Meet Our Team

We are a passionate, vibrant group from diverse backgrounds. With many years of combined experience in leadership and organizational development, you’ll find we have encountered and faced just about every leadership and organizational challenge there is among a vast range of industries. Members of our team also belong to many professional organizations including: Organizational Development Network, Arkansas Executive Forum, Association for Challenge Course Technology (ACCT), American Society of Training and Develoment (ASTD), Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), Human Capital Institute (HCI), and The Alban Institute.

Don Soderquist | Founding Executive
Don Soderquist is the business leader for whom our Center is named and officially serves as our Founding Executive, providing direction and inspiration to our team. Don spent over 20 years with Walmart, and after Sam Walton died, Don became known as “The Keeper of the Culture.” Don led the company as Chief Operating Officer during a period marked by exponential growth. Under his watch, Walmart grew from being the largest retailer in the world with sales of $43.9 billion the year of Sam’s death, to becoming the largest company in the world with sales over $200 billion. Walmart’s success is grounded in the highly ethical, performance-focused, servant leadership philosophies that Sam and Don instilled in the hearts of every associate. Don's passion now is to teach those same principles to companies and organizations around the world.

Chuck Hyde | Chief Executive Officer | chyde@jbu.edu
Chuck Hyde, our Chief Executive Officer, provides direct leadership in all areas of the Center including execution of vision and strategy, performance to budget, all human and capital resources, and long-term sustainability of the organization. He has provided leadership in a variety of capacities since he joined the Center in 2005. Prior to his work at the Center, Chuck spent 12 years leading teams and strategic projects for Kimberly-Clark Corporation. His professional experience includes roles both in manufacturing facilities and central staff assignments in operations, operations support functions, and project leadership. Chuck currently sits on the School Board for the Siloam Springs School District. Chuck earned his B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Arkansas in 1992 and his MBA from John Brown University in 2008. Chuck and his wife, Brian, have two sons, Charley and Jonathan.

Tom Verdery | Executive in Residence | tverdery@jbu.edu
Tom Verdery serves as Executive in Residence for The Soderquist Center and also teaches in the Graduate Business division at JBU. Tom has over 34 years of experience working with Procter & Gamble, of which the last 14 years spent at the senior leadership level working exclusively outside the US with Wal-Mart, Inc. Tom came to Northwest Arkansas in 1989 when P&G asked him to be part of the first supplier team with Wal-Mart. Tom’s areas of expertise include: Strategic Planning & Execution, Executive Coaching, Leadership & Ethics, and Starting and Leading Multifunctional Customer Teams. Tom holds an MBA in Management from The University of Dallas and a BBA in Marketing from Texas Tech University.

Wendy Soderquist Togami | Senior Director | wsoderquist@jbu.edu
Wendy serves as our Senior Director. She provides strategic direction and facilitation, both for our center and for customers. Wendy’s entire career has been spent in leadership development, including eight years at Taylor University, from whom she also received the 2010 G. Roselyn Kerlin Women in Leadership Award. She has a particular passion for not-for-profit agencies and has several years of experience working in this arena. Wendy holds her Master of Arts in Student Personnel Administration in Higher Education.

Bryson Moore | Director of Emerging Leaders/Communications | bmoore@jbu.edu
Bryson Moore is our Director of Emerging Leaders and Communications. He leads our marketing efforts, directs our Soderquist Fellowship program, oversees Students In Free Enterprise (SIFE), puts on Leadership Week at JBU, runs Graduate Milestone, and helps lead our publishing efforts. Bryson graduated from JBU with a Bachelors degree in Digital Media and a Masters in Business Administration. He spent seven years at Gray Communications where he was most recently Chief Operating Officer of the company and Senior Vice President of a division called Freedom Begins Here. Bryson loves to blog. You can read his thoughts on marketing, leadership and other things at www.brysonmoore.com. Bryson has been married for nine years to his wife and best friend, Mandy (a business professor at John Brown University). They don’t have any kids, but they do have a Cocker Spaniel named Nemo Rodriguez and a King Cavalier Spaniel named Dori.

Gary Swyers | Senior Program Manager | gswyers@jbu.edu
Gary Swyers serves as our Senior Program Manager. An experienced outdoor leadership and experiential learning instructor, Gary oversees operations and facilitation for the delivery of our customers’ experience through content and experiential learning. Prior to joining us, Gary served as Director of the Center for Experiential Learning at Indiana Wesleyan University. He has extensive outdoor and education experience, having contributed to the development of adventure leadership programs, college level courses, ropes courses, and an international service program for university students. His experience also includes: facilitating with Prison Fellowship, curriculum development, and teaching at the undergraduate level. Gary has an earned degree in Theology, a Master’s degree in Ministerial Education and thirteen hours of post grad work in leadership. He also holds certifications in rock climbing and rappelling; high and low ropes course technical skill and facilitation; Emotional Intelligence and 360 assessments.

