Ricky Ashenfelter is the CEO of Spoiler Alert, a technology company helping CPG trading partners better manage excess inventory through a private B2B commerce platform and community of 300+ off-price retail channels. Powering discounting activities for 1000+ brands and more than $4 billion of product, Spoiler Alert counts some of the world’s leading CPG brands and distributors - including Kraft Heinz, Nestle, PepsiCo, Unilever, Conagra, Mondelez, KeHE Distributors, and SC Johnson - as customers.

Before founding Spoiler Alert in 2015, Ricky was a key member of Deloitte’s Sustainability practice, where he led climate and supply chain projects for major food, retail, and CPG companies. Prior to joining Deloitte, he was an early employee at ClearCarbon Inc. (a fast-growing software startup acquired by Deloitte in 2010) and worked with the U.S. EPA. Ricky holds a bachelor's in Finance and Environmental Studies from Georgetown University, earned his MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management, and was named to Forbes 30 Under 30 in 2017.

Doug Baker is the vice president of industry relations at FMI, The Food Industry Association, a leading trade group for the grocery sector. He assists FMI's member communities in growing and thriving in various domains, such as private brands, technology, supply chain, and asset protection. He leads the Asset Protection Council, which strives to reduce merchandise loss and establish safe and healthy stores and workplaces, as well as the Technology Leadership Council, Supply Chain Council, Private Brands Council, and cross-industry efforts focused on transparency and data accuracy. Doug has more than 35 years of experience in food retail, working with Fry's Food Stores, Kraft/Nabisco, and Federated Foods in roles related to retail operations, consumer packaged goods, and private brand creation and marketing.

David Bogertman is an accomplished retail and supply chain leader with over 17 years industry experience. He has been with KeHE Distributors for 3 years, with 14 years of retail experience.

David currently leads the Partner Excellence team who supports partners success by ensuring seamless new Customer onboardings & enterprise project support.  He is known for driving efficiency and implementing data-backed solutions, he is respected for his operational expertise, cross-functional leadership, and strategic vision in retail and distribution. 

David was previous with Ulta Beauty for nearly a decade– starting as a manager and growing to lead the Merchandise Operations organization where he was instrumental in optimizing corporate operations, implementing process improvements, and enhancing merchandise systems & BI. Before Ulta Beauty David launched his career at Meijer, serving in roles in Space & Floor Planning, Inventory Control, & Merchandise Financial Planning across multiple departments. There, he honed his skills in inventory management, forecasting, and data-driven merchandising.

Jonathan Braley is the Director of the Food and Ag-ISAC. The ISAC provides threat intelligence, analysis, and effective security practices to help food and agriculture companies detect attacks, respond to incidents, and better protect themselves. Jonathan and his team produce curated threat analyses for the sector and represent the organization to policymakers and industry stakeholders. In addition to this, he also serves as the Director of Threat Intelligence for the Information Technology-Information Sharing and Analysis Center (IT-ISAC), where he acts as the technical and analytic lead for a team supporting the world's leading technology companies.

Mike Brown is a 30-year supply chain veteran with experience in all distribution and supply chain facets. He is currently a multi-site leader specializing in turnaround and process improvement. Key areas include staff optimization, right-sizing, and leadership development. Mike has a passion for people and developing talent and believes our leaders must set expectations for all and ensure that each level of our organization understands how to achieve success.

Dale Buckner is the CEO and President of Global Guardian, LLC, leading the company since its founding in March 2012. A decorated combat commander, he completed multiple combat tours and classified operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, Colombia, Haiti, and Cuba, with deployments to Russia, El Salvador, Honduras, Chile, Panama, Kuwait, and Qatar.

Dale served 24 years in the U.S. Army, including nine years in Infantry, two in Military Intelligence, and 13 in Special Forces Green Berets, commanding five organizations, including a Special Forces Counter-Terrorism Task Force.

He holds Bachelor’s degrees in Criminal Justice and Business, Master’s degrees in Public Administration and Business Administration, and a Strategic Leadership Certificate from Cornell. A recipient of 27 awards, including the Bronze Star and Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Dale is a recognized industry thought leader, featured in CNN, Politico, NPR, Bloomberg, Forbes, and The Hill.

