Leadership & Partnerships

Herb Stokes is Founder of SurgiPak – TAG Manufacturing, Founder and CEO of The Affluence Group, a minority-owned and management organization focused on promoting the growth and development of small and medium sized businesses. Following a 23-year career with Allied Van Lines, where he served as Executive Vice President of Quality Management, Mr. Stokes entered the entrepreneurial arena in 1994 with the creation of the first minority owned and certified corporate relocation company, Alliance Relocation Services. Within its first year of operation, Mr. Stokes’s startup company booked contracts from FedEx, UPS, AFC, Nordstrom’s, and Coca Cola, generated more than $5 million in revenue, and designed a performance-based pricing model that achieved tier one and tier two contracts.

In 2000, Mr. Stokes formed The Affluence Group, a management consulting organization focused on promoting the growth and development of small and medium sized businesses, especially minority owned businesses. With over 200 years of combined executive experience, TAG’s consultants provide consultation on organizational development, diversity/inclusion, strategic planning; and process re-engineering. Over the past 18 years, TAG’s services have resulted in increased contract opportunities for minority business clients including Pure Environmental Services, LifeLink Data, and Destiny Construction. Through TAG, Mr. Knowles has been contracted to serve as the Chief Marketing Officer for Deegit, a technology staffing company with annual revenue over $50 million and for Burchell Upholstery, where he has secured multi-million-dollar contracts with United Airlines and Harrah’s Hotel and Casino.

In 2017, Mr. Stokes founded Burchell Textile and Manufacturing Group, a division of Burchell Upholstery that uses technological systems and tools to create integrated textile facilities that weave, dye, stitch, cut, finish, and pack textiles for the hospitality, healthcare, and transportation industries.

Mr. Stokes’ civic and social political commitments include volunteer leadership of the Northwest Minority Business Council and service for the National Minority Council. Currently, Mr. Stokes serves as Advocacy Outreach Chair for the Chicago Minority Development Council and is a member of the Council’s Scholar and Awards Committees. Always available to contribute to the improvement of the urban youth, Mr. Knowles has worked with The Boys and Girls Club Junior Achievement program and on STEM projects with Girl Scouts.

A senior executive with more than 25 years of experience across multiple Fortune 200 companies, Robert “Bob” Knowles has worked for and consulted with such companies as Exxon Mobile, Bell South, Textron, and Citibank, and with organizations including the World Bank, the Minority Business Development Association, and the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Mr. Knowles’ career has spanned multiple industries including telecommunications, paper/pulp, oil/gas, petrochemicals, and consulting. As a Worldwide Internal Consultant for Exxon Chemical, Mr. Knowles utilized socio-technical systems to redesign petrochemical plants throughout the U.S. and Europe. As Director of Organization Development and Quality for Champion International Paper Corp., Mr. Knowles oversaw the process management redesign and improvement of nine paper mills located in the U.S., Canada, and Brazil. As Associate Vice President of Organizational Development and Process Management at BellSouth, Mr. Knowles modernizing the company’s talent acquisition program, greatly helping advance its operational effectiveness.

Following an eight-year stint at BellSouth, Mr. Knowles became Chairman and Principal Partner at The Affluence Group, a business development firm based out of Chicago that helps minority owned businesses develop strategy, design infrastructure, and optimize procurement contracts. After four years with The Affluence Group, Mr. Knowles founded ODHR Consultants, a human resources consulting firm where he continues to serve as Managing Principal Partner. Recently Mr. Knowles served as a Senior Business Advisor to the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) and worked with the Georgia Tech Business Service Center. Mr. Knowles is also currently a Chief Strategist for DoverSolutions, LLC. and sits on the Board of Directors for Phigenix Inc., a pharmaceutical and bio-medical research company.

Grant Branch III is the current CEO of Kamflex, a global leader in robot systems and sanitary conveyor solutions. While at Kamflex, Mr. Branch has been a driving force for the implementation of Industry 4.0 automated manufacturing and has helped grow Kamflex’s client list to include General Mills, General Electric, Johnson and Johnson, Kellogg’s, and many others. Prior to beginning at Kamflex, Mr. Branch served as President of AMT, Inc., a robot systems integration company that caters to the automotive and aerospace industries. Under Mr. Branch’s leadership, AMT increased its revenue 60% over seven years. In addition to his professional duties, Mr. Branch serves as an Associate Minister in his church and works with the Chicago Minority Supplier Development Council to develop the next level of diverse suppliers capable of serving Fortune 500 companies.