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Gregory P. Stemm
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Gregory P. Stemm, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors, co-founded Odyssey Marine Exploration in 1994 together with his business partner John C. Morris who has since retired. Mr. Stemm has extensive experience in managing all aspects of shipwreck exploration operations since entering the field in 1986, including deep-ocean search and robotic archaeological excavation on a number of projects. A pioneer in the emerging field of deep-ocean exploration, he has played a primary role in the development of new technologies and the development of private sector standards for underwater cultural heritage resource management.
A panelist at the 1998 Law of the Sea Institute, Stemm was appointed for four consecutive terms to the United States delegation to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) expert meeting to negotiate the "Draft Convention for the Protection of Underwater Cultural Heritage." He was also selected as a Fellow of the Explorers Club, and was the founder and past president of the Professional Shipwreck Explorers Association (ProSEA). Stemm served as a founding director (1986-93) and international president (1992- 93) of YEO (Young Entrepreneurs Organization) and was also a founding member of the World Entrepreneurs Organization, where he served on the International Board of Directors (1997-98).
Greg Stemm's Publications and Presentations
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Mark D. Gordon
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Mark D. Gordon was appointed President and Chief Operating Officer of Odyssey Marine Exploration in October 2007 and joined Odyssey's Board of Director on January 1, 2008.
. He joined Odyssey in 2005 as an independent consultant before serving as Director, Business Development and Executive Vice President of Sales and Business Development where he was responsible for the Attraction, Business Development and Retail Merchandising operations for the Company.
Prior to joining Odyssey Mr. Gordon started, owned, and managed four different entrepreneurial ventures from 1987 to 2003, including Synergy Networks which he founded in 1993 and served as CEO until September of 2003 when selling the company to the Rockefeller Group. He continued serving as President of Rockefeller Group Technology Services Mid Atlantic (RGTSMA), a member of Rockefeller Group International, until December 2004. Past work experience also includes a two-year tenure as a Management Consultant at Andersen Consulting.
Mr. Gordon received a B.S./Business Administration in 1982 and an MBA in Finance in 1983 from the American University. As a shipwreck diver with the National Diving Center in Washington DC, he has conducted hundreds of dives and explorations on shipwrecks and was the first person to discover and dive on the wreck of the S.S. Proteus, a ship that had been missing since the early 1900's.
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Dr. David Bederman
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Dr. David Bederman is a professor of law at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. Since 1991, he has taught international law, admiralty, international institutions, law of international common spaces, legal methods, customary law, as well as seminars on international environmental law and foreign relations power. In addition, he serves as adviser to the Emory International Law Review and is the Director of International Legal Studies at Emory's Law School.
Dr. Bederman also leads a private practice and has provided legal counsel to Odyssey since 1998. In private practice, he has been involved with many cases involving maritime law and shipwreck disputes, and has represented clients in the Federal Court of Appeals, including the U.S. Supreme Court.
Prior to coming to Emory, Dr. Bederman practiced law in Washington, DC, with the firm of Covington & Burling and worked as a legal advisor at the Iran/United States Claims Tribunal at The Hague. Professor Bederman has published extensively on diverse legal topics, including legal history, constitutional law, and international legal theory and practice. In addition to a number of books and dozens of articles and essays, his major publications include The Spirit of International Law (2002); International Law in Antiquity (2001); and International Law Frameworks (2001). He has lectured widely and was a visiting professor at New York University and the University of Virginia, and was a Fulbright Distinguished Chair at Osgoode Hall in Toronto.
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George Knutsson
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George Knutsson is the president and chairman of American Boat Trailer Rental Company, Inc., which is the largest provider of boat trailer rentals in the southeast United States. In 1978, he founded Dollar Rental Car of Florida and served as chief executive officer until he sold the company in 1990.
Knutsson also owned and operated Pirates Cove Marina in the Tampa Bay area from 1984 until 1995. From 1995 to 1999, he was the founder and chief financial officer of Pro-Tech Monitoring, which uses patented GPS/cellular technology in the monitoring and tracking of felons worldwide.
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David J. Saul
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Dr. David J. Saul , who is retired, has served as a member of the Company's Board of Directors since October 2001. Dr. Saul was Bermuda's Minister of Finance from 1989 to 1995, and Premier of Bermuda from 1995 to 1997. In addition to his political background, Dr. Saul held two senior posts with Fidelity Investments, from 1984 through 1995, as the President of Fidelity Bermuda and Executive Vice President of Fidelity International. He retired from the firm in 1999, but remains a Director of Fidelity's main international Board, and a Director of some 40 other Fidelity Companies around the world - including the U.K., Bermuda, Jersey, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Cayman Islands, Luxembourg and Taiwan. Dr. Saul's professional activities include two stints as a Director of the Bermuda Monetary Authority and he currently serves as a Director of Lombard Odier (Bermuda), a subsidiary of the Swiss Bank, and a Director of the London Steam Ship Owners' Mutual Insurance Association (Bermuda) Ltd. A keen oceanographer with a passion for shipwrecks and the sea, he is a founding Trustee of the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute, and a founding Director of the Professional Shipwreck Explorers Association.
Read Dr. Saul's Detailed Biography
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Brad Baker re-joined Odyssey Marine Exploration's Board of Directors in January 2008 after a first successful tenure from February 1997, prior to the Company going public, through his resignation in December 2000. Mr. Baker serves on the compensation, audit and governance committees.
Combining a strong entrepreneurial spirit with a dedication for public service, he has distinguished himself in multiple leadership roles both in the private sector and the government since starting his first company in 1979. Mr. Baker currently serves as CEO of Nexus Biometrics, Inc. a leading fingerprint biometric company he founded in 2004. He is also President of Bramar Developers, Inc., a large scale real estate development company which he founded in 1998.
