Our Team

Gamba Lizwelicha

Accounting Services Manager

Gamba has eight years of accounting and business experience. He earned multiple degrees while studying at his alma mater, Florida Southern College, including a Bachelor of Science in Accounting, a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, and a Master of Accountancy. Gamba has experience in multiple industries: banking, consulting, healthcare, material handling, food and beverage, with his most recent experience coming from a health insurance company where he was a Senior Staff Accountant. When Gamba is not working, he enjoy traveling, reading, playing video games, and working on personal IT projects.

Jim Price

Vice President of Industry Relations

Jim Price’s career in the funeral and cemetery profession spans over five decades. He served as Senior Vice President, Industry Relations at Park Lawn Corporation for over 6 years, leaving an indelible mark on the organization’s strategic growth and success. Additionally, he held the role of Chief Executive Officer at Midwest Memorial Group for over 3 years, showcasing his dedication and leadership.

A luminary in the field, Price co-founded Foundations Partners Group, playing a pivotal role in its success and contributing to operational excellence and strategic initiatives. His 14-year tenure as Chief Operating Officer and Co-Founding Partner at Keystone Group Holdings, INC., further solidifies his legacy of exceptional leadership and sustained growth.

Price has served the ICCFA Educational Foundation as chairman and President since 2015. He received their 2024 annual Lasting Impact Award. In 2022, Price was awarded the association’s Hall of Fame award. Price also currently serves on the National Board of Directors of the National Alliance for Children’s Grief (NACG), and the Advisory Board of the Center for the Study of Ethics/Sykes Business College at The University of Tampa.

Brendan Huf

Client Engagement Coordinator

Brendan Huf joins Johnson Consulting Group with a great deal of knowledge of the funeral industry along with a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a focus on management. Brendan comes from a lineage of funeral directors and, prior to joining the consulting team, spent much of his time working at his family’s funeral home in Pennsylvania. As Consulting Solutions Coordinator, Brendan works directly with the BCS team on all consulting related projects. When not at work, Brendan enjoys golfing, hiking, and spending time with friends and family.

Lisa Thomas

Accounting Services Controller

Lisa brings over 30 years of accounting experience to Johnson Consulting Group. Having earned her Master’ Degree in Business Administration from Indiana Wesleyan University, she has spent her career in various Controllership rolls including 10 years in the funeral and cemetery industry. Her hands on, day-to-day industry experience brings a realistic perspective to JCG. Her career path also led her to establishing and successfully operating her own business for 15 years, giving her a well-rounded entrepreneurial skill set. 

In her down time, Lisa enjoys showing her Chinese Crested Dogs, volunteering and spending time with her husband, children and grandchildren. 

Christina Davidson

Corporate Controller

Christina Davidson is our Corporate Controller at Johnson Consulting Group with over 18 years of experience helping senior executives analyze the financial health of their business. Her background includes work at Eide Bailly, a top 25 CPA firm in the country, as well as various Healthcare and Manufacturing companies across Denver, CO and Phoenix, AZ. Christina has a strong ability to streamline processes, gain efficiencies and work enthusiastically with team members to provide timely and accurate financial statements to leadership. Christina is a CPA with a Master’s degree in Accounting & Financial Management from Keller Graduate School and a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from the University of Arizona. Bear Down Arizona!

In addition to her professional achievements, Christina spends most of her time with her husband and their daughter. They enjoy traveling, swimming or anything water-related, spending time with friends, and watching sports.

Kristen Szymborski

Chief Financial Officer

Kristen Szymborski is an experienced Financial Executive with over 15 years of expertise in driving financial optimization and business transformation through data insights and automated reporting. With experience in serving various industries and having worked at CliftonLarsonAllen, a Top 8 Accounting Firm, Kristen is a licensed CPA in Arizona and holds a master’s in accountancy from the University of Phoenix. Kristen enjoys spending time with her husband, family and friends, traveling, trying new restaurants, and living a healthy lifestyle.

She is committed to being a strategic business partner to the Executive team, leading process improvements, and driving strategic initiatives. Kristen has a proven track record of increasing profitability, stabilizing cash flow, identifying high-impact problems, and implementing new technologies. She has managed budgets up to $700M and has extensive experience leading multi-location dispersed, cross-functional teams.

