2015 Presidents Conference - November 1-4
 
Louis J. Basile Jr.
Founder & President
Wildflower Bread Company

Louis is a thirty-two year foodservice executive who grew up in a family owned restaurant in New Jersey.  He founded The Wildflower Bread Company in Scottsdale, Arizona in 1995. Wildflower operates multiple restaurants and a fresh dough commissary.  Louis started and was Chairman of the Fast Casual Industry Council, an affiliate of the National Restaurant Association. He is a National Restaurant Association Board Member and the Vice Chair of the Nominating Committee. Louis is also a founding member of Changers of Commerce a movement of leaders who believe there is a better way of practicing Capitalism.  

 
Paul Brown
Chief Executive Officer
Arby’s Restaurant Group, Inc.
Paul joined Arby’s in May 2013 and has led the brand’s revitalization efforts, at the heart of which include boosting the company’s culture and instilling a sense of “Serve, Refresh and Delight.” Additionally, he has spurred a rebooted service culture, new restaurant designs and formats, new franchise financing options and the launch of the new “Meatcraft” marketing campaign and “Deli-inspired Delicious” brand positioning. Paul is an alumnus of Georgia Tech where he received his Bachelors of Science degree in management and graduated from Northwestern University with an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management and a master of engineering management from the McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

 
Joe Bybel
Senior Vice President, Marketing & R&D
Ventura Foods, LLC

Joe is responsible for leading both Marketing as well as Research & Development efforts across Ventura Foods’ total business, including both the Foodservice and Retail channels.  He is a seasoned business leader with over 20 years of experience with a number of major food companies including Unilever, Nabisco, Kraft, ConAgra and McCain Foods.  Joe holds a BS in Business Administration from the State University of New York at Albany, and an MBA from Columbia Business School.  

 
Jeff Davis
Chairman
United States Beef Corporation
Jeff Davis is the Chairman of United States Beef Corporation (US Beef), headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma. US Beef is the largest franchisee of the Arby’s Restaurant Group and a franchisee of Taco Bueno Restaurants, LP. Jeff has played a major role in the founding and subsequent rapid growth and success of US Beef. Along with his father, Bob Davis, they opened their first Arby’s restaurant in 1969, but didn’t actually purchase it from the corporation until later that year, becoming one of Arby’s pioneer franchisees. He is also a recognized leader in the restaurant industry, currently serving as the Treasurer of the National Restaurant Association, and is on the board of the Oklahoma Restaurant Association. Jeff is also the Chairman of Arby’s Franchise Association (AFA), and has served on the Board of Trustees for the Arby’s Supply Chain Cooperative (ARCOP) since 1986.
 
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.
 
Dr. George Friedman
Founder
STRATFOR
For almost 20 years, Dr. Friedman drove the strategic vision guiding STRATFOR to global prominence in private geopolitical intelligence and forecasting. A very popular keynote speaker on the future of international politics and economics, Dr. Friedman is in high demand at numerous conferences and industry-specific events for major financial firms such as JP Morgan, Citibank, Ernst & Young and many Fortune 500 companies in addition to the military and government organizations
 
Mackenzie Gibson
Senior Director of Culinary Innovation
Sonic
Mackenzie leads the product strategy vision for some of SONIC’s most notable platforms. Mackenzie & her team create & oversee the development of all of SONIC’s signature beverages, ice cream treats, snacks, sides, breakfast items & “better for you” options. She came to SONIC in 2008 from Jack in the Box, where she was a Senior Research & Development Manager. While studying at Oklahoma State University, Mackenzie earned a bachelor’s degree in food product development with an additional focus in meat science and speech.
 
Josh Halpern
VP, National Retail Sales - On-Premise & Military
Anheuser-Busch

Josh is responsible for managing the On-Premise and Military National Retail Sales teams, with direct emphasis on the casual dining, gaming, concessions, lodging, and Military channels.  He also plays a significant role in developing and executing the overall On-Premise sales strategy, and ensuring that ABI gets a positive return on our marketing investment. Josh also serves on the board of the VFW (Veterans of Foreign War) Foundation, and on the board of the National Restaurant Association Military Foundation.

 
Todd Kronebusch
Vice President of Innovation
Buffalo Wild Wings

Todd has worked for Buffalo Wild Wings for 13 years and in his current role he focuses on strategy and innovation of Food, Beverage, Day-parts & Digital experience to deliver the Ultimate Social Experience for Sports Fans. As a key leader in the North American Business Team, he also supplies strategic leadership supporting the evolution of the BWW Brand. Todd is also 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.

 
Jack Li
Managing Director
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
 
Megan Lyon
Partner and Managing Director
Boston Consulting Group

Megan’s work at BCG focuses on clients in the Consumer Goods space, with an emphasis on Food and Beverage manufacturers and Restaurants.  Her areas of expertise include growth strategy, business transformation, consumer insights, and corporate development.  In addition to extensive experience in the US, she has also spent time with packaged goods and restaurant clients in Brazil, Japan, and China.  Megan earned a Masters of Business Administration with Distinction from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and a Bachelor of Science in Managerial Economics from the University of California, Davis.  

