Executive Management

Mark D. Gordon is an entrepreneur with a keen ability to build companies and lead them to realizing their true potential for success. He orchestrated Odyssey’s pivot from shipwreck exploration to subsea mineral resources by recognizing the opportunity to apply Odyssey’s core competencies in a more productive manner, selecting diverse and strategic key mineral resource targets for the Odyssey portfolio and securing the funding necessary for the company to achieve success in this new endeavor.

Mr. Gordon was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Odyssey Marine Exploration in 2014 and Chairman of the Board in 2019. Mr. Gordon also served as the company's President from 2007-2019 and on Odyssey's Board of Directors since January 2008. He joined Odyssey in 2005 as an independent consultant before serving as Director, Business Development and Executive Vice President of Sales and Business Development, where he was responsible for the Attraction, Business Development and Retail Merchandising operations for the Company.

Prior to joining Odyssey, Mr. Gordon started, owned or managed four different entrepreneurial ventures from 1987 to 2003, including Synergy Networks which he founded in 1993 and served as CEO until September of 2003 before selling the company to the Rockefeller Group. He continued serving as President of Rockefeller Group Technology Services Mid Atlantic (RGTSMA), a member of Rockefeller Group International, until December 2004. Past work experience also includes a two-year tenure as a Management Consultant at Arthur Andersen Consulting (now Accenture).

Mr. Gordon received a B.S./Business Administration in 1982 and an MBA in Finance in 1983 from the American University. As a shipwreck diver with the National Diving Center in Washington DC, he has conducted hundreds of dives and explorations on shipwrecks and was the first person to discover and dive on the wreck of the S.S. Proteus, a ship that had been missing since the early 1900s.

Mr. Gordon is also a board member for Marine Applied Research and Exploration, a non-profit focused on working collaboratively with state and federal agencies, academic institutions, and other NGOs, deploying a robotic fleet to explore and document deep-water ecosystems in support of their conservation and management.

John D. Longley was appointed Chief Operating Officer in October 2014 and became President of the company in 2019. Previously, Mr. Longley served as Senior Vice President since 2012 and Director of Business Operations since 2005 when he joined the company. With over 25 years of marketing and business strategy experience, he has been integral in growing the company’s business opportunities including its attractions, the monetization of valuable shipwreck finds and exploring new deep-ocean opportunities that utilize Odyssey’s core competencies.

Mr. Longley has an instrumental role in executing major marketing programs and projects at Odyssey. Following the Gairsoppa silver recovery operations that took place in 2012 and 2013, Mr. Longley led the program to monetize the 110 tons of shipwreck silver bullion, which constituted the world’s largest precious metals recovery from a shipwreck in history at the time of recovery. Odyssey’s first major shipwreck discovery was in 2003 when the company located the greatest treasure of the Civil War-era and recovered over 51,000 gold and silver coins along with 14,000 artifacts. Mr. Longley has orchestrated the development of Odyssey’s global distribution network for shipwreck coins and collectibles, which reached millions of shipwreck collectible buyers. Mr. Longley previously directed Odyssey’s traveling exhibit SHIPWRECK! which toured through 13 North American cities since 2005.

Prior to joining Odyssey, Mr. Longley served as Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Public Imagery from 2003 to 2005 and Director of Retail Marketing for Office Depot North American stores from 1998 to 2003. Mr. Longley graduated with a Bachelors of Science degree in Communications with a specialty in Advertising from Florida State University in 1989.

Christopher E. Jones is an investment strategy professional with over 20 years of experience concentrated in international business development, finance, sell-side and buy-side investment banking, investor relations, and operational finance. He also has experience as a consumer analyst with over 15 years covering the consumer discretionary sector. Mr. Jones joined Odyssey in 2021 as the Chief Financial Officer.

As CFO, Mr. Jones directs the company’s overall finance function and provides specialized focus in financial negotiations, financial analysis and modeling, funding transactions, business/financial reporting and investor relations. He ensures Odyssey’s capital structure is optimized so that the team can execute mineral resource projects in a financially feasible and socially and environmentally responsible manner.

Prior to joining Odyssey, Mr. Jones was Vice President of Corporate Finance and Development at Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment since 2017 where he led International Financial Development and Investor Relations; Managing Director, Equity Research - Gaming, Lodging & Leisure at Buckingham Research Group from 2016-2017; Managing Director, Equity Research - Americas Gaming at Union Gaming from 2014-2016; and Managing Director, Equity Research – Gaming, Lodging & Leisure at Telsey Advisory Group from 2008-2014. He has also held positions at Oppenheimer & Company, Merrill Lynch and Lehman Brothers.

