Outthinker Network Executive Summit
Leveraging Generative AI for Strategic Advantage
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Innovation Portfolio Management and Resource Allocation
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The Future of Strategy
February 25, 2023 | Miami, FL
Agenda
| Time | Activity |
| 10:00am – 10:30am | Check-in and networking |
| 10:30am – 11:00am | Welcome and individual introductions |
| 11:00am – 12:30pm | Artificial intelligence and strategy research update and practitioner workshop + discussion |
| 12:30pm – 1:30pm | Networking lunch |
| 1:30pm-3:15pm | Rita McGrath presentation and roundtable discussion |
| 3:15pm-3:45pm | Coffee and networking break |
| 3:45pm-4:30pm | Rita McGrath roundtable discussion continud |
| 4:30pm – 5:00pm | Key takeaways, announcements and close |
| 5:00pm – 6:00pm | Networking Reception |
*Final agenda TBD, exact times subject to change
Leveraging Generative AI for Strategic Advantage
WORKSHOP & OUTTHINKER RESEARCH UPDATE
The Outthinker team and network members have begun research into numerous questions that have arisen following the recent and continuing advancements in artificial intelligence. A top agenda item for all members, the goal of the research initiative is to collectively work together to answer key questions and develop practical tools, best practices, and knowledge that we can use to accelerate the speed and impact of our individual organizations’ adoption and use of AI.
Questions being explored include:
How will business models and organizations transform to cope with these new technologies?
What are the implications for decision-making in organizations?
How strategy governance, management, and execution will be transformed by artificial intelligence?
This session will include an update on insights gathered thus far as well as a workshop with practitioners and advisors to continue advancing our knowledge and capabilities.
Rita McGrath on portfolio management, capital allocation, permissionless organizations, and the future of strategy.
PRESENTATION & ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSION
Rita McGrath
Best-selling author, professor of strategy and innovation, and top-ranked global management thinker
Rita McGrath
Rita McGrath is a best-selling author, a sought-after advisor and speaker, and a longtime faculty member at Columbia Business School. Rita is one of the world’s top experts on strategy and innovation and is consistently ranked among the top 10 management thinkers in the world, including the #1 award for strategy by Thinkers50. McGrath’s recent book on strategic inflection points is Seeing Around Corners: How to Spot Inflection Points in Business Before They Happen (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2019). Rita is the author of four other books, including the best-selling The End of Competitive Advantage (Harvard Business Review Press, 2013).
At Columbia, Rita directs the popular Executive Education course Leading Strategic Growth and Change. She guest-lectures in a number of other courses, including the flagship Advanced Management Program, and is active in other Columbia initiatives such as the launch of its Think Bigger Innovation Hub. She also acts as faculty director for some of Columbia’s prestigious custom programs offerings, learning experiences designed specifically for individual organizations.
Rita is one of the most frequent contributors to the Harvard Business Review. Her most recent article is The Permissionless Corporation (Jan/Feb, 2023). She also publishes regularly in other premier journals such as the MIT Sloan Management Review. Her work on discovery-driven growth was praised by the late legendary management thinker Clayton Christensen as offering “some of the most important tools of management and strategy that have ever been developed.”
Rita was awarded the prestigious C. K. Prahalad award from the Strategic Management Society, an award for scholarly impact on practice. She has won many other awards for her work and impact, including the “Theory to Practice” award from the Vienna Strategy Forum, the “best paper” award from the Academy of Management Review and multiple “best book” awards for her work.
McGrath received her Ph.D. from the Wharton School (University of Pennsylvania) and has degrees with honors from Barnard College and the Columbia School of International and Public Affairs. She is active on all the main social media platforms, such as Twitter @rgmcgrath, Linked in and Instagram. For more information, visit RitaMcGrath.com.
Outthinker Networks is pleased to welcome back Columbia Business School Professor Rita McGrath for a roundtable discussion of multiple topics at the top of the CSOs strategic agenda including, innovation portfolio management, capital allocation, the permissionless organization, and the future of strategy. Rita and participants will discuss:
How organizations can effectively balance their innovation portfolios to drive growth while managing risk.
Strategies that empower organizations to innovate with confidence, ensuring that capital allocation serves as a catalyst rather than a constraint.
Key ideas and implications of the emerging “Permissionless Organization”.
The future of strategy and what strategy executives need to know to remain effective and successful.
Get an exclusive look into a new software tool to better manage strategic options and innovation projects.
