PKF CLEAR THINKING - Key Persons


Brian Allen

Job Titles:
  • Partner
Brian has over 25 years of experience serving in Controller and CFO positions with both public and private companies. Over the past 15 years, Brian has been engaged by numerous companies in the consumer electronics, beverage, nursery, media, furniture, printing, consumer product, retail, and manufacturing industries to improve financial operations and performance with strategic and financial alternatives, and to serve in interim senior financial positions. During his career, he has had direct responsibility for the accounting, finance, treasury, information technology, real estate, and investor relations functions. Prior to joining PKF Clear Thinking, Brian owned a financial advisory practice with a focus on middle market, consumer product businesses.

Gennady Spivak - Managing Director

Job Titles:
  • Managing Director
Gennady is an accomplished restructuring professional with over 15 years of experience. His expertise includes bankruptcy and insolvency, financial analysis, forensic accounting, fraud investigation, litigation support and wind-down management. Prior to joining PKF Clear Thinking, Gennady was a Senior Manager in the Corporate Recovery & Litigation Services practice of a major accounting firm, where he specialized in the fields of bankruptcy and insolvency, creditors' rights, and litigation support. Gennady has worked as a financial advisor to debtors, unsecured creditors' committees, trustees, receivers, plan administrators, and other parties-in-interest in numerous bankruptcy proceedings. His experience includes liquidation and wind-down management, claims administration, fraudulent conveyance and preference litigation and defense work. Gennady began his career as a forensic accountant where he worked in insurance claim valuations in a variety of industries.

Joseph Marchese

Job Titles:
  • Partner
Joe has over 25 years of experience consulting in the accounting and financial operations arena. His expertise includes all areas of business planning, cash management and financial reporting. Joe has assisted clients in the telecommunications, roofing/construction, disaster recovery services, consumer product, wholesale distribution, manufacturing, and retail industries with out-of-court restructuring as well as Chapter 11 bankruptcies. As part of these assignments, he has held various positions including CRO, Interim CFO, Interim VP of Finance, and Interim Controller positions.

Mark Fagnani - CEO

Job Titles:
  • Senior Managing Director
Mark has more than 30 years of hands-on experience working with large bank groups, private equity sponsors, turnarounds, workouts, and insolvencies. Over the course of his lending career, Mark has worked with companies in a multitude of industries including steel and aluminum, coal mining, transportation, plastic injection and blow molding, beverage distribution, retail, lighting, and generic pharmaceuticals. Mark was formerly a Managing Director and the Chief Credit Officer of Wachovia Capital Finance, a unit of Wachovia Bank. While at Wachovia he served as chairperson of the credit committee, the national field exam manager and head of the risk ratings and compliance group. As Chief Credit Officer, Mark had a hand in all of the portfolio's problem loans and, as such, has played a key role in many bankruptcy cases, sales of businesses, restructurings, and loan workouts. After leaving Wachovia, Mark helped form HVB Capital, a subsidiary of Hudson Valley Bank, and subsequently spearheaded their sale to EverBank resulting in EverBank Business Credit. More recently, Mark was recruited to help establish an asset based lending business for Bank Leumi USA, serving as First Senior Vice President and Group Head of Leumi Business Credit. Mark is a frequent lecturer and panelist. Most notably, he spoke on behalf of the World Bank and the Commercial Finance Association in China, instructing over 250 bankers on asset based lending.

Michael Wesley

Job Titles:
  • Partner
Mike has over 20 years of consulting and management experience in the manufacturing, food and beverage, service, wholesale, and retail industries. He has worked in all areas of operations including finance, manufacturing, supply chain, warehousing/distribution, inventory management, planning/allocation, and IT.

Patrick Diercks

Job Titles:
  • Partner
Pat has over 17 years of experience as a consultant in the turnaround/restructuring arena dealing primarily with companies in the consumer product manufacturing/distribution, staffing, metal products, manufacturing and retail industries. He has led/participated in numerous assignments related to cash management and operational performance improvement, as well as frequently serving as financial advisor to various constituents in bankruptcy proceedings. Pat has assisted clients with the preparation and analysis of business plans, financial statements, cash flow reporting and forecasting, collateral analysis and monitoring, out-of-court wind-downs, refinancing, organizational restructuring, labor standards development, and POS implementation/training. He has provided services to both debtors and creditors within the Chapter 11 bankruptcy process including: the preparation of cash collateral forecasts, DIP budgets, claims analysis, asset analysis and recovery, and estate wind-down activities. Additionally, he has served as both a Chief Restructuring Officer and Chief Strategy Officer as well as other interim senior management roles. Pat has also been retained by numerous bankruptcy estate trustees/plan administrators to assist with post- confirmation activities and managing/administering the plan.

Stuart H. Kessler - CEO

Job Titles:
  • Chief Executive Officer
Stuart is the Chief Executive Officer of PKF Clear Thinking, LLC. As a consultant for 20 years, he has been engaged by numerous companies in the manufacturing, consumer product, retail, fashion, corrugated, cellular, roofing, specialty printing, construction and temporary staffing industries needing assistance with strategic, financial, and operating alternatives. As part of these engagements, Stuart has served as interim CEO, COO and CRO. His areas of expertise include operations, logistics, process and productivity improvement, strategic financial planning, merchandising, restructuring, organizational planning, and acquisition assessment. Prior to founding Clear Thinking Group, LLC, the predecessor organization to PKF Clear Thinking, LLC, Stuart spent over 25 years in a variety of senior leadership positions with consumer product and retail organizations including: President, iSolve.com; President, Footlocker - Outlet Division; Chief Operating Officer, Champs Sports; Chief Operating Officer, F.W. Woolworth Division; Chief Operating Officer/ Chief Merchandising Officer Herman's Sporting Goods; and VP/General Merchandise Manager Ames Department Stores. Stuart has published or contributed to articles on subjects such as the turnaround processes for consumer product companies during a pandemic, consumer product and retail strategy, retail labor scheduling, consumer product and retail sales trends, real estate trends, retail mergers and acquisitions, ecommerce retailing, merchandising trends in the consumer product and retail marketplace and catalog retailing.