Speakers

Doug Baker

Vice President, Industry Relations, FMI

Doug Baker is a food retail industry relations vice president for FMI – The Food Industry Association where he facilitates professional, non-competitive collaboration among member communities across private brands, technology, and grocery resilience issue areas.

In addition to his facilitation of the private brands leadership council and their efficiency-driven initiatives to encourage brand owner innovation, Doug also oversees FMI’s CIO Council, the Industry Collaboration Council and joint industry initiative, SmartLabel . Prior to FMI, Doug began his career in the food retail industry in 1984 with Fry’s Food Stores. His 30+ years in food retail have included leadership roles at Fry’s (a division of Kroger), Kraft/Nabisco and Federated Group with focuses on retail operations, consumer packaged goods and private brand development and marketing.

Mark Baum

Chief Collaboration Officer & Senior Vice President, Industry Relations, FMI

Mark Baum currently serves as Senior Vice President of Industry Relations and Chief Collaboration Officer for FMI. In this role, Baum engages retailer, manufacturer, supplier, and service provider CEOs to further trading partner collaboration, leading to operational improvements and growth opportunities across all segments of the food retail supply chain. Prior to joining FMI, Baum was a Managing Partner of MARCAT Group, LLC a consulting/advisory firm specializing in business, market, channel, and customer development. Baum is known for his intricate knowledge of every aspect of the food, beverage and related businesses, and is recognized among the foremost experts in the design, management, and execution of strategy, sales, marketing, and merchandising activities throughout the industry.

Craig Boyan

CEO, H-E-B

Craig joined H-E-B in 2005 as Chief Strategic Officer and was an advisor to H-E-B for two years before joining the company.

Prior to H-E-B, Craig worked at the Monitor Company, a global consultancy based in Cambridge, MA.  Craig founded and ran Monitor’s New York office.

Craig is a member of the Board of FMI and a member of the FMI Executive Committee.  He also served as the Chairman of the 2016 FMI Midwinter Executive Conference. Craig serves as the Chairman of the San Antonio Economic Development Foundation; he is also on the Board of Trustees for Texas Biomedical Research Institute; and serves on the Early Matters S.A. Steering committee, as well as the UTSA Campaign Leadership Council. Craig is also Chairman of the Board for Junior Achievement of South Texas, and a member of the Mayor’s Education and Development Workforce Leadership Team. He is a past member of the United Way Executive Committee and, served as the General Campaign Chair for the 2015 United Way Campaign. 

Alex Caffey

Partner, Boston Consulting Group

Alex Caffey is a core member of Boston Consulting Group’s Consumer practice. He focuses on corporate strategy, large-scale change. He has extensive expertise working with leading consumer goods manufacturers, distributors, and service providers.

Alex helps his clients navigate complex corporate strategy questions. He has deep experience leading large scale change initiatives that bring strategy to life: operating and organizational model transformation; commercial go-to-market performance improvement; and strategic transactions.

Prior to joining BCG, Alex advised corporate and financial sponsor clients on mergers and acquisitions at a full service investment bank.

Will Chu

CEO & Co-Founder, Vector

Will Chu is the CEO & Co-founder of Vector, a contactless pickup and delivery platform, that ensures supply chain partners get the right load to the right place at the right time. Prior to Vector, Will was the VP of Engineering at Addepar, a wealth management platform, which manages more than $2 trillion in client assets. Will is a problem solver at heart who enjoys leveraging technology to tackle major industry challenges. In his free time, Will enjoys camping with his family, cold IPAs and swimming in the San Francisco Bay.

Robert Crane

Senior Vice President, Head of Sales and Sales Commercialization , JM Smucker Co.

A seasoned sales executive with a strong track record of strategic leadership establishing and nurturing successful partner relationships and teams. Robert is motivated by delivering on The J.M. Smucker Co.’s commitment to meet and exceed the needs of consumers and grow the categories it participates in through strategic collaboration with retail customers. 
In his current role as Senior Vice President, Head of Sales and Sales Commercialization, Robert oversees the Company’s sales and commercialization functions to ensure successful collaboration with customers while promoting continued productivity and category growth. His successful stewardship of the sales and commercial organizations is supported by more than 20 years of leadership experience at Smucker where he has assumed various roles of increasing responsibility and influence. 
In addition to his leadership at Smucker, Robert serves as an elected board member of both The J.M. Smucker Company Political Action Committee and the Boys and Girls Club of Akron. 
Robert holds a bachelor’s degree from Texas Tech University. 