Al Asta

Senior Business Consultant

Al graduated from Cypress College of Mortuary Science in January of 1982. A Summa Cum Laude graduate, he was also Valedictorian of his class. He began his career with Whitney & Murphy Funeral Home, a large volume funeral home in Phoenix, AZ. In 1984 Al was involved in a Forethought Life Insurance pilot program as a sales agent.  In this role he developed sales materials, phone scripts, training materials and product development. After approximately one year in working on that project, Al was named Manager of Whitney & Murphy. After a successful tenure at the funeral home, Al was promoted to General Manager of Prime Succession Inc. Phoenix, Arizona operations, which soon grew to include the company’s operations in Texas, Iowa, Nebraska and Arkansas. In 2000, Al was promoted to Regional Vice-President, with diverse and varied corporate responsibilities. Al’s experience leading businesses through rapid growth and transition as well as difficult financial times will allow him to relate to our client’s challenges, regardless of their nature. Even during the toughest financial periods, Al’s region maintained morale, quality of service and profitability. Al’s experience managing multiple locations and supervising location managers, along with his practical experience as a licensed funeral director make him a very productive operational consultant to both large and small volume single and multiple location firms.

David Ring

Senior Business Development Consultant

David spent the first years out of college in the automotive parts distribution industry.  His last position was the General Manager of the midwestern distribution warehouse of a company that would rapidly grow to become the largest family-owned business in the industry.  He began his funeral industry experience as the manager of a multi-location family funeral business in Indianapolis. After the sale of that business, he worked in operations management positions and corporate development for two national companies. He joined Carpenter Hawke & Co., Boston, as a managing director and opened the Indianapolis office in 1999.  In addition to his concentration on the funeral industry, he also participated in the sale of businesses in the metal fabrication and trucking industries.  In 2004, he joined Mark Putnam in forming the Putnam Ring Group, dedicated to advising funeral directors in the sale or acquisition of funeral businesses.  David also owns Indiana Funeral Care, a regional service provider based in Indianapolis.  Indiana Funeral Care was formerly the Harry W. Moore Funeral Chapels which he purchased from The Loewen Group in 2001.  David is a graduate of Boston University, with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration.  He also is a licensed Indiana Real Estate Broker and Life Insurance Agent.

Dave Adams

Senior Business Development Consultant

David graduated from Southern Illinois University in 1977 with a B.S. degree in Mortuary Science and later a Masters in Accounting and Finance at Rice University. He served as a partner/licensed Funeral Director/Embalmer/Coroner at his firm in Southern Illinois for over 10 years before selling to his partner. In 1984 he joined Batesville Casket Company, a leading manufacturer of burial and cremation products. During his 25+ year tenure with Batesville, he served in a variety of sales and senior management positions, the last being Vice President of all National Accounts, Key Accounts and the International markets with offices in Australia, England, South Africa and the Philippines. These roles enabled him to gain experience, knowledge and in-depth understanding of sales and merchandising strategies, industry demographics, and the complexity of the changing funeral industry market. David also gained invaluable experience by serving as the Vice President of Sales and Marketing at a leading funeral/cemetery complex in the Greater San Francisco Bay area. Just prior to joining Johnson Consulting, David expanded his professional resume by serving as the Director of Corporate Development for Carriage Services, a publicly traded acquisition company. Throughout his career, David has gained extensive knowledge and diverse experience with all aspects of the death care industry.

Wes Brimley

Business Consultant

Wes graduated with a degree in Finance and International Business with high honors from the W.P. Carrey School of Business at ASU.  He started his career at Johnson Consulting Group in 2012 as a Business / Finance Analyst helping our clients understand their financial position and strategized with them to improve customer satisfaction, operational efficiency, and profitability.  After 3 years with Johnson Consulting Group, Wes moved into corporate FP&A for Insight, a large technology company, helping them optimize and expand their top line earnings, while working to minimize overhead costs.  He became proficient in P&L analysis and built customized tools to help internal clients understand the business in a clear and simple way.  Wes was responsible for the strategizing and goal setting for approximately 1 billion in revenue to the company and was the finance liaison for 17 managers 3 directors and 1 SVP of sales.  After 2 years in the corporate FP&A world, he moved into a management role at Spear Education, a continuing education company for dentists and their staff.  He was the primary finance manager for their consulting division and worked hard to implement best practice solutions for both their internal and external clients.  Wes rejoined the Johnson Consulting team in 2021 after spending some time being a new father, and brings his many years of financial, management and consulting experience with him.  He is a critical thinker who works hard to help our clients be successful operating their businesses efficiently and divesting them for top value.

Derrick Husmann

Senior Business Consultant

Derrick graduated from Southern Illinois University Mortuary Science program with a Bachelor’s of Science in Mortuary Management. He began his career as a funeral director for family owned funeral homes in Southern Illinois. In 2008 he joined Batesville as a sales representative in Illinois and Missouri and achieved the President’s Circle, Council of Excellence for Merchandising, and in 2010 became the Regional Sales Representative of the year. In 2016 Derrick joined Remembrance Group as the Director of Corporate Development and in 2018 he was promoted to Vice President of Operations. Over his career he was responsible for operational leadership, sales, merchandising, increased profitability, mergers and acquisitions and compliance support.  

