Mark Gross - President / CEO

Mark is the founder and CEO of Oak Grove Technologies (formerly Oak Grove Software). A former U.S. Army enlisted soldier and a graduate of Catholic University in Washington, DC, Mark continued his public service under the DOJ Honors Program in 1991 with the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division. Assigned to the Communications and Finance Sections Bank Merger Unit, Mark assumed sole responsibility of a six member team within six months. During this time, Mark improved relations with other regulatory agencies to facilitate the sharing of vital information collected by different governmental agencies. For this, Mark was presented the Assistant AG (Ann Bingaman) Award in 1993, 1994 and the AG (Janet Reno) Award in 1995. During his DOJ career, he was assigned to many high profile Government investigations to include Microsoft, AT&T, and NASDAQ.

Upon leaving public service, Mark held numerous Business Development positions with Fortune 500 Companies, achieving Presidents club status five consecutive years. Mark was legal editor of the 1st publication - Veterans Benefits Manual - An Advocates Guide To Veterans Benefits and is active within the NDIA and AFCEA. He is also a Founding Member of the American Legion, National Economic Committees Small Business Task Force. In March of 2006, Mark was selected to serve on the SBA's Veterans Advisory Committee, a committee that advises both the White House and the Congress on Veterans Business and issues.

Oak Grove is the first SDVO small business to be accepted into the DOD Mentor Protégé Program, and is the 2007 DOD Nunn Perry Award Winner.

Mark, his wife and three daughters reside in Raleigh, NC.

General Philip Kensinger, Jr. (Ret.) - Chief Operating Officer

Gen. Kensinger, served in the Army for over 35 years. His assignments included tours with the 3rd Armor Division, 3rd, 5th and 7th Special Forces Groups (Airborne) and the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault).

His general officer assignments included: Commanding General, Special Operations Command Central; Deputy Commanding General and Chief of Staff, U.S. Army Special Operations Command; Coammanding General, U.S. Army South; Deputy G3 Army Staff; and he retired in 2006 as the Commanding General of the U.S. Army Special Operations Command, Fort Bragg, NC.

Gen. Kensinger resides in North Carolina with his wife Greta.

SMA Jack L. Tilley (Ret.) - Senior Vice President, Military Affairs

Jack Tilley was sworn in as the 12th Sergeant Major of the Army on June 23, 2000 and served until January 15, 2004. In this position, he was the senior enlisted person in the Army and served as the Army Chief of Staff's personal advisor on all enlisted matters, particularly in areas affecting soldier training and quality of life. Traveling extensively throughout the world, he also sat on a wide variety of councils and boards that made decisions affecting enlisted soldiers and their families, and he was routinely invited to testify before Congress.

SMA Tilley previously served as the Command Sergeant Major of 1st Battalion, 10th Cavalry, 194th Separate Armor Brigade, 1st Armored Division, United States Army Space and Missile Defense Command, and United States Central Command.

Throughout his 35+ year career, SMA Tilley held every key leadership position including tank commander, section leader, drill sergeant, platoon sergeant, senior instructor, operations sergeant and first sergeant. His military education includes the First Sergeants Course and the Sergeants Major Academy. He also was a graduate of the basic airborne course, drill sergeant school and master gunner's course.

His awards and decorations include the Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit with two oak leaf clusters, Bronze Star with V Device, Meritorious Service Medal with one oak leaf cluster, Vietnam Service Medal and Campaign Medal, Presidential Unit Citation, Overseas Service Ribbon (2), NCO Professional Development Ribbon (4), Drill Sergeant's Badge, Parachutist's Badge and the Army Staff Identification Badge.

In retirement, SMA Tilley continues his advocacy of the men and women in uniform. A sought-after speaker, his talks are designed to both educate the general public and stimulate support for our military. He also co-chairs American Freedom Foundation, Inc. a non-profit organization dedicated to raise the national awareness of the sacrifices our Troops and their families endure. Proceeds from the foundation are used to enhance educational opportunities and the general welfare of families and service members who have served during Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom.

SMA Tilley resides in Fort Lauderdale, Florida with his wife, two children and one grandchild.

Col. Frank E. Beaty (Ret.) - Senior Vice President, Business Development

Col. Beaty is a retired USAF colonel and career intelligence officer. He finished his active duty career at MacDill AFB Base's HQ US Special Operations Command as Director of Intelligence; as such he is intimately familiar with ongoing Intelligence, Counter Terrorism and Counter Intelligence issues and people working those issues within DoD. Prior to HQUSSOCOM, he was the senior USAF Intelligence Officer in Japan. Col Beaty was the Director of Intelligence for Operation Northern Watch during OPERATION DESERT FOX and was the Director the USAF Intelligence Operations Center during the Kosovo campaign.

Col. Beaty served two tours at the Pentagon where he was in charge of such programs as Long Range Plans, Force Management, and Joint Intelligence Matters. During his first Pentagon tour, he was on the Air Force's Checkmate Team deeply involved with strategy during DESERT STORM.

He is well versed in the Command and Control (C2) and Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) arenas. While serving in his leadership positions he was involved with or in charge of the complex Intelligence funding issues for those organizations. He is on the Advisory Board of the National Conference on Homeland Security, in Tampa, Florida. He has a master's degree in National Security Studies and is a graduate of the Air War College. He is a former RAND Corporation Research Fellow.

Col. Beaty resides in Tampa, Florida.

Denise Lawson - Senior Vice President, Strategy

Denise Lawson is a PMI Certified Project Manager with over 15 years of professional experience in planning, developing, and implementing solutions for a wide range of clients in both the government and commercial sectors, including the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Defense, and the Department of Homeland Security. Over the course of her career, Denise has led key IT strategy and implementation efforts and provided guidance to project teams and clients on how changes in technology can impact the organization. Prior to joining Oak Grove, Denise was a program manager at Booz Allen Hamilton where she received the Woman of Distinction award in 2004 for her accomplishments. She was also a product manager for PRC, Inc. where she led the development of software applications for the real estate industry.

