From 2007 to 2016, Michael served as non-executive chairman of the board of healthcare services and logistics company AA International, the parent company of Asia Assistance, based in Kuala Lumpur, with operations in eight other countries throughout the Asia-Pacific region. After the sale of five of the operating entities to French insurance giant AXA in 2016, Michael was appointed as chairman of the board of the remaining independent companies, including AA International Indonesia, a healthcare and insurance services provider based in Jakarta.
In 2016 Michael was elected chairman of the supervisory board of the Paris-based International Assistance Group S.A.S. (IAG). IAG is a global consortium of 150+ independent companies with a combined staff of more than 7,500 that provide medical and security services on five continents. The IAG board has nine members from nine different countries. After his two-year term concluded in October of 2018, Michael was asked to continue to serve on the board’s executive committee. He stepped down in October of 2019 after 10 years of service on IAG’s supervisory board.
Since January of 2011, Michael has served as one of four independent directors on the board of Commonwealth Trust Company, Delaware’s largest non-deposit trust company with more than $15 billion in assets under administration.
In addition to his board service, over the past eleven years as CEO of Global Kompass Strategies, Michael has served as an advisor to corporations and government clients in the United States, Europe, and Asia. He works closely with CEOs and senior leadership teams on business development, cybersecurity oversight and strategic planning. He also advises boards of directors and audit committees on effective risk management measures, corporate governance, global expansion efforts, and emerging digital technology issues.
Michael gained extensive expertise in the areas of risk management, corporate governance, and the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act when former FBI Director Louis Freeh asked him to serve as President of his global risk management firm, Freeh Group International Solutions, in early 2008. Applying his entrepreneurial and international business experience, Michael was integral in developing the firm’s early business relationships and engagements with several Fortune 500© and Global 500© corporations. He also assisted with the group's strategy and business development efforts in Europe.
Michael grew up in Berlin and emigrated to the United States soon after witnessing the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. He had the opportunity to lead a fast-growing technology company before being recruited to lead a new start-up venture in late 1999. Michael served for seven years as co-founder and chief executive of the health services company MediGuide and led its business development initiatives in the United States, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region.
Michael holds a Master’s degree from the University of Virginia and a Bachelor’s degree from the University of New England. He is a member of the Young Presidents’ Organization and the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association. He earned the CERT Cybersecurity Oversight certificate from the Software Engineering Institute at Carnegie Mellon University and NACD in 2017.
Following his personal passions, Michael currently serves as Chair of the Board of the American Cancer Society and, in 2020 and 2021 co-chaired the national search that led to the first woman becoming CEO of this 107-year-old organization. From 2005 to 2014 he served on the board of the Delaware Theatre Company, including four years as chairman.
To mark our show’s 10th anniversary this month, on this episode, Michael shares 10 things we should know about cancer.
Michael is just one of the engaging personalities featured on The One Way Ticket Show, where Host Steven Shalowitz explores with his guests where they would go if given a one way ticket, no coming back. Their destinations may be in the past, present, future, real, imaginary or a state of mind.
Steven's guests have included: Nobel Peace Prize Winner, President Jose Ramos-Horta; Legendary Talk Show Host, Dick Cavett; Law Professor, Alan Dershowitz; Fashion Expert, Tim Gunn; Broadcast Legend, Charles Osgood; International Rescue Committee President & CEO, David Miliband; Former Senator, Joe Lieberman; Playwright, David Henry Hwang; Journalist-Humorist-Actor, Mo Rocca; SkyBridge Capital Founder & Co-Managing Partner, Anthony Scaramucci; Abercrombie & Kent Founder, Geoffrey Kent; Travel Expert, Pauline Frommer, as well as leading photographers, artists, chefs, writers, intellectuals, etc.
Mitchell Davis is founder of the consultancy Kitchen Sense, LLC, a laboratory for creative food content and innovative approaches to food-system issues. Throughout his long career in the food world, Mitchell has been “a central figure behind the scenes helping to start, analyze and oversee trends, developing the next generation of talent,” according to chef and media personality David Chang.
While at the James Beard Foundation for almost 27 years, most recently as Chief Strategy Officer, Mitchell created and oversaw many of the Foundation’s most impactful initiatives, including the annual JBF Food Summit, a national dialogue of thought leaders on sustainability and public health, the JBF Chefs Boot Camp for Policy and Change, an advocacy training program for culinary professionals, and the JBF Women’s Entrepreneurial Leadership program, intended to correct the gender imbalance in leadership in the restaurant industry.
