Experience

TIGER 21

• United States
• Professional Training and Coaching
• 100 - 200 Employee

• Chair

  • Mar 2021 - Present

  Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul Area Known as a people connoisseur and master connector, I am honored to use my gifts to launch the first TIGER 21 group in the Twin Cities. TIGER 21 Chairs guide Group Meetings and facilitate Member engagement, providing a safe environment for Members to share personal and business matters in the strictest of confidence. Our founding group includes founders, executives and investors who are who are down to earth people seeking an intimate and confidential monthly space in which to discuss and… Show more Known as a people connoisseur and master connector, I am honored to use my gifts to launch the first TIGER 21 group in the Twin Cities. TIGER 21 Chairs guide Group Meetings and facilitate Member engagement, providing a safe environment for Members to share personal and business matters in the strictest of confidence. Our founding group includes founders, executives and investors who are who are down to earth people seeking an intimate and confidential monthly space in which to discuss and learn more about the unique opportunities and challenges significant wealth brings to their lives. TIGER 21 provides Members with powerful perspective: their own personal board of directors; carefully curated content from the best minds in the world related to preserving wealth, investing, family dynamics and legacy/philanthropy; and unique member experiences including a transformative portfolio defense done once a year, the ability to attend other monthly group meetings, an annual family conference, and real time access to members worldwide. Members often join TIGER 21 because they recognize that formidable business skills do not always translate into the successful management of assets or personal happiness. They seek to acquire a very different skill set: the ability to be a disciplined investor, to enhance their wealth, and to achieve personal goals like health, well being, joy and impact in the world. Members also join to be part of a global premier peer community of 1200+ members who are accomplished wealth creators from every industry and geography in the US, Canada and Europe, collectively managing +$85 billion in aggregate personal assets. For more information, please visit www.Tiger21.com or contact me at Bonnie.Speer.McGrath@Tiger21Chair.com. Show less



Speer McGrath & Co.

• Founder and CEO

  • Jan 2005 - Present

  Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul Area Trusted advisor and interim executive resource to CEOs and leadership teams in private, high growth companies and non-profit organizations. Career mentor to high talent individuals in transition. Actively engaged in community service and private and non-profit board work. Creator of meaningful edutainment experiences from simple one time events, to weekend retreats to recurring conferences. While the audiences differ, each experience is an invitation to witness and create new… Show more Trusted advisor and interim executive resource to CEOs and leadership teams in private, high growth companies and non-profit organizations. Career mentor to high talent individuals in transition. Actively engaged in community service and private and non-profit board work. Creator of meaningful edutainment experiences from simple one time events, to weekend retreats to recurring conferences. While the audiences differ, each experience is an invitation to witness and create new possibilities as well as entice people to learn, grow, connect, have fun and potentially accomplish the extraordinary. Inspirational speaker. Current Topics include: 1. I have a Little Extra Time on my Hands...Is it Time to Change the World? 2. Three Books that Will Add More Rocket Fuel to Your Career than an MBA Show less



Great North Ventures

• United States
• Venture Capital and Private Equity Principals
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Advisor

  • Aug 2018 - Present

  Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul Area Great North Labs (www.greatnorthlabs.com) is a Minnesota based venture capital fund focused on helping startup founders in the Upper Midwest (IA, IL, MN, ND, SD, WI). We invest primarily in seed and early growth rounds. The startups can be from any industry. Our fund is managed by founders with previous exits (Rob Weber, Ryan Weber and Pradip Madan) and includes support by advisers in the region as well as in Silicon Valley. We also offer a Startup School designed to assist Founders & Product… Show more Great North Labs (www.greatnorthlabs.com) is a Minnesota based venture capital fund focused on helping startup founders in the Upper Midwest (IA, IL, MN, ND, SD, WI). We invest primarily in seed and early growth rounds. The startups can be from any industry. Our fund is managed by founders with previous exits (Rob Weber, Ryan Weber and Pradip Madan) and includes support by advisers in the region as well as in Silicon Valley. We also offer a Startup School designed to assist Founders & Product Managers with practical skills they can deploy to improve their chances of success. The first startup from our lab is a consumer app in the collectible sports card trading space. Show less



Greater Twin Cities United Way

• United States
• Non-profit Organizations
• 100 - 200 Employee

• Impact Speaker

  • Jul 2020 - Nov 2020

  Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul Area As an inspirational speaker and storyteller, I had the beautiful opportunity to weave my personal story into the work of Greater Twin Cities United Way and share it with groups of potential donors to encourage them to share their time, money and influence. I worked with companies of all sizes and gave speeches to groups of 15 to 800 employees as part of each company's United Way giving campaign collaborating closely with our client ambassadors and business leaders to help raise millions of… Show more As an inspirational speaker and storyteller, I had the beautiful opportunity to weave my personal story into the work of Greater Twin Cities United Way and share it with groups of potential donors to encourage them to share their time, money and influence. I worked with companies of all sizes and gave speeches to groups of 15 to 800 employees as part of each company's United Way giving campaign collaborating closely with our client ambassadors and business leaders to help raise millions of dollars to help our neighbors in the Twin Cities who are experiencing poverty. Greater Twin Cities United Way is known for helping people access a place to call home, healthy food, a quality education, and financial stability with an opportunity to build wealth. Our 211 helpline is a lifeline of hope for many people--in the last few moments, we may have helped a teen find a place to sleep tonight, helped a mother find childcare so she can return to work, helped a family find housing assistance so they don't lose their home, helped a parent find a drop in mental health center for a child experiencing a mental health challenge. Our 211 helpline is a jewel in our community and a strategic data tool for us that guides our work. In 2019 we added Criminal Justice Reform--so bold and timely. Show less



