Speakers

Linda Nelson is a Loyalty Strategist with Progressive Insurance. She supports Progressive’s Loyalty Rewards Program, and consults on and implements program updates designed to engage Progressive’s customers within their personal portfolio.  As part of her passionate support of Loyalty, she manages Progressive’s Loyalty Brand Partnerships in their Perkshare Program, which is a popular component of the Loyalty Rewards Program.  Linda has been with Progressive since 1999, with experience in Operations and Portfolio Management.  Prior to Progressive, Linda worked with Hallmark, Inc.

Jennifer Wright, AuD is the VP of Marketing of Signia with a focus on building industry-leading marketing and business support. Jennifer has over 15 years of marketing, product management, training, and sales experience in the hearing aid industry. 

Traci Hoey has over eighteen years of experience in the theatre exhibition business with twelve of those years at Starplex Cinemas as Director of Marketing, and seven at Cinergy Entertainment.

Ms. Hoey’s responsibilities include leading a team of three home office marketing staff and Sales Managers at each location. She oversees all marketing efforts, including integrated marketing communications and branding utilizing strategic goals and data-driven analysis and she conceptualizes and executes advertising campaigns with emphasis on increasing traffic, revenue, and brand loyalty. Ms. Hoey oversees all art direction and creative design development of all brand identities, literature, menu boards, interactive, and visual identity. Ms. Hoey and her staff plan grand openings, ground breakings, and various events as well as coordinate all press relations. Ms. Hoey is a graduate of the University of North Texas.

 

Jessie Rosenberg, Ulta Beauty’s Loyalty Strategic Partnerships Manager, is a loyalty lover and beauty enthusiast hailing from Nashville, Tennessee. With over 5 years of corporate retail experience at major retailers, she currently works to help create and manage overall partnership loyalty strategies, with a key focus on Ulta Beauty at Target, for Ulta Beauty’s world-renowned loyalty program, Ultamate Rewards®. She works to drive execution of key strategies, metrics, and optimize partnership performance to underpin loyalty objectives and deliver meaningful benefits and experiences to Ulta Beauty’s 39M+ loyalty members.

Robin Ruttle is the Senior Director of Loyalty & Partnerships at Sonesta Hotels International, where she oversees the Sonesta Travel Pass program, as well as strategic loyalty partnerships. Robin has over 15  years of brand, CRM, loyalty, and integrated marketing experience across many consumer-facing industries including retail, hospitality, consumer packaged goods, and media. Prior to joining Sonesta, Robin led the loyalty program at Stop & Shop, a leading grocer in the Northeast, with over 400 stores throughout NY, CT, RI, and MA. She designed and launched the company’s new loyalty program, Stop & Shop GO Rewards, which was recognized by Newsweek as one of America’s Best Loyalty Programs in 2021. Robin lives in Boston with her husband, Nabil, and their Havanese puppy Mocha Joe. In her free time, she enjoys running, visiting the MFA, reading (and watching) British murder mysteries, and traveling as much as possible.
 

Jordan Sequeira is a dynamic leader, driven by a competitive spirit and passion to grow along side a team anchored in trust. He takes pride in developing award winning marketing solutions that break through while keeping human insights at the core of the idea. Over the last 5 years he has been able to support IKEA Canada through market expansion, brand communication strategy, development and production, brand platform development and rollout and customer engagement and loyalty management. When he’s not assembling a KALLAX you can find him walking his two Siberian huskies or trying out a new recipe from TikTok.
 

Mike LiBassi is a marketing manager supporting growth and loyalty initiatives within Verizon’s business organization. Over his 27-year career with Verizon, Mike has held various roles in sales, field operations, leadership development, and marketing. Each stop on Mike’s journey has always afforded the opportunity to directly impact business customers of all sizes from all industries. His passion for serving his customers energizes him as he focuses on delivering the best possible outcome for every customer interaction he is accountable for.
 

Sarah Sylvester, EVP of Marketing for Victoria’s Secret, is a strategic and creative marketing professional with over 15 years of experience in generating and executing highly successful brand campaigns that drive brand relevancy and profitable growth. She’s known for putting the customer first and driving a holistic marketing strategy with experience in brand values and positioning, digital, social, app, in-store, experiential, and direct mail.
 

Dani is responsible for developing strategic Go-to-Market plans and implementation for the FordPass Rewards Loyalty program members, dealers, and field teams, working to create an always-on relationship while improving member experiences.

Catana began her career with Ford Motor Company in 1996 as a Zone Manager in the San Francisco Region, responsible for developing plans to aid dealers in achieving their sales goals, market share, customer satisfaction targets and profitability. She has held many roles in Marketing and Sales, including developing numerous Variable marketing programs, Customer Relationship Management campaigns, and overseeing the global design of Ford’s Owner website.

Catana also held roles in Customer Experience, launching the FordPass app globally and as the Ford F-150 and Super Duty Trucks Experience Owner.

A Detroit native with two teenage daughters at home, Dani enjoys spending time on Lake St. Clair with her family and friends.    
 

Nishanth Mandaara is the Director of Product Management at 7-Eleven. He leads the product teams that build E2E Delivery experience (7NOW).  He has been with 7-Eleven for more than 6 years and leads product teams in building various customer-facing experiences in driving loyalty, frictionless checkout and Digital Payments.
Prior to joining 7-Eleven, Nishanth had worked as the product and technology leader at a startup offering tablet-based POS solutions to SMBs. He is passionate about gaining deep understanding of customer needs and leading teams to deliver products and experiences that address them.

Nishanth holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science from the JNTU, India and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
 

Denise Holt understands the power of human insights in driving smart strategy and business growth. With over 20 years of experience in consumer loyalty, brand and creative strategy, consumer insights, human-centered design and business strategy, Denise leads ICF Next’s strategy, experience, research and insights team.

