Our Team
Meet our talented team membersOur Team
Robert Jones,
PhD, CEO
Bob has had a thirty-year career in animal health and is experienced in leading commercial organizations in both the US and international markets, particularly emerging markets. Bob has a great depth of knowledge in both the companion animal and food animal segments. Bob’s focus is on general and strategic consulting, with an emphasis on assisting Brakke clients in assessing their sales forces and improving their competitiveness through people as well as products.
Randall (Randy) Freides, MBA
Senior Consultant
Randy has almost 29 years of corporate finance experience at Merck & Co., Inc in both the human and animal health business segments. While at Merck, he provided financial support to Merck’s Human Health commercial operations in Japan, Latin America, Asia/Pacific, Canada, Australia, New Zealand. Most recently he was the North America Commercial Finance Lead for Merck Animal Health (2011-2018) assisting the sales and marketing organization develop go-to-market strategies, product launch plans, promotion programs, financial/operational forecasts and budgets and analyze external growth initiatives in addition to his statutory financial reporting and financial/business control responsibilities.
Chuck Johnson, DVM, MBA
Jim Kroman
Senior Consultant
Jim Kroman brings over 40 years experience in the Animal Health Industry to Brakke Consulting. Throughout his years at Beecham Laboratories, Novartis Animal Health, and Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Jim led effective teams focused on Sales, Sales Management, Marketing, Business Development and Licensing, and Project Management. From the successful implementation of an SAP platform in a highly complex biologics manufacturing environment, to successful rounds of acquisitions and divestitures, Jim has used his industry knowledge to bridge his sales and leadership experience with the technical demands of the assignment. Jim is prepared to assist clients of Brakke Consulting in their efforts to build or streamline their businesses through the acquisition or divestiture of product lines, facilities or companies, as well as through the development or optimization of sales force activities and personnel.
Christine Merle, DVM, MBA
CVPM
Christine’s expertise lies in communication strategies, organizational behavior, and the integration of marketing and education to improve veterinary practice performance. She has a strong interest in helping veterinary businesses thrive through effective team development and strategic planning.
She holds a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from the University of Illinois, an MBA from DePaul University, and is a Certified Veterinary Practice Manager (CVPM)
Alexis Nahama, DVM
Senior Consultant
Dr. Nahama has a strong track record in developing and commercializing innovation, support multi-site operations, executing successful M&A exits, and building high-performing teams. His experience spans from smaller early-stage companies to large publicly traded organizations. He is fluent in four languages and holds his veterinary degree from the Maisons-Alfort Veterinary School in France.
John Volk
Senior Consultant
John Volk is an expert analyst and project manager. With deep experience in the companion animal, equine and food animal markets, he regularly assists clients with strategy development, evaluation of business opportunities, and due diligence on potential acquisitions. John is also one of Brakke’s most experienced market research experts, managing both proprietary and multi-user studies. He is particularly noted for authoring two landmark reports on the business practices of veterinarians that are widely referenced in the profession.
Paul Casady
Senior Consultant
Lourens Havenga, DVM
Senior Consultant
Darrell Klug
Senior Consultant
Darrell’s animal health experience includes 16 years with Novartis Animal Health with his last position being Vice President of Marketing for the companion animal business in the U.S. With Novartis, Darrell successfully launched several brands in companion and production animal. After the Novartis sale to Elanco, Darrell worked for Zoetis in their swine business and led the marketing of swine vaccines, including the U.S. launch of an innovative vaccine.
Darrell earned a BS degree in Business from Christopher Newport University and an MBA from the Mason School of Business at The College of William and Mary.
Jay Lockhart
Senior Consultant
Jay is an experienced project manager whose background includes sales and marketing expertise in the pet food, livestock feed, and veterinary markets. His work with Brakke focuses on executive search and both proprietary and multi-client market research project management. Examples include the design and management of major multi-client market research projects such as the Manufacturers’ Sales Force Effectiveness and Distributor Effectiveness studies that are used by many clients as benchmarking tools.
Michael McGinley, Ph.D.
Senior Consultant
Mike is a 35-year veteran of the animal health industry in the vaccine, pharmaceutical, and diagnostics segments for both food and companion animals. He has a proven history of success in product development, regulatory affairs, new business development, and manufacturing operations leadership. Mike assists Brakke clients with science and technology assessments and provides guidance along the product development pathway from proof of concept to commercialization.
Jeff Santosuosso
Senior Consultant
includes global team and cross-functional team leadership, innovative go-to-market models, data-driven analysis and decision making, and new revenue and profit streams. With this experience, Jeff is able to help Brakke clients find the talent they need to be competitive and successful in the dynamic animal health and nutrition industries.
International consultants
Mauri Ronan Moreira, DVM, MBA
Jishu Shi. DVM, PhD
Dr. Jishu Shi received a doctor of veterinary medicine from the Beijing Agricultural University and a doctorate in immunophysiology from Kansas State University. Dr. Shi is a full professor for the College of Veterinary Medicine at Kansas State University and the director of the U.S.-China Center for Animal Health, Having worked at Pfizer and multiple academic institutions in the U.S. in the last three decades, Dr. Shi is a frequent consultant to animal health companies in the U.S., China, Japan, and Europe. In 2010, Dr. Shi founded VaxiAm Group, a global consulting firm with offices in Beijing and Kansas that focuses exclusively on the Chinese animal health market. Working with Brakke Consulting, VaxiAm Group provides the following services to its clients: investment due diligence, market analysis, regulatory affairs consultation, product registration, and selection of business partners including sales agents, distributors, product co-developers, and manufacturers.
Yuki Ujimasa, DVM, MS
Administrative Team
Amanda McDavid, MEd
Operations Manager
Amanda lives in Greensboro, NC with her husband, three children, which includes twins, and her Morkies, Molly and Millie. Amanda is originally from Tennessee where she earned a Bachelor’s degree in Interdisciplinary Studies and then a Master’s degree in Education. Amanda has spent the majority of her career in education and has also managed a daycare center before joining Brakke as an administrative manager.
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