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The Board of Directors of the Coalition for Financial Investment, Inc. (CFI) is a mosaic of different profiles and expertise that reflects the philanthropic and venture-funding facets of CFI. Senior counsel in philanthropy and non-profit management, local and successful business people, experienced private investors and specialty financiers ensure CFI’s good governance as it implements its mission, every day, on the field. John C. Whaley  John Whaley, along with Pierre Mainguy, CFI’s Executive Director, is the founder of the Coalition for Financial Independence. He has been involved in various charitable causes in Cambodia since 2005 when he started to give and raise money from friends for the work in the villages near Siem Reap conducted by Shinta Mani.
John was born and raised in Michigan, spent time in Minnesota and now resides in Southern California. He has spent most of his professional life as a consultant helping not-for-profit organizations with planning, organizational issues and fundraising.
Before entering consulting, John served as Vice President and Chief Development Officer for the University of Minnesota Foundation. There he developed the concept for the Hubert Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs at the University and headed the drive to secure the capital funding for a new building.John began his consulting career in 1983. and he has led consulting engagements for many prestigious organizations and important projects, including the Statue of Liberty - Ellis Island campaign. Additionally, he has worked with clients such as the San Francisco Opera, American University in Cairo (Cairo, Egypt), the Grand Canyon National Park Foundation and University of Massachusetts. He has served on the governing boards of several not-for-profit organizations; most recently he served as chairman of the Board of the California Philharmonic in Pasadena, California. The inspiration for CFI came from his involvement with Shinta Mani and their work to change the lives of impoverished families by giving them the means to become self sufficient. As Chairman of the CFI Board, John will be spending six weeks a year in Cambodia actively working with staff on various issues. Dr. Kevin J. Scanlon  Founder and CEO
International BioScience
Dr. Kevin J. Scanlon has thirty years of experience and expertise enhancing the relationships among the Life Science Community. Currently, he is mentoring and supporting entrepreneurs through the venture capital community as a member of the Pasadena Angels and the Tech Coast Angels of Los Angeles. These organizations support entrepreneurs with seed round investments for their novel technology. Dr. Scanlon’s background includes: academic medicine, pharmaceutical industry management and a faculty educator for graduate students combining science and business. During his unique career, he has facilitated scientific concepts through the pharmaceutical pipeline into medical products. Also, he has authored over 115 original scientific articles, has seven US issued patents, was a lead investigator on government and foundation grants and has been a member of federal grant review committees. As a Pharmaceutical Industry-Vice President, he was responsible for an international cancer research program in the US, Europe and Asia.
As an educator for graduate students, he has developed a course combining creative science with business strategies to enhance the understanding of the Biotechnology Industry. He has been a guest lecture in the Entrepreneurial Programs of several national and international universities. He has been consulting for international governments in Europe and Asia that are developing Centers of Excellence in Bioscience. Victoria Warren  After a successful career in corporate finance, Victoria Warren has spent the last six years as an independent consultant specializing in financial analysis and business management projects. Victoria manages due diligence, financial analysis, accounting, and client communications for two private equity funds at the Stonnington Group. In addition to her responsibilities with the Stonnington funds, she currently manages finance, facilities, and information systems for a small corporate communications company and is a consultant for Babystyle, an apparel retailer, where she manages store payroll analysis and does other financial analysis projects. Prior to starting her consulting business, Victoria managed budgeting and cost estimating for Environmental Industries / Valley Crest, managed construction funding and financing at the University of California, Los Angeles, and managed financial planning and analysis in the retail industry, where she was Manager of Planning and Analysis at Kids Mart and Contempo Casuals.Victoria started her career as a Research Analyst at William O’Neil and Company, publisher of Investor’s Business Daily newspaper.
Victoria has an MBA in Finance from the University of Southern California, where she was on the Dean’s List and received a fellowship based on academic merit. Victoria also has a BA in Mathematical Economics from Pomona College, where she graduated with Cum Laude honors and won the Lorne D. Cooke award for academic achievement in Economics. Chitra Vincent A seasoned tourism industry veteran in Asia, Chitra, a Sri Lankan, joined the Board of Directors of CFI in June 2008 in order to bring the organization insights and counsel on local communities and our Community Based Businesses. Chitra is currently the General Manager of the Shinta Mani Hotel in Siem Reap, Cambodia – a leading responsible tourism and SPA resort hotel in the region. There, she was initially in charge of the Hotel’s Institute of Hospitality which provides valuable training to locals. She was essential in creating much of the course of the curriculum and oversaw the operations and finances of the students and the school. Chitra has previously worked in the Maldives in management positions within the retail and tourism industry. She became Shinta Mani’s General Manager in 2007 and thus became responsible for the total hotel operation while still keeping her hands very much involved with the Institute and the Hotel’s numerous Community Based Activities (CBA). Chitra studied at the University of India in Madras. There, the course of her studies focused on sociology, psychology, rural development and urban planning. Her experience with the communities and the responsible tourism have greatly contributed to making CFI a reality on the field and also opened new perspectives for the organization. Since Chitra’s involvement with our organization and the Shinta Mani Hotel have been working in close collaboration in order to better serve the forgotten communities around the Angkor Region.
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