| Quinn Adkins Director of Menu Development Culver Franchising System, Inc. Quinn Adkins, Director of Menu Development for Culver Franchising System, Inc., leads all aspects of menu management and new product development for the 600+ unit brand famous for their signature ButterBurgers and fresh frozen custard, which pretty much makes him the luckiest guy in the world. A native Oklahoman, he has been cooking professionally in fine and casual dining for more than 24 years. Quinn currently lives in Madison, Wisconsin, his seventh (and favorite!) state of residence. | |
| Dave Baer President Firenza Pizza Dave Baer is the President and Cofounder of Firenza Pizza and has over 25 years of pizza experience. Starting as a delivery driver for Domino’s Pizza and working his way up through management after College. He received numerous awards during that time including Rookie Manager and Supervisor of the year. While at Domino’s he worked with both Corporate and Franchise operations focusing on building restaurants and training teams before becoming an owner. Dave has had the privilege of working with and helping to develop some terrific brands like Domino’s, Jersey Mike’s and now Firenza Pizza. | |
| Louis Basile Founder & President Wildflower Baking Company Louis J. Basile Jr. has worked in the restaurant industry since his childhood growing up in Union, NJ. His father owned a local luncheonette in East Orange, NJ where he learned the restaurant business. In the beginning of his career, Mr. Basile served as a Construction Project Manager, renovating existing steak houses into Cisco Café Mexican Restaurants. In 1981 Mr. Basile joined a three store chain called Au Bon Pain (Boston, MA), an upscale quick service restaurant and bakery. Louis was a key Senior Manager who helped Au Bon Pain grow to over 250 Stores during his tenure. Mr. Basile held numerous Senior Management positions including Vice President of Operations, Construction, Research & Development and Domestic & International Franchising. Mr. Basile and his family moved to Arizona in 1994. Before following his dream to create his own fast casual restaurant and bakery concept, Mr. Basile held the position of President/COO of the Coffee Plantation (Tempe, AZ). Mr. Basile founded The Wildflower Bread Company in Scottsdale, AZ in 1995. The first Wildflower opened in November, 1996. Today, he oversees multiple restaurant locations and a growing, fresh dough Central Production Facility as well as a wholesale bread division operating throughout Greater Phoenix and Northern Arizona. Wildflower Bread Company is part of the fastest growing segment in hospitality called Fast Casual. Wildflower prides itself on delivering the most memorable restaurant bakery experience. Mr. Basile started and was Chairman of the Fast Casual Industry Council an affiliate of the National Restaurant Association. Louis is a National Restaurant Association Board Member. He is a past Chairman of the Arizona Restaurant Association and Arizona Restaurant Association Educational Foundation. Louis serves as a Board Director for Child Crisis Arizona. Mr. Basile served on the Advisory Board for People Report/Black Box Intelligence and PeopleMatter. Louis is a founding member of Changers of Commerce, a movement of leaders who believe there is a better way of practicing Capitalism. Louis is married to Tracy Basile and they have three children Zachary, Jessie and Max. | |
| Danny Bendas Managing Parnter Synergy Restaurant Consultants Danny Bendas is a Managing Partner of Synergy Restaurant Consultants. With over 30 years of practical food service experience, he has worked for numerous restaurant operations ranging from quick service to fine dining establishments. Following his culinary education, Danny became opening chef at Houlihan’s Old Place in Kansas City, MO; followed by rapid promotion to the position of the company’s first regional/corporate chef. Danny’s experience also includes numerous positions with a variety of restaurant operations; he was Chef at the acclaimed American Restaurant in Kansas City; Director Of Operations for American Food Service Enterprises (food service division of Hallmark Cards) in Kansas City, Missouri, and Vice President, Food & Beverage for Nanco Enterprises Santa Barbara, CA, operator of a nationwide chain of casual theme and steak house restaurants. Since 1989, Danny has been a Managing Partner at Synergy where he has partnered with more than 225 clients with services ranging from new concept development, menu innovation, operations assessments, strategic planning, kitchen optimization and design, management development, and the development of restaurant operating systems. Danny was awarded a Bachelor’s degree from Penn State University, an AAS degree from Bucks County Community College, and an AOS from the Culinary Institute Of America, where he was the recipient of the Waldorf Astoria Scholastic Achievement Award. | |
