Quality Care for Children (QCC) is pleased to welcome a new executive committee including a new chair, vice chair, treasurer, and secretary, as well as three new members to this year’s incoming board of trustees.

Andrew Smith, an Associate with Greenberg Traurig, LLP, will assume the role as chair of QCC’s new board executive committee along with new executive committee members:
Ben Pivar, Senior Vice President & Chief Information Officer with Carter’s, Inc., as vice chair
Scott Lyon, Senior Vice President of Sales with Scuba Analytics as treasurer
Jayson Hill, Associate Vice President with North Highland, as secretary

John Giegerich, Partner with CEO Coaching International, continues to serve on the executive committee as immediate past chair.

Additionally, QCC is welcoming back to the board Jerry Boerner, Assistant Vice President of Finance at Cox Communications; also joining are Saira Joseph, Founder & Chief Executive Officer of SEJ Consulting LLC, and Nitin Tahiliani, Enterprise Account Executive with Salesforce.

“We are so grateful for the leadership of John Giegerich and the entire board during the last two years. The pandemic required us to respond quickly and effectively to the immediate needs of child care providers and our state’s families. As we look to the future, Andrew Smith is the right person to help QCC continue those critical supports while also reimagining what a stronger and sustainable early childhood system could be in Georgia,” said Quality Care for Children’s President and Chief Executive Officer Ellyn Cochran.

Incoming QCC Board Chair Andrew Smith, an Associate Attorney with Greenberg Traurig LLP, has experience handling complex commercial litigation and business disputes, as well as data and privacy protection issues, products liability, and insurance coverage litigation. Andrew is an involved community supporter. He has served on QCC’s Board of Trustees for close to four years as well as holds positions on several additional boards, advocates for underserved populations, and provides pro bono work for nonprofit organizations. Smith graduated from Michigan State University and received his juris doctor degree from the University of Georgia School of Law.

Ben Pivar has more than 25 years of experience in retail, consumer products, merchandising, supply chain and information technology, of which 15 years have been in leadership roles. He has won several awards including the 2018 CIO of the Year from Retail Information Systems and a 2017 Tech Association of Georgia Excalibur award. He is currently responsible for creating the vision and roadmap for IT while managing project delivery, applications, security, infrastructure, desktop, business integration and support for Carter’s Inc.

Scott Lyon, serving as treasurer, has spent more than 25 years as a software developer and sales leader helping large companies improve business performance through technology solutions. He is currently a Senior Vice President of Sales with Scuba Analytics, a frequent presenter at industry organizations and mentors young entrepreneurs. Scott has lived in Atlanta for more than 30 years and has been an active volunteer at his church as well as a number of other nonprofit organizations.

Jayson Hill, board secretary, is an Associate Vice President for North Highland Consulting where he leads client work that spans strategy, digital transformation, process improvement, change management, M&A integration, merchandising optimization, and store environment optimization. Additionally, he serves as a leader of the firm’s Black Employee Resource Group and has helped advance many of the transformational activities within the firm’s inclusion & diversity efforts. He was recently recognized by Consulting Magazine’s Rising Star Awards as One to Watch for Excellence in Leadership.

John Giegerich, immediate past board chair, loves coaching and bringing out the best in people – at work, in the community, and in sports. As a Partner at CEO Coaching International, he works with some of the world’s top entrepreneurs, CEOs, and companies utilizing his experiences to help them dramatically grow their business, develop their people, and elevate their overall performance.

Jerry Boerner, Assistant Vice President of Finance with Cox Communications, has been an avid supporter of QCC for almost 20 years. He has served multiple roles on QCC’s board including as past chair and as finance chair.

Nitin Tahiliani, Account Executive with Salesforce, has spent more than 20 years in the enterprise software industry helping companies launch, grow, and optimize their digital commerce experiences. Nitin’s volunteer experience started in high school as a YMCA camp counselor and continued through his adult years with Meal On Wheels and the Atlanta Community Food Bank.

Saira Joseph, Founder & CEO, SEJ Consulting LLC, has 25 years of experience achieving results that are impactful and drive creativity and innovation. Prior to creating SEJ Consulting, Saira was managing director at dPrism, vice president of Strategy at TEGNA, and held similar positions at Gannett and AOL. Saira has served on the board of Make A Wish (MidAtlantic) and was chair of Strategic Initiatives for the Women in Technology Education Foundation.