Who Should Attend
Senior-level supply chain professionals who have a significant influence over their companies’ domestic / global supply chain operations.
VP / Directors of Supply Chain Management / Logistics / Distribution
VP / Directors of Operations
VP / Directors Procurement Sourcing
Chief Supply Chain Officers
Chief Logistics Officers
Supply Chain / Logistics / Distribution Managers
Operations Managers
Presidents / CEOs / COOs
Audience At-a-Glance
Elite Supply Chain Executives (Since 2019)
World-Class Speakers (Since 2019)
%
Attendees VP & Above
%
End Users
%
Direct Role in Purchasing
PAST NEXTGEN SPEAKERS
Prior to his current role, Guru was the Chief Supply Chain Officer for Global Tools & Storage business of Stanley Black and Decker (NYSE: SWK). In this role, he was responsible for the development and execution of the manufacturing and distribution strategy and accountable for customer driven end-to-end supply chain for tools and storage and also as the Chief Procurement Officer where he was responsible for procurement of direct material and indirect spend across the enterprise.
He was recently appointed to the Global Board of Directors for the U.S.-India Business Council.
Prior to joining the company, Guru held varying roles in engineering, procurement, finance and product management. He has held increasing roles of responsibility and has extensive experience in product development, procurement, manufacturing and finance at Oshkosh Corporation (NYSE: OSK) and Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX)
Guru earned a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from B.A. Technological University in India, a master’s degree in Industrial and Mechanical Engineering from the University of Toledo and holds an MBA from the University of Minnesota.
Cornelia currently serves as Vice President for Supply Chain Innovation Orchestration & Deployment in which she is responsible for establishing an eco-system of emerging technological capabilities, global partnerships and strategic hubs to enable customer focused and disruptive innovations to facility growth and reimagine supply chain across JNJ and for the customers they serve.
Cornelia has over 25 years of Supply Chain experience and joined JNJ in 2017 as V.P. JJOS, Product Supply Execution where she was responsible for the development & deployment of Best in Class Proven Practices, Business Process Standards, and disciplined methodology for driving improvement and optimizing the E2E Supply Chain for Johnson & Johnson.
Prior to joining Johnson & Johnson Cornelia held cross-functional Executive Leadership roles in Supply Chain within fortune 500 companies such as Eaton Corporation, TE Connectivity, Johnson Controls and HID Global. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering Technology from Southern Polytechnic University and an MBA from Vanderbilt University.
Jerome is the co-founder and former Co-CEO of 6 River Systems (6RS), a collaborative robotics and software solutions provider for the warehouse industry. With over 25 years of supply chain technology experience, Jerome was also a key early contributor at successful supply chain technology companies Yantra Corporation (now part of IBM) and Kiva Systems (now Amazon Robotics). While at 6RS, Jerome led all commercial and product activities including marketing, sales, customer success, and product management. Operating as an independent company within Shopify, 6RS is the leading provider of warehouse automation solutions using collaborative mobile robotics, with installs in over 100 warehouses worldwide. In 2019, 6RS was acquired by Shopify, the global commerce technology company. After recently transitioning from his duties at 6RS, Jerome is now responsible for scaling Shopify's logistics offerings as Vice President. Jerome holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering degree from UNH (1996) and graduated magna cum laude from Northeastern University with an MBA in Supply Chain and Finance (1998). He is a frequent presenter at industry conferences and guest lecturer in supply chain, technology, and entrepreneurship programs..
G.E. Appliances a Haier Company
Bill Good began his career in manufacturing on an assembly line while working his way through college. His experience sparked his passion and interest in manufacturing as a career, and he set a goal to one day lead manufacturing for a large U.S. company. Over the course of Bill’s 34-year career, he has honed his knowledge of supply chain management through his various roles of increasing responsibility at Tri-Glass, Charbroil, Whirlpool, and now in his dream job as the Vice President of Manufacturing at GE Appliances, a Haier company.
Bill is a certified Six Sigma Black Belt, with expertise in Theory of Constraints, HOSHIN Planning, and the Toyota Production System. He places a high value on employee engagement, building relationships, and leading transformational change.