Alex is a Managing Director and Partner in BCG's Washington, DC office, where he is a core member of BCG's consumer practice area and leads BCG’s relationship with FMI.

He is an expert in corporate strategy and large-scale transformation projects within consumer goods manufacturing and distribution. Alex’s work at BCG focuses on enterprise and digital transformations of Fortune 1000 companies across the food distribution, private brands, business services, and diet and wellness sectors.

Prior to joining BCG, Alex advised corporate and private equity clients in the consumer space on Mergers & Acquisitions. He holds an MBA from the University of California, Berkeley's Haas School of Business.

James Cascone leads Deloitte’s Sustainability, Climate & Equity (SC&E) strategic growth offering in the US for the consumer industry and also serves on Deloitte’s Global Council for Sustainability Alliances & Technology, delivering strategic insights to clients on how technology can enable sustainable development.

Cascone is also the Future of Food leader for the Americas region leading a cross-industry program that is transfor¬ming the food ecosystem by enhancing transparency, advancing a circular economy, and engineering climate-smart products that prioritize human sustainability and a nature-positive system. He has served clients in over 85 countries, is fluent in 3 languages, and is a member of the USCIB Environment Committee, Climate Change Working Group, and Corporate Responsibility and Labor Affairs Committee.

LeRoi Cochran started in the pallet and supply chain industry in 2005 and is currently COO for Relogistics.  Relogistics was founded in 2011 and is the leading national provider of total pallet management (TPM) solutions for large, national retailers and manufacturers.  Relogistics has over 2,000 employees working onsite in ~ 175 Retail DCs sorting and repairing transport packaging.  LeRoi has over 25 years’ experience in Operations, Transportation, M&A, Quality, and Sustainability.  Prior to joining the industry, LeRoi held management positions with Dell, Waste Management, and Hewlett-Packard. 

Tom Cosgrove is the director of industry relations at FMI – The Food Industry Association where he facilitates professional, non-competitive collaboration among member communities across the topic areas of asset protection, technology, risk & safety, private brands, and supply chain.

Prior to joining the industry relations department, Tom worked for the FMI Foundation and FMI’s Health and Well-being department.  Before joining FMI, Tom spent 7 years at Gonzaga College High School in varying roles including Director of Annual Giving and served as a rowing coach, which he continues to do today.

Luis Dominguez is a seasoned supply chain executive with 17 years of experience in the food and medical supply industries. Throughout his career, he has successfully led initiatives to streamline overseas manufacturing operations, centralize procurement and demand planning, and modernize sourcing strategies within the natural and organic food distribution sector.

As Executive Director of Supply Chain at KeHE Distributors, Luis oversees procurement for eight distribution centers nationwide, ensuring operational efficiency, cost optimization, and supply continuity for a complex network of partners and customers. His leadership has been instrumental in driving process improvements, implementing innovative procurement practices, and aligning supply chain strategy with overall business objectives.

Pascal DuPuy is an accomplished Enterprise Account Executive with a deep specialization in technology solutions for supply chain and trade compliance regulation. Currently at Sayari, a leader in commercial risk intelligence, he directly engages with cutting-edge platforms designed to navigate complex global trade and risk landscapes.

His previous experience working with other world leading informational and operational technology research and advisory companies, significantly shaped his expertise. He has empowered supply chain leaders to leverage their extensive resources for strategic advantage, governance, and operational efficiency, directly addressing the critical role of technology in modern supply chains. He also guided CIOs and IT executives in aligning technology initiatives with business objectives, drawing from comprehensive IT and Supply Chain research. This background, complemented by his Juris Doctorate, uniquely positions him as a credible subject matter expert, adept at bridging the gap between intricate regulatory demands and innovative technological solutions.

Leo Feler is Chief Economist at Numerator and a visiting economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. At Numerator, Dr. Feler provides thought leadership and analyses on the US economy and the state of the US consumer to C-suite executives of leading CPGs and retailers and to Wall Street analysts. At the Federal Reserve, Dr. Feler works with a team of economists to nowcast retail sales and inflation using Numerator’s household panel data.

