Who we are:

Byron Mignanelli
Managing Director & Co-founder
As co-founder of GSMI, Byron oversees the strategic vision and management initiatives for GSMI. Byron brings a wealth of experience within B2B media space and Executive Events.

Formerly, Byron served as Conference Director for Palladium Group / Balanced Scorecard Collaborative (BSCol). Byron has management experience in corporate start-ups, specializing in ad networks, development of interactive media sites, and business-to-business ventures. Byron was an original member of the American Strategic Management Institute (ASMI) and was eventually promoted to President.

Inspired by the outdoors, Byron is an active member of the Surfrider Foundation, a non-profit environmental organization dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of the world's oceans. He is also a proud member of UNICO, an Italian American service organization and currently sits on the Board of the local non-profit, Meals-on-Wheels.

byron.mignanelli@gsmiweb.com
Luke Vinci
Managing Director & Co-founder
As a co-founder and managing partner of GSMI, Luke is responsible for the production and execution of GSMI events. He specializes in creating customized solutions and strategies for increasing corporate transparency and accountability.

For nearly a decade, Luke has been coordinating corporate events and management trainings for organizational improvement of fortune 500 companies as well as small businesses. Through his work, he has gained performance management expertise in the fields of human resources, finance, and corporate governance. Specifically, Luke has collaborated with numerous organizations to apply performance management strategies to Search Engine Marketing (SEM) and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategies to convert internet traffic into positive business growth.

Prior to GSMI, Luke was an original founder and COO of the American Strategic Management Institute (ASMI). He also has extensive experience in managing political campaigns across the state of California. Currently, Luke serves as an advisory member to various organizations. He is the Secretary of the Little Italy Association and is the Honorary Mayor of Little Italy in San Diego. Luke also operates as a public servant in his elected seat to the Center City Advisory Committee (CCAC), a community organization that works to advance the growth and redevelopment of downtown San Diego by providing a link among citizens, the CCDC, the City Council and Redevelopment Agency. Luke is a graduate of the University of California, Los Angeles and currently resides in San Diego.

In the Media


  • Luke Vinci interviewed by CNN Money about the Little Italy community.
  • Luke Vinci discusses Ferragosto 2010 on NBC 7/39.
  • Luke talks with NBC San Diego about the 2011 Ferragosto celebration.
  • Luke Vinci is featured on Fox 5 San Diego discussing Little Italy's development.


    • luke.vinci@gsmiweb.com
    Meaghan Edlestein, Vice President of Social Media
    In 2008 Meaghan Edelstein began her blogging career, writing about her personal experience with cancer. Through her blog and self branding Edelstein gained national attention. Edelstein went on to found Spirit Jump, a grassroots nonprofit organization with a mission to provide hope and comfort to the many men, women and children battling cancer. Prior to her career in Social Media Meaghan worked for as a Congressional Aide for United States Congressman John W. Olver.

    Through her blog and nonprofit organization Edelstein has become heavily involved in Social Media. She has been an in-house Social Media Director, freelance consultant and in September 2010 joined the Global Strategic Management Institute as a conference producer and the Senior Editor for the Social Axcess Blog.

    Edelstein is also a regular contributing writer for Mashable and guest posts for Tech Tonic as well as a licensed attorney in the state of Florida. Meaghan has spoken at numerous social media conferences including Blogworld, NTEN and Gravity Summit. She has been featured on such programs as NPR, Good Morning America and CBS on The Hill in Washington DC. Edelstein has been quoted in numerous Mashable articles, Cure Magazine and Inc.com

    meaghanh.edelstein@gsmiweb.com
    Michael Roche, Vice President of Sales
    Michael is responsible for the sales and marketing of the Social Media Strategy Summit and Mobile Marketing Strategies Summit. Michael has over 10+ years experience in sales and marketing, with more than half that time spent in the conference and continuing education training field.

    Michael is originally from New Jersey. He attended Norwich University, a prestigious private military school, in Northfield, VT. After graduation, Michael began working in NYC in the staffing industry. He moved into educational training in 2005, specializing in the Pharmaceutical, Medical Device and Bio-Tech industries. In 2010, he moved to San Diego where he enjoys hiking with his dog Gray, practicing Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, playing golf and enjoying all outdoor activities.

    michael.roche@gsmiweb.com
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