SPEAKERS

Guest Keynote Speakers

Lt. Col. Rob Waldman | Dennis Snow | Curt Steinhorst

Industry Speakers

Guest Keynote Speakers

Lt. Col. (ret.) Rob ‘Waldo’ Waldman

Rob "Waldo" Waldman Lt. Col. (ret.) Rob ‘Waldo’ Waldman - The Wingman – is a professional leadership speaker and author of the New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller Never Fly Solo. He teaches organizations how to build trusting, revenue producing relationships with their employees, partners, and customers while sharing his experiences as a combat decorated F-16 fighter pilot and businessman. Waldo overcame massive claustrophobia and a fear of heights to become a highly experienced fighter pilot with over sixty-five combat missions in Iraq and Serbia. He believes the key to building a culture of trust lies with your wingmen – those in your life who help you to overcome obstacles, adapt to change, and achieve success. In business & life, you should never fly solo! Waldo is a graduate of the U.S Air Force Academy and also holds an MBA with a focus on Organizational Behavior. An inductee into the prestigious Speaker Hall of Fame, he is also a Certified Speaking Professional (CSP) with real world sales experience. His clients include Hewlett Packard, Verizon Wireless, New York Life, Siemens, Home Depot, Aflac, and Johnson & Johnson. In addition to his speaking business, Waldo is the founder and President of The Wingman Foundation, a 501(c)(3) whose mission is to build funds and awareness for soldiers, veterans and their families in need. He was voted one of the “Top 40 under 40” business leaders in Georgia and has been featured on Fox & Friends, CNN, MSNBC, NBC, The Harvard Business Review, Investor’s Business Daily, INC. Magazine, and Business Week.

Dennis Snow

Dennis Snow’s customer service abilities were honed over 20 years with the Walt Disney World Company. There, he developed his passion for service excellence and the experience he brings to the worldwide speaking and consulting he does today. He began his Disney career in 1979 as a front-line attractions operator. As he advanced through the company, Dennis managed various operating areas throughout the park, learning and applying the skills it takes to run a world-class, service-driven organization. Dennis launched a division of the Disney Institute responsible for consulting with some of the world’s largest companies including ExxonMobil, AT&T, General Motors and Coca Cola. During this time, he presented to audiences in diverse locations around the world, such as South Africa, Australia, Mexico, England and Argentina. This division quickly became the fastest growing venture of the Disney Institute and experienced repeat business of nearly 100%. He also spent several years with the Disney University, teaching corporate philosophy and business practices to cast members and the leadership team. While there, he coordinated the Disney Traditions program, which is universally recognized as a benchmark in corporate training. In his last year with Walt Disney World, Dennis’ leadership performance was ranked in the top 3% of the company’s leadership team.

Today, Dennis is a full-time speaker, trainer and consultant who helps organizations achieve goals related to customer service, employee development and leadership. Some of his clients include American Express, Johns Hopkins Medicine, ExxonMobil, and Nationwide. His articles appear in a number of industry publications and he is a featured guest “expert” on customer service, on several business news-talk radio shows. He is the author of the book, Unleashing Excellence: The Complete Guide to Ultimate Customer Service, which has been used in organizations around the world as a blueprint for organizational excellence. His newest book has just been released, titled, “Lessons From the Mouse: A Guide for Applying Disney World’s Secrets of Success to Your Organization, Your Career, and Your Life.”

Curt Steinhorst

Curt Steinhorst is a Certified-Speaker at The Center for Generational Kinetics, an organization whose founder has been featured on 60 Minutes, 20/20, The Today Show, and The View. Curt is a member of Gen Y who has a reputation as a leader in his own generation. At age 20, he was elected President of his 10,000 member class at Texas A&M University. Since graduating from college Magna Cum laude he has worked extensively to make the most of generational strengths in a variety of organizations. Curt’s speaking style has wowed audiences of up to 20,000 from California to New York and Africa. Curt’s personal experiences leading Gen Y and direct work with top performers make him a powerful communicator for bridging the generations. Learn more about The Center’s unusual take on generations at www.GenHQ.com

Industry Speakers

Jodi Bahl

Jodi Bahl is the Central Human Capital Market and Growth Leader at Ernst and Young. She has been focused on helping companies anticipate and mitigate human resource risks that have a direct impact on the organization’s financial results and reporting, business strategy, governance effectiveness, operations and other compliance requirements. She is currently leading efforts to inform and educate clients on compliance requirements regarding the Affordable Care Act. She has been involved in a number of engagements regarding the assessment and implementation of voluntary employees’ beneficiary associations (VEBAs). Jodi also negotiates with the Internal Revenue Service regarding the reporting and disclosure relative to VEBA trusts, the tax deductibility of contributions to VEBAs and the mitigation of potential unrelated business income tax exposure. She assists clients with HR regulatory compliance, HR tax reporting and operations, assessing the executive compensation packages and evaluating employee benefit issues related to acquisitions, mergers and divestitures, including benefits analysis, plan design and plan implementation. Jodi holds a Bachelor of Science in Political Science and Spanish from St. Olaf College and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Minnesota School of Law. She is a member of the American Bar Association and the Minnesota State Bar Association.

