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Supply chain professional focused on manufacturing strategy and operations. Background in both mature and emerging technologies in multiple industries including aviation, heavy industrial, and additive manufacturing.
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.
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.
Shekar Natarajan is a highly regarded, transformative servant leader with a track-record of progressive, positive disruption and industry-standard-setting innovation. A Harvard Business School alum with an industrial engineering background, delivering operational impact through innovation and thoughtful change leadership at top Fortune 100 companies have proven to be the hallmark of Shekar’s ~20-year career.
With more than 100 patents and worldwide adoption of at least 10 industry-standard practices, Shekar’s pioneering vision has led to industry-agnostic recognition throughout his career – from winning the Institute of Industrial Engineering’s Medallion Award (2010) to Times Now’s Non-Resident Indian of the Year Award (2014) to Retail Innovation Group’s Innovator Award (2020).
Whether leading transformational efforts for the big-box retailers (Target, Walmart), setting industry standards for beverage giants (Pepsi, Coca-Cola) or designing new technology for a beloved theme-park experience (Disney), Shekar’s optimization-focused and customer-centric spirit remains evergreen. What’s diversified his portfolio even more than the broad spectrum of industries, is the variety of leadership roles he’s had along the way— from inventory & applications development to corporate development; from supply chain planning & procurement to emerging sciences, business technology & operations management including last-mile logistics.
Throughout his career, Shekar has created a now industry-standard last-mile beverage delivery system; he's re-engineered a grocery home delivery/ pick-up operating model, built and scaled grocery-shopping operations more than $9 billion in less than two years. Shekar's created and piloted a cutting-edge drone program within distribution centers to speed-up ecommerce fulfillment and has created an automated solution for an existing direct-store delivery system. He's developed methodologies followed by the White House & FEMA and has enhanced the visitor experience at the happiest place on earth through RFID technology. Beyond business operations alone, Shekar’s visionary thinking has extended into the philanthropic realm through the development of a medical-kit delivery system to service countries in need.
A true artist at heart, Shekar is not shy of the unconventional— his imagination and unwillingness to conform guide him to disrupt the status quo and infuse change leadership into each business venture he pursues, with phenomenal results. As Chief Supply Chain Officer for AEO, Inc., Shekar has brought unparalleled transformational change to the specialty retailer, creating an environment rooted in strategy & data analytics and an ethos of partnership to drive positive impact across the entire enterprise.
Well-respected not only within the industry, Shekar has authored three books translated in 11 languages and has been published or quoted in more than 75 thought-pieces across the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, CNN, CNBC, Fox, Bloomberg and prominent logistics and supply chain management magazines; he continues to remain associated with the hottest Silicon Valley startups disrupting supply chain and logistics.
Luca Graf is the Head of Digital Innovation at DSV, one of world's largest logistics service providers. He graduated in Industrial Engineering & Management from the Technische Universität Berlin, Germany and holds a PhD in Business Management from the Universität St. Gallen, Switzerland. Luca has been leading digital transformation initiatives over the last 15 years in the airline and logistics industry. Recently, he co-published the collective book contribution “Disrupting Logistics” about the digital transformation in the supply chain & logistics industry.
Trenton Ingrim is the Senior Director of Advanced Manufacturing Engineering for GE Appliances, a Haier company. Trent is responsible for the strategic vision and development of robotic automation and Industry 4.0 initiatives within the company’s supply chain.
A technical enthusiast, Trenton joined GE Appliances in 1998 after working for seven years in chemical processing and reactor automation for Sud Chemie. Since joining GE Appliances, Trenton has delivered results through many supply chain engineering roles at both GE Appliances and GE Healthcare. His project work has taken him throughout the world to the U.S., Mexico, Japan, China and Europe. Whether working across appliance product lines or ultrasound medical transducers, Trent has driven visualized automation systems that increased efficiencies and democratized data so that operational metrics were more visible and easily accessible for the workforce to better solve problems.
Trenton holds a Master of Engineering degree and a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Louisville’s Speed School of Engineering. Trent lives with his family in Louisville, KY.
