MEET tHE (IDEA)OLOGISTS

Max Daves

CEO and Founder

We like to help people see things from a different perspective so they can see all the possibilities they really have. Some people talk about thinking outside the box. There is no box. There never has been. What seems to be a box of "conventions" is merely, in reality, accepted habits. There is always another way, better options, faster to market strategies, more competitive products or better solutions. We help you see these opportunities. We help you achieve results. We help you attain success. We help you break the box of self-imposed restrictions.

- - Max Daves

Jeffrey Holtz

Executive Investments Associate Partner 

Mr. Holtz is a native of Clayton, Mo. and is a 1977 Graduate of the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania with a BS in Economics-majoring in accounting. 

In 2014 Mr. Holtz joined idea-ology Group as a limited partner and offers IG his experience and expertise on financial and investment banking matters. Jeffrey is a brilliant left and right brained mind. He brings a wealth of knowledge in investor strategies and project financing to (idea)ology Group to assist you in moving your goals forward.

Mr. Holtz has also taken graduate courses in finance at Washington University School of Business and received his CPA certificate in 1981. Mr. Holtz has a Masters of Arts in Theology-summa cum laude at Covenant Theological Seminary, the national seminary for the Presbyterian Church in America.

Professionally, Mr. Holtz spent the first five years of his career in both auditing and tax with Peat, Marwick, Mitchell & Co. (Philadelphia) and Touche Ross & Co (St. Louis). After leaving public accounting, Mr. Holtz spent the next 21 years with several Wall Street firms (EF Hutton and Oppenheimer & Co.) in retail & institutional sales and corporate finance. 

In 1997 Mr. Holtz joined Everen Securities (formerly Kemper Securities) as the corporate finance liaison, taking early retirement in 2000 as a Sr. VP after its acquisition by First Union Bank.

In 2001, the family moved to Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida and Mr. Holtz started PVEP to make investments in natural resources and to provide specialized financial advisory services to three principal clients: CDX Gas, LLC, a large privately held coal-bed methane gas (CBM) company in Dallas, Tersus Energy, Plc, a British public company in the alternative energy industry and Standard Energy, Inc. a large privately held coal company in Columbus, Ohio. These engagements entailed several transactions including: brokering a $140 million twelve-year forward gas sale, negotiating the purchase of the 200,000 acre BP-AMOCO gas field on the Jicarilla-Apache Indian Reservation for $98 million, acting as a placement agent for a $80 million secured note offering, representing an owner of 400 million tons of coal reserves and developing a 30 BCF gas storage facility in West Virginia.

In 2004, Mr. Holtz returned to St. Louis to lead the spinout from the Boeing Corporation and become the Chairman of the Board of a “reverse-engineering” firm called REaladi, Inc. 

In 2005, Mr. Holtz sold his interest in REaladi, Inc. to the other officers of the company and continued his work for his principle clients and developing renewable energy projects targeted at America’s agricultural industry for ECL. 

In 2009, Ponte Vedra created and led the financing by a British Private Equity Firm of a 53 Million ton metallurgical Coal Company in Price, Utah and became the advisor to a $2 Billion iron ore and port development project in Crystal City Mo.

In 2010, Mr. Holtz rejoined Oppenheimer & Co. to service investment banking clients is both corporate finance and municipal finance until joining Lava Rock Capital as a Founding Partner.

Brian Sheble 

Applied Psychology and Sociology 

Brian Sheble is an organizational consultant, program evaluator, researcher, and psychologist.  Brian is currently finishing his Ph.D. in Educational Psychology, Evaluation, and Research from the University of Missouri St. Louis.  He also has an Educational Specialist in School Psychology from the University of Missouri-St. Louis, Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology from Lindenwood University, and Graduate Certificate in Educational Administration from University of Southern Illinois at Edwardsville.  Brian has a wealth of knowledge and experience with organizational/program development and evaluating the effectiveness of organizations utilizing qualitative and quantitative research methodologies.  Moreover, Brian has an advanced knowledge and application of statistical analysis methods used to analyze trends across multiple disciplines. Brian is particular adept at predicting the behavior of other and problem solving to find solutions to assist organizations with achieving their goals and objectives.  In summary, he has multiple years of experience working in schools, clinics, and other organizations. 