| Tony Benedict Executive Corporate Chef Sargento Foods Inc. Tony Benedict possesses over 30 years total experience including restaurant and hotels, 9 years in Culinary Education and, most recently, 13 years in Culinary R&D and Innovation. Tony is currently Executive Corporate Chef at Sargento Foods Inc. in Plymouth, WI. Sargento Foods Inc. is a family-owned company with two business divisions: Consumer Products and Food Service and Ingredients. The company employs more than 1,800 people at four Wisconsin facilities. Tony works within the Food Service and Ingredients channel, supporting most major chains with culinary menu ideation and new product development in the areas of natural cheese, batter breaded cheese based appetizers, and cheese and dairy based sauces. Tony prides himself in developing and maintaining long term, trusted chef and customer relationships. Prior experience includes Corporate Chef at Carla's Pasta in South Windsor, CT and Executive Sous Chef at New England Culinary Institute, Montpelier VT. Tony is an honors graduate of the Culinary Institute of America and is a member of the RCA, IFT and ACF. He lives with his wife, Shelley, and their two children in Plymouth, WI. | |
| Matt Bennett Strategic Consultant, Food & Consumables PROS Matt Bennett is a Strategic Consultant for PROS, Inc. focused on pricing optimization for food and consumables manufacturers. Matt specializes in assisting organizations identify and drive effective business transformation with an emphasis on improving margin achievement through better price management and sales effectiveness. Matt has extensive experience in food ingredients and commodity pricing, architecting and implementing pricing and quoting solutions for global manufacturers of vegetable oil, salt, animal nutrition, beef, and flour products. Matt has successfully implemented pricing KPIs, pricing waterfall models, operational analytics, revenue opportunity reports, and pricing guidance adoption reporting to improve pricing performance and sales effectiveness. Matt graduated from the College of William & Mary in Virginia with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance. He began his career at First Command Financial Services, Inc. as an analyst on an asset management team where he was responsible for portfolio analysis and asset allocation. He went on to obtain a Master in Business Administration at Rice University where he began his focus on food and beverage manufacturing and distribution. He completed a marketing analytics internship with Dr Pepper Snapple Group and a shared services program at Sysco Corporation during graduate school prior to joining PROS in 2013. | |
| Ira Blumenthal Founder & President CO-OPPORTUNITIES, INC. Ira Blumenthal is the founder and president of CO-OPPORTUNITIES, Inc., an Atlanta-based consulting company which has counseled world-class clients such as Coca-Cola, Nestle, McDonald’s and Marriott, along with numerous others, in areas related to branding, strategic alliances, change management and business development. Before founding CO-OPPORTUNITIES, Inc., Ira held various foodservice executive management positions. He was an instructor at The Foodservice Institute at the University of Notre Dame, as well as a visiting professor at the Food Industry Institute at Michigan State University. Ira was also the inaugural Executive-In-Residence at Georgia State University’s School of Hospitality. Ira serves on a number of foodservice industry boards and is the managing director of The Restaurant Industry Executive Council, a group comprised of the CEOs from the top 35 grossing restaurant chains in the US. He was the co-founder of the National Restaurant Association Education Foundation’s Resource Center for Workforce Solutions, The Foodservice Branding Institute and the National Association of Convenience Stores Center for Achieving Foodservice Excellence. He is also a best-selling author (Managing Brand You). | |
| Geoffrey Deines Retail Industry Managing Director Accenture Geoff Deines has over 20 years of client experiences across all facets of retailing. He currently leads Accenture’s Restaurant/QSR client portfolio where he is helping his clients envision, engage and deliver digital products and customer experiences. His clients have included Fortune 500 global brands and internet startups. Geoff has a Bachelor of Science in business administration with a major in human resources management and a minor in sport studies from Central Michigan University. Geoff and wife, Nicole, have two active boys to chase around in their spare time and live in Grand Rapids, MI. | |