Prior to ICF Next, she ran her own strategy consulting practice, was Director of Strategy & Branding at Optum, and spent over a decade in marketing and brand planning roles within the loyalty space. Clients have included Stop & Shop, Hilton Hotels & Resorts, Amtrak, Metropolitan Airports Commission/MSP International Airport, Best Buy, Advance Auto Parts, UnitedHealth Group, Delta Air Lines, Carlson Hotels Worldwide, and more.

Denise infuses business strategy with the human element by leveraging consumer motivations and insights to create memorable brand personalities, engaging experiences and inspired behavior change. She is passionate about uncovering personal stories and insights that enable organizations to connect on a more emotional, meaningful level with their customers.

Paul Hebert is a Director of Enterprise Strategy for Cheetah Digital – a consumer loyalty and engagement agency/platform provider.

Paul is a writer, speaker and consultant and is widely considered an expert on loyalty, influence, motivation, and incentives. He focuses on influencing behaviors of consumers, employees, and channel partners to help drive business results and create emotional connections. Paul is a Certified Engagement Practitioner (CEP) by the Enterprise Engagement Alliance, holds an Incentive Professional (IP) certification from the Incentive Marketing Association and is finishing up his Certified Loyalty Marketing Professional (CLMP^TM).

Using proven motivational theory, behavioral economics, and social psychology he has driven extraordinary company performance for clients such as Michelin, AT&T, Carolina Power & Light, Redbox and others.
 

Garrett is a long-time gaming professional who has spent more than 10 years in the industry with Caesars Entertainment, Penn Entertainment, The Cordish Companies, and DraftKings.  He has experience with digital and direct marketing, analytics and gaming loyalty programs.  During his time at Penn, Garrett oversaw the merge of the Marquee Rewards and mychoice loyalty programs, and has been instrumental in launching the Dynasty Rewards program at DraftKings. 
 

Roger is the Director of Client Services with Marigold. His responsibilities include providing actionable advisory to Marigold’s global clients allowing them to maximize business opportunities.  He has worked with various retailers and over 200 airlines to develop pioneering strategies in loyalty, e-Commerce, distribution, ancillary revenue generation, customer centricity, and advanced loyalty applications such as revenue-based redemption.                          
 
Roger was awarded one of the first recognized certifications in loyalty marketing from the Loyalty Academy. He is a trained intelligence analyst and holds a postgraduate degree in Intelligence and International Relations from The University of Salford in the United Kingdom and a BA in International Relations from Florida International University.
                                                                                               
A 20-year commercial aviation veteran, Roger is an internationally recognized commercial aviation expert and loyalty marketing specialist. Roger was a co-founder of the airline industry’s first conference and research organization dedicated to frequent flier, ancillary revenue, and payments managers. Roger is also the creator of an innovative hyperlink loyalty concept using Blockchain and an early proponent of lifestyle loyalty reward experiences. Roger was Head of Loyalty and Alliances at Caribbean Airlines and worked in several airline roles, including sales, market intelligence, network planning, and customer service.
 

Derek Weidl is the Director of Loyalty at Parkland. Derek has been creating remarkable, data-driven customer experiences for over 15 years through various loyalty, e-commerce, and digital marketing leadership roles. After previously working in grocery, non-profit agencies, and even broadcast documentaries, Derek has brought his customer-centric lens to the gas and convenience industry with Parkland Corporation, where he leads the Journie Rewards program team across Canada, US and International markets.
 

Phil Cottell is a Director of Customer Experience for Progressive Insurance, which has more than 25 million Auto, Recreational Lines and Property customers.  Phil leverages customer insights, behavioral analytics and disciplined measurement in developing the strategies that optimize the Onboarding & Renewal journey and the Progressive Loyalty Rewards Program.  He has been with Progressive for over twenty years and has previous experience leading Operations, Workforce Management, Marketing and Process Analytics.  Prior to Progressive, Phil spent four years as an Auditor at Ernst & Young LLP.

Stephanie Sayfie Aagaard serves as the Collaborative Innovator General at Whitman Family Development and Bal Harbour Shops in Miami, Florida. She founded the ACCESS Membership and Rewards Program to celebrate the Shops’ loyal customers on their curated journey through the roster of retail, restaurants and luxury partners. Steph developed the Bal Harbour Shops app and created the Virtual Series for the company as well. She heads up the sponsorship program as well as creates innovative programming for the Shops. She secures external partnerships and produces large scale partner events including the Official Miami Super Bowl Host Committee VIP Party at Bal Harbour Shops for more than two thousand notables from the worlds of business, entertainment, media, sports and fashion.

Stephanie has collaborated with Bal Harbour Shops for decades before she joined the official team. While serving as Senior Director of Major Gifts, Corporate Relations, Marketing and Events at the University of Miami’s The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis and The Buoniconti Fund, Steph created Destination Fashion, an interactive entertainment and fashion event at the Shopping Center.

In Steph’s spare time, she has covered the social, celebrity, sports, fashion and charity scene in South Florida for her Steph Sez column every Sunday in The Miami Herald for more than twenty years. Steph created, produced and hosted her own entertainment television show, Steph Sez, where she interviewed boldfaced names from George Clooney to Tiger Woods to Mikhail Gorbachev. 

She also hosts the monthly Steph Sez Book Club with Books & Books. Stephanie has received numerous accolades during her career and for philanthropic work from many organizations. Stephanie is married and is the proud mother of two sons.  

Jennifer is the CRM and Loyalty Manager at Giant Food, the leading grocer in the Washington metropolitan area, with 165 stores throughout Washington D.C., Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia. She leads personalization strategy and implementation working to drive sales, build loyalty, and amplify the customer experience.

Jennifer helped launch Giant’s digital loyalty program, Flexible Rewards, which has been recognized by Newsweek as one of America’s Best Loyalty Programs for three consecutive years, since its debut in 2020.
Jennifer lives in Havre de Grace, Maryland, named “one of the best small towns to visit in America” by Smithsonian Magazine. She and her husband John enjoy traveling, boating and all things outdoors.