Rita McGrath is a best-selling author, a sought-after advisor and speaker, and a longtime faculty member at Columbia Business School. Rita is one of the world’s top experts on strategy and innovation and is consistently ranked among the top 10 management thinkers in the world, including the #1 award for strategy by Thinkers50. Her recent book on strategic inflection points, Seeing Around Corners, and her best-selling, The End of Competitive Advantage, are required reading for strategy and innovation executives today.
Outthinker Strategy Network attendees, thought-leaders, and expert guests
Alok Agrawal
Alok K. Agrawal is an executive with over fifteen years of finance experience in industrial and technology companies. He is proficient in developing and executing organic and inorganic strategies, grounded by experience running a P&L and performing operations turnarounds. He has substantial international exposure, including long-term assignments in Europe and Asia.
Alok is currently the Chief Strategy Officer at Celestica, a $6 billion services company focused on the industrial and technology markets. He is a member of a seven-person Executive Leadership Team (ELT) and reports directly to the CEO.
He recently held leadership positions with global responsibility for strategy and corporate development at Federal-Mogul and Meritor, both multi-billion dollar automotive suppliers. Previously, Alok worked in Johnson Controls' automotive businesses (now Adient) leading strategy development and executing transformation projects, including the turnaround of the interiors business. His assignments included 18 months in China with the Yanfeng Automotive Interiors joint venture and ownership of a $100 million product line P&L.
Earlier, he worked at Kearney as a consultant, primarily on growth strategy and product management engagements. Alok began his career as a powertrain engineer at Ford Motor Company. He received his M.S. and B.S. in mechanical engineering from the University of Michigan and his M.B.A. in strategy and finance from the Ross School of Business.
Andrew Cone
Andrew studied art history and economics. Wanted to work in the art world – did some gallery work. In the meantime, he interned in consulting and analytical work. Art orgs were trying to professionalize. He applied to business school – said he wanted to run an art museum one day. McKinsey- Did consulting for Western companies that wanted to grow in Asia. Ended up on a one-year HBS fellowship at the Whitney Museum. During the last two months, the COO retired. Created an opportunity for him to stay permanently – he's stayed there for 10 years. The role was created for him.
Anna Tavis
With over 20 years of experience in human capital management, Anna Tavis is a researcher, global educator, and coach who focuses on the future of work. She leads the Human Capital Management Department at New York University, where she oversees three MS degrees and five certificate programs in HR, analytics, coaching, and consulting.
Her passion is to develop innovative approaches to talent and organizations and help discover a higher purpose for the next economy. She teaches at NYU and lectures globally, learning from the networks she develops and joins. She is an academic advisor to various organizations and a senior editor of People+Strategy Journal. She co-authored "Humans at Work," a book about the new pivot towards human-centered organizations.
*CSO Emeritus
Cheryl Lebens
Drives profitable growth for Grange Insurance and Integrity Insurance’s $950M personal lines business. Previously VP, Chief Risk and Strategy Officer at Grange Insurance from 2012 to 2021. Held various finance, corporate strategy, sales and marketing leadership roles at Nationwide Insurance and Safeco Insurance. Strengths in leading teams to meet/exceed goals.
Chris Huff
As Chief Growth Officer, Chris Huff and his team advise the Board and CEO on global corporate growth strategies, product strategy, customer experience, vertical GTM, ecosystem, strategic alliances and growth marketing. His passion is building collaborative high performing leadership teams that drive operational excellence and create enterprise value in recurring revenue business models.
Prior to joining Kofax (private equity), Chris led Deloitte Consulting’s U.S. Public Sector Intelligent Automation / RPA practice, was founder-CEO of a high growth B2C start-up, and served as an Officer in the US Marine Corps. He is often called on by publications and conferences as a thought leader and speaker.
*CSO Emeritus
Claudio Garcia
Claudio is President of Outthinker Strategy Networks, a global network of strategy executives from large organizations the are committed to staying ahead of the pace of change.
Before joining Outthinker, Claudio was Executive Vice Presidency for Strategy and Corporate Development at Lee Hecht Harrison, where he was responsible for the expansion and innovation of the company with operations in more than 60 countries. Prior to this role, he was LHH’s President of Latin America where he helped solve critical business challenges and personally supported dozens of complex transformation projects for large client organizations. During his tenure leading strategy LHH, Claudio was a member of the Outthinker Strategy Network.
