Michael Calamari, Vice President, Mastercard Data & Services, is a leader in the firm’s Grocery and Drug Store Retail practice. He has led numerous Test & Learn engagements across Grocery, Convenience, Retail, Manufacturing, Restaurants, Insurance, and Life Sciences, ensuring that experimentation enhances the way that organizations make data-driven strategy decisions. Michael has led breakthrough analyses on such topics as optimizing personalized coupons and digital engagement, improving in-store execution and assortment, improving remodel returns through more targeted investments in stores and remodel components, and optimizing marketing investments and DTC campaigns. Michael received degrees in Systems Engineering and Economics from the University of Virginia.
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.”
Kim Ford is Senior Vice President and Global Head of Government Affairs for First Data, a Fortune 300 financial services company that provides secure and innovative payment technology and services to more than six million merchants and 4,000 financial institutions around the world. Kim joined First Data in 2004, and today she is responsible for development and implementation of the company’s policy strategy and political advocacy engagement across the globe. She serves as First Data’s registered lobbyist in the United States and European Union. In that role, she engages with members of the European Commission, European Council, European Parliament, the United States Congress and state policymakers across the 50-state capitals on a variety of payments’ issues and FinTech policy. She routinely speaks at industry and client conferences, provides subject matter expertise to various state legislative bodies and has served as an expert witness to testify in front of the U.S. Congress. Kim also serves as treasurer of the First Data PAC. Before joining First Data, she was Regional Director for U.S. Senator Bill Nelson of Florida, and she served in lobbying and communications roles for several Florida-based business trade associations prior to that. Kim is based in First Data’s Washington, DC office.
Matt Howes, Sr. Business Consultant of Financial Planning and Analysis, Publix Super Markets Inc. is responsible for planning, developing, and executing a program of consulting services for internal business area leaders and executives to identify, analyze and solve complex and financially important problems. Matt provides leadership, consultation and support to ensure that Publix makes data driven results while always striving to improve the customer experience. Throughout his 10 years at Publix, Matt has been a key part of various processes including new site planning, predictive financial modeling, space and product optimization, rewards and promotion personalization, In-Store process enhancements and the annual budgeting cycle. Matt completed his Bachelor’s degree in Accounting.
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.
Don Johnsey has been involved in consulting, auditing, and loss prevention for over 30 years. Don was with Howard Schultz & Associates as Regional Vice President over the Wal-Mart account. He was also Vice President of Internal Audit and Loss Prevention with Randalls Food Markets, and Director of Internal Audit for H.E. Butt Grocery Company. Don served on the FMI Internal Audit planning committee from 1985 until 1999 and was its chair for seven years. Don has been a frequent speaker at FMI conferences covering topics such as shrink, DSD controls, front-end POS controls, loss prevention, accounts payable auditing, and a variety of other audit topics.
As a recognized shrink control and operations best practice expert and research analyst for the National Supermarket Research Group, Mike Kienzlen has earned the respect of the industry through working in the stores, then training, and then speaking and consulting on the trends, principles, practices, and processes that drive store profitability in the supermarket industry. He regularly works with companies of all sizes from small businesses to Fortune 500 corporations to help them identify their profit opportunities and then create comprehensive learning solutions that meet their specific needs.
John is a Partner in KPMG’s Accounting Advisory Services practice. He provides accounting and advisory services to a global client base including technical accounting, merger, acquisition, divestiture, spin-off, IPO, accounting conversion and other transactional support. John was a partner in KPMG’s audit practice for over 10 years, serving primarily global public clients in retail and consumer businesses.
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. He 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.
Frankie Nicotra, Manager of Business Analysis and Reporting, Publix Super Markets, Inc., is responsible for overseeing all financial reporting and data analysis as it pertains to Omnichannel and Customer level testing at Publix. Frankie is passionately focused on improving the overall experience for customers while also driving bottom line results. Throughout his 12+ years with Publix, Frankie has led a wide variety of business initiatives which includes: predictive model building, space and product optimization, rewards and promotion personalization, and In-Store process enhancements. Frankie received his undergraduate degree in Accounting and holds an MBA.