Jean-Baptiste Delabre

Vice President, NA Business Development Lead, Retail Analytics, NielsenIQ

Jean-Baptiste (JB) Delabre is a highly accomplished professional with over 12 years of experience at NielsenIQ, where he has supported retailers worldwide, providing strategic solutions to tackle critical business challenges in merchandising and supply chain management. As Vice-President of NIQ's North America Retail Analytics practice, JB consults with retailers across various industries and sectors, including Grocery, Beauty & Drug, Mass merchandiser, and Convenience retailers. One of his latest notable achievements includes spearheading the successful launch of an analytics-driven supply chain solution, enabling CPG suppliers and retailers to measure and benchmark out-of-stocks effectively. With a passion for delivering impactful results, he remains committed to empowering NIQ clients with data-driven insights to optimize their operations and drive sustainable growth. JB holds a Master of Science in Marketing and Analytics from the University of Montreal. 

Karl Doenges

Executive Director of Charging Analytics Program and Transportation Retail Integration Program at the Transportation Energy Institute and EV Liaison at the National Association of Convenience Stores

Karl Doenges is the Executive Director of the Transportation Energy Institute (TEI) Charging Analytics Program and the Transportation Retail Integration Program.  Karl also represents the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS) on the coming disruption in mobility and how that effects charing site hosts.  In this role, Karl focuses on NACS' EV charging infrastructure and EV-retail integration programs, TEI's EV analytics programs and engaging the EV industry

Previously, he was Chief Marketing Officer and Senior Vice President of Government Affairs and Business Development for Sweetwater Energy, President of Clean Fuel Distribution, Director of Global Marketing at Wagner and Brown, Ltd., consultant for fuel, energy, and technology for various companies and Vice President of Marketing and Government Affairs for Gradiant Corporation.

Karl also worked in the United States International Trade Administration, establishing the energy exporting team - coordinating the federal agencies engaged in energy and exports.

Karl is a member of the state Bar of Texas, served in the U.S. District Export Council for the U.S. Department of Commerce, is an international business graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, earned his Juris Doctorate (J.D.) and Master of Business Administration from Texas Tech University.

Sandy Douglas

Chief Executive Officer, UNFI

Sandy Douglas, has served as our Chief Executive Officer and a member of our Board since August 2021. He most recently served as the Chief Executive Officer of Staples, Inc. from April 2018 to June 2021, which included leading that company’s business-to-business distribution platform. Prior to Staples, Mr. Douglas served as President of Coca-Cola North America until February 2018, where he led the $10 billion revenue business, encompassing all aspects of its consumer and business-to-business operations. During Mr. Douglas’ 30-year tenure at Coca-Cola, he also served as Global Chief Customer Officer, and held a variety of positions across sales and marketing. Mr. Douglas began his career at The Procter & Gamble Company in sales and sales management positions. Since May 2020, Mr. Douglas has served as a member of the Board of Directors of Wawa Inc., a leading convenience retailer in the Eastern United States.

Angela Fernandez

Vice President, Community Engagement, GS1 US

Angela Fernandez is the vice president of community engagement at GS1 US and is responsible for driving broader adoption of GS1 Standards to help industry achieve improved product traceability, product information transparency, supply chain efficiencies, patient safety and data quality.

Since joining GS1 US more than 20 years ago, Ms. Fernandez has worked closely with industry stakeholders including manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers, retailers, foodservice operators, healthcare providers, government agencies, and solution providers to identify business process challenges and improve supply chain operations by leveraging GS1 Standards, the most widely used supply chain standards in the world.

Mrs. Fernandez earned her bachelor of science in business administration from Drexel University. She is a frequent guest speaker at industry events and conferences for numerous organizations, including the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP), the National Restaurant Association and the Institute of Food Technologists. She has been a traceability and recall resource for media outlets including the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, USA Today, SupplyChainBrain, Food Logistics and Packaging Digest magazines.

Dan French

Domestic Logistics Director, Inbound Logistics, Meijer, Inc.