Currently, Bill and his team are focusing on expanding plant capacity, increasing automation in the supply chain, and implementing new digital tools to create a Zero Distance approach with consumers.
Mariane Heidingsfelder joined Pandora at the beginning of 2021 as Vice President of Technology where she leads the technology development of three main areas: Supply Chain, Product innovation, and Colleague Experience. The team produces, develops, and operates digital solutions which enable end-to-end product development & innovation and overall operations value chain. Moreover, the team plays a key role in building Pandora’s colleague experience to empower employees in their day-to-day experience of all things technology at Pandora.
Mariane began her career in Global Operations in Adidas working in global supply planning. In 2010 she moved to El Salvador, where she worked for Unicomer - an Appliances and Furniture Retailer- holding different positions in IT focusing on ERP and POS rollout in their Caribbean stores. She rejoined Adidas in 2012 to set up the eCom IT Operations team helping to grow the business and consumer centricity significantly. She led the roll-out of Omnichannel capabilities globally while transforming the team to work on agile, product led manner. Before joining Pandora Mariane was IT Vice President of Europe - driving the tech strategy and delivery of capabilities to bring Adidas' European sales back to growth.
Born and raised in El Salvador, Central America, Mariane has lived most of her life there and in Germany. She holds a Master of Art in International Relations & Economics and a Bachelor in Political Science & Economics.
Kevin Kuntz serves as Senior Vice President, Global Logistics Fulfillment at Gap Inc. Kevin oversees the company’s 14 fulfillment centers, including those in Asia and Europe, which process online and retail orders for Gap, Banana Republic, Old Navy, Athleta, Intermix and Hill City. With a heavy focus on innovation and automation, Kevin is transforming Gap Inc.’s Global Logistics network to an elevated omnichannel operation.
During his 30 years with Gap Inc., Kevin established an excellent track record of launching and remodeling fulfillment centers, implementing warehouse management systems and partnering with third party logistics vendors. His ability to drive change and execute on innovative process improvements continues to result in year-over-year cost savings.
Kevin first started at Gap Inc. as a seasonal merchandise handler in Gap Inc.’s former Kentucky fulfillment center at 17 years old. Over the years, he steadily progressed into leadership roles of increasing responsibility within Gap Inc.’s Logistics and North American Transportation divisions.
Kevin received his bachelor’s degree in Business Management from Thomas More College. As a strong advocate for youth mentorship and job readiness, he’s been active with the Gallatin, Tennessee Shalom Zone and has recently served as a volunteer captain of his local high school’s fishing team.
Adrienne Palermo, Senior Director of North America Oral Care Supply Network Operations for Procter & Gamble, is a seasoned Supply Chain Leader. Ms. Palermo has experience across multiple CPG businesses and Supply Chain domain across her 20+ years experience. Ms. Palermo has been a key global leader in Procter and Gamble’s supply chain demand and planning digital transformation recognized by Gartner’s Supply Chain Master designation for the last seven years. Ms. Palermo was recognized by Supply and Demand Chain Executive as a 2019 Inaugural Woman of the Year for her leadership of Procter and Gamble’s Global Supply Chain Citizen Developer Digital Fluency program to create over 1000 global supply chain professionals digital upskilling to create digital solutions in days for the most critical business opportunities.
Accelerating Business Value through Digitally Upskilling Supply Chain Professionals.
In his role as president of U.S. Medical Products and Distribution, Rajalingam has end-to-end responsibility managing the business, which is a leading provider of medical products and supply chain services.
Prior to this role, Rajalingam was president of U.S. Sales, Medical Solutions, and led the Acute, Non-Acute & Inside Sales, Laboratory, Channel Partners Group, Enterprise Contracting and Government sales teams.
Before this, Rajalingam led the Medical Segment strategic selling organization, including the Strategic Accounts, Enterprise Contracting, Government, Channel Partners Group, and Customer and Market Insights teams.
Rajalingam came to Cardinal Health from Smiths Medical, where he was vice president and general manager of the Vascular Access Business Unit. Prior to joining Smiths Medical, he was the vice president of Global Marketing for Medtronic Peripheral Vascular, where he helped lead the integration of Covidien’s Peripheral business.
