| Cullen Andrews Vice President, National Accounts Dot Foods, Inc. Cullen Andrews joined Dot Foods in 2003 and has held various management positions within Sales, Marketing and Supply Chain. He is vice president of the National Accounts, International, Industrial and Non-Foods businesses. His team works with national account operators, manufacturers and distributors in the Foodservice channel. He also oversees the business planning of the Dot Expressway®, Dot’s digital tool that is one of the most visited sites in the food industry, receiving 1.3 million hits a month. It is widely used by distributors, national account operators, manufacturers and brokers. Cullen is a member of the Women’s Foodservice Forum and serves on the GS1 Industry Marketing Committee. | |
| Kelly Askew Managing Director, Global Retail Competitiveness Lead Accenture Kelly Askew has been with Accenture for 18 years. Over this time, he has served clients across distinct industries, with a continued focus on growth & expansion. Kelly was previously the lead of Retail Analytics, Marketing, and Sales practices for Accenture in North America. Kelly has held leadership positions for Accenture clients in Retail, CPG, and Media. | |
| Ira Blumenthal Founder & President CO-OPPORTUNITIES, INC. Ira Blumenthal is the founder and president of CO-OPPORTUNITIES, Inc., an Atlanta-based consulting company that has counseled world-class clients such as Coca-Cola, Nestle, McDonald’s, Disney, 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 executive management positions in foodservice manufacturing. 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.He is the recipient of numerous industry awards. Ira also serves as the Executive Director of the Independent Broker Alliance (IBA), an organization comprised of 29 foodservice sales agencies covering 47 states. He sits on a number of foodservice industry as well as civic boards (i.e. Steven Tyler’s “Janie’s Fund;” Blaze Sports, the organization that supports U.S. Paralympics; etc.) and is also the managing director of The Restaurant Industry Executive Council (RIEC), a group comprised of the CEOs from the top 35 grossing restaurant chains in the US.The RIEC is supported by the National Restaurant Association, The Women’s Foodservice Forum and The Coca-Cola Company.Ira was also 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 “CAFÉ” (Center for Achieving Foodservice Excellence). He is also a best-selling author (Managing Brand You). | |
| Keith Boston Vice President, Foodservice Cumberland Farms As Director of Foodservice for Cumberland Farms, Keith Boston is working to bring a new and exciting food and beverage offering to the 580 c-store chain. Keith plays a critical role in helping shape the company’s continued growth in foodservice. Prior to his role at Cumberland Farms, Keith spent eight years as the Director of Culinary Development for Sheetz, taking them to great heights in foodservice. As an active board member of the American Culinary Federation and an advisor to a local culinary program, national and local culinary trends are top of mind. With formal culinary training at Johnson & Wales University, Keith is a Certified Executive Chef and Culinary Educator and strives to encourage young chefs to earn certification. | |
| 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. | |
| Scott Gittrich Founder & CEO Toppers Pizza Scott’s unwavering affection for pizza became a full-fledged love affair when he decided to drop out of college to focus on a career at Domino’s after only two weeks on the job. The gamble paid off as he worked his way up through the company’s system. He stayed focused on having a successful career in the restaurant industry and he decided to create a pizza concept that delivered unique, fresh food made from scratch that rivaled anything available. “Pizza is the best food in the world,” according to Gittrich. “There’s nothing that’s as celebratory and fun as pizza. It brings people together like no other product on earth. | |
| Alison Gladwin Senior Director, Digital and IT Strategy Pizza Hut Alison Gladwin heads Digital & I.T. Strategy for Pizza Hut Globally. Reporting directly to the Global Chief Customer Officer, she is responsible for the long term operating model and investment decisions for all digital and restaurant technologies. Alison also has a strong background in e-Commerce as she most recently led the Pizza Hut U.S. Digital Sales & E-Commerce Business with revenues exceeding $2.3B per year. In this role she led the digital marketing, digital strategy, user experience, content management and digital analytics teams. Alison also has diversified experiences in finance, strategy, and marketing. Previously she led Pizza Hut’s Strategy & Finance Teams. In these roles she was responsible for leading the business and financial strategies of the company to deliver profitable growth. | |
