, Cubs Charities. She plays a key role in all monthly and annual reporting requirements and takes part in all investing and capital decisions.

She lives in Chicago with her dog, Lottie, and enjoys attending baseball games, running, reading, and cooking.

Ellen Marr ’17

Ellen graduated from Illinois State University in 2017 with majors in interactive marketing communications & human resource management. She joined Spark Foundry, a leading media agency in Chicago, after graduation starting as a media strategy associate.  Over the past seven years, Ellen has worked with clients like Mattel, State Farm, Starbucks, and Dreyer's Ice Cream, and now serves as a director of digital investment.

In her current role, Ellen manages the planning and execution of digital ad campaigns, overseeing more than $50 million in ad spend. She loves coming up with creative strategies and bringing them to life to drive results for her clients. One of Ellen's favorite parts of her job is managing a team and facilitating their growth.

Filip Miljevic ’12 

Filip is a seasoned private equity professional with a diverse career. Currently a senior associate at G Square Healthcare Private Equity in London, Filip has played a crucial role in several high-profile transactions and holds board positions in several European companies. He co-led the exit of a EBITDA European MedTech distributor,  managed a UK mental health software investment, and facilitated a 50 million pound EBITDA
merger, creating a leading UK social care business.

Prior to G Square, Filip worked three years at August Equity as an investment executive, investing in healthcare, business services, and technology business. He began his career in New York as an associate in credit suisse by joining the largest North American private banking team. He later joined Morgan Stanley after which he moved to the UK to pursue his MBA at Oxford. He is also a former professional tennis player.

Dakota Neisen ’15 

Dakota has been educating young minds since graduating with bachelor's in business education. He taught business for two years at Unity High and three years at Tri-Valley High School before starting his tenure at Morton High School as teaching business.

Dakota also has a passion for coaching as he has coached a team at each school and is currently the coach of girl's basketball and girl's track at Morton.

He currently resides in East Peoria with his wife, Ashlyn, and their daughter, Wynter.

Nicole Poggensee ’14

Nicole is a seasoned content director at Publicis Collective (formally known as Performics) in Chicago, where she leads the SEO content strategy and oversees implementation for prominent brands including Microsoft, Haleon, and OLAPLEX. With nearly a decade of
experience in SEO and content marketing, Nicole excels in driving successful organic search traffic and revenue through comprehensive content programs. In her current role, Nicole serves as a trusted partner to her clients, overseeing a team of three content managers across eight accounts, and fostering seamless collaboration across multiple teams to drive strategic execution.

Outside of work, Nicole pursued her passion for fitness as a Pure Barre instructor for three years, integrating her commitment to wellness with her professional endeavors. She remains actively engaged with ISU, participating as a panelist for Business Week Transition Seminars in both 2020 and 2024.

Matthew Riley ’16 

Matt began his career at State Farm working in risk and compliance. He then made the jump from corporate risk management to personal risk management becoming a fiduciary officer for First National Bank and Trust. Now, the VP of wealth planning, helping clients to meet their prosperity goals through investments and retirement planning. With his bachelor's in finance and minor in financial planning, he has continued his education journey, earning eight other designations including the Chartered Financial Consultant(R) and is currently obtaining his MBA.

On the side, Matt is co-owner of a dog daycare/boarding facility where he handles all financials. In addition to work, Matt became a member of Rotary in April of 2019, has been president of the Warner Hospital and Health
Services Foundation since June 2020, and is treasurer for his church. He wouldn't be where he is today without his loving wife, Alexis, and their son Jameson who is destined to be a Redbird one day.

Penney Rodd, MBA ’14 

Penney started her career as an industrial engineer at Nissan engine facility. After a few years, she led a major supply chain project for increasing capacity. There is when she recognized her skills and passion in finance and business which led her to ISU to earn her MBA.

After graduation, she started working for Sony Disk and Digital corporation as a financial analyst in early 2015, where she was involved in many cost saving projects and process improvements. After Sony shut down the facility, Penney moved on and received an offer from Navistar as a senior financial analyst at Corporate FP&A in 2020. In 2022, she was promoted to the finance manager role to manage overhead cost.

Megan Smalter ’20

Megan graduated from ISU with a bachelor's in risk management & insurance and finance with a minor in Spanish. During her time at ISU, she was involved in Gamma Iota Sigma, the risk management & insurance fraternity, Alpha Kappa Psi, the professional business fraternity, and was a Business Week mentee/mentor. She also was a Katie School of Insurance international intern in Zurich, Switzerland, and studied abroad in Granada, Spain.

She is currently a private company management liability underwriter at CNA Insurance. She manages a three million dollar book of business and maintains many broker relationships in the Chicago and Cincinnati territories. Megan is also involved in the insurance industry as the president of Rising Risk Professionals, president of Insurance Associates, a committee member of the Future PLUS Mentorship Taskforce, and an active member of the Association of Professional Insurance Women. She has completed her Chartered Property and Casualty Underwriter.

Brendan Surmeier ’17, MPA ’17 

After graduation, Brendan joined Brown CPA Firm as a staff accountant in Northbrook, Illinois. While at Brown, Brendan was involved with Federal and SALT tax compliances for families and small business. In December 2018, Brendan joined Ernst and Young as staff accountant in the company's financial services office where he was promoted to senior tax accountant a short time later. Around the same date as his start date, Brendan passed his final CPA exam and officially became a Certified Public Accountant.

Today, Brendan is a tax manger focusing on federal tax compliance services for private equity funds, hedge funds, and mutual funds. Brendan is married to his wife Megan who he met his second night on campus. They have two children, Mason and Olivia and their dog Willow.

Nathan Willard ’14 

Nathan is the chief executive officer at JSM Living, a real estate and development firm located on the University of Illinois campus. He leads the strategic planning process in an effort to provide the best possible living and leasing opportunities. Entering his 15th year at JSM, Nathan was originally hired as a leasing agent and worked in various part-time roles as a student. After earning his bachelor's in human resources management, he returned to Champaign as an HR generalist and soon after, was promoted as the HR manager. Nathan took on oversight of all HR, IT, and marketing operations in 2021 and most recently, began as CEO.

Outside of work, he enjoys coaching youth sports and time spent in the outdoors. Additionally, he appreciates the opportunity to return to campus and speak with HRM students. Today, he lives in White Heath with his wife, Emily, and their son, Landon.