French has more than 20 years’ experience in the Logistics and Transportation industry, spending most of that time in the Retail space. Currently, he is the Director of Domestic Inbound Logistics with Meijer, Inc, a Grand Rapids, Mich. based retailer that operates supercenters, neighborhood markets, Meijer Grocery and Express locations throughout MI, OH, IN, IL, KY and WI. Meijer is a privately-owned and family-operated company since 1934.

Kathy Fulton

Executive Director, American Logistics Aid Network (ALAN)

Kathy Fulton is Executive Director for American Logistics Aid Network (ALAN). She leads the organization in facilitating donations of logistics services and equipment to enable delivery of millions of dollars of humanitarian aid. Kathy served as the organization’s director of operations until her promotion in 2014. 

Ms. Fulton’s passion is the intersection of supply chain and emergency management, focusing on the critical role logistics and supply chain professionals play in disaster relief. She serves on national workgroups focused on efficient coordination of logistics activities during disasters, including those hosted by the Department of Homeland Security, the Transportation Research Board, and the National Emergency Management Association. Preceding her work with ALAN, Fulton was Senior Manager of Information Technology Services at Saddle Creek Logistics Services where she led IT infrastructure implementation and support, corporate systems, and business continuity planning. 

Kathy holds a Bachelor’s of Science in Mathematics from Northwestern State University of Louisiana and Master’s degrees in Business Administration and Management Information Systems from the University of South Florida.

Bobby Gibbs

Partner, Oliver Wyman

Bobby Gibbs is a Partner in the Retail & Consumer Goods practice at Oliver Wyman. During his projects, Bobby has focused on capabilities building in pricing, promotions, and discount management enabled by advanced analytics, tool development and employee engagement. Bobby is a contributing author to Retail Revolution, Oliver Wyman’s study on major trends in the industry and co-authored numerous articles on industry trends including for the Harvard Business Review.  Bobby is on the leadership for Next Best Basket™, Oliver Wyman’s capability for retail personalization.

Bobby has presented on industry trends for several FMI audiences (Board of Directors, Industry Relations Council, Growth Forum), the American Meat Conference, the Texas Insurance Academy, as well as client audiences.  He is a frequent commentator on industry trends in print, radio and television with recent interviews for NBC News, APM Marketplace, the Washington Post, Forbes, Winsight Grocery Business, Progressive Grocer, the Dallas Morning News, KMOX Saint Louis and others.

He also served as the interim Vice President for Promotional Optimization at a $5B specialty retailer overseeing decision making and execution for Shelf Pricing, Coupons, Price Promotions, Loyalty Offers and Markdown during rollout of their personalized offer platform.

Bobby holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Yale University. He has extensive experience in data analytics and engineering in Microsoft SQL, Teradata, and Python. He has served in non-profit board-level leadership roles with the Jewish Federation of Greater Dallas, AT&T Performing Arts Center, Temple Emanu-El Dallas and the Yale Club of Dallas. He is an avid but very amateur endurance athlete and completed several marathons, 70.3 triathlons and one Iron Man.

Geoff Goetz

Executive Vice President, Supply Chain, KeHE Distributors

Geoff Goetz is the executive vice president and head of supply chain at KeHE Distributors, which is one of the nation’s top pure play wholesale food distributors across North America. We help natural & organic, specialty and fresh brands and products get onto retail shelves and online. 

In Geoff's role for the last 7 years he is in the center of all things KeHE, positioned between the supplier, the customer, and internal team. Geoff and his team must ensure that they have what customers want, when and where they want it, across KeHE’s 19 North American Distribution Centers and ensure it gets delivered to retail shelves in full, on time, and in good condition. Developing the best people, processes, and technology are core to a world-class supply chain transformation, supporting the dynamic and ever-changing needs of today’s consumer.

Geoff's 20+ years of experience spans across retail, transportation, and food distribution companies. His people first leadership approach attracts top talent and builds a team and culture that align perfectly to KeHE's value of serving to make lives better! 

Jonathan Grainger

Senior Director Supply Chain, Sprouts Farmers Market

Jonathan currently serves as Sr. Director of Supply Chain at Sprouts Farmers Market. He supports the strategy, project management, execution, and growth of the supply chain. Jonathan has designed and built over 2M sqft of industrial real estate including high automation, robotics, multi-temp, etc.
Jonathan's previous positions include Director of Supply Chain for Dick’s Sporting Goods and Project Manager for Giant Eagle.