For over 20 years, Derrick has been a Mortuary Officer for the Federal Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Team (DMORT) for Region V. He is also an Assistant Fire Chief for the Germantown Volunteer Fire Department.  

During his leisure time, Derrick enjoys spending time with his family, grilling by the pool, and watching his son play baseball. 

Robert Murray

Business Development Consultant

Robert Murray is a funeral service industry executive with a track record of improving the financial and operational performance of funeral homes and cemeteries throughout North America. He is a sixth-generation funeral service professional following in his grandfather, George H. Lewis Jr.’s, footsteps and is a licensed funeral director as well. Prior to joining Johnson Consulting Group, Rob held executive roles with Legacy Funeral Group, Transworld Business Advisors, The Journey Group as well as Vice President of the Funeral and Cemetery Trust group at Regions Bank. Prior to that, Rob served as the Regional Vice President of the Southwest Region with Stewart Enterprises. His career began at SCI as a General Manager in Atlanta, Georgia and in the 17 years that followed, he held several leadership roles in operations/sales as well as corporate based responsibilities. All of which has led to an extensive acumen in mergers and acquisitions/consulting.

Rob’s dedication to his career in the funeral and cemetery industry is born from his passion to help business owners realize success by defining and achieving performance objectives that lead to growth and/or acquisition.

Rob holds a Master’s in Business Administration from Mercer University in Atlanta, Georgia and Bachelor of Arts in International Economics/Studies from St. Edward’s University in Austin, Texas.

His free time is spent on the golf course or fishing with friends when not engaged with his three energetic teenagers. Rob and his family reside in the Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex.

Tammy Burch

Survey Data Entry in J3Tech

Tammy brings the utmost care, compassion and confidentiality being a data entry specialist for Johnson Consulting Group. She has had experience in small-family businesses since the age of 16 when she started helping with administrative duties in her parent’s factory and has continued in her current family business, a martial arts studio, she owns with her husband of 27 years.  She is a mom of an 18 and 13-year-old, 2 dogs, a bearded dragon and a Russian turtle. In her spare time she is a dance mom to her daughter and is either watching her practice at the the dance studio or volunteering to help in dance productions.

Jeff Casey

Chief Operations Officer

Jeff joined Johnson Consulting Group to assist in their management consulting efforts. Jeff brings over thirty years of funeral home and cemetery management experience to the Johnson Consulting team. Jeff is a graduate of Cypress College of Mortuary Science in Cypress, CA and began his career in 1980 with Pierce Brothers Mortuaries and Cemeteries in Los Angeles. After Pierce Brothers was acquired by SCI, Jeff continued with SCI to serve in various local and regional management positions including Regional Vice President in the Western Region. He continued his career with Prime Succession in California and Florida, where he was the General Manager of Fred Hunter Memorial Services in Hollywood, Florida. In addition to his duties with Fred Hunter, he served as a Regional Vice President, leading the Prime Succession Florida locations. Jeff’s local, multiple location and regional experience, along with a keen customer service focus, provide distinctive insight as an operational consultant.

Bill Cutter

Business Consultant

Bill graduated from Ball State University in 1976. He spent eleven years in various sales management positions with Batesville Casket Company and then spent several years as Vice President of Corporate Development with Service Corporation International. This experience helped grow his expertise in all aspects of the death care industry, and ultimately he teamed up with Tom Johnson as Vice President of Corporate Development at Pierce Brothers Mortuaries and Cemeteries and Prime Succession Inc. before going on to serve as Director of Corporate Development at Equity Corporation International. Bill has over 32 years of funeral service experience and has been instrumental in the successful acquisition and divestiture of hundreds of funeral homes and cemeteries.

Lee Ann Chesney

Survey Data Entry in J3Tech

Lee Ann has 35+ years working as an administrative/office manager for different companies through the years. She came to Johnson Consulting 4 years ago as a Survey/Data Entry specialist, and has continued to learn and grow within the company in the area of varying Performance Tracker and FDMS functions.  At home,  Lee Ann enjoys spending time with her husband riding motorcycles, golfing, and exploring new areas of Arizona.

Claire Davis

Marketing & Communications Manager

Claire joins the Johnson Consulting Group as the Marketing & Communications Manager. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and Mass Communications, with an emphasis in Advertising and Public Relations, from the University of Nebraska at Lincoln. Claire has both corporate and agency experience in the B2B and B2C space and brings her passion and expertise in marketing to the JCG team. As a dog mom of two, Claire is also a fitness instructor, foodie, and can usually be found on top of Camelback Mountain.

