About FranConnect

Gabby Wong is an accomplished industry veteran with over 25 years of experience in positioning SaaS businesses for high-growth, customer success, and product innovation. Gabby has held successive leadership roles within FranConnect, joining first as FranConnect’s EVP of Operations in 2016 and was promoted to CEO in 2018. Under her leadership, FranConnect has grown to be the leading SaaS provider of franchise management and growth solutions to the franchise market with over 300 employees globally and serving as the Sales, Operations, and Marketing backbone for over 1500 brands and 350,000 franchise units worldwide. Prior to FranConnect, Gabby held executive leadership positions with worldwide operating roles at successful DC and Mid-Atlantic-based private equity-backed ventures, including Primavera Systems (now Oracle), Trusted Computer Solutions (now ForcePoint), Vovici (now Verint Systems), and Clarabridge.

An entrepreneurial executive with experience across many industries including software, robotics, internet marketing, computer hardware, semiconductor, solar, food manufacturing, web retailing, and mail order.

Andy also has diverse operational experience from early stage start up to mature, publicly traded companies with some of the fastest growing and most recognized brands in the world including Hitachi, National Semiconductor, Netscape, Tellme Networks and MinuteKey.

As COO, Ian Walsh is responsible for Strategy and Commercialization, Professional Services, Customer Success and Partners at FranConnect. Ian is an accomplished B2B executive with a track record of driving results at companies including CEB/Gartner, Software AG, SAP, MicroStrategy and CARTO. He is passionate about fostering talent while achieving business objectives, and loves to implement data-driven strategies. He holds a Bachelor’s of Science in Business Administration from the University of North Carolina.

Keith has over 45 years of executive level expertise creating and building leading franchise systems. A highly respected thought leader, Keith works closely with many of FranConnect’s Customers’ Executive Teams. His books, webinars and keynote addresses have created a large following. His latest book, The Franchise Book of Mentors, was released in September 2019.

As CTO, Andrew Jackson is responsible for Product Architecture, Development and Deployment at FranConnect. Andrew has 30+ years’ experience leading global teams delivering highly scalable SaaS solutions for Telecoms, Media and Payments businesses. Prior to joining FranConnect, Andrew was CTO at Arterra Mobility; he has also held leadership positions at Synchronoss and Neustar. Andrew has an honors degree in Computer Science with Mathematics from the University of Bristol.

With 20 years of technology product leadership, Jaffrey utilizes lean start-up principles to create highly differentiated product offerings. His work with Red Herring 100 winning firms and Gartner Magic Quadrant leaders has resulted in top-tier VC funding. Jaffrey has a degree in Economics (University of Texas) and a master’s degree in international economics (University of North Carolina).

As SVP of Marketing, Lorena Garcia is responsible for the entire end-to-end marketing function at FranConnect, including driving growth through innovative and scalable practices in account-based marketing, lead generation, market analysis, customer segmentation, digital marketing, and brand stewardship. Lorena is an accomplished SaaS industry veteran with over 20 years of experience in developing strategic plans and innovative multi-channel marketing programs that build market presence, expand brand recognition, increase customer retention, and drive direct and channel revenue growth for enterprise SaaS companies.  Previously, Lorena led go-to-market teams and demand generation at technology companies including Level Access, Hobsons, Vonage and iCore Networks. Lorena’s exceptional track record of success building ROI-focused marketing programs has led her to be recognized as a Star CMO by DCA Live in 2020 and 2021. She holds a Bachelor’s of Science in Business Administration from the American University.

Paul Sharpe is a creative business and sales leader with demonstrated capability in transforming and building high-performing teams within the B2B Information Technology Services sector.  He has held senior leadership roles at Nexon, IBM, Samsung, and NTT Ltd, with extensive experience leading sales, product, and marketing teams.  As the General Manager of Australia/New Zealand (ANZ), Paul is responsible for all go-to-market activities for FranConnect in ANZ, including strategy, sales, customer success and the continued growth of all FranConnect product lines in ANZ. 

Stephanie Opoku is a dynamic HR leader with 15 years of experience creating and managing talent and people programs. Stephanie oversees the global people operations across multiple countries including the US, Canada, India, Australia, and Colombia. Over the last five years, Stephanie has led the notable journey of building a solid foundation that supports our hardworking employees. She has successfully built programs that improve employee engagement and efficiency to ensure that FranConnect is a company of choice for top talent. Prior to joining FranConnect, Stephanie started and spent most of her HR career working for a leading tax publisher. There, she grew tremendously in her career, progressing into higher-level roles throughout her 10-year tenure. She is a true “champion” both for the organization and the employees that she supports.

Stephanie has a bachelor’s degree in business management and a CP-SHRM Certification. When she is not building people-programs, she is cheering for her son on the soccer field. Her favorite place in the world is on the beach (any beach will work). She loves watching crime shows and playing Uno or other board games with her family.

Trevor Anthony is a trusted advisor to executives and board members, specializing in financial operations, planning, and forecasting in private equity backed software companies. As Chief of Staff, Trevor leads the detailed planning, cross-functional coordination, and management of key strategic initiatives. Previously, he was the Sr. Director of Finance and Chief of Staff at NetDocuments, where he led strategic planning, M&A activities, and FP&A. Prior to that, Trevor held various finance positions at Owlet Baby Care, Ivanti Software, and IndustryPro M&A Advisors. Trevor holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Management from Brigham Young University.