Gary Hawkins

CEO & Founder, CART

 Gary Hawkins has lived his career ahead of the curve, putting him in the right place at the right time to help guide the fast moving consumer goods retail industry into the future in a time of exponential technology growth using never-before-available capabilities to innovate the future of shopping.

 Hawkins is the Founder and CEO of CART (Center for Advancing Retail & Technology). CART’s mission is to connect retail to new innovative capabilities through programs, events, and education. Knowing that awareness and discovery of new technologies are only one part of future success, the CART team is at the forefront of helping retailers, wholesalers, brand manufacturers, and solution providers cultivate a culture of innovation and agility through a proven process and approach. On the other side of innovation lies strategy development, technology roadmaps, and systems assessments. Hawkins and his team are uniquely positioned to assist retailers in preparing for the future.

 Hawkins leverages his unique perspective into his role as board member and strategic adviser at select companies bringing exciting and game-changing capabilities to the market. Retail Mindsteps (retailmindsteps.com) serves as Hawkins’ personal blog and repository of the myriad articles and papers written for industry publications where he distills the complexity of tech-fueled retail innovation into digestible and actionable insights. Hawkins is the author of three books including the latest, Retail in the Age of ‘i’, that explores the future of retail propelled by the exponential growth of technology. In addition, Hawkins is a regular guest lecturer at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business in addition to keynoting retail conferences in the US and abroad.

Richard Kearns

Executive Vice President, Distribution and Logistics, Associated Wholesale Grocers, Inc.

Richard Kearns is the Executive Vice President of Distribution and Logistics at Associated Wholesale Grocers, Inc. (AWG).  Richard is a member of the AWG Executive leadership team and has company-wide responsibility for warehouse and transportation operations, traffic, routing, labor negotiations, industrial engineering, corporate services and food safety, in addition to the New All in One Distribution Hub in Hernando MS.  Over the last few decades, Richard has worked in various capacities in warehousing, distribution and operational roles in the United Kingdom and the United States.

Gary Kinneer

Director, Supply Chain, Weis Markets, Inc.

Gary Kinneer is Director of Supply Chain at Weis Markets, Inc. Gary works collaboratively with the Weis Market’s distribution and transportation teams as well as wholesale, dedicated and third-party carriers, and various associated industry and CPG partners focusing on improving supply chain efficiencies, increasing associated revenue, and mitigating associated costs. Gary has extensive supermarket industry experience, prior to his current role Gary held various leadership positions in Store Operations.  Gary received a BS in Business Management from Pennsylvania State University in State College, PA.  He currently resides in Camp Hill, PA with his wife Katrina, they have one daughter.

James Kirkland

Vice President, H&M Company, Inc.

Arnold Kogan

Managing Director and Partner, Boston Consulting Group

Arnold Kogan is a core member of the Consumer and Operations practices at Boston Consulting Group. Arnold is an expert in complexity management, supply chain planning, manufacturing and distribution strategy, global category sourcing, and digital capability building. He also leads the manufacturing & supply chain diagnostics and benchmarking topic globally. Arnold has extensive experience helping companies across center store categories (such as snacks and toys) and perimeter store categories (such as cheese and meat) transform their end-to-end supply chains to enable channel growth, increase EBITDA, and manage working capital.

Prior to joining BCG, Arnold was with Deloitte Consulting and Texas Instruments, where he worked in a variety of operations and finance leadership roles across the globe.

Prior to consulting, Arnold worked in Southeast Asia in a variety of supply chain leadership roles for a global consumer electronics manufacturer.  Arnold holds an MBA from the University of Michigan and a BS in Accounting and Supply Chain Management from Arizona State University.

