CANTON -- A non-traditional SUNY Canton graduate who turned his lifetime of experience in the food and beverage industry into a multimillion-dollar consulting firm will share his entrepreneurial success strategies during an upcoming college presentation.

Douglas Zeif, the principal of Next! Hospitality Advisors and founder and president of The Concept Gurus, will be the first Excellence in Leadership Lecture Series speaker of the fall semester.

He will be presenting at 4 p.m. Monday, Sept. 11, in the college's Richard W. Miller Campus Center Room 212. The event is free and open to the public.

"Doug has experience throughout all levels of management," said Professor Dr. Charles R. Fenner, who teaches business at the college. "His knowledge focuses on fixing problems within the hospitality industry and making companies more efficient. His presentation will be especially useful for our entrepreneurial students and can benefit north country business owners."

Zeif is a true American success story and began his food service career as a grill cook at the age of 14. He held restaurant jobs throughout high school and his first years of college, and left his education to choose a career in restaurant management. He's traveled extensively throughout Europe, Asia, Australia and America honing his skills in the hospitality business and building a solid foundation on operations management.

His extensive resume includes serving as senior vice president for the Cheesecake Factory. He was partially responsible for developing the restaurant's universal appeal and was responsible for overseeing the company's explosive growth and development of the its product line.

Zeif returned to college at SUNY Canton and completed his bachelor's degree in the Management program in 2013. He now works as an adjunct instructor who teaches in the Business Administration program.

Next! Hospitality advisors provide profit improvement and concept development for hotels, resorts, restaurants and bars. The Concept Gurus is a highly successful global food and beverage agency specializing in bringing all genres of restaurants, bars and lounges to life by blending design with a sense of consumer behavior.

The SUNY Canton Excellence in Leadership Lecture series is presented by the SUNY Canton College Foundation. Upcoming presentations will include alumni from Accupac, Inc., and Baylor University.