Timezone: EST
A VIRTUAL EXPERIENCE
OPEN TO ALL CIOs + IT Leaders
FORUM HIGHLIGHTS
Panel Discussion:
Tech Forward Retail:
The Future of Tech Enabled Shopping
As the retail industry stands on the cusp of unmatched technological transformation, CIOs are poised to lead their organizations into the future of tech-enabled shopping and consumer-centric strategies.
This unique position empowers technology executives to not only adapt to changes but to thrive in an increasingly technologically advanced shopping landscape.
In this session, we’ll discuss the challenges, opportunities, and strategic imperatives that CIOs should consider in steering their retail enterprises toward a tech-focused future.
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High-Growth Strategy Specialist, Educator + Previous Fellow, London Business School, Duke Corporate Education + London School of Economics’ Centre for Economic Performance
Dr. Rebecca Homkes is a high-growth strategy specialist with the London Business School’s Dept of Strategy and Entrepreneurship, an Educator at Duke Corporate Education, and a previous Fellow at the London School of Economics’ Centre for Economic Performance. With her boutique consultancy, she advises CEOs and executive teams of top global companies and fast-growing enterprises on developing and executing growth strategies through extreme uncertainty.
Homkes is the director of the global Active Learning Programme for the Young President’s Organization; a partner with GrowthX, a Silicon Valley investment ecosystem and innovation consultancy; and is the faculty lead of two large Fintech scaling and accelerators. A global keynote speaker, she is a member of several advisory boards, directed the joint McKinsey & Co and LSE Centre for Economic Performance Global Management Project since 2007 and has written for publications such as the Harvard Business Review, Businessweek, Fortune, and Forbes.
A Marshall Scholar, she received her Ph.D. and MSc from the LSE in International Economy.
Before LSE, Homkes received two degrees at Indiana University: BS (Honors) in business administration and a BA (Honors) in Political Science. She was a Wells Scholar and graduated as the school’s top graduate in 2005 and its sole Herman Wells Scholar.
She previously served as a Fellow at the White House’s President’s Council of Economic Advisors and has worked in strategy consulting with Bain & Co.
FEATURED PANELISTS:
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Luke Anderson is currently the Chief Information Officer for Cub and Shoppers, two leading regional grocery banners. Cub operates grocery as well as wine and spirits stores throughout Minnesota, while Shoppers calls the Baltimore and Washington DC areas home. Luke and his growing IT team are currently leading Cub and Shoppers through a major technology transformation while separating systems from their parent company.
Prior to Cub, Luke spent over 20 years leading IT teams with multiple consulting, CPG, and retail companies. He held leadership roles with Accenture, Supervalu, Oliver Wyman, and Schwan’s prior to joining Cub. Most of his time in consulting was spent working with retailers around the world.
Luke lives and works in Minneapolis, Minnesota have received his bachelor’s degree in computer science and political science at the University of Wisconsin – Madison.
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Erik Quade has built an impressive career supporting both public and privately held companies across multiple business sectors. Most recently he was the CIO for Tillys and Hot Topic where he worked at building and supporting 800 retail stores, wholesale and ecommerce driven organization. Other notable roles include CIO at Billabong, CIO of Fox Racing and global CIO at Spy Optic. He shares a true passion for retail and connecting people with great products using technology.
keynote presentation:
Improving Retail Labor Productivity
with Technology
In times of economic headwinds, we have to understand how to make the best use of our existing labor and find areas for improvement using both simple and complex technology solutions.
In this session, we’ll explore the ways in which technology is being harnessed to improve Busy Beaver’s labor productivity while enhancing the customer experience.
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Adam Gunnett joined the Busy Beaver Building Centers team in 2015 in an entry-level position and quickly ascended to Director of IT & Business Intelligence. His career has always been driven by forward thinking.
Upon arriving at Busy Beaver, Adam wasted no time collaborating with trusted partners to efficiently oversee daily IT operations. This strategic move enabled him to channel his energy into the strategic implementation of cutting-edge technologies to enhance the company's capabilities. Recently, Adam has spearheaded the integration of innovative technologies within our stores, such as Autonomous Inventory Scanning Robots and Electronic Shelf Labels.