Claudio has experience across a variety of industries, including food and beverage, entertainment, and media and communications. In addition to his role at Outthinker, Claudio is a board member and teaches Global Management and International Human Resources Management at New York University’s School of Professional Studies.
Ed Knapp
Professional Board and Advisory Affiliations: CAR (Center for Automotive Research); AST SpaceMobile; Ciena 5G; Harman TAC; Rutgers Engineering ECE - Industry Advisory Board.
Elisabeth Moore
Elisabeth is responsible for developing strategies others become passionate about and for working for executive leadership to guide the organization through times of hyper growth and profitability - balancing challenging the status quo while staying true to the company's core values and entrepreneurial roots.
Elisabeth is a member of our Growth Mid-Market cohort. She brings more than 10 years of experience understanding business needs through the lens of market insights and internal #businessintelligence and translating that into tangible results. Her background in M&A and finance coupled with engaging the organization to think critically about the future blends into a unique, CX/EX data-driven and emotionally intelligent approach to strategy development.
She also leads the organization's Emerging Business group that helps support #innovation and launching up-and-coming businesses within the firm.
Eric Goldstein
Prior to joining JPMorgan, Mr. Goldstein was a consultant with McKinsey & Co. in the firm’s Financial Institutions Practice. While at McKinsey, Mr. Goldstein advised insurance companies and banks on both strategic and operational issues. Mr. Goldstein received his JD degree from Yale Law School and his undergraduate degree from Harvard University.
Felix Oberholzer-Gee
Felix Oberholzer-Gee is the Andreas Andresen Professor of Business Administration in the Strategy Unit at Harvard Business School. A member of the faculty since 2003, Professor Oberholzer-Gee received his Masters degree, summa cum laude, and his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Zurich. His first faculty position was at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. He currently teaches competitive strategy in executive education programs such as the Program for Leadership Development, the Senior Executive Program for China, and in a program for media executives titled Effective Strategies for Media Companies. His course Strategies Beyond the Market is a popular elective class for second-year MBA students. Professor Oberholzer-Gee won numerous awards for excellence in teaching, including the Harvard Business School Class of 2006 Faculty Teaching Award for best teacher in the core curriculum, and the 2002 Helen Kardon Moss Anvil Award for best teacher in the Wharton MBA program. Prior to his academic career, Professor Oberholzer-Gee served as managing director of Symo Electronics, a Swiss-based process control company.
Jason GInsberg
Jason Ginsberg joins OSN, having recently come on board at Zoetis as the Head of Global Strategy. His career up to this point has been in strategy / management consulting, starting at Capgemini and then spending the last ~6.5 years at BCG, all focused on healthcare (biopharma and MedTech) and spanning Manufacturing & supply to Commercial. Jason brings a passion challenging the status quo and thinking outside the box. In his spare time, Jason is an avid reader, a big New York sports fan, and a middling golfer. Jason is based in New York, has a BSE in Materials Science from UPenn and an MBA from Chicago Booth.
Jessica Freireich
Jessica Freireich joined Consumer Reports (CR) in 2021. As Senior Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer, she is responsible for driving the organization’s strategy and planning.
Most recently, Jessica served as Managing Director and Senior Advisor for Organizational Performance at the Rockefeller Foundation, where she led strategy, measurement and evaluation, including to improve energy access for low-income communities through distributed renewable power. Previously, she worked as a strategy consultant at Monitor Group (now part of Deloitte), both in the corporate practice across a range of industries as well as in the impact practice advising large membership organizations on how to deliver on their social enterprise goals.
Jessica earned her Bachelor of Arts in History and Literature from Harvard College and her Master’s in Business Administration from Harvard Business School.
Kalina Nikolova
I believe that the future brings exponential growth. Increasing returns are unlocked when we enable people and organizations to work with passion and purpose - while leveraging the new technologies to reinvent business models. For over two decades I have been working as a navigator plotting the course for companies to work better today, and prepare for the future: from Saatchi & Saatchi where I led Zenith Media in Eastern Europe to Deloitte where I consulted clients like S&P, McGraw-Hill, Meredith Publishing, and Cablevision, EVP of Strategy at Viacom Sales, and currently as SVP of Business Operations and Strategy at Yahoo Advertising.
Konstanty "K"
With a proven track record of driving strategic growth and innovation across diverse industries, Konstanty is a visionary leader currently serving as the Vice President and Chief Strategy and Business Development Officer for HPC, AI & Labs at Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. In this role since 2022, Konstanty reports to the EVP & GM of the business, contributing to the strategy of the #1 global leader in supercomputing and AI.