Sylvie Thompson is the Supply Chain Transformation Practice Leader at NTT DATA Consulting where she works to transform today’s supply chains into next generation digital value chains while ensuring economic returns significantly outweigh investment costs. Thompson’s specialties include: supply chain strategy, supply chain transformation, unified commerce, circular supply chains, warehouse management, fulfillment, last mile delivery, returns management, reverse logistics, and disruptive innovation.
A Supply and Demand Chain Executive "2020 Pro to Know" and "Women in Supply Chain" award recipient, Marisa Brown is a leader in supply chain with more than 25 years of experience in business, research, writing, speaking, and consulting.
Currently, she focuses on the in-depth needs of APQC’s members in supply chain management and product development as she develops and oversees APQC's supply chain management research agenda. She leads APQC’s supply chain team that conducts research to provide insights into benchmarks, best practices, and process improvements in supply chain planning, procurement, logistics, manufacturing, product development, and innovation. Marisa writes and publishes relevant content on APQC's Resource Library, the APQC blog, and third-party sites.
Since joining APQC in 1996, Marisa has led several of APQC’s key growth initiatives. Prior to her current role, she was the director of APQC's Research Services department and before that was the founding director of APQC’s Knowledge Center. She has led some of APQC’s largest research projects and served as project manager, client manager, subject matter expert, and co-author on numerous projects. She was a senior program manager for APQC’s Open Standards Benchmarking® in supply chain, innovation, and product development. And prior to that she led APQC’s Collaborative Learning group and oversaw APQC’s annual multi-client research projects, taking consortium studies from initial market development through delivery and completion. She also helped establish APQC’s services for education institutions and has managed education research projects on topics such as assessing learning outcomes and institutional budgeting.
Marisa has written more than two dozen popular APQC research reports including Understanding Millennials in the Supply Chain, Evaluating Strategic Investments in High-Potential Finance Talent, Blueprint for Success: Procurement, Open Innovation: Enhancing Idea Generation Through Collaboration, and New Product Development: Embracing an Adaptable Process. A frequent media contributor, she has provided interviews or penned articles for publications including Supply Chain Management Review, CFO.com, SupplyChainBrain, Paytech, IT World, Spend Matters, Supply & Demand Chain Executive, and many others. She has spoken at numerous different conferences including most recently those belonging to APQC, Project Management Institute (PMI), PDMA, KMWorld, and SPE’s International Polyolefins Conference.
Marisa has been recognized by Supply and Demand Chain Executive as a "2020 Pro to Know." This prestigious award highlights supply chain executives, and manufacturing and non-manufacturing enterprises, that are leading initiatives to help prepare their companies’ supply chains for the significant challenges of today’s business climate.
Prior to joining APQC, Marisa received extensive training in ISO 9000 quality system implementation and was responsible for its development and supervision at a San Antonio lighting manufacturing company, where she was also the director of marketing.
Marisa earned her Master of Business Administration degree with highest honors from The University of Texas at Austin Graduate School of Business, where she was a Dean’s Award recipient. She also earned her Bachelor of Business Administration degree with highest honors from The University of Texas at Austin, majoring in honors business and finance.
When not working, she and her family are extremely active community volunteers. Besides having served as a Girl Scout troop leader for a decade, she volunteers with SEARCH Homeless Services, Star of Hope Mission, Seven Acres Senior Care Services, U.S. Vets, Houston Food Bank, her children’s school, and other community organizations. In fact, she and her husband met while both volunteering at the SEARCH homeless shelter.
Craig Moss is Executive Vice President of Ethisphere and Director of Content for the Cyber Readiness Institute. Craig is a leading expert on using management systems to improve compliance and risk management performance within companies and across supply chains
Craig is also a Director of the Digital Supply Chain Institute and Chairman of the Licensing Executives Society committee for developing an ANSI global standard for IP Protection in the Supply Chain.
He has designed and led numerous programs helping Fortune 500 companies around the world to implement management systems to reduce supply chain risk and improve performance. He has developed guides on implementing management systems to improve compliance for organizations including the World Bank Group’s International Finance Corporation and the United Nations.