Mr. Jones earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Accounting & Finance from Boston University and possesses Series 7 NYSE/NASD General Rep, Series 63 State Regulatory Requirements, Series 86 & 87 Analyst certifications.

Laura L. Barton leads strategic and business operations initiatives at Odyssey, working closely with the company’s CEO. A communicator at heart, she directs and manages efforts to ensure the proper internal business services are in place to support the execution of Odyssey’s mineral resource project development and portfolio building plans. Ms. Barton bridges all Odyssey departments to facilitate alignment and progress toward the company’s strategic goals including increasing the company’s subsea mineral portfolio value and optimizing business operations.

Ms. Barton also serves as a member of the Board of Directors since 2019 and as Corporate Secretary since 2015. Prior to taking on her current role in 2021, Ms. Barton was a member of the Executive Management team as Executive Vice President and Director of Communications since 2012. Previously, Ms. Barton served as Vice President of Communications from 2007 to 2012 and Director of Corporate Communications and Marketing from 2003 to 2007.

With over 35 years of business experience including more than 20 years at Odyssey, Ms. Barton has extensive strategic planning, corporate governance, business analysis, management, investor relations, marketing, media, and content development experience. Under her leadership, Odyssey’s commercial success has been underscored through the development of global public relations, community and educational programs to demonstrate that Odyssey’s projects are not only monetarily valuable but is also beneficial to society both locally and internationally.

From 1994 to 2003, she was President of LLB Communications, a marketing and communications consulting company that served a variety of broadcast networks, stations, and distributors as well as Odyssey. Mrs. Barton also taught as an adjunct instructor at the University of South Florida. Prior to founding LLB Communications, Mrs. Barton served in various management, marketing, publicity, and creative services positions in local and network television. Mrs. Barton earned a B.A. degree in Mass Communications from the University of South Florida.

Jay A. Nudi is a Certified Public Accountant who brings over 35 years of financial reporting, accounting, and finance experience to the Odyssey team.

Mr. Nudi was appointed Chief Financial Officer in 2017 after serving as Interim Chief Financial Officer since June 2016. He has served as Treasurer since 2010 and as Principal Accounting Officer of the Company since January 2006. Mr. Nudi joined the Company in May 2005 in the Corporate Controller capacity.

Prior to joining the Company, he served as Controller for The Axis Group in Atlanta since 2003. From 2001 to 2003, he served as an operational and financial accounting consultant to various companies on specific value-added corporate projects. From 2000 to 2001, Mr. Nudi was Director of Financial Reporting for OneSource, Inc., a leading $1.0 billion provider of facilities management. From 1997 to 2000, he served as Corporate Controller for Acsys, Inc., a $100.0 million national recruiting firm that was publicly held until it was acquired in 2000. Mr. Nudi received a B.S. degree in Accounting from Penn State University in 1985.

John M. Oppermann leads the research and scientific teams in expanding and overseeing Odyssey’s diverse mineral resource portfolio. Together with these key departments and various consultants, he manages the efforts to identify key strategic resources, advise on environmental issues and mitigation strategies and orchestrates the development of the key components necessary to apply for mineral rights in various jurisdictions.

Mr. Oppermann is Odyssey’s Vice President and Director of Research and Scientific Services in 2013. He joined the company as the Director of Archaeology, Research and Conservation in 2005. During Odyssey’s shipwreck exploration years, Mr. Oppermann led the development of the company’s methodology for research and target selection thus building the company’s extensive target database that resulted in some of the biggest shipwreck discoveries in history. Mr. Oppermann also directed the archaeological, publications and conservation teams which demonstrate the company’s best-in-class work through documentation and exhibition.

Now that the company has shifted its focus to mineral resource exploration, Mr. Oppermann has helped develop the company’s creation of resource development assessments that project mineral tonnages and economic values of the targeted metals/minerals that are within Odyssey’s portfolio. Environmental Impact Assessments and Statements also fall under his purview.

Prior to joining Odyssey, Mr. Oppermann was Executive Co-Director for ProNet Polk, Senior Director of Internet Services Delivery Operations for WorldCom Group and Director of Operations Improvement of VoiceStream Wireless Corporation and Nextel. Mr. Oppermann holds a Bachelor of Business Administration as well as a Master’s of Business Administration in corporate finance from Pace University.