Niccole Delgado

Consulting Controller

Niccole graduated from the University of Phoenix with honors, earning a Bachelor of Science in Accounting. Niccole is a current member of the Delta Mu Delta International Honor Society in Business Administration. Her past work experience in the credit and banking industry as an SR Rapid Cycle Test Analyst provided her analytical and strategic decision making, as well as teamwork skills. Her innovative ideas help strengthen customer relationships, improve processes, and fortify the company brand. Niccole’s dedication to Johnson Consulting Group’s core values and mission to provide the highest quality services, will ensure she is not only meeting, but exceeding, our clients’ expectations.

Ryan Hill

Director of Accounting Service

Ryan joins Johnson Consulting Group with more than 10 years of accounting and customer service. Ryan has earned multiple degrees while studying at his alma mater, Florida Southern College, including a Bachelor of Science in Accounting, a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, and a Masters of Accountancy. Ryan brings a unique perspective to JCG, having experience in public accounting, construction, real estate, and manufacturing industries, with his most recent experience as the Controller of a new home construction company. When he is not working, Ryan enjoys traveling, reading, playing video games, and crossfit.

Nicholas Brown

Financial Analyst/Project Manager

Nicholas joins the Johnson Consulting Group with more than 10 years of advisory, corporate finance, and mergers & acquisition experience. His education includes a Master of Business Administration from the University of Florida and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Southern California. Nicholas also holds the Certified Business Intermediary designation from the International Business Brokers Association. He enjoys working closely with his clients to source investment opportunities and facilitate fair, equitable deals.

When Nicholas is not working, he enjoys traveling, cooking, and watching/playing sports.

Allyson Dunn

Business Operations Manager

Allyson Dunn joins Johnson Consulting Group with four years of experience in business development and team coordination as well as event planning and design. As the Business Operations Manager, she works closely with the administrative staff to fulfill the needs of the leadership team and to maintain fluidity in all company processes. She graduated from Arizona State University with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a Bachelor of Science in Human Physiology and Behavior. While not at work, Allyson spends much of her time outdoors on activities such as hiking, paddle boarding, landscape design, building, and gardening.

Bob Ekins

Director of Business Development

Bob joined Johnson Consulting after 20 years of experience with three of the industry’s leading companies. After graduating from Spring Hill College in Mobile Alabama with a Business Management degree, Bob began his funeral service career with Batesville Casket Company. His roles included sales territory responsibility, national accounts, cremation specialist and selection room design including merchandising. In 2002, Bob joined Forethought Financial Services as Director of Business Development. His responsibilities included assisting funeral home and cemetery owners with solutions for existing trust funds and new pre-need insurance business. The role evolved into client relations with multiple marketing partners across the country. In 2011, Bob was named Vice President of Sales for Trust 100, the oldest and one of the largest marketing partners to assist client funeral homes with Advance Funeral Planning. These career experiences have made Bob the ideal asset for Johnson Consulting Group to be responsible for client relations and business development.

Tess Flores

Business Operations Specialist/ Property Manager

Tess comes from a professional background in business administration and executive support. She has extensive experience in a variety of administrative tasks including accounts receivable and payables, correspondence, marketing, billing and project management. Her role includes office assistant, customer surveys and special projects support. Her main area of focus is in JCG’s management services department with client and organizational support.

Berny Gaarsoe

Consulting Chief Financial Officer

Berny brings extensive experience to Johnson Consulting’s financial services. He graduated from the University of Utah with a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting. Having served as chief financial officer for several large corporate companies, his areas of expertise are Corporate Finance, Accounting Systems – Implementation and Financial Statement Preparation, Tax Planning, Risk Management, Human Resource Responsibilities, and Governmental Regulation Compliance. Berny also has extensive death care industry experience having created the financial management systems for two large funeral home and cemetery companies, including Prime Succession where he was responsible for finance, accounting, budgeting, reporting, auditing, human resource and risk management functions. Under Mr. Gaarsoe’s direction, Johnson Consulting has created a web based bookkeeping system, employing proprietary death care industry software that will allow independent funeral homes to control cash flow, create accounting reports, and maintain budgets.

Gill Giddens

Business Development Consultant

Gill Giddens began his career in 1991 in the Dallas Fort Worth market. Starting at one of the largest combination locations in the nation, it set the foundation of service to families and the importance of assisting families with planning for the future. Through the 1990’s leading large sales organizations including multi-state, multi-market operations. In 2003 Gill and his brother built four funeral homes in the Dallas Ft. Worth area. Three cremation focused locations and one large traditional funeral home. The experience of building  and operating a family owned business from the ground up gave him a new perspective of strong operational foundations to expand and grow a business. Gill has extensive experience in developing individuals and teams in both the sales and operations. Focusing on peoples strengths along with strong business strategies, Gill consistently grew organizations, accomplishing and exceeding the goals of the company.