| John Dillon Senior Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer Denny's John Dillon, Denny’s Inc. Senior Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer, is responsible for the overall brand and marketing direction of Denny’s Corporation, including the development and execution of strategies at the national, international and local market level. This includes brand positioning, advertising, broadcast and digital/social media, strategic partnerships, marketing technology, multicultural marketing, consumer insights, guest experience, retail development, social responsibility and overall product/menu development. Positioned as America's Diner, there are currently over 1,700 Denny's restaurants domestically and internationally. The last several years have been a period of significant brand revitalization for the Denny’s brand. In 2015, Denny’s has achieved its highest annual system-wide same-store sales growth in over a decade. Prior to joining Denny’s, John held marketing leadership positions within various organizations, including the National Basketball Association and 10 years in marketing leadership positions within Yum! Brands. | |
| Jason Dorsey Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer The Center for Generational Kinetics Jason Dorsey is the leading Millennials and Gen Z researcher and speaker. He has been featured on 60 Minutes, 20/20, The Today Show, and over 100 more TV interviews. His passion is solving tough generational challenges for organizations and leaders. Jason has received over 1,000 standing ovations from audiences as large as 16,000. He brings a new approach to generations based on his breakthrough research. He’s funny, too. Just ask his mom. Jason wrote this first bestselling book at age 18. His newest bestseller is Y-Size Your Business which solves the biggest challenges within a multi-generational workforce. Jason is Chief Strategy Officer at The Center for Generational Kinetics. He leads research for companies and organizations around the world. The diversity of his clients allows him to uncover trends early so you stay ahead of the curve. Jason won the Austin Under 40 Entrepreneur of the Year Award at age 25—one of the youngest winners ever. He now serves as a board member for venture-backed and emerging technology companies. | |
| Joe Essa President Wolfgang Puck Worldwide, Inc. Joe Essa joined the Wolfgang Puck group in 1999 and as Managing Partner of Operations assisted with finance and operations for the 15 fine dining restaurants coast to coast. In 2004, Essa was appointed Executive Vice President of Wolfgang Puck Worldwide, Inc. responsible for the day-to-day business operations and brand development. Essa was appointed President of Wolfgang Puck Worldwide in August of 2008 and has worked to refine and streamline the company's business lines and initiate strategic partnerships to help further the Wolfgang Puck brand of casual restaurants and consumer products including packaged foods, media, cookware and appliances. | |
| LeAnne Garoutte Partner Kinetic12 LeAnne is a partner in the consulting firm of Kinetic12, a foodservice management consulting firm operating at the center of the food industry. Kinetic12 is a resource for all things food – offering an in-depth range of services for manufacturers, operators and distributors. LeAnne brings over 25 years of marketing and communications expertise within the foodservice industry. Prior to launching Kinetic12 with her three partners, LeAnne managed and directed the food division of Noble Communications, a leading foodservice advertising and marketing agency. LeAnne has created go-to-market strategies, marketing and sales plans, brand architecture models, brand positioning, innovation pipelines and advertising and promotional campaigns for many of the top 100 food companies, including Tyson Foods, the J.M. Smucker Company, Heinz, Kraft, M&M Mars, Ventura Foods, PepsiCo Foodservice and many more. Prior to her leadership at Noble, LeAnne was instrumental in creating a food division of Earle Palmer Brown, a consumer advertising and marketing agency. LeAnne holds a bachelor’s degree in Journalism and Advertising from the University of Missouri, School of Journalism. | |
| Matthew Haller Senior Vice President, Communications and Public Affairs International Franchise Association Matthew Haller is Senior Vice President, Communications and Public Affairs for the International Franchise Association. He develops the strategic direction for IFA communications to ensure information about franchising, including policy initiatives, the economic impact of franchising, emerging trends and best management practices, is disseminated to IFA members and external audiences such as key policy makers, reporters and other opinion leaders in the most compelling and effective manner. Prior to joining IFA in October 2010, Matthew was director of industry relations at the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association, where he developed PCMA’s member and affiliate initiatives surrounding key industry issues. Previously, he served as manager of political affairs at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, where he managed the Chamber’s $20 million budget for political and issue advocacy campaigns during the 2004 and 2006 election cycles. Matthew has also held positions as legislative assistant for UPS Corporate Public Affairs and as a director of public affairs at Levick Strategic Communications, LLC. Matthew received a bachelors degree in Political Science from North Carolina State University in Raleigh, NC. He resides in Washington, D.C. | |
