Clair Whitmer is the Acting Director / Deputy Director of CalOSBA. She started at CalOSBA in 2021 as Northern California Regional Advisor and established the Regional Economic Engagement team a year later as Assistant Deputy Director; she was named Deputy Director in October 2024.

Before joining state service, Whitmer served for two years as a FUSE Corps Executive Fellow for the City of Fresno Economic Development Team, helping the city to distribute grants to small businesses during the pandemic and devising a recovery framework for inclusive economic development.

She also ran as CEO of her own small logistics business, UpBay Express, from 2020-2023. Before starting her career in economic development, Whitmer was Head of Consumer Experience for Maker Media, publisher of Make: and producer of Maker Faire, from 2014 to 2019. Whitmer has worked in Silicon Valley since the 1990s, holding positions at several major brands in product management and tech-focused journalism.

While living in France, she served as Director of Voter Outreach for the Overseas Vote Foundation and freelanced widely through her consulting business, Whitmer.Info Services. Whitmer graduated summa cum laude in Political Science from San Francisco State University and is a dual citizen of France and the United States. Her mission is to help bolster California’s entrepreneurial ecosystem in pursuit of an economy that works for everybody.

Earlier, Nick was recognized for performance in sales development at a Fortune 500 SaaS firm and trained global cohorts on sales systems and engagement platforms. He also brings a teaching mindset as a PADI Master Instructor and former training director, where he led large program schedules and coached diverse teams.

Focus areas: AI-assisted messaging, prompt design, objection handling, sales enablement, governance-aware communication, and practical measurement loops for small teams.

Ed Troxell is a Video Coach and online Marketing Consultant for Real Estate Agents and solopreneurs. He breaks down all the complicated tech parts of running an online business and removes the mindset barriers holding you back from showing up more online. As a former Apple Inc. employee, Ed brings a unique skill set from sales, marketing, strategizing systems, and processes, to teaching the importance of showing up on video so that you can stand out as the industry expert online.

Cathy Balach is Lead Business Advisor for the Solano-Napa SBDC as well as President of Vinjoy Inc, an online marketing tech company. She is a trailblazer in the world of online marketing, with a fervent passion for strategic marketing, including AI, video, website design, and content development.

Her impressive career includes working with PepsiCo and PricewaterhouseCoopers, as well as founding three successful startups. With over 15 years of experience, Cathy has been a guiding light for hundreds of startups and growing businesses in the North Bay, providing invaluable consulting and mentorship.

Her expertise spans a diverse range of industries, from retail (both online and brick-and-mortar) to food businesses to online businesses of all kind. Her entrepreneurial spirit shines through in her own ventures, having founded three businesses herself.

As the founder and host of WISE (Women in Successful Enterprises) by SBDC, Cathy continues to empower and inspire women entrepreneurs in the community.

Mike began working with the Small Business Development Centers in 2009. His background includes banking, consulting, and government, with focus on agriculture, the wine industry, and real estate.

He is a strong advocate of staying engaged and embracing continuous improvement to enhance one’s skills. His banking career began in agriculture in the California’s San Joaquin Valley and then expanded to commercial, corporate and investment banking. Eventually Mike’s activities included supporting California’s wine growing regions, where he worked with grape growers, engaging in vineyard development and winery operations. Later as a consultant he developed succession and transition plans for families, which included business valuation, construction, project management, and performance planning. As a Napa City and County government official, Mike collaborated to make land use decisions that promote good stewardship, conservation easements, watershed and open space protection.

Mike holds degrees and certification in business and finance from St. Mary’s College, U.C. Berkeley, and University of Washington and he currently teaches various workshops through Napa Valley College.