H. West Richards has spent the last 25 years of his diverse career in both the public and private sector.  His public sector experience includes seven years on Capitol Hill in the U.S. House of Representatives, serving in such capacities as Legislative Director, Press Secretary and Chief of Staff.  Mr. Richards also had oversight responsibilities in what is now the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. In 1990, Mr. Richards was the youngest Chief of Staff in the U.S. House of Representatives. He was also the youngest person to have direct oversight responsibilities for a House Subcommittee.

After leaving the U.S. House of Representatives, Mr. Richards focused his energies on helping the Georgia Institute of Technology prepare for the 1996 Atlanta Centennial Olympic Games.  As Special Assistant to the President of Georgia Tech, Mr. Richards was responsible for developing the university’s public relations strategy as it applied to the Centennial Olympic Games.

In 1997 Mr. Richards went to work for the Law Firm of Troutman Sanders, LLP to create the first Internet Trade Association based in Georgia (2nd in the nation).  In this role as Executive Director of the Georgia e-Commerce Association (GECA), he pioneered the largest statewide public/private Internet lobby in the U.S. and helped to develop Internet e-Commerce regulation that was eventually adopted not only by the State of Georgia but also by the federal government.  GECA boasted over a dozen Fortune 500 members and nearly 50 smaller corporations. It also included a dozen governmental agencies and NGO’s. In 1999, Mr. Richards was recruited by PMG.net to execute his first commercial restructuring initiative.  Mr. Richards successfully shifted the core business of this small Internet enterprise from web development to advanced application development. The result was a five-fold increase in sales and the creation of alliances with Ariba Software, Deloitte Consulting, iXL and Anderson Business Consulting. Today, according to the Gartner Group, PMG.net is now recognized as the most successful Enterprise Service Catalog software firms in the world.

In late 2000 Mr. Richards was recruited by Andersen Business Consulting to lead their I.T. Business Development practice in Georgia.  Following this, he founded two small technology start-ups and sold one in 2007.  From 2007 through 2009 Mr. Richards served as Executive Vice President of XS International, a premiere High Performance Computing enterprise.

Since leaving Washington and now returning to Washington, Mr. Richards has remained active in politics and has served as a strategic advisor in one Gubernatorial campaign and two Congressional campaigns.  He maintains strong political ties across the state of Georgia and in Washington, D.C.

From 2010 to 2014 Mr. Richards lobbied in the Financial Services arena representing the largest Reverse Mortgage companies in the United States, several of which are backed by a number of prestigious Wall Street firms such as Guggenheim Partners, Knight Capital and JAM Equity Partners.  Mr. Richards in his role as Executive Director of the Coalition for Independent Seniors led an entire team of federal lobbyists, aging consultants and media relations experts to represent industry concerns in the U.S. Congress. This organization enjoyed tremendous success during a time when the Reverse Mortgage Industry was facing an existential threat in Congress.

In early 2014 Mr. Richards co-founded the American Transaction Processors Coalition with the prestigious Washington, DC based law firm Hunton& Williams, LLP. The mission of the Coalition is to Protect, Preserve and Promote the interests and advancement of the Transaction Processing industry.  This also includes working with both the private and public sector to create economic development opportunities for the industry which has a high concentration of enterprises in Georgia. Mr. Richards is responsible for Federal, State & Local Government Relations, Public Affairs, Community Affairs, University Relations and Economic Development. The ATPC is headquartered in Atlanta with offices in Washington, DC.

Mr. Richards is a graduate of Carnegie-Mellon University in Public Policy & Management with a concentration in Management Information Systems. He enjoys skiing and has competed in seven Triathlons mostly on behalf of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society one of which was an IRONMAN (70.3). Mr. Richards lives with his wife and Airedale Terrier in Roswell, GA.

Michael P. Mills serves as Chief Operating Officer for the ATPC, driving programs, events, organizational strategy and other projects. He brings nearly 30 years of experience growing and protecting brands in the corporate, PR agency, nonprofit, trade association and political sectors.

He is particularly adept at helping clients find white space that creates new revenue and programmatic or other impactful opportunities.

Michael also has extensive ESG/CSR, crisis communications and proactive brand-building experience, epitomized by serving as a media spokesperson, communications strategist, charitable giving agent, and stakeholder ambassador for Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

He owns consulting firm Laurentide Strategies, which works with trade associations, corporations and nonprofits. He is also a Canandaigua City Councilmember.

