Board of Advisors
Many Minds, One Mission
Don Bowden
Technology, Smart Construction
CEO - BuilderChain and BuilderPay
Don Bowden brings 44 years of construction-related technology solutions and experience to Blu Clarity. Don built his family-owned construction company to be the largest in the State of Tennessee. As an independent businessman in a highly competitive industry, Don focused on creating new solutions to transactional waste, inefficiencies, and risk in this industry. These key solutions were the foundation of his success.
Working directly in the coal face of construction risk, Don was an early adopter of the use of desktop technology to help prevent and mitigate Financial and Operational risks in order to leverage maximum value for his customers and optimize the profitability of his company. This experience is of significant importance to Blu Clarity.
Don’s focus is now on technology solutions through two companies he founded, Builderchain, and Builderpay, to help reduce transactional waste, increase cash flow velocity, and bring significant improvements to efficiency through the use of blockchain and smart contracts paired with other unique technologies.
Don studied “Constraint Management” at the Goldratt Institute in New Haven, Connecticut and applied those principles, including critical queuing and buffer reporting, directly to his rapidly growing company. Don attended Herff College of Engineering and the Fogelman College of Business and Economics at the University of Memphis. Don is also a member of the Audio Engineering Society and Acoustical Society. Don owned and operated a subcontracting company designing and installing large sound reinforcement systems as part of the commercial contracting.
Don is currently involved with develop of a global construction ecosystem platform for PrairieDog that involves large global companies, universities, and key construction associations.
Don is also a subject matter expert to Blu Banyan’s BuilderSuccess platform that Blu Clarity uses as the basis of its construction risk underwriting.
Mark Cole
Technology, Natural Resources
Member of the Board of Advisors - Blu Clarity
Mark Cole brings more than two decades of legal, insurance and risk experience to Blu Clarity. He began his legal career in the real estate, energy and finance section of Bracewell before founding the legal and insurance groups at USD Group, a Houston-based developer, owner and operator of intermodal logistics assets throughout North America.
As the founding general counsel at USD Group, Cole guided legal efforts related to the growth and expansion of an emerging midstream organization from greenfield development to a $360 million IPO of international assets. He was responsible for the company’s legal needs as it created, owned, and operated fourteen intermodal terminal facilities with a throughput capacity of over 850,000 barrels per day, which were operated without any reportable incidents. He also supervised the legal aspects of divesting ten of these terminals with an aggregate purchase price of more than $740 million.
He currently leads Novation LLC, the in-house captive insurance brokerage of USD Group. Through Novation, Cole constantly advocates for innovation, creativity and customer service in the risk and insurance space.
Cole holds the Energy Risk Insurance and Management Liability Insurance specialist certifications from the International Risk Management Institute, the Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter designation from The Institutes, numerous certifications from The Blockchain Council, and seven university degrees.
He is enrolled in the Energy Business graduate program at UT Permian Basin and is a member of the State Bar of Texas and the Texas Blockchain Council. He speaks and writes frequently on energy, risk, infrastructure, blockchain, and cryptocurrency.
Margeaux Giles
Technology
CEO - GoGiles Consultants
Margeaux, as the Chief Executive Officer of Irys Insurtech, brings over 15 years of executive expertise in operations and digital transformation within the insurance and finance sectors to Blu Clarity.
She has been recognized as the Insurtech Woman CEO of the Year and was listed among the Top 20 Insurtech providers of 2022. As a member of the Forbes Technology Council and a regular contributor to Forbes.com, Margeaux is not only dedicated to integrating advanced technology into insurance but is also actively reshaping the industry landscape for women.
She co-founded both InsureWomen and InsureEquality and serves as the Network Liaison for the Central Florida branch of the Association of Professional Insurance Women. Additionally, Margeaux is a member of the UCONN Fintech Masters Program Advisory Board and has recently been named the Chair of the Insurance Agency Owners Alliance Tech Council.
With a proven track record in the Insurtech industry, Margeaux has extensive experience in creating, assessing, and implementing software tailored for Agents, Carriers, Wholesalers, and Retail Insurtech vendors. Her executive background spans over a decade in retail agency operations, with several years dedicated to the MGA/Wholesale submission, issuance processes, and API development and integration within the Carrier domain.
Daniel Groves
Smart Construction
Co-founder Prairie Dog
Daniel Groves brings labor risk analytics expertise and entrepreneurial experience to the Blu Clarity collaborative. Daniel founded Construction Industry Resources (CIR) and for the past decade has been providing market intelligence and project risk mitigation solutions for owners, labor providers and other project stakeholders; including the Construction Labor Market Analyzer (CLMA), the Contractor’s Workforce Development Assessment (CWDA), the Labor Risk Index (LRI) and the Labor Risk Management (LRM) program. Daniel was named by ENR Magazine as a global Top 25 Newsmaker for developing the CLMA platform, the market leader for project labor risk analytics and risk management.