The Abbay - CEO Education and Entertainment in Backdrop of Super Bowl

• Founding Managing Director

  • May 2017 - Apr 2018

  Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul Area An exclusive, invitation-only executive edutainment experience. The Abbay was held in Minneapolis during the 2018 Super Bowl week, assembling CEOS that combined created over $175B in shareholder value and served on over 40 Fortune 500 boards. An intimate and interactive forum to discuss the most important business, board and social issues of the day.



TruScribe - White Board Animation Studio and SaaS Software

• President

  • May 2015 - May 2017

  Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul Area Transitioned from Board to President to launch a content creation platform that transforms speech or text into animated videos. Raised $1.7M in seed capital in 6 weeks. Opened Mpls office to support software development, customer success, marketing and sales teams. The tool today is called Squigl.



Storyworks OnDemand

• Board Chair and Investor

  • Oct 2014 - Nov 2015

  Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul Area Supporting a seasoned CEO, like Jeff Fritz, as an investor and board chair, for his growing company Storyworks OnDemand, was an honor. Storyworks was a thriving start-up SaaS business that used its unique mobile app to help sales people organize and easily access all of their marketing content on the fly to enhance their ability to build trusted relationships with their customers. The company merged with Insite in November of 2015.



Only Natural Pet

• United States
• Pet Services
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Director and Investor

  • Jan 2011 - Feb 2014

  Boulder, Colorado Supporting Marty Grosjean in his 3rd entrepreneurial venture as a director and investor was great fun as I learned about an industry that was new to me and helped him navigate private equity funding. Only Natural Pet Foods was founded in Boulder, CO and employed real pet people. In addition to marketing many carefully curated products, they created their own brand called "I and LOVE and You" which is high in protein and does not have any additives or fillers. The company is now owned by… Show more Supporting Marty Grosjean in his 3rd entrepreneurial venture as a director and investor was great fun as I learned about an industry that was new to me and helped him navigate private equity funding. Only Natural Pet Foods was founded in Boulder, CO and employed real pet people. In addition to marketing many carefully curated products, they created their own brand called "I and LOVE and You" which is high in protein and does not have any additives or fillers. The company is now owned by Petsmart. Show less



KIPP Minnesota

• United States
• Primary and Secondary Education
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Interim Advancement Director and Board Member

  • 2012 - 2013

  Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul Area Having been introduced to KIPP schools through the movie Waiting for Superman, and learning that the Carlson Family Foundation had brought KIPP to Minnesota, I was enthusiastic to get involved. KIPP is a college prep grade school and middle school for students in North Minneapolis. Over 98% of the students qualify for free and reduced lunch. For one school year, I was honored to serve dual roles as board member and Interim Advancement Director of KIPP Minnesota. Using limited funds, I attracted… Show more Having been introduced to KIPP schools through the movie Waiting for Superman, and learning that the Carlson Family Foundation had brought KIPP to Minnesota, I was enthusiastic to get involved. KIPP is a college prep grade school and middle school for students in North Minneapolis. Over 98% of the students qualify for free and reduced lunch. For one school year, I was honored to serve dual roles as board member and Interim Advancement Director of KIPP Minnesota. Using limited funds, I attracted and built an 7 person "dream team" made up of employees, consultants and volunteers responsible for fundraising, in-kind donations, volunteers, marketing, events, social media and communications with donors and community partners of KIPP. We established new processes and procedures related to fundraising including adding the ability to receive stock gifts. Our team exceeded the financial goal by 30% raising over $750k and expanded knowledge of KIPP to hundreds of new individual donors and several key foundations. One of my team members was able to take over leadership of our dream team at the end of the fiscal year and her leadership continues to this day. Show less



Kaplan

• United States
• Education Administration Programs
• 700 & Above Employee

• President, Perfect Access Speer

  • Dec 2000 - Jan 2004

  New York City, Minneapolis, Chicago, Dallas, Washington DC, London Perfect Access Speer was the result of Kaplan combining two former end user technology training and consulting competitors, Perfect Access founded by Cathy Wallach, and Speer, founded by me, into one company. It was an adventure joining an arch rival and keeping the best of both companies. The combined business grew to approximately $23M in revenue with a global practice that included end user technology training, documentation and software consulting services serving 60% of the world's largest… Show more Perfect Access Speer was the result of Kaplan combining two former end user technology training and consulting competitors, Perfect Access founded by Cathy Wallach, and Speer, founded by me, into one company. It was an adventure joining an arch rival and keeping the best of both companies. The combined business grew to approximately $23M in revenue with a global practice that included end user technology training, documentation and software consulting services serving 60% of the world's largest law firms and financial service companies. The company was headquartered in New York City with regional offices in Washington DC, Chicago, Dallas, Minneapolis and London. Show less