| Todd Kronebusch Vice President Of Guest Experience & Innovation Buffalo Wild Wings Todd Kronebusch is the Vice President of Guest Experience and Innovation for Buffalo Wild Wings, a National casual dining restaurant and sports bar headquartered in Minneapolis, MN with 1121 restaurants across the US and Canada. Todd has worked for Buffalo Wild Wings for 13 years and in his current role focuses on strategy and innovation of Food, Beverage, Day-parts & Digital experience to deliver the Ultimate Social Experience for Sports Fans. In 2011, Todd led the initiative for the new Guest Experience Business Model, a model in which guests needs and wants are truly understood and delivered upon. As a key leader in the North American Business Team, he also supplies strategic leadership supporting the evolution of the BWW Brand. He has been involved in the Operation side of the business for most of his career, including positions as a Regional Manager, Director of Operations, Divisional Vice President of Operations and Vice President of Field Guest experience. Todd is the only two time Regional Manager of the year in Buffalo Wild Wings history and in 2011, Todd received the prestigious Founders Award from CEO Sally Smith. Todd is a consummate brand ambassador and his passion and dedication to the brand is contagious. Todd is very involved in philanthropic work with many charities, most notably the Tuberous Sclerosis Alliance, where he received their highest honor of the "Volunteer of the Year" award. | |
| Candace LaRocca Director of Brand Experience Crushed Red Candace LaRocca is the Director of Brand Experience for the emerging chopped salad concept, Crushed Red. Crushed Red is based out of Saint Louis, MO and has expanded into Colorado, Kansas, Illinois, and Oklahoma. Candace has aided in paving the way for this emerging brand to become a national player. With 6 units operational units, 3 more opening in March, and 40 in development, the digital strategy created by Crushed Red's team has been pertinent to the company's successes. Candace's roles and responsibilities include developing digital brand strategies that create value for the guest. She manages social media platforms and guest engagement programs to ensure a consistent brand voice and style. She maintains a working knowledge of guest profiles and their needs to develop his/her lifetime value. As the Director of Brand Experience, Candace makes sure the experience of being a Crushed Red Guest is positive and engaging. | |
| Jack Li Builder Datassential Jack Li spearheads Datassential's custom insights and new products initiatives. Jack has led hundreds of research studies for foodservice manufacturers and distributors across a broad array of topics. Jack holds an MBA from the Anderson School at UCLA and is a 2003 recipient of the IFMA Sparkplug award. | |
| Stevie Liang Vice President of Digital Engineering & Services Focus Brands As VP of Digital Engineering & Services at FOCUS Brands, Stevie Liang helps 6 global restaurant and snack brands in driving their top-line sales and win market shares by providing robust digital engineering solutions and services. With his comprehensive technical and business perspectives, Stevie has been recognized for his strategic vision as well as his outstanding execution track record. Over the last 25 years, Stevie served in all aspects of engineering & IT such as enterprise business systems and infrastructure & security for highly recognized organizations such as AT&T, Allstate Insurance, Chicken of the Sea, Encyclopedia Britannica, Georgia tech, Jack in the Box, Qdoba Mexican Grill, and US West. During the first half of his career, he primarily served digital agencies in sectors such as technology, auto insurance, and health care. In the second half of his career, he is serving exclusively in the (global franchise multi-brand) food service retail industry. Stevie is a graduate of Georgia Institute of Technology in Computer Science, and he holds frequent speaking engagements in the industry. | |
| Karlin Linhardt Digital Strategy & Solutions - QSR/Restaurants Accenture Karlin Linhardt combines his 25 years of client-side senior management experience with a deep understanding of current disruptive industry and digital trends, to help retail and restaurant clients chart, scale & manage large scope brand transformation and growth strategies to engage their 21st Century consumer growth targets. Karlin serves as a category leader for retail/digital strategic planning & execution for QSR/ restaurant brands. He leads teams dedicated to finding the right solutions to match the unique business model for each client, optimizing digital platform solutions for cross-functional disciplines: operations; consumer engagement; performance analytics & attribution; and full-scope marketing execution. Karlin graduated from the University of Missouri with a Bachelor of Journalism degree. He has also completed Advanced Business Finance Programs at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. | |