David Kopsch

Senior Principal, Mercer

David is a Senior Principal Consultant in Mercer’s Career Business located in Atlanta, Georgia. David assists clients in retail, manufacturing and financial services on a variety of topics including total rewards strategy and organization design for developing a compelling employee experience. Aside from workforce rewards, his experience includes business restructuring and transformation for global organizations, benefits effectiveness assessment, and organization process optimization, to name some areas.
A few of his projects have included:
  • Market pricing and benchmarking and talent profile persona design for a global retail manufacturer
  • A human capital assessment and reduction-in-force business reorganization for a global retailer
  • Workforce re-design and skills framework
  • Compensation expert witness testimony to a state government commission for a public sector utility
  • Development of a compensation tool to manage minimum wage and ensure competitive wages across more than 6,000 U.S. postal codes
  • A career framework and compensation design for an entertainment and hospitality company
 

Shaun Lee

Director of Field Operations, Cyclum Renewables

Shaun Lee is third generation in the mechanical business working in all facets of the industry from apprentice to CEO with more than 20 years in the mechanical industry (heating, air conditioning, refrigeration, lighting, and plumbing “HVACR”) then over 20 years in Energy Efficiency, Renewable Energy and Co-Generation including Supermarkets.

Mr. Lee has developed hundreds of projects for Mechanical and Electrical upgrade projects around North America, Europe, and Eastern Europe including Supermarkets. Mr. Lee saw the future in the Energy Conservation Sector “Sustainability” of the business in addition to the need for Solar and bankable renewable energy technologies including Fuel Cells and Micro-Turbines back in 1997. His company installed one of the first Capstone Micro-Turbines in the United States in 1998. 

Mr. Lee completed water, natural gas reduction and Co-generation projects in the State of Nevada for large scale casinos then in Southern California including Disneyland and Pechanga Casino before working on Supermarket Energy Reduction and Production across the U.S. During this time, Mr. Lee worked on facilitation agreements and processes to develop projects quicker and easier ESCO and Renewable Energy projects inside the electric grid while pioneering project performance insurance.

He has conducted speaking engagements for utility companies (Southern California Edison, Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, City of Hollywood and the City of Santa Monica), Ukrainian Government, NGO’s and UNECE on Sustainability 1999-2018.

Currently in the U.S., Mr. Lee works as the Director of Operations for Cyclum Renewable, LLC implementing Renewable Truck Stops with transitional Renewable Diesel, Green EV Charging, and Hydrogen Fueling of all classes of commercial Trucks and passenger vehicles. 

Mary Long

CEO, Abgility and Lecturer, University of Tennessee – Knoxville

Mary is the CEO of Abgility, on a mission to create more able and agile supply chains. She is a board advisor to ALAN, the American Logistics Aid Network, and a Lecturer at the University of Tennessee. Her food industry expertise comes from executive SC leadership roles at Domino’s and Campbell’s Soup, with early career roles at General Mills, Pillsbury, and Quaker Oats/Gatorade.  Her areas of expertise include advancing digital supply chain agility, supply chain strategy, and customer-focused transformation. Mary is passionate about developing supply chain talent and applying insights to accelerate public-private humanitarian partnerships and supply chain strategy.

Mary serves on select private and non-profit boards and was a previous Chair of the Board of Directors for the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP). She is on the editorial board for Supply Chain Quarterly  and the Journal of Supply Chain Management, Logistics, and Procurement; and has co-authored two white papers.

Gena Morgan

Vice President, Standards and Technology, GS1 US

Gena Morgan, Vice President, Standards and Technology at GS1 US, leads the team responsible for helping businesses solve supply chain challenges and meet industry requirements through the adoption and use of GS1 Standards.

For more than 22 years, Ms. Morgan has worked with GS1 and GS1 US, playing a key role in many industry initiatives, including EPCglobal, RFID standards development and the activation of the Global Data Synchronization Network. Additionally, during her tenure, Ms. Morgan has worked with various industries, consortiums and technical communities in defining requirements and developing technical interface standards and guidelines, focused on data quality, digital identity, traceability and supply chain visibility. 

Prior to joining GS1 and GS1 US, Ms. Morgan consulted in information technology, and held buying and merchandising positions in the women’s apparel industry.

Ms. Morgan currently serves on the GS1 Architecture Committee and holds key advisory roles with the Axia Institute and the RAIN RFID Alliance. She holds a Bachelor of Science in merchandising from Louisiana State University.