 

Sabrina’s hospitality career spans over 30+ years.  She started her career at The Fairmont Royal York where she held various roles in Accounting and Tour & Travel Sales before moving to Corporate Headquarters in 2000.  Within Corporate, she held progressive sales and marketing roles before joining the Loyalty team.  It didn’t take long for Sabrina to realize that this was where her true passion was, and she never looked back.   She now has 15+ years of loyalty experience and uses her background in marketing, sales, and customer service to support her in her current role as Vice President, Loyalty Programs & Partnerships where she determines the strategy, marketing, and operation of Accor’s B2C and B2B loyalty and certificate programs along with loyalty partnerships for North and Central America.
 
Following the acquisition of FRHI in 2016 by Accor, Sabrina was one of the key leaders responsible for developing the global strategy and transition plan for the integration of the Fairmont, Raffles and Swissotel brand loyalty programs into Accor’s loyalty program. She also developed and oversaw the hotel training, implementation and rollout. In addition to this, Sabrina was selected to be part of the global team responsible for the development and launch of ALL – Accor Live Limitless – Accor’s current lifestyle loyalty program. Sabrina is proud to oversee a team of dedicated loyalty and partnership experts who provide ongoing support to over 100 hotels and resorts throughout North and Central America, ensuring that they are providing an elevated, personalized experience for our valued members across the entire portfolio of brands. 
 
Sabrina has her ‘CLMP’ designation and was recently recognized by HSMAI as one of their 2022 Top 25 Extraordinary Minds in Sales, Marketing, Revenue Optimization, and Distribution.

Adam and his team lead Sleep Number’s InnerCircle Rewards loyalty program as well as all customer-facing email and SMS marketing campaigns. Adam joined Sleep Number in 2016 and has overseen exponential growth in loyalty engagement and brand advocacy.  Adam lives in Edina, MN with his wife and two daughters.
 

As VP of Client Services, Martha is responsible for managing Kobie’s Travel & Hospitality portfolio. She develops relationships to deeply understand her clients’ businesses and drive tailored solutions that both garner loyalty from brands’ most valuable customers and inform broader strategic marketing. She specializes in strategic planning, omnichannel customer experience, and change management. Martha has over 15 years of experience within the marketing industry and has worked with a number of national and global brands across travel and hospitality, retail, pharma, entertainment, financial services and more. 
 

Chris is a co-founder and Chief Revenue Officer at Flaunt, the world's first enterprise web3 loyalty software company. In early 2022, Chris and his co-founders joined venture studio, High Alpha, to launch Flaunt. Flaunt helps brands drive incremental revenue and deeper customer loyalty using modern strategies and web3 technology. Prior to Flaunt, Chris spent a decade in advertising at Publicis, Centro (now Basis Technologies), and MiQ, leading enterprise client engagements with brands such as Progressive, The Home Depot, TaxAct and more. He most recently served as MiQ's US Vice President of Client Partnerships.
 

Laura leads Cambridge Mobile Telematics' global customer relationships, helping them achieve UBI and Telematics operational excellence using performance data and actionable insights. Prior to CMT, Laura spent over 15 years in the consumer insights industry, most recently as a member of the executive leadership team of Profitero, an eCommerce analytics firm and prior to that, she was at Nielsen BASES. Throughout her career, she has led global Client Service teams and has championed the use of technology to elevate the speed, actionability, and quality of data to improve business decisions. Laura is an alumna of Wellesley College and has her MBA from Thunderbird.
 

Jamie currently oversees Idomoo's Strategic Accounts team and works closely with over 20 enterprise brands across the industry spectrum. With over 10 years working in the Data & MarTech space, Jamie has a passion for uncovering new technologies to help large brands engage their customers at scale. Jamie currently lives in Brooklyn, NY with his wife and son and is on a mission to discover New York's best slice of pizza. 
 

Natalia is a CRM and Loyalty Marketing Specialist at Giant Food, where she combines her love for food with her interest in consumer behavior and analytics. As someone who grew up in 8 countries, and studied in Hong Kong for university, Natalia is curious about the world and all its opportunities. Her greatest passion lies in sustainability, and her life goal is to positively impact the environment and society.
 

Stacy is an accomplished marketing leader with over 15 years of experience. After graduating from the University of Arizona, Stacy moved to Colorado where she kick started her career in PR and then moved to ad agencies where she helped lead strategy and execution for food and beverage accounts including Domino’s, Jimmy John’s and Mike’s Hard Lemonade before taking her role as Director of Brand Marketing at Noodles & Company. Stacy has accelerated Noodles’ loyalty, CRM, paid media, and integrated marketing capabilities in her position. Stacy is passionate about building brands and challenging herself, and others, to come with fresh perspectives. 
 

Carrie Trotter is the Vice President of Loyalty, CRM and Partnerships for AMC Theatres, which is the largest movie exhibition company in the United States, the largest in Europe and the largest throughout the world with approximately 950 theatres and 10,500 screens across the globe. AMC has propelled innovation in the exhibition industry by deploying its Signature power-recliner seats; delivering enhanced food and beverage choices; generating greater guest engagement through its loyalty and subscription programs, website and mobile apps; offering premium large format experiences and playing a wide variety of content including the latest Hollywood releases and independent programming.
 
In her role, Trotter leads AMC’s efforts to enhance experiences for their guests through AMC Stubs loyalty program, guest analytics, customer research and strategic partnerships. AMC Stubs has over 28 million households enrolled for benefits for every movie fan and enables a personalized, targeted marketing effort for those guests from a digital and in-theatre experience. Prior to AMC, she guided various retail clients on how to be on the inside track – inside the mind of the consumer, the needs of her partners and on the edge of innovation.  She’s passionate and enthusiastic about every movie, every theatre location and, of course, every movie snack!
 

Aiman Feza is the Senior Manager of Brand & Communications for Scene+, focused on delivering awareness, comprehension, and relevance for the growing program. In her current role, she leads the strategy and implementation of partner brand launch campaigns, new functionality launches, and market research to guide the program. Prior to her role at Scene+, she led various shopper marketing and brand initiatives at Coca-Cola for major Canadian retailers and loyalty programs.
 