Throughout Konstanty's career, they have consistently demonstrated an ability to oversee complex business development efforts, both organic and inorganic. Prior to joining Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Konstanty held various key positions at American International Group, Inc. (AIG). As the Global Head of Strategy and Innovation and President of New Markets at AIG Life from 2020 to 2022, Konstanty played a pivotal role in executing the IPO and separation of the Life & Retirement ("L&R") division from AIG. They led a team of professionals focused on data, analytics, and digital technology, driving innovation and growth.
From 2018 to 2020, Konstanty served as the Head of Strategy for AIG Life & Retirement, directly reporting to the CEO of L&R as a member of the Executive Leadership Team. His strategic insights contributed to the evaluation and execution of M&A transactions in the US and internationally, bolstering AIG's market presence. Earlier, as Managing Director of AIG Corporate Development from 2015 to 2017, Konstanty led global strategy initiatives and played a key role in significant transactions, including the $1 billion sale of AIG's Lloyd's Syndicate Ascot.
Kaihan Krippendorff
Kaihan Krippendorff is the CEO of Outthinker Networks, a global think-tank of chief strategy and innovation executives shaping the future of business. A sought-after keynote speaker, Kaihan is recognized by Global Gurus and Thinkers50 as one of the top 30 global thinkers in strategy and innovation. His work helps organizations generate breakthrough ideas that drive transformation and growth in our accelerated world of change.
Leveraging skills and experience from McKinsey and Company with rigorous research of emerging trends, Kaihan designs practical business tools that he delivers through engaging and hands-on experiences. He is an innovation catalyst to business leaders and CXOs of some of the world’s most admired companies. To date, his work has generated over $2.5B in new annual revenue for clients that include Aetna-CVS, JP Morgan, Lockheed Martin, Procter & Gamble, IBM, and Yahoo.
A prolific writer, Kaihan has published five books including the bestsellers Outthink the Competition and Driving Innovation from Within. Amidst a dizzying schedule of keynotes, workshops, ongoing research, and writing, Kaihan still finds time to teach for Wharton Executive Education, Florida International University, and New York University; host the Outthinkers podcast; and play an active role on two corporate advisory boards.
He holds a doctorate in strategy and has degrees from the University of Pennsylvania School of Engineering, Wharton, Columbia Business School, and London Business School. With a mother from Bangladesh, father from Germany, and wife from Latin America, Kaihan is a global citizen who brings a holistic, diverse, and worldly perspective to everything he does.
He is a passionate cook and lives in Miami, Florida, with his wife, three kids, two cats, and a dog.
Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus has said, "Kaihan shows that with a compelling idea anyone can change the world" and that message has made Kaihan one of the most sought- after business speakers in the world.
*CSO Emeritus
Ken Eng
Ken Eng is the Senior Vice President, Group Strategy and M&A for Macmillan and Holtbrinck. Since 2007 he has led strategic planning, mergers & acquisitions, investments, alliances and incubation initially in its North American division and in recent years as a member of the Holtzbrinck Publishing Group (Macmillan’s holding company). Prior to Macmillan and Holtbrinck, Ken held various leadership roles in business development, product development, marketing, and operations at prominent media companies including McGraw-Hill/BusinessWeek, Nielsen Business Media, and Universal Media. Throughout his career, Ken has been instrumental in helping organizations to navigate market turbulence and to innovate digitally. In his free time, Ken mentors digital entrepreneurs in education, publishing, and media.
Kevin Ilcisin
As Senior Vice President of Strategy and Corporate Development, Kevin is responsible for ensuring cross-functional alignment of NI's strategy planning and execution activities including the use of partnerships and acquisitions.
Prior to joining NI in 2015, Kevin served as the Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at Tektronix, where he was responsible for the core technology development, R&D strategy, and portfolio processes governing R&D investments. He has held leadership roles at Novellus (LAM Research) and a number of start-ups including Zight and Technical Visions.
Kevin holds a Ph.D. and M.A degrees in plasma physics from Princeton University and B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering with Distinction from the University of Alberta.
*CSO Emeritus
Mark SIms
Results-driven executive and board member with diverse experience driving transformations globally as a Chief Executive, head of strategy, Chief Information Officer, and as a management consultant. A strategic thinker skilled in leading organizational change, defining and driving strategy, successfully buying and integrating acquisitions, and leveraging technology to optimize business objectives. Experienced in multiple industries including Retail and Consumer Products, Packaging, Manufacturing, and Distribution.