Oscar is a Senior Manager in our Accounting and Reporting Transformation practice specializing in the areas of controllership, finance governance, technology, IPO readiness, SOX, risk and controls.
Oscar has more than 14 years of experience providing financial, operational and information systems assurance and advisory services to domestic and multinational clients. He specializes in assisting clients with improving finance & accounting effectiveness and efficiency through maturity assessments, activity analysis, process automation, and centralization efforts. He also has many years of experience assisting our client with transformational projects involving the development and/or evaluation of risk, process and controls management programs designed to improve financial integrity, close optimization, process automation, compliance and operational effectiveness and efficiency.
Jay leads Cryptocurrency and Blockchain practice for RSM. He has helped a major commodities exchange roll out an initial coin offering, consulted multiple trading firms on the security of their cryptocurrency trading strategies, developed strategies for adopting blockchain and taught numerous classes on the basics of blockchain and cryptocurrencies.
Richard A. Sigmon, CPA, CFF, CGMA Corporate Internal Audit Director, Alex Lee, Inc. Richard has been attending the FMI Internal Audit Conference since 1999. He has over 35 years of experience in the accounting and auditing profession and has been with Alex Lee, Inc., for over 19 years. His responsibilities include overseeing the Lowe’s Foods Store Audit functions as well as overseeing and performing operational and financial audits throughout all Alex Lee subsidiaries. Richard is a graduate of Western Carolina University.
As RSi’s Vice President of US Retailer Development, Jim leads all activities and development with existing retail channels in North America. He uses his in-depth retail industry knowledge to help maintain and build strong mutually-beneficial relationships with all RSi retail customers and partners. With over thirty years in the retail industry, working across multiple formats, from extreme value to gourmet food concepts, Jim’s wide-ranging experience includes operations, merchandising, marketing and supply chain. Prior to joining RSi, Jim held executive-level positions with major retailers such as H-E-B, Ahold, Albertsons, Supervalu, Winn Dixie, and Dollar General. Jim is a graduate of the Advanced Management Program (AMP) at Harvard Business School.
Rachel Sutherland is a Digital Innovation Specialist supporting the efforts of Deloitte’s Digital Controllership and Finance practice. She has spent the majority of her time over the last three years educating clients across industries about the impact of technologies like robotics process automation, analytics, and more within Finance. Rachel is also the lead lab producer for Deloitte’s Digital Controllership Spark lab where executives and their teams come to learn and brainstorm ways in which they can use technology within Finance and Controllership.
Bryan is currently the Vice President of Internal Audit at Brookshire Brothers. His previous positions at Brookshire Brothers include: Director of Treasury, internal auditor and financial analyst. Bryan began working at Brookshire Brothers as a store director trainee in April 2008.
Bryan was born and raised in the North Texas area and graduated from the University of North Texas with a BBA in Marketing / Logistics Management and Finance in 2001. Bryan also spent a semester in Cuernavaca, Mexico studying International Finance and Spanish through UNT’s study abroad program. Mr. Tyler has had 8 years of audit experience and 7 years of finance experience and previous positions include: Vice President at First Bank & Trust of East Texas, Vice President and co-founder of Pinnacle Hills Mortgage Services and worked as an acquisition/flow specialist and a mortgage consultant at Citibank.
Hannah Walker joined FMI as a Senior Director, Government Relations in March 2012. She handles banking, SNAP, WIC Payment Data Security, and other payments issues for FMI. Prior to joining FMI Hannah spent three years as Legislative Director for then House Agriculture Committee member Congressman Tom Rooney (R-FL). Hannah handled the Congressman’s agriculture, judiciary, energy and environment portfolio. Hannah joined Rooney after working for the State of Florida and former Congressman Mark Foley for several years, where she also handled agriculture and energy issues. Hannah started her political career at the National Republican Senatorial Committee in 2001 and then moved to the National Republican Congressional Committee for the 2004 cycle. Hannah is a native Tennessean; she received her Bachelor’s degree from Middle Tennessee State University and Law Degree from the University of Memphis and is a member of the Tennessee Bar.