Amanda Hitchcock is the Marketing Director for Deposits and Invest CRM at Ally.  In her current role, she is responsible for creating, developing and managing customer journeys focused on cementing customer relationships, revenue growth and retention. Hitchcock holds over 14 years of experience in CRM and is a strategic thinker with a deep understanding of the customer lifecycle, who thrives on implementing successful data-driven marketing strategies.

Throughout her 10+ years at Ally, she has held various roles in Marketing and has experience supporting customer marketing for multiple lines of businesses.  Prior to joining Ally, Hitchcock was a Campaign Manager for a small entrepreneurial marketing company focused on providing consulting to high affiliate sports brands and partners.  Hitchcock earned an Organizational Communications Bachelor’s degree from University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

Felipe Avila joined The Container Store in 2017 as Vice President of Marketing, where he is responsible for leading the Marketing and CRM teams. He led a cross-functional team responsible for designing and launching the company's reimagined loyalty program, "Organized Insider."

Mr. Avila has over 20 years of domestic and international experience in brand strategy and marketing, previously holding positions with Mattel, Arthur D. Little, and, most recently, Brinker International. He received his MBA in Marketing from The Anderson School at UCLA.

Jessica Veit is the Manager of Member Engagement and Lifecycle Marketing at AMC Theatres. She is focused on maximizing member engagement across all three tiers of the AMC Stubs program, which includes understanding key emotional drivers, benefit prioritization, lapsed member activation and acquisition opportunities. Prior to AMC, she led loyalty programs, promotions, and localized marketing for another well-known consumer-driven brand. She’s results-driven and focused while maintaining a positive attitude and excitement about the sensory experience that a bucket of delicious, buttery popcorn can evoke!

Don earned his Ph.D. from Florida State University and spent 11 years in academia teaching statistics, modeling and program evaluation. In his 16 years with Brierley, he has designed and/or contributed to over 150 customer loyalty programs/engagement solutions, and he is author of numerous articles and a regular speaker at industry conferences and workshops. He serves as the Global Consulting Officer for Capillary Technologies and is the Chief Marketing Officer for Capillary’s US and European markets. An avid theater aficionado, his passion for presentation informs marketing data analytics, where he eschews the traditional view in favor of a dynamic storytelling model that brings numbers to life through contextualization and the generation of actionable insights.

Vince is a process-oriented strategic thinker with experience developing digital products and optimizing the digital guest experience. Working at Tims for over 6 years, he’s held roles in both Operations and Digital functions, with his current focus on innovating the drive thru experience. With expertise in mobile, loyalty and AI technology, as well as restaurant operations, Vince’s specialty is in bringing to life solutions that mesh well with the restaurant teams that interact with guests daily. He has his HBA from Ivey Business School.
 

Barbara Hagen is the Vice President of Sales and Marketing at ThriftBooks, the world’s largest online independent seller of used books.  She is a data-driven marketer with an exceptional track record of success at Fortune 100 companies spanning the retail, CPG, and tech industries including executive marketing positions at Microsoft, Target, and Best Buy. Hagen brings 20+ years of experience with proven expertise in retail and consumer marketing; brand strategy; multichannel marketing; segmentation and analytics; consumer insights; and media and communications. 

She has an undergraduate degree in marketing from Syracuse University, an MBA in international marketing from NYU’s Stern School of Business, and a Master of Science in data analytics, also from NYU’s Stern School.
Originally from the East Coast, Hagen kept moving west, living in Minneapolis for several years, and settling down in sunny Seattle (yes, for three months!) with her husband, twin college-bound teenage girls, 14-year-old professional acting son, and their two overly loved cats, Bubbles and Bella.
 

Dena Pizzutti is the Senior Marketing Manager of Personalization and Optimization for Wawa, a chain of nearly 1,000 convenience retail stores in the Mid-Atlantic and Florida. With 14 years of loyalty marketing experience, she currently leads the Wawa Rewards loyalty program, targeted marketing, and digital optimization for Wawa and previously worked on the CVS ExtraCare program.  Dena holds an MBA from Boston College and a Doctorate in Business Administration from Temple University.
 

Connecting with consumers is the name of the game for Christy Johnson, Certified Angus Beef’s senior director of branding. In her role, she enjoys strategizing with design, media and advertising professionals to create pieces that resonate with the shopping audience, and developing the brand’s consumer loyalty program, Steakholder Rewards^™. A big part of her success comes from her love for research and passion for not just marketing, but marketing intelligently.
 
A cowgirl at heart, Christy originally joined the brand’s supply development team in 1997 after interning at cattle ranches and graduating from The Ohio State University with a degree in animal science. Her skills in coordinating events and training programs led her to a broader role with the marketing team, where she directed development of rancher profiles and video resources, and training programs for retailers, foodservice sales teams and restaurant waitstaff.
 
Christy resides in Dalton with her husband, Allen, and their four teenagers. After work hours, she’s usually found raising livestock and cheering on the kids at 4-H shows and sporting events.
 
Favorite beef cut: don’t judge her … it’s the tender filet mignon.
 

Hedy’s passion is digital growth and customer experience with a decade of wins in driving digital transformation for various brands. Currently, as the Head of Digital at Blaze Pizza (300+ locations), Hedy leads a multi-year digital transformation roadmap and oversees performance marketing and ecommerce channels.

Prior to Blaze, Hedy was the Director of Digital Experience at Papa Murphy's International (1200+ locations) where she played a key role in building the digital business by launching various programs, including paid media, online ordering platforms, SEO, and developing the marketing technology roadmap.  Prior to Blaze, she was at a fast-paced digital agency, Adpearance, overseeing digital marketing for clients like Toyota and Jeep.

Hedy has been recognized across industries including being named to Adweek's Executive Mentee program, Brand Innovators' 40 under 40, and University of Oregon’s 40 Under 40 advisory board. Hedy lives in Portland, OR, where she enjoys spending time hiking outdoors, painting, and discovering the next best whiskey bar!