Note In business the first thing that people will identify you with is your brand.  As a result, it is very important to have a label with which people identify.  Most of the time well meaning people create a label or brand they think is cool and that brand or label may appear cool.  However, sometimes there are unconscious ideas that come up for people and business people don't want the first unconscious idea to come up about their brand to be a negative one.  In summary, the first thing people think about when buying something has a very significant influence on whether they buy that product or not.  So, the last thing a business wants is to have their product associated with something consciously or unconsciously negative.

For example, when examining peoples' thoughts on a specific subject in my work as a psychologist I will ask them what is the first thing they think of when given a specific stimulus.  This is what is called projective assessment and when the same results are yielded over again peoples' perceptions about a stimulus can be generalized with reasonable  reliability and validity

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Kim William Gordon

Executive Consultant And Core Partner

The world is changing. It always has. But this time, it is changing at an incredible rate. All "normal" conventions, be they business, social, cultural or personal, are in the midst of a massive revision. A reality re-boot, if you will. Our notions of being human, of our role in the world and universe will be overthrown as disruption occurs in every sector of our existence.

I am known as an effective strategic as well as a tactical planner. As a proven leader and manager, I have superb interpersonal communication abilities and am known for my achievements in motivating and leading diverse, complex teams to measurable success. I am at home in the "C" suite.

I am the entrepreneurs entrepreneur. My leadership and management skills align and motivate teams and result in streamlined processes and procedures and satisfied customers. Both sides of my brain work - cooperatively. I simply get things done.

- - Kim William Gordon

Peter Carlos

Chief Multimedia Officer

Chosen as one of the Top 100 Multimedia Producers in America by AV Video Magazine in 2002, Peter Vincent Carlos has worked in film and television as a freelance Producer, Director, Writer, and Editor. He has taught courses in Directing, Cinema as Art, TV Production, Scriptwriting, Film History, and Communications. He received his MA in Writing from Middlebury College’s Bread Loaf Graduate School of English in Vermont, and studied under Mark Strand, the former U.S. Poet Laureate,at the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference. He received his MFA in Digital Cinema Arts from Lindenwood University. He has worked in Hollywood with Jim Carrey, Kirsten Dunst, Steve Oedekerk, and Denise Crosby. Carlos was a Production Manager, Second Unit Director, Co-Producer, and Script Reader, directed CEO’s, Joan Rivers, Ozzie Smith, and Jay Leno, among others, and he has written or co-written film treatments and scripts for directors and producers. His short film, Dad's Day, won "Top Applause" and "Rising Star" awards in national film festivals and was shown on national broadcast and cable channels-Philadelphia (WHYY-TV), New Jersey (Com Cast Cable), and St. Louis (KPLR-Warner/Tribune). His other short films have played in various film festivals. Peter has won two St. Louis Emmys for a Television Spot and Corporate Programming. 

Jeannette Orndorff

Global Leadership Development 

Everyone will be called upon to lead at some point in their lives, the only question is: Will they be ready?

  Leadership is for those who earnestly seek a better result, are interested in the  process of personal growth, are driven to succeed in significant ways.

You can live the life you've always wanted. I believe it requires correct information, applied with discipline, consistently over time.

Although leadership is for everyone, not everyone will equip themselves. 

Leadership coaching that listens and intentionally prescribes world-class materials to business executives, entrepreneurs, corporate climbers, pastors, church leaders, administrators, community service leaders, public servants, teachers, parents, and anybody who will find themselves in a position to lead. Leadership is for everyone. Choose the art and science of Leadership  OR the consequence of being ill-equipped. These consequences include missed opportunities, unfulfilled career aspirations, financial woes, and broken relationships.

Leadership that seeks to provide the information and encouragement, necessary to individuals who are hungry to live a life in forward motion.