| Clifford Hudson Chairman & CEO Sonic, Corp. Clifford Hudson has spent the last 32 years of his career at Sonic Corp., an Oklahoma City-based, publicly-held company that owns, operates and franchises SONIC Drive-In restaurants (NASDAQ: SONC). Today, he is chairman of the board and chief executive officer, with more than 3,500 franchised and company-operated drive-in restaurants. Hudson was named chairman of Sonic Corp. in January 2000, and has been CEO of Sonic Corp. since April 1995. Prior to that time, he served the company in a variety of capacities, including general counsel, chief financial officer and chief operating officer. During Hudson’s tenure as CEO of SONIC, system-wide sales have grown from $880 million to $4.5 billion. The company’s enterprise value has grown from approximately $200 million to more than $2.0 billion. In his position, Hudson has earned several industry achievements, including the 2004 Silver Plate – Foodservice Operator of the Year Award from the International Foodservice Manufacturers Association (IFMA). Most recently, SONIC has also received national recognition from publications such as Forbes, Entrepreneur, QSR and Restaurants & Institutions. Hudson has been a frequent and requested guest on multiple business and financial news channels including Bloomberg, CNBC and FOX News. Hudson has been affiliated with many nonprofit and community activities. He served as chairman of the board of directors of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC), a presidential appointment, from 1994-2001. He served as chairman of the Oklahoma City School Board from 2001-2008, a position created in 2000 as part of a $530 million turnaround of a 40,000 student, inner-city Oklahoma City Public School system, for which he received the 2012 David T. Kearns Award for Excellence and Innovation in Education. In recognition of this public service, Hudson received an honorary doctorate in humane letters from Oklahoma City University. He currently serves as trustee of the Ford Foundation (New York) and is a past chairman of the board of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. He currently serves as the chairman of the Foundation for Oklahoma City Public Schools. He and his wife, Leslie, an epidemiologist, have two sons and live in Oklahoma City. | |
| Gary Kliegman Vice President, Operations Blue Apron Gary joined Blue Apron in its early stages and has helped steer the meal kit startup's tremendous growth over the last three years. Gary leads the teams that scale the company's operations, from industrial engineering to capacity and production planning. He is also responsible for packaging, logistics, custom internal software design, and strategic cross-departmental project management. Prior to joining Blue Apron Gary led large distribution, sales, and finance teams at UncommonGoods and McMaster-Carr. He holds a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology and Spanish from Washington University in St. Louis. | |
| 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. | |
| David Portalatin Vice President, Food Industry Analyst The NPD Group David Portalatin is The NPD Group’s national expert on all aspects of food and beverage consumption in- and away-from-home. In his role as vice president, industry analysis, Portalatin provides information, insights, and analysis on how U.S. consumers eat and drink, their attitudes and motivations, diet and nutrition, snacking, and personal characteristics. He works closely with food manufacturers and retailers; foodservice distributors, manufacturers, and operators; and media outlets in providing strategic business insights into current and future eating patterns in America. | |
| Chris Roark Managing Director Accenture Chris Roark is a Chicago-based Managing Director with Accenture Strategy, where he leads the Consumer Goods & Services in North America. He has spent the past 15+ years working with consumer businesses to improve enterprise value and competitiveness through growth strategy, business model design and operational transformation. His research focuses on the future of the consumer, digital value creation and structural choices. Roark holds a Master of Business Administration from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering from Purdue University. He and his wife reside in Chicago, IL along with their four children. | |
| Wyman Roberts CEO & President Brinker International Wyman Roberts is Chief Executive Officer and President of Brinker International, Inc., serving in this capacity since January 2013. In this role, Wyman is responsible for driving the development of growth-oriented strategies for Brinker brands, Chili’s® Grill & Bar and Maggiano’s Little Italy®, and overseeing global restaurant operations and expansion. He is a member of the Brinker Board of Directors and serves on the Board of SP+ Corporation. Wyman is a 30-year veteran in the hospitality and restaurant industries. Prior to being named Chief Executive Officer in January 2013, Wyman held key leadership roles at Brinker, including President of Maggiano’s, Brinker’s Chief Marketing Officer and President of Chili’s. Before joining Brinker, he served as Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer for NBC’s Universal Parks & Resorts and held numerous senior level positions during his 17-year tenure with Darden Restaurants, Inc. | |
