Business Consulting Resources, Inc.

Kenneth M. Gilbert [ Senior Consultant/Partner ]

A long-time Hawaii resident, Ken is co-founder of Business Consulting Resources, Inc. He offers over twenty years of consulting knowledge, and holds a B.S.B.A. in Personnel and Employee Relations and a Masters Degree in International Business from the American University in Washington D.C.

Ken embodies the entrepreneurial spirit, and learned early on that objectivity is the key to long-term survival. By instilling this objectivity in BCR clients, he has given them the ability to survive any trend, obstacle or road block to success they may face. He has successfully assisted BCR clients in strategic planning, financial management, human resources, mergers and acquisitions, new business development, and management development. Ken has coached numerous corporate executives in a variety of performance improvement areas which include strategy development and implementation, leadership skill development and building and creating effective teams. Ken is the immediate past-president of the Metropolitan Rotary Club of Honolulu and has served several terms as a member of the club’s Board of Directors.

Jean Santos [ Senior Consultant/Partner ]

A founding member of BCR, Jean began her career in consulting after earning a B.A. and Masters Degree in Communications from the University of Hawaii at Manoa. She manages many of the human resource development and organizational development programs at BCR, in addition to assisting clients in the areas of internal communication structure, and personnel growth and development. Jean is an expert in behavior and position profile development and interpretation. She regularly uses these tools to assist clients in employee search and selection, training, motivation, team building, conflict resolution, and other areas. Jean’s experience in executive coaching includes working with senior executives in team building, personal performance improvement, and overall management strategy.

Jean is active in the local business community as well, currently serving as past chair of Easter Seals Hawaii. Jean is also a member of the Board of Business Advisors of Hawaii Pacific University and maintains active membership in the local chapter of the Society of Human Resources Management. Presently Jean also holds community leadership positions on a number of committees of the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii. She has served on the Legislature’s Small Business Caucus and was an elected delegate to the 1995 White House Conference on Small Business. In addition, Jean was a Governor’s appointee to the Rehabilitation Advisory Council of the Department of Human Services, and a member of Sales and Marketing Executives of Honolulu.

Laurie S. Foster [ Senior Consultant ]

Laurie brings a strong background of academics, consulting and entrepreneurship to BCR. After earning a BA in Economics and an MBA from Stanford University, Laurie launched a 15 year consulting career on the East Coast with Bain & Company and Mercer Management Consulting. She managed $1-5 million client engagements focused on strategic planning, organization development and infrastructure alignment in a variety of industries including energy, hotel and leisure, financial services, and transportation worldwide.

Laurie returned back to her home on Oahu in the mid-90s to pursue an entrepreneurial focus with smaller companies and start-up ventures. Her entrepreneurial ventures include Founder and President of Brewmoon Hawaii, CEO of hotU, Inc., an internet services start-up, Vice President of National University and COO of It’s All About Kids. In these positions she has raised private equity capital, negotiated leases and built out properties, formulated and implemented market positioning strategies, developed new product lines, re-engineered service delivery processes, formed and managed employee teams of 100+, downsized employee teams in difficult times, and acquired and merged companies. Street smart, Laurie knows the challenges and satisfaction of entrepreneurship.
Laurie has also been actively engaged in local boards including American Red Cross Hawaii; the Hogan’s Entrepreneur Advisory Board at Chaminade College, the Hawaii Theatre Centre and was the YWCA Board Chair for eight years.

Dwight D. Synan [ Consultant ]

Dwight Synan has been in Hawaii since 2003. Dwight spent his high school and university days living in Japan. He attended the Kwansei Gakuin University in Japan and the New College of Florida where he earned his bachelor's degree in International Relations. Upon returning to Japan, Dwight attended Osaka University, School of Law where he was the recipient of the prestigious Monbusho Taishikan Suisen (Ministry of Education's Embassy Fellowship).

Dwight started his own company in Japan which provided event production and promotion services. While running that company, Dwight built his family business operations experience working in his family's business, also in Japan. Dwight supported his family's business in business development, marketing, promotions and branding. Dwight brings a multitude of skills and capabilities to BCR's clients, including his knowledge of building and running a successful business in Japan and his multi-lingual skills. Prior to moving to Hawaii to raise his family, Dwight sold his event production and promotions company which continues to operate in Japan. As a licensed Hawaii real estate agent, Dwight is regularly recognized as one of the top producing agents in Hawaii.