Oni Chukwu.

• Author: Heffes, Ellen M.
• Position: BalanceSHEET

After a stint at KPMG, Oni Chukwu's career has focused on working with rapidly-growing technology and software companies, specifically those with products and services with global reach and mass appeal. As CFO, working with venture capital and private equity firms and top tier-management teams, he's spearheaded the growth and eventual sale of three successful companies.

Name: Oni Chukwu

Title: CFO

Company: Netkey Inc., enterprise software for retail self-service

Born: Lagos, Nigeria, Nov. 29, 1964

Spouse: Leslie, for 16 years

Children: Tyler, 15; Elle, 9

Education Summary: MBA, University of New Haven, 1994; B.Sc., Nigeria Institute of Management & Technology (IMT), 1987.

Career Summary: KPMG Peat Marwick, Chartered Accountants, Kano, Nigeria, 1987-89; Towers Housing Corp., New Haven, Conn., 1989-94; Pinnacle Automation, Shelton, Conn., 1994-96; LexiB-ridge/Level 3, Shelton, Conn., and Denver, Colo., 1996-99; Healthcare Software Synergies (HSS) Inc., Hamden, Conn., 1999-2002; Eventra Inc., Trumbull, Conn., 2002-03; Netkey Inc., Branford, Conn., 2003-present.

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FEI Chapter: Connecticut/Westchester Chapter, member since 1997; currently chapter president.

Time Management: Avoid meetings and invest in good spam-management software.

Stress Management: Exercise is the ultimate stress eliminator for me. My day starts with a 7-mile run at 5 am and some weight training. After that, there is only very little stress that can immobilize me during the day.

Leisure: Running (training for my next marathon in the fall), time alone with my wife, skiing, soccer and traveling with my family through unbeaten paths of the world. We recently spent two weeks in the remote north of Guatemala (living with natives near the Mayan ruins in Tikal). Also, as a couture fashion designer for men's and women's clothing, I co-own two high-end fashion boutiques (Lordz Fashion House[R] and Lordz Soles[R]) in Connecticut, and am in the process of opening a third store in Los Angeles.

Recently-read Book: The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, by Dan Yergin. This book was strongly recommended to me in graduate school 14 years ago. It is top-shelf research and a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the interesting confluence of the economics and politics of oil, and especially today's escalating energy crisis. It's amazing how nothing has changed in over 100 years! I've also read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, at the insistence of my daughter, who...