Chief Executive Officer
Chief Executive Officer and President of E&I Cooperative Services, Eric Frank is an entrepreneurial leader with a passion for education and a firm belief in the power of collaboration and cooperation. Eric joined E&I in March 2020 with a focus on advancing the Cooperative’s mission of helping members save time and money while increasing the value of services delivered to various stakeholders.
Eric began his career in the educational content and technology sector, selling college textbooks through Cengage Learning. He then moved into product development, marketing, and executive leadership roles within Pearson Education. From there he created, built, and led two technology-related companies in the education space: FlatWorld Knowledge, where he was Founder, President & Chief Marketing Officer from 2007-2012; and Acrobatiq Inc., where he served as CEO and Founder from 2013-2018. Most recently Eric served as the Vice President, General Manager of Vital Source Technologies, LLC.
Eric is currently an Advisor to the Center for Educational Technology in Tel Aviv, Israel. He holds a BA in English from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
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Chief Executive Officer
Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer, Finance
John D. Orlando, CPA joined E&I in July 2004 as the Senior Vice President & Chief Financial Officer. His current role is Chief Operating Officer & Treasurer. His focus at E&I has been on transforming the financial, information technology and human resource areas into a more strategic function that supports and provides organizational leadership to the Cooperative.
John began his career in public accounting with Grant Thornton where he gained experience in various industries over a seven year period. He was recruited by Powers Chemco, Inc., a multinational manufacturing and distribution corporation and quickly rose to the position of Senior Vice President & Chief Financial Officer. The company was acquired by Konica Corporation and John continued to serve as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for over 11 years.
Following Konica, John joined General Media, a multinational publisher as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer and later became President and Chief Operating Officer. John returned to manufacturing and distribution when he joined Country Life Vitamins as Vice President of Finance and Operations before joining E&I in his current role.
John has served as President of the Glen Cove Chamber of Commerce, which was instrumental in revitalizing the business sector in the City of Glen Cove during his tenure. He has also served as President of The Community Scholarship Fund of Glen Cove which awards scholarships to deserving high school seniors who will be attending college.
John holds a BS in Accounting from St. John’s University, Jamaica, NY.
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Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer, Finance
Kevin Carlsten
Chief Revenue Officer, E&I
Kevin joined E&I in 2024 as Chief Revenue Officer, bringing his many years of executive leadership experience in driving growth and building high-performance teams in the education sector and technology sectors. At E&I, he leads sales, marketing and customer support efforts, ensuring alignment across all revenue-generating activities while fostering a culture of excellence that aligns with the Cooperative’s values as a Deliberately Developmental Organization.
Kevin’s roots in education go back to college, where he helped found an educational consulting practice focused on supporting college admissions and success for underserved students. Following his experience growing several technology and services businesses, Kevin returned to the realm of higher education at Elsevier, a leading global information analytics company specializing in research and health care information solutions that advance science and improve health outcomes. During his time there he held several strategy and go-to-market leadership roles across Elsevier’s Academic & Government business.
Kevin most recently served at Cengage, a leading education technology company serving the higher education, K–12, professional, and library markets, equipping millions of students with skills and competencies needed to advance their careers and improve their lives. As Vice President of Channel Strategy & Operations, Kevin led the strategy and execution of distribution for Cengage products across the complex Higher Ed ecosystem. Then as Senior Vice President and General Manager of the Higher Education Institutional business, he had full P&L responsibility across strategy, marketing, sales, product, and operations, resulting in the highest growth business unit in Cengage’s Higher Ed business.
Kevin is passionate about empowering people to be their best and make a meaningful impact on the world. He holds a BA from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from Columbia University.
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Chief Revenue Officer
Sean Esbjörn-Hargens
Chief People & Culture Officer
Chief People & Culture Officer of E&I Cooperative Services, Sean Esbjörn-Hargens is a global thought leader in integrative approaches to education that combine innovative learning design with holistic human development. Sean joined E&I in January 2025, after serving as an external consultant and executive coach to E&I for five years. Sean’s focus at E&I is on advancing the Cooperative’s mission of developing its unique “Better Together” culture and in the process showcasing E&I as an inspiring example of being a Deliberately Developmental Organization.
