President

Cindy Shamel

President, Shamel Information Services

Cindy is a consultant in strategic planning, change management, and knowledge services. Clients appreciate clear, actionable guidance that helps them overcome barriers and move their organizations forward. Shamel Information Services also delivers research services in support of government filings and biomedical product development. Cindy has co-authored three books and delivers professional development workshops for information professionals and other consultants.

Cindy has provided strategic guidance to a range of clients including professional associations and a performing arts non-profit. Within AIIP she has served in numerous positions, including President in 2003-2004, and most recently on the Conference Program Planning Committee. In 2006 she was recognized with the Sue Rugge Memorial Award for mentoring.

Past President

Scott Attenborough

Owner, Content Capital LLC

Content Capital evaluates, develops, and implements projects that leverage content and technology to support strategic business needs.  Scott worked for many years developing products and services for LexisNexis™, and at Content Capital he continues to make great content products and services for his customers. He is a former US Marine and is a strong supporter of veteran causes through Veterans 360.

Scott has previously contributed to AIIP as website manager, discussion list manager, and a member of the mentoring team.  

President-Elect

Judith Binder

RBSC Corporation, Research Group

RBSC Corporation delivers business intelligence and insights for strategy, competitive intelligence, marketing and product development. Prior to launching RBSC’s Research Group in 2002, Judith provided business information services to management consultants and research services in academic, corporate, legal and government settings. She has an MBA degree from Northwestern University and MSLS from Syracuse University.

Judith has been active in AIIP committees since joining in 2004, most recently as co-chair of the Industry Relations Committee. In addition to AIIP, Judith is a member of the Strategic & Competitive Intelligence Professionals (SCIP) and the Product Development and Management Association (PDMA).

Secretary

Phyllis smith

ITK Vector Inc.

Phyllis joined AIIP in 1997 when she started In the Know Research and Information Consulting to provide customized, confidential research solutions to a specialized clientele. In 2013, In the Know was reinvented as ITK Vector Inc. to offer corporate writing, research, and strategic planning. Memories in Focus is the newest ITK Vector Inc. brand that provides personal photo management services and education to consumers who want to discover and protect their family stories.

Prior to joining the ranks of the self-employed, Phyllis was a research and reference librarian with the Canadian Security Intelligence Service. While there, she earned a Master of Library and Information Science degree from the University of Western Ontario. More recently, she was awarded a Master of Professional Communication degree from Royal Roads University.

Throughout the reinvention and renewal, AIIP has been there. Phyllis has contributed to various committees over the years and has been the editor of AIIP Connections since 2016.

Treasurer

Marydee Ojala

President, Ojala Associates 

Marydee joined AIIP in 1987 after heading the global research and library functions at BankAmerica Corporation in San Francisco. She has taken her consultancy through moves to Kansas, Utah, Denmark, and Indiana while writing the Dollar Sign column on business research and serving as Editor-in-Chief of Online and Online Searcher magazines.

Marydee speaks on online searching and business research at professional conferences worldwide, organizes conferences for Information Today, Inc., and provides research, writing, and editing services for companies, organizations, and individuals. She also has adjunct faculty status at Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI).

Marydee has served AIIP in roles including conference and events planner, Secretary, author, and conference speaker. She received the Marilyn M. Levine AIIP President's Award in 2015.

Director, Professional Development

Cindy Romaine

Romainiacs Intelligent Research

Cindy Romaine is the principal of Romainiacs Intelligent Research, which focuses on driving business growth through competitive intelligence, information analysis and voice of the customer research. Romainiacs has been conducting win/loss analysis and customer research for the past 10 years, with multiple global clients in technology and information management.

Prior to this, Cindy worked at Nike for 16 years as the Director of the Design Library. She was the president of the Special Libraries Association in 2011 and was named an SLA Fellow in 2016.

Director, membership

George Puro

PUro Research Group

George Puro is President of the Puro Research Group, a market intelligence firm specializing in quick-turnaround insights and analysis. Mr. Puro has served as the trusted advisor and go-to resource for clients ranging from marketing managers and competitive intelligence professionals at Fortune 500 companies to strategists and planners at ad agencies and PR firms.  

George has previously served on AIIP’s Mentor Committee and has helped run two AIIP member surveys.

Director, Outreach

Anne Hengehold

Clarify Information Services

Anne loves to dig – not only in her veggie garden, but also for information in the dark corners of engineering libraries, in well-illuminated sci-tech databases, and by chatting up people (i.e. conducting primary research). Professional engineers and architects who focus on figuring out why something blew up, fell apart, or fizzled on the launch pad benefit from Anne’s 10+ years experience in turning up the ridiculously hard to find, and thinking strategically about information needed to get to the root of a problem.

Following a first career in radio and audio production, Anne discovered the joys of being an independent info pro, and has previously contributed to AIIP on conference planning and various member services committees.