Dobbin brings a unique talent set to the team.  A collaborative, partner-centric, results oriented, strategy development executive with proven success having a 25-plus years in managing financial technology, payments and marketing technology companies.  Dobbin is a force in conceptualizing and implementing sales, marketing, product and strategy methodologies. These methodologies include successful campaigns with the world’s largest financial institutions, payment companies, card brands, retailers and dozens of other Fortune 500 corporations. Dobbin is a partner with Karyon Holdings and Harvest Payments and is currently involved as a board member and/or advisor within a portfolio of successful payment technology companies.

Dobbin has a wealth of experience in payment technology, managing product and marketing for a top 12 Payment Processor while also managing product and strategy development in partnering with some of the world’s best-known brands in the space such as MasterCard and American Express.  Highly accomplished in, vendor partnerships, board leadership, and developing advocate relationships with C-suite executives. The combination of his strategy and payment technology experience will help differentiate the ATPC brand offering.

Michael is principal and founder of MWBT and provides strategic, finance and operational support for FinTechs. He has held executive positions in several Atlanta based companies as CFO of Ingenico N.A., Worldpay US and Vesta Corp. Michael began his career at one of the leading financial institutions in Germany where he worked until 2000. He serves as a board member of the Technology Association of Georgia FinTech Society and as Finance Director of P20. Michael holds an MBA and a PhD from Justus-Liebig-Universität Giessen and is a Certified Public Accountant.

Robert Green is Director of Strategic Partnerships at the Polsinelli law firm; and he is a primary founder of the American Transaction Processors Coalition.

Throughout his career, Robert has worked with a wide range of financial institutions and service providers, including some of the largest banks in Georgia, Florida and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. He has provided legal and technology advice regarding compliance, processing, data, new product development, joint ventures, partnerships, outsourcing, information technology and global expansion to major US data aggregators, the largest payment processors in the world and other IT enabled companies.

Robert is also the publisher of Atlanta Trend, a newsletter dedicated to the senior executive leadership of metropolitan Atlanta.

Ms. Krayem created one of the first-ever cybersecurity practices at a major international AmLaw 100 law firm in 2005 at a time when most practices only focused on data security or privacy. Since that time she has held leadership roles running cybersecurity and privacy teams across a number of firms. She focuses on the intersection of trade, technology, homeland security and cyber risk for clients in heavily regulated critical infrastructure sectors. She focuses on the nexus of strategic business, policy and regulatory advice, coupled with the tools that a government relations practice brings to clients in the areas of cybersecurity, data privacy and digital innovation. She works with Fortune 500 companies, non-profits and public sector entities in key sectors including banking and financial services, energy, communications, health, all modes of transportation and other critical sectors. She also works extensively on emerging technologies including FinTech, blockchain and virtual/cryptocurrencies and created a FinTech policy practice at her last firm.

She also works with U.S & international regulators on global cybersecurity and privacy issues including in bilateral and multilateral agreements spanning the G7, G20, EU, APEC and other multinational organizations. She has worked U.S.-EU programs including the Safe Harbor program, Privacy Shield, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and others including the APEC Cross Border Privacy Rules.

Ms. Krayem works on a daily basis with the executive branch, Congress and the White House on a host of matters including those pertaining to the U.S. Departments of State, Homeland Security, Commerce, Defense, Treasury, House and Urban Development, Education, Health and Human Services as well as the Federal Trade Commission among others. She also works extensively with key congressional committees, including Armed Services, Appropriations, Banking, Commerce, Foreign Relations, Finance, Homeland Security, International Affairs, Judiciary, Transportation and Infrastructure, and Ways and Means.

Ms. Krayem has more than 20 years of experience addressing major issues within the national policy-making arena having worked in government and the private sector. During her extensive career in Washington, D.C., Ms. Krayem has held executive-level positions in the U.S. Departments of State, Commerce and Transportation. She was also a consultant at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). She has provided key insight and guidance to major officials at the White House, in Congress, and at state and local levels around the country. Ms. Krayem has worked closely on the passage of significant homeland security, transportation and trade legislation, including the creation of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). During her tenure working with these agencies, she was involved in nearly 100 bilateral trade and aviation related negotiations as well.

As the deputy chief of staff at the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), Ms. Krayem provided strategic oversight and advised the secretary on domestic and international policy, regulatory, legislative, budget, safety and security issues impacting the aviation, maritime, rail, highway, transit, pipeline and motor carrier sectors. While at DOT, Ms. Krayem also served as the chief of staff and acting deputy administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration at DOT. There, she focused on freight railroad safety matters, Amtrak, high-speed rail corridors and maglev issues, in addition to broader passenger and rail matters.