Brian Zheng serves as the General Manager of HAI Robotics U.S.A. As a founding member, Brian leads the overall strategy, financial planning, and end-to-end business operations, including sales, solutions, engineering, and project implementation. Brian got his Bachelor's Degree in Electronics Engineering and Business Administration from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University and a Master's Degree in Industrial Engineer and Operations Research from the University of California, Berkeley. Before joining HAI Robotics, Brian served in many key positions and accumulated extensive experience working in various industries, including banking, technology consulting, VC, real estate investing, and 3D visions. With a diverse background in operation optimization, data analytics, and marketing, as well as substantial experience from cross-country and cross-functional collaborations, Brian is determined to lead HAI Robotics to become the top player in the warehouse automation and material handling industry. HAI Robotics utilizes our AI-powered robotics and solutions to help organizations to optimize distribution and fulfillment efficiency, accuracy, and ROI.
Susan Evans serves Activ Technologies as the Vice President of Customer Solutions. Susan onboards new customers and reviews their requirements as well as supporting current customers and expanding their use of the ActiVate platform. She works closely with the Activ development team on defining new supply chain modules and functionality for the ActiVate platform as a service (PaaS).
With more than 20 years of experience in transportation, logistics technology and global supply chain issues, Susan has served international clients across a variety of industries including retail, food and beverage, chemicals, manufacturing, and logistics service providers. Leading projects in Europe and Africa, Susan helped numerous companies achieve growth and supply chain excellence.
Susan received her B.S. in Industrial Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology and was awarded Outstanding Young Alumni in 2001. She currently sits on the Board of Directors for Friends of Solid Africa.
sevans@activtech.com
A.K. Schultz leads the overall company vision and go-to-market strategies for SVT Robotics. His work has primarily been in the Fortune 500 corporate sector, leading the design and implementation of high-profile automation projects across multiple industries. A.K. brings a unique understanding of customer needs and a knowledge of the innovation required to drive solutions that meet clients’ business goals. To date, he has overseen the successful deployment of over half a billion dollars in automation.
A.K. has created a pathway for top companies to lead the way in automation, including Tesla, Walmart, Baxter, Target, and Gallo.
Currently, A.K. is the co-founder and CEO for SVT Robotics. Founded in 2018, SVT Robotics is revolutionizing robot deployments in warehousing and manufacturing industries. SVT’s SOFTBOT Platform enables companies to rapidly connect and integrate their enterprise systems with any robot or automation for any task, empowering them to be highly competitive within the evolving marketplace.
A.K. grew up in Virginia and received his undergraduate degree in engineering from the Massachusetts Maritime Academy. The former U.S. Army Officer went on to secure his MBA from William and Mary University. He currently resides in Chesapeake, Virginia with his wife and two daughters.
ak@svtrobotics.com
Rajesh has 15 years of experience managing strategic sourcing and supplier management for multiple commodities and third-party manufacturing operations. As a thought leader on fusing human and artificial intelligence to garner procurement innovation, he has delivered significant bottom-line savings through data-driven procurement practices. Rajesh holds an MBA with concentrations in supply chain management and information systems from Michigan State University.
rajesh@levadata.com
Miguel has 30 years of experience in Logistics, Supply Chain and Manufacturing working for 3PL companies as well as automotive, consumer products and retail organizations. He started his career at Procter & Gamble where he worked 11 years in Manufacturing, Supply Chain and Logistics functions. He then spent the following 8 years in the 3PL industry primarily in regional roles including business development, consulting, and operations. Miguel also worked for Cadbury Adams (now Mondelez International) where he was an Executive in charge of the regional Logistics and Customer Service function.
Miguel currently works for GM as the Director and Executive in charge of the company’s Global Inbound (Materials) Logistics Function. His responsibilities span from the design of an optimal network, future vehicles launches and tactical planning / execution. He is also responsible for the transformational initiatives in this space. Miguel joined GM in March of 2014 as a Director of Global Intercontinental Logistics. In 2015, he assumed the role of Global Logistics Purchasing Director focused on sourcing all logistics modes for GM around the globe. Miguel has been in his current role since 2019.