Michael Drexler
Michael Drexler is the Chief Strategy Officer and a Managing Director at Brightstar. He currently serves on the boards of America’s Group and REMarkets, both Brightstar portfolio companies.
Prior to joining Brightstar, Michael was Managing Director and Global Head of Strategy and Business Transformation at J.P. Morgan Asset Management based in New York. He was a member of the division’s Operating Committee and worked with all business lines on strategic initiatives, including M&A, business efficiency, and decision making.
Previously, he worked for nearly a decade in a senior leadership role at the World Economic Forum as Member of the Executive Committee responsible for partnerships and content in the Alternative Investment industry and later the Forum’s content initiatives across the financial sector, infrastructure, and long-term investing. Michael also spent nearly a decade at Barclays Capital in London, as the Global Head of Strategy and Planning for the majority of his time there, following his role as a consultant at McKinsey & Co and a post-doctoral position at Stanford University.
Michael holds a doctorate in Mathematics from Oxford University and an M.Sc. in Engineering from the Technical University at Munich.
Michael Shrage
Michel Schrage is a Visiting Fellow at Imperial College Business School of Innovation & Entrepreneurship and a world-renowned expert in transforming collaborative tools and technologies into a source of business innovation.
As a member of the technical advisory committees, Schrage helped companies like Accenture, Google, Siemens, Wells Fargo, Microsoft, PwC, British Telecom, BP, Mars, and NASDAQ use experimentation as a source of corporate transformation through innovation.
Michael is also a research fellow with the MIT Sloan School of Management's Initiative on the Digital Economy. His research, writing, and advisory work focuses on the behavioral economics of models, prototypes, and metrics as strategic resources for managing innovation risk and opportunity.
He is author of the award-winning book The Innovator’s Hypothesis (MIT Press, 2014), Who Do You Want Your Customers to Become? (Harvard Business Review Press, 2012), and Serious Play (Harvard Business Review Press, 2000). His latest book, Recommendation Engines, was published in September 2020 by MIT Press as part of its Essential Knowledge series.
Schrage has run design workshops and executive education programs on innovation, experimentation, and strategic measurement for organizations all over the world and is currently pioneering work in selvesware technologies designed to augment aspects, attributes, and talents of productive individuals. He is particularly interested in the future co-evolution of expertise, advice, and human agency as technologies become smarter than the people using them.
Previously a Merrill Lynch Forum Innovation Fellow, Schrage founded and was executive director of the Merrill Lynch Innovation Grants Competition for doctoral students worldwide. An angel investor in several digital media and machine learning startups, he has been a featured and top-trafficked blogger on the Harvard Business Review site. Schrage’s work has been published in MIT Sloan Management Review, Fortune magazine, the Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, Nikkei Asia, and Communications of the ACM, as well as other peer-reviewed publications.
Since 2017, Schrage has been a guest editor for MIT SMR’s Big Ideas initiatives, including Future of Leadership, Future of the Workforce (2019-2020), Performance Management (2018-2019), and Strategic Measurement (2017-2018). Explore his work with MIT SMR below.
Michelle Micone
Michelle Micone is an experienced sales and marketing executive with a general management background across multiple industries – professional sports, licensing and entertainment, toys and packaged goods. Recently, she served as a consultant for the Globe, helping to expand its Rhode Island bureau. Prior to that, she was the Head of Consumer Products at the National Football League, where she led the expansion of the the NFL’s brands into new and expanded categories. Prior to the NFL, Michelle held a variety of leadership positions over a 17-year career at Hasbro in Rhode Island. She led North American licensing, bringing merchandise and experiences to market for Hasbro's portfolio of brands. As a global brand strategy leader, she steered new product development and marketing for various brands at Hasbro, growing retail presence, entertainment distribution and revenue globally.
Prasad Padman
Prasad Padman has twenty plus years of experience in energy, industrial, aerospace, defense, and medical end markets. He is experienced in leading strategic planning, business development, and business transformation for large global corporations.
He has been exposed to diverse work cultures, having lived and worked in several countries, including India, China, Singapore, and the USA.
