Revolutionizing the Appraisal Market

Chris Knight

Chris Knight is Chief Executive Officer of Opteon Global. Since taking on the role of CEO in 2016, Chris has cultivated a growth culture through initiation and support of more than 20 acquisitions throughout the United States, Australia, and New Zealand.

In 2021, Chris relocated from Australia to the United States to further grow Opteon USA which provides both appraisal management and staff appraisal services. He is passionate about market disruption through development of great people, process, data software, and technology. By leveraging strategic partnerships, Chris aims to replicate the success Opteon has had in other markets to bring consistent same-day appraisals to the United States.

In addition to being a certified Australian valuer, Chris also has an accounting background and dual master’s degrees in Business Administration and Business Property. On a personal note, Chris is a licensed pilot and golfer.

Johan Wikman

Johan joined Opteon in October 2022 as Chief Technology Officer and is responsible for the company’s products and technology. Johan has over 20 years’ experience in leading high performing software engineering teams. 

Prior to joining Opteon, he spent 10 years at Appen leading the engineering team as CTO and VP of Engineering implementing technologies that evolved the company from a service to a tech led business. During his time on the executive team, the company experienced revenue growth of more than 1,400%, the engineering team grew from 3 people to over 100 and he was part of the team that took the company public in 2015.

In 2010, Johan founded Kontribune, an online publishing platform for communities to share and inspire through the power of story, which was acquired by Appen in 2012. Before that, he was founder and co-founder of multiple startups leading the development of technology teams in B to C and B to B solution. His career also includes engineering leadership roles at Autodesk, Zynga and Lithium.

Johan spent his formative years in Stockholm, Sweden before locating to the San Francisco Bay Area.

Lee Trice

Lee Trice founded The Trice Group in 1987. After growing that firm to become the largest appraisal company in the MidAtlantic Region, Lee co-founded Valucentric with Real Valuation Services to replicate that success on a national scale. In 2021, Valucentric was acquired by Opteon to escalate growth around AMC, Appraisal Staff, and PropTech SaaS solutions. Lee was awarded professional designations from the Appraisal Institute and RICS, which is a global and multi-discipline valuation professional organization.

Ian Miller

Ian holds a B.A. in Communications and an MBA in Management and Business Development. He has 10 years’ experience in the real estate industry. He began his career working for a national AMC based out of Chicago, IL, where he quickly rose through the ranks to manage the top 3 accounts. Ian is passionate about building a high-performance team through effective communication.  

Courtney Ray

Courtney has 15+ year’s experience in the advertising and marketing industry, with extensive experience in both the mortgage lending and appraisal space. Prior to joining Opteon, Courtney worked with Class Valuation and PennyMac. She specializes in fueling business growth and building brand ambassadors through strategic action.

Kevin Groff

Kevin has over 20 years of experience working in Finance with diverse industry experience including biotech, manufacturing and commercial real estate for both private, public, and non-profit companies, most recently with American Premier Builder. He specializes in FP&A, financial modeling, M&A activity, budgeting and forecasting, strategic planning, and driving operational efficiencies. He is focused on bottom line results through building efficient processes and interdepartmental collaboration.

Greg Bernstein

Greg has more than 15 years experience in the real estate industry, and managed multiple companies in the space before founding Value Trend Solutions (VTS) in 2009. Serving as the organization’s Managing Partner, Greg helped to position VTS for long term success which led to an eventual partnership with Opteon in 2018. In his current role, Greg focuses on sustainable financial health, responsible growth, operational excellence, and corporate culture.

Ben Clark

In Ben’s role as US General Counsel, he is responsible for the Company’s American legal & risk functions and manages the US Compliance Department. Ben is a senior corporate lawyer with significant experience as in-house legal counsel with real estate settlement service providers, particularly in the mortgage industry, as Ben served as in-house legal counsel for Platinum Home Mortgage and Guaranteed Rate from 2013 to 2023.  Along the way, Ben has focused on general corporate governance and regulatory compliance, and has significant exposure in mergers & acquisitions, labor & employment law, and corporate litigation. Ben brings a business sense to his legal work, always striving to find a way to support our business initiatives in a manner that safeguards the Company from undue legal or regulatory exposure. 

Nicki Brazeau

Nicki has over a decade of professional experience working in human resources and over 15 years of experience in the appraisal industry. Her knowledge and expertise were honed even further while supporting Opteon’s acquisition of The William Fall Group, during which she gained a wealth of industry-specific insights. Nicki's comprehensive background in HR management, recruitment, retention, compensation, training, and communication has resulted in strong relationships with her peers. Her academic accomplishments include holding an MBA and an M.S. in Operations Management, reflecting her commitment to continuous learning and development.

Jessica Jenkins-Tome

Jessica began her career by opening various retail locations across the country, notably for Build- A-Bear Workshop. She pivoted her career to real estate as an appraiser and now has been working in the appraisal industry for more than 15 years. Throughout her career at companies like Citi and ServiceLink, Jessica has held leadership roles, including Chief Appraiser, AVP, and Director.