Throughout his academic career Sean has designed and served as a program director of various graduate certificates and programs at John F. Kennedy University, Fielding Graduate University, and the California Institute for Human Sciences. He has authored numerous articles and books including Integral Education: New Dimensions of Higher Learning. He has supported integral education initiatives around the world. He continues to teach graduate courses in adult development, the science of meditation, integrative metatheories, and organizational design and leadership.
Sean is passionate about creating organizational cultures where everyone is growing professionally and personally. He holds a PhD in Adult Development & Consciousness from the California Institute of Integral Studies.
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Chief People & Culture Officer
Senior Vice President, Strategy
Colin Anderson is the Vice President, Strategy at E&I Cooperative Services. In this role, he drives E&I’s overall approach to strategy and ensures alignment to the Cooperative’s mission, values, and objectives.
Colin works closely with the CEO and Leadership team to ensure effective formulation of E&I’s long term strategies while providing leadership across the organization to functional areas in their execution of these strategies and their support of the future direction of E&I. He engages with internal and external stakeholders in strategic problem solving of critical business opportunities and challenges.
In his career at E&I, Colin has also served as Vice President, Member Engagement; Vice President, Member Solutions; and Member Relations Executive. He brings over 24 years of higher education procurement experience from his prior positions at the University of Michigan.
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Vice President, Strategy
Senior Vice President, Technology & Operations
Chris Cucuzza is the Vice President, Information Technology & Operations at E&I Cooperative Services. In this role, he is responsible for defining and delivering the IT strategy and capabilities across the organization. This includes data governance, business intelligence and data analytics support, infrastructure, security, business continuity, technical services, and technology innovation.
Chris has more than 25 years of transformational IT experience implementing enterprise applications in both B2B and B2C environments. In his role as a Senior Principal Business Architect with Salesforce, Chris was responsible for delivering client solutions utilizing years of experience in enterprise collaboration, business strategy alignment, and change management.
Chris started his career as a CPA in a global accounting firm and eventually transitioned over to a consulting role implementing large scale ERP software. He went on to serve in a number of roles at Sleepy’s including Director of Technology and Vice President of IT. From there he joined Global Facility Management & Construction as Chief Information Officer, where he was responsible for leading all network, hardware, and software development in addition to implementing Salesforce CRM.
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Senior Vice President, Technology & Operations
Vice President, People
Jeannine Del Pozzo is the Vice President, People at E&I Cooperative Services, with over 20 years of human resources experience and a master’s degree in organizational management.
In this role, she is responsible for developing and executing strategies that support the Cooperative’s people and align with its overall strategy. She applies her passion for employee well-being and high engagement while creating a culture of excellence, inclusivity, and continuous growth and development.
Jeannine has a strong belief that if you take care of people, they will take care of you. She has applied this focus when dealing with every aspect of human resources throughout her career, including talent management, benefits administration, policy administration, employee relations, compensation, performance management, and culture development.
Prior to joining E&I, Jeannine worked for Widex Hearing Aid Company as an Operations Supervisor and Human Resources Generalist. During this time, she learned the importance of knowing how the company works so you can support the people that make it successful.
Jeannine enjoys spending time with her husband and two daughters, her family, and friends. She loves being outdoors and is passionate about giving back to local communities. She supports charities that help children in need and is a proud co-founder of the YOLOStrong Foundation.
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Vice President, People
Vice President & Controller, Accounting
Chris Fehn is the Vice President and Controller at E&I Cooperative Services. In this role he is responsible for leading the finance department including all internal and external reporting, cash management, tax and regulatory compliance, and business planning. His primary focus is to ensure the finance function is well positioned to support E&I and its members as the cooperative enters its next growth phase.
Chris brings over 25 years of accounting and finance expertise in various industries, such as manufacturing, service, and distribution. Before joining E&I, Chris successfully led accounting teams at Computer Sciences Corporation, MBS Multimode, Miltex Instrument Company, and Country Life Vitamins.
