Business & Finance

Jonathan Ramsden is a global financial and strategic leader who has spent over 25 years in senior executive roles with U.S. public companies in the retail and marketing services sectors. From 2019-2025, he served as the chief financial and administrative officer of Big Lots Inc. Prior to that, he served as chief financial officer and then chief operating officer of Abercrombie & Fitch from 2008-2016, and as chief financial officer of TBWA Worldwide, a global marketing services group, from 1998-2008. Through his executive roles, Ramsden has extensive experience in financial management, strategy, M&A, global business operations, and corporate restructuring. In addition to his executive roles, Ramsden has served as an adjunct professor at Ohio State University’s Fisher College of Business since 2018, and as a board member of IR Medtek, a medical technology company, since 2019. From 2017-2019, Ramsden operated an independent consulting business, advising boards and management teams of companies going through periods of significant corporate change. He has served on multiple nonprofit boards and currently chairs the board of the Final Third Foundation. Originally from Nottingham, England, Ramsden holds an MA in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics from Oxford University and is a dual US/UK citizen. He has three children and resides in Bexley, Ohio.

Louann Cummings ’75 has dabbled in the higher education milieu for the past 40 years. Her educational background spans the social sciences to accounting and management. She received her bachelor’s in economics from Denison, an MBA from the University of Toledo (and subsequently earned her CPA), and a Doctor of Business Administration from Case Western Reserve University. This educational path culminated in her current desire for a systems-thinking, interdisciplinary focus in the classroom. Additionally, she worked for Root Learning, Inc., developing learning map technologies for companies such as Harley-Davidson, ATT Wireless, Motorola, UPS, and Whirlpool. Louann is a Professor Emerita at the University of Findlay and has spent many years presenting in Denison’s Organizational Studies and Denison Edge programs. In addition to teaching various undergraduate and graduate accounting, business strategy, and leadership courses, she has a robust background in assessing student learning and in accreditation initiatives. She has served as an examiner for The Partnership for Excellence, made numerous presentations on learning and assessment, and worked as an editor for several publishers. She also has years of experience in deploying effective and engaging online learning experiences. Louann spent a sabbatical in India working with an NGO project, was a visiting scholar in Ho Chi Minh City, served as a Fulbright Scholar in Hanoi, Vietnam, and was a Fulbright Specialist in Niamey, Niger. Of greatest note and delight are her wonderful husband, four children (and their spouses), and ten grandchildren. In her spare time, Louann enjoys traveling, reading, her dogs, knitting, cooking, and distance running. Since 2004, she has run well over 25,000 miles (and counting), has completed 27 half marathons, and 8 marathons, including crossing the finish line in Boston.

Chase Seavers helps investor-backed businesses build finance functions that grow with them rather than slow them down. As a fractional CFO, Chase works with startups and middle market companies, providing strategic finance leadership without the overhead of a full-time hire. His sweet spot is teaming with founders who are looking for an operations-oriented, trusted thought partner to help them make decisions with clarity and confidence. Prior to becoming a fractional, he served as CFO for a multi-location autism therapy clinic, helping them implement Traction EOS, professionalize the finance function, and raise growth capital. As CFO of Healthgrades' Marketplace division, Chase completed two acquisitions, drove meaningful organic revenue growth, and exited to Red Ventures.

Rick Boyages has worked in the college sports industry for 39 years as a basketball coach, special assistant, conference administrator, and consultant. Most recently, he spent 12 years as vice president for men’s basketball at the Big Ten Conference in Chicago. His role included oversight of event management, game operations, conduct policies, and officiating. During his tenure, Rick served as sport liaison to 31 head coaches, 30 athletic directors, and dozens of network television executives, arena directors, and NCAA stakeholders. As executive director of the Collegiate Officiating Consortium, LLC, he simultaneously directed men’s basketball officiating operations for 65 Division I institutions in 22 states. Boyages also served as an associate commissioner for the Mid-American Conference and as a special assistant to the athletic director at Ohio State University. His 19 years as a college basketball coach included stops at Ohio State, Boston College, William & Mary, and Bates College. He was an integral part of Big East and Big Ten championship seasons with Ohio State and Boston College, and coached in five NCAA Tournaments, two Elite Eight’s, and a Final Four with the Buckeyes in 1999. As a consultant, Rick has advised clients across sports tech, higher education, and professional/international basketball.

Bethany Klynn is the president and owner of Insight Leadership Consulting and has more than 25 years of experience in leadership development, executive coaching, and shaping organizational cultures. She works with leaders to help them gain new insights that accelerate their success and enable them to achieve even better results. She has significant experience developing C-suite leaders and their teams during times of change and transformation. Before starting her own company, Bethany held leadership roles at Fortune 200 companies for more than two decades. She was responsible for enterprise-wide leadership development, executive coaching, team development, employee engagement, shaping organizational cultures, and talent management. She has significant experience helping C-suite leaders identify and develop their teachable points of view and then teach those lessons to others. Bethany received her undergraduate degree in psychology and women’s studies from Colgate University and her M.A. and Ph.D. in industrial / organizational psychology from the Ohio State University. She is a professor of practice at Denison, teaching courses on psychology and leadership since 2020. She has also partnered with the Knowlton Center, Denison Edge, and the Organizational Studies program to deliver leadership development programming for students. Outside of Denison, she has taught at Capital University and the Ohio State University’s Fisher College of Business. She lives in Central Ohio with her husband Ben and their two children.