He currently acts as the chief advisor to the CEO in making critical business choices, including Organization Design, Business Portfolio, M&A, and Resource Allocation decisions. He also works closely with the executive management and the board of directors in communicating and driving key strategic change initiatives:
- Digital Transformation
- Growth beyond the core (Innovation, Lean Startup and New Ventures)
- Profit from the core (simplify matured complex businesses to drive market share growth and improved profitability).
Prashant Kelker
Prashant Kelker is Chief Strategy Officer of ISG, Partner of ISG Americas Consulting and a member of the ISG Executive Board (IEB). He was named to the IEB in January 2023. Prashant was appointed Chief Strategy Officer in 2018, responsible for developing the firm’s three-year strategic blueprint, and he was instrumental in the development of our highly successful ISG NEXT operating model in 2020.
In January 2023, he was named to the expanded role of Partner, Americas Consulting, bringing together all our advisory capabilities in the region to support our commercial and public sector clients in response to the growing convergence of digital technology and enterprise operating models, business processes and revenue-generating connected products and services.
Prashant joined ISG in 2012 from Accenture, initially working for our DACH business and based in Germany. He moved with his family to the United States in 2018. Prashant earned his MBA from the Indian Institute of Management in Bangalore and a BE in electronics from Bangalore University in India.
Rich Haas
Rita McGrath
Rita McGrath is a best-selling author, a sought-after advisor and speaker, and a longtime faculty member at Columbia Business School. Rita is one of the world’s top experts on strategy and innovation and is consistently ranked among the top 10 management thinkers in the world, including the #1 award for strategy by Thinkers50. McGrath’s recent book on strategic inflection points is Seeing Around Corners: How to Spot Inflection Points in Business Before They Happen (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2019). Rita is the author of four other books, including the best-selling The End of Competitive Advantage (Harvard Business Review Press, 2013).
At Columbia, Rita directs the popular Executive Education course Leading Strategic Growth and Change. She guest-lectures in a number of other courses, including the flagship Advanced Management Program, and is active in other Columbia initiatives such as the launch of its Think Bigger Innovation Hub. She also acts as faculty director for some of Columbia’s prestigious custom programs offerings, learning experiences designed specifically for individual organizations.
Rita is one of the most frequent contributors to the Harvard Business Review. Her most recent article is The Permissionless Corporation (Jan/Feb, 2023). She also publishes regularly in other premier journals such as the MIT Sloan Management Review. Her work on discovery-driven growth was praised by the late legendary management thinker Clayton Christensen as offering “some of the most important tools of management and strategy that have ever been developed.”
Rita was awarded the prestigious C. K. Prahalad award from the Strategic Management Society, an award for scholarly impact on practice. She has won many other awards for her work and impact, including the “Theory to Practice” award from the Vienna Strategy Forum, the “best paper” award from the Academy of Management Review and multiple “best book” awards for her work.
McGrath received her Ph.D. from the Wharton School (University of Pennsylvania) and has degrees with honors from Barnard College and the Columbia School of International and Public Affairs. She is active on all the main social media platforms, such as Twitter @rgmcgrath, Linked in and Instagram. For more information, visit RitaMcGrath.com.
Roopa Unnikrishnan
Roopa is SVP of Strategy and Corporate Development for IDEX. She is responsible for leading enterprise strategy and the corporate development (M&A) function. In this role, she helps to build strategy and business development capabilities for IDEX. Roopa has more than 20 years of corporate strategy experience across a variety of industries, through a mix of consulting roles and corporate leadership positions. Most recently, she served as Chief Strategy Officer for Vontier, a global industrial manufacturing company focused on smarter transportation and mobility. Previous strategy positions have included roles with Harman International, Citi, BlackRock, and Katzenbach Partners – which was formed by past members of McKinsey & Co. consulting. At Pfizer she also stepped outside her traditional strategy and innovation roles to lead the Talent and Organization capability for the pharmaceutical division. She often serves as a professional coach and is the author of the book, “The Career Catapult.”
Sky Mangin
Sky Mangin joined Emerald in October 2022 as Senior Vice President of Strategy and is responsible for supporting the Company’s overall corporate strategy and leading the implementation and performance of key strategic initiatives that drive value for all stakeholders. In this role, Sky oversees cross-functional efforts to ensure that Emerald and its brands deliver the three pillars of the Company’s growth strategy - customer centricity, 365-day engagement, and portfolio optimization.
Prior to this role, Sky led cross-functional strategic initiatives at Blend Labs and was responsible for supporting the CEO and President to set overall strategy, plan, and execute special projects. Notably, she has led post-merger integration efforts and partnered with the CFO to establish the investor relations function. Prior to Blend, she was an investment banker at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, RBC Capital Markets, and served in a Deputy Chief of Staff role at Atlas Mara.
