Dominic O'Dierno

Proactive Corporate Decision Making in the Middle of COVID-19

A successful entrepreneur and longtime Oregon resident, Dominic O’Dierno serves as the CEO of Amare, LLC. He offers consulting services to clients about strategic plan development and early-stage business. Dominic O’Dierno is interested in the challenges that businesses face since the beginning of the pandemic.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, many small business owners have suffered unanticipated challenges. In the middle of these challenges, entrepreneurs are faced with the need to strive for the continuous functioning of their business. Aside from keeping their business running, they are also responsible for protecting and reassuring their employees. Achieving this and dealing with uncertainty requires quick decision-making, which many entrepreneurs are not readily capable of due to analysis paralysis or the inability to make decisions as a result of overthinking.

With delayed decisions, corporations are exposed to more problems that more decisions can only address. One common misconception in this area is that some business managers and entrepreneurs believe any decision they make will determine the overall fate of their corporation, making them reluctant to jump into a decision in the middle of uncertainty. For the simple fact, however, decisions are never final and are subject to change. Ideally, entrepreneurs can prioritize corporation needs to make proactive decisions on urgent needs and build more confidence regarding their abilities to navigate through uncertainties.

NCMEC – Significance and History

A longtime resident of Portland, Oregon, Dominic O’Dierno serves as the CEO of Oregon-based Amare, LLC, which provides consulting services to clients in various industries. Outside his work, Dominic O’Dierno contributes to a number of charitable organizations, including the National Centers for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC).

A non-profit corporation, NCMEC serves to mitigate child sexual exploitation and victimization by finding and recovering missing children. The center works with private industry, law enforcement, families and victims, and the public to provide services that prevent, deter, and combat child exploitation. With the aid of law, continuous public awareness effort, training, and modern technology, NCMEC has helped get missing children to their respective families, including those missing for a long time.

In 1984, the center was founded to address the increasing child exploitation crisis. In 1998, NCMEC created CyberTipline, an online platform where public and electronic service providers report suspected child sexual exploitation incidents. At present, the CyberTipline has received millions of child abuse and exploitation reports.

Consumers Showed Desire to Splurge After COVID-19

An accomplished executive, Dominic O’Dierno serves as CEO of Amare, LLC, a Portland, Oregon-based consulting firm. He provides consulting services to companies and individuals seeking professional and strategic advice related to business development. Dominic O’Dierno is also interested in the impact of COVID-19 on businesses and how they overcome the challenges during the pandemic.

Since summer 2020, COVID-19 has accelerated discretionary spending and consumer expenses. Special categories of businesses that have been affected, such as apparel and cosmetics stores, are starting to recover from suppressed sales due to the crisis as consumer demands for these goods are slowly getting back to normal. While this is a sign of improvement in general public health, over 50 percent of United States consumers are still expected to incur extra expenses through splurging or treatment. Of the list, high-income millennials are on top.

Since roughly half of the consumers who intend to splurge are fatigued by the pandemic, aggregate monthly credit-card spend is on the path of recovery. Another group of consumers is waiting for the pandemic to resolve so that they can splurge. According to the result from the recent stimulus check in mid-March, consumers expressed intention to spend more as 2021 proceeds.

NCMEC Recommends Immediate Action to Find Missing Children

A successful financial services professional, Dominic O’Dierno holds a bachelor’s degree in finance and marketing from the University of Oregon. Dominic O’Dierno is a supporter of various non-profit organizations, including the National Centers for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC).

The United States’ comprehensive reporting center for matters related to recovery from and prevention of child victimization, NCMEC has over three decades of devotion to fighting against abuse, abduction, and exploitation of children. As recommended by the center, all parents or guardians with missing children should make an immediate phone call to inform their local law enforcement agency.

When they call law enforcement, they should provide relevant information pertinent to the missing child, such as the child’s name, height, date of birth, clothing, and other noticeable identifiers like braces and eyeglasses. They may also request the authorities to input the child’s identification information in the FBI National Crime Information Center Missing Person File.

Communicating Strategic Organizational Shifts to Investors

An experienced financial executive and entrepreneur, Dominic O’Dierno is the CEO of Amare Consulting, LLC, a consulting firm with clients in the real estate, identity enrollment, and human capital management industries. Through Amare, Dominic O’Dierno advises executives on matters such as financial modeling, strategic decision-making, and investor relations (IR).

IR is all about providing investors with accurate accounts of a company’s affairs, including its strategic initiatives. When it comes to communicating strategic initiatives with investors, C-suite executives should approach the issue candidly, prioritizing transparency and realism. They should communicate openly with investors, telling them why they are pursuing a strategy, how it will benefit the company and create value, who has ownership over the strategy, and how investors can measure the company’s progress (the tools and metrics to use).

Often, new strategies involve a shift in the company’s way of doing things. In such cases, executives should be transparent with their investors, giving context as to why the change is necessary and maintaining a realistic tone about the company’s ability to deliver consistent results through the new strategy. External industry-wide factors may affect the company’s ability to hit its targets, so executives must make accommodations for them in their investor presentations. They should map out realistic timelines within which they will execute their strategy, making provisions for external influences as well as adverse market reactions.

The key to successfully communicating strategic shifts to investors is openness. If there are tough questions to be answered, executives should not shy away from them. They should define issues expansively to investors and assure them that the company’s management has a plan to address them. This messaging should be consistent in all discussions with investors.