 
IFMA Vice-Chair - Simon Marshall
President
Unilever Food Solutions NA
Simon assumed leadership of Unilever Food Solutions North America in August 2009. He came to this role after nearly four years at the helm of Unilever’s foodservice business in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Simon joined Unilever straight from the Institute of Marketing in Great Britain as a Sales Trainee in the personal care business. He moved into management, served in various customer management roles and gained experience in marketing and Finance. He was elected to the Board of Directors of the International Foodservice Manufacturers (IFMA) for 2013-2015, and is Vice Chair for the Consumer Planning Program. Simon was invited to join the Culinary Institute of America’s Society of Fellows in 2012.
 
Ed Medlock
Senior Vice President
Quality Supply Chain Co-op

Ed is responsible for the distribution of food and paper for Wendy’s North American restaurants, the planning / communicating of new and limited time products to the Wendy’s system and management of inbound freight for the Wendy’s system. Prior to the formation of QSCC, he served in a similar position for Wendy’s International, Inc. Ed is a member of CSCMP, and has represented Wendy’s International on the Global Supply Chain Forum, and served as a frequent speaker on best practices for cold chain management in transportation.

 
IFDA Co-Chair - Andrew Mercier
President & CEO
Merchants Foodservice
Andy has spent 22 years in broadline foodservice in various roles. He received his undergraduate and graduate degrees in Accounting/Data Processing from the University of Southern Mississippi. Upon graduation in 1984, he worked for KPMG Peat Marwick, New Orleans, an international CPA firm headquartered in Montvale, New Jersey. He joined Merchants Foodservice in 1993 as Controller and, after serving in several other positions, he was promoted to president in January 2005. Andy is treasurer of the IFDA board and currently serves on the Independent Marketing Alliance( IMA) and IFDA Board of Directors.
 
Perry Miele
President North America - Food
Nestlé Professional
Perry leads a world-class team of foodservice professionals including executive chefs, direct sales teams, product development, technical & manufacturing and all the supporting teams who share the Nestlé commitment to excellence. Perry and his team supply branded & custom solutions that are creative, customized and commercially viable with a focus on Nutrition Health and Wellness (NHW). His extensive experience in the food service industry lends understanding to his leadership at Nestlé Professional. He spent a dozen plus years with the Intercontinental Hotel Group (Crowne Plaza) - working in senior food & beverage positions, director of operations, and as general manager. In 1994, Perry joined the Nestlé Food Services Canadian headquarters in Toronto. He spent the next 20 years in senior Nestlé positions, in Canada, France, and in the Nestlé World Headquarters in Vevey, Switzerland where he held key positions, head of global food and head of global beverages, before taking on his current role in North America

Perry was also elected to the Board of Directors of the International Foodservice Manufacturers Association (IFMA) in 2013. In 2014 served as Vice Chair of the Presidents Conference and is this year’s Presidents Conference Chair – Look forward to seeing you all there.
 
John Miller
President and CEO
Denny’s Corporation

John is responsible for leading the strategic direction of the Company. He joined Denny’s in February 2011 and is an accomplished restaurant industry veteran, bringing more than 30 years of restaurant operations and management experience . Prior to joining Denny's, John served as Chief Executive Officer of Taco Bueno Restaurants, Inc and  spent 17 years with Brinker International where he held numerous management positions, including President of Romano's Macaroni Grill and President of Brinker's Mexican Concepts, responsible for overseeing On the Border and Cozymel's

 
Mr. David Pavelko
Partnerships Director, Travel
Google, Inc.

David works directly with Google's consumer travel initiatives and supports the overall strategy, business development and partnership efforts.  He also spent several years as Head of Travel at Google where he managed marketing and advertising campaigns for airlines, hotel chains, cruise lines, car rental companies, OTA's, meta, and travel publishers across Google search, display, mobile and YouTube advertising platforms.    David graduated from Princeton University (Sociology) and received his Masters Degree from The George Washington University School of Business (Tourism Administration).

 
Joe Pawlak
Vice Presidents
Technomic

Joe is responsible for directing and conducting consulting and research engagements for manufacturers and associations. His experience covers virtually every food and beverage industry category and channel. He has also managed programs for restaurant chains and foodservice management firms. His specific responsibilities include project management, study design and planning, analysis of research findings and client management. Joe has 27 years of extensive food industry experience in both consulting and packaged goods manufacturing. 

 
Timothy P. Taft
President & CEO
Fiesta Restaurant Group Inc.

Tim joined Fiesta Restaurant Group in August 2011 to spin it off from Carrols Restaurant Group, Inc., forming a separate, publically traded company, Fiesta Restaurant Group, to operate the Taco Cabana and Pollo Tropical brands. Both brands have thrived under his leadership, celebrating record gains as one of the fastest-growing restaurant companies in the nation. He is a restaurant and hospitality veteran with more than 35 years’ experience as a successful operator, marketer, brand builder and franchisor within the industry.

 
Neil G. Theiss
Vice President, Category and Assortment Strategy
SYSCO Corporation

Neil is a 30 year Sysco veteran. Prior to joining the Sysco corporate staff in 2001, he spent 17 yrs with Sysco Operating Companies in New York State. He began his career in 1984 at Sysco Foodservice in Albany New York where he progressed to Director of Merchandising. In 1991, he transferred to Sysco-Jamestown where he managed various departments including Merchandising, Marketing, Sales, Logistics, IT and held the position of Sr. Vice President. In 2012, Neil began leading pilot categories to help develop a category management approach for Sysco and was named Vice President of Category and Assortment strategy later that year. He holds a Bachelors Degree in Business Administration from Siena College, Loudonville, NY