Over the course of her career, she has become known for her strategic mind, finance expertise, and bias for action and coalition-building. Sky is an MBA graduate of The Wharton School and earned her B.A. from Occidental College. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her loved ones, traveling and learning about different cultures, and exploring new hobbies.
Stephen Von Oehsen
Founded a journal of international affairs in college; also ran Dartmouth Dialectic Society. Master’s thesis in Executive and Presidential Decision Making. He went to DC and worked in foreign relations – worked for a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Volunteered for Society of International Development, doing Lunch & Learn. He has done a lot of strategy work for membership organizations. He decided to go to business school – Kellogg. Then Carney Consulting Group. Became a consultant for CSC Index. Joined a client – Southern Glazers 18 years ago. Grown from $6B to $22B. He’s also teaching at FIU Hospitality.
Teerna Khurana
Tess Caputo
Tess Caputo joined Zoetis in February, 2020 as the Head of Corporate Strategy. Tess is responsible for driving the strategic planning process for the business, developing analyses and strategies to create long-term value for Zoetis, and executing certain strategic projects and ventures. Prior to Zoetis, Tess spent seven years at the Boston Consulting Group. As a core member of BCG’s team serving biopharma and biotech clients, Tess gained experience in corporate strategy, transaction, brand strategy and transformation topics. Prior to BCG, Tess worked for Capgemini Consulting and provided strategic counsel to pharmaceutical, biotech and vaccine manufacturing companies. Tess has an MBA from NYU Stern School of Business and a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from Duke University.
Tomas Sholes
Tom Gallo
Valerie Radford
I am an experienced executive leader who operates at the intersection of the future of work, financial security and retirement. I do things that "can't be done" and have a successful track record of translating novel concepts into growth opportunities for some of the largest financial services institutions.
I see both the vision and the details and innovate through creation (not destruction). No breaking glass here. Design thinking and agile development are my tools. I also thoroughly enjoy building new teams and creating new business models.
My interests are: Future of Work, Financial Security, Retirement Solutions, Lifetime Income, Role of Employer, Strengthening 401k, IRA, Portability, Digital Transformation, Agile Leadership.
Valery Yakubovich
Professor Valery Yakubovich oversees all the Mack Institute’s programs and day-to-day operations. He focuses on bolstering synergy between the research, teaching, and practice of innovation management within the School; fostering dialogue between corporations and academics; and connecting with our corporate and regional partners’ innovation ecosystems.
Previously, he served as the founding executive director of Penn’s Computational Social Science Lab, where he oversaw the development of an innovative IT, data, and institutional infrastructure for large-scale open collaborative social sciences. He has diverse academic experience ranging from leading a national summer work program for university students in the former Soviet Union to conducting research, teaching, consulting, and fundraising at major academic and corporate institutions in the U.S. and Europe. Professor Yakubovich was on the management faculty of the Wharton School for several years, as well as the ESSEC Business School, where he was a full Professor of Management.
Professor Yakubovich holds an MS in mathematics from Moscow State University, an MA in sociology from the University of Warwick, and a PhD in sociology from Stanford University. His research on organizational innovations and social networks has appeared in top academic and practitioner journals, including American Sociological Review, Human Relations, Organization Science, Harvard Business Review, and California Management Review, and been featured in mass media, including the Financial Times and the New York Times.
*CSO Emeritus
Vidur Bhandari
Background: post MBA, consulting for 10 years associate to partner (CPG & retail, beauty, alcohol), growth strategies, commercial excellence, marketing ROI improvement. At shiseido: strategy & value creation (improve operating profit, efficient investments) and brand specific strategies (ie profitability improvement of bare minerals; also M&A process.
Ying McPherson
Ying McPherson is chief commercial officer and responsible for the commercial strategy and the development at Unifi. In addition, Ying also leads demand and resource planning, enterprise data analytics and customer solutions and marketing departments. She was most recently chief strategy officer responsible for corporate development and overall strategy of the company.
Ying began her career at PriceWaterhouse Coopers and spent the next seven years in investment banking joining SunTrust Robinson Humphrey (now Truist), and Citizens M&A Advisory. Prior to joining Unifi, Ying held several leadership positions at WestRock, including, corporate development, finance, supply chain optimization and commercial analytics.
