UEP Consultants
Greg Farmer, M.B.A.
A seasoned automotive executive with nearly 40 years of experience, Greg Farmer held a series of engineering-management positions at General Motors from 1983-2009, spanning the areas of product planning, design, development, and validation. During that time, he forged a reputation for strong strategic planning skills and leadership ability, outstanding organizational management, and sustainable business results.
Mr. Farmer’s GM career culminated with his assignment as executive director of GM’s Global Test Laboratories. In this capacity, he managed operations and business process and strategic planning for facilities in 10 countries, with functional responsibility for over 500 employees and a global asset value of nearly $1 billion. Mr. Farmer championed and implemented overall restructuring efforts for these test labs, which saved aproximately $20 million in the first year. He also led development of new GM laboratory facilities to serve emerging markets in Korea, China and Brazil.
Previously, Mr Farmer held key executive positions as the Executive Director of HVAC/Powertrain Cooling/Thermal for GM North America, Chief Engineer of the GM of Canada Regional Engineering Center and Director of Electrical Engineering for GM's Small Car Division.
Mr. Farmer earned a bachelor’s degree in electronic engineering from the University of Dayton and an M.B.A. in finance from the University of Detroit. He also attended the Executive Development Program at Carnegie Mellon University.
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Thomas J. Hughes, M.B.A.
Thomas J. Hughes specializes in business/product management, developing strategic plans, and product and sales solutions that improve operations and increase profits for client companies. Recently he has begun working with engineering and manufacturing firms interested in expanding into alternative and renewable energy sectors, including wind power and electric vehicles.
During an automotive-industry career spanning more than 20 years, Mr. Hughes managed departments generating up to $200 million in annual revenue. As director of the General Motors business unit at GDX Automotive, a global supplier of automotive sealing systems, he managed business unit P&L, with responsibilities for over $150 million in sales, and implemented lean manufacturing methods that saved two programs worth $30 million annually. He also has held management positions at Quantam Technologies/Tecstar Automotive, Lear Corporation and ASC Incorporated.
Mr. Hughes earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from Western Michigan University and an M.B.A. in finance and marketing from the University of Detroit Mercy.
In addition to his coaching duties at UEP Detroit 150, Mr. Hughes serves the community as a business development instructor at Focus: HOPE in Detroit.
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Richard A. Monkaba, M.B.A.
A consummate manufacturing leader, Richard A. Monkaba successfully managed three of General Motors' largest, most complex and most profitable truck assembly plants. During his GM career, he gained recognition for leading plant start-ups and turnarounds, dramatically improving all key operating metrics--quality, productivity, cost, schedule attainment and safety--and realizing significant operating gains, without major labor disruptions.
Most recently, Mr. Monkaba served as plant manager of the Pontiac Truck Assembly Center in Pontiac, Michigan, with responsibility for an operating budget of $500 million and oversight of 4,000 employees. The 3.4 million-square-foot Pontiac facility produced Chevrolet and GMC full-size pickup trucks. Mr. Monkaba also led development and implementation of modern operating agreements, lean production methodologies, and quality strategies and systems. In addition, his background includes program management of large-scale new-product initiatives.
Mr. Monkaba earned a bachelor's degree in industrial engineering degree from the General Motors Institute and an M.B.A. from the University of Michigan. He also completed the Executive Program for Management Development at the Harvard Graduate School of Business. He has served on numerous community boards and was recognized in 1997 as “Man of the Year” by the Black and Latino Coalition of Newark, New Jersey.
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Associate Business Coach
Jill S. Green
Jill S. Green brings 10 years of management experience to her duties as an associate business coach. As a former entrepreneur and co-owner of two national franchise restaurants with revenues of approximately $4 million, she manages a portfolio of clients that includes million-dollar construction firms and organizations in the hospitality industry.
Ms. Green holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from Rockhurst University in Kansas City, Missouri.
She serves in a volunteer capacity with the Make-A-Wish Foundation, the Delta College Advisory Board for Business Administration Program in Baton Rouge, and the Women's Council of Greater Baton Rouge.
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Marketing Associate
Jaime L. Simmons
UEP marketing associate Jaime L. Simmons is a marketing and media relations professional and an entrepreneur in her own right who has been invited to showcase her products in Los Angeles at the 2012 Golden Globes and Oscar Awards.
Ms. Simmons' experience includes positions with Five Star Speakers & Trainers, Kansas City, Missouri, and with New York firms Taylor Nelson Sofres (TNS Global), Grey Advertising, and Power Moves Inc. She also has developed direct mail campaigns for public service initiatives including the Princeton Review's "No Child Left Behind" and Sean "P. Diddy" Combs's 2004 "Vote Or Die" campaign.
Ms. Simmons earned a bachelor's in marketing and communications from Spelman University and is pursuing a master's degree in psychology at the University of Missouri, Kansas City.
Among her many duties at the UEP, Ms. Simmons recently developed and managed "Art Is My Business," UEP's annual community/philanthropic initiative celebrating Kansas City artists as entrepreneurs. The program will highlight the work of selected student artists from Park University in the UEP national headquarters at 18th and Vine, Kansas City.
Ms. Simmons also serves as a board member on the UMKC Friends of the Library Board.
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National Administrative Associate
Linette Padron
Linette Padron is the national administrative associate in our Kansas City headquarters. She is a graduate of the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York, with 12 years of experience as an executive assistant and office manager for organizations ranging from a talent agency to law firms to Fox News Corp. Ms. Padron also served in the U.S. Army (from 1996-1998) and the Army Reserve (from 1998-2003), and participated in search and rescue at Ground Zero immediately following the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Click here to see her television interview on New York 1.
She has since volunteered extensively for the Wounded Warrior Project.
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