Chris is a graduate of the University of Houston with a BBA in Accounting. He lives on Long Island with his wife and two children and enjoys spending time outdoors, at the beach, fishing, cheering on his favorite sports teams, and watching his daughter swim competitively.
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Vice President & Controller, Accounting
Senior Vice President, Marketing
Connect with Sheila
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Senior Vice President, Marketing
Senior Vice President, Member Engagement
James has worked with E&I since 2013, leading the Inside Member Representative team to support engagement with small and/or rural member institutions. In 2021 he led the newly formed Member Success department, where he and the team created new processes for improving the member experience and helping members maximize the value they receive from the Cooperative. As the Senior Vice President, Member Engagement, James and his team lead the strategy for Sourcing Consultants, Business Development, and Member Success teams to help all members leverage the benefits of E&I and maximize savings and value for their institutions.
In his free time, James enjoys playing music, hiking, reading, and spending time with his family.
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Senior Vice President, Member Engagement
Vice President, Strategy
Casey Laurienzo is the Director, Contract Operations at E&I Cooperative Services. In this role, she is responsible for leveraging contracting best practices and ensuring the proper use of resources resulting in timely, effective, and compliant contracting activities.
Casey has 20 years of combined public, private, and higher education experience with a robust background in contract administration, contract management, and contract negotiation. In her position as Contract Administrator at Florida State University, she was responsible for developing, managing, and improving the Contract Administration Program, including contract review, compliance negotiation, and risk management. Prior to that she served as Bureau Chief, General Services at Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
She is a certified Project Management Professional and a Gallup Certified Strengths Coach. She won the 2020 NAEP Volunteer of the Year Award for her efforts as Chair of the NAEP Education Committee from 2020-2021.
Casey works out of her home office in Florida.
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General Counsel
In this role, Aimee serves as E&I’s chief legal advisor, overseeing all legal aspects of the cooperative’s operations. Aimee helps to manage legal risks, ensuring regulatory compliance, and provides strategic legal guidance to the executive team and the Board of Directors. She works closely and collaboratively with external legal counsel to manage legal matters and represents E&I in industry associations, legal forums, and community engagements. In addition, Aimee assists with RFP and contract development, contract negotiations, dispute resolution, governance matters, and regulatory advocacy, ensuring the cooperative’s interests are protected while supporting its mission and goals.
Aimee joined E&I in May 2023 after ten years in the Office of the Vice President & General Counsel at Indiana University, most recently serving as Senior Associate General Counsel. Her primary areas of practice included student affairs, public safety, and athletics. She also helped monitor and ensure institutional compliance in a variety of areas, including Title IX and the Clery Act, and closely managed litigation with outside counsel. Over the course of her tenure at IU, Aimee advised a variety of university constituents, dedicating her efforts to providing practical and principled legal advice, while working collaboratively with key leaders and campus partners to help advance the mission and initiatives of the University.
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General Counsel
Senior Vice President, Innovation & Insights
Erin is the Senior Vice President, Innovation & Insights at E&I Cooperative Services. In this role, she is responsible for the Cooperative’s eProcurement initiatives, and our Strategic Spend Assessment (SSA) service. She also applies her expertise to sourcing analytics, benchmarking, and member pricing reviews, as well as bringing new innovative products to market.
Erin has over 20 years of supply chain experience in both public and private sectors. Prior to joining E&I, she was the Executive Director of Information, Analytics & Systems for Procurement Services at the University of California (UC) system. During her 10 years at UC, she established and executed strategic plans for systemwide procurement technology and procurement business intelligence functions. She also spearheaded the development of a systemwide savings program, including normalized definitions, processes, and software development which has captured $2 billion in savings since its inception.
In her spare time, Erin loves escaping to the mountains and spending time in the Napa Valley. You can usually find her working on a home improvement project and providing recommendations to her valued guests as an AirBnB Superhost.
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Senior Vice President, Innovation & Insights