Dr. Feler previously served as senior economist at the UCLA Anderson School of Management and taught MBA-level courses on economic forecasting and emerging markets. Prior to that, Dr. Feler was an assistant professor at Johns Hopkins University and a consultant with Boston Consulting Group. Dr. Feler has served as an expert witness on commercial litigation and regulatory matters and has casework experience in mergers & antitrust. He received his PhD in economics from Brown University, his MA in International Policy from Stanford University, and his BA in Economics and International Relations from Stanford University.

Brad Gething became a member of the NWPCA staff in July 2013 and serves as Vice President of Science and Technology. Brad’s role includes participation in various standards bodies, direction and promotion of research and development, and support on other technical issues related to the wood packaging industry. He also serves as a point of contact for the Pallet Design System^® support and education. Before becoming a member of the NWPCA team, Brad worked at Penn State University as a post-doctoral scholar, researching issues related to wood packaging and treatment. Brad earned a MS and PhD degree in Materials from Penn State University, and a BS degree in chemical engineering from Bucknell University.

James joined CHEP in 2003 and currently serves as the Vice President, Customer Experience and Quality. Immediately prior, he led customer service after holding leadership positions in retail sales and customer intelligence. In his early years at CHEP, James built strong relationships through roles in operations, national accounts and service delivery.  

Beyond his professional achievements, James is deeply committed to fostering inclusive communities. He serves as the executive sponsor of CHEP North America’s Friends for Accessibility employee resource group and supports and volunteers with community partners like food banks. He also contributes to professional groups in supply chain and CX alongside industry peers and leaders in manufacturing and retail.  

Jeffrey Hendrix is the Chief Customer Officer for Bimbo Bakeries USA.  In addition to Thirty-Three years of Sales/Marketing in the consumer products space, representing brands like Advil, Chapstick, Wonder Bread, Hostess, and currently Sara Lee, Thomas Bagels, and Entenmanns; he holds a doctorate degree in marketing and is published in the Journal of Applied Marketing Theory, while also teaching Digital Marketing at Liberty University.

Tim Horton is the Vice President of Merchandising, Center Store for Schnuck Markets Inc. in St. Louis. Tim is responsible for all merchandising & procurement for Grocery, Dairy, Frozen Food, General Merchandise, Health/Beauty, and Beverages. Tim joined the Schnucks leadership team in 2017.

Prior to joining Schnucks, Tim spent 3 years as the Vice President of Center Store for Southeastern Grocers in Jacksonville, FL, and prior to that spent 18 years with Target where he served in a wide variety of merchandising leadership roles. Tim is adept at building potential in people and business and enjoys driving innovation into new and emerging spaces through creative problem solving, designing new concepts and ideas, and understanding how to bring those ideas to life. Tim is a retail merchandising professional with an exceptional record of innovation, leadership, and proven business results with a Global Fortune 50 retailer, including brick and mortar, online and multi-channel operations. Tim has proven success managing P&L within entrepreneurial start-ups and large cross-functional teams across a wide variety of businesses.

Wes Humphrey is the Chief Supply Chain Officer at GreenBox Logistics, where he leads the distribution, automation, integration, transportation, and customer service functions globally. Prior to GreenBox, Wes was Chief Operating Officer for Sodexo US Healthcare, a global food services and facilities management company. He also held an executive leadership role at Imperial Dade as Senior Vice President of Operations.

He spent the majority of his career with C&S Wholesale Grocers in various leadership roles across multiple departments such as transportation, operations, strategy, PMO, human resources, finance, and facilities management.

Justin Johnson serves as the Vice President of Distribution for Associated Food Stores. In this role, he oversees the company’s distribution center and logistics operations and leads efforts to ensure efficient, world-class service to more than 450 independent grocers.  

Justin’s career with AFS began in 2011 as an order selector. His deep operational knowledge and leadership skills have been shaped through a steady rise within the company, including responsibilities as training supervisor, loading coordinator, transportation routing manager, general manager and most recently, director of transportation and logistics.