NCMEC’s Role in Distributing AMBER Alerts for Missing Children

An experienced corporate executive, Dominic O’Dierno is the CEO of Amare, LLC, a premier consulting firm based in Portland, Oregon. Outside his professional life, Dominic O’Dierno supports the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), an agency tasked by the U.S. Department of Justice to manage AMBER Alert secondary distributions.

Law enforcement agencies send out AMBER Alerts in the most alarming child abduction cases. The purpose of these alerts is to rally the community in searching for a child who has gone missing. AMBER Alerts are broadcast by television, radio, and road signs. These are the primary distribution tools available to law enforcement. Additional distribution paths (secondary distributions) are made available with the assistance of NCMEC. These include digital signage and Internet service provider broadcasts. NCMEC can also send broadcasts to hotel chains.

An AMBER Alert system is active in every state in the country as well as the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. NCMEC coordinates secondary AMBER Alert distributions in all the states and territories.

Tips for Founders to Raise Funding during COVID-19

A cum laude graduate of the University of Oregon in finance and marketing, Dominic O’Dierno has more than 23 years’ experience in finance and is the co-founder and former senior vice president of Eid Passport, Inc. Currently the CEO of Amare, LLC, a consulting firm, Dominic O’Dierno has helped raise more than $100 million in funding for early stage companies and continues to consult with startups on funding opportunities.

Here are some tips for startups looking for funding during the COVID-19 pandemic:

Exhaust government support

Governments around the world have implemented measures to provide emergency funding and support to businesses. They vary considerably in their forms, ranging from rent exemptions to covering part of employee salaries. Startups should tap into such resources to stay afloat.

Leverage existing networks for funding

Many investors have limited their funding of new businesses during the pandemic. For startups that already have traction in the market, founders can talk to their existing investors, suppliers, creditors, and even customers for financing. These people all have a vested interest in the success of the startup, so they may be willing to help.

Pitch to active investors online

Not all investors have tucked their check books away. Some are still investing in promising ventures. Startup founders can pitch active investors online and present their cases for funding through Zoom calls. This will require that they invest in good audio and video equipment as well as software tools to enable sharing elaborate pitches.

How Does the Amber Alert System Protect Children?

Amare CEO Dominic O’Dierno has a history of supporting causes involving child welfare and safety. Over the years, Dominic O’Dierno has advocated for the work of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, which uses the Amber Alert System as part of its protection services.

The Amber Alert System is a nationwide program managed by the U.S. Department of Justice used to notify the public of a dangerous situation involving a child. The system was first developed in 1996, after the abduction of a young girl in Texas. Since then, it has been adopted by all 50 states and more than two dozen countries. The system aids in the recovery of thousands of children every year.

To increase the likelihood that a kidnapped child will be found, the Amber Alert System sends identifiable information about the abductor over the radio, television, text message, and electronic billboard. Amber Alerts are issued if law enforcement believes that a minor has been abducted and is in grave danger. Since the system is integrated at the national level, alerts can be issued state or region-wide, which increases the likelihood that a child will be found.

A Look at Animal Welfare

Vet combing pekingese dog hair, doing cleansing procedures in veterinary clinic

Holding a BS in finance and marketing from the University of Oregon in Eugene, Dominic O’Dierno is the CEO of Amare, a consulting firm in Portland. Dominic O’Dierno has made charitable donations to various organizations including Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA), and he also supports animal welfare causes.

In its entirety, ensuring the welfare of animals under a person or group’s care is a human responsibility that encompasses all crucial considerations regarding the well-being of an animal such as nutrition, disease prevention and treatment, proper housing and management, humane handling and responsible care, and humane euthanasia (when necessary). Essentially, good animal welfare can be pointed out easily in animals – these expressions include comfort, safety, healthiness, and manifestation of innate behavior. Since animal welfare practice also includes on-time disease prevention and veterinary treatment when appropriate, well cared for animals are less likely to find themselves in unpleasant states like pain and distress.

Animal welfare practice protocols are created by balancing professional judgment and scientific knowledge with societal values and ethical considerations. The goal of these protocols is to guarantee a good life for every animal. While animal welfare is sometimes confused with animal rights, the two are different. The goal of animal welfare is to promote the responsible and humane use of animals, while animal rights typically promote the prohibition of any use of animals, regardless of the way they are treated.

Some Healthy Human Foods for Dogs

A member of the Mortar Board, Dominic O’Dierno serves as CEO of Amare. Outside of his professional activities at the consulting firm, Dominic O’Dierno is passionate about dogs and their health and nutrition.

While there are many brands that manufacture edible products for dogs, some dog owners are concerned about highly processed pellets that can increase the chances of cancer or obesity. The following are some of the healthy human foods that can provide health benefits to dogs when included in their diets:

1. Carrot – While chewing on this veggie alone can help remove plaques from pet’s teeth, carrot also contains a sufficient amount of fiber that will help prevent runny stool. In addition, carrots contain beta-carotene, the precursor to vitamin A which improves a dog’s eyesight in the same way it does to humans.

2. Green Bea – Perfect for obese dogs, green beans help reduce excess weight and contain vitamin A, C, and K that serve important roles in the eyes, blood, and immune system. Green beans must be prepared and served alone with no additives or spices.

3. Egg – Egg aids in tissue repair, strengthens fur and also helps build muscle. The shell also contains calcium (which fortifies bone and teeth) and can be given to dogs after the egg has been boiled and the shell ground.