Vicky Radke leads loyalty marketing at Amtrak. Her team drives customer engagement, ridership and revenue through the Amtrak Guest Rewards program, the co-branded credit card program, loyalty partnerships and CRM.
 

Yaqub Baiani is VP, Digital Product Management & Design at 7-Eleven, Inc. Yaqub leads the digital ecosystem for all customer facing products including 7Rewards, Digital Wallet, Mobile Checkout, Fuel Loyalty and more. In his role, he is responsible for building and launching new digital experiences, features and capabilities for both customers as well as Franchisees. Those experiences help to grow the overall member base, scan rate, merchandise sales, basket size, repeat customers and customer satisfaction.

Prior to joining 7-Eleven, Yaqub was Sr. Manager of Digital Product Management at Capital One where he led Machine Learning and the At-Home experience for the flagship product, Auto Navigator. Yaqub has an extensive background creating meaningful product experiences by leveraging human-centered design, customer back problem solving, journey mapping, blueprinting and digital innovation. Yaqub is enthusiastic in creating a truly best-in-class Delivery & Pick Up experience in 7NOW that will WOW customers. Yaqub is an avid traveler and his favorite place to visit is Japan.

Yaqub holds an MBA in business management and operations management from St. Edwards University in Austin, TX and a BA in Business and Chemistry from Austin College in Sherman, TX.
 

John Sellers is the digital executive in charge of Rewards at BofA. In this role, John oversees all reward programs; including consumer, wealth management and small business relationship rewards programs and credit card rewards redemption. In 2022, Preferred Rewards was named ‘America’s Best Loyalty Program’ by Newsweek and ‘Best Bank Customer Loyalty Program’ by Motley Fool. 

Prior to his current role, John had worked with other products including; Vehicle Lending, Investments, and Credit Card.  While in Card, John was the Director of Preferred Products and New Account Acquisition where he was responsible for all mass affluent BofA and Merrill branded products. John is the architect of the award winning Travel Rewards Card and led the effort to bring Chip technology to BofA cards.

Before his product roles, John spent the first half of his career in Credit Risk, where he was the Director of Risk Strategies. In this role, John oversaw existing account management strategies which included; line management, balance stimulation (cash and retail), authorizations (overlimit and delinquent) and other payment related strategies.

John began his career with BofA via the MBNA acquisition. He has an undergraduate degree from the University of Delaware where he was a Finance major. He also has an MBA from Penn State’s Smeal College of Business where he graduated with distinction and is a member of the Beta Gamma Sigma academic honor society.

John is involved in several community organizations. He is a lifesaver for the Blood Bank of DE and coaches several youth sport teams in Kennett Square, PA where he resides with his wife and three kids.

Ken Bott has led PDQ’s Digital and Loyalty Strategy for PDQ since joining the company in August of 2020.  His role focuses on building sales and loyalty to amplify the brand experience in a digitally focused, guest-centric way. Ken has been in the Digital and Loyalty space throughout his 30+ years of working in the hospitality/travel verticals. 
 
Prior to PDQ, Ken held executive roles across Loyalty, CRM and Digital Sales at Darden Restaurants, Bloomin’ Brands, IHG (Intercontinental Hotels Group), Continental Airlines and USAir. Ken is a graduate of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, holding degrees in Management and Business Administration. 
 

Jessica Kearney is Assistant Vice President of the Travelers Institute, the public policy division of Travelers. In this role, she leads corporate thought leadership initiatives on public policy issues of interest to the property casualty insurance sector, as well as the financial services industry more broadly. Her portfolio has included work addressing auto safety, autonomous vehicles, disaster preparedness, the economy and cybersecurity. She also serves as a member of the company’s Autonomous Vehicles Working Group.

Kearney is co-creator, producer and guest host for the Travelers Institute’s webinar series, which seeks to help risk professionals navigate today’s biggest challenges in insurance, business and leadership. She leads operations and initiatives for the Travelers Institute, presents at client and industry conferences, and was named to Insurance Business America’s annual Hot 100 list for 2022.

Prior to joining Travelers, Kearney held several positions at the Council on Foreign Relations, a nonpartisan foreign policy think tank and membership organization based in New York City. She served as Special Assistant to the President and Assistant Director for Foundation Relations, among other roles. Kearney has a Master of Public Administration degree with a concentration in public finance from the University of Connecticut, where she is a member of the School of Public Policy’s Alumni Council and chair of the Awards Committee. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism from Northeastern University and completed studies at New York University.

Mike McDowell is the Vice President of Loyalty Programs and Partnerships at Parkland.  In his role, Mike is responsible for the customer loyalty strategy and driving organic growth of the business with the Journie Rewards program in the Canadian, International and US markets.  Previous to joining Parkland Mike was SVP, Client Development & Partnerships at Bond Brand Loyalty where he led clients in driving positive outcomes through large international loyalty and CX programs.  Mike was instrumental in setting up the Journie Rewards program in the Canadian market for Parkland as part of Bond.  Prior to Bond, Mike spent 11 years in progressively senior sales and marketing roles at Blackberry.
 

Shawn has over 20 years of progressive experience in loyalty marketing, CRM and loyalty management across multiple verticals including financial services, retail, entertainment and grocery. He is currently Vice President, Loyalty for Empire Company Limited, joining the organization in 2018. In this role, he is responsible for overseeing loyalty management, loyalty marketing and partnerships.   

Prior to Sobeys, he was Vice President at SCENE. While at SCENE he was accountable for the day-to-day operations of the SCENE program, for leading the program's digital strategy and for developing strategic partnerships. Prior to SCENE, Shawn was Director of the Hbc Rewards program, at the Hudson’s Bay Company. Before moving to the Hudson’s Bay Company, Shawn worked at American Express leading communications and partnerships for the Membership Rewards program. 

Shawn lives in Toronto and holds an MBA from the Schulich School of Business. 
 