Ms. Krayem served as the director of special projects at the U.S. Department of State working on the G7 the first year Russia was allowed to attend the Summit (later known as the G8). She worked directly with the member countries on the planning and implementation of the G7, which included Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom, as well as Russia.

Ms. Krayem has also held various senior positions at the U.S. Department of Commerce, within both the Office of the Secretary and the International Trade Administration. During that time, she focused her efforts on counseling state and local government, as well as private sector companies, on exporting fundamentals, which include identification of export finance opportunities with partner agencies such as the Export Import (EXIM) Bank and Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC); understanding export controls governed by agencies such as the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS); and helping companies find matchmaking opportunities around the globe.

Ms. Krayem uses her diverse and comprehensive experience to help public and private sector clients navigate complex national and international issues. Having worked on more than 100 bilateral and multilateral agreements during her career, she helps private sector clients navigate the intricacies of international diplomacy and substantive policy challenges. Ms. Krayem introduces leading-edge approaches and tools to clients in order to help them think about economic development and infrastructure development through the use of innovative finance, public-private partnerships (P3), and intermodal and multimodal development. Ms. Krayem also works clients to understand and integrate in dynamic technology solutions while understanding the policy and regulatory regimes that goes with these solutions. Using her knowledge of the ongoing use of “Big Data” and the “Internet of Things,” she helps clients focus on gaining a broader awareness and understanding of the need for both “privacy by design” as well as “security by design.”

Ms. Krayem also has extensive experience dealing with a number of national security issues, including those involving port, cargo and supply chain security; international aviation; emergency communications and interoperability needs; emergency preparedness and response capabilities; border security issues; the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States; avian flu and pandemic preparedness; as well as U.S.-VISIT and other biometric-related programs.

Ms. Krayem began her career in Connecticut working for the speaker of the house and deputy majority leader, where she focused on higher-education issues, banking and financial services, as well as broader economic development issues. She is a veteran of five presidential campaigns and two presidential inaugural committees.

Ms. Krayem received a Master of Public Administration in state and local policy analysis from George Washington University and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Connecticut. She is a member of The Chatham House, The Royal Institute of International Affairs; WTS International; Women in Cybersecurity. She served on the prestigious Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) Cybersecurity Task Force from 2015-2017 drafting strategic cybersecurity recommendations for the 45th President.

In his role as an advocate for some of the Fortune 500’s leading corporations and business organizations, Jay Morgan has developed a reputation for building strong coalitions to withstand controversy on tough issues. Politicsmagazine.com named him as a “Top 10 Georgia Influencer” for 2010 and commented, “He is at the top of his game”. In his first announcement as Governor-elect, Nathan Deal appointed him as the co-chairman of the 2011 Inaugural Committee and a senior advisor to his transition team.

In January 2007, the Atlanta Journal Constitution drew distinction with his colleagues by saying, “lobbying when Democrats were in charge, he has continued to have success now that the Republicans run things.” Morgan was heavily involved in the 2007 video services legislation which passed both houses overwhelmingly as well as telecommunications deregulation legislation at both the federal and state level. Also during 2007, he successfully “quarterbacked” tort reform legislation (successor liability relief). In the 2003 session of the Georgia General Assembly, he provided strategic and tactical leadership in passing legislation that began the process known as public private partnerships (P3) to address pressing infrastructure needs. He was the lead strategist in passing tax legislation that resulted in securing Philips Arena, a top-rated concert and professional sports facility, for the city of Atlanta at no cost to the taxpayers. He has twice led efforts to pass legislation that improved access to “Epi-pens” for schools and organizations such as 4H camps. He has been recruited to work on lobbying teams for his experience in forming coalitions on controversial issues such as healthcare, litigation reform, criminal justice reform, state tax credits, and financial transactions.

Embracing the entrepreneurial spirit instilled in him by his father and grandfather, he established his own firm in 1996 after serving as Senior Vice President of the former firm of Edington, Wade, and Sanders. He is a partner in the National Field Resource Network, which he co-founded so his clients would be able to access the most experienced grassroots activists in all fifty states. He is the current chairman of the Federal Affairs Committee for the Georgia Chamber of Commerce’s Government Affairs Council. He serves on the Board of Governors of the Georgia Public Policy Foundation, a premier state-based “think tank”, as a member of the board for The Essential Economy Council, and as the immediate past chairman of the Georgia 4H Foundation.

