Group of architects working on new project

George W. Denninghoff Appointed EVP, Americas at Simms & Associates

Corona, California – January 25, 2024 Simms & Associates proudly welcomes George W. Denninghoff as its Executive Vice President, Americas. George brings a distinguished career spanning over 25 years, marked by a remarkable record of accomplishment in driving revenues, building high-performing teams, and fostering long-term customer satisfaction.

In joining Simms & Associates, George expressed his motivation, stating,

“I enjoy helping build organizations and increase their ability to scale for the next level of growth.”

He envisions leveraging his diverse experience to contribute to the growth and success of Simms & Associates in North America.

“We are thrilled to welcome George to our leadership team, where his expertise perfectly aligns with our expansion goals in the North American market,”

states Amanda Simms, CEO & President of Simms & Associates.

“Having established strong local leadership, we are taking a significant stride in advancing our growth within the North American market. The rapid expansion of Simms & Associates North America is now bolstered by our local leadership, poised to drive our accelerated growth.”

Prioritizing customer service, George emphasizes the importance of setting expectations and delivering on promises to drive customer satisfaction. He also outlines his approach to refining and optimizing processes, focusing on innovation and return on investment.

Looking ahead, George envisions leveraging his knowledge and reputation to align his expertise with the company’s goals, driving success in the North American region. With a focus on growth and building lasting partnerships, George Denninghoff’s appointment marks a significant milestone in Simms & Associates’ journey towards becoming a global leader in the workforce management sector.

With existing relationships within Ultimate Kronos Group (UKG), George is well-placed to continue the close partnership between the two companies and increase Simms & Associates’ customer base in North America.

In conclusion, George Denninghoff’s appointment as EVP, Americas marks a pivotal moment in Simms & Associates’ journey towards global leadership in the workforce management sector.

For media inquiries, please contact:

Dimphy van Heusden, VP of Global Marketing

George

Tom Miller

Having lived and breathed the retail life for the majority of his own, Tom brings a wealth of experience to all his customers and project teams. For the past 30 years, Tom has been delivering large scale, global implementations against defined ROI performance matrices to guarantee project success. His ability to lead cross functional teams across multi-country, multi-language enterprises, as well as the depth of his knowledge around labour standards and retail industry best practice, is an incredible asset to your workforce management journey.

Fabio Rodriguez

Originally from Costa Rica, Fabio has found his new home in Spain. He has over 10 years’ consulting and project management experience, working in over 25 countries. Fabio’s strengths are in business strategy and planning, leading cross-functional teams through complex implementations to success

Fabio is fluent in Spanish, English and French and has extensive experience leading projects in Retail, Manufacturing, Distribution and Telecommunications.

Jesús Moreno

A Senior WFM Consultant, Jesús came to S&A from Kronos and has over 14 years’ experience implementing both Kronos and SMART solutions worldwide. With extensive experience in the Retail, Manufacturing and Healthcare sectors, Jesús has a proven track record for delivering successful projects. Working collaboratively with both customers and partners in complex multi-national implementations, Jesús is able to guide customers through recommended business practices based on his experience.

Based in Madrid, Jesús is fluent in both Spanish and English.

Christine Ruchay – Training & Education Services Manager

Christine is our Customer Training & Education Services Manager. With 14 years experience in formal teaching and training, and over 25 in Retail, Hospitality, Banking and Insurance, she has a passion that is felt by everyone who attends her classes. Christine’s training is delivered in a highly dynamic, hands-on and enthusiastic manner, which not only makes the experience an enjoyable one…but attendees walk out feeling confident in what they’ve learned.

A native English speaker, Christine is also fluent in Spanish, German and French. Her ability to deliver training in multiple languages is an asset to both S&A and our global customers.

Alex Yarovyy

Coming to S&A from a Kronos customer, Alex has over 17 years implementation experience, including extensive knowledge of Kronos solutions end-to-end. While working on the customer side of things, Alex was heavily involved in a large, global Kronos roll out. His experience working with multiple countries and languages, as well as his highly technical background, have proven extremely effective on the most complex of projects.

Based in Frankfurt, Alex speaks Russian, Ukrainian and English, with a working knowledge of German.

Marta López

With a background in HR, Payroll and Personnel Administration, Marta has extensive experience in the Retail, Manufacturing and Healthcare sectors. Working on workforce management implementations over the past several years, Marta excels at collaborating with customers to analyse complex business process workflows and guide them towards effective solutions

Based in Madrid, Marta speaks both Spanish and English, with a working knowledge of Portuguese and German.