Sandy Tush | Manager/Facilitator | stush@jbu.edu
Sandy Tush serves as a Manager and Facilitator on our delivery team. She is involved with the creation and facilitation of both customized and open enrollment programs. This work includes the utilization of a variety of assessment instruments to help leaders identify their strengths and development needs. Sandy brings over 25 years experience in education and people development. She served as the Executive Development Center program manager at Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., before joining our team. Prior to that, she held the position of Content Developer / Facilitator for Home Office People Development. She also taught Computer Science courses at community colleges. Sandy is a member of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) and the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD). She also has multiple certifications, including Professional in Human Resources (PHR), EQ-i, The Birkman Method, and many more. She can be found on the local running trails and also enjoys time at home with her husband, Mike.

Leon Higgins | Manager/Facilitator | lhiggins@jbu.edu
Leon Higgins serves as a Manager and Facilitator on our delivery team. Prior to joining the Center, Leon spent 7 years at Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., in which 3 years were spent as Content Developer/Facilitator for Home Office People Development. He also spent 4 years working in Environmental Compliance as a Sr. Manager for the Water/Wastewater Team. Prior to that, he taught High School Biology/Environmental Science and was an assistant football coach. Leon graduated from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff where he received a B.S in Fisheries Biology and a M.S. in Science Education. His time away from work includes enjoying his kids, traveling, fishing and listening to music.

Loren Hancock | Customer Relations Manager | lhancock@jbu.edu
Loren Hancock is Customer Relations Manager and is responsible for establishing and maintaining relationships with donors and strategic partners, as well as working with business leaders to help them understand the practical solutions the Center can offer to meet their business and organizational challenges. Loren has been married to his wonderful wife, Leslie, for over 30 years and has three daughters, three son-in-laws and seven grandchildren. He loves to jog, trail bike and play golf.

Matthew Voss | Customer Relations Manager | mvoss@jbu.edu
Matthew Voss serves as Customer Relations Manager, and is responsible for building relationships with business and organizational leaders and helping them better understand the services offered by the Center. Prior to joining the Soderquist team, Matt led the business development functions for a custom software development company, where his responsibilities included developing sales and marketing strategy, overseeing product management, and the launch of an innovative software-based digital signage solution. Matt holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Marketing and Business Administration from Indiana Wesleyan University and an M.B.A. in Entrepreneurship and Corporate Innovation from Ball State University. Out of the office, Matt enjoys spending time outdoors with his wife, Lynette and son, Luke, and sipping great coffee.

Clayton Anderson | Communications Manager | canderson@jbu.edu
Clayton graduated from John Brown University in 2009 having earned a Bachelors of Science in Business Leadership and Management with a minor in Intercultural Studies. During his senior year, he was awarded a Soderquist Fellowship. In the position, he supported both the Emerging Leaders/Communications and Operations divisions at The Soderquist Center while attending evening classes to earn an MBA. He graduated from the John Brown University graduate school of business in May of 2011 and was thrilled to have the opportunity to continue working at The Center with even greater responsibility. Clayton currently serves The Center in Communications and as Sam M. Walton Fellow of the John Brown University Students In Free Enterprise Chapter. Clayton and his wife Andrea both live in Siloam Springs and have begun the adventure of parenthood with their first child, Tyler.

Sue Axmark Administrative Assistant to Bryson Moore & Wendy Soderquist Togami saxmark@jbu.edu		Helen Hall Administrative Assistant to Chuck Hyde & Gary Swyers hhall@jbu.edu		Anna Buck Receptionist abuck@jbu.edu
Jenni Payne Operations Coordinator jpayne@jbu.edu		Christy Hall Graphic Designer chall@jbu.edu		Frank Laakman Greystone Estate Grounds & Maintenance flaakman@jbu.edu
Patty Murphy Greystone Estate Housekeeping Coordinator pmurphy@jbu.edu		Lesa Cross Manager, Greystone Estate lcross@jbu.edu

Meet The Soderquist Fellows

Brock Erdman (read bio) Project Coordinator berdman@jbu.edu		Pablo Herrera (read bio) Project Coordinator herrerap@jbu.edu		Ben Pearson (read bio) Project Coordinator pearsonb@jbu.edu
Stephanie Brown (read bio) Project Coordinator brownsb@jbu.edu		Bryan Crandall (read bio) Project Coordinator crandallb@jbu.edu		Drew Thomason (read bio) Project Coordinator thomasona@jbu.edu
Zac Freeman (read bio) Project Coordinator freemanc@jbu.edu