During his time at Medtronic, Rajalingam held leadership roles in product marketing, market development, market research, portfolio management, pipeline marketing and business development. He started his career as a biomedical engineer in the company’s Cardiac Rhythm Disease Management business.
Rajalingam earned a bachelor's degrees in biomedical engineering and economics from Duke University and a master of business administration from Stanford University's Graduate School of Business. He previously served on the board of the American College of Phlebology Foundation and volunteered as a Year Up mentor.
Past Presenting Companies
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ADVISORY BOARD
Amy Augustine's team is responsible for building the business cases for the corporate strategic projects for U.S. Cellular. She has interest in how 5G technology can transform the future of supply chain. From 2013 until mid-2018, she led the Reverse Logistics team that is responsible for the strategy and execution of the reverse supply chain, including planning, repair of handsets and tablets, and re-commerce of handsets and accessories. Amy has held various roles within supply chain and has worked at U.S. Cellular more than nine years. Earlier in her career, she spent 10 years in the consulting industry working for KPMG, BearingPoint and the Revere Group. Amy earned her MBA in Operations Management and International Business from Loyola University in Chicago and holds a CSCP certification from APICS. 
eter Bolstorff oversees ASCM corporate impact programs that include transformation, talent development, sustainability, and community driven public health. Peter, the author of Supply Chain Excellence: A Handbook for Dramatic Improvement Using the SCOR Model, brings over 25 years of experience in supply chain and operations management to the position. He joined ASCM as the Executive Director to lead the APICS, Supply Chain Council merger. Prior to joining ASCM, Bolstorff was the founding principal of SCE Limited, a consulting firm focused on providing supply chain program management and SCOR-based education to supply chain executives and their global teams. Bolstorff also held supply chain and operations management leadership roles at 3M and Imation and has been a lifelong volunteer within the SCOR community. He received his master’s degree in industrial education from the University of Minnesota and Bachelor’s degree in mathematics, education, and psychology from St. Olaf College. 
Andrew Byer has 37 years experience in Supply Network Operations at P&G. He has worked in multiple business units and regions, including 12 years based in Asia (Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore.)
He currently is P&G’s Global Supply Network Operations capability leader, with responsibility to develop mastery, drive adoption, ensure governance and lead innovation in work process and tools/systems across COE’s spanning planning, logistics, innovation, and customer / supplier collaboration. He is also the P&G Know How leader for the Supply Network Operations in P&G’s Alliance with helping provide EY’s clients with access to P&G’s supply chain expertise, practices and experience.
Previous assignments included shelf-to-cash, transportation and warehousing for P&G’s northeast US businesses. He led major acquisition integrations into P&G’s Beauty and Health supply chains. He led large-scale business process transformation and IT projects, including launching Vendor Managed Inventory with major US retailers and implementing MRPII/SAP ERP across Asia. He led supply chain business and supply planning across P&G’s Global Beauty and Health businesses, including overseeing contract manufacturers and supply chain design studies. He was also supply chain leader for P&G’s North America Hair Care business.
Andrew is a graduate of Vanderbilt University. He lives in Cincinnati, Ohio, is married, and has four children.
Karoline Dygas is Nordstrom’s Vice President and CPO leading Strategic Sourcing and Procurement for all non-merchandise spend. She joined Nordstrom in April 2019 and is responsible for leading a holistic strategic sourcing transformation to provide a new procurement service delivery model that will positively impact the customer experience and company financial performance.
Prior to joining Nordstrom, she was Starbucks Corp Vice President leading Global Sourcing, Store Development and Siren Retail Supply Chains. She was part of Starbucks Global Supply Chain leadership team and was accountable for sourcing of all capital and commercial equipment, FFE, R&M and QA services, as well as leading the global end-to-end supply chains for Store Development and Siren Retail (Starbucks Roastery & Reserve and Princi brands).
Before joining Starbucks, Karoline was the Senior Director Strategic Sourcing at Walgreens based in Deerfield, Illinois where she was responsible for $1.5B annual spend across multiple categories supporting Store Development, Energy & Environmental Sustainability, and Marketing.
She earned her Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University and later completed her dual MBA from both Purdue University and ESCP-EAP European School of Management in Paris, France.