Laura Gasiunas – Operations Manager

Originally from Chicago, Laura is based out of the mountains of Madrid, and works as our Operations Manager (and sometime hiking guide).

With a background in HR and Payroll Management, she has experience with Kronos as both an end user and a consultant. Additionally, Laura dwelled in the world of finance, gathering wisdom in loan processing, office management and customer relations. These roles combined give Laura the fortitude and skillsets to guide our growing team and meet business objectives.

Jorge Renovell

Coming to S&A from Kronos, Jorge has over 17 years in the Workforce Management industry, working with SMART and Kronos implementations. He has extensive experience helping organisations implement and manage their workforce management systems, solving critical business issues and optimising their workforce.

Based in Madrid, Jorge is fluent in Spanish & English, and has been a key member of our consulting team since S&A opened our doors.

Tom Miller

Habiendo vivido e incluso respirado la industria del retail durante la mayor parte de su vida, Tom ofrece la riqueza de su experiencia a todos sus clientes y equipos de proyecto. Durante los últimos 30 años, ha llevado a cabo implementaciones globales y a gran escala ajustándose a matrices de rendimiento de ROI específicas para garantizar el éxito de los proyectos. Su capacidad para liderar equipos funcionales a través de empresas multinacionales y multilingües y sus profundos conocimientos sobre estándares laborales y prácticas idóneas en comercio minorista, suponen una increíble ventaja para la andadura de nuestros clientes en el workforce management.

Fabio Rodriguez

Nacido en Costa Rica, Fabio ha encontrado su nuevo hogar en España. Cuenta con más de 10 años de experiencia en consultoría y gestión de proyectos, habiendo trabajado en más de 25 países. Los puntos fuertes de Fabio son la estrategia y planificación empresariales para liderar equipos interdisciplinares a través de complejas implementaciones enfocadas al éxito.

Fabio domina el español, el inglés y el francés y tiene amplia experiencia en liderazgo de proyectos en los sectores de retail, manufacturación, distribución y telecomunicaciones.

Jesús Moreno

Consultor sénior en WFM, Jesús llegó a S&A desde Kronos y cuenta con más de 14 años de experiencia implementando soluciones de Kronos y SMART a nivel mundial. Posee también amplia experiencia en los sectores retail, manufacturación y sanidad, además de una acreditada trayectoria de proyectos de éxito. Jesús trabaja estrechamente con clientes y partners en complejas implementaciones multinacionales y es capaz de orientar a los clientes sobre prácticas de negocio recomendadas basadas en su experiencia.

Afincado en Madrid, Jesús domina tanto el inglés como el español.

Christine Ruchay

Christine es nuestra directora de Formación para Clientes y Servicios de Capacitación. Con más de 14 años de experiencia en formación y docencia regladas, y más de 25 años en retail, hospitalidad, banca y seguros, es capaz de transmitir su pasión en todas su clases. La formación de Christine es dinámica, práctica y entusiasta. No sólo hace que la experiencia sea agradable, sino que los asistentes adquieren seguridad en los conocimientos obtenidos.

Christine es hablante inglesa nativa y domina el español, el alemán y el francés. Su habilidad para ofrecer formación en varios idiomas es una ventaja tanto para S&A como para nuestros clientes.

Alex Yarovyy

Alex llegó a S&A desde un cliente de Kronos y cuenta con más de 17 años de experiencia en implementación, lo cual implica amplios conocimientos en soluciones integrales de Kronos. Mientras trabajaba en el lado del cliente, Alex estuvo muy involucrado en una gran implantación global de Kronos. Su experiencia trabajando con múltiples países e idiomas y su bagaje altamente técnico han resultado extremadamente efectivos en los proyectos más complejos.

Con base en Frankfurt, Alex habla ruso, ucraniano e inglés, y es capaz de defender su trabajo en alemán.

Marta López

Además de un perfil centrado en RRHH, nóminas y administración de personal, Marta posee una gran experiencia en los sectores de retail, manufacturación y sanidad. Habiendo trabajado en implementaciones de workforce management durante los últimos años, Marta destaca al colaborar con los clientes en el análisis de flujos de trabajo en procesos de negocio complejos y en la orientación hacia las soluciones más efectivas.

Con base en Madrid, Marta habla español e inglés, y tiene conocimientos prácticos de portugués y alemán.

Laura Gasiunas

Originaria de Chicago, nuestra Directora de Operaciones (y ocasionalmente nuestra guía de senderismo) Laura vive actualmente en las montañas cerca de Madrid.