Throughout his career, Justin has led transformative operational improvements that have delivered impressive business results. He implemented block loading and directed printing strategies that reduced costs and enabled reinvestment in both team development and facility upgrades. He restructured the routing process to improve efficiency and service. He also redesigned warehouse shift schedules to support a better work-life balance and dramatically improved team member retention. Most recently, he played a pivotal role in the launch of Project ROAR, a modernization initiative focused on driving long-term efficiency, automation and team engagement across the distribution center.

Gary Kinneer is Director of Supply Chain at Weis Markets, Inc. Gary works collaboratively with the Weis Market’s distribution and transportation teams as well as wholesale, dedicated and third-party carriers, and various associated industry and CPG partners focusing on improving supply chain efficiencies, increasing associated revenue, and mitigating associated costs. Gary has extensive supermarket industry experience, prior to his current role Gary held various leadership positions in Store Operations.  Gary received a BS in Business Management from Pennsylvania State University in State College, PA.  He currently resides in Camp Hill, PA with his wife Katrina, they have one daughter.

In his role as Executive Vice President, Strategic Accounts, Jim partners with clients to understand their distribution objectives, then enables and facilitates value-based strategic initiatives that support growth and build resilience. In his 30+ years of experience, he brings particularly deep proficiency in developing innovative automated solutions for the grocery, food distribution, and retail industries. A few of his projects include robotic warehousing implementations for WinCo Foods, Creekstone Farms, Tyson Foods, QuikTrip Convenience Stores, Mack’s Prairie Wings (Bass Pro), and Ingram Books.  

Since 2008, Chris has held various roles across both Dot Foods and Dot Transportation, Inc. His background includes experience in sales and operations including positions at multiple distribution centers. He enjoys solving problems for our business partners and creating a positive work experience for our employees. In 2023, he became Dot's vice president of warehousing, putting him in charge of our corporate warehouse strategy.

With over 30 years in the grocery industry and a proven track record in retail operations, Bill Lecznar transitioned from operator to entrepreneur to solve one of the industry's most persistent pain points: store-to-supplier communication. That led to the founding of Synergy Systems and the development of GlobalWorx — a first-of-its-kind DSD collaboration platform built to improve execution, visibility, and accountability at store level.

Following the merger of GlobalWorx with Taqtic, Bill now serves as Chief Strategy Officer, helping to drive product direction, industry alignment, and strategic growth. His focus remains on delivering scalable, tech-enabled solutions that benefit both retailers and their DSD partners by automating compliance, improving rep productivity, and unlocking ROI on trade spend.

Eric Marshall is a principal in the Washington, D.C. office of Leavitt Partners. Eric also serves as the Executive Director of the Partnership for Food Traceability (PFT), a public-private partnership between the food industry, FDA, and state regulators work to advance interoperable food traceability, as well as the Partnership for DSCSA Governance (PDG), a public-private partnership between industry and FDA that is committed to implementing traceabiltiy within the pharmaceutical industry. Eric leads his firm’s life sciences practice, advises complex health care coalitions on health policy, and provides consulting services to FDA-regulated companies. A regulatory lawyer by training, Eric is a recognized industry specialist in traceability and supply chain security and regulation, both domestically and internationally. 

Kevin is the Vice President of Supply Chain at Red Gold, the largest family-owned canned tomato manufacturer in America. At Red Gold, we’re all about forging strong partnerships with family farms across Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio to create top-notch tomato-based products—sustainably, of course! Our delicious creations reach tables in the U.S. and 16 other countries, touching lives through retail, food service, private brand, and club channels.

With over 34 years in the food industry, Kevin has a wealth of experience under his belt. He’s spearheaded supply chain operations for well-known brands like Entenmann’s, Thomas English Muffins, Boboli, Stroehmann’s, Brownberry, and Arnold's Bread. Kevin also played a key role at ABC Bakeries, helping to develop strategies and systems that keep those beloved Girl Scout cookies flowing to millions of cookie lovers across the nation. Recently, he wrapped up his term as chairman of the Railroad-Shipper Transportation Advisory Council for the Surface Transportation Board, contributing his expertise to improve our nation's freight system. As if that wasn’t enough, Kevin is also pursuing an MBA in Global Supply Chain Management at Purdue University, focusing on the fascinating topic of resilience in supply chains. 