She lives in Issaquah, WA with her husband Josh, two children Morgan (14) and Max (12), and their Samoyed-Husky rescue dog named Yeti. 
Arun Kochar’s experience on a six-month project with a wine industry client in many ways mirrors his trajectory as a consultant at Kearney, where he began as a business analyst in 2004 and worked his way up to partner.
On that project, Arun learned just how intensive wine-making was—from acquiring the grapes to selling the wine derived from those grapes, the entire process could take more than five years.
“The beverage alcohol industry is a relatable yet complicated industry, driven by its multi-tier value chain. That’s why I enjoy it so much,” Arun says. “You talk to everybody, including the brand owners, distributors, retailers—even the farmers supplying grapes and malts. Something that seems quite casual and ordinary—a bottle of wine or whiskey—is actually quite fascinating and involved to make, distribute, and sell.”
Working on such engagements—both short- and long-term—during his tenure at the firm has allowed Arun to develop a unique knowledge of the operations value chain, from planning and procurement to manufacturing, distribution, and customer service. His experience allows him to advise on very specific cost take-out or growth challenges, as well as on large-scale transformations such as mergers and acquisitions integrations.
“Most big transformations fail because people don’t like to change,” Arun says. “We put together a case for change that everybody is energized about." 
Jay Koganti has more than 22 years of experience building and transforming complex Global Supply Chains as a source of strategic and competitive advantage for enterprises. Jay’s Professional expertise includes developing global supply chain strategies and Global SC Operating models. Extensive Enterprise Transformations from strategy to Operationalization. Enterprise Value creation by Breakthrough Process innovations, solving complex Supply Chain problems by leveraging the new breed of Digital Technologies by nurturing the partnerships and Technology incubation. Operational experience in Global Supply Chain Planning, Distribution, Integrated Business Planning, Supply Chain Analytics & Intelligence, and Execution for fortune 100 companies.
Jay has a unique vision of improving Operational efficiencies of Global Supply Chains by building next-generation sustainability and social equity practices at its core. Jay is a Thought leader and Keynote speaker for numerous Global Supply Chain leadership gatherings and a leading voice of advocacy for Digital Transformation and Process Innovation in the Global Supply Chain community. Jay has a BS in Metallurgical Engineering and graduated from Harvard Business School in General Management (GMP), APICS & SAP SCM Certifications, and completed Value Chain Transformation Program at Wharton. 
Visionary. Focused. Collaborative. Action-Oriented. Adaptive. Impactful. Reflective. These are a few elements of my professional value proposition. My name is Daren Mallard, and my goal is to see not only what will make Cisco successful today...but also, to focus on achieving greater success in the future.
Currently, I develop Marketing Strategy for Cisco's Global Logistics organization, within Supply Chain Operations. In addition to managing and transporting tens of billions of dollars’ of Cisco product, we're growing our external forward logistics services by more than 10% annually...while leveraging reverse logistics to facilitate Cisco's Circular Economy efforts. And, we run two technology innovation centers which develop solutions that digitize and optimize supply chain operations. In my role, I collaborate with executives, account teams, customers, and partners, to develop initiatives & programs that better position and improve the overall supply chain experience.
I've been with Cisco for fourteen years, and my prior roles include managing Product Marketing, Technical Marketing, & Sales Operations, within the video business. Before my previous company, Scientific-Atlanta, was acquired by Cisco, I had roles managing Investor Relations & Financial Analysis...and began my career journey as a CPA with Ernst & Young (EY). I've proudly served my country as a member of the U.S. Army, and am a Morehouse College alumnus. I’m on the Georgia Chamber of Commerce Innovation & Technology Policy Committee, the Next-Gen Supply Chain Conference Advisory Board, and previously served on local chapters of CTAM, NAMIC, and NABA...for which I was twice elected Board President. Additionally, I had the distinction of being selected to, and attending the Harvard Business School Cable Executive Management Program, sponsored by the CTAM Educational Foundation.
Within the community, I've been a Youth Ministry Leader, and led mentoring programs for Junior Achievement Fellows & the Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science & Technology...teaching business skills, financial principles and entrepreneurship. Promoting financial literacy is a passion, and I enjoy teaching my nephews (aged 12 and 5) and godson (age 15) how to invest their time and resources, so that they can achieve a measure of financial independence. In addition, I enjoy spending time & traveling the world with my wife, rooting for NY sports teams that consistently disappoint, and thinking of new ways in which I can make a positive impact on the community & the world.
