Mr. Koether is the Chairman and Founder of Kitchen Brains. From its beginning in his garage over forty years ago, Mr. Koether has been the driving force behind the success of Kitchen Brains® as a leading manufacturer of appliance controls exclusively for the food service industry.  Throughout his career, he has earned the reputation as a pioneer of process controls for multi-unit restaurants and currently holds more than 30 U.S. and European patents.

Mr. Koether is a former Director of the American Electronics Association, and his entrepreneurial achievements have been featured in Forbes Magazine.  He spends his free time serving as chairman and founder of the Glacier Society (www.glaciersociety.org), a dedicated group of veterans, polar explorers and volunteers.  Their mission is to restore the icebreaker Glacier, the largest icebreaker of his time and the flagship of Admiral Richard E. Byrd, for use as an operational museum and school ship in the Northeast.

Mr. Koether earned a B.A. degree from Brown University and an M.B.A. in finance from Columbia University.  He served as a naval navigator and scientific officer for the U.S. Navy aboard the U.S.S. Glacier.

Timothy Lane is currently CEO and Vice-Chairman of Kitchen Brains and Chairman of the Board of True Drinks, Inc. – a California-based beverage company specializing in ‘good for you’ alternative kids beverages. Well known for his accomplishments during his nearly twenty-year career at PepsiCo.

 Mr. Lane served as CEO, PepsiCo Restaurants International (PRI) for Asia and the Middle East (KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell.)  He led the expansion of PRI throughout the region, including the introduction of KFC into China, where it’s held its leading market position for many years. This China/Asia growth platform continues to be a key driver of what is presently known as YUM Brands.

Earlier in his PepsiCo career, Mr. Lane served as CFO, KFC Worldwide;  CFO, Pepsi International; and CFO, Frito Lay International.
Subsequent to PepsiCo, Mr. Lane served as president and CEO, Holiday Inn Worldwide. Thereafter, he retired from corporate America to cofound the Afghanistan Reconstruction Company (ARC), which built the Kabul-Kandahar highway, the USA embassy complex and other public works, and founded Afghanistan International Bank, the first privately owned international bank.
 
Mr. Lane began his career as a management consultant for Touche, Ross and Company before joining Masonite Corporation, where he served as general manager of its West Coast Fabricating Division. He also served as assistant to the chairman at the Consolidated Packaging Company.

Mr. Lane received a Bachelor of Science in accounting from the University of Dayton and an MBA from the University of Chicago.

George Koether, President, has 23 years of experience in the Global Foodservice industry where he has led the development of startup companies, built distribution and sales networks internationally, and led turnarounds through clear focus and accountability. Prior to joining Kitchen Brains® in November 1993, he led a start up import distribution company in England and South Africa which grew at an average annual rate of 55% and consistently generated average annual net profit margins in excess of 8%.

Mr. Koether received a B.A. from Oglethorpe University and studied business at Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management and Stanford University

As Chief Operating Officer, Reza Khani is responsible for the overall strategic and operational leadership of the company. Mr. Khani, an accomplished leader in industrial automation and engineering, brings with him over 30 years of combined technology development, new product introduction and operations leadership experience in a variety of executive positions.

Prior to joining Kitchen Brains, he served as Executive Vice President of Operations of Petra Solar that develops and manufactures a smart grid and energy solutions for utility industry. Before joining Petra Solar, he held various leadership and engineering positions at FAST, Inc., PhotonEx Corp., Schneider Electric, Modicon, EMC Corp., and GCA Corp.

He holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Massachusetts and a MBA from Southern New Hampshire University.

Mr. Koether joined in 2007 as Vice President of Business Development.  Prior to joining the company, Mr. Koether spent five years in various sales positions with Nestlé USA and Nestlé Purina PetCare Company.  During that time he was promoted out of their Leadership Development Program, managed sales responsibilities in excess of $115M and played an integral role in the merger and integration of Nestlé USA and Ralston Purina’s pet care business. 

Mr. Koether holds an M.B.A. from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth and a B.A. in Business Management from Gettysburg College.

Patti Balkonis is the Director of Human Resources and is responsible for developing and implementing human resource policies and programs including many proactive training and development initiatives. Among one of the longest-standing members of the Kitchen Brains team, Balkonis joined the company in 1975 and has been active in the transition of (FAST)® over the years from an entrepreneurial-driven company to a thriving, international and multi-million dollar corporation now known as Kitchen Brains™.

Ms. Balkonis earned her B.A. in History from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, completed Paralegal Studies at Fairfield University, has received her Reiki Master certification, and is a certified Professional in Human Resources.

C. Wayne Best has enjoyed a successful track record in sales, manufacturing, and marketing throughout his business career.  At present, he is the Principal/Owner of Best Global LLC, a consulting firm to the global food service industry.  In addition to being the President of his own company, C. Wayne concurrently holds the following titles:  CEO-Chief Explanation Officer and Member Spokesman for the National Service Cooperative, CRO-Chief Relationship Officer for Kitchen Brains/SCK/FAST, CEO of the Industry Exchange Group branch of the National Service Cooperative, Business Development Consultant for Whaley's Parts Supply, and Consultant for TempStations LLC.

Along with his expertise in the food service industry, C. Wayne also specializes in strategic planning, management, event planning and catering, business and product development, sales operations, and all aspects of customer service.  C. Wayne holds membership in the following professional associations:  Foodservice Consultants Society International, Commercial Food Equipment Service Association, Restaurant Facility Management Association, Food Service Professionals Network, and the Food Service, Air Conditioning, Refrigeration Equipment Forum.  C. Wayne and his lovely wife Iris are the proud parents of a daughter, Tiffany, and a son, Corbin.

Joining Kitchen Brains in 2008, Mike Keefe worked in a number of different roles as Director of Engineering, Director of Product Development and Director of the SAAS Development Group before becoming Vice President of the Engineering Group and SaaS Development Groups.

Prior to Kitchen Brains, Mr. Keefe served as Vice President of Engineering at Cognitronics where he led teams in the design and development of a variety of telecommunications products and applications. Thereafter, Mr. Keefe joined ASML as a Group Lead of a Software team designing a number of the subsystems of a Lithography machine.

Mr. Keefe received his Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and Electrical Engineering at the University of Connecticut and completed work toward a Master in Computer Science at Polytechnic University.