Greg Hilgendorf

Senior Business Consultant

Greg has a record of proven success in business growth and development in the death care profession. As the owner of a successful multi-location funeral home business, his firms dominated market share and were renowned for their unparalleled customer service. In 1992, his business was the first acquisition by Tom Johnson and Prime Succession. Following progressive advancement within Prime Succession, Mr. Hilgendorf became Senior Vice President of Operations and Officer of the then fifth largest funeral home and cemetery company in the country, operating 150 funeral homes and cemeteries in 19 states. After Prime Succession, he joined The Alderwoods Group where, in his first eighteen months, he led his market to an 18% increase in operating margin and as Regional General Manager was responsible for the operating performance of 33 funeral home and cemetery locations in three states. From practicing funeral director to funeral home owner to corporate executive, Mr. Hilgendorf’s ability to deliver exceptional customer service and maximum business performance is a valuable asset to the clients of Johnson Consulting Group.

Bob Horn

Business Consultant

Bob Horn began his career in the funeral industry more than 44 years ago with a small family-owned mortuary. During the mid-1960s, he was involved in organizing International Funeral Service (IFS), and served as Vice President of the pioneer “multi-unit” funeral cemetery company that operated over 120 locations nationwide. Prior to co-founding Keystone Group Holdings, a multi-state funeral acquisition and operating firm, Bob was Chief Operating Officer and Partner of Prime Succession, Inc., following 10 years as Executive Vice President of Pierce Brothers. A strong proponent of the team concept, Bob believes his role is to provide the goals and the momentum that keep the company working together and moving forward. Bob provides the leadership, the strategic thinking, and the clear vision that foster this environment of success and growth.

Fred Lappin

Business Consultant

After a career that focused on the entertainment industry and commercial real estate, Fred Lappin joined the deathcare profession 22 years ago when he became the President and CEO of Knollwood Cemetery Corporation in Canton, Massachusetts. With two large cemeteries just outside of Boston, the company performs more than 1000 interments a year. During his time at the company Fred made significant improvements including: the financing and construction of a new Welcome Center/Chapel building; the development of new sections and cremation gardens with more than 10,500 spaces; the re-engineering of the company culture, and the installation of a modern irrigation system to cover all of the developed cemetery land.

Fred has been deeply involved in the funeral service profession through his participation in the International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association (ICCFA). He began as a volunteer in 2001 and has served on multiple committees, co-chaired several events, served multiple terms on the Board of Directors, received three Vice President appointments and has been selected to serve on multiple Presidents’ Executive Committees. Fred was an original Trustee/Board member of the ICCFA Educational Foundation and he was elected as the ICCFA President from 2014-2015. Most notably Fred recently received the association’s highest honor, it’s prestigious Hall of Fame award.

Fred and his wife Cheryl live in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts just outside of Boston. Outside of work he enjoys spending time with his family, playing golf, kayaking, working out, listening to music and walking with Cheryl.

Jake Johnson

President & Chief Executive Officer

Jake Johnson has rapidly advanced into senior leadership roles and gained respect throughout the funeral and cemetery industries. He is known as an innovator, change agent and thought leader. Jake’s success is based on his unique ability to identify simple solutions to complex business problems and communicate across all levels of the organization, instilling positive morale, empowerment and employee ownership to drive service excellence. His strong foundation in accounting, financial analysis and EBITDA forecasting is complemented by technology savvy and broad general management qualifications in business development and operations. As President & CEO at Johnson Consulting, Jake provides strategic direction and marketing innovations that laid the groundwork for the company’s rapid growth, gaining recognition as the premiere total solutions provider within the funeral industry. In his former position as Executive Vice President and General Manager at Palm Mortuaries and Cemeteries, he provided key operations leadership to the Palm Cemetery Division. Jake began his career at Keystone Group Holdings (now Dignity Memorial Network) as Associate Director, Corporate Development, where his financial analysis and forecasting expertise was foundational to the firm’s growth. Jake’s educational credentials include a BSBA degree in Management with an emphasis in Accounting and Financial Analysis from Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio. Rounding out his financial portfolio, he is a licensed Real Estate Agent and licensed Investment Advisor representative. Jake is also a member-emeritus of the Funeral Service Foundation Board.

Tom Johnson

Founder

1950-2023

Tom has pursued a highly successful career in multi-site funeral home and cemetery management, as well as acquisition and divestiture activity in the death care industry. After beginning his career in banking and then serving in several key positions with Batesville Casket Company, he became President and CEO of Pierce Brothers Mortuaries & Cemeteries in Los Angeles. There, he grew the company from 17 locations to a total of 64 funeral homes and 14 cemeteries, making it, at the time, the largest regional independent funeral and cemetery operation in the United States. When Pierce was sold to SCI, he left the company and founded Prime Succession, which grew from no operations to 146 funeral homes and 17 cemetery locations in only three years, becoming the largest national independent operation in the country. After Prime Succession, Mr. Johnson started Johnson Consulting Group, which has become the premier consulting company in the death care industry focusing on mergers & acquisitions, business valuations and appraisals, accounting services, management services and training, and business financing. Mr. Johnson’s expertise in funeral home and cemetery management, combined with his strong background in banking and finance, gives him a unique understanding of operational and financial matters relating to the death care profession.

