Dana Consulting Group, Ltd.

Jennings, Lee T.
President

Attorney and CPA, Lee Jennings established the Dana Consulting Group Ltd. and the Jennings Law Firm Ltd. in 1993 to provide employers and their advisors with a single source of comprehensive and coordinated legal and consulting services. As the sole owner of both firms, Jennings manages all aspects of the practices, including technical expertise and product and business development.

Prior to founding the firms, Lee served Pope, Ballard, Shepard & Fowle Ltd., a national law firm located in Chicago, as a member of the firm’s employee benefits department. He also served as director of the employee benefits and retirement plan practice for another Chicago law firm.

Previously, he served the Chicago office of the international public accounting firm Ernst & Whinney, where he directed the employee benefits practice.

Lee also is a former adjunct professor at John Marshall Law School, where he taught employee benefits law.

Lee holds a juris doctor degree and master of laws degree in federal taxation from The John Marshall Law School in Chicago and a bachelor of science degree in economics with a minor in accounting from the University of Illinois. He became a certified public accountant after passing the Illinois CPA exam at the first sitting.

Leritz, David A.
Chairman

David Leritz is chairman of retirement plan services for Dana Consulting Group. He has over ten years of retirement plan administration experience with Dana Consulting Group.

Dave brings in-depth experience in retirement plan administration to the firm. In his role as chairman, he oversees the preparation of contribution calculations, resolutions and amendments to authorize plan contributions, contribution and distribution processing, eligibility and vesting determination, plan asset reconciliations, valuation reports and participant statements, and tax returns for welfare and retirement plans. In addition, he trains department members in all aspects of plan administration.

Dave also develops uniform procedures and formats for letters, forms and reports, and oversees the system for tracking the completion of projects throughout the Administration Department. He also maintains the firm’s retirement plan administration software and computer systems.

Previously, Dave administered the union and non-union employee benefit and retirement programs for a high-profile multinational corporation.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in Human Resources Management from American University in Washington, DC. He loves to travel the world, and is an avid fan of the Olympics and New York Yankees.

Bielanska, Anna
Processing Clerk

Anna is an assistant to the Administration Department and her duties include processing distributions, participant loans and payroll rosters; verifying internal procedures are compliant with applicable regulatory requirements imposed by the financial institutions used by our clients’ retirement plans; serving as a liaison between our Administration Department and our clients, financial institutions and our financial advisor partners.

Anna also develops office procedures, updates the Firms’ project tracking system and tracks the filing and destruction of sensitive materials.

Prior to joining the Firms, Anna interacted with federal agencies and students on a daily basis as a Financial Aid Assistant and Registrar Assistant at ORT Technical Institute. She has worked at an art gallery creating designs on and with glass.

Anna is a graduate of the Medical Office Assistant program at ORT Technical Institute in Skokie and Botanical Vocational School in Poland.

Mims, Jackie
Retirement Plan Administrator

Jackie holds a bachelors degree in Business Information Systems from Phoenix University and has particular expertise in computer and systems processing as they relate to the retirement plan administration.

Jackie is responsible for administering retirement plans of small, medium and large clients. Her information systems background enables her to customize the administration of her clients’ plans to meet their unique requirements. She is particularly adept at resolving challenging situations.

Before joining the Firms, Jackie was employed in the retirement plan practice of RSM McGladrey (a large accounting and consulting firm) and Great West Life Insurance Company and Benefit Nationals Company.

Gonzales, Rebecca Z.
Associate Attorney

Rebecca joined the firm in 2009 as an ERISA Attorney handling qualified retirement plan matters. She prepares the retirement plan documents, drafts legal documents such as plan amendments and corporate resolutions, and completes QDRO reviews. Rebecca negotiates retirement plans through the IRS and DOL voluntary correction programs, prepares the clients’ IRS determination letter applications, assists with plan terminations through the PBGC, interprets laws, rulings, and regulations, performs legal research, and reviews the clients’ retirement plan administration practice.

Rebecca brings five years of legal experience to the firm. Her experience in the legal field includes several years of work for a large government defined benefit plan where she was responsible for explaining complex statutory requirements to members, attorneys, and internal staff as well as implementing those requirements. Rebecca’s experience also includes working for both large and small law firms in various practice areas. She works extensively on legal research and writing projects.