Con un perfil enfocado a RRHH Y nóminas, Laura empezó utilizando Kronos a nivel de usuario y luego pasó a configurarlo. Laura también trabajó en el mundo de las finanzas donde adquirió conocimientos en el procesamiento de préstamos, gestión de oficinas y relaciones con los clientes. La combinación de estas competencias hace que Laura tenga un conjunto de habilidades y fuerzas para guiar a nuestro equipo y tener un profundo conocimiento de los objetivos de nuestro negocio.

Jorge Renovell

Jorge llegó a S&A desde Kronos, y tiene más de 17 años de experiencia en la industria de workforce management, habiendo trabajado con implementaciones de SMART y Kronos. Acumula también amplia experiencia ayudando a organizaciones a implementar y gestionar sus sistemas de workforce management, resolviendo problemas críticos y optimizando su fuerza laboral.

Con base en Madrid, Jorge habla con fluidez inglés y español, y ha sido un miembro clave de nuestro equipo de consultores desde que S&A abrió sus puertas.

Malcolm Breen

A Senior WFM specialist, Malcolm has worked with various enterprise clients across Asia Pacific, Japan and Europe. With solid knowledge around Kronos and SAP solutions as well a background in change management, he brings his expertise in large scale WFM project planning, execution and deployment, coupled with a strong focus on the user experience, to his projects.

Originally from Australia, Malcolm has now made Madrid his home.

Chris Siddall

As a Manufacturing WFM specialist, Chris has worked with various enterprise clients across the globe on multi-country projects. With extensive knowledge across all Kronos solutions, including Workforce Dimensions, he brings a wealth of experience in large-scale WFM project planning, execution and deployment.

Chris resides just outside Sheffield in the UK with his family.

Amanda Simms – CEO

Originally from Canada, Amanda was born and raised in Vancouver. She began working with Kronos there as a Retail Consultant; after which she joined their Centre of Expertise and moved to the US. Based in New York, Amanda worked as a Senior Retail consultant in the US, EU, and UK as well as Latin America and India. She then spent four years in Sydney, leading Kronos’ Retail & Hospitality Practice in Australia & New Zealand.

Having helped establish a strong local Retail Consulting practice in Australia Amanda decided to move closer to her family, which were now primarily in Europe, and saw an opportunity to take her Retail WFM expertise closer to ‘home’.

In 2016 she made the decision to open Simms & Associates in Madrid. Since then, she has worked with leading Retailers in Europe and the team has more than tripled since that time. The S&A team continues to grow and is currently expanding their services globally.

Michiel Lely – Practice Director

Originally from the Netherlands, Michiel has settled in the UK. He has over 20 years’ experience in Workforce Optimisation. Initially focused on Front & Back Office Operations in EMEA, Africa and India, working for NICE, Accenture and Verint.

His expertise is built on many years of experience in Workforce Management selection, deployment, design and optimisation. Michiel has worked across the Enterprise from Front office and Back office to Retail across many verticals especially Finance, Telecommunications and Retail.

In 2017, Michiel joined Kronos as a Practice Director for continental Europe working with Retail and Manufacturing clients across the region. He worked closely with regional partners and joined Simms & Associates at the start of 2020.

Kwenta Service Levels

AMANDA SIMMS – CEO

Antes de fundar Simms & Associates, Amanda trabajó directamente para Kronos como consultora sénior en retail en Canadá, EE.UU., la U.E., Reino Unido, Latinoamérica e India, y también lideró las actividades para los mercados Minorista y Hospitalidad de esta multinacional en Australia y Nueva Zelanda.

Tras haber ayudado a establecer unas prácticas sólidas de consultoría en el retail local y haber desarrollado relaciones sólidas con clientes, Amanda vio la oportunidad de llevar su experiencia en WFM para retail más cerca de su hogar.

En 2016, fundó Simms & Associates en Madrid, España. Desde entonces, ha trabajado con clientes estratégicos en la industria retail local. El equipo se ha más que triplicado desde ese momento y continúa creciendo, a la vez que amplía sus servicios de WFM en toda la región EMEA.

Michiel Lely

Michiel, un holandés afincado en el Reino Unido, tiene más de 20 años de experiencia en optimización de la fuerza laboral. Empezó trabajando para NICE, Accenture y Verint, especializándose en operaciones de front y back office en EMEA, África y la India.

Su experiencia se basa en muchos años trabajando con selección, puesta en marcha, diseño y optimización de la gestión de la fuerza laboral. Michiel tiene una amplia base en varios sectores incluyendo retail, finanzas y telecomunicaciones.