Working with artist Mattia Casalegno and the team at Unapologetic Foods, Davis co-produced Aeorobanquets RMX, the world’s first fully immersive, mixed-reality dining experience that was installed in the James Beard House for a sold-out, three-month run in 2019. The Washington Post called Aerobanquets “the future of restaurants.” In 2013, Davis led the team that was selected by the U.S. Department of State to create the USA Pavilion at Expo Milano 2015—the first world’s fair since 1862 focusing on food—for which he received visits and commendations from U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and First Lady Michelle Obama.
Davis has a Ph.D. in Food Studies from New York University. He has been a curriculum advisor to and/or guest lecturer at the Florence University for the Arts and their Apicius International School of Hospitality, the Cornell School of Hotel Administration, the Rosen College of Hospitality Management, the Institute for Culinary Education, The French Culinary Institute, and the Italian Culinary Institute for Foreigners.
He frequently writes about food and restaurants, and has a weekly Substack newsletter on home-cooking. For more than a decade he held a chair on the Academy of the London-based World’s 50 Best Restaurants. He has written several cookbooks, including the ground-breaking electronic book My Provence (Alta Editions) with Michelin three-star chef Laurent Gras, which won the IACP’s “Judges’ Choice” award in 2013, and Kitchen Sense (Clarkson Potter, 2006).
In 2013, The Forward selected Davis as one of the 50 most influential Jews under 50 in America. In 2017 epicurious.com included Davis on their list of the “100 Greatest Home Cooks of All Time.” For his contributions to the ever-changing food landscape and his tenure as host of more than 125 episodes of the popular podcast Taste Matters, in 2019 Heritage Radio Network inducted Davis into their Hall of Fame.
Most recently, Mitchell began hosting the “What’s Burning” podcast, a podcast of the Galilee Culinary Institute.
On this episode, Mitchell shares his one way ticket to the famed 3 star Michelin restaurant, La Pyramide, in Vienne France, sometime in the late 1940s or early 1950s. He also offers his list of “10 Memorable Meals” to mark our show’s 10th anniversary this year. Plus, Mitchell highlights “What’s Burning”, the podcast of the Galilee Culinary Institute which is set to open in early 2023 in Israel’s Upper Eastern Galilee.
Mitchell is just one of the engaging personalities featured on The One Way Ticket Show, where Host Steven Shalowitz explores with his guests where they would go if given a one way ticket, no coming back. Their destinations may be in the past, present, future, real, imaginary or a state of mind.
Steven's guests have included: Nobel Peace Prize Winner, President Jose Ramos-Horta; Legendary Talk Show Host, Dick Cavett; Law Professor, Alan Dershowitz; Fashion Expert, Tim Gunn; Broadcast Legend, Charles Osgood; International Rescue Committee President & CEO, David Miliband; Former Senator, Joe Lieberman; Playwright, David Henry Hwang; Journalist-Humorist-Actor, Mo Rocca; SkyBridge Capital Founder & Co-Managing Partner, Anthony Scaramucci; Abercrombie & Kent Founder, Geoffrey Kent; Travel Expert, Pauline Frommer, as well as leading photographers, artists, chefs, writers, intellectuals, etc.
Annie Fitzsimmons is a travel creative and editor and has worked in the travel industry for more than 16 years, traveling to six continents and reporting on destinations, people, culture, hotels, restaurants, and more through numerous content platforms.
Annie is currently writing and researching her book for National Geographic and Disney Publishing, “Hotels of a Lifetime," to be published in 2024.
Most recently, she worked as Luxury Travel + Advisor Editor for AFAR Media, also hosting AFAR Live and Live from AFAR.
Prior to AFAR, she was an editor at Virtuoso - one of the industry's leading networks for travel advisors - and held many roles at National Geographic over nine years, as their first and only Urban Insider, traveling the world and reporting on cities, culture, and lifestyle as their major female brand voice. She was a founding member of their Editorial Council, as well as spokesperson and foreword writer for two NatGeo books, The World’s Best Cities and The World’s Most Romantic Destinations.
Annie has been a keynote speaker and panelist on travel trends, media, and content at events around the world, including SXSW in Austin, World Travel Market in London, the International Tourism Conference in Latvia (sponsored by the U.S. Embassy in Riga), the Hospitality World Congress in Barcelona, and ILTM Americas in Mexico.
She is based in west London with her family, after living in her beloved NYC for more than a decade. She has been a licensed NYC tour guide since 2008.
On this episode, Annie shares her one way ticket to Switzerland. Plus, in the run-up to The One Way Ticket Show’s 10th anniversary in March, Annie spotlights 10 “If these walls could talk” hotels for us to enjoy and highlights what makes them so special.
Annie is just one of the engaging personalities featured on The One Way Ticket Show, where Host Steven Shalowitz explores with his guests where they would go if given a one way ticket, no coming back. Their destinations may be in the past, present, future, real, imaginary or a state of mind.
