Staff

Carmen DeHart

Director of UMKC Small Business and Technology Development Center

As Director of the UMKC Small Business & Technology Development Center, Carmen assists small business owners, executives and entrepreneurial CEO’s in the Greater Kansas City area by integrating public, private and educational business outreach services and developing programs that promotes business growth, expansion, increased productivity and management improvement. Carmen’s business development counseling is comprehensive and personalized for each client with which she engages. Her portfolio of skills includes business strategy, financial analysis and business operations from start-up to acquisition.

An entrepreneur for over 20 years Carmen has co-owned and managed several successful businesses including WARD & GARRISON CO., INC. (Sugar Creek, MO 1981 to 2003) an industry leader in machinery rebuilding, design and fabrication for metal manufacturing which earned the Boeing Eagle Award for Outstanding Performance.

Carmen is an alumnus of the Henry W. Bloch School of Business and Public Administration, University of Missouri-Kansas City, where she received her BS in Business Administration.

Abigail Wadsworth

Administrative Assistant

Abigail is directly involved with the external relations, networking & promotion for the Small Business and Technology Development Center. She also handles a variety of aspects related to the center’s internal organization. This includes close collaboration and planning on projects and events hosted by the SBTDC including the CEO Coaching & More…mentoring program, as well as the many supplementary classes and trainings that the center offers. She works hands on in the coordinating and planning of STBDC events from the beginnings of registration to facilitation the day of. Before coming on board with the SBTDC, she worked as the Administrative Assistant for a prestigious law firm in downtown Kansas City. Abigail is also a student at UMKC where she is working toward her BA in communication studies.

Denise Fields

Business Development Specialist, Technology and Commercialization

Denise has over 25 years experience in senior management positions for some of the industry’s most successful start-up ventures. Prior to her involvement with UMKC SBTDC, Denise was with DaVinci & Associates where she was responsible for providing strategic and tactical guidance for a series of start-up and midsize companies in the technology sector. Prior to that, Denise served in several senior executive roles for Research Systems, Inc.; and through her executive leadership skills, was the lead in the Acquisition of the company by Eastman Kodak. Earlier in her career Denise served in a variety of senior management positions for such companies as Visual Numerics and the Lotus Development Corporation. Denise holds an M.B.A. from Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts.

Larry Lee

Business Development Specialist, Technology and Commercialization

Larry has over 25 years experience in senior management positions and has a solid foundation in corporate and financial management. He has also been an active entrepreneur launching and operating several successful businesses on a full and part-time basis. Prior to his involvement with UMKC SBTDC, Larry was the Director of the Enterprise Development Laboratory at UMKC where he was responsible for programs that took student and faculty entrepreneurs from start-up to commercialization. Prior to coming to UMKC Larry was vice president of Provident Bank, where he had responsibility for commercial loans and servicing business customers. He has also been an effective advocate for small business owners, promoting their economic interest during critical times. Larry is a native of Kansas City and holds an M.B.A. from Northwest Missouri State University.

Susan Henson

Business Development Specialist, MU Extension

Susan is a Business Development Specialist with University of Missouri Extension and has over twenty years of experience in retail management, apparel manufacturing, customer service, human resources, and operations. She spent ten years on the faculty at the University of Missouri in Columbia as the Coordinator of MO-TAC (Missouri Textile and Apparel Center). Susan’s career has also included positions such as Customer Service & Operations Manager with Best Buy Stores, as Human Resources Manager with Saks Fifth Avenue as well as Director of Operations for a non-profit educational services company.

Mark Allen

Business Development Specialist

With nearly 30 years in the business world, Mark comes equipped to handle many different aspects related to our clients' business start-up and development needs. With a degree in finance and trained as a commodities trader, Mark began his career working in the futures business specializing in lumber and plywood. Ultimately, he built a single entity lumber trading operation into a multi-company, multi-faceted integrated building materials supply organization with operations and employees in 11 states. After selling those businesses in the late 1990’s, Mark went on to organize two non-profit youth mentoring organizations. He has spent the last five years as a fundraising development consultant serving non-profit organizations across the U.S. He currently serves on the boards of three different non-profit foundations.

Diane Scott

Manager, Professional Development Program

As part of a joint venture between the UMKC Small Business & Technology Development Center and the University of Missouri Extension, Diane creates and manages innovative professional development programs for the leadership of entrepreneurial firms facing growth and expansion issues. Diane has considerable education and professional development experience having been a member of the management faculty at Wichita State University in the Barton School of Business for more than 11 years. Diane enjoys course development and the interaction of a classroom. This enthusiasm has led to nominations for and the receipt of numerous teaching awards including the 2006 Barton School of Business Undergraduate Teacher of the Year and the 2008 WSU Academy for Effective Teaching award. Diane specializes in organizational behavior and has taught thousands of current and future business people in traditional classrooms and professional development settings how to improve their teamwork, leadership, coaching and communication skills. Diane’s educational background includes a Bachelor of Arts in Communication and a Master of Business Administration from WSU.