Patti Carpenter, Pantone Patti Carpenter principal of carpenter + company and trend team member of the Pantone Color Institute Consulting team, is an award winning Creative Director in globally sourced home accents, personal accessories and gifts with extensive experience in product design and development, merchandising, and color + trend forecasting. As a Micro-Enterprise specialist with U.S. presidential recognition for domestic and international expertise in artisan development, small producer and entrepreneur training, and economic development, Patti has been successful in international sourcing and creating innovative products for her eponymous home textiles brand, Carpenter + Company, which is sold internationally. Additionally, Carpenter has designed, sourced and created strong private label collections that add revenue and enhance the image of brands. Her client roster includes Bloomingdales, Sferra, Neiman Marcus, Crate & Barrel, The Phillips Collection, ABC Carpet and Home, Donna Karan Urban Zen and Ralph Lauren. She has traveled and worked in fifty-four countries and has spoken and written on Color + Trend and Design around the globe. In addition to her other roles involving her international expertise in Color + Trend forecasting, Patti is The Global Design Trend Specialist for the AmericasMart in Atlanta and The Global Trend Ambassador for Maison & Object in America and Paris.
		Janis Gaudelli, Director of Social Media and Trend Insights, Takasago Janis lives and breathes consumer culture! She is a highly insightful and experienced culture vulture who focuses her efforts in consumer research, trends & futures and social media engagement. Janis has over fifteen years’ experience deep-diving into the consumer marketplace. With deep dedication and passion for understanding the today’s active consumer, Janis thrives and excels in interpreting their behaviors, backgrounds, drivers, and preferences. Through her exploratory research and daily dialogue with these markets, she develops unique and successful social media and trend programs for Takasago’s clients. After being the “go-to-girl” for companies like Telemundo, Lucky Magazine, Teen People, Warner Brothers, and Reebok, Janis took her consumer insight abilities and started a company by the same name (GO-TO-GIRL Inc.). She came to Takasago from The Futures Company, a world renowned trend agency, where she spent time forecasting the future as VP of Qualitative Research & Trend Foresight. She joined Takasago three years ago and says “it feels like home again”. Besides studying consumer culture, Janis's greatest passion is being a mom to her four year old son, Kellan. She has developed an expertise in all things “Paw Patrol” and most definitely can tell you how to get to Sesame Street.
		Mel Kleiman, Humetrics Founder Mel Kleiman’s expertise is based on his experience as the former owner of three different businesses (including the largest group of Hertz Rent-A-Car franchise locations in the U.S.) as well as his subsequent 30-plus years of research, consulting, systems design, and training work to help employers implement effective and efficient employee recruiting, selection, and retention systems. When Mel founded Humetrics in 1976, his vision was to provide common sense, easy to use, affordable versions of the resources and tools on the market for screening professional job applicants. His, heretofore underserved, market comprised the business owners and hiring managers responsible for hiring a frontline, hourly workforce. Mel’s passion for all things to do with hiring led to an on-going, complementary vocation as a Certified Speaking Professional on these subjects and he has made presentations to hundreds of clients worldwide. Mel’s unique, laser focus and “uncommon common sense” approach to the hiring issues all hourly workforce employers face has been called upon repeatedly by clients of every size and industry. Mel also serves as a board member for the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation and for the Workforce Institute and has authored five books including the bestselling Hire Tough, Manage Easy.
		Don Schmincke, Keynote Speaker Using scientific, evidence-based methods for driving superior strategic growth and organizational performance, Don has emerged as the remarkable thought-leader for applying genetics, evolution and anthropology for measurable change within a wide range of industries. Don's longstanding clients seem to be CEOs cynical about management consultants, fleeting management theories, and the high failure rate of strategic planning and organizational change programs. As a best-selling author, Don can be found sharing the institute's unique methods at keynote speeches or implementing them with clients. What else would you expect from an MIT and Johns Hopkins researcher who was nearly arrested as a capitalist spy in the Soviet Bloc, got shot off an aircraft carrier, survived in the Kurdish capital as the Ayatollah held hostages in Tehran, and developed missile inertial guidance systems while his frat brothers took Vegas (later portrayed in the movie “21”)? A refreshing alternative to the trendy theories and "programs-of-the-month" that frustrate senior executives. The industry agrees: Acclaimed as a Top 10 speaker for the world’s largest CEO organization. Author of best-selling books "The Code of the Executive" and “High Altitude Leadership” (with NBC Emmy-nominated climber Chris Warner).  Published in over 10 languages,  Featured by CNN, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, MSNBC.com and more than 60 industry publications annually. Today, Don flies 200K miles annually working with clients across every industry including healthcare, manufacturing, non-profits, distribution, technology, communications, finance, and insurance.