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Daren_M
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Daren_MD
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daren-mallard-8525ab24 
Shekar Natarajan is a Harvard Business School alum with an industrial engineering background and insatiable appetite for innovation. Coupled with his innate entrepreneurial acumen and strategic eye for opportunity, Shekar’s track record for transformation among top Fortune 100 companies has consistently left a lasting impact across numerous industries.
Throughout his 20-year career, Shekar has created an industry-standard system for last-mile beverage delivery; built and scaled grocery-shopping operations now worth more than $9 billion; developed methodologies followed by the White House and FEMA; and enhanced theme-park visitor experience through wearable RFID technology. In December 2018, Shekar joined American Eagle Outfitters (AEO, Inc.) as SVP Global Supply Chain, Logistics & Services and was quickly entrusted with reimagining the retailer’s traditional supply chain network. Ultimately pioneering an open supply chain business model, Shekar now leads a team of 500 staff and 10,000 field associates in his current role as EVP – Chief Supply Chain Officer.
Recognized worldwide for his industry contributions, Shekar’s diversified portfolio includes more than 300 filed and 75 awarded patents and three books translated in 11 languages. 
John Santagate is the Vice President of Robotics at Körber Supply Chain. In this role, John is responsible for defining and executing the autonomous mobile robot strategy for Körber Supply Chain North America. Prior to joining Körber, John was a Research Director for Robotics at IDC where he provided market trends and forecasts for service robotics, business process evolution through the use of service robots, and the integration of robotics into business processes and business IT architecture. John has an MBA from Rutgers with a concentration in Supply Chain Management and a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Massachusetts with dual concentrations in Finance and Management. In addition to serving as the VP of Robotics at Körber, John is an adjunct instructor at the University of Massachusetts at Lowell teaching a course in supply chain and logistics.
www.koerber-supplychain.com 
Alison Seward has business-wide responsibility for all aspects of quality costs, both internally and externally for all GE Appliances manufacturing sites and Mabe affiliates. By owning the strategy and execution for quality, she leads the team to ensure that GE Appliances meets and exceeds owners’ expectations for quality, delivering a world class ownership experience.
Previous roles from her 20-year career with GE Appliances include leadership positions in Product Cost & Design Quality, Cost-Out Execution, New Products Execution and Design Manager as well as Program Senior Director for an $80M investment in Dishwasher that launched during the COVID-19 pandemic. Alison began her career in 2001 as a co-op in Supply Chain and is an Operations Management Leadership Program graduate with experience in Material Control, Plant Operations, Supplier Quality and Manufacturing Quality.
Alison lives in Louisville, KY with her husband and two young daughters, where they are active in their local church. She is focused on wellness with frequent yoga and ballet classes and has an affinity for plant-based meals. Alison holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Louisville. 
Steve Simmerman is the Head of Global Alliances at Locus Robotics. Simmerman has more than 30 years of experience in the supply chain industry including software, consulting, and material handling. He has focused his efforts on working with clients to achieve high performance supply chain results through partnerships and creative solutions. He is a member of CSCMP, WERC, and MHI and is a regular contributor to several industry publications and events. Simmerman holds his undergraduate and MBA degrees from The University of Notre Dame. 
Tom Ward is currently an A.I. Project Lead within the Chief Data Officer (CDO) organization. In this capacity, he leads the global development and deployment of cloud, AI and quantum projects across the enterprise. Tom has led supply chain cloud projects over the past twelve years. For the past eight years, Tom has led the implementation of several Watson applications including Operations Risk Insights. He has been a featured supply chain conference speaker and published author in several magazines. Tom is an IBM Academy of Technology Member and one of 25 certified Supply Chain Management Professional – Consultants, globally within IBM. He has over 30 years of technical leadership experience with IBM in many facets of the Supply Chain, Procurement, Enterprise and Operations Services. Tom has recently been certified as an IBM Quantum Ambassador. Tom has a Master's degree in Electrical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He lives in Highland, New York.
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