Adam takes great pride in his ability to lead the Busy Beaver team and inspire his peers to embrace progress. Recognizing the vital role technology plays in a growing company, and he understands how his contributions can profoundly impact the day-to-day lives of every associate. By automating tasks through technology, these advancements empower Busy Beaver's associates to prioritize delivering legendary customer service to every visitor rather than getting bogged down in manual tasks.
PANEL DISCUSSION:
Elevating Excellence:
Maximizing ERGs' Impact on Leadership
As IT leaders, the strategic integration of Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) within your group can be a game-changing endeavor. ERGs function as potent drivers of diversity, equity, and inclusion, providing the necessary foundation for fostering a culture of belonging on your team and throughout the organization. They offer a host of tangible benefits that directly impact your ability to communicate, share information, and introduce new technology and features. They elevate employee engagement to new heights, resulting in improved retention rates and a more committed workforce. ERGs also align seamlessly with your business objectives, ensuring that your organization's outcomes are not only achieved but exceeded. ERGs facilitate valuable partnerships and collaborative efforts, strengthening your company's position in the market.
By embracing ERGs at the leadership level, you can unlock a transformative power that propels your organization toward unparalleled excellence.
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Amy Baldwin is a visionary leader and the founder and President of United Partnerships, whose mission is to lift up individuals, groups, organizations, and communities. Her team’s primary focus revolves around enhancing workplaces and individual experiences through employee resource group (ERG) training, workshops, and their ERG Leadership Certificate program. As the creator, they host the annual ERG Leadership Conference, www.ERGLeadershipConference.com.
With over 25 years of experience, she is an influential and innovative communications, community relations, and event production leader, as well as an ERG development and growth advisor. She drives change through complex organizations and develops structure, messaging, and programs that create an understanding of broad initiatives that motivate people into action. Amy is passionate about workplace culture, people development, and fostering meaningful connections, and delivers belonging strategies that change culture, foster collaboration, and increase engagement.
At various points in her 10-year tenure with BASF, she served as the North America head of internal communications, customer events, and community relations, where she managed both national external partnerships and diversity, equity, and inclusion engagement strategies. Prior to BASF, she spent time as the head of development for a nonprofit and as a director of development for a university. Amy started her career working for the Super Bowl Host Committee in the events department.
Amy received her Master of Science degree in Strategic Communication from Purdue University and her Bachelor of Business Administration, Marketing, degree from Northern Arizona University.
Her greatest passions are travel and adventure. She also enjoys gardening and spending time with loved ones.
FEATURED PANELISTS:
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Anna Ettin is an idea generator, ERG innovator and connections catalyst. She began her career at Bank of America as a teller in 2001; her “ERG career” began a few years later upon launching a local chapter of the women’s leadership group. She spent several years supporting global initiatives including redesigning the group’s communication mechanisms, launching the company’s first all-virtual Employee Network (EN) chapter, and leading the merger of several legacy women’s groups. During this time, Anna moved from call center management into training facilitation, then spent several years in learning development and consulting. In 2010, she began research on generational dynamics and subsequently launched Bank of America’s Inter-Generational Employee Network (IGEN), which she co-led until 2018. Anna turned the “side gig” into a full time job in 2016, when she joined the bank’s Global Diversity and Inclusion Organization. She supported the 10 ENs, providing first-hand insights as the team created resources, training and tools for EN leaders and members; prior to leaving the company, she co-led the development and implementation of a proprietary platform designed to simplify and streamline EN management.
In 2019, Anna joined Amazon to scale, enable, and amplify the efforts of the global Affinity Groups (AGs). In her current role, Anna partners with the leaders of Amazon’s 12 global AGs to support 400+ chapters with more than 65,000 members.
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David LaBoy is an accomplished leader energized by cultivating inclusive cultures of engagement, recognition, alignment to mission, and accountability to drive business results. He advises clients across industries on advancing people and culture and diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) strategies in their workplaces.
He was most recently Volvo Group’s Director of Inclusion, Diversity, Equity & Employee Relations. David previously held the positions of head of diversity, equity, inclusion, and sustainability at Spoonflower and various roles at Blue Cross NC, including director of diversity, equity, and inclusion and HR business partner.
Dave has over 20 years of combined experience in operations, customer service, sales, marketing, communications, human resources, and DEI. He champions a diverse workplace and inclusive environment through thought leadership, insights, and perspectives. He provides strategic and operational leadership on policies, programs, and practices across a global organization.
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