Mike Gill serves as Chairman of Evergreen Advisors, LLC and was also recently named as special counsel for Newport Partners, LLC. Mike is a business leader with four decades of experience as an entrepreneur, a veteran of large technology firms, and a public servant.
He was tapped by Governor Larry Hogan to lead the Maryland Department of Commerce in January 2015 and the led the department until 2019. Previously, Mike founded Hoyt Capital, an investment and advisory firm serving startups and growth companies. He also founded First Page, which was acquired by Metrocall; served as chairman of Curtis Engine, a Baltimore power generator company; and was chairman of Bluefire Security Technologies, a mobile cybersecurity developer, from 2006 to 2008. In 1984, Mike founded AMERICOM, a Baltimore-based provider of cellular products and services to businesses in the area. Under his leadership, AMERICOM expanded nationwide with more than 1,200 team members and annual revenue topping $70 million in 2000, when it was acquired by Solectron. Mike remained with the electronics manufacturer as a business development executive until 2003. Earlier in his career, he spent time in sales and marketing at IBM, as Director of Data Systems in the mid-Atlantic region for Ernst & Young, and with American Teleservices, the majority shareholder of Cellular One.
Mike served on the University System of Maryland Board of Regents from 2004 to 2009, heading the audit committee and technology transfer and commercialization workgroup. His past and present board memberships also include the Calvert Hall Board of Trustees, Baltimore County Economic Development Commission, Chairman of the Operating Board at St. Joseph’s Medical Center, Bay National Bank, as well as the Towson University Board of Visitors. He is also a member of the President’s Advisory Board at Clemson University. Mike earned his B.S. in business administration from Towson University in 1974 after first attending Clemson University on a baseball scholarship. He was awarded an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree by Towson University in 1996. Mike was also recently named as a 2021 inductee in The Baltimore Sun’s Business and Civic Hall of Fame.
Mike is a highly sought after speaker having delivered speeches and presentations to hundreds of organizations on topics such as entrepreneurship; innovation; economic development including the impact of education on economic development, the businesses effect on communities, and the importance of partnerships. For more information, visit: www.mikegillspeaks.com.
Interview Questions:
Q1: As the former Commerce Secretary for the State of Maryland, tell us about your current role as Chairman of Evergreen Advisors in Columbia, Md.
Q2: Tell us a little bit about the various services that Evergreen Advisors provides for its client companies.
Q3: When you were the Commerce Secretary for the State of Maryland, you helped promote Maryland is Open for Business and a Culture of Yes in attracting new and growing businesses to our state. Share with us how you think Maryland is currently doing in developing new business and economic development.
Q4: Talk a little bit about attracting businesses to Maryland and how some companies of all sizes are now able to move their headquarters around the country thanks to favorable tax structures, culture and other incentives.
Q5: Talk about one of the new chapters of your career as you share your expertise as a motivational speaker with companies and organizations and how they can reach you via www.MikeGillSpeaks.com.
Q6: Finally, what’s one or two of you favorite restaurants in Baltimore that you would recommend?
Connect with Mike on LinkedIn
David Nevins is president & CEO of Nevins & Associates, a highly regarded strategic communications company and proactive public relations partner. The firm’s regional and national client base is a unique mix of organizations across a variety of industries including: healthcare, professional service firms, finance, not-for-profits, distributors, state agencies, national media companies, technology, political and grassroots campaigns, real estate development, sporting events, and more.
With more than 30 years of experience in marketing, public relations, and community and government relations, David is a talented and seasoned executive. Prior to founding Nevins & Associates in 1983, David served as the Director of Marketing for both Towson University and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. In 2001, he was tapped by the CEO of Comcast to employ his marketing expertise as President of the company’s regional sports network, Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic. David is a Past President of the Board of Governors for the Center Club and is a former Chairman of the Board of Regents for the University System of Maryland, a position to which he was appointed by the Governor of Maryland. David has chaired the Maryland Public Broadcasting Commission and the Maryland Higher Education Loan Corporation, served as President of both the Jewish National Fund and the Towson Business Association and was a member of the PNC Bank board.
David is highly involved in the business, civic, and political communities, and his many years of active leadership in numerous organizations have built a network of contacts that he regularly puts to use for the firm’s clients. For more information, visit
www.nevinspr.com.
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