Speer Software Training - End User Technology Training for Banks and Law Firms

• Founder and CEO

  • Aug 1986 - Nov 2000

  New York and Minneapolis Speer Software Training, "Speer," was a premier, best in class, end user technology training and consulting services company serving the nation's largest banks and law firms including Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase, US Bank, Jones Day, Sidley Austin, and Morgan Lewis in New York, Washington DC, Chicago, Minneapolis, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco and London. It is still a badge of honor today to have been a Speer trainer or consultant. The secrets to Speer's success - a culture of… Show more Speer Software Training, "Speer," was a premier, best in class, end user technology training and consulting services company serving the nation's largest banks and law firms including Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase, US Bank, Jones Day, Sidley Austin, and Morgan Lewis in New York, Washington DC, Chicago, Minneapolis, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco and London. It is still a badge of honor today to have been a Speer trainer or consultant. The secrets to Speer's success - a culture of innovation and excellence that attracted "the best of the best" trainers and consultants, and a trusted reputation among leading systems integrators. Extraordinary behavior earned you a hand written note from the CEO and custom Speer Teal Sensa pen. The company grew from 1 person to 350 consultants and 40% marketshare of the world's top law firms before being sold to Kaplan, Inc. which was owned by The Washington Post. Show less



SunThings - Strapless, Disposable Bathing Suit Tops

• Co-Founder and CEO

  • Oct 1986 - Feb 1992

  New York, New York, United States SunThings was a fashion forward disposable product popular with women of all ages who wanted to sunbathe without worrying about tan lines or wear something decorative under a sheer blouse. Our tag line and promise was "Leave somethings to the imagination." Imported initially from Brazil, SunThings were later manufactured in the U.S. using specialized 3M paper that would securely stay on your body for up to 24 hours, even after getting wet. Sunthings sold in bathing suit shops and gift stores… Show more SunThings was a fashion forward disposable product popular with women of all ages who wanted to sunbathe without worrying about tan lines or wear something decorative under a sheer blouse. Our tag line and promise was "Leave somethings to the imagination." Imported initially from Brazil, SunThings were later manufactured in the U.S. using specialized 3M paper that would securely stay on your body for up to 24 hours, even after getting wet. Sunthings sold in bathing suit shops and gift stores along the east and west coasts of America for $8 per pair. The company received press on MTV, the Howard Stern radio show and in Bonnie's hometown paper, the Quad Cities Times. The company was sold to Braza Bra Corporation. Show less



Chase Manhattan Bank

• Technology Trainer

  • Aug 1985 - Aug 1986

  Greater New York City Area I developed and delivered technology training courses at Chase Manhattan Bank for bankers to help them learn to use desktop applications such as Lotus 1-2-3. Our team encouraged senior bankers to embrace technology and not solely rely on their junior staff...otherwise they may get junior level thinking at a high rate of speed. While this position was short-lived, it presented a career changing opportunity for me to launch my own business while maintaining Chase as a long time client.



Arthur Young

• Accounting
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Practice Development and Client Services Coordinator for London Audit Division 3

  • Jan 1984 - Jul 1985

  London, United Kingdom This position was created through an AIESEC traineeship with one of the Big 8 Accounting firms. Marketing audit services was a new concept at the time so this position did not exist before I arrived. To support business development and marketing, I worked with the technology department to create a client database and then taught partners how to use this tool. This was my first experience in instructional design and technology training. I also designed and taught a course for 1st and 2nd year… Show more This position was created through an AIESEC traineeship with one of the Big 8 Accounting firms. Marketing audit services was a new concept at the time so this position did not exist before I arrived. To support business development and marketing, I worked with the technology department to create a client database and then taught partners how to use this tool. This was my first experience in instructional design and technology training. I also designed and taught a course for 1st and 2nd year auditors on how to identify business opportunities during an audit. One of the highlights of this experience was a group of partners and auditors trained for and ran the Paris marathon together. Show less



AIESEC

• Canada
• Non-profit Organizations
• 700 & Above Employee

• 25th Anniversary Director

  • May 1983 - Dec 1983

  Greater New York City Area Present in over 107 countries with over 50,000 members, AIESEC is the world's largest student-run organization. The purpose of the organization is to provide students with leadership development opportunities as well as international work experience. This position was created to host a fundraising event to celebrate the organization's anniversary in the United States. Attendees included current students, business supporters and AIESEC alumni. Funders included the CEOs of many large corporations… Show more Present in over 107 countries with over 50,000 members, AIESEC is the world's largest student-run organization. The purpose of the organization is to provide students with leadership development opportunities as well as international work experience. This position was created to host a fundraising event to celebrate the organization's anniversary in the United States. Attendees included current students, business supporters and AIESEC alumni. Funders included the CEOs of many large corporations including Citibank, Nomura Securities, United Airlines and Maxima. Show less