Miguel is originally from Mexico and spent the last 25 years working outside his home country mainly in the United States, Canada, and South America. Miguel holds a BSc in Mechanical and Industrial Engineering and an MBA with concentration in Marketing. He also received executive certificates at the Kellogg and the Mendoza Schools of Business. Miguel holds an APICS – CSCP and Six-Sigma Green Belt certifications and is pursuing a Master’s degree in Supply Chain from Michigan State University.
miguel.tavera@gm.com
H. Howard Turner leverages over 20 years of professional experience to bring project proposals to life for clients, managing and executing supply chain project work as Director, Supply Chain Systems for the St. Onge Company. Howard’s professional history includes deep experience in supply chain optimization, distribution center layout/design along with leveraging supply chain execution systems including warehouse management systems (WMS) and transportation management systems (TMS) across a broad range of verticals including manufacturing, automotive, retail and grocery.
hturner@stonge.com
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 in 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 Bachelors 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.
john.santagate@koerber-supplychain.com
Jeff Huerta serves as Senior Vice President of Sales for Vecna Robotics. In his role, Jeff is focused on scaling Vecna Robotics’ sales operations to meet the explosive demand for its world-class robotics platforms and orchestration software. Huerta brings more than 15 years of automation leadership experience to Vecna Robotics, with a strong track record of building diverse and experienced sales teams. Before joining Vecna Robotics, Huerta was Vice President of North America Sales at Balyo, where he led the go-to-market strategy for the company’s self-guided trucks. Previously, Jeff held sales and marketing positions with SICK, where he managed and developed the OEM packaging sales team for the North American market. Jeff holds a bachelor’s in computer engineering technology from Purdue University.
john.santagate@koerber-supplychain.com
Donnacha O’Riordan is the Director of Connected Motion & Robotics at Analog Devices Inc. where he is responsible for charting ADI course to success in the Industrial Automation business. Previously, he was the Executive Director of the Microelectronics Circuits Centre Ireland (MCCI), a national solid state circuits research Centre, where over his 5 year tenure he led growth of over 3x in research funding, enabling over 90 researchers in RF, Analog & Mixed signal microelectronics circuits. Donnacha has over 25 year’s industry experience in IC design, Product and Executive management, in both Ireland and the U.S, and in both multinational and several startup companies, in the semiconductor and EDA industries. He is a regular presenter at industry conferences and forums and previously served on the boards of MCCI, MIDAS Ireland and CEIA. A Senior IEEE Member, he currently serves as Vice-Chair of the UK & Ireland Chapter of the IEEE Solid State Circuits Society. Donnacha holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) in Electronics Engineering from Munster Technical University, a Master of Science Degree in Technology Management from University College Cork.
Fergal Glynn is 6 River Systems' VP of Marketing. 6 River Systems is the new way companies fulfill. Prior to 6 River Systems Fergal held leadership positions at Docurated, Veracode and Fidelity Investments.
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Tamara Froese is the Vice President of Global Procurement at Zebra Technologies, with responsibility as the Chief Procurement Officer for all Zebra direct materials. She is a leader in cost management practices with extensive experiences cross-functionally in Procurement, Supply Chain, Manufacturing and Engineering during her 20-year career at General Motors. Tamara joined Zebra in March of 2020 and she believes in strong partnerships internally along with Zebra’s global supply base to further the growth of Zebra Technologies in the future. She is an advocate for the digitalization of Procurement and Supply Chain best practices, while driving transformation across the organization.
Tamara holds a B.A. in Supply Chain Management from Michigan State University and an MBA from Oakland University. To further her leadership journey, she also achieved her Six Sigma Black Belt certification and graduated from leadership develop programs with Harvard University and Michigan University.
Xinfeng Le is a Product Manager for Waymo Via Trucking at Waymo, an autonomous driving technology company with a mission to make it safe and easy for people and things to get where they're going.
In her role, Xinfeng refines Waymo’s product vision and strategy for trucking; develops the roadmap and determines product requirements, leverages user research, product insight and technical knowledge; works with hardware, software, and systems engineering departments to execute and turn new technologies into products; and works cross-functionally with Waymo teams to bring market products that solve customer needs and transform freight transportation.
Prior to Waymo, Xinfeng worked at Uber, where she was first a Product Manager for Global Growth and then a Carrier Experience Product Lead (Sr. PM) for Uber Freight. Previously, Xinfeng worked as a Product Manager at eBay.
Xinfeng holds an M.S. in Information Technology from Carnegie Mellon University and a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science and Technology from Southeast University in China.