Denise has a BS in Psychology from Georgetown University and an MBA with a concentration in Marketing and Information Technology from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland.

Lt. Colonel Christopher Greene (Ret.) - Vice President, Contracts

Chris Greene is a retired Lieutenant Colonel of the US Army Acquisition Corps with 26 years of military experience. A former enlisted soldier and commissioned officer, Chris gained extensive expertise in both Operations and Acquisitions. Chris began his military career in Combat Arms and later transitioned to contracting. While on active duty, Chris was Chief of Contracts for the United States Property and Fiscal Office. As a Level III Certified Acquisition Professional, he held numerous contracting warrants which included licensure without monetary restriction.

Chris was presented with the 2006 Individual Outstanding Achievement Award from the Center for Veteran's Enterprise. He was recognized for his continual support to the Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business community. Chris also earned a senior certificate from the Defense Acquisition University, as well as a BS degree in Management and Organizational Development from Mount Olive College.

Chris resides in Durham, North Carolina with his wife, Amanda, and their three children.

Susan Stiles, Ph.D.
Vice President, Marketing

Susan Stiles has over fifteen years of experience in strategic communications and IT project management. Her primary areas of interest are in knowledge management and e-Learning. Prior to joining Oak Grove, Susan was an IT consultant at Booz Allen Hamilton.

Susan has a BA in Literature and PhD in Comparative Literature, both from Harvard University.  Susan and her husband Marino reside in Springfield, VA, with their three children.

Robert H. Jones - Director, Human Resources

Robert assumed the role of Director, Human Resources for Oak Grove Technologies in May 2009. He began his employment with Oak Grove in June 2008 as a Recruiter.

Prior to coming to Oak Grove, he served on active duty for 21 years with the U.S. Army and the Army National Guard. During his successful military career, he served as Director, Human Resources for the North Carolina National Guard, Deputy G-1 (Personnel Officer), Battalion Commander, Public Affairs Officer, Operations Officer, Aide-de- Camp, and Recruiting Officer. Robert served in command and staff positions of increasing responsibility from platoon to Joint Forces level. He served in Bosnia and Afghanistan.

Robert is a graduate of the U.S. Army Infantry Officer’s Course, Special Forces Qualification Course, U.S. Army Command and General Staff College and the U.S. Army War College. He has a BA Degree from North Carolina State University in Business and a Master in Strategic Studies from the U.S. Army War College

Robert is married and has two daughters. They reside in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Col. Jack Zeigler (Ret.) - Director, Special Operations Program

Colonel Jack Zeigler (Ret.) recently left active duty after serving the majority of his 30 year Army career as a Special Forces Officer. His final assignment, in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, was Chief of Staff, Iraqi National Counter-Terrorism Force Transition Team based in Baghdad, Iraq. COL Zeigler’s previous assignments include Chief of Staff, U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School; Commander, 1st Special Warfare Training Group (Airborne); Commander, 3d Battalion, 3d Special Forces Group (Airborne); and Operations Officer G3, Army Special Operations Task Force - Haiti, in support of Operation Uphold Democracy. He also served as a Special Forces Operational Detachment Alpha commander in the 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), and he served with the U.S. Army Special Operations Command as the Deputy G3 (Operations), and as the command’s Inspector General.

COL Zeigler commanded the 1st Special Warfare Training Group (Airborne) and served as the Chief of Staff, U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School during a period of unprecedented change in the training and growth of Army Special Forces, Civil Affairs, and Psychological Operations Soldiers. He also has extensive special operations experience in Africa to include deployments to Malawi, Senegal, and Ghana in support of the Africa Crisis Response Initiative, and he has conducted humanitarian demining operations in Mozambique, Swaziland, Zimbabwe, and Zambia. He has conducted Joint and Combined Exercises in Botswana and Senegal. Additionally, he has been directly involved in planning and conducting special operations and training for host nation forces in Kuwait, Iraq, Portugal, and Italy.

COL Zeigler has a Master’s Degree in Systems Management from the University of Denver, and a Master’s Degree in Strategic Studies from the Army War College. His military awards include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star, Meritorious Service Medal, and the Humanitarian Service Medal.

COL Zeigler resides in Fayetteville, North Carolina with his wife Janice.

Col. Tommy Kelley (Ret.) - Director, Intelligence Operations

Col. Tommy Kelley (Ret.) served in the Army for 30 years as a career Intelligence Officer. He finished his active duty October 1, 2008 at Fort McPherson, GA at HQs, Army Central (Third Army) as the Director Operational Intelligence (G2).

Col. Kelley's past assignments include Commander 111th MI Brigade; Commander, 309th MI Battalion; J2 staff, CFLCC OIF; ACE Chief, V Corps; Pentagon-Army Staff; Dir of Operations 66th MI Group; 165th MI Battalion XO, and 4ID Company Commander. He served in the SFOR mission in Bosnia; Operation Allied Force (TF Hawk) in Albania; OIF I in Kuwait and two tours in Korea.

Col. Kelley now resides in Sierra Vista, AZ.

Kevin Minor - Comptroller

Kevin Minor joins Oak Grove with over 15 years of accounting experience. Over the last 8 years, Kevin gained extensive experience in financial affairs while working as a Controller for The Columbia Group, Computer Temporaries, Inc., and HAZMED.

Kevin earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Accounting from Strayer University and an Associate's Degree in Computer Information Systems from DeVry University.