Amanda Jamerson is recognized as a Woman to Watch & Role Model for Inclusion Hospitality by the Travel & Leisure Index and has over a decade of hospitality experience. With a multifaceted 14+ year career based in customer experience, marketing and eCommerce, she has remained committed to blending customer needs with marketing and technology to drive the business forward. She is a passionate leader focused on mentoring, developing and inspiring people in their careers and she pushes boundaries to create a diverse and equitable work environment.
 
Currently a Sr. Director of Hilton Honors, known as an award-winning guest loyalty program for Hilton’s portfolio of brands, comprising of more than 7,100 properties and over 150 million members. Amanda is responsible for developing a comprehensive multi-year program strategy that expands Hilton Honors across core loyalty segments and key enterprise growth areas. Leveraging customer-driven research and data, she oversees the evolution of member benefits and unlocks brand positioning to future-proof and propel Hilton Honors forward. Amanda is a graduate of Grand Valley State University with a bachelor’s degree in advertising and minor in hospitality and tourism management. 
 
When not working she is a full-time wife, mother, and travel enthusiast. Amanda lives every day by the Jane Goodall quote “What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide the difference you want to make.”
 

Vanessa Lisnard is the Program Manager of Commercial Strategy at Aristocrat Technologies, Inc., the world’s leader in gaming content and technology. As a certified Project Manager and years of hospitality and gaming strategy experience, Vanessa is instrumental in leading the gaming industry’s first B2B loyalty program: Aristocrat’s Reel Returns.  

Vanessa graduated from Loyola University of Chicago with her bachelor’s in public relations and communications and received her MBA from Louisiana State University. She resides in Las Vegas with her husband, Jimmy and son, Luca, and their two dogs. 

 

 
Elizabeth Tarantino is a Digital Manager at Bank of America for the Preferred Rewards Program that provides exclusive rewards for clients at Bank of America.  In her role as Preferred Rewards Associate Readiness program manager, she is responsible for building and coordinating initial and ongoing training efforts about the Preferred Rewards program for employees at Bank of America across the enterprise, ensuring engagement in all stages of the employee lifecycle. In 2022, Preferred Rewards was named ‘America’s Best Loyalty Program’ by Newsweek and  ‘Best Bank Customer Loyalty Program’ by Motley Fool.
 
Liz began her career with Bank of America via MBNA in 2001 as a contact center associate in Brunswick, Maine.  Prior to her current role, she was an Academy Program Design Consultant for the Academy at Bank of America, responsible for development of continuing education materials and communications, specializing in sales and credit card related topics and initiatives.  Liz also coordinated as a Subject Matter Expert on project work and initiatives and updates impacting the Advanced Client Solutions Organization as well as the development of New Hire Education materials.  In her 21+ years of service Liz has served in various capacities at Bank of America including Academy Program Design Consultant, Team Leader, Sales and Support Specialist, ACEE, Credit Acquisition Lender and Associate New Hire Educator, and led training efforts through the Bank of America/MBNA merger. 
 
Liz grew up in and resides in Cumberland, Maine, where she is an active volunteer in her community, completing on average over 400 hours of volunteer service annually, and has been recognized with the President’s Volunteer Service Award for the past 17 years consecutively. Liz is passionate about community reinvestment and affinity activities. She is an Officer and board member for the Cumberland Farmer’s Club, recently completed a term as a board member for the Frannie Peabody Center and is a frequent AB+ plasma donor at the American Red Cross.  Liz has served as the Community Officer for the Bank of America Affinity group: Maine/New Hampshire LGBT+ Pride for over 5 years.
 

Pam Erlichman is the Chief Evangelist Officer for Jebbit.  With over 25 years of marketing and client relations experience, Pam is responsible for helping Jebbit clients and the industry as a whole understand the value of zero party data and how to use it to drive business outcomes.

Prior to joining Jebbit, Pam was the Vice President of Marketing for Oracle Data Cloud which included the creation and growth of Oracle Data Cloud’s industry firsts The Data Hotline and The Data Lab brands; providing data strategy and education to brand, media and agency partners.  Pam joined Oracle Data Cloud via the Datalogix acquisition, where she created and grew the marketing function from its inception.  Prior to Datalogix, Pam worked at Digitas, leading relationships with world class brands including Delta Air Lines, AT&T, FedEx, Ahold USA, Celebrity Cruise Lines and Progressive Insurance.

Murilo Mello is the Product Manager of Loyalty, Offers, Payments and Drive-Thru at Tim Hortons Digital. Working at RBI for the last 6 years, he is currently responsible for the roadmap, development, and execution of many digital innovations. With over 10 years of experience in software development and product management, he’s passionate about using technology to improve the customer experience and drive business growth. Murilo was born and raised in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and holds a BSc in Computer Science from Mackenzie Presbyterian University.
 

Claudia is a consummate hospitality professional with a career that spans 25 years. Her field experience ranges  from technology, reservations, e-distribution, revenue management, operations, digital marketing and data management. Her executive management and branding experience comes from a 10-year role with Hard Rock International where she opened and oversaw revenue and data  strategy for 26 hotels around the world. In her 4+ years as Sr. Vice President of Revenue Strategy for Margaritaville, Claudia and her team have focused on future proofing the brand on all-things revenue, data, technology and loyalty.​
 
Claudia has extensive experience in the creation, deployment and optimization of initiatives that enhance the revenue capture and data processing power of the organization with staggering results. Claudia speaks regularly about data management and innovation at annual conferences. In her free time, she dances, knits and draws on walls with sharpie!
 

Elizabeth McNeil is the Director of Partnerships for Scene+, helping transform the program into one of Canada’s leading lifestyle loyalty programs. In her role today she oversees the retail partnerships portfolio with brands such as Apple, Best Buy, Bakkt, Blackhawk, Empire, Home Hardware and Rakuten. Formerly Elizabeth has worked on a variety of loyalty programs for leading Canadian retailers including Scotia Rewards, Air Miles and Plum Rewards. Her focus is on driving innovation and reinvention to enable established programs to reach new heights.