Ying earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting and finance from Goizueta Business School at Emory University.
Outthinker Intrapreneurs Network attendees and guests
Chris Brunone
Chris’s passion for supporting others is palpable. You see it in his dedication to developing the best in our leaders; how he fosters a vibrant service culture of new ideas and innovation; and his relentless commitment to keeping our talent engaged and fulfilled.
With a unique background in finance, sales, sales management and consulting, Chris boasts over 30 years of experience helping organizations navigate transformation. A highly-valued executive coach and mentor, he has introduced powerful development experiences and mentoring programs to Weichert that deepen our leadership pipeline and help colleagues unlock their potential.
Along with his efforts to support diversity, inclusion and learning, Chris is the architect of our Legendary Service strategy, which evolved from a customer service training program into a fully-integrated human operating system of skill development, performance management practices, feedback sharing and colleague recognition programs. This cohesive framework is ingrained in our corporate DNA, becoming an undeniable catalyst for our success.
Chris Gilbert
An analytical, hands-on engineer with expertise in Engineering principles as well as the ability to identify root cause and make informed decisions. Chris is a problem solver who enjoys using creative thinking while remaining calm under pressure and a quick learner. His excellent leadership skills combined with an understanding of mechanical principles help him understand the needs of both customers and his organization in order to be effective in business.
Darcy Dement
Darcy Dement is Senior Director of Technologies Platform Management at NI. She has held several positions in general management, business leadership, and product management and has experience in starting up, scaling up, and turning around organizations. She applies her passion for resolving our global challenges through science and technology as an advisor to B2B startups. She is multilingual with experience working and living in the US and Europe.
Fariba Marvasti
Fariba Marvasti is a Chief Information Officer, who is dedicated to driving digital transformation and technology strategies on a global scale. She has a remarkable track record of achieving capabilities that enable Fortune 100 businesses to gain market competitiveness and agility. Her strengths lie in aligning business and technical objectives, promoting innovation, and modernizing platforms while prioritizing change management and fostering cultural collaboration. She consistently executes her tasks decisively, effectively resolving complex issues and delivering on her commitments.
As an award-winning and straightforward leader, she excels in effectively communicating statuses, issues, and necessary decisions to senior business leaders in a clear and concise manner. She guides her organization through significant IT challenges and ensures the stability of platforms during ongoing business transitions.
Furthermore, she is known for creating a culture of inclusion and accountability, adept at removing obstacles to progress and growth while consistently delivering results either on or ahead of expectations. She possesses the ability to build bridges with cross-functional teams, establishing connectivity and instilling trust and collaboration among team members. Her ability to inspire large, underperforming information technology departments to deliver excellence to customers is truly commendable.
Lara Ramdin
Versatile and passionate leader with 20 years global experience in product development and innovation in the beauty, fragrance & beverage industry
• Demonstrated ability in leading global, diverse, cross-functional teams and leading organizational change
• Develops, builds and motivates high-performing teams
• Results-oriented, with a proven track record in strategy development and execution to deliver profitable brand growth
• Expert in transition management
• A natural communicator, networker and collaborator, connecting people and ideas, delivering results
Laura Devoni
My name is Laura Devoni. I am Director, Business Analytics and Government Affairs for Algoma Steel Inc. I have worked with Algoma since 2004 and am currently responsible for Algoma’s
government affairs activities, marketing and market development activites and trade matters. Since joining Algoma I have represented the company’s trade and public policy interests as a member of the Trade and Public Policy Committee and Climate Committee of the Canadian Steel Producers Association, and through participation in other select committees and organizations with focus on international trade, manufacturing and the global steel industry.
Ronak Parikh
Ronak is currently the Director of Corporate Strategy at Amplify, a K-12 next generation curriculum and assessment company in New York. Prior to Amplify, Ronak has held roles at The Bridgespan Group (Bain's social impact consulting spinoff), the Gates Foundation, LearnZillion, and Deloitte. He began his career as a 12th-grade English teacher in Washington DC through Teach for America. Ronak received his MBA from The Wharton School, his MS in Education Policy from the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education, and his BS from Georgetown University.
Travis White
Travis White is the Sr. Director of Corporate Strategy and Corporate Development at NI. Prior to corporate strategy, he’s held key leadership positions in NI’s semiconductor business unit and product management organization as well as management positions in engineering, applications, and technical marketing. He holds a Bachelors of Science in Electrical Engineering from Rice University.
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