Jim Czarnecki

Jim Czarnecki is an Advisory Principal with KPMG and serves as their leader of the Chicago Metro and Midwest Internal Audit Risk and Compliance (IARCS) practice. He is also the National Risk Consulting industry leader for Consumer Products/Retail. Jim currently serves as the Global Lead Partner for two global food/manufacturing companies. He has over 26 years’ experience serving a broad range of organizations in the areas of internal and external audit, internal control and regulatory compliance, enterprise risk management, process improvement, and internal audit transformation. He was the general auditor for a global transportation and logistics company and has served in various management capacities with Fortune 1000 and 500 companies in internal audit and operation leadership roles. Jim is a CIA, CRMA, IIA Chicago Board member and a Board member of the DePaul University Internal Auditing Education Program.

Vince Crisler

Vince Crisler is an IT and cyber security leader with 17 years of experience in the private sector, the Department of Defense, to include service at the Pentagon, the White House, and the Department of Homeland Security. His rare blend of technical, strategic, and business expertise has gained him respect in the server room, the board room, and everywhere in between. He has served as a consultant for the C-suites of numerous Fortune 200 IT and technology companies and senior government leaders. In addition to being able to understand the technical nuances of technology and systems engineering, he can also effectively communicate those nuances to executives and customers alike.

Tom Ford

Tom Ford is Vice President of Food Safety at Ecolab and is a noted food safety expert with over 25 years of experience. He has conducted microbiological research for the industry and has published scientific papers on Listeria monocytogenes. He has written articles on food safety for numerous publications, and is a sought after speaker at food safety conferences. For the past seven years he has hosted a food safety symposium, bringing together food safety leaders to develop solutions to food safety issues specific to this industry. His work was an integral reason why Ecolab was awarded the International Association for Food Protection’s (IAFP) Black Pearl award for food safety in 2006. Tom is an original member of the Food Marketing Institute’s Food Protection Committee, a three time council member of the Conference for Food Protection and works closely with the National Restaurant Association. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, a Master of Public Health from Benedictine University and is a Certified Professional for Food Safety. He is also a member of IAFP and its Professional Development Group for Retail Food Safety.

Danny M. Goldberg

Danny Goldberg Danny M. Goldberg is the Founder of GOLDSRD, a leading provider of staff augmentation, executive recruiting and professional development services. Previously, Danny led the professional development and executive recruiting practices at Sunera. Prior to joining Sunera, Danny founded SOFT GRC, an advisory services and professional development firm. Danny has over 17 years of audit experience, including five as a CAE/Audit Director. He has served on the audit committee of the Dallas Independent School District and was the Chairman of the North Texas Leadership Council of the American Lung Association in 2012. Danny is also the IIA Dallas and Fort Worth Chapter Programs Committee Co-Chairman for the 2012-2013 year and was elected to the Fort Worth IIA Board of Directors in 2013. Danny has also been asked to serve on the IIA’s Learning Committee for the 2014-2016 term. Danny co-authored the groundbreaking storybook format publication People-Centric© Skills: Communication and Interpersonal Skills for Internal Auditors, the first publication of its kind that specifically focuses on communication and interpersonal skills for internal auditors. Danny is also accredited as the professional commentator on the publication BNA Tax and Accounting Portfolio, Internal Auditing: Fundamental Principles. Danny has been named as one of the Fort Worth Business Press “40 Under 40” for 2014 and is a well-known speaker at IIA and ISACA sponsored events. He currently works with over 100 professional associations around the world and numerous Fortune 1000 companies, assisting in their professional development efforts. Danny is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Certified Internal Auditor (CIA) and Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA). He also holds certifications in the Governance of Enterprise Information Technology, Risk and Information Systems Control, Risk Management Assurance and Control Self-Assessment and is a also Chartered Global Management Accountant.

Amanda C. Gufford

Amanda Gufford is a Consulting Services Manager with McGladrey LLP. She provides customized risk management advice to the C-suite and boards of directors, focusing primarily on the consumer products, food and beverage, and global supply chain sectors. She has over 15 years of experience, including 11 years leading domestic and international compliance and internal audit functions for two Fortune 500 companies in the restaurant and distribution industries. In her current role, Amanda partners with her clients to respond quickly to constantly evolving challenges and trends while maintaining a focus on top-line growth and margin management. She helps them anticipate and meet evolving risk and regulatory compliance requirements, and provides solutions to add value to their operating processes by utilizing techniques such as Six Sigma, Lean, and Kaizen. Amanda obtained both her Bachelor and Master of Accountancy degrees from the University of Mississippi, and participated in their international studies program. She is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) licensed in Florida, a Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA), and is an active member of Florida Citrus Sports.

