Kelly Lass
Senior Association Manager

Kelly Lass brings 32 years of Association Management experience and 35 years in event planning.  Prior to joining the NCG, she held the Executive Vice President’s position with a statewide trade association. Kelly also is a State registered lobbyist.  Kelly studied Marketing and Business Management at Jacksonville State University in Alabama.  

Kelly’s experience and talent in the trade association area is invaluable. . .

Lisa Kraus-Gardner
Senior Association Manager

Lisa Kraus Gardner joined NCG in December 2014 with a diverse background and over 23 years of experience in human resources and operations management; customer service training; specialized sales; sales fulfillment; event coordination; marketing; and business development. Lisa’s ability to “juggle many balls” allows her to provide multiple services and specialties for NCG’s partners and their members. . .

VALERIE SMITH, CAE
Senior Association Manager

Valerie Smith, CAE, has 14 years of experience in association management plus 13 years of experience working with a marketing agency. Prior to joining the NCG team in Dec 2023, she was the Executive Director of the Georgia Chiropractic Association and Vice President of O’Neill Communications. Valerie thrives on helping associations create and implement strategic plans to increase their reach and effectiveness. . .

Dave Nardone
Association Manager

David (Dave) Nardone, is an Atlanta native that focuses his time on management of a large association in the building automation world.  Prior to joining the firm, Dave was in facilities and materials management for over twelve years in the medical industry.  After his daughter was born he decided he wanted to spend more time with family and focus his facility management skills in the non-profit world. . .

Mary Catherine Heard
Marketing & Communications Manager

Mary Catherine joined NCG in 2022 as our Marketing & Communications Manager, bringing over a decade of marketing strategy, brand management, content planning, and graphic design. Prior to joining the company, she worked in government communications and brand management in the aftermarket automotive industry. Mary Catherine earned her BA in History at Presbyterian College and an MA in Mass Communications at Georgia State. . .

Sherry Battle, CMP
Event Services, negotiating, contracting

Sherry Battle joined our team in June 2019. She brings over 33 years of experience in the hospitality industry. Sherry is a graduate from Georgia State University with a Bachelor of Science in the Hotel, Restaurant and Travel Administration.

Her very first role with Marriott International was opening a convention network hotel. . .

Lindsay Cuppia
event & Conference Manager

Lindsay Cuppia joined the NCG team in December 2023 and serves as an Events & Conference Manager. Lindsay brings over 8 years of association management and event management experience to the team. Her organizational skills, effective project management, and excellent communication create a strong backbone for superb event management. . .

Sarah Alexandre, CMP
Event & Conference Manager

Sarah joined NCG in 2024, bringing over a decade of event and tradeshow management, sponsorship coordination, and association marketing communications in multiple industries, including tourism, food service, and association management. She graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in Tourism, Hospitality, and Recreation. Sarah earned her Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) in 2023 and is trilingual (English, Spanish, and. . .

Alia Sims
Senior Association Coordinator

Alia Sims joined NCG in September 2022 as an Association Assistant. Prior to joining the team, Alia worked as a Transaction Coordinator for a real estate firm, a Personal Assistant, and worked in Hawaii for a short period to assist in the opening of an outrigger touring company at a top-rated resort in Maui. She has a broad range of professional interests and specialties that include social media . . .

Kelsey List
SENIOR ASSOCIATION COORDINATOR

Kelsey List (re)joined NCG in June 2017 as an Association Assistant for a global trade association in building automation. She is a proud member of American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) and the Georgia Society of Association Executives (GSAE).

Kelsey graduated from Young Harris College with a bachelor’s degree in Business and Public Policy, where she played four years of collegiate soccer. . .

stacie Franks
senior association COORDINATOR

Stacie Franks joined NCG in early 2019.  Previously in her career, Stacie worked in retail banking managing branches before moving behind the scenes in IT user support and mergers/acquisitions.  This time spent on the IT user support side of banking has fueled her passion for leveraging tools and resources in any situation to most effectively complete a task. Stacie earned her Bachelor of Science in Business Management from Virginia Tech. . .

HANNAH O’Dell
Association and Community COORDINATOR

Hannah O’Dell joined the NCG team in May 2021 as an Association Assistant. Prior to joining NCG, Hannah worked for a photo booth company where she gained experience with event planning. She also has her own website with multiple writing projects. . .

CHarlie Smith
Association Coordinator

Charlie joined the Nardone Consulting Team in February of 2024. Previously she has worked in real estate and property management. The coordination of property maintenance and keen ability to secure and maintain tenant satisfaction has prepared her for her current role as association coordinator. . .

Dorrian Regan
Association Coordinator

Dorrian joined NCG in September of 2024 as an Association Coordinator. Having previously worked in association management, she came with experience in member recruitment and retention, website design, and marketing strategy. Dorrian graduated from the University of Mississippi with degrees in Economics and Political Science. While at Ole Miss, she worked as a Community Assistant focused on building connection through community events. . .

Haley Johnson
Association Accountant

Joining the NCG team in 2019, Haley Johnson graduated from the University of Georgia with a B.A. in English and Art History. She spent 10 years working in management, including overseeing merchandise sales at the UGA Bookstore and at UGA athletic events, before working as a Training Manager for Nebraska Book Company. Her accounting experience began with these roles in managing receivables, payables, piloting a management self-audit program. . .

Piper Kester
Association Accountant

Piper joined the NCG team in 2024. Her professional experience includes multiple public accounting and business administration. Piper holds an MBA with an Accounting Concentration from Mercer University. She enjoys puzzling, long walks, and spending time with her family in her free time. . .