Leadership Team
Dr. Richard Harkness
Founder & Ceo
Richard Harkness, Ed.D., is founder and Chief Executive Officer of ADEPT Driver—providing leadership and vision for the company’s management team and product development. He earned his doctorate degree at the University of Pacific in Psychometrics (Human Factors testing) and has a doctoral minor in statistics and research. Dr. Harkness was elected as a member of the American Psychological Association in 1991.
Dr. Harkness served as a Professor of Psychology, Statistics and Management at the University of San Francisco and the University of the Pacific for 10 years where he taught graduate courses in psychometrics, psychology, statistics, quantitative business methods, research methodology and a variety of management courses in MBA programs.
Dr. Harkness' career focus in human factors and statistical analysis provide the framework for the success of ADEPT Driver’s award winning teenSMART and Lifelong Driver programs. In 2012, ADEPT Driver was given the “Teen Driving Safety Leadership Award” by the National Safety Council and General Motors for reducing teen driver crashes.
Additionally, his expertise in creating business models that accelerate technology transfer from think tanks to product implementation have proven invaluable in the successful development, introduction and growth of ADEPT Driver’s product offerings.
For the past 18 years he has focused on neurocognitive training that targets the leading causes of car collisions. He was the first scientist to envision crash involvement as a behavioral disorder and employ a medical model when building behavioral interventions that improve driver performance. He is recognized internationally as a leader in visual cognitive assessment and human factors in the context of driving and crash avoidance. ADEPT Driver programs are the most effective, validated and evaluated crash reduction programs in the world. Accordingly, many large insurance companies use ADEPT Driver’s programs to improve profitability by reducing collision frequency and severity of crashes.
In the course of his 32 year career, Dr. Harkness has provided management and consulting services to American Savings Bank, Apple Computer, the Department of Defense, Hewlett-Packard Company, Hilton Hotels, Pacific Gas and Electric, Sun Diamond Growers, Syntex Corporation, Vision Service Plan, VONS and numerous governmental agencies.
Dr. Sam Chiu
SVP of Information Technology
Dr. Sam Chiu is ADEPT’s Senior Vice President of Information Technology, responsible for setting the company’s technological vision and strategies, managing technical resources to meet the company’s short and long-term needs, and deploying all technical and web services. Dr. Chiu has over 25 years of business and technology experience. He received his B.S. degree in Information and Computer Science from UC Irvine, MBA from UC Riverside, and PsyD from California Southern University.
Bonnie Berry
SVP of operations
Bonnie Berry is ADEPT’s Senior Vice President of Operations, a position she has held since joining the company in 1999. She is responsible for general operations of the company, including finance and accounting, order processing and fulfillment and product support. Ms. Berry earned her A.B. degree in Sociology from Stanford University and her MBA from the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley.
George L. Bowen, CPCU
Insurance Industry Advisor
George Bowen is recognized as a leader in the insurance industry. He has served as Chief Marketing Officer and senior executive for a national personal lines insurer; created and led a successful personal lines general agency; and while serving as Principal, grew and successfully sold the 5th largest California domiciled insurance brokerage. He also developed one of the first Employment Practices Liability Insurance programs with Lloyds of London.
Mr. Bowen earned a B.S. degree from Excelsior College, and holds the CPCU and AAI professional designations. He has served on several insurance industry boards, committees and foundations.
Mike Warren
VP of Systems & Security
Mike Warren is ADEPT’s Vice President of Systems and Security, responsible for managing the company’s system development, networks and security. Mr. Warren has more than 30 years of experience designing, building and supporting systems, networks and security for business and government agencies. Mr. Warren received his B.S. degree in Information Technology - Security Emphasis from Western Governors University and has received a multitude of industry certifications in networking, systems and security.