Summit Speakers

Mitch Bailey is a second-generation HVAC/R professional with nearly five decades of industry experience. He began his career in 1976, working alongside his father at Bailey’s Air Conditioning after school, on weekends, and during summer breaks. In 1991, Mitch took over the company, leading it through decades of growth and evolution. 

In 1985, Mitch obtained his B-General Contractor’s license, along with C-20 (HVAC) and C-36 (Plumbing) licenses. He later founded Horizon Homes, through which he has built more than 30 homes and several commercial buildings over the past 40 years-gaining deep expertise in sustainable building practices. Simultaneously, Bailey’s Air Conditioning has designed and installed tens of thousands of heating and cooling systems across residential, commercial, and industrial sectors. 

Mitch holds eight NATE certifications and is a BPI Building Analyst Professional. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for IHACI and is an active member of the ASHRAE 221 Standard Committee. 

Throughout his career, Mitch has continuously adapted to the changing HVAC landscape. He expanded into new construction and retrofits through multiple economic cycles. Following the 2008 recession, he pivoted Bailey’s to focus exclusively on Residential Service and Add-On/Replacement-a move from wholesale to retail, prioritizing the homeowner experience. 

Rejecting the common “rip-and-replace” approach, Mitch instituted a performance-based model. His team began conducting load calculations, duct leakage and airflow testing, as well as efficiency and capacity assessments both before and after installation-ensuring systems not only functioned but performed as designed. 

In 2020, Mitch’s commitment to high-performance HVAC design and testing caught the attention of Rob Falke, co-founder of the National Comfort Institute (NCI), who invited him to join the ASHRAE 221 committee. By 2022, Mitch was also invited to help teach NCI’s new electrification curriculum in Northern California-equipping contractors with the tools to sell, install, and test heat pumps in support of California’s clean energy goals. 

Though he teaches only occasionally, Mitch remains a strong advocate for NCI’s standards, believing they represent the highest level of professionalism in the industry. His career reflects a lifelong dedication to quality, innovation, and integrity in HVAC and building performance. 

“I love contributing to another leader’s growth on their journey, and everyone is a leader in some capacity. There’s nothing like the excitement of witnessing someone else’s success, especially when you saw the efforts they made to get there.”

John has worked in the HVAC industry since 1994 and has been partnering with NCI since 2011.

Some of team Lakeside’s accomplishments that John is most proud of include.

• 1998 Carrier Distinguished Dealer Award
• 2010-2024 Carrier President’s Award
• 2013 NCI Contractor of the Year
• 2016 NCI Implementation Excellence Award
• 2022 NCI Scott Johnson Training Excellence Award

Dominick Guarino has grown the company from the ground up alongside former President Rob Falke, into the HVAC industry’s largest independent training and certification organization. He co-founded NCI in 1994 with Rob (originally National Balancing Institute). NCI has also grown into a premier membership organization focused on every aspect of helping HVAC contractors. Dominick oversees all aspects of operations, new product introductions, and sales and marketing for the company. He presides over NCI conferences and participates in HVAC industry conferences and meetings.

Tom began his full-time career with the company in 2000. Since then, he has gained a lot of experience in all aspects of the company. He leads the business with a steady hand, a humble heart and a deep-rooted passion to serve our community well. Aside from work, he loves spending time outside with his wife, Dannielle, and daughter, Sloane.

Ben is a licensed mechanical engineer in three states, specializing in commercial and residential HVAC energy efficiency. His professional experience ranges from energy efficiency program design and implementation, to policy and regulatory consultation, measurement and verification consultation, laboratory and field research, application of codes and standards, and HVAC system Design/Build projects.

HVAC started in Adam’s family with his Grandpa Joe, who was the chief Engineer at several notable buildings in Chicago, including the historic Palmer House Hotel. Adam’s father, Ralph Mufich, started working for Trane’s Comfort Corps in the 1970’s. Ralph opened a residential HVAC company in the early 1990s.

Adam worked for the family business until the year 2012, when the company was sold. This was the birth of A-Team Heating and Air. A-Team aimed to solve their customer’s comfort issues while delivering the best craftsmanship possible.

Adam holds or has held certifications with N.A.T.E., National Comfort Institute, Geothermal Alliance of Illinois and ACCA. Adam has also been trained by measureQuick, The Energy Conservatory, and Daikin. Adam is a Cohost for the HVAC Overtime and Cooler Heads podcast. He works with the social media team at HVAC School and has written for ESCO and National Comfort Institute.

David joined National Comfort Institute full time in 2010 as a curriculum developer and trainer and now is the vice president of training. In this role, he guides practical, real-world training focused on the HVAC and Home Performance industries.

He has been involved in High-Performance Contracting™ since 2001. This experience allowed him the opportunity to diagnose and correct many HVAC and Home Performance issues over the past two decades.

In addition, David writes monthly columns for various industry publications to help increase awareness on the importance of performance testing. David is a regular presenter at many industry conferences working to spread the message of High-Performance HVAC.

Besides holding all NCI certifications, David has held certifications as a HERS rater, BPI building analyst, and BPI field and written exam proctor.

Andrew has been working in the HVAC industry for more than 20 years. He started as a duct cleaner in 2001. Soon after he became a residential installer. In 2005 he started working for a residential and light commercial company as a service technician. In 2015 he was promoted to service manager. That year he also started teaching for utilities with IHACI

In 2017 Andrew became a full-time instructor at a technical school. In January of 2019 he became a Certified Master HVAC Educator (CMHE). In 2020 he became a field technical specialist with Lennox NAS. He joined NCI as a full-time coach and instructor in 2022.

Fun Fact:
Andrew loves to spend time with his wife of 21 years. They like to fish and travel together. He is also a BBQ fanatic and loves to play pool and video games.

Alana Ward is the second-generation owner of Baggett Heating in Clarksville, TN. The $1.6 million residential replacement and service business opened in 1974, and Alana took over in 2006. She is a member of NCI, ACCA, and Women in HVACR and was named Woman of the Year by Contracting Business magazine in 2012. In 2021 the Service Roundtable named Baggett Heating one of the top 10 companies in the U.S. providing customer satisfaction

Mike Weil is the Director of Communications for National Comfort Institute, Inc. He also serves the as editor-in-chief of High-Performance HVAC Today magazine. He has been in these roles since 2014.

In fact, his background was always focused in the publishing arena. He spent 34 years at a Cleveland, OH-based business-to-business trade press company, holding the position of Editorial Director for three HVACR Industry publications: Contracting Business.com, Heating, Piping, and Air Conditioning Engineering, and HVACR / Hydronics Distribution Business magazines.

In addition, Mike managed the HVAC-Talk.com discussion forum as well as the HVAC Comfortech conference.

Today he is focused on a contractor-first approach to editorial, specifically targeted to the High-Performance HVAC™ contracting community. He also focuses on a customer-first approach to connecting high-performance contractors to vendors and suppliers that address their needs.