| Randy Lopez Brand & Marketing Synergy Restaurant Consultants With over 20 years in marketing and advertising, Randy is known as a creative thinker and brand visionary. He has held marketing executive leadership roles in brands such as TGI Friday’s, Arnold Palmer Golf Management, Buca di Beppo, and Del Taco. On the agency side, he has developed brand strategies and led the account teams for such clients as Toshiba Medical, Tommy Bahama, Acapulco Restaurants and Wolfgang Puck. More than a traditional marketing practitioner, his operations background allows him to understand the specific challenges individual restaurants face as well as the strategic resources needed to grow the global “brand”. Randy is also the founder of JaKE, a restaurant-industry marketing and PR agency that creates innovative Local Store Marketing strategies and tactics to drive traffic and build brand affinity. He is currently a board member for the California Restaurant Association/OC Chapter, Ophelia’s Jump Productions and the Colon Cancer Coalition. | |
| Dominic Losacco Vice President of Marketing Moe’s Southwest Grill Dominic Losacco – Graduate of the University of Oklahoma, family man, golfer and self-proclaimed foodie, Dominic brings a wealth of marketing experience to the Moe’s team after serving in marketing leadership roles with Sonny’s BBQ, Barkley & Partners, and more than 10 years with Sonic Industries, Inc. It’s not unusual to see him jamming out to Foo Fighters as he develops and executes dynamic marketing campaigns and positions the brand for worldwide growth. He’ll cook you up a mean bowl of his famous spaghetti and meatballs, but don’t ask him to cook you anything else. Dominic resides in Kennasaw Georgia with his wife Wendy, daughter Julianne and son Daniel (Kate the Dog & Rooney the Cat). His daughter Lainey is a Freshman at the University of Florida and daughter Hillary resides in Edmond Ok (with Granddaughter Elle) | |
| Chris Malone Managing Partner Fidelum Partners Chris Malone is Founder and Managing Partner of Fidelum Partners. He leads the firm’s Customer Insights and Strategy practice that specializes in helping clients generate sustained customer and employee loyalty. Chris has over 25 years of sales, marketing, consulting and organizational leadership experience, and a track record of driving growth and profitability. He held senior marketing positions at leading organizations such as Choice Hotels, ARAMARK, Coca-Cola, the National Basketball Association, and Procter & Gamble and has consulted to a broad range of Fortune 500 companies. As Chief Marketing Officer of Choice Hotels, one of the largest hotel companies in the world, with over 6,000 hotels open worldwide, Chris led the company’s 800 person global consumer marketing, worldwide travel industry sales, e-commerce and reservations organization. Previously he served as Senior Vice President, Marketing for ARAMARK Corporation, a multinational food, facility and uniform services enterprise with over $12 billion in revenue annually. Chris is also co-author of the award-winning book, The HUMAN Brand: How We Relate to People, Products & Companies, which was published by the Jossey-Bass division of Wiley Publishing in October 2013. He has delivered over 50 keynote speeches on the insights from his book around the world. He is also a frequent guest and contributor to CNBC, FOX Business, Bloomberg TV, Wall Street Journal Live, Forbes and Businessweek. | |
| Ingrid Martinez Vice President of Marketing & IT Pollo Campero Ingrid has over 10 years of experience in marketing, promotions and public relations in Hispanic and general markets in the restaurant and agency business. She has a successful record in building strong client relationships, brand awareness and media exposure. | |
| Colleen McClellan Director Datassential Colleen McClellan has over 17-years experience in marketing, insights, and innovation for both retail and foodservice markets. Throughout her career, she has worked to translate trends and insights into profitable actions across all food and beverage categories. Currently, Colleen is a Director with Datassential, a certified Sommelier, holds a MBA in International Business, MS in Managing Information Systems, and a BS in Neurobiology and Physiology. | |
| Bob McDevitt CFE Senior Vice President Domestic/International Franchise Development & Quality Assurance Golden Corral Bob McDevitt has 40 years of marketing and operations management experience with top restaurant brands including Pizza Hut, Tony Roma's, Arby's and Golden Corral. Bob has been Senior Vice President at Golden Corral for 22 years. Golden Corral is a $1.8 billion, 500 store, buffet and grill, family restaurant chain. He joined Golden Corral in 1994 as Senior Vice President of Marketing, responsible for marketing, food and beverage, purchasing and distribution. In 2004, Bob was promoted to Senior Vice President and General Manager of Golden Corral Franchising Corporation responsible for Franchise Operations, Franchise Sales, and Quality Assurance. In 2014, Bob retired from active operations management and is currently Senior Vice President of domestic and international franchise development and quality assurance. Bob is currently on the Board of Directors of the International Franchise Association and is a Certified Franchise Executive (CFE). | |
