Professor Isil Erel, Academic Director

Dr. Isil Erel, Distinguished Professor of Finance at Fisher College of Business, holds a Ph.D. in financial economics from MIT Sloan School of Management. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in economics and business administration from Koç University, Turkey. Her research spans a variety of areas within corporate finance, with particular emphasis on mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance and banking. This research has been published in leading academic sources such as the Journal of Finance, Journal of Financial Economics and Review of Financial Studies. A leader in her field of scholarship, Dr. Erel is the 2010 recipient of the Pace Setters Faculty Research Award and the 2015 recipient of the Distinguished Faculty Award at Fisher College of Business. She also received the Distinguished Referee Award from the Review of Financial Studies in 2012. She has been a Fisher Research Fellow (since 2011) and a National Center for the Middle Market Research Fellow (since 2012). In addition to assuming her role as academic director of The Risk Institute, Dr. Erel will continue to conduct high-impact research in her fields of interest and teach Financial Institutions in both MBA and undergraduate programs at Fisher. 

Philip S. Renaud II, MS, CPCU, Executive Director

Renaud joins The Risk Institute from Risk International, where he served as a managing director and led the Columbus offices. With over 25 years of experience creating and managing several large multilocation, international risk management departments, he brings extensive expertise in the practice of risk management, direct insurance, and safety and health. In addition to his position at Risk International, Renaud managed risk programs at Deutsche Post/DHL (Supply Chain), Kmart Corporation, Limited Brands, Inc. (L Brands) and, prior to that, SCOA Industries Inc. (Shoe Corporations of America). He is a regular speaker at various national, regional and local risk management forums. He also serves on the Board of Directors for the National Kidney Foundation of Ohio, Kentucky, Middle and Eastern Tennessee and board chairman for Central Ohio. In addition, Renaud serves on the Board for the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana and on the Foundation Board for the Knox Community Hospital in Knox County, Ohio.

Whitney Wittmann, Program Manager

Whitney Wittmann is Program Manager at The Risk Institute at The Ohio State University Fisher College of Business.  Prior to working at The Risk Institute, she worked for Wendy's Corporation building a cohesive brand image and consistent, clear communication between franchisees, customers, and corporate headquarters.  Before becoming a Buckeye, Whitney worked her way through the ranks at Moxie, moving from Intern Coordinator to Senior Account Executive. She earned her degree in Strategic Communication, Marketing, Economics from Miami University in 2009.

Sarah Cox, Communications Manager 

Sarah Cox is the Communications Manager at The Risk Institute at The Ohio State University Fisher College of Business. Prior to joining the Institute, she served as Ohio Christian University’s Communications and Marketing Director, managing all internal and external communications, fostering positive relationships between the school and the public, and developing clear strategies for growing the public face of the university. She previously served as the Assistant Director at Camp Otterbein in Logan, Ohio.  Sarah earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in English from The Ohio State University. 

Averie Kenney, Graduate Assistant 

Averie Kenney is a Full-Time MBA candidate at the Fisher College of Business and a Graduate Research Assistant at The Risk Institute. 

Prior to Fisher, she spent 5 years with J.P. Morgan. Averie joined the company as a summer intern in WSS Client Services. Upon graduation from Miami University, she joined the Corporate Analyst Development Program (CADP) as a cross-line-of-business rotational analyst. Through the program Averie spent time in Mortgage Bank Risk, Investment Bank Public Finance Middle Office trade support, Asset Management Strategy and Process Improvement, and Commercial Bank Business Operations.  Post the program, Averie returned to the Strategy and Process Improvement team where she worked to design a centralized portfolio implementation team and then transitioned to the new function to help with implementation and change management.