|
Pat Cassady - Board
Member & Membership
Chair,
UMB Bank
Pat
Cassady is Senior Vice
President, Talent
Acquisition & Careers,
at UMB where she directs
proactive sourcing and
recruitment across the
various lines of
business in support of
the business needs and
goals along with leading
the company’s onboarding
and career progression
activities. She is
also a key contributor
to UMB’s Diversity &
Inclusion task force.
Pat earned a Bachelor of
Science in Marketing and
Foreign Languages from
Minnesota State
University at Moorhead.
She also serves on the
Board of 2020
Leadership, a bi-state
youth education and
development program.
|
|
|
Yijing
Brentano, Board member &
Finance Chair, Sprint
Nextel Corporation
Yijing Brentano
is Vice President,
Investor Relations,
Sprint Nextel
Corporation. Brentano
joined Sprint in 1997,
serving in a variety of
positions. She spent
several years with Ernst
& Young LLP’s cash
management consulting
practice before joining
Sprint.
Brentano is a certified
treasury professional.
She was a winner of 2000
Women of Color
Technology Award, a
national award that
recognizes successful
minority women in
technology. Brentano
serves on the board of
Kansas City Asian
Chamber of Commerce and
is the vice president
for the Kansas City
Chinese Network
Association.
|
|
|
Sanjay Kohli, Board
Member & Web Chair, ASK
Associates, 913-738-4057
Sanjay Kohli is Senior
Software Engineer with
ASK Associates,
Lawrence, Kansas. He has
years of experience in
system analysis, design,
development and
implementation for the
airlines, automobiles,
staffing, recruiting,
engineering and
furnishing industries.
Has worked in USA,
England, India and Saudi
Arabia. Sanjay received
his Electronics
Engineering from India.
He is active in the
Indian community. He was
Past president of Indian
Association of Kansas
City and is Trustee of
Hindu Temple & Cultural
Center of Kansas City
and India Association of
Kansas City.
|
|
|
Young Sexton, Founder &
Board member, WingGate
Travel. 913-451-9200
Young Sexton is
CEO of WingGate Travel,
representative of
American Express. Young
has over 24 years of
combined travel and
business management
experience. She is
directly involved in
every aspect of the
agency's daily
operation. WingGate
Travel/American Express
is currently ranked in
the Kansas City area as
the sixth largest travel
agency, fifth largest
minority owned firm and
the fourth largest woman
owned company. It is
listed as one of the
areas top 25 fastest
growing businesses by
the Kansas City Business
Journal and one of the
top 10 fastest growing
companies in Ingram's.
Young is the founder and
past president of the
AACC. She serves on the
Board of Trustees of
Rockhurst University and
is a board member of the
MidAmerica Minority
Business Deveopment
Council and the
Korean-American Chamber
of Commerce. She is also
a member of the Kansas
City Plaza Rotary
Club.
|
|
|
Joseph Melookaran,
Founder & Board member,
JMA Chartered
Joseph
Melookaran is the
President of JMA
Chartered, a
professional services
firm specializing in
information technology,
financial services and
health care solutions.
He has served Asian
American Chamber of
Commerce Board several
terms since 2003. He is
a Trustee of India
Association of Kansas
City and currently
serves as a Commissioner
with White House
Initiative on Asian
Americans and Pacific
Islanders.
|
|
|
Simon Kuo, Board Member
Simon Kuo is CEO of
Light Thread consulting
firm. The company is a
next generation service,
platform and
intellectual venture
capital company
specializing in
strategy, innovative
applications and
building connections
between businesses.
Prior to that, he served
as vice president of
Corporate Strategy for
EMBARQ Corporation, the
largest independent
local exchange carrier
in the U.S. and vice
president of strategy
for Sprint-Nextel’s
Local Telecommunications
Division.
Kuo holds a bachelor of
arts degree in History
of Art, a bachelor of
sciences degree in
Systematics and Ecology
and a Ph.D. in
Microbiology, all from
the University of
Kansas.
|
|
|
Ramesh Lokre,
Board member, Saicon
Consultants, Inc.
913-451-1178
Ramesh Lokre is
CEO/President of Saicon
Consultants, Inc. He has
considerable expertise
in growing large
organizations, and
putting in place the
infrastructure to scale.
He brings over 18 years
of experience in
consulting and managing
large outsourcing deals
for Fortune 500
companies. He began his
professional career at
iGate Global
,Pittsburgh, where he
was involved in design,
development,
implementation and
management of large
software projects for
Fortune 500 companies.
Ramesh left iGate to
join Wal-Mart in their
Information System
Division as the core
member of Cash Office
automation. He was
responsible for the
product implementation
of point of sale (POS)
system.
Ramesh has received a
Master’s Degree in
Mathematics from Indian
Institute of Technology,
Mumbai and holds a
Master's degree in
Finance Management from
University of Pune.
|
|
|
AP Singh, Board
Member, Digital
Printing/Digix, Inc.
913-492-1500
AP Singh is
CEO/President of Digital
Printing/Digix, Inc. He
is a native of India who
migrated to the US in
1975. He holds a masters
degree in psychology
from Punjab University,
India . He worked in the
psychology and social
science field in the US
for 8 years then changed
the career to sales.