| Kim Anne Starke Vice President 2X Partners Kim Anne Starke is a successful business leader with 20+ years of experience in both financial line positions and strategic project roles within Kraft Foods, a Fortune 50 consumer packaged goods company, and Mondelēz International (a Kraft spin-off company). Kim Anne melds her business acumen with her passion to improve our bodies and planet earth through cultivation of consumer products innovations. Kim Anne began her career providing financial management and business counsel on the powdered soft drink portfolio, including Country Time, Crystal Light and Tang brands. She progressed through multiple facets of finance and project management, driving new product introductions, integration of acquired businesses, separation of divested businesses and margin enhancement initiatives, including an ERP implementation. Her breadth of experience covers numerous product categories in both the retail and food service distribution channels, as well as cross-functional counsel with marketing, sales, supply chain and corporate headquarter teams. | |
| Nigel Travis CEO Dunkin’ Brands Nigel Travis was named Chief Executive Officer of Dunkin’ Brands in January 2009 and assumed the role of Chairman of the Board for Dunkin’ Brands in May 2013. From 2005 through 2008, Travis served as President & CEO of Papa John’s, the pizza chain with annual system-wide sales of $2.1 billion and more than 3,300 restaurants throughout the U.S. and 29 international markets. Under his leadership, Papa John’s accomplished outstanding results, with industry-leading comp sales, consistent earnings growth and excellent franchise relationships. During his four-year tenure with the company, Papa John’s online sales tripled through the innovative use of technology. In addition, Travis helped position the company’s international business as a major growth platform and oversaw the successful rollout of several new products, including Papa’s Pan Pizza. Prior to Papa John’s, Travis was with Blockbuster, Inc. from 1994 to 2004, where he served in increasing roles of responsibility, including President & Chief Operating Officer. During that time, global sales increased over 50 percent and the international business was developed to encompass 26 countries with revenues of $1.8 billion. Travis also built a worldwide franchise network of 300 franchisees in 15 countries with revenues of approximately $1 billion, and transitioned the company from a video rental store chain to a complete movie and game source. Before that, he was with Burger King, first as Senior Vice President of Human Resources and later as Managing Director for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. As Managing Director, he turned around the region, significantly increasing sales and operating profits. He dramatically increased the rate of store development in the region, and successfully drove expansion into new countries and alternative points of distribution. Travis received a bachelor’s degree in business administration for Middlesex University in England. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for Office Depot. | |
| Kelly Ungerman Partner McKinsey & Company Kelly is a Partner in McKinsey & Company’s Dallas Office. In her 16 years at McKinsey, Kelly has helped global retail and packaged goods clients on a range of strategy, growth and transformation topics - with a focus on digital and commercial transformations covering topics including digital marketing, ecommerce, omnichannel, CLM, MROI, category strategy, pricing/promotions and organization. Kelly has worked across retail formats (big box, specialty, grocery, value/off price) and categories (apparel, beauty, electronics, home, consumables, etc.). Recent projects include a digital transformation for a global foodservice company, omnichannel strategy for a global electronics manufacturer, digital marketing organization study for a technology company, ecommerce/digital due diligence efforts for private equity and retail portfolio companies, among others. | |
| Dan Ward Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer Detroit Labs Dan Ward is a Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer of Detroit Labs, a company that designs and builds technology in downtown Detroit. Through his belief that successfully technology is meant to enable human beings, Dan advises clients through ideation, concept and experience design. His unique ability to blend user experience, technology and strategy together has helped clients from General Motors, Kia and VW to Domino’s Pizza and Kimberly Clark. Dan’s passion for tech trends and design help him serve as a go-to resource for media across the country, including the Los Angeles Times, Bloomberg, CNBC, and the Washington Post, to provide insight into tech trends and issues impacting consumers and businesses alike in the technology space. | |