Shannon brings 20+ years of loyalty consulting experience across industries partnering with global market leaders including Adidas, UPS, American Express, Nike, Citi, and Home Depot to define and launch game changing programs.

Her experience spans B2B, B2C and B2B2C program design. Her consumer work has focused  on developing brand centric programs that bring the brand to life and build multi-dimensional customer connections to drive growth.
 

Connor Hurson is the Loyalty Manager for ticket marketplace Vivid Seats, where he oversees the company’s industry-leading rewards program Vivid Seats Rewards. In this role he is responsible for the program’s marketing, product integration, program testing and optimization initiatives. Prior to joining Vivid Seats, he served as Manager, CRM & Loyalty, North America for Pandora, the world's largest jewelry brand where he elevated his channels to a top-three revenue and engagement driver for the business. Previously, Connor held various senior roles at Merkle, a leading data-driven customer experience management company, working within several verticals including FinServ, Retail, Pharmaceuticals and Technology. He holds a B.S. in Marketing from Saint Joseph's University Erivan K. Haub School of Business.  

 

Janelle Price is the Senior Market Manager at TELUS leading the go-to-market strategy for TELUS Rewards. In this role, Janelle focuses on how to build awareness, drive customer engagement, and personalize the value proposition of the Rewards program across all TELUS channels. Janelle graduated with her Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Calgary and joined TELUS where she has supported a diverse array of marketing roles over the last 5 years in various areas of the business, such as app product development, channel and sales strategy, and TV content engagement.
 
In her free time, Janelle can be found hiking and exploring the Rocky Mountains near her home of Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
 

Anil Mansukhani is a Product Marketing and Strategy executive with B2C and B2B industry experience in travel/hospitality, mobile digital media, wireless technology, consumer electronics, and financial services.  He leverages data-driven research and analytics to drive business plan development and profitable ROI growth strategies.  His primary focus has been in new product development and marketing strategy with additional emphasis on customer acquisition, analytics, and loyalty marketing.  Anil currently leads Loyalty Marketing on behalf of MGM Resorts where he is responsible for designing and executing marketing strategy, campaigns, events, and experiences to drive growth in member enrollment, acquisition, engagement, and retention for the recently launched MGM Rewards loyalty program.  He also leads business development and product management for MGM’s loyalty and financial partnerships. 

Prior to his time at MGM Resorts, Anil spent 20+ years at Fortune 500 companies such as Carnival Corporation, Sony Electronics, Qualcomm, and Discover Financial Services.  During this time, Anil held management positions in digital marketing, product management, new product development, revenue management, business development, digital transformation, customer experience, corporate strategy, and analytics.  Anil is a Chicago native, but now lives in Los Angeles with his wife and son.  

Nate believes in the power of discovery through data exploration. As a partner of data science at ICF Next, he embodies this philosophy through means of traditional analytics and advanced predictive modeling solutions. Nate is a career problem solver with a passion for mastering technical solutions and a drive to continuously innovate to solve business challenges. He has a deep love for all things analytics and getting the opportunity to meet the needs of his clients.

Nate resides with his wife, four kids, and a myriad of pets. He enjoys a compelling video game, all things football, and introducing his kids to his favorite cartoons.

Erin Corrigan is the Director of Digital Marketing for Donatos Pizza, which is based in Columbus, Ohio. With more than 20 years of experience in the realms of marketing, technology, data insights, and user experience, she leads Donatos' rewards strategy and implementation, and is heavily involved in the evolution of donatos.com and Donatos' mobile apps.

Jennifer Ayoroa is a seasoned marketing professional with a wealth of experience in co-brand and loyalty partnerships. She joined Amtrak in August 2022 as the lead for these areas, where she launched the renewal of the Preferred and No Fee credit cards with FNBO. Jennifer's expertise lies in developing and activating partner relationships while driving strategies to increase customer awareness, engagement, and retention.

Before joining Amtrak, Jennifer spent over 12 years at Marriott International, where she collaborated with all brands on creative, identity, and content work. Her efforts were recognized with an ADDY Award and Adrian Award (HSMAI). Jennifer also engaged Marriott Bonvoy members through bucket-list-worthy events, such as exclusive access to the American Music Awards and the Kentucky Derby, and was instrumental in driving customer retention efforts through the Chase co-branded credit cards. Additionally, Jennifer directed and launched the marketing strategy across all platforms for the Marriott Bonvoy American Express credit cards (Brilliant and Business cards) in a dual-issuer environment.

 

Carrie Cohen has six years of marketing experience, three of those with Cinergy Entertainment. Carrie’s responsibilities include leading loyalty marketing initiatives to optimize acquisition, retention, personalization, and promotional strategies. Carrie is also responsible for analyzing campaign performance, and growth of the loyalty program. Carrie is an MBA graduate of Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi.

 

Bindu is a customer-centric strategist and proactive project manager with more than a decade of experience in marketing and customer resource management. She develops data-driven tactics that improve client engagement outcomes and takes a lead role in helping bring those strategies to life.

From a young age, Bindu was obsessed with problem-solving. Now, that passion guides her as she solves problems for prominent brands such as Wyndham, Hilton, Allegiant Air, and Eaton through email and loyalty marketing strategies, trends and insights, and competitive outlooks.

Bindu focuses on consumer insights and loyalty strategies. She is an expert in sharing cross-industry lessons that spark new ideas with clients across diverse industries. She is a thought leader with both internal and external teams and dives into client projects like a champion and team player.

As the head of member benefits, rewards, and operations, Jason oversees the strategic direction and execution of the LEGO VIP loyalty program across 34 countries and 26 languages.
 
For Jason, the success of any loyalty program hinges on understanding the passions of its members and rooting program design in strong company values. With this in mind, he and his team continuously expand the company’s offerings to address new markets, audiences, and an expanding base of passionate fans.
 
Prior to his current position, Jason led online marketing for the company’s D2C business, responsible for strategy and marketing leadership in CRM, paid search, affiliate, and content marketing supporting the LEGO Group’s ecommerce platform.
 
