Speakers

Thomas Pallini oversees JetBlue’s customer engagement through the TrueBlue loyalty program, focusing on designing and optimizing initiatives that bring excitement to loyalty while driving sustainable growth for the airline.

Recent TrueBlue initiatives under Thomas’ direction include 25 for 25, the Passport Partner Promotion and TrueBlue Subscriptions. Understanding how loyalty programs can influence behavior - rational and irrational - while still delivering measurable business impact are Thomas’ specialty. He is particularly interested in the evolving role of gamification and personalization in building modern loyalty ecosystems.

Brittany Trangsrud is the External Communications Manager at Great Clips, where she leads public relations, social media, influencer partnerships, and guest services for the world’s largest salon brand. With more than a decade of experience across agency and in-house roles, she specializes in integrated communications strategies that drive engagement, strengthen brand reputation, and support business growth. 

She has led strategic communications​ initiatives for brands across retail, franchising, CPG, and hospitality. Brittany holds a Master of Arts in Strategic Communication from the University of Minnesota and a bachelor's degree in public relations and marketing from the University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire. 

Emily Feldman is Senior Director of Loyalty & Member Experience at PetSmart, where she leads strategy for the Treats Rewards program, one of the largest loyalty programs in retail, serving more than 80 million members. Under her leadership, the program has evolved into a seamless omnichannel loyalty experience offering value, personalized engagement and deeper connection between the brand and pet parents across North America.

Emily specializes in building customer-centric loyalty strategies that drive engagement, fuel sustainable growth and strengthen brand affinity. She has led the transformation of PetSmart’s loyalty program into a more personalized, insight-driven ecosystem, with a strong focus on connecting digital, in-store, and associate-led interactions.

Prior to PetSmart, Emily was an Engagement Manager at L.E.K. Consulting, where she advised leading retail and consumer brands on growth strategy and transformation. She holds an MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management and dual bachelor’s degrees in Economics and English from the University of Chicago. Outside of work, Emily is a pet parent to dogs, fish, and a crested gecko – fueling her passion for creating meaningful experiences for pet parents and their pets.

With over 25 years of commercial leadership experience in the Animal Health and Vaccines sector, Jennifer Shook is an expert in enterprise P&L management, channel strategy, and complex corporate accounts. Currently serving as the Sr. Associate Director of the Loyalty and Programs team for Boehringer Ingelheim in the US, Jennifer is the chief architect behind the highly successful Vetsperity Rewards ecosystem.

A Certified Loyalty Expert™ (CPD Certification Service) with a certificate in Customer Loyalty: Strategy and Application from Kellogg Executive Education, Jennifer bridges the gap between rigorous commercial strategy and actionable customer loyalty. Drawing on a deep background in behavioral psychology, as well as being a certified DiSC trainer, she specializes in understanding the human elements of enterprise partnerships. By combining this behavioral insight with financial orchestration and agile alignment, Jennifer builds sustainable, customer-centric frameworks that drive measurable engagement across the veterinary industry.

Jessica Starnes is the Director of Loyalty at Weigel’s, where she leads one of the most successful convenience retail rewards programs in the country. With a sharp focus on customer engagement, data-driven strategy, and seamless digital experiences, Jessica has been instrumental in transforming loyalty from a transactional tool into a cornerstone of Weigel’s growth. Her impact hasn’t gone unnoticed—Jessica is a two-time Top Women in Convenience (TWIC) honoree, having earned both the Rising Star and Senior Level Leader awards. Most recently, she was named the 2025 Category Manager of the Year for Loyalty, a reflection of her ability to blend innovation with measurable business results. Under her leadership, Weigel’s has achieved record-breaking loyalty penetration and built high-impact programs like “100 Days of Summer” and exclusive NIL partnerships that emotionally connect with customers. From acquisition to retention, Jessica’s strategy is rooted in making every interaction meaningful—translating into stronger brand loyalty and increased customer frequency. Jessica’s cross-functional approach ensures loyalty touches every part of the business—from merchandising to marketing to operations. A trusted voice in the industry, she continues to set the standard for customer-first innovation while building scalable platforms that drive long-term growth. She is a Certified Loyalty Marketing Professional, holds a NACS Category Management Certification, and a Bachelor's degree from the University of Tennessee. 

As Head of Global Benefits, Kate works to provide competitive benefits that help make Bank of America a Great Place to Work while supporting the diverse needs of our teammates globally.  She is responsible for delivering physical, emotional, and financial benefits and wellness programs including healthcare plans and accounts, the Employee Assistance Program (EAP), time away, education benefits, the employee discount program and much more.   

Under Kate’s leadership, the company has implemented enhancements to numerous programs in response to market trends and employee needs. These include the expansion of family planning benefits, cancer support, menopause and midlife health support, virtual care offerings for dermatology and physical therapy, additional mental health support through increased onsite EAP counselors, health support through Well, Global Get Active! — the bank’s annual physical wellness challenge, and an increased International Parental Leave standard.  