Steven's guests have included: Nobel Peace Prize Winner, President Jose Ramos-Horta; Legendary Talk Show Host, Dick Cavett; Law Professor, Alan Dershowitz; Fashion Expert, Tim Gunn; Broadcast Legend, Charles Osgood; International Rescue Committee President & CEO, David Miliband; Former Senator, Joe Lieberman; Playwright, David Henry Hwang; Journalist-Humorist-Actor, Mo Rocca; SkyBridge Capital Founder & Co-Managing Partner, Anthony Scaramucci; Abercrombie & Kent Founder, Geoffrey Kent; Travel Expert, Pauline Frommer, as well as leading photographers, artists, chefs, writers, intellectuals, etc.
Joe Diaz is the co-founder of AFAR, the leading media brand for and by travelers who care. Founded by Joe and Greg Sullivan in 2009, AFAR inspires, guides, and empowers travelers to have enriching experiences that make a positive impact on the world. Through its flagship magazine, AFAR, its digital platform, afar.com, its non-profit foundation, Learning Afar, and its deep commitment to sustainability as a public benefit company, AFAR fulfills its mission by enriching the lives of travelers, directly supporting and contributing to the communities visited, and minimizing the negative effects on our planet.
AFAR is currently the third fastest growing media company (+2.5MM MUV’s) with the third most affluent audience (median HH Net Worth $1.1MM) in all of measured media, according to IPSOS.
Check out afar.com and sign up for AFAR’s newsletters.
On this episode, Joe shares his one way ticket to "travel as a force for good". He also highlights AFAR's origins and offerings, how taxi drivers are a portal to spontaneity and surprise, and how it's not about the number of countries you've been to - but the number of kitchen tables you've sat at in those countries.
Joe is just one of the engaging personalities featured on The One Way Ticket Show, where Host Steven Shalowitz explores with his guests where they would go if given a one way ticket, no coming back. Their destinations may be in the past, present, future, real, imaginary or a state of mind.
Steven's guests have included: Nobel Peace Prize Winner, President Jose Ramos-Horta; Legendary Talk Show Host, Dick Cavett; Law Professor, Alan Dershowitz; Fashion Expert, Tim Gunn; Broadcast Legend, Charles Osgood; International Rescue Committee President & CEO, David Miliband; Former Senator, Joe Lieberman; Playwright, David Henry Hwang; Journalist-Humorist-Actor, Mo Rocca; SkyBridge Capital Founder & Co-Managing Partner, Anthony Scaramucci; Abercrombie & Kent Founder, Geoffrey Kent; Travel Expert, Pauline Frommer, as well as leading photographers, artists, chefs, writers, intellectuals, etc.
Matthew Glover is a business activist focused on removing animals from the food system. He’s currently working on three main projects.
Veganuary - Alongside his wife Jane Land, they came up with the idea and launched in January 2014. The campaign has grown from 3,300 in the first year to nearly 600,000 people signing up to the website in January 2021. Both Matthew and Jane now serve as trustees on the Board, and provide advice to the growing team of vegan change-makers.
Veg Capital - Providing early-stage capital to companies striving to replace the use of animals in the food system. Veg Capital is a specialist private venture fund that primarily provides early-stage Angel, Seed, and Series A funding, with investments typically ranging from £100,000 to £250,000. It invests primarily in companies developing meat, dairy, eggs and seafood replacements with plant-based ingredients. Feel free to send Veg Capital a pitch deck at: https://app.zapflow.com/webentry/vegcapital
VFC® - Building a Vegan Fried Chick*n brand, as chickens are the most abused land animals on the planet. Activism lies at the heart of VFC’s mission which has set its sights on becoming a global food company.
On this episode, Matthew shares his one way ticket to a vegan world. He also talks “speciesism”, the origins and mission of Veganuary, his outrageously delicious VFC®, and more.
Matthew is just one of the engaging personalities featured on The One Way Ticket Show, where Host Steven Shalowitz explores with his guests where they would go if given a one way ticket, no coming back. Their destinations may be in the past, present, future, real, imaginary or a state of mind.
Steven's guests have included: Nobel Peace Prize Winner, President Jose Ramos-Horta; Legendary Talk Show Host, Dick Cavett; Law Professor, Alan Dershowitz; Fashion Expert, Tim Gunn; Broadcast Legend, Charles Osgood; International Rescue Committee President & CEO, David Miliband; Former Senator, Joe Lieberman; Playwright, David Henry Hwang; Journalist-Humorist-Actor, Mo Rocca; SkyBridge Capital Founder & Co-Managing Partner, Anthony Scaramucci; Abercrombie & Kent Founder, Geoffrey Kent; Travel Expert, Pauline Frommer, as well as leading photographers, artists, chefs, writers, intellectuals, etc.