Dylan Newman

Principal, Boston Consulting Group

Dylan Newman is a Principal with The Boston Consulting Group, where he specializes in Supply Chain Strategy & Optimization for Consumer Goods, Retail, and Industrial Goods clients. Specifically, Dylan has deep experience in Manufacturing & Distribution Network Optimization, Distribution Network Automation, S&OP/IBP, and Inventory Management. Dylan has led some of the largest Network Restructurings in the US which have required >$1B of capital. Dylan is a dual US and Irish citizen and graduated from Duke University with a BS in Economics where he was part of the Varsity Track & Field team.

Gerard Nixon

SVP Supply Chain, KeHE Distributors

Tracey Noffke

Customer Logistics Director Strategies and Service, Kimberly-Clark

Tracey Noffke joined Kimberly-Clark in 1993 and has over 25 years of growing up in the CPG industry. Tracey is the Director of Customer Logistics. In her current role, she leads the U.S. and Canada Customer Logistics Strategies and Service organization and is responsible for customer facing supply chain activities and initiatives. Tracey has a Bachelor of Science in Business Management from the University of Platteville and holds a Master of Arts in Communication from the University of Stevens Point, Wisconsin.

Steve Oakland

President and CEO, TreeHouse Foods, Inc.

Steven Oakland is Chief Executive Officer and President of TreeHouse Foods, Inc. (NYSE: THS). He has served as a Director of TreeHouse since March 2, 2018 and was appointed CEO and President, effective March 26, 2018. TreeHouse is North America’s largest private label food and beverage producer focused on customer brands and custom products, with a network of manufacturing facilities across the United States, Canada and Italy.

Steve served as Vice Chair and President, U.S. Food and Beverage of The J.M. Smucker Company (Smucker’s) (NYSE: SJM), a manufacturer of branded food products, since May 2016. He previously served as President, Coffee and Foodservice of Smucker’s from April 2015 to April 2016; President, International Food Service of Smucker’s from May 2011 to March 2015; and President, U.S. Retail-Smucker’s Jif, and Hungry Jack from August 2008 to May 2011. Steve spent most of his career at Smucker’s, serving in increasingly senior positions including General Manager of Smucker’s Canadian operations from 1995 to 1999. He earned his B.A in Marketing and Economics from the University of Mount Union.

Steve has served on several community boards and is currently on the Board of Directors of TreeHouse Foods, Inc., Foot Locker, Inc. (NYSE: FL), Foster Farms, and MTD Products Company.

Eric Peters

President and CEO, Procurant

Eric Peters, President and CEO of Procurant, brings extensive experience and vision in supply chain technology to a series of successful software companies he has founded and led. He has been featured and quoted in hundreds of articles on supply chain, retail and the food industry, and is a contributing author to 5 books.

Peters was previously CEO of SensorThink, the first digital platform built to support the digital warehouse, and Foodlink, acquired by Roper Technologies in 2014. Foodlink, the leading network for fresh food and a pioneer in perishables supply chain solutions, was twice named to the JMP Securities Hot 100 Private Software Companies list.

Prior to joining Foodlink Peters co-founded TrueDemand Software, one of the first IoT technology companies to use predictive analytics to help the largest retailers in the world reduce lost sales due to out-of-stock inventory at the shelf. He continued to lead TrueDemand following its acquisition by Acosta Sales & Marketing, a full‐service sales and marketing agency to the consumer-packaged goods industry.

Peters has also served as Executive Vice President of Strategy and Business Development at Manhattan Associates and Senior Executive in Accenture’s Global Supply Chain Strategy Practice. He started his career at Tompkins Associates, a supply chain consulting firm, serving as a Vice President and General Manager. He speaks regularly at industry events around the world and serves as a board advisor to a number of startup companies.

Christine Pollack

Vice President, Government Relations, FMI

Christine Pollack serves as Vice President of Government Relations for FMI - The Food Industry Association, the trade association for food retailers, wholesalers, and product suppliers. At FMI, she oversees the association's advocacy and policy efforts on payments, workforce, and supply chain.

 Christine has 25 years of federal policy, advocacy, and communications experience in the public and private sectors, half of which has been spent working on behalf of the retail industry. Prior to joining FMI, Christine served on the staff of, and consulted for, the Retail Industry Leaders Association where she oversaw health, tax, and sustainability policy and political activities, and consulted on the wide breadth of retail industry policy priorities. She also has extensive experience managing stakeholder coalitions and developing and executing issue advocacy campaigns.