| Alfredo Ortiz President & CEO Job Creators Network Alfredo Ortiz is the President and CEO of Job Creators Network, where he has led the defense of small businesses from the onslaught of bad government policies. Alfredo has testified before legislative committees about the impact of bad government policy on job creation, and speaks frequently to business organizations across the nation about the need for job creators to seize responsibility for defending free enterprise. He has been widely published in major media outlets, including CNBC, The Hill, and The Orange County Register, and is a frequent guest on radio talk shows, including the Hugh Hewitt, Mike Gallagher, and Dennis Prager Show. He is also a board member for the Georgia Chamber of Commerce and an advisory board member for Littler's Workplace Policy Institute. Prior to joining JCN, Alfredo was Vice President of CSM Bakery Products' Food Service Division. Alfredo was also a consultant at Boston Consulting Group in their Washington office, and has worked in marketing new product development and corporate strategy for Georgia Pacific, Kraft and others. Alfredo received his MBA at the University of Michigan and graduated from Pomona College with a bachelor's degree in Economics. | |
| Nilesh Patel Senior Director, International Supply Chain and Finance Taco Bell International Nilesh Patel is the Sr. Director, International Supply Chain and Finance for Taco Bell, the world's largest Mexican-Inspired Fast Food company. With over 12 years of experience in building successful business models around the globe, Nilesh is designing Taco Bell's supply chain to enable aggressive international expansion. With an agile supply chain, Taco Bell aims to have a 1,000+ international restaurants in 40 countries by 2022. Nilesh is an innovative business leader with deep experience solving complex strategic problems. Previously a management consultant, his experiences span multiple industries. His specialties are in new market entry, supply chain optimization, margin improvement, business development, and corporate finance. Nilesh earned an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University with a focus in Strategy and Finance | |
| Emily Patterson Director of Marketing Culver Franchising System, Inc. Emily Patterson is the Director of Marketing for Culver Franchising System, Inc. (CFSI), the franchisor for over 600 Culver’s restaurants in 24 states with over 20,000 team members. In this capacity, she oversees brand strategy, planning and execution of all marketing functions including traditional media, social, digital, and advertising. Ms. Patterson joined CFSI as an intern in 2006 and continued her career full-time after graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a dual degree in Marketing and Management. In 2015, she was promoted to Director of Marketing. Ms. Patterson and her husband Matt reside in Sauk City, WI with their two sons. She is active in the Sauk Prairie community, previously serving on the Friends of the Great Sauk Trail Steering Committee and currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Sauk Prairie Chamber of Commerce. | |
| Joe Pawlak Managing Principal Technomic Joe Pawlak, Managing Principal, serves as the head of Technomic’s Advisory Group and is responsible for conducting consulting and research engagements for food & beverage manufacturers, trade associations, private equity firms as well as restaurant chains. His experience covers virtually every food, beverage and supply category and channel. His specific responsibilities include project management, study design and planning, analysis of research findings and client business planning immersion. Since joining the firm in 1991, Joe has conducted a wide variety of industry studies involving market planning, customer satisfaction benchmarking, brand equity investigation, new product development, food trends, opportunity analyses, M&A due diligence, concept testing and distribution system evaluations. He has special expertise in the areas of industry market trend analysis, market metric and forecasting modeling and implications development. Joe has 30 years of extensive food industry experience in both consulting and packaged goods manufacturing. Prior to joining Technomic, Joe held food technology management positions with the Campbell Soup Company. | |
