About Us

Our Firm

 

Foundations is a full-service consultancy firm that partners with companies to implement systems and processes that further the principles of lean business operations – teamwork, flexibility, cooperation, and continuous improvement. Our consultants have experienced firsthand the legal, labor, and employment challenges companies face and will use this expertise to partner with your team to maximize your organization’s human performance.

Foundations offers practical, tested, and effective services and solutions.  And because we have decades of experience working for a Fortune Global 500 automotive company, we have a unique business perspective to bring when crafting solutions to your challenges.

Our Team

Executives

Carol Sampson
Carol Sampson
Executive Director and Co-Founder

Carol Sampson was a first generation Human Resources professional at Toyota’s largest manufacturing plant in the United States. She was taught the vaulted Toyota Production System (TPS) by experts – experts who understood that the production system couldn’t succeed without completely recognizing the value of and fully implementing the Human Resources pillar. She used this first-hand knowledge to customize and implement systems that allowed TPS to flourish. Processes developed by Ms. Sampson over her 26-year career are still in use within Toyota. Today, she specializes in partnering with clients – large and small – to efficiently implement practical strategies to strengthen their Human Resources capability and infrastructure.

Ms. Sampson has over 30 years of practical work experience at three automotive manufacturers, and has taught countless others the value and role of a vibrant and capable Human Resources function. She is widely regarded as an expert in strategies to foster positive employee relations.

Ms. Sampson has a master’s degree in industrial relations and a bachelor’s degree in accounting and finance from the University of Alabama, where she graduated magna cum laude.

Stephanie Prewitt
Stephanie Prewitt
Executive Director and Co-Founder

Stephanie Prewitt has spent the majority of her career partnered with Human Resources organizations to implement systems and processes that are not only legally sound, but also further the principles of lean business operations. Ms. Prewitt has vast experience in conducting investigations, drafting and reviewing policies and handbooks, and developing and delivering extensive training programs.

Prior to joining Foundations, Ms. Prewitt spent nearly 20 years at Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc., where she served as Assistant General Counsel for Labor and Employment matters. Ms. Prewitt’s experience at Toyota also included legal oversight of numerous plant start-ups, development of voluntary termination programs, and coordination of complex disability and medical management issues.

Ms. Prewitt earned her law degree from the University of Kentucky College of Law and graduated, magna cum laude, from Duke University.

Consultants

Cathy Decker Mills
Cathy Decker Mills
Senior Consultant

Cathy Mills has spent her career maximizing human talent. She has worked in Human Resources for over 30 years for manufacturing companies such as Levi Strauss, Texas Instruments, and Sheridan Press, and she most recently completed over 22 years working for Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc.

Through her work with Toyota, Ms. Mills gained extensive experience practicing lean Human Resources principles through both shop floor and regional roles, culminating in leading the Human Resources Department of the largest North American plant prior to joining Foundations Human Resources Consulting.

Ms. Mills’s passions include change management initiatives designed to maximize morale, engagement, and productivity, and talent management programs for all levels of an organization.

Ms. Mills is a graduate of the University of Cincinnati with a master’s degree in business administration, specializing in human resource management and labor relations. She is a lifetime SPHR certified member of SHRM.

Jan Czochara
Jan Czochara
Senior Consultant

Jan Czochara has helped employers meet their human resources objectives for over 25 years. She has worked in Human Resources Departments as both a full-time employee and as a consultant, and has led organizations in establishing the culture to support lean implementation. Most of Ms. Czochara’s work experience has been with Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc.

Ms. Czochara brings a unique combination of deep expertise at the plant level as well as broad experience supporting programs coordinated by corporate headquarters in the areas of Organizational Development, Training, Projects and Planning, Team Member Relations, Positive Employee Relations, Policy Development, Communications, Strategic Planning, and Supplier Support. Ms. Czochara provides leadership and creative problem-solving skills to help organizations improve performance and leverage employee and organizational capability to achieve business objectives.

Ms. Czochara has a Bachelor of Science degree in biochemistry from the University of Illinois and completed MBA coursework with a concentration in human resources at Michigan State University.

Karen Combs
Karen Combs
Senior Consultant

Karen Combs has over 25 years of hands-on experience in Human Resources working for Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc., in both a plant and a regional role. Ms. Combs’s passion and focus is working with front line supervisors and management assisting them in maximizing their most important resource, their employees.

In all her interactions, Ms. Combs’s goal is to help promote an understanding of the importance of a strong positive employee relations strategy and the impact of an engaged and valued workforce on a company’s key business objectives.

Ms. Combs brings an expertise in the areas of Employee Engagement and Communication, Issues Assessment and Resolution, Recognition Programs, Strategic Planning and Project Management, Effective Leadership Training, and Employee Relations.

Ms. Combs has a bachelor’s degree in journalism, with a concentration in marketing and public relations, from the University of Kentucky.

Administrative Staff

Allison Catron
Allison Catron
Business & Operations Manager

Allison Catron is the firm’s Business & Operations Manager, focusing on matters involving billing and client support. She also assists Foundations’ consultants and management team in meeting clients’ needs.

Ms. Catron has 21 years of experience in human resources and support and is currently working toward earning her bachelor’s degree in communication studies and organizational leadership at Northern Kentucky University.

 
"Human Resources is the foundation to any company’s success and my team and I build programs to enhance the work environment, promote trust, improve engagement, and strengthen management's relationship with their employees. Our work is done with a thoughtful eye to cost and compliance."

- Carol Sampson, Founder -
Copyright Foundations Human Resources Consulting © 2017