Kevin Coupe is the author of “Retail Rules! 52 Ways To Achieve Retail Success," a guidebook for competing effectively and efficiently on Main Street. And he is the co-author, with Michael Sansolo, of “The Big Picture: Essential Business Lessons from the Movies,” which uses film narratives to teach about leadership, marketing and surviving the workplace. For more than 16 years, he’s had his own website/blog – MorningNewsBeat.com – that was launched almost before the word "blog" was coined. MNB provides what Kevin calls “business news in context, and analysis with attitude” to some 35,000 subscribers all over the world. An independent survey ranked MNB as the “top industry news and information site.”
Bill Jelen is the host of MrExcel.com and the author of 57 books about Microsoft Excel. Bill will entertain you while showing you the powerful tricks in Excel. Before founding MrExcel.com in 1998, Jelen spent twelve years in the trenches, as a financial analyst.
For more than 15 years, Vanessa has helped corporate and non-profit clients optimize organizational structures and operating models, smoothly integrate M&A deals, plan and execute strategic change management and communications, and develop a culture that enables the business strategy. She brings particular expertise in helping clients address the human capital issues that transfrom the employee experience to transform the customer experience. She is passionate about guiding leaders and their organizations through the customer transformation journey and is known for building and coaching teams to deliver exceptional work. Outside of client work, Vanessa serves on the board for Many Hopes, which builds homes and schools in Kenya, and devotes her time to causes that promote social justice. She holds an MBA/MA from The George Washington University and a B.S. in Communications from Ithaca College.
John Moore shares actionable business advice from his experience propelling two of the world’s most recognized brands into the stratosphere.
John believes passion and a sense of purpose fuel successful brand messages. And he should know, having played an instrumental role in the marketing that transformed Starbucks into a global icon and as director of national marketing for grocery powerhouse Whole Foods Market.
Sought out by the likes of USA Today, Kraft and Procter & Gamble, John is the branding authority who helps companies achieve desired growth through marketing strategies designed to get people to fall in love with your brand.
He’s the “chief of wahoo” at Brains on Fire, a boutique marketing agency, and has authored of a trio of books, including The Passion Conversation: Understanding, Sparking, and Sustaining Word of Mouth Marketing.
A talented storyteller, on stage John paints a memorable picture of the do’s and don’ts of effective branding and provides a blueprint for how to thoughtfully—and exceptionally—position your product, service or experience into an increasingly competitive marketplace.
Scott Moses is a Managing Director and Head of Food Retail and Restaurants Investment Banking at PJ Solomon. He specializes in retail sector strategic and financial advice, with a focus on mergers, acquisitions, sales and divestitures of traditional and specialty grocers. Scott has advised clients in some of the most significant retail M&A transactions over the past two decades, with a combined transaction value of over $50 billion. Scott has been named to the “Top 50: Americas M&A Dealmakers” list by Global M&A Network (2013) and “40 Under 40” lists of promising finance professionals by IDD (2011) and The M&A Advisor (2015). Scott graduated summa cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania. He received MBA and JD degrees from Columbia University, where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar. Scott sits on the Board of Directors of UpLift Solutions, a national nonprofit that helps bring full-service grocery stores to underserved markets across the country.
Valdis I. Undiks, CAMS, Western Union Strategic Account Compliance Advisor in regards to Money Service Business, Anti Money Laundering, Counter Terrorist Financing and Dodd Frank. Valdis I. Undiks, CAMS is a key leader in developing Anti Money Laundering, Counter Terrorist Financing and Dodd Frank policies and procedures for some of the largest Financial Institutions, Check Cashers, Retail and Grocery Businesses that offer MSB Services. Valdis I. Undiks, CAMS served in the US Army for 7 years and is a Veteran of the Gulf War; he has also completed his Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management, and he completed the Certified Anti Money Laundering Specialist Certification in 2008.