Dean, A.S. Programs, Hillsborough Community College

Dr. Alessandro Anzalone earned a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Universidad Nacional Experimental Politécnica in Venezuela, an M.S. in Chemical Engineering from New York University Tandon School of Engineering, and a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of South Florida. Dr. Anzalone also performed Postdoctoral Research at USF in Materials and Biomaterials. He has over 25 years of experience in teaching and administration in higher education at four different institutions. He also has industrial experience in oil production and refining, alcohol production and pharmaceuticals.

Chief Research Officer, ChainLink Research

Bill McBeath is co-founder and chief research officer at ChainLink Research, a leading analyst firm since 2002, focused on supply chain, Internet-of-Things and blockchain. McBeath has conducted over 100 research projects, covering supply chain best practices, and use cases and business implications of technology across manufacturing, wholesale, retail and logistics sectors. McBeath is a leading researcher and expert on inter-enterprise processes, business models and inter-enterprise technology architectures. He has done research on applications of blockchain for supply chain, as well as comparing and contrasting conventional networked SaaS systems with blockchain-based systems.

Principal and Founder, Fuseneo, Inc.

Brent Lindberg is annoying and he knows it. With a curiosity that rivals George, he has a habit of relentlessly asking questions like a 5-year-old. And anyone who knows him can tell you he has an obnoxious appetite for the unexpected.

But somehow these odd traits create a perfect storm for real innovation. This has become the culture of Fuseneo, the packaging innovation team he formed over a decade ago. Together they help brands find unexpected opportunities in packaging by combining daring creativity with serious expertise. 

Futurist, Technologist, Entrepreneur & Publisher of Gigaom

Byron Reese is a serial entrepreneur who presently runs the technology research company, Gigaom. He is also an author and recently released a new book about artificial intelligence and automation called The Fourth Age. When he’s not working on all of that, he pursues a number of other interests. He is a frequent traveler to North Korea, a creator of crossword puzzles and a photographer. Reese is based in Austin where he and his wife homeschool their four children.

General Manager, Manufacturing Solutions International

Charles Weinberg is the co-founder of Manufacturing Solutions International, LLC (MSI). He led MSI as a start-up operation with a single facility of 20,000 square feet to its current operation of three manufacturing sites over 260,000 square feet. Prior to MSI, Weinberg managed contract packaging for Smurfit Stone Container. He also has over 16 years of experience in packaging, engineering, maintenance and consumer goods with The Clorox Company. Weinberg graduated with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Cornell University and received an MBA from Indiana University.

director, Operational Improvement, Strategic Sourcing & Services, Smithfield Foods, Inc.

James Couch has 40 years of experience in the meat industry and joined Smithfield Foods in 2008 as corporate manager of Strategic Projects. Couch was named director of Operational Improvements in 2014 and currently serves as director of Equipment Engineering. Prior to joining Smithfield Foods, Couch spent 17 years at the former Smithfield independent operating company, Smithfield Beef Group, where he held several senior corporate positions. Couch began his career with John Morrell & Company in 1978.

Senior Vice President, Consumer and Industrial Goods (CIG)

With strengths in both qualitative and quantitative research, Jeff Mansfield has over 13 years of experience providing superior decision support services. He has a deep understanding of international business practices, strategic planning and value-chain analysis across a wide variety of industries. He excels in managing a multitude of global project types including logistics and distribution, industry trends, product launches, private company profiles, benchmarking, pricing analyses, product development, facility assessments, supply-chain analyses, pre-merger and acquisition due diligence and ongoing monitoring assessments.

Presentation: Recruit and Retain Critical Staff

Vice President, Engineering, Conagra Brands

Jim Prunesti has over 30 years in the consumer products and food industries. He is the vice president, Engineering for Conagra Brands where he is responsible for engineering, environmental and capital management. Prior to joining Conagra, Prunesti was the vice president, Engineer at Campbell Soup Company and director, North America Reliability and Industrial Engineering. Before joining Campbell Soup Company, Prunesti held various positions in engineering and operations starting as a project engineer and progressing into leadership roles at Kraft Foods, Nabisco and L’Oreal. Prunesti holds a B.S. in Industrial Engineering from New Jersey Institute of Technology and an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Fairleigh Dickinson University.

Senior Director, Upskill

Joe Surprenant is a technology business professional with 20 years of experience in sales and marketing. He has played senior roles in running startups, developing sales teams and leading as a top performer.  His experience includes a strong technology acumen across finance, supply chain, manufacturing, sales and marketing. His deep expertise lies in digital supply chain transformation and IoT solutions for the CPG and retail industries. He is a Forbes contributing author, Advisory Board Member of Powershelf (a retail and CPG technology company) and currently leads strategic sales for Upskill – the leading AR solutions provider.

Director of Business Development – Contract Packaging, Menasha

Kevin Hall is director of Business Development – Contract Packaging for Menasha, the industry’s largest independent, retail-focused packaging and merchandising provider. With over 20 years of supply chain experience, both as brand owner with the Clorox Company and as a supply chain services supplier with small and large packaging companies, Hall has spent his career focused on product customization specific to various retail channel demands.  As a frequent industry speaker and college lecturer, Hall enjoys helping everyone from industry veterans to young supply chain talent solve the most difficult retail customization challenges.

President/Owner, Keystone Click

Lori Highby is an eighteen-year veteran in the industry of marketing, branding and entrepreneurship with an MBA from Cardinal Stritch University. She balances her time between leading vision and sales for her Milwaukee-based digital agency, Keystone Click, and educating motivated professionals, entrepreneurs and local university students on B2B marketing. Highby speaks, blogs and podcasts on the topics of social media, e-commerce, digital marketing and entrepreneurship.

Group Engineering Manager – Packaging Equipment, Nestle USA

Robert Champion serves as the group packaging equipment engineering manager for Nestle USA. He is responsible for all packaging capital invested systems across varied businesses including beverage, prepared foods, pizza, baking, ice cream, culinary professional and Canadian businesses. Champion leads a team of senior engineers to support key business performance indicators on existing and new assets. He also collaborates externally ensuring Nestle’s supplier base transforms internal specifications for compliance to safe operating equipment, food safety, cost, performance and ensuring quality of products produced on these assets on time. Champion holds a B.S. in General Engineering from Warren National University.

Author, Innovation as Usual

Thomas Wedell-Wedellsborg is the co-author of Innovation as Usual, a Harvard Business Review Press book on the art of driving innovation in regular organizations. Wedell-Wedellsborg has worked with managers in nearly all parts of the globe, including China, India, Russia, Singapore, Britain, France and his native country, Denmark. His research has been featured in Harvard Business Review, The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, BBC Radio, Bloomberg Businessweek and the Financial Times. As a keynote speaker, he has addressed organizations such as Time Warner Group, Cisco, T-Mobile, Johnson & Johnson, UBS, Deloitte,and The United Nations.

Wedell-Wedellsborg holds an M.A. in Media Science from the University of Copenhagen and an MBA from IESE Business School.