Mr. LaPan received his undergraduate degree in 1986 from
Franklin Pierce College in
Rindge, New Hampshire, where he was graduated with a B.S. degree in Business Management with High Honors, Summa Cum Laude. He was also Class Salutatorian. Upon completing his academic degree, he joined General Electric Company, and in 1988, graduated from its prestigious Financial Management Program. Subsequently, in 1993, Mr. LaPan received a M.S. degree in Organization/Human Resources Development from The American University in
Washington, D.C. and is a member of the PI Alpha Alpha Honorary Society. Mr LaPan graduated from the Mahler Program for Executives in December 1998.
From 1986-1994, Mr. LaPan had a series of financial positions of increasing responsibility within the General Electric Company. His positions included: several rotational finance positions in GE's Aircraft Engine Business Group (1986-1988); Manager - Financial Analysis and Administration, GE Industry Services Engineering (1988-1989); Manager - Finance, GE Power Delivery & Control (1989-1991); Manager - Competitive and Business Development, GE Appliances (1991-1993); and Manager - North American Financial Operations, GE Capital Auto Financial Services (1993-1994).
In August 1994, Mr. LaPan was appointed Senior Vice President and Chief Operating/Financial Officer of NBS Imaging Systems, Inc. and had responsibility for the day-to-day operations of the worldwide imaging business. In February 1996, Mr. LaPan was promoted to Vice President and General Manager, Operations for the $60 Million Card Personalization Systems Group of NBS Technologies Inc., and was responsible for the combined card technology/imaging business operations. Subsequently, in August 1996, Mr. LaPan was appointed President and CEO of NBS Imaging Systems, Inc. where he had total management and profit and loss responsibilities for worldwide advanced biometric identification solutions until its subsequent sale. In July 1998, Mr. LaPan was appointed to lead the newly formed subsidiary and the post-acquisition integration efforts of the combined Company, and ran the ID Ventures group. In October 2000, Mr. LaPan was appointed President/CEO of the Northeast Indiana Innovation Center, Inc.
Mr. LaPan is also active in social and civic organizations that promote self-sufficiency, education, and technology. He is the past Board Chair for the League for the Blind and Disabled, Inc. In addition, Mr. LaPan serves on the Board of Directors and is the Chair of the Strategic Planning Committee of Science Central, a Board member Physicians Health Plan of Northern Indiana (PHP) and a member of its Finance, Compensation, and Physician Reimbursement Committees, BioDuct, LLC, an innovative tissue engineering company, the Treasurer of the Chestnut Hills Community Association, and a member of Quest Club. He co-chaired the Crane Naval Surface Warfare Integration Committee, and he was also a board member of the Science Education Foundation, Inc - Indianapolis, The Entrepreneurial Institute, and Canterbury School Finance and Technology Committee.
He is the co-author of Creating Winning Business Plans, Author House © 2005 with Steve Franks and a frequent writer/columnist for the Greater Fort Wayne Business Weekly and Business People. In 2005, Mr. LaPan was named one of the top 10 Power Players in Technology in Northeast Indiana by the Fort Wayne Business Journal.
He is an associate faculty member in the MBA program at IPFW (School of Business and Management Sciences) and an Executive-in-Residence and Adjunct Faculty member in the MBA program at Taylor University. He also serves on the Taylor MBA Business Advisory Board, the University of St. Francis Keith Busse School of Business and Entrepreneurial Leadership Advisory Board, Manchester College President's Leadership Council and the ITT Technical Institute Advisory Board.