En el 2017, Michiel se unió al equipo de Kronos como Practice Director para Europa continental, donde trabajó con clientes retail y manufacturación. Trabajó de cerca con partners regionales y se incorporó al equipo de Simms & Associates a principios del 2020.

Malcolm Breen

Malcolm es especialista sénior de WFM y ha trabajado con grandes empresas Asia-Pacífico y Europa. Con un sólido conocimiento de las soluciones de Kronos y SAP, además de su experiencia en gestión del cambio, Malcolm aporta su pericia en planificación, ejecución y lanzamiento de proyectos WFM a gran escala, junto con un fuerte enfoque en la experiencia del usuario en todos sus proyectos.

Originario de Australia, Malcolm tiene actualmente su hogar en Madrid.

Chris Siddall

Como especialista en WFM para el sector manufactura, Chris ha trabajado con grandes empresas de todo el mundo en proyectos multipaís. Chris posee amplios conocimientos de todas las soluciones de Kronos, incluida Workforce Dimensions, y aporta su enorme experiencia en planificación, ejecución y lanzamiento de proyectos WFM a gran escala.

Chris reside a las afueras de Sheffield, en el Reino Unido, junto a su familia.

Jerome Bories – CFO

Based in Girona, Jerome Bories brings a wealth of financial expertise to our organization as the Chief Financial Officer. With a strong background in finance and a keen eye for strategic planning, Jerome has played a pivotal role in shaping the financial success of our company.

Jerome began his career in the financial sector, working for prominent firms in Barcelona and Madrid. His dedication and commitment to excellence quickly earned him recognition, leading to various leadership roles within multinational corporations. With his extensive experience in financial management and a passion for driving growth, Jerome has consistently delivered impressive results throughout his career.

In 2020, Jerome joined our organization, bringing his exceptional financial acumen and a fresh perspective to our team. Since then, he has been instrumental in implementing effective financial strategies and optimizing our company’s performance. His meticulous approach to financial planning and analysis has helped us navigate through complex economic landscapes while ensuring sustainable growth.

As our CFO, Jerome Bories continues to steer our company towards financial success, providing invaluable guidance and expertise in managing our financial resources. With his strategic vision and unwavering dedication, Jerome plays a vital role in shaping our company’s future and driving us towards continued growth and prosperity.

Martin Carvallo – Director of Global Sales

With an impressive track record in sales and business development, Martin Carvallo is a driving force behind our company’s global success as the Director of Global Sales. His passion for building strong client relationships and his innate ability to identify market opportunities have propelled our organization to new heights.

In 2021, Martin joined our organization, bringing with him a deep understanding of international markets and a proven ability to navigate complex sales landscapes. With his global perspective and strategic mindset, Martin has been instrumental in expanding our company’s reach to new territories and driving revenue growth.

Beyond his professional achievements, Martin is recognized for his commitment to innovation and staying at the forefront of industry trends. He continually seeks out new opportunities to leverage emerging technologies and enhance our sales processes, ensuring our company remains agile and adaptable in a rapidly evolving marketplace.

Martin Carvallo’s unwavering passion for sales, combined with his strategic acumen and ability to build meaningful relationships, makes him an invaluable asset to our organization. As our Director of Global Sales, he plays a pivotal role in driving our company’s international growth and solidifying our position as a market leader. With Martin at the helm, our sales team is poised for continued success as we forge ahead into new markets and capitalize on exciting opportunities.

Dimphy van Heusden – Director of Global Marketing

Based in The Netherlands, Dimphy van Heusden brings a wealth of experience and a dynamic approach to our organization’s marketing strategies. With her innovative thinking and deep understanding of global markets, Dimphy has played a pivotal role in driving our brand’s visibility and market presence.

Dimphy’s journey in the field of marketing began early in her career, where she quickly established herself as a creative and results-driven professional. Her passion for understanding consumer behavior and market trends has led to numerous successful marketing campaigns for renowned companies in the industry.

Joining our organization in 2023, Dimphy immediately made an impact with her fresh perspectives and data-driven approach. Through her leadership, our global marketing team has consistently delivered exceptional results, driving brand awareness and customer engagement to new heights.

Beyond her expertise in traditional marketing channels, Dimphy is a passionate advocate for leveraging digital strategies to maximize our brand’s online presence. Her deep understanding of digital marketing techniques, combined with her innovative mindset, has enabled us to effectively engage with our target audience across various digital platforms.