| Steven Rodgers Vice President, Business Development - Analytics/Supply Chain/Promotions HAVI Steven is the VP, Business Development – Analytics/Supply Chain/Promotions for HAVI Global Solutions, a leading provider of analytics and supply chain consulting solutions supporting the Food Service, Consumer Packaged Goods, and Retail Industries. With over 25 years of global business development experience and a successful history of leading global operations & supply chain, technology integration and Lean/Six Sigma transformation, Steven has delivered multiple business model innovations resulting in significant growth. Having worked and lived across multiple geographies for numerous global brands including Philips, Fortune Brands, and Ernst & Young, Steven also brings extensive collaboration and cross-functional expertise from his background in Asia, The Americas, and Europe. Steven earned an MBA in Corporate Finance from Fairleigh Dickinson University, holds certifications in Lean/Six-Sigma and SAP, and is an active member of the Strategic Planning Society (UK). | |
| Prahar Shah Head of Business Development DoorDash Prahar Shah is Head of Business Development at DoorDash. Shah leads DoorDash's strategic partnerships with companies such as YUM! Brands, Buffalo Wild Wings, Whole Foods Market, and other national brands. Previously, Shah was Founder and CEO of Mobee - the leader in mobile crowdsourcing and provider of retail intelligence for CPG, Retail, and QSR companies. He also served as an Entrepreneur In Residence at General Catalyst Venture Partners, as a Venture Capitalist at Bessemer Venture Partners, and at Google's New Business Development group. Shah began his career as a management consultant focused on the telecom, media, and technology space. Shah has consulted for clients in more than 10 countries and managed client engagements across the US, Canada, Russia, UAE (Dubai), Africa (Ghana, Tanzania, South Africa), and Latin America (Bolivia). He has counseled senior management on developing innovative technologies throughout his career, including launching a WiMAX operator in Russia, a Mobile Payments solution in Bolivia, and a Mobile Carrier in Ghana. Shah graduated with a MBA from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT Sloan) and completed his HBA at the Richard Ivey School of Business from the University of Western Ontario, Canada. He is a fiercely competitive Monopoly player, a brunch connoisseur, and advisor to numerous early stage startups in Boston, San Francisco, and Toronto. | |
| Dawn Sweeney President and CEO National Restaurant Association In her role as president and chief executive officer of the National Restaurant Association, Dawn Sweeney has been instrumental in focusing the mission of the Association through a unique, multi-year strategic plan, highlighting key areas of opportunity within the restaurant industry. Since taking the helm at the end of 2007, Sweeney has led the Association in addressing a wide-range of issues, offering services and products that promote the industry, and helping individual operators and large multi-unit companies succeed. She has strengthened the organization’s core operations, including consolidating its Foundation around a mission to develop a strong workforce and build the next generation of industry leaders. Sweeney’s 25+ years of marketing, advocacy and policy experience include serving as president and CEO of AARP Services, the wholly owned taxable subsidiary of AARP, and holding leadership positions at the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, a membership organization of consumer-owned electric utilities, and the International Dairy Foods Association, the trade association for the nation's dairy foods industry, where she played a key role in the launch of the “milk moustache” advertising campaign. Sweeney has been named one of the perennial top association CEOs in the country for each of the past several years. She serves on the boards the U.S. Travel Association and the Women’s Foodservice Forum. She is also a charter member of Child Obesity 180, a unique initiative of private, public, non-profit and academic leaders who have committed to taking a leadership role in preventing childhood obesity through evidence-based initiatives. | |
| Carman Wenkoff Chief Information Officer and Chief Digital Officer SUBWAY As Chief Information Officer and Chief Digital Officer for Franchise World Headquarters LLC (“SUBWAY®”), Carman has overall responsibility for Technology, IT Operations and all customer-facing digital solutions across all corporate offices and more than 45,000 SUBWAY restaurants located in 112 countries. Carman is also a SUBWAY® franchisee, which is a commitment he made to get the hands-on experience of what franchisees do on a day-to-day basis. Prior to his current role, Carman introduced many technology solutions to the SUBWAY® restaurant chain and was responsible for payment solutions at SUBWAY®, including the creation of the SUBWAY® Gift and Loyalty Card program and forming the Retail Gift Card Association which he led for several years. Carman is passionate about introducing mobile solutions to SUBWAY® which is a quest he began as a co-founder of a technology start up in 1999, pioneering some of the first mobile ordering and payment solutions in the industry. He is also an attorney and is licensed to practice law in both British Columbia and Washington State. | |