Currently, he is owner
of Digital Printing
Services, an on line/ on
demand printing Service
Company that was started
in 1995. He is also CEO
and co owner of Digix
Inc, an Authorized Xerox
Sales Agency,
responsible for
providing document
solutions to small and
mid size companies in
the greater Kansas City
area.
|
|
|
Suresh Ramamurthi, Board
Member, BC Capital
Suresh
Ramamurthi is a
principal at BC Capital,
a venture capital firm
focused on early stage
growth companies and
emerging markets. Prior
to BC Capital, he was at
Google and was
responsible for mobile
applications. Previous
to Google, he founded,
grew, and managed a
technology services and
transaction processing
services firm that grew
to over 500 employees.
Earlier, he founded a
technology firm that
developed and
manufactured narrowband
and wireless hardware
and software.
Suresh has a Bachelor's
degree in Electronics
and Communication
Engineering, a Master's
degree in Computer
Science and a Master's
degree in Business
Administration
|
|
|
Hoang Nguyen, Board
member, Tiger
Consulting. 816-797-7404
Hoang Nguyen is
CEO/President of Tiger
Consulting Group LLC. It
provides consulting and
operations support in
contract management,
procurement, strategic
sourcing and supply
chain operations for
Fortune 1000 companies,
small businesses,
government entities and
institutions. Prior to
that, he served as
Director of Supply Chain
Management, overseeing
the purchasing function
and providing leadership
for the overall
performance of the
supply chain at Kansas
City Power & Light.
Mr. Nguyen holds a
bachelor degree in
Electrical Engineering
from the University of
Missouri and did
post-graduate work in
Electrical Engineering
at Illinois Institute of
Technology.
|
|
|
Sue Drakeford, Board
Member, Hillcrest Bank.
816-876-6845
Drakeford is a
Vice President,
Commercial Loan Officer,
& Community Reinvestment
Officer at Hillcrest
Bank in Gladstone,
Missouri. She has been
in banking since 2001
and enjoys helping
business owners meet
their objectives.
Sue is Miss Nebraska USA
2001 and was the first
African American to
represent Nebraska at
the annual televised
Miss USA Pageant on the
CBS television network.
Sue received MBA from
Bellevue University and
a BS in Business
Management. She serves
on the Board of the Blue
Hill Community Services
and is Director of
Singles Ministry at St.
James United Methodist
Church.
|
|
|
Fang Shen, Board Member,
Husch Blackwell Sanders,
LLP
Fang Shen is an
attorney with Husch
Blackwell Sanders, LLP,
a leading law firm with
more than 300 attorneys.
Fang focuses on mergers
and acquisitions,
China-related
transactions, and
general corporate law.
Fang graduated from one
of the top law schools
in China-People's
University of China
School of Law. Fang also
earned a J.D. degree
from the University of
Missouri Kansas City,
School of Law as the
Edgar Snow Scholar,
where she graduated with
distinction.
She currently serves on
the board of the Greater
Kansas City
International Trade
Council, where she works
to promote international
trade, and the board of
the Society for
Friendship with China,
where she works to
promote the culture and
trade exchange between
the region and China.
|
|
|
June Cho, Board Member,
Midland Loan Services,
Inc.
June Cho is currently
the Contract Compliance
Officer for Midland Loan
Services, Inc. Member of
The PNC Financial
Services Group. June
brings extensive
knowledge in contract
negotiations and
compliance in the
commercial financing
business. June received
her Bachelor of Business
Science Degree from
William Jewell College,
Liberty, MO.
June also works part
time with her family
business as the Sr. Vice
President/Director of
Operations for
VanBeekKids, LLC
partnering with various
local and national
Non-Profit
Organizations. June is
also the Executive
Marketing Director for I
& I Agency.
|
|
|
Gigi F. Mateo,
Essential Home Health,
Inc. 913-526-0106
Gigi is the Owner,
Administrator, and
Director of Nursing of
Integral Care Provider
and Essential Home
Health in Overland Park,
Kansas. She oversees the
daily operation of the
business, collaborates
with the CEO on
financial and strategic
matters, negotiates
contracts with potential
clients, markets, and
assists in the staffing,
hiring, orientation of
new personnel.
She is an advisory board
member of the Research
Foundation, a board
member of the Child
Abuse Prevention
Association, UMKC School
of Nursing Community
Advisory Council, and
Women Impacting Public
Policy strategic
healthcare policy
committee member.
|
|
|
Benny Lee -
Board Member, Lee
Research Institute
Benny
Lee is CEO of Lee
Research Institute. Lee
Research Institute has
engaged a team of
experienced
professionals they have
been conducting clinical
research studies over 20
years. They are
experienced, and able to
serve the pharmaceutical
industry in a relative
wide range of needs.
Benny’s entrepreneurial
success goes more than
30 years back. He
was recently owner/CEO
of Top Innovations that
sell high quality
household products such
as clothing steamer,
steam cleaner, and
others at affordable
price. He created
companies such as Trans
World & Mitco, Co. as
well.
Benny
is active in the Greater
Kansas City community.
He sits on the boards of
Park University, the
Greater Kansas City
Chamber of Commerce,
Greater Kansas City
United Way,
International Relations
Council, World Trade
Center Investor, the
Southtown Council and
Trustee of Truman
Medical Center.
|
|
|