Prior to this role, Kate led Life Event Services (LES), a team dedicated to supporting employees and their families during major life events by providing personalized connections to resources and benefits, leveraging experts inside and outside the company.   

Kate joined Bank of America in 2008 as part of a Human Resources development program. She has held HR generalist roles supporting the bank’s Risk, Compliance, Marketing, Legal, and Corporate Audit and Credit Review functions. Kate also previously served as the HR Executive for the Local Markets Organization and led the Market HR network across the U.S.   

Prior to joining Bank of America, Kate led a team of researchers at the Corporate Executive Board (now Gartner) managing cross-industry client relationships through customized research support and consultative insight on HR topics and issues.   

Kate graduated from Wake Forest University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication and obtained her Master’s in Business Administration from George Washington University.  

Kate is a board member of the Alexander Youth Network, the ERISA Industry Committee and the American Benefits Council Policy Committee. She and her husband Ben reside in Charlotte, NC and have two sons, Matthew and Luke. 

Laura Gonzalez is the Marketing Program Manager for Loyalty at Ferguson, where she leads the strategic development of the company’s rewards program, PRO Plus. She focuses on designing loyalty initiatives that drive incremental growth and deepen engagement with Ferguson’s most valuable trade customers. Laura partners closely with cross‑functional teams and external partners to translate customer insights into a stronger, more impactful loyalty strategy. Since joining Ferguson in 2015, Laura’s career has centered on building and strengthening customer relationships. She spent six years in experiential marketing, creating in‑person experiences that connected customers, associates, and vendor partners. During that time, she supported several major initiatives, including the relocation of Ferguson’s exhibit warehouse and the launch of the Trade Pro Roadshow experiential event series. In 2021, Laura transitioned into leading PRO Plus, where she oversees program strategy, campaign execution, and member engagement across digital, paid, and internal channels. Today, she develops the loyalty roadmap and helps shape the future of Ferguson’s B2B customer engagement strategy.

Sarah Kiehl is a marketing leader with nearly nine years of experience at Nestlé Purina PetCare, spanning brand marketing and loyalty innovation. She began her Purina career working across iconic brands including Beggin’ Dog Treats, Beneful, and Cat Chow, where she supported and led initiatives across product development and brand communications.

For the past three years, Sarah has been a key member of Purina’s New Business Models team, specializing in consumer and professional loyalty. She has played a central role in three major loyalty programs - Cat Chow MyPerks, myPurina consumer loyalty, and Pro Club professional loyalty - and currently serves as the Engagement & Retention Lead for myPurina and Pro Club, driving strategy and engagement across Purina’s ecosystem.

Prior to Purina, Sarah worked in brand marketing at Hallmark Cards and Spectrum Brands.

Sarah lives in St. Louis with her husband, two daughters, and two Goldendoodles.

Bradley Pierson is the Senior Manager of Global Loyalty Marketing at Resideo Technologies, where he leads the strategy and evolution of the Pro PERKS loyalty program. In this role, he focuses on improving the experience for contractors, dealers, and distributors by making the program easier to engage with while helping partners grow their businesses.

Brad brings a background in luxury retail, having held leadership roles with brands including Louis Vuitton, Neiman Marcus, and Saks Fifth Avenue. During this time, he led high-performing sales teams, managed multi-million-dollar businesses, and developed a strong foundation in customer experience and performance-driven growth. He has carried those principles into B2B loyalty, helping shape programs that are more intuitive, relevant, and valuable to the end user.

At Resideo, Brad plays a key role in leading global loyalty marketing efforts, evolving the Pro PERKS program based on customer feedback and partner needs. His work focuses on simplifying how customers engage with the program, improving overall marketing effectiveness, and identifying new ways to help partners operate more efficiently and grow their businesses.

Brad lives in Austin, Texas, and enjoys learning, technology, sports, and spending time with his wife and 9-year-old son.

Marquita Ferguson is the SVP, Preferred Rewards for Business program Integration at Bank of America.  The bank’s business loyalty and rewards program provides exclusive benefits for all Business members who deepen their relationship with the bank. Since 2021, Marquita has been responsible for managing the program’s lifecycle by developing the overall strategic roadmap and driving tactics to support the program’s core business objectives, while effectively integrating across multiple product lines such as Card, Savings, Deposits, Merchant, Payroll and beyond. She has led the strategic development and execution of several key campaigns, including the company’s annual PR Year End Summary personalized videos, while continuing to achieve recognition as a Loyalty360 industry leader in B2B rewards programs. In  2023, Marquita won the company’s most prestigious Pinnacle Award for her team’s innovative video production efforts in support of National Entrepreneur’s Day and has been working alongside her teammates to advance the program and continue building excellence in business loyalty for the future.