Leadership

Who We Are

Richard A. Oakes, Chairman of the Board
oakesr@businessfurniture.net

When Richard Oakes became owner of Business Furniture in 1987, he recognized its growth potential for the future. At the time Dick decided to purchase the company, he was employed at Steelcase Inc., the industry’s manufacturing leader in office furniture, where he held several management positions. As Chairman of the Board of Business Furniture, Dick remains extremely involved in our company and makes contributions to the organization and its processes. Dick’s current focus is on marketing and his community involvement with several key boards.

As an owner, Dick has set an example for excellent customer service by personally calling on many of Business Furniture’s customers. He has put into place a management group consisting of diverse, aggressive individuals who share their business philosophy of a customer- and employee-driven company in a team based environment.

“Our reason for being here is to make a difference to our customers,” says Richard Oakes. “It really doesn’t matter what I think; it’s what the customer thinks.”

 

David G. Bratton, Chief Executive Officer
brattond@businessfurniture.net

As the CEO, it is David’s passion to assemble an all-star team that focuses on delivering the best experience to our clients. David oversees and directs Business Furniture’s structured customer feedback methods including web-based surveys and face-to-face interaction. It’s feedback like this which helps Business Furniture to remain in touch and flexible with our customer’s ever-changing needs.

A native of Anderson, Indiana, David holds an MBA from Ball State University and a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from Indiana University. Prior to joining Business Furniture’s team in 1997, he spent several years with an accounting firm and General Motors Corporation in Indiana and Michigan.

His wife, Claudia, is a native of Colombia, South America and they have three children: Nicolas, Gabriela and Cristina. David loves all sports and has a fickle relationship with his golf game.

David is a board member of the 500 Festival, a member of the Investment Committee of the United Way and an active member of Saint Malachy Parish and School in Brownsburg, Indiana.

 

Rebecca Dean, Vice President of Education
deanr@businessfurniture.net

Rebecca’s 21 years of experience in the education and commercial design industry puts her in a perfect position to lead our Education and Government team. As a Vice President for Business Furniture she is an active part of shaping the company’s future and has a dynamic way of helping k-12 schools, higher education institutions and government agencies create engaging, innovative spaces all over Indiana and now into Illinois. Her past experience working for Educational & Institutional Cooperative Services (E&I Coop) as a Furniture Specialist and as a designer at Indiana University, her alma mater, has given her a unique perspective into education environments.

Rebecca is a founding member of the Indiana Chapter of Commercial Real Estate Woman (IndyCREW), has served on multiple committees and is a past IndyCREW board member. Rebecca is also a member of Indiana Association of School Business Officials (IASBO) and participates in Center of Excellence in Leadership of Learning (CELL), Hoosier Educational Computer Coordinators (HECC), Indiana School Boards Association (ISBA), the Education Technology Symposium and Buy Indiana Expo. In September of 2011 she had the pleasure of being a guest lecturer at the Indiana University Design School.

Rebecca enjoys hiking, kayaking, zip lining, traveling, coaching baton twirling and running (very slowly.) You can catch her volunteering at the Sheppard’s Gate Food Pantry, St. Maria Goretti Church and Shamrock Springs Elementary School and other places where help is needed.

 

Bill Grace, Vice President of Business Development
graceb@businessfurniture.net

Since 2000, Bill Grace has served as Business Furniture’s Vice President of Business Development. With 25 years of experience in the industry, he’s always focused on new business development and innovations within the architectural and design community. He previouly worked as the Vice President of Business Development at McCoy Workplace Solutions in Houston, as a Business Development Team Leader at Allied Office in Bay City, Michigan and as an Account Manager at Gulf South Business Systems in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Business Furniture’s Business Development team is composed of outgoing individuals with general diversity and a mix of market focus. “Being students of the workplace,” he says, “We tend to be respected in our market for our knowledge, industry research, product specification and application.”

Bill is a graduate of LSU and has been married to Leslee Armstrong for 33 years. They have three children: Ashley McReynolds, Courtney Smith, Lindsay Grace and three cats: Otis, Cleo and Buddy. Bill enjoys running, mountain biking, playing tennis, racquetball, fishing and traveling, all while maintaining his healthy lifestyle. He’s involved in the Carmel Fire Dept Auxiliary Board, Neighborhood Association, Habitat for Humanity and is active in IIDA, AIA and area Chambers.

 

Randy L. Harlan, Vice President of Operations
harlanr@businessfurniture.net

Three years after Randy Harlan entered the furniture industry in 1986, he joined Business Furniture. He’s held several positions within the company and currently serves as the head of operations, which is responsible for the delivery of services. A native of Indianapolis, Randy graduated from John Marshall High School in 1970 and entered the military where he served our country for 12 years.

He lives with his wife, Nikki and three dogs in Trafalgar, Indiana. When he’s not working, Randy enjoys fishing, boating and playing the guitar.

 

Carla Hill, Vice President of Healthcare, Director of Healthcare Markets
hillc@businessfurniture.net

After 19 years of experience working for Steelcase and Nurture, in 2010 Carla began serving as Business Furniture’s Vice President of Healthcare and Director of Healthcare Markets. Carla is responsible for leading Business Furniture’s Healthcare and New Business Development teams. Her Steelcase experience combined with her recent work with healthcare organizations provides her with a passion to find healthcare solutions and a unique perspective on the challenges facing healthcare organizations today. She recently received her Evidenced Based Design Certification (EDAC) through the Center for Health Design.

Carla began her career with Steelcase in San Francisco, California in 1991 and held several positions within the company including: Dealer Market Manager, Learning & Development Consultant and Liason to the Architecture and Design Community. Carla holds a MBA from St. Mary’s College in Moraga, California and holds a Bachelors degree in Business from Indiana University. She serves on several committees that benefit various hospital foundations and is the Programs Chair for Executive Women in Healthcare of Indiana.

 

Jeannie Gaver, Human Resource Manager
gaverj@businessfurniture.net

Jeannie has 18 years of experience in the Human Resource department. For the past 13 she’s spent them at Business Furniture. She’s been a member of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) for 15 years and has a Bachelor of Science degree in communications from Xavier University.

Jeannie loves dogs and lives in Fishers, Indiana with her daughter, a student at Purdue.

 

Mary Meredith, Customer Service Manager
meredithm@businessfurniture.net

Mary Meredith holds more than two decades of industry experience, including 18 years with Business Furniture. She oversees Business Furniture’s four-person Customer Service team and our Customer Survey program that ensures we provide excellent customer service. Although most of her experience has been in customer service, she also has experience in retail management and accounting.

Mary holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business at IUPUI. When she’s not working, Mary enjoys reading, camping and spending time with her husband and two children.

 

Nancy Derifield, Design Manager
derifieldn@businessfurniture.net

Nancy Derifield holds 29 years of experience as a designer with Steelcase Dealerships in Pittsburgh and Tampa and the past 11 years have been with Business Furniture. As Design Manager she leads a talented staff of four designers whose experience ranges from 4 to 18 years. The department’s passion and focus is creating innovative solutions custom tailored to meet each client’s unique needs using the most up to date technology available.

Nancy is a graduate of Arapahoe College in Colorado, a professional member of IIDA and NCIDQ certified. She and her husband have headed the Special Olympics Plane Pull in Indianapolis for the past 10 years.