Abe Eshkenazi currently serves as the chief executive officer for ASCM. Prior to joining ASCM, Eshkenazi was the managing director for the Operations Consulting Group of American Express Tax and Business Services.
Eshkenazi has provided business, operational, and compliance consulting services to professional service organizations, associations, and tax-exempt and government organizations. His leadership role included project management, business process redesign, and individual and organizational alignment, including design and implementation of outsource strategies. Eshkenazi has been a frequent speaker on outsourcing, nonprofit mergers, and strategic alliances.
In addition to his CPA, Eshkenazi holds a master of business administration in management from Northwestern University, Kellogg Graduate School of Management; a master of business administration in finance from DePaul University; and a bachelor’s degree from Northeastern Illinois University. Eshkenazi is also an APICS Certified Supply Chain Professional (CSCP), a Certified Healthcare Executive (CHE), and a Certified Association Executive (CAE).
Danny Shields is a Quality, Health, Safety, Sustainability, and Environmental Professional who partners with executives to limit their organizations enterprise risk. Danny spent almost two decades working in multiple industry verticals, including O&G, Mining, Manufacturing, and Construction, with some the world’s most successful organizations.
Danny has led teams to achieve year over year QHSSE performance records in high risk environments, saving companies millions in direct and indirect costs. Danny is a Certified Safety Professional (CSP) with over fifteen years of both field and management level experience. Danny holds a degree in Bioenvironmental Sciences from Texas A&M University.
With more than 20 years of experience propelling the world’s best-known brands to achieve supply chain success, Lisa applies an impressive level of software and technology acumen to the design and implementation of end-to- end client solutions. Today at Fortna, Lisa leads an industry leading team that develops and delivers differentiated approaches to power omnichannel and eCommerce operations, enabled by intelligent software and nextgen technology. Committed to driving business resilience, Lisa partners with global companies to amplify the performance of automation and software to maximize efficiency and reliability, while reducing labor dependence and increasing fulfillment capacity. Lisa has a BA from Airzona State University.
As the Sr. Director of Product Management at Seegrid, Dr. Hari Thiruvengada brings more than 20 years of experience in product management, user experience, and software development for the supply chain material handling and building controls industries. Prior to Seegrid, Hari led the design, development, and deployment of large scale solutions at Honeywell and Bosch that were used by DARPA, DoE, and US Navy. Passionate about creating meaningful experiences through intuitive products, Hari has dedicated his career to developing hardware and software systems that embody a simple yet desirable user experience. Hari received an M.S. in Computer Science from University at Buffalo and a Ph.D. and M.S. in Industrial Engineering from Penn State.p>
Harsh is a global business leader with years of experience in industrial manufacturing and supply chain networks, digital marketing, and technology. He is passionate in helping Tada transform the business and supply chain world. His work has taken him around the world, managing global supply chains, manufacturing and R&D for CGN Global, Avon, Schlumberger and Sumida America. Harsh is passionate about driving speed and reducing complexity in supply networks. Harsh has a BTech degree from IIT Bombay and graduate degree from University of Cincinnati. Harsh is on the Board of the American Red Cross of Illinois and other entrepreneurial companies.
Beth Flippo is the CTO of TELEGRID and an accomplished engineer with over 20 years of experience in the technology industry. She is an expert in secure, embedded software development for microelectronics and wireless mesh networking. She has designed and developed enduring hardware and software solutions with a focus on cybersecurity and mobility in the finance and defense industries.
Her leadership at TELEGRID expanded the wireless product line and further adoption of products into major U.S. Department of Defense agencies worldwide. She is the inventor of AeroGRID+ drone swarm technology and has overseen the creation of TELEGRID’s Drone Express drone package delivery division. Flippo is the lead designer of the autonomous in-flight decision-making technology in Drone Express. Her expertise and passion for unmanned systems and technology is the driving force behind the division.
She has a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science from the Thomas Watson School of Engineering and Applied Science at the State University of New York (SUNY) at Binghamton. She is also a licensed drone pilot with the FAA and has a radio operator license, W2QNB, from the FCC.
Upender Solanki is the managing director of the Americas for Movilitas, a global SAP consulting services and solutions company helping enterprises transform their business to meet the demands of today’s dynamic economy. In this role, Solanki is responsible for leading the region’s strategy, delivery, and growth, as well as providing thought leadership for the digital supply chain industry.