Among Mr. Baker's chief accomplishments are his 1988 appointment by President Ronal Reagan as one of the youngest White House Fellows ever, Mr. Baker was appointed in 1989 by President George H.W. Bush to join the newly established Resolution Trust Corporation (RTC), a government entity to save, restructure and reorganize the entire thrift banking industry, serving as Corporate Secretary of the RTC alongside co-panelists Alan Greenspan, Nicolas Brady, and Jack Kemp. In 1999, Mr. Baker was tapped by former Florida Governor Jeb Bush to serve as Executive Director of the Florida Housing Finance Corporation, a public/private state corporation responsible for granting almost $1 billion in government grants to promote affordable housing. He has also held several senior executive offices in high profile companies, including Comcast Cable and Sterling Financial, Inc., and served on Dobi Medical's Board of Directors as Chairman of the audit committee from 2003 through 2007. He holds a BS in Business Administration from Nova University.
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Michael J. Holmes joined Odyssey in March 2004 as Controller to assist in the development of tourist attraction financial models and internal audit controls for the company. He was appointed Chief Financial Officer in May 2004. Mr. Holmes has spent more than 25 years in financial management postions with Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc. including Vice President Finance at SeaWorld Orlando; Vice President Finance at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay; Corporate Controller, Metal Container Corp in St Louis; Vice President Finance and CFO for Exploration Cruise Lines in Seattle, Washington and Director Internal Audit Services for Anheuser-Busch in St. Louis.
Mr. Holmes received his undergraduate degree in from the University of Missouri and his MBA from Crummer Graduate School of Business at Rollins College in Orlando. He has also served as an adjunct professor of Accounting at the Rosen School of Hospitality Management, University of Central Florida in Orlando and been active in community leadership positions to include board member of the Orlando Regional Chamber of Commerce, the ETC of Central Florida (International Drive Transportation Group) and Junior Achievement of Tampa Bay. He is currently serving on the Crummer Graduate School of Business Alumni Board and is a graduate of Leadership Tampa.
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David Morris
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David Morris joined the company in April 1997. Prior to that, Mr. Morris was employed by Seahawk Deep Ocean Technology in Administration from 1994 through 1997, and as manager of the Conservation and Archaeology departments from 1990 through 1994.
Prior to 1990, Mr. Morris was employed for ten years at a lubricant blending and manufacturing company, where he rose to the General Manager and President position. He also served as President and General Manager of a Florida construction firm for four years.
Mr. Morris graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Michigan State University in 1974.
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Jay A. Nudi , has served as Principal Accounting Officer of the Company since January 3, 2006. Mr. Nudi has been with the Company since May 2005 as Corporate Controller and has over 20 years of accounting and management experience. Mr. Nudi is a certified public accountant. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Nudi served as Controller for The Axis Group in Atlanta where he began in 2003. The Axis Group provides logistic solutions and services to the automotive industry. From 2001 to 2003, he served as a consultant to various companies on specific value added tasks. From 2000 to 2001, Mr. Nudi was Director of Financial Reporting for OneSource, Inc., a leading provider of facilities management. From 1997 to 2000, he served as Corporate Controller for Acsys, Inc., a national recruiting firm that was publicly-held until it was acquired in 2000. Mr. Nudi received a BS Degree in Accounting from Penn State University in 1985.
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Melinda J. MacConnel joined Odyssey in March 2006 as a Legal Consultant and became Odyssey's General Counsel in January 2007. Prior to joining the Company, MacConnel practiced law as a Litigation Consultant, providing counsel to attorneys in all areas of law. She has also served as a professor of legal research and writing and has worked as a congressional assistant for the United States House of Representatives, in Washington, D.C. Since joining Odyssey, MacConnel has been successful in negotiating several key agreements including settlement of the company's insurance claim for over a million dollars stemming from hurricane Katrina.
MacConnel graduated cum laude from St. Mary's College, Notre Dame in 1986 with Bachelors Degrees in International Government, French and Theology. She received national recognition for excellence as a member of the University of Notre Dame Speech and Debate Counsel. She also attended the Université Catholique de l'Ouest in Angers, France where she received her Alliance Française degree. In 1990, MacConnel received her Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Florida College of Law. MacConnel is a member of the Florida Bar and the Hillsborough County Bar Association, and is admitted to practice before the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida.
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John Morris
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John C. Morris , along with his partner and Co-founder Greg Stemm, founded Odyssey Marine Exploration in 1994 and served as Chairman of the Board and CEO until his retirement in January 2008. Mr. Morris continues to provide consulting services to Odyssey.
Prior to launching Odyssey, Mr. Morris was an officer and director of Seahawk Deep Ocean Technology (SDOT) from 1989 until 1994. As President of SDOT, Mr. Morris helped lead the first deep-ocean archaeological recovery of a deep-ocean shipwreck, salvaging a Spanish wreck from approximately 1,500 feet of water near the Dry Tortugas. The recovery yielded nearly 17,000 artifacts consisting of gold, silver coins, pottery, pearls, jewelry, and numerous other artifacts.
Mr. Morris was also President of Seahawk, Inc., an Alabama corporation engaged in leasing the Research Vessel "Seahawk", a deep-water search and inspection vessel. From 1992 until 1997, Mr. Morris served on the Board of Directors of the Florida Aquarium, a not-for-profit corporation operating a $90 million aquarium facility in Tampa, Florida. Prior to his involvement with Seahawk, Mr. Morris was engaged in the real estate and construction business.
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