Scott Moses

Scott Moses is a Managing Director and Head of Food, Drug and Specialty Retail Investment Banking at Sagent Advisors, an independent and privately-owned M&A advisory firm. Scott specializes in retail sector strategic and financial advice, focusing on food retail M&A. He has executed many M&A and financing engagements for retailers (many family-owned) including Kroger, Albertsons, Safeway, Sprouts Farmers Market, Sunflower Farmers Market, United Supermarkets, Haggen Food & Pharmacy, Pro’s Ranch Markets, Ahold (US Foodservice) and Weis Markets (SuperPetz)as well as many private equity firms. Scott was named to Global M&A Network's “Top 50: Americas M&A Dealmakers” list in 2013 and IDD's “40 Under 40” list of promising finance professionals in 2011. Prior to joining Sagent Advisors, Scott was an Executive Director at JPMorgan’s Investment Bank, where he led one of Wall Street’s most prominent food & drug retail M&A efforts. Scott has advised clients in many of the largest and most significant retail M&A transactions in the past decade, with a combined transaction value of over $50bn. He graduated summa cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania with a BA in Political Science. Scott received his MBA and JD degrees from Columbia University, where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar and an executive editor of the Columbia Business Law Review.

Bill Naughton

Bill Naughton is the Corporate Audit Manager at SpartanNash, Inc. and has over 31 years of audit management experience in all aspects of auditing including compliance, operations, finance and IT, using a process auditing approach. His responsibilities include internal control and risk assessment, regulatory compliance, external audit and regulator coordination, and reporting findings to management and the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors. He has performed operational, process based audits for companies in retail/wholesale foods, financial services, healthcare, retail, distribution and manufacturing industries. He has participated in Sarbanes Oxley 404 certifications at an electronic distributor, a large financial institution, manufacturers and a retail/distribution company. Bill has been a past instructor of audit processes and has been a speaker at multiple professional chapter meetings and seminars.

Matt Osterhaven

Matt Osterhaven is an Internal Audit Manager at Meijer, Inc. Currently he is responsible for leading financial and operational audits, including the execution of Meijer’s store audit program. He has benchmarked store audits with many retailers and has been instrumental in assisting retailers develop or enhance their store audits. Matt is driven to provide impactful solutions throughout the projects he is assigned. Prior to his current role, he spent eight years in public accounting with a specialization in manufacturing and service industries. Matt holds a Master of Science degree in Accounting and Bachelor of Arts degree in Finance from Michigan State University. He is a licensed CPA.

Bill Spoehr

Bill Spoehr is Vice President, Financial Compliance for Safeway Inc. He has over 30 years of experience in public accounting and in various retail organization accounting, finance, operations, and governance and compliance roles. Since 2004, he has led Safeway's financial compliance team, evaluating company compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and PCI Data Security Standards, as well as SEC rules and regulations. As a member of a national organization's committee on Governance, Risk and Compliance, he has published articles and presented on various compliance risks and opportunities, including the COSO Integrated Framework - Internal Control, and the impact of various PCAOB and SEC actions on company accounting and reporting processes, reviews, risks, and liabilities. Bill holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from Allegheny College, a Masters degree in Accounting from the University of Rhode Island, and a Masters degree in History from Norwich University. He is also a Certified Public Accountant (CPA).

Eric van Tongeren

Eric Van Tongeren is an Internal Audit Manager at Meijer, Inc. and has been working in the accounting and information technology world since 2003, running the full spectrum including tax, assurance, and accounting software consulting responsibilities. Currently Eric focuses on both financial and technology controls to ensure the company is best aligned for success in the face of existing and future threats. He first gained knowledge in data exploration as a support specialist for customers of a popular ERP system, and has since championed the advanced use of those same analytical tools to drive risk-based testing in his audit methodology. He has also previously served as a senior at BDO in the assurance practice and holds both CPA and CISA certifications.

Todd Wright

Todd Wright (CIA, CISA, CISM, CISSP) is the Senior IT/Financial Auditor for Alex Lee, Inc., in Hickory, North Carolina. Prior to joining Alex Lee's Internal Audit Team, Todd was a computer systems administrator (primarily UNIX-based) for over seventeen years, and has worked in IT-related security roles with federal law enforcement agencies through the Air Force and Texas Air National Guard.