Derek Kaufman

Jr. Data Analyst in J3Tech

Derek brings an efficiency-focused mindset to Johnson Consulting Group. As a Data Analyst, he’s continually looking for patterns and trends, chasing down methods to make processes easier with creative and innovative solutions. Derek uses over a decade of combined Technical and Support experience to create user-friendly interactions of both technology and people. When he’s not using his Excel-Wizard skills for work, you might find him writing guitar and piano music, working out at the gym or researching programming technology.

Sheryl Lawary

Manager of Training 

Sheryl brings over 15 years of accounting experience to Johnson Consulting Group. While earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Accounting from the University of Phoenix, she worked with certified public accountants and tax attorneys. Prior to her accounting career, Sheryl worked as an Assistant Trust Administrator in Wealth Management and Private Banking. As a Johnson Consulting Group Senior Accountant, Sheryl builds and maintains strong client relationships and anticipates their needs. Integrity is her core value. Sheryl is responsible for providing accounting and bookkeeping services to our Accounting client base. In Sheryl’s off hours, she enjoys the outdoors and the challenges of hiking.

Karen McCurdy

Director of JCG Succession Services

Karen McCurdy is a graduate of Florida State University (1991), she received a Bachelor of Science in Real Estate. Upon graduation, Karen began a career in appraising both commercial and residential properties. She continues to maintain her real estate broker’s license and State Certified General Appraiser License. After appraising for 3 ½ years, Karen accepted a position with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection as an Appraiser Specialist. She reviewed statewide appraisals related to the acquisition, sale, lease and disposition of all real property. In addition, she performed desk and field reviews of proposed properties for state acquisition.

In May 1996, Karen began a career with Thomas-Pierce & Company as a Project Manager. In 1999, she was promoted to Sr. Financial Analyst. Some of her responsibilities include evaluating the operating and financial performance of client companies, assisting in negotiating the sales of client businesses and working through client transactions. Karen enjoys the challenge of working with the diversities of each business and assisting each client in meeting his or her individual needs.

Doug Miller

Business Development Consultant

Doug began his career in 1972 in Orchard Park, New York. During the course of 46 years he has worked for two Independent owners, Service Corporation International, The Hamilton Group, The Keystone Group and Park Lawn Corporation. Overall, he has held positions of location management / GM, District Manager, Regional Vice President, Regional President, Chief Operating Officer and President. These positions involved funeral homes, cemeteries, care centers and floral shops.

Doug has held licenses as an embalmer, funeral director, cemetery broker and pre-need insurance. He is a past President of the Nevada Funeral Directors Association, past member of the Ohio Funeral Directors Association serving on the Finance and Membership Committees, past member of the California Funeral Directors Association serving on the Finance, Legislative, Public Relations and Professional Development Committees. He also served as a board member of the Interment Association of California and the California Mortuary Alliance. During his time of 22 years with SCI he also held the positions of Governmental Relations Liaison for Nevada and SCI’s Western Region Field Trainer. Doug contributes many of his accomplishments to his belief of being a hands-on leader. He enjoys working “along-side” other funeral professionals at all levels, and has learned much from the experience. 

Whitney Nikander

Project Manager in J3Tech

Whitney is passionate about positioning teams for growing together and organizations for scalability. At Johnson Consulting Group, she works to create processes and cultivate relationships that promote culture and operational efficiency. Whitney brings to JCG a Bachelor’s in Psychology from Grand Canyon University along with varied experience working with executives from engineering to technology companies. As Project Manager, she is a support to all departments to empower the JCG team to continue being what we are – excellent at serving our Customers. In her free time, Whitney enjoys traveling, arranging flowers, spending time outdoors and discovering local restaurants with friends and family.

Tyler Peck

Financial Analyst

Tyler graduated from Northern Arizona University with a Bachelor’s in Finance and a certificate in investments. After graduating, he worked in the financial services industry at Charles Schwab, and then moved to the aerospace and defense industry, where he worked as a financial analyst for Northrop Grumman. Tyler has also recently passed the CFA Level 1 Exam and hopes to earn the full charter in the coming years. In his free time Tyler enjoys snowboarding, exercising, and watching hockey, basketball, and football.