As a consultant to over twenty-five state, federal, and local campaigns as well as a regional director for the George H. W. Bush for President Campaign and the Republican National Committee, he has experience in directing strategic campaigns that is unparalleled for its longevity among Georgia-based public affairs consultants. He was a senior strategist in each of U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson’s runs for the U.S. Senate and has performed key roles with Governor Nathan Deal (R-GA), Speaker Newt Gingrich, Governor Pete Wilson (CA), the late Congresswoman Tillie Fowler (R-FL), former Congressman Mac Collins (R-GA), and numerous state legislative leaders. Following the 1992 elections, he served as Chief of Staff to Congressman Collins and directed both his re-election campaign in 1994 as well as the “Committee on Committee” campaign to win a seat on the prestigious House Ways and Means Committee.

For almost thirty years, Jay Morgan has provided corporations, coalitions, candidates, and business associations with solid strategic plans for execution of public affairs tactics. As the youngest Executive Director of a Republican Party organization in the country in his home state of Georgia, he applied grassroots and telemarketing strategies for the first time in Georgia and oversaw the effort to triple the party’s donor base at a critical time in its development. With then-GOP Chairman Paul Coverdell, he engineered the Georgia GOP’s first algebraic targeting system for state legislative races, which identified vulnerable incumbents and winnable open seats.

Tom Worrall is a founding Partner of Whitmer & Worrall, LLC, a government relations and strategic consulting firm headquartered in Washington, D.C. As a senior government affairs professional, a campaign manager, an adjunct university faculty member, and a National Finance Committee member of three Presidential campaigns, Mr. Worrall has played a substantial and active role in national politics for over twenty-five years. While he’s had many people who have influenced him over the years, he attributes much of his professional and political experience to his years working with the late Congressman/Secretary Jack Kemp, one of his political heroes and mentors.

Mr. Worrall is a respected legislative strategist with an impressive nationwide political and corporate network. His broad and proven experience has enabled him to successfully lead dozens of legislative campaigns across broad issue areas, including: innovative technology, energy, state & federal business development, education, coalition management, FinTech and general corporate representation.

Mr. Worrall has served as the lead strategist and lobbyist for numerous Fortune 500 companies as well as some of America’s most well-known corporate leaders, such as Monster.com, Thermo Fisher Scientific, PPG Industries, Echostar Satellite, Rotech Healthcare, Plextronics, and RedZone Robotics. He has successfully helped many of his clients realize legislative victories by getting their top public policy priorities signed into law. These achievements are a result of Mr. Worrall’s ability to develop winning strategies to most effectively target, recruit, and mobilize Congressional champions. Mr. Worrall maintains extensive ties with the current House and Senate leadership and with senior public policy staff on Capitol Hill.

From 1999 through 2004, Mr. Worrall was a senior executive with The Rhoads Group (previously Boland & Madigan, Inc.), a top government relations firm and a division of the Interpublic Group (NYSE: IPG). Most recently he served as the firm’s Senior Vice President and was the head of the technology practice area. He played a key role in growing the client base and doubling the revenue of the firm in less than three years.

In addition to Mr. Worrall’s extensive government relations experience, he also has extensive political and campaign experience. In the 2008 and 2012 Presidential campaigns, he served as an early member of the National Finance Committee for a leading Presidential contender. During the 2004 presidential campaign, Mr. Worrall earned the distinction of becoming a “Bush Maverick” for his fundraising efforts and was featured in Influence as “one of President Bush’s elite fundraisers.” Currently, he is a member of the National Finance Committee for the Republican Governor’s Association where he enjoys a strong working relationship with many of the country’s most prominent Governors. In 1997, Mr. Worrall was recruited to lead TEAM 100, the Republican National Committee’s premier fundraising entity. Under his direction, working closely with RNC Chairman Jim Nicholson and Republican leaders nationwide, TEAM 100 greatly exceeded its fundraising goals during the 1997-1998-election cycle. While at TEAM 100, he also spearheaded the RNCs outreach to America’s leading technology industries, to form the RNC Technology Advisory Board (TAB).

From 1991 until he joined the Republican National Committee, Mr. Worrall worked around the country as a senior political and campaign operative. He has served as a chief strategist and campaign manager for candidates running for the United States Senate, the United States Congress, and at the state level.

Mr. Worrall has been a regular speaker on the American political process and has served the last ten years as an adjunct professor of campaign management at the George Washington University. A native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he holds a Master’s degree in Political Management from George Washington University’s Graduate School of Political Management and an undergraduate degree from the University of New Hampshire.