With 25 years of experience in the marketing industry, Jason is a veteran in both the client and agency sides, specializing in loyalty, CRM, digital, and experiential marketing. He has worked with a wide range of companies in both the B2B and B2C space, including Estee Lauder, AB InBev, the ANDYs, Ricoh/Savin, Honeywell, Tyco, Pfizer, and many others.
 

Diane Eichler, a seasoned marketing, branding and public relations executive, has worked in almost every marketing vertical over the last 25 years. Currently, she serves as the Senior Vice President of Marketing at Kampgrounds of America, Inc. – a role she was promoted to in January 2023 after joining the company the previous September. There, she guides the marketing department, focused on maintaining and expanding the presence of the KOA brand within the outdoor hospitality and lifestyle space. National creative, sales marketing, local marketing, loyalty programs, corporate partnerships, public relations, social media and marketing technology all fall under her purview.
 
Before her time with KOA, Diane founded and served as the President of Decibel Blue, gaining valuable experience in branding, marketing, advertising, and public relations on both the client and agency sides. She has worked with major players across almost every industry, including Real Estate, Technology, Banking and Finance, Healthcare and Wellness, Non-Profit, Education, Automotive, Sports and Entertainment, Telecommunications, QSR, Retail, Law, Broadcasting, and Hospitality.
 
Diane launched her career in Los Angeles, working at the acclaimed design agency COY. She moved to Toyota Motor Sales as a Director of Marketing and then was the agency lead for the North American launch of the Toyota Celica, Spyder, and ECHO. As the Director of Communications for Realty Executives International, she supervised teams in developing internal communications and media relations campaigns. As Director of Client Services at SHR Perceptual Management, she worked closely on branding the agency’s marquee accounts, including Andre Agassi, Apple, and Alaska Airlines.

Diane actively participates in philanthropic initiatives including participation with the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation’s Rocky Mountain Chapter, HomeAid Colorado, The Heard Museum, Suns 88 Charities, Colorado Women’s Chamber of Commerce, Planned Parenthood, Denver BASICS, Sojourner Center and Phoenix Art Museum.
 
Diane is a Public Relations Society of America’s Counselors Academy member, a network of industry-leading senior-level PR agency owners, and Public Relations Boutiques International. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Scripps College in Claremont, California.

With over 15 years of experience in Customer Experience and Loyalty, Chelsea McGough is an expert in Loyalty Strategy. Chelsea has a passion for brands that put Customers (human and furry) first. She started her career in the aviation industry, working on a well-known airline loyalty program and focusing on retention and engagement. In 2021, Chelsea decided to transition to the pet industry and joined Blue Buffalo to support the launch of their first ever loyalty program within the Buddies app! In her current role as Loyalty Program Strategy Manager, she oversees retention, engagement and acquisition as well as delivering strong CLV through the Buddies app. She lives in Dallas, Texas with her fur baby Luna and her husband.
 

Aaron Jones has been at the NFL for seven years, and is currently focused on creating personalized experiences that build fan engagement.

As the manager of consumer loyalty and advertising for Certified Angus Beef, Megan Spaid works directly with the vice president of branding to develop key resources and drive initiatives that engage consumers with the brand. One of her biggest projects includes Steakholder Rewards™, a consumer-focused loyalty program released in January of 2020.

Megan came to the brand in 2017 after graduating from The Ohio State University’s honors program within the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences with a degree in agricultural communications and an agribusiness minor. Her time in school allowed her to intern with agricultural businesses, such as FLM+ and COBA/Select Sires, Inc. Her experience served her well as a marketing specialist and continues to do so in her current role.

Hailing from Sterling, Ohio, Megan isn’t far from her family’s farm, Double B Acres, where they raise Simmental-Angus cattle. She and her husband, Nate, live in Wooster and help on the farm in their spare time. Other hobbies include reading, attending musicals and plays, traveling, and taking pictures of friends and family.
 
Favorite beef cut: a classic filet mignon, unless her mom is cooking a beef roast with mashed potatoes.
 

Dave is a leader in evangelizing the power of loyalty. As emotional connection becomes a crucial input towards loyalty, his role as Kobie’s Chief Innovation Officer is to capture market changes and drive innovative solutions based on emerging trends. He is committed to driving new growth opportunities, building and growing innovative capabilities and championing innovation in the market. 

Furthermore, Dave is highly experienced in consulting and growth strategies. He has led the application of economics, marketing, and the psychology of relationships to core business problems, allowing him to identify, socialize and incubate effective strategies. He has consulted many of the world’s largest institutions such as Visa, Microsoft, Orbitz, Coca Cola, Delta, EA Sports, American Express, and many more. 

Davonne Raizor is a seasoned Loyalty and CRM expert with extensive experience in designing and implementing effective customer engagement strategies. Holding over 20 years experience with Hard Rock International and 4 years of experience with Margaritaville, Davonne has a track record of driving revenue growth and customer retention for businesses across various industries. Davonne specializes in leveraging data analytics, customer insights, and segmentation to create targeted campaigns that maximize customer lifetime value. Her expertise includes loyalty program design, CRM software implementation, customer journey mapping, and marketing automation. Davonne is a results-oriented professional who is dedicated to delivering measurable outcomes.
 

Don earned his Ph.D. in Political Science from The Florida State University, and spent 11 years in academia teaching statistics and policy evaluation. Prior to joining Brierley, he was a research director for Dallas County, in charge of database modeling, data mining, and program reporting. He has authored several journal articles and a full-length book. At Brierley, Don leads our strategic program design practice, responsible for engineering solutions which balance compelling value propositions with enhanced member experiences and data-driven customer engagement. His current client list includes Aramark, Bal Harbour Shops, European Wax Center, Express, Fleet Farm, GameStop, Hertz and QVC/HSN. An avid theater aficionado, his passion for presentation informs his marketing data analytics, where he eschews the traditional view in favor of a dynamic storytelling model that brings numbers to life through contextualization and the generation of actionable insights.