Management/Leadership
Axivest has an experienced management team that is driven to accomplish Axivest’s vision. The company, led by Ric Tomlinson, has an execution focused corporate culture which has been the main driver in their successful track record.
Mr. Tomlinson is Chairman and President of Axivest LLC, an international financial, information, data and management consulting services company with a focus on providing unique advisory services to top management executives and corporate boards, facilitating unparalleled financial, process management and implementation value creation. Mr. Tomlinson is also the President and Chief Executive officer of Univest Investments, Inc., an investment holding company functioning as a merchant bank which invests in operating companies and real estate, and Univest Holdings, LLC, an investment management and real estate development company.
It is Axivest’s philosophy to team up with specialized industry experts as we pursue private equity acquisitions and commercial real estate transactions. These experts bring specific operational expertise and knowledge to the particular field of interest that is being pursued. Prior to its sale in May 1997, Mr. Tomlinson was President and Chief Executive Officer of Univest Financial Group, Inc., which was formed in 1985 after acquiring EF Hutton Mortgage Corporation from the EF Hutton Group in which he was the CEO.
UFGI was a transaction-driven information management services firm specializing in mortgage finance with a concentration in the area of securitization of mortgage-backed securities. Univest developed sophisticated financial tools to facilitate technology advanced analytical due diligence and valuation methodologies and information management systems. Univest introduced due diligence and mark-to-market methodologies to the FSLIC and completed the first securitization transaction with FSLIC and Federal National Mortgage Corporation (Fannie Mae) by this government body.
The Resolution Trust Corporation was created in 1989 to liquidate assets from failed Savings and Loans and Univest’s solutions became the standard for mortgage due diligence and evaluation. As the RTC became aware of their need for inventory management, Univest was awarded the contract to create and manage the RTC’s Central Loan Database System. This system, which was accessible by over 500 users nationwide, managed in excess of a million and a half asset records totaling over $100 billion dollars. Univest has been featured as one of America’s top 500 fastest growing privately held companies by Inc. Magazine, with the publication recognizing Univest in two consecutive years as one of the fastest growing privately held companies in the U.S. for its revenue and profit performance in fiscal years 1991 and 1992.
Univest was recognized by Data General, its strategic partner in the RTC Database Management Contract with its Key Growth Award. The businesses of Univest had been incorporated into four separate companies. They are Univest, a financial information management services firm; Univest Financial Services, the due diligence and analytical group; Univest Investments, Inc, a private equity firm and Univest Holdings, LLC, an operating entity where investments as principal are made in loan portfolios, operating companies and real estate. Univest sold its interest in Univest Financial Group and Univest Financial Services in 1995 and 1997 to focus their efforts on the activities of Univest Investments, Inc and Univest Holdings, LLC. Mr. Tomlinson has held senior management positions in companies of the savings and loan, private mortgage insurance, investment banking, and mortgage finance industries.
A frequent speaker at professional conferences, Mr. Tomlinson is responsible for originating the concepts behind Univest’s mortgage portfolio analysis system (MORPAS), the Univest propriety Mark to Market Model and related financial models. He has consulted with thrifts, commercial banks and the U.S. and India regulatory agencies in the areas of loan portfolio and asset/liability management, mergers and acquisitions, mark-to-market loan and asset valuations, yield and earnings improvement, distressed asset disposition, developing secondary market vehicles and strategic business planning. Mr. Tomlinson resides in Johns Creek, Georgia with his wife, Debra of 41 years. They have three children and six grandchildren.
Mr. Tomlinson has served on the Board of the Georgia Public Policy Foundation, the Foundation Board of Trustees for Georgia Southern University, the Business Advisory Council of the College of Business at GSU. Mr. Tomlinson has received the Alumnus of the Year 1997-98 from the College of Business Administration at GSU, the John G. Tower Distinguished Alumni Award 2005 from Kappa Sigma Fraternity and the William A. Freeman Lecture Award 2009 from the Center for Entrepreneurial Learning and Leadership at GSU.
Dr. Samuel is an AI expert and an experienced quantitative business strategy expert and academic who has worked on diverse projects in Asia, Europe and the Americas. Jim has experience with various global financial corporations including Citibank and ABN AMRO. He is an established expert in artificial intelligence (generative AI, natural language processing + understanding + generation, optimization, data mining, machine learning, social media analytics and AI strategies for business) and big data analytics. Dr. Samuel possesses exceptional expertise in finance (financial modeling, valuation of a range of assets, risk management strategies, forecast models and best value models); he is a thought leader in information science and intelligent technologies domains. He has demonstrated thought leadership in strategic thinking, problem solving and creative ideation. Domains of applied business research and experience include capital markets, FDI- foreign market entry-expansion and strategic alliances, social media, operations optimization, innovation, information economics, information ecosystems and data science for business growth.
Dr. Samuel is an information and artificial intelligence (AI) scientist at a leading global US university, with significant expertise in generative artificial intelligence, machine learning, applied AI, data analytics, public informatics, text analytics, natural language processing (NLP), natural language understanding (NLU) and natural language generation (NLG). Dr. Samuel’s theoretical research covers human intelligence and artificial intelligences interaction and information philosophy. In his applied research, he employs advanced textual analytics, NLP and NLU tools and advanced machine learning methods to study human behavior and public opinion informatics. Dr. Samuel has considerable industry experience in finance, technology, and consulting, and has published numerous notable papers, serves in editorial roles including being the Editor in Chief for the Journal of Big Data Theory and Practice, and has developed multiple DS and AI courses and programs. As a professor at Rutgers University, he teaches artificial intelligence and NLP studios, and directs the Acceptable AI initiative. Dr. Samuel is an industry advisor on AI strategies, big data, analytics and information strategy initiatives. He holds M.Arch, M.B.A (International Finance – Thunderbird, ASU) and Ph.D. (SCIS – City Univ. of NY / Baruch) degrees. As a business leader, Dr. Samuel supports global investments in multiple asset classes including technology and AI projects at Axivest. Dr. Samuel is sought after speaker and thought leader on AI and the future socioeconomic implications of AI.
Jeffrey Friedel
Mr. Friedel has diverse career experience operating in varying business lifecycles (start-up, growth, turnaround) and business segments (Medical Device, Technology Software, Hardware, and Business Services). He has worked for some of the biggest names in Tech, including Intel, Xerox, and Infosys. Most recently, he was a section 16 Officer and Member of the Executive Committee at Conduent, a Fortune 500 Tech Services spin-off from Xerox, with more than 70,000 employees in 28 countries.
A well-rounded business leader, Mr. Friedel has the distinction of having been General Counsel in one public company (iGATE) and Chief People Officer in another (Conduent).
Throughout the course of his career, Mr. Friedel has developed a particular expertise in an international context–working effectively across time zones, distance, and cultures. During his time at Intel Corporation, he lived in the UK and Germany where he was responsible for integrating Intel’s acquisitions across greater Europe; As General Counsel at iGATE Technologies, he not only managed multi-million dollar contract negotiations and compliance, but ultimately presided over the sale of that company for $4bn to the French multinational Capgemini; At Conduent, (formerly Xerox Business Services) he consolidated global operations reducing the company footprint from 42 countries down to 28 while increasing its presence in India and the Philippines.
Mr. Friedel has an MBA from the University of Cambridge in England, a Juris Doctorate Degree from Seton Hall University School of Law, and a B.A. in Political Science from Rider University. He resides in Duluth, Georgia with his wife, Susan of 35 years. They have two children.