Tracey Noffke joined Kimberly-Clark in 1993 and has over 25 years of growing up in the CPG industry. Tracey is the Senior Director of Customer Logistics. In her current role, she leads the U.S. and Canada Consumer and B2B Customer Logistics Strategies and Service organization and is responsible for customer facing supply chain operations and strategic initiatives. Tracey has a Bachelor of Science in Business Management from the University of Platteville and holds a Master of Arts in Communication from the University of Stevens Point, Wisconsin.

John is Senior Vice President, Customer Supply Chain and Go-to-Market for PepsiCo, Inc. He has been with PepsiCo for over 33 years and has worked in a number of different sales and field operations roles since joining the company as a route salesperson with Frito-Lay. In his current role, John is responsible for working with PepsiCo’s largest customers on supply chain and collaboration initiatives to drive both effectiveness and efficiency across the shared supply chain. Before joining PepsiCo, John spent ten years in retail store operations with Jewel Food Stores in Chicago and was also a Territory Sales Representative for Procter & Gamble. John attended Western Michigan University where he received a Bachelor of Science in Food Distribution and also holds an MBA from Southern Methodist University.

Christine Pollack serves as Vice President of Government Relations for FMI - The Food Industry Association and oversees the association's advocacy and policy efforts on workforce, supply chain, payments, and privacy/data security. Christine has nearly three decades of federal policy, advocacy, and communications experience in the public and private sectors. Prior to joining FMI, Christine served on the staff of, and consulted for, the Retail Industry Leaders Association where she oversaw health, tax, and sustainability issues and political activities, and consulted on the wide breadth of retail industry policy priorities. She also has extensive experience managing stakeholder coalitions and developing and executing issue advocacy campaigns. Earlier in her career, Christine worked for the American Medical Association, two senior Members of the House Ways and Means Committee, which has jurisdiction over tax, trade, health care, and Social Security policy, and at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. She is a graduate of the University of Delaware and originally hails from Wilmington, Delaware.

A core member of the Operations, Transform, Consumer, and Global Advantage practices at Boston Consulting Group, Geraldine Rhodes is the North America leader for consumer products operations and accelerated cost advantage in consumer packaged goods (CPG).

Her focus is on driving rapid, strategic transformational change with sustainable results for consumer industry clients. In addition to driving large-scale transformations, her recent focus has been on helping clients navigate impacts and opportunities of US policies on their supply chain and operations. Geraldine has considerable US and international experience through her work in North America, Europe, China, Southeast Asia, and Latin America.

Collin Russell is a Director of Business Development for TGW Logistics in North America. He graduated from Texas A&M University with a degree in industrial distribution and has been in the material handling and fulfillment automation industry for almost 10 years. Collin has a history of finding the right solutions for companies in the food, beverage, and grocery sectors – understanding their unique challenges and unlocking their success.

Riana is currently a Customer Solutions Director at The Coca-Cola Company, where she leads system-wide initiatives that enhance customer service, streamline operations, and deliver sustainable efficiencies across national accounts and bottler networks. Known for bridging customer needs with operational excellence, Riana helps to drive cross-functional collaboration that improves service levels, reduces costs, and builds long-term customer value.

As Vice President and Enterprise Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) for Schnuck Markets, Inc., Joey Smith (CISSP) has been a pivotal leader in the company's technological evolution. Since becoming Schnucks first named CISO in January 2014, Joey has been responsible for transforming and continuously enhancing the organization's Information Security security program. He developed and executed a comprehensive, risk-based security strategy, bringing in essential people, processes, and technologies to ensure a robust and mature security posture. His exceptional leadership and strategic vision have led to expanded responsibilities, now encompassing Cloud Strategy, Network Engineering, IT Infrastructure, Disaster Recovery, Telephony, IT Help Desk, and PC Support teams. In 2025, his responsibilities further broadened to lead the creation and oversight of the Schnucks Enterprise Information Security Office, which supports all of Schnucks' extensive business holdings.