 Earlier in her career, Christine worked for the American Medical Association, two senior Members of the House Ways and Means Committee, which has jurisdiction over tax and trade policy, and at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. She is a gratulate of the University of Delaware and originally hails from Wilmington, Delaware.

Ryan Richard

Vice President, Community Engagement, GS1 US.

Ryan Richard is currently the Vice President, Community Engagement at GS1 US. He is responsible for driving the adoption and voluntary usage of GS1 Standards and GS1 US offerings within the retail grocery channel, managing all business development initiatives and customer relationships.

Leslie G. Sarasin

President and CEO, FMI

Leslie G. Sarasin is the president and chief executive officer of  FMI, the food industry association, which represents more than 1,500 member companies in the United States and around the world. Under Sarasin's leadership, FMI has become a forward focused and member centered organization committed to help supermarkets excel in their role of feeding families and enriching lives. Her synergistic style and determined spirit of collaboration has infused FMI with a renewed commitment to help its members address the critical industry issues of the day - food safety and the emerging importance of health and wellness. Prior to coming to FMI, Sarasin was president and CEO of the American Frozen Food Institute.

Joel Shaw

Customer Logistics Director - Distribution, Kimberly-Clark Corporation

Joel Shaw is the Customer Logistics Director for Consumer Products Distribution at Kimberly-Clark.  In this role, he leads a world class team in operating Kimberly-Clark's North American Distribution network, ensuring quality product delivery to customers on time, in a safe, efficient manner in support of $8+ Billion in net sales.  In addition to Customer Order Fulfillment, he also has accountability for material’s logistics across K-C’s Consumer Manufacturing sites as well.  With Kimberly-Clark since 2007, Joel has broad cross-functional supply-chain experience with roles across multiple functions, businesses, manufacturing, and staff locations, including Planning, Procurement, Project Management, Cost Transformation, and Distribution.
  
Joel has a passion for talent development, building a strong culture, and driving supply-chain transformation.  He has been leading K-C’s distribution transformation journey in the area’s physical automation, digital shipping, and operational efficiency.  A graduate of Pennsylvania State University, Joel earned a bachelor’s degree in Logistics & Supply Chain Management.

Jarrod Smith

Manager, Supply Chain, ConAgra Brands

Smith is Manager, Supply Chain at ConAgra Brands and has spent the last 16 years involved in multiple supply chain jobs in Transportation and Warehousing. Mainly integrating and supporting systems such as SAP, OTM and JDA in all phases from design, implementation all the way through to stabilization.

Erin Stafford

Burnout and Peak Performance Speaker/Author

Erin Stafford is a marketing guru, burnout survivor, hyper-growth business leader and social psychologist. From working with the world’s highest achievers throughout her 20+ year international career, being a Type A poster child herself and interviewing Olympians, start-up founders, Fortune 500 CEOs, leading researchers and celebrity coaches, Erin has seen firsthand how Type A personalities and constant over-achievement are coveted in the world of business yet can lead to debilitating burnout. 

After six years leading marketing for the country’s largest healthcare staffing company where she led dozens of marketing professionals and helped the organization grow by 9x in two years, Erin has made it her mission to help leaders everywhere identify and break free from burnout so they can stay at peak performance for the long haul.

Rachel Steele

VP Supply Chain, Schnucks Markets

Rachel Steele is the Vice President of Supply Chain at Schnuck Markets, Inc. in St. Louis, MO. Her areas of responsibility include warehousing, transportation and center store procurement. She started her career at Schnucks in the Legal group, and transitioned to the Supply Chain group in 2017.

Ben Wynkoop

Global Retail Industry Strategies, Grocery & Convenience, Blue Yonder

Ben brings more than 20+ years of experience as a retail industry executive, responsible for running merchandising, marketing and analytics at several leading grocery and convenience retailers.  As a Global Retail Industry Strategist, he counsels global retailers on industry trends, leading best practices, and technology advancements. He also collaborates with Blue Yonder’s product development and innovation teams to align on addressing the challenges of today’s retailers with a specific focus on the grocery and convenience channels.

Ben has led the roadmap and implementation of merchandising technology within several retailers, in areas such as space & assortment Planning, price optimization, COGs management, as well as digital marketing and e-commerce.