Senior Partners
Christine Mc Ginn
Christine is the Managing Director of AOCG and Senior Compliance Partner
She is a Licensed Customs Broker with over 28 years of industry experience in global trade compliance and security including facility security/clearances, visitor access/controls, and chemical vulnerability assessments. Specialties include development of policies, procedures and work instructions; audits, gaps analysis and assessments; investigation of potential violations and preparation of disclosures; staff training and educating with an emphasis on interactive sessions; and conducting compliance reviews for pre/post acquisition due diligence. She was appointed by the Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs to serve six consecutive terms as a member of the U.S. State Department’s Defense Trade Advisory Group based on her substantive and technical expertise. She completed a 3-year tenure in a lead capacity managing the oversight of the United Technologies Corporation Consent Agreement (CA) (U.S. Department of State) and the Deferred Prosecution Agreement (U.S. Department of Justice) under the auspices of the Special Compliance Official (SCO) and Independent Monitor. She has managed CA directed audits and been a member of CA audit teams. She is well versed in acting in a Program Management role of consent agreement actions or audit corrective actions.
Lisa Burgarella
Lisa is the Senior Information Technology Partner
With over twenty years’ experience managing technical data and systems for USG contractors. She helps clients achieve and sustain compliance by assessing their ITC environments and developing policies and solutions to strengthen and automate controls. She has experience implementing export automation plans, assessing NIST 800-171 compliance, developing System Security Plans (SSPs) and Incident Response Plans, and is well-versed in GDPR and CCPA requirements.
Kenneth Oukrop
Ken is the Senior Defense Policy & Technology Security Partner
Ken has over 38 years of combined military and civilian Federal Service in the Department of Defense. He served 22 years in the United States Navy as a Surface Warfare Officer serving on several combatant ships. He held a Joint Warfare Specialty in Electronic Warfare and Command and Control Warfare.
In his final active-duty assignment, he was assigned to the Defense Technology Security Administration (DTSA), Licensing Directorate, as a munitions licensing analyst conducting national security reviews of licenses involving Naval systems, electronic warfare, radar, night vision, and communications.
Upon his military retirement, Ken joined DTSA as a Federal employee assigned to license reviews related to the Joint Strike Fighter, military aircraft, and their associated systems. While at DTSA he served in a variety of senior leadership roles, culminating in DTSA’s Director of Licensing with overall responsibility for the DoD national security reviews of munition and dual use licenses. He held the Licensing Director position the last six (6) years of his federal career before retiring and joining Alpha Omega Consulting Group.
Ken is a seasoned and experienced Defense expert who understands the policy, technical, and regulatory underpinnings of U.S. national security reviews of munitions and dual use export licenses. His extensive background working within the US inter-agencies developing USG export regulations and policies, allows him to assist companies in proper Commodity Jurisdiction (CJs) determinations, and identify potential harm to national security associated with voluntary or directed export disclosures.
Mark E. Smith
Mark is the Senior International Programs & Industrial Security Partner
In his 36-year career with the Department of Defense, Mark developed a comprehensive and demonstrated practical and theoretical expertise in: industrial, personnel, information, physical, and acquisition security; security training and education; U.S. Government policymaking and foreign affairs; diplomacy and negotiation; bilateral and multinational relations management; interagency processes for policy and regulatory coordination; counterintelligence analysis; defensive countermeasures; risk analysis and mitigation; government-defense industry relations and national defense resource and military capability strategy.
His federal career highlights included serving as the Deputy Director, Office of Industrial Security International-Europe, U.S. delegate to the NATO Security and Archives Committees, and as the long-standing senior U.S. delegate to and coordinator of the 35-nation Multinational Industrial Security Working Group (MISWG). Mark is a graduate of the National Defense University Dwight D. Eisenhower School for National Security and Resource Strategy.
He is an internationally known expert, instructor, and speaker on international programs security law, treaty, policy, practice, and partnership.
Technical Specialists
Lisa Bencivenga
Lisa Bencivenga
Lisa Bencivenga
Lisa is the Senior Advisor Licensing
She leads the AOCG Licensing Advisors team. She brings over 30 years of experience in ITAR, EAR and OFAC licensing issues including managing the application process with the regulators and implementing complex licensing arrangements. She has briefed key U.S. government officials to support program management business plans. She has experience in developing and implementing licensing strategy plans within complex U.S. export control policies under the various regulations and briefing the regulators through successful approval of the application.
Eric Folkestad
Lisa Bencivenga
Lisa Bencivenga
Eric is the Advisor J&C and Licensing
He supports the AOCG Jurisdiction & Classification and Licensing teams. He has a Bachelor of Science in Engineering and is a founding member and past president of the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International Cascade Chapter, where he worked closely with scientists, researchers, engineers and operators to grow the organization. Eric’s primary responsibilities as part of AOCG will be working with the Senior Advisor J&C. Prior to joining AOCG, Eric spent 14 years in trade compliance working in the UAV industry.
Brent Jones
Lisa Bencivenga
Mandy Kashnow-Gay
Brent is the Senior Advisor Commodity Jurisdiction & Classification ("J&C")
He leads the AOCG J&C advisors team. Brent has a Bachelor of Science in Electrical engineering and brings his technical expertise to focus on assisting clients with ITAR/USML and BIS/CCL order of review and the development of detailed processes and procedures to enable future ease in these decisions. During his four years as a member of the Bureau of Industry and Security Information Technical Advisor Committee (ISTAC), he assisted in advising the committee on a variety of issues involving sensitive technologies including telecommunications and electronics. Prior to joining AOCG, Brent spent six years as an engineer and 17 years in trade compliance working in the defense industry.
Mandy Kashnow-Gay
Mandy Kashnow-Gay
Mandy Kashnow-Gay
Mandy is the Senior Advisor Contracts & Security.
With over 10 years of progressive experience in general contract management with practical knowledge of the application, applicability and negotiation through state, local and federal regulations including the FAR and FAR Supplement. Negotiation and management style ensures organizational understanding and consistent compliance from the proposal stage through the close out of grants and contracts. She also has prior experience as a Facility Security Officer (FSO) and was an Empowered Official (EO) with prior research and development experience within a university and industry setting.
Mark Mitchell
Mandy Kashnow-Gay
Mark Mitchell
Mark is the Senior Advisor Environmental, Health & Safety.
With over 30 years of progressive experience in achieving corporate and governmental recognition for excellence in minimizing employee injury and compliance with federal, state, and local environmental and safety regulations. Mark has expertise in all aspects of EH&S environmental regulatory compliance including EPA, CERCLA-SARA, OSHA, Top-Screen Submissions, CSAT Security Vulnerability Assessment (SVA) and Site Security Plan (SSP).
Legal Counsel
Johanna Reeves
Johanna is an attorney whose practice is dedicated to advising U.S. companies on export and import matters arising under the Arms Export Control Act, the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, the Export Administration Regulations, economic sanctions and embargoes administered by the Treasury Department Office of Foreign Assets Control, the Gun Control Act of 1968 and the National Firearms Act of 1934. She designs and implements compliance programs based on federal firearms laws. She also designs and leads internal audits to assess compliance in these areas. She counsels on voluntary and directed disclosures and represents clients on regulatory compliance and enforcement matters before the federal government. From 2011-2020, she served as Executive Director of the FireArms Import/Export Roundtable (F.A.I.R.) Trade Group (www.fairtradegroup.org), a national nonprofit membership organization dedicated to promoting and protecting the interests of the firearms and ammunition import and export community. She continues to serve as Special Advisor to the organization.