Daniel is also the Director for Strategic Initiatives and workforce consultant for the Construction Users Roundtable (CURT), an international owner organization of national and global companies representing about $200 billion in annual construction spending. His work at CURT focuses on metrics, benchmarking and deployment of best practices, helping owners achieve the most productive use of every capital dollar. As part of his CURT work, in 2019, Daniel co-founded PrairieDog Venture Partners which is researching and developing transformational technology to improve how assets are designed, built, managed and operated in order to drive efficiency, transparency and trust among project stakeholders.
From 1991 to 2007, Daniel founded and operated a contracting company, building, renovating and selling about residential and commercial buildings in the central Kentucky and Washington, DC regions.
Daniel holds degrees from Asbury University in Kentucky in the fields of accounting and business management and has been lending his expertise to the industrial construction marketplace since 2007 when he began working with CURT on urgent workforce related issues.
Enya He
Prior Regional Director & National Practice Leader in Risk Management at Lloyd's
Dr. Enya He brings a rich history of 28 years in global risk management and insurance to Blu Clarity, with expertise spanning both academia and the insurance industry. Her previous role as the Regional Director & National Practice Leader in Risk Management at Lloyd’s of London has equipped her with an extensive understanding of insurance products and market dynamics. This role also allowed her to foster global connections with retail insurance agents, Lloyd’s brokers, MGAs, Captives, insurance carriers, and the entire Lloyd’s marketplace.
She is the brain behind the renowned insurance events "Lloyd’s Day" and "Tuesdays with Lloyd’s," both of which she conceptualized and developed.
Beyond her industry expertise, Enya is recognized as an educator, author, curator, strategist, and change agent. Her academic foundation is solid, with both her undergraduate and graduate studies focusing on risk management and insurance. She furthered her education with a PhD in business, specializing in Risk Management & Insurance from the University of Georgia. Early in her career, she served as a professor of insurance and risk management at the University of North Texas for nearly a decade.
Enya's unique blend of theoretical knowledge, business insight, and practical application of her experience makes her a valuable resource to Blu Clarity.
Mark T. Mersman
Natural Resources
Blu Clarity Board of Advisors
Strategic Advisor - Carbon Markets & Deterministic Solutions
Mark Mersman is an experienced leader in finance, sustainability, and carbon credit development, with a focus on decarbonization and emissions reduction in the oil and gas sector. After 20 years in finance, he has founded several companies, including Offset Energy Partners (OEP), Sentinel Detection Systems and BB&M Materials, where he has applied his expertise to develop innovative solutions in carbon markets, methane leak detection, decarbonized materials and biochar utilization and production.
Mark’s work spans both technical and business arenas, having led initiatives developing decarbonized cementitious materials, and decommissioning strategies for marginal, idled, and orphan wells that utilize the emerging carbon credit markets. He brings a pragmatic approach to business development, consistently delivering value through strategic growth, team building, and technology development, including holding patents in carbon sequestration and methane detection.
Isabel Morrison
Technology, Natural Resources
Blu Clarity Board of Advisors
Isabel Morrison is a highly skilled Drilling Performance Engineer with a wealth of experience across AIDAP, Verdande Technology, Schlumberger D&M, and Geoservices Inc. Her expertise lies in AI-driven drilling analytics, realtime decision-making, and the optimization of drilling processes.
At AIDAP's Real-Time Drilling and Data Center, Isabel spearheaded the deployment of AI and machine learning-based drilling analytics software, significantly enhancing drilling performance and overseeing engineering studies.
As a Product Champion and Project Manager at Verdande Technology, she was instrumental in the development of DrillEdge CBR technology. Isabel played a pivotal role in training global drilling performance engineering teams and successfully managed cross-functional groups to implement AI solutions.
During her tenure at Schlumberger D&M, Isabel achieved remarkable outcomes by optimizing drilling performance, meticulously designing drilling systems, and excelling in complex projects.
Her career commenced at Geoservices Inc. as a Data Engineer, where she monitored drilling dynamics and interpreted geological data, showcasing her commitment to excellence from the outset.
With over two decades of experience in the Oil and Gas Industry, Isabel's career reflects an unwavering dedication to streamlining drilling operations. She consistently leverages cutting-edge technologies, such as AI and machine learning, to drive efficiency and enhance safety through top-notch performance.
Mark Triesch
Technology, Smart Construction
Co-founder Prairie Dog
Mark Triesch brings unique risk management insights and dynamic risk modeling expertise to the Blu Clarity collaborative. Mark’s work in dynamic risk modeling with Stanford, the University of Texas, and Texas A&M universities will be a transformative innovation for Blu Clarity’s risk transfer platform. While Mark’s experience has focused on global multi-billion dollar construction projects, Mark’s mindset applies to the entire built economy, from gig-economy SMEs to ultra-large capital projects such as energy infrastructure.
