Schedule – February 27, 2024
5:00-5:45 PM Social Hour / Networking / Heavy Appetizers and Dessert
5:45-7:00 Panel Discussion
7:00-8:00 PM Networking / Dessert

Location
Coopers Hawk Winery
798 W Algonquin Rd
Arlington Heights, IL 60005

Pricing
$25.00 Emeritus / Student Members
$50.00 Members
$60.00 Non-members
Registration Includes 2 Free Drink Tickets
Unemployed Members can use voucher UNEMP-1010050 to save 50%
Member Prices increase after Thursday, February 22nd

This program qualifies for IFT Certified Food Scientist (CFS) recertification contact hours (CH). CFS Certificants may claim a maximum of 1.5 CH for their participation in this program.

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Exploring the Frontiers of Food Innovations

Innovations in the food industry are pushing the boundaries of how we manage data, engage with the consumer, develop safe new process technologies and adopt sustainable practices for the future. The endless opportunities also provide for quicker adoption of best practices and approaches across the industry.

No matter the path or the technology, industry professionals are expected to collaborate in new ways that drive greater benefits.

Join a diverse panel of experts for a robust discussion on some of the most exciting new areas to explore and how we’ll tackle those challenges tapping into the rich diversity within the science of food community.

Moderator: Charlotte Allen, PhD. CEO, Rebel Success for Leaders

Charlotte is founder and CEO of Rebel Success for Leaders and the author of the international bestseller Rebel Success for Leaders – Lead, Grow and Sell Fearlessly. For over 20 years, she has developed leaders, led and facilitated transformational change initiatives, and advanced mission critical innovations – achieving top and bottom-line business results and increasing team engagement. She’s gifted at breaking barriers, empowering teams and simplifying complexity.

Charlotte had the good fortune during her 16 years at Kraft Foods to advance some of the most beloved iconic brands where her innovation expertise spanned product, packaging, and technology innovations. She currently works with teams in Fortune 1000+ companies, Financial Institutions and Start-Ups to develop change-savvy leaders, empower teams and innovate to lead the market.

Charlotte holds a doctorate from The Ohio State University and an Executive Education Certificate from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Panelists

Justin Honaman, Head, Worldwide Retail & Consumer Goods GTM, AWS

Justin Honaman leads the worldwide Retail and Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) Go-to-Market team at Amazon Web Services (AWS). He is also the worldwide segment leader for Food & Beverage.

His team’s focus within Retail and CPG is on delivering supply chain, ecommerce, data / analytics and digital engagement business solutions for customers globally. Justin has spent the majority of his career in Consumer Goods and Retail both on the customer side (Coca-Cola, Georgia Pacific) as well as the technology / consulting side (Accenture, EY). In the industry and community, Justin serves on the board for the Georgia Technology Authority (GTA), Consumer Goods Technology (CGT), Western Michigan Food Marketing Association, Leadership Atlanta, and PAWS. Justin lives in Atlanta, Georgia.

Lisa Saxon Reed, Senior Director, Global Sensory and User Experience, McCain Foods

Throughout her career in consumer research, sensory, design, and innovation, Lisa has dedicated herself to understanding consumers and developing tools to identify, nurture, and evaluate a range of communication, product, and packaging ideas. She’s passionate about holistic design and delivering business teams what they need to bring category-building ideas quickly to market.

In 2022, Lisa joined McCain Foods to build a sensory and user experience team globally, from scratch. Prior to McCain, Lisa was at MARS Wrigley, where she transformed the consumer insight capability in R&D/Design. During her 10+ years at MARS, she was known as a passionate advocate for consumers/end users, a transformer of global functional teams, and as a mentor to numerous associates.

Prior to joining MARS, Lisa worked at Unilever and P&G. At Unilever, Lisa experienced the power of holistic design in unleashing unprecedented global brand growth on Axe and Dove and has been a champion of creating holistic consumer experiences ever since.

Lisa completed her BA at Miami University (Ohio) and earned her MBA at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Abdullatif Tay, Director, Director, Pepsico

Abdullatif Tay has an extensive experience in food safety and process validation and currently works as a Director at PepsiCo, Inc. With over two decades of industry expertise, he has developed and executed numerous process validation strategies across various categories of ingredients and products.

Abdullatif is an active member of Institute of Food Technologist, the International Association for Food Protection (IAFP) and currently serves as the Vice Chair of the IAFP Modelling and Risk Assessment PDG. He is also the President and Chair of the Institute for Thermal Processing Specialists (IFTPS), demonstrating his commitment to advancing the food safety through continued learning and sharing best practices.

Abdullatif holds a PhD degree in Food Science from The Ohio State University, as well as MS and BS degrees in Food Engineering from Middle East Technical University.

Michelle Klieger, President, Stratagerm Consulting, LLC

Michelle Klieger is the president of Stratagerm Consulting, a food and agricultural consulting firm. An economist and a business strategist, she works with the global seed industry, ag tech companies, conventional and non-conventional agriculture firms, and philanthropic foundations. Taking her around the world, her work helps industry leaders manage and grow their global businesses.

She helps clients find, access, and leverage funding and financing to support their vision of a more economically and environmentally sustainable system. Her work includes researching and understanding the underlying constraints, developing alternatives, and evaluating the economic impact of those changes.

Michelle’s passion for supporting small and medium sized producers and agribusinesses led to the creation of her podcast, The Grower & The Economist, which provides listeners with relevant and practical economic and business advice. She is the author of The Demise of Free Trade, and a professor of Economics at Bentley University. She holds a Master of Science in Agriculture Economics from Purdue University and an MBA from Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business.