Beyond the Vaccine: Business Perspectives from Leading CEOs

Steve Bilt

Steve Bilt is the Chief Executive Officer at Smile Brands Inc.  Steve co-founded SBI and subsequently led the acquisitions of Monarch Dental Corporation [NASDAQ: MDDS], Castle Dental Centers Inc. [NASDAQ: CASL] and Midwest Dental. In addition to these transactions, Steve has overseen the development of over 200 de novo practices and over 50 add-on acquisitions. Today, Smile Brands has 8,000 employees and affiliated providers in 700 locations and 75 brands across the United States. 

Smile Brands has been recognized as a Best Place to Work by Glassdoor for three straight years (#1 in multi-site healthcare) and by Comparably numerous times including as a top-10 US Large Company for Culture, for Diversity and as Best Place for Women.  Additionally, Steve is a member of the Kaufman Foundation/EY Entrepreneur Hall of Fame and has been recognized multiple times as a Top 20 U.S. large company CEO  by Glassdoor and Top 20 U.S. large company CEO by Comparably for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Opportunities for Women, and Company Culture based on over 10 million employee ratings across 60,000 companies.

Steve also serves as Chairman of the Smiles for Everyone Foundation. The Smiles for Everyone Foundation is a 501 (c)(3) and has established international outposts serving six countries in South America, Asia and Africa and throughout the U.S. Steve was honored by the Wharton School as the top CEO in the U.S. for Social Impact and Smile Brands was recognized as the number eight company globally for Overall Impact by Real Leaders.

Steve is a Certified Public Accountant (inactive) and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in business economics from the University of California, Santa Barbara and a Master of Business Administration degree from the Graziadio School of Business and Management at Pepperdine University, where he has served on the Board of Visitors, been recognized as an Outstanding Alumni, and has been honored with the school’s highest recognition as the 50^th Anniversary George Award Honoree for Good for the World Leadership.

Kate Duchene

Since joining RGP in 1999 as the Company’s first corporate counsel, Kate Duchene has operated in numerous executive roles – Legal, Corporate Secretary, Human Resources, Marketing and RGP Legal. Now, as Chief Executive Officer and President, a role she assumed in late 2016, Kate is focused on leading RGP through successful transformation to serve our clients and consultants with greater agility and improved experience. 

Kate leads a talent-driven organization and is passionate about helping clients evolve their organizational workforce strategies to become more agile and value-oriented.  She is driving RGP to deliver as the clients’ preferred partner for Project Execution, Organizational Change Management and Talent Resourcing.  Most recently, she led RGP’s expansion into the digital transformation space, both from a strategy and execution standpoint.

Prior to joining RGP, Kate practiced law with O’Melveny & Myers LLP, in Los Angeles, California. She focused on litigation, specializing in people issues. In 2017, Kate was honored by the Orange County Business Journal as an Outstanding Women in Business. In 2010, she was honored by the Orange County Business Journal as Outstanding General Counsel of a Public Company with Revenue over $200 Million. That same year, she was named to OC METRO’s “Hot 25” list of top professionals in Orange County, California.

Kate received her J.D., cum laude, from New York University School of Law and her B.A. in Political Science from Stanford University. She spent over 18 years serving on the board of Human Options, an organization dedicated to breaking the cycle of domestic violence. Kate also served on the board of the California Minority Counsel Program for six years. Currently, Kate serves on the boards of Resources Connection, Inc. (parent company of RGP), the Orange County Community Foundation and the University of California Irvine Foundation.

Kate and her husband Tim have two adult children.  Kate enjoys weekends in her kitchen with friends and family and Cooper – her beloved golden retriever.

Mike Stiller

Mike Stiller is the Global Head of Nasdaq’s ESG Advisory & Investor Engagement practices. He leads a global team that partners with public and private companies on ways to create value and effectively navigate the capital markets. Value Creation engagements can range from advice on implementing and enhancing ESG programs, investor engagement guidance, and capital allocation optimization. Previous to Nasdaq, Mike spent time on the buy-side at a technology, media and telecom (TMT) hedge fund and a macroeconomic volatility arbitrage fund.