With over 15 years of leadership experience in supply chain and global regulations, Solanki has established the expertise and authority for best practices with successful large-scale digital transformation and Track & Trace programs globally. He is a trusted advisor, focusing on product identification, integrity, and tracking, to medium-sized to large multinational enterprises. Additionally, he is an active member of HDA, GS1, PDG and other industry forums. Solanki works on designing standards to help build solutions that ensure consumer and patient safety.
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.
Seasoned analytics, data strategy and applied AI leader with 19 years of industry experience, both as a client and as a service provider. CPG and Retail industry thought leader with proven success stories of helping multiple fortune 500 majors such as The Coca Cola Company, Proctor and Gamble, Nestle, and Mars in their digital transformation
Steve heads up the Supply Chain & Logistics consulting team at ARC. Steve has authored many market research and strategy reports and has managed consulting projects for manufacturers, retailers, software providers, and venture capital firms.
Steve's technology focus areas include transportation management, managed transportation services, warehouse management, and supply chain planning.
At ARC, Steve has been covering supply chain technologies since 1996. He is one of the best known industry analysts covering supply chain management and a frequent speaker at industry events. He has been widely quoted in trade publications covering logistics, material handling, and supply chain management and has had his articles published in Supply Chain Management Review. In recognition of his contribution to the supply chain and logistics field, Steve was selected as a 'Pro to Know' by Supply & Demand Chain Executive Magazine.
Steve has a column in Forbes.com covering sustainability and transportation and writes the Monday column in Logistics Viewpoints. Steve's research includes ROI analysis of a variety of supply chain applications and 3PL services, benchmarking, and best practice reports. He has aided users in supplier and consultant selections, and suppliers with acquisitions and product roadmaps.
Prior to joining ARC, he was a Professor at Stonehill College and Pennsylvania State University.
Ben Lynch is Director of Business Data Analytics at DHL Supply Chain. In his role, he is responsible for all areas of data analytics in the eCommerce sector, including business intelligence and predictive analytics. Ben is one of the inaugural members of the DHL Supply Chain Data Analytics community that now includes 175 associates from across North America and is also a member of The Ohio State Fisher College of Business Analytics Advisory Council.
Postgraduate in Generation Operations with Graduation in Mechanical Engineering working at India with Diverse experience in Factory Operations, Supply Management and Product Engineering In Continuous Improvement and New product programs, Passionate about learning through experience
Mechanical Engineer working at India with 15years of Supply Management professional experience both on factory shopfloor and virtual Supply Management with maximum contribution in New Product Development and Introduction.APICS and CPSCM Certified, Passionate about Project Management and Working Globally. Conducting Knowledge Sharing sessions, Developing others now became hobby over past few years
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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.
Rebel has helped leading edge technology ventures raise over $500 million in startup funding and supported exits to companies like Apple, IBM, EMC, SGI and BEA. Rebel is a proven marketing guru who’s consulting expertise for go-to-market strategies has led to dramatic results for over 75 startups and 200 high-tech and complex B2B technology companies.
Rebel is also a passionate speaker and workshop leader, using the power of neuroscience to help executive teams align communication to drive business performance. Rebel is the founder of Unstoppable U, a non-profit organization working with kids to heal them from abuse and trauma. Rebel earned a Bachelor of Business degree from the University of Evansville.
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 Masters of Art in International Relations & Economics and a Bachelor in Political Science & Economics.
Dean Priebe leads the Robotics Center of Excellence at Dematic where his team is Elevating Customer confidence in Robotics with holistic robotic solutions. Dean has over 20 years operational and engineering experience in the automation and robotics fields. Dean is a USN veteran who started his career as a Nuclear Reactor Operator & Reactor Technician. He’s had roles of increasing responsibility in the pharma manufacturing, medical device manufacturing, and food/ consumer goods supply chains.
Dean is passionate about Robotics and automation and approaches improvements in this space with his vast customer perspective. As a Lean Sixsigma Certified blackbelt, his customer focused & process oriented approach enables his team to overcome the challenges in our complex and variable supply chain. Dean holds two Bachelor of Science Degrees; Nuclear Engineering Tech & Workforce Education & Development; and has an MBA from UCONN.