Mark has over thirty-five years of international consulting and direct industrial experience in the planning and delivery of capital projects. He specializes in capital project and portfolio management and the leadership of international project teams. His business line experience includes: transportation, oil and gas (upstream, LNG, downstream), chemicals, mining and metals, power generation, marine construction, municipal and government operations, space and defense, high technology, biotechnology, commercial development and health care. Mark formerly worked for a global engineering and construction company where he was deeply involved in the bidding, planning, analysis, delivery and reporting for dozens of projects on five continents.
While earning his Master of Science in Engineering at Stanford University, Mark conducted research in the use of information technology in architecture, engineering, and construction companies. Mark also holds Bachelor degrees in Business Administration, Construction Management, and Architecture, all from Washington State University.
Specialties: Major capital project and portfolio management. Multi-national and multi-cultural business environments - especially with consortia and joint ventures. Experience covers the entire project life cycle: pre-feasibility, feasibility, design engineering, procurement and contracting, construction management, commissioning, and completions.
Valerie Wilson
Natural Resources
Head of Deployment at AirMyne
Valerie Wilson brings over 25 years of technical expertise in civil and petroleum engineering within the construction, oil and gas, and insurance industries. Valerie’s industry experience spans roles with Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS) companies, construction companies, oil and gas operators, and the insurance industry. Most recently she served as Summit Carbon Solutions Director of Federal Regulatory and Government Affairs, where she was responsible to develop the company’s strategic plan at the Federal level while fostering existing relationships and building new relationships based on the strategic plan to push the company’s agenda forward. She also advised on engineering and well integrity plans for the sequestration sites.
Valerie began her career in Civil Engineering working in structural design, construction, and project management and then transitioned into the Oil & Gas Industry as a pipeline engineer, eventually transitioning upstream to work in Drilling & Completions, with a focus on Well Integrity, Pipeline Integrity, and Asset Management. She has worked for such operators as, ConocoPhillips, Kosmos Energy, BP and Talisman in various roles.
Valerie spent five years in the insurance industry as AIG’s Global Senior Technical advisor where she advised the underwriting and claims teams on client renewals and new prospects by reviewing operators and contractor’s upstream asset designs to evaluate integrity, assurance, and risk levels at a global level for the organization. Valerie also provided engineering services to clients related to their upstream and midstream assets.
She is a published author and speaker in the field of Well Integrity and an active participant in the Oil & Gas Industry having participated in the IOGP Well Expert Committee, ISO 16530 Well Integrity Lifecycle Document Committee, IADC Technical Publications Committee, Offshore Energy Center Education board, IWCF Well Integrity Task Force, SPE Well Integrity Technical Section Chair and various SPE and NACE speaking and committee capacities.
Valerie holds her Professional Engineering license in the States of Texas and Virginia, a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Purdue University, a B.S. in Construction Management from Ball State University, an M.S. in Architecture from Ball State University, an M.S. in Energy Policy and Climate from Johns Hopkins University, and a Drilling Certificate from Texas A&M University.
Nathan Zenero
Technology, Natural Resources
Blu Clarity Board of Advisors
Nathan Zenero is a leading advocate for the open and transparent use of data to continuously improve safety, productivity, and quality of life. His experience spans across many domains including construction, manufacturing, oil and gas, data science, and analytics. He has a unique blend of perspectives from his time with operators, drilling contractors, service companies, and silicon valley.
As a petroleum engineer, he has applied experience in offshore facilities design, drilling rig controls and automation, well planning, well control, real-time operations, quality control, and risk management. He has managed real-time monitoring and analytics for hundreds of rigs simultaneously. He designed, tested, and deployed a wide variety of advanced analytics including physics-based Bayesian networks, automated well-control analysis, case-based reasoning, and custom rig-state determination algorithms.
To support this work he developed a wide-variety of novel tools and methods including: an industry-first makeup torque testing device, a high-accuracy, immutable digital BOP testing device, and BOP testing provider audits and QA/QC protocols. He is the founder of the Operator’s Group for Data Quality and is the author of industry standards for drilling measurements. His work led directly to modification of API SC-8 recommended practices for accuracy in hook load, surface rotary torque, block position, pit volumes, and more.
Nathan holds a patent for the automated imaging and grading of drill bits using computer vision. He is a trusted advisor to the National Academy of Sciences and is a key author of the Recommended Practices for Real-Time Monitoring of Offshore Well Construction published on the BSEE website.
He strongly believes that we should be good stewards of life, health, property and the environment and that we should responsibly use technology to protect them.