Vince Roberge

Senior Business Consultant

Vince Roberge holds a degree in Economics from the University of Michigan and a degree in Funeral Service from Commonwealth Institute. He is a Licensed Funeral Director and has worked in operational leadership roles for SCI at single and multi-location funeral home businesses. Vince has worked as a Business Consultant for Johnson Consulting Group since 2019, serving as a trusted partner to funeral home and cemetery business owners. His consulting areas of expertise include performance management, strategic planning, incentive compensation plans, and pricing. Vince is certified by the DiJulius Group as a Customer Experience Coach and works with funeral home and cemetery clients on transforming their customer experience. He also facilitates Johnson Consulting Group’s biannual Leadership and Management Program in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Chad Roberts

Project Manager in J3Tech

After Chad graduated from Arizona State University in 2006 with a Bachelor of Science Degree, he went on to earn his Master’s degree in Business Administration in 2009. He joins the Johnson Consulting Group team with an extensive and diverse background in client service development and management of procedural operations in the education industry. He has spent time in both the business of golf and the healthcare field, completing comprehensive financial analysis with an emphasis on cost saving initiatives while helping to achieve maximum efficiency and departmental productivity. As the Performance Tracker Administrator with Johnson Consulting Group, Chad is responsible for the maintenance of our survey program and the client relationships for our Performance Tracker clientele. When Chad is not working, he enjoys playing golf, going to the gym, in addition to barbecuing with friends and family.

Lacy Robinson

Business Consultant

Lacy offers funeral home clients more than 15 years of success developing and facilitating customer service training programs. As an experienced coach and speaker, Lacy has established organizations, including Aurora Casket Company and the National Funeral Directors Association, as leading providers of training and development for funeral professionals. Lacy is a Worsham College of Mortuary Science instructor, teaching Fundamentals of Customer Service and facilitating training programs for Johnson Consulting Group clients. She co-authored the book Engaging the Heart of Hospice – Making Funeral and Memorial Services an Extension of Hospice Care. 

Lacy is a licensed funeral director/embalmer, a certified funeral celebrant, a member of the board of trustees for the Selected Independent Funeral Homes Educational Trust, and has previously served on the APFSP Board of Trustees. She graduated from Georgetown College and Mid-America College of Funeral Service. Lacy earned an MBA in Bourbon Tourism and Event Planning from Midway University. 

As an active member of Toastmasters, Lacy has achieved the designation of Competent Communicator. Lacy is also an active volunteer for Hosparus Health in Louisville, Kentucky, and regularly presents engaging community programs to area senior adults. 

Lori Salberg

Director of J3Tech in J3Tech

Lori joined Johnson Consulting Group in 2017, bringing experience in cemetery, funeral home, and pre-need sales management. Along with sales and operations management, Lori directed the development of two propriety cemetery and funeral home enterprise software systems. Lori began her career in 2001 as a Family Service Counselor for the Catholic Cemeteries in San Jose. She quickly moved into management and rose to Associate Director of three cemetery locations. In 2010, Lori furthered her career as General Manager of Holy Sepulchre Cemetery and Holy Angels Funeral and Cremation Center in Hayward, CA, where she also joined the Catholic Management Services leadership team. As Director of Administration and IT, Lori brought management expertise and software solutions to cemetery and funeral home clients. In 2015, Lori joined PlotBox as VP of Sales. Lori contributed to the development of a SaaS cemetery software program, and was principally responsible for introducing it to the US market. She is a frequent speaker at many state and regional industry events and an article contributor to many industry magazines. She is also a member of the ICCFA Sales and Marketing Committee, which plans and oversees the Annual World Wide Sales Conference each January. Lori balances her passion for helping clients prepare for the future with raising her three children, Catalina, JJ, and Lyla. She spends a lot of weekends at dance competitions and little league baseball tournaments.

Annette Sanchez

Client Services Coordinator

Annette comes to Johnson Consulting Group with over 10 years of experience as an Administrative Assistant with other firms including a law firm in New Mexico, property management companies and at Univision. She has experience in Accounts Receivable and Payable and Customer Support. Her role at Johnson Consulting Group as a bi-lingual Administrative Assistant is invaluable to her co-workers and management on many projects. Annette is currently furthering her education at San Juan Community College.

Rich Sells

Business Consultant

Rich has spent thirty extremely productive years in the funeral and cemetery industry where he held several senior level executive positions. He is well known and respected for his many accomplishments during those years. Twenty seven of those years were with Service Corporation International (SCI), the world’s largest owner and operator of funeral homes, cemeteries and crematories. There he held senior level executive positions in operations and is renowned for his accomplishments in the Pre-Need sales arena. As part of his responsibilities, Rich devised and led the construction of the traveling replica of the Vietnam Wall Memorial. He also headed up several other initiatives to honor and care for the Homeless Veterans. In addition to his many accomplishments while at SCI, he also served as President of the International Cemetery and Funeral Association (ICCFA), a 6,000 member trade association, as well as a Hall of Fame recipient for ICCFA,. Rich earned a BSBA degree from Washington University in St. Louis and is a CPA. He is considered an expert in all facets of funeral home and cemetery operations.