Her career before becoming an attorney prepared Rebecca for the legal field. Rebecca worked in marketing for five years where she polished her client service and writing skills while learning to pay close attention to detail in a fast-paced environment.

Rebecca holds a juris doctor degree from The John Marshall Law School in Chicago and a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from the University of Illinois. Rebecca has been admitted to the Illinois bar and is a member of the Illinois and Chicago bar associations. She brings energy and dedication to her position at the firm.

Sirmons, Kenna Shea
Quality Control Manager

Kenna Shea Sirmons is the Administration Department Quality Control Manager for Dana Consulting. She joined the company in June 2010, bringing more than a decade of experience in the Retirement Plan industry. Her role with the firm involves the development and implementation, as well as the on-going monitoring of quality control procedures.

During her career, Shea has held positions managing plans from beginning to end. She began her career as an intern with a small firm and quickly became a team leader for the firm. A major role as team leader was the training of staff on specialized software and industry practices and procedures.

Whether it’s a plan with four employees or 4,000 employees, her experience lends to customized solutions for any client. Her vast experience and understanding of the various provisions of retirement plans make her a valuable asset to the Dana Consulting team.

Shea holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a specialization in Accounting from Columbus State University.

Secrest, Brodie G.
Associate Attorney

Brodie joined the Firms in 2011 as an employee benefits attorney specializing in retirement plan matters. He drafts retirement plan documents and related legal documents such as plan amendments and corporate resolutions.

Brodie also performs legal research and assists on projects relating to IRS and DOL voluntary correction procedures, the IRS determination letter program, and the PBGC plan termination process. His duties also include reviewing retirement plan administration practices and preparing IRS determination letter applications.

Brodie brings a wealth of legal and benefits consulting experience to the Firms. He has fifteen years of experience in the legal field as an employee benefits attorney with a small law firm and as an in-house benefits counsel for a Fortune 500 corporation. His benefits consulting experience includes many years as a legal and retirement consultant at two global HR consulting firms.

Brodie holds a juris doctor degree and a Bachelor of Arts degree from The Ohio State University. He is very excited about the opportunity to assist small business owners with their legal and drafting needs in the administration of their qualified retirement plans.

Lyons, Ann
Administrative Assistant

Ann is the Administrative Assistant to the office, supporting the staff of both Jennings Law Firm and Dana Consulting Group. She is responsible for the day-to-day administrative functions of the office, as well as making sure the office adheres to its high standards of efficiency and excellence.

Prior to joining Dana Consulting Group, Ann worked for almost 27 years with the Chicago branch of a leading commercial mortgage corporation as an Office Manager, HR Assistant, and Executive Assistant. Preceding that Ann worked as an Administrative Assistant for over 4 years with Chemical Bank International on the 93rd floor of the then Sears Tower. She brings many years of administrative experience to the firm.

Ann was born in Chicago, and loves to spend her free time as a Committee and Advancement Chairman, as well as Merit Badge Counselor to Oak Lawn Boy Scout Troop 596.

Pearson, Carol
Retirement Plan Administrator

Carol holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematical Economics from Ball State University and a Master’s degree in International Relations from the University of Indianapolis.

Carol has substantial expertise in mathematical and computer modeling matters and is capable of creating complicated formulae in our Excel master worksheets.

Carol has been in the retirement plan industry since 1998. Prior to joining the Firms, she worked at another pension consulting firm and was a Testing-Government Reporting Analyst at American United Life-One America Financial Partners.

In her spare time Carol writes short stories and performs improv comedy.

Cleer, Francine
Retirement Plan Administrator

Fran has been in the retirement plan industry since 1999 and holds the Qualified 401(k) Administrator (QKA) and Qualified Pension Administrator (QPA) designations from the American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries (ASPPA). She holds a bachelor’s degree in History from Elmhurst College.

Fran works in the Firms’ Administration Department and is responsible for all phases of retirement plan administration, including plan design, testing and compliance services. She has particular expertise in designing New Comparability, defined benefit and cash balance pension plans. Fran also responds to IRS and Labor Department inquiries relating to ERISA matters.

When not at the office, Fran enjoys baking, taking her dog for a run and watching baseball.

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