Rachel Steele is the Vice President of Supply Chain at Schnuck Markets, Inc. in St. Louis, MO. Her areas of responsibility include warehousing, transportation and center store procurement. She started her career at Schnuck in the Legal group, and transitioned to the Supply Chain group in 2017.

Steve Stellmacher has 30 years of experience as a cyber-security practitioner with a demonstrated ability to form, lead, and manage effective teams in diverse organizations and challenging operating environments. Steve has over 10 years in commercial industries and 20 years experience in government. He is a recognized expert in Cyber Security Operations and Incident Response. 

KSI maintains its reputation as the most experienced, forward-thinking and specialized logistics and industrial engineering consulting firm of its kind. Our professional services provide significant financial and customer service benefits to companies as small as $25 million to as large as $460 billion in sales across retail, wholesale, and manufacturing.

The broad span of industries served evidences KSI’s experience and knowledge of a range of distribution models.  This allows KSI’s experts to share their knowledge of best practices in distribution operations and technologies from industry to industry, wherever competitive advantage may be served.

In addition to our commitment to excellence, KSI provides value-added services to companies seeking information on supply chain and logistics-related topics through its Knowledge Center, offering supply chain benchmarking reports, articles, and white papers.

KSI consultants, designers, and data analysts bring decades of proven experience designing and optimizing supply chains through advanced  SC applications.

Brian Taylor has more than 25 years of experience in transportation management, with special expertise in serving the complexities of retail grocers and wholesalers. As VP of Transportation Solutions at Kaleris, Brian works closely with customers to understand their inbound and outbound transportation needs and implement dynamic solutions that optimize routing and execution, reducing costs and improving service levels.

Amanda Vernaglia is the Director of Target Development at Rehrig Pacific Company, where she leads strategic initiatives to identify and unlock growth opportunities across industrial automation and other emerging markets. With over two decades of cross-functional experience spanning engineering, operations and logistics, Amanda brings a unique perspective shaped by her work as a designer, end user, supplier and consultant.

Her career includes leadership roles such as Director of Customer Success at Phantom Auto, where she oversaw autonomous forklift deployments and Senior Manager of Supply Chain Strategy at Nestlé Purina, where she helped shape corporate automation standards and the future distribution technology roadmap. Amanda also served as Engineering Manager at Daifuku, leading integration projects for Fortune 500 clients and as Global Systems Engineer at Arrow Electronics, driving global warehouse innovation through automation adoption.

Theresa Walker is a Global Trade Leader and Sustainability Specialist with experience in leading global trade advisory services that create competitive advantage for business. She has over 25 years of experience with global risk and strategy roles across diverse industries, including leading Global Trade Compliance teams with Supply Chain and Tax functions of large multinational companies in the Consumer and Life Science and Health Care industries. 

Larry Woods is Vice President, Chief Information Security Officer (CISO), and Chief Privacy Officer (CPO) at Post Holdings, Inc., a leading CPG manufacturer. With 13 years at Post and a strong foundation in enterprise IT, Larry leads cybersecurity, privacy, and AI governance initiatives that support operational resilience and regulatory readiness. He is a strong advocate for cross-sector information sharing to strengthen cyber defenses across the food supply chain. His pragmatic approach to aligning security initiatives with enterprise goals has made him a trusted advisor in the food manufacturing sector. Larry holds BS and MS degrees in Information Systems from the University of Nevada, Reno and is based in St. Louis, Missouri.

Claire Zoellner, Ph.D., is the Director of Data Science at iFoodDS, a leading provider of quality, traceability, and food safety solutions. She uses her expertise to deliver insights that help food supply chain partners innovate and make smarter, safer decisions towards food safety and quality management. Prior to iFoodDS, Claire worked as a postdoc to estimate and mitigate the risk of Listeria in frozen foods. She remains active in food safety research through service and collaborations and has published more than a dozen peer-reviewed articles and book chapters. She was recognized as an emerging leader in food science by IFT. Claire earned her B.S. in Food Science and Human Nutrition from the University of Illinois and her Ph.D. in Food Science and Technology from Cornell University.