Dave Shank

Business Development Consultant

Dave began his funeral service career in 1973 in his hometown of Sterling, Illinois.  He holds degrees in Mortuary Science, a BS Degree in Business Quality Management, and an Executive MBA.  Dave was a licensed funeral director and embalmer in both Missouri and Kansas (1980-1998).  He joined Batesville Casket Co. in 1997 as a Kansas-based Sales Representative.  He was Region Sales Director in both the Mountain and Midwest Regions, a Sales Consultant in North Texas (2005-2013), was inducted into the Maters Club in 2012, and concluded his Batesville career as the Sales Training Manager (2014-1019). 

In 2019, Dave founded AnchoredGrowth Partners, LLC, a consulting practice focused on training and coaching business professionals for performance growth.  He specializes in relationship building, sales and merchandising strategies, maximizing customer satisfaction, and improving business profitability.  Dave primarily serves as a trainer, one-on-one coach and workshop facilitator.  He has been privileged to speak on skill building and motivation at ICCFA, various events in Kansas (KFDA) and Texas, and for numerous Batesville sponsored events.

Dave resides in Peoria, Arizona.  He is married with two married children and six grandchildren.

Cyndi Simmons

Controller

Cyndi joined Johnson Consulting Group in 2010, bringing with her an extensive background in Accounting and Finance. In her previous roles Cyndi has made an impact in the Accounting profession by process improvements and client communication. Prior to coming to JCG, she was recruited to develop and implement an Accounts Receivable process for a national company, which resulted in the recovery of over 1.5m in outstanding receivables. As the Controller, her solid accounting practices, business ethics and leadership provide the clients and staff with the accuracy and integrity that they require and have come to depend on. As Johnson Consulting Group continues to grow, Cyndi is developing process improvements, both internally and externally, to maintain and ensure the highest level of standards for our clients.

Madison Swaney

Staff Accountant

Madison graduated from Northern Arizona University with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration – Management and certificates in Marketing and Accounting. She was on the executive board for the professional business fraternity, Delta Sigma Pi. During her college career, Madison worked at an accounting firm where she found a passion for helping clients with their businesses and assisting in reaching their goals for their business.

Nelson Thulin

Director of Business Consulting

Nelson Thulin began his funeral service career at a family owned funeral home in Wisconsin and over the course of 30 years, his work experience has included independent ownership as well as corporate leadership roles. His management experience ranges from a single location serving approximately 100 families a year to multi-location markets serving over 2600 families. As a mortuary science student, Nelson received the J.M Nolte Scholar Award and continues his education as a Certified Funeral Service Practitioner through the Academy of Professional Funeral Service Practice as well as collaborating with and learning from other funeral professionals. Nelson emphasizes a keen focus on the importance of exceeding expectations of client families and providing a meaningful and memorable experience for their guests, resulting in a loyal advocacy of our profession as well as continued growth of individual businesses.

Tuyen Tran

Staff Accountant

Tuyen has a Master’s in Accountancy degree from Arizona State University. Her professional career prior to JCG was working for Food Service of America in their Corporate Headquarters in Scottsdale, AZ. In the accounting role she focused on cash management and financial analysis of vender accounts. Tuyen is a team player and prides herself on quick results and accuracy.

Madison Wagner

Digital Marketing Specialist

Originally from Pennsylvania, Madison Wagner joins the Johnson Consulting Group with a Bachelor’s Degree in Broadcasting and Streaming Media from Champlain College in Burlington Vermont. During her time in college she discovered a new passion when she had the opportunity to utilize her production skills for a marketing purpose. Now Madison has 3 years of marketing experience and a Master’s of Science in Digital Audience Strategy from Arizona State University.

Melisa Battaglia

Accounting Manager

Melisa graduated from the University of Arizona with a Bachelors in Intelligence Studies. Melisa brings over 15 years’ experience in accounting, administration, and financial management. She has a diversity of knowledge in the accounting industry such as non-profit, manufacturing and construction, both nationwide and globally. Previously she was an Accounting Manager responsible for aggregating data for teams across multiple platforms. She also has extensive experience in both payroll and audit preparation. Melisa enjoys a good challenge and has a willingness to learn new knowledge and skills. When she is not working, Melisa enjoys creating new memories by traveling the world and spending time with family and friends. She also enjoys cars and a good hockey game.

Michael Yates

Financial Planning and Analysis Manager

Michael graduated from Arizona State University with a Bachelors in Finance with a minor in Political Science. During college Michael worked at a start-up software company that developed financial compliance software for cash intensive businesses. In his spare time Michael enjoys watching and talking about sports and relaxing at home.

Simon Wong

Financial Analyst 

Logan Johnson

Financial Analyst