Ben McMakin has been a member of Savannah SCORE since July 2007. He has advised numerous start-up ventures as well as existing businesses in the Savannah area. Mr. McMakin’s primary areas of expertise are financial accountability and governmental regulatory compliance.
Following Mr. McMakin’s formal education, he was a Special Agent for 27 years with the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division serving a variety of positions in Atlanta, Nashville, Parkersburg, West Virginia and Detroit. As a Special Agent, Mr. McMakin conducted or supervised a wide range of white collar financial fraud investigations, mainly focusing on individuals involved in illegal activities, including organized crime, political corruption, narcotics and money laundering.
In 1997, Mr. McMakin retired from the IRS and accepted a position as Deputy Director of the Michigan Gaming Control Board, Lansing, Michigan, a state agency tasked to regulate three Las Vegas style casinos in Detroit. In this position, Mr. McMakin was responsible for conducting the background and due diligence investigations on all casino owners, suppliers and financiers, as well as making licensing suitability recommendations on all individuals and entities involved in the Detroit gaming industry.
Upon retirement from the Michigan Gaming Control Board in December 2006, Mr. McMakin established a consulting practice in the areas of regulatory compliance and financial investigations.
In addition, Mr. McMakin has served for 20 years as Secretary/Treasurer of a family owned small business corporation involved in the advertising and specialty promotions industry. This experience in operating a small business has given Mr. McMakin considerable insight into the problems facing the small business owner.
Mr. McMakin is a graduate of East Carolina University’s Scholl of Business Administration.