Keynote Speakers

THURSDAY DINNER

Samuel K. Eldersveld, Director of Operations, Amazon

Samuel K. Eldersveld received a Ph.D. in Operations Research from Stanford University in 1992 working in the Systems Optimization Laboratory. Sam is currently a Director of Operations, leading the Data Science teams for  Amazon’s North America’s Supply Chain. Previously, Sam worked as a Mathematician for Boeing and managed O.R. teams at Expedia, Starbucks  and Amazon where he was a Principal Research Scientist. Sam also spent a year leading OR data science teams for Uber Technologies Inc. He holds a B.S. (natural resources, economics, and ecology) from the University of Michigan. He is a professional member of ACM, ASA, MOS, SIAM and INFORMS. Sam was affiliated with the University of Washington Foster School of Business as an Auxiliary Faculty member in the Operations Management Department.

FRIDAY MORNING

Kristin Toth Smith, Chief Operating Officer, Dolly

Kristin Toth Smith is currently the COO of Dolly, a technology platform, app and marketplace that connects companies and customers who need help moving and  delivering big and bulky items with local pickup truck owners who can help them do just that. Kristin’s career is marked by her ability to lead and grow companies – as CEO of Code Fellows, VP of Operations at zulily and in various executive positions at Amazon.com. She holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Industrial Engineering and Operations Research from the Tauber Institute for Global Operations at the University of Michigan, a Master’s degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering from MIT and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from MIT’s Sloan School of Management through the Leaders for Global Operations program. 

Kristin is an active volunteer, serving on academic and non-profit boards including the University of Michigan’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Ada Developers Academy. She is a mentor at Galvanize and TechStars and is on the boards of advisors for several startup companies. Kristin lives outside of Seattle and during her spare time, she enjoys taking advantage of the nearby lake, most recently learning to wake surf. When it’s too cold for the lake, she can often be found snow skiing.

Abstract:

A particularly illustrative case study in how operations evolves in a dynamic world is logistics and delivery. Throughout her career, Kristin Toth Smith has been confronted by and in the middle of both driving and being impacted by evolution in the delivery world. Through a fast education at Amazon that quickly evolved to driving and building programs that have become the future of delivery, then becoming a victim of her own Amazon success while building out operations at zulily, to again challenging the status quo and leading the next evolution at Dolly, she provides a front seat to the impacts and opportunities that constant change allows.

FRIDAY LUNCH

David Dittmann, Director Business Intelligence & Analytics Services, Procter & Gamble's Global Business Services 

David Dittmann is the Director Business Intelligence & Analytics Services for Procter & Gamble’s Global Business Services organization. He is responsible for Business Intelligence and the Analytics organization spanning across P&G’s Global Business Units. With 20 years of experience at P&G, David’s career has focused on leveraging analytics into P&G’s Marketing, Product Supply, and Customer  Business Development organizations. Previously, he was responsible for establishing the Business Intelligence & Analytics organization for Asia in Singapore. His organizations have been recognized with numerous industry awards. David is a frequent industry speaker and is passionate about using analytics and technology to make unconventional connections across all aspects of the business. He sits on the Advisory Boards for Wake Forest University and Fractal along with co-founding of International Institute of Analytics Leadership Consortium and University of Cincinnati Business Analytics Center. David was recently recognized as a 2017 Analytics Visionary by Consumer Goods Technology. 

He holds a Bachelor of Science in Industrial & Systems Engineering and a Masters Degrees of Science in Operations Research, Manufacturing & Engineering Management from The Ohio State University. He currently lives in Cincinnati, Ohio with his wife Shannon and three children Nathan, Abigail, and Alyssa and is originally from St. Joseph, Michigan. 

Keynote: Surviving the Future of Rapid Fire Analytics in Operations

Abstract: 

What happens when advanced analytics not only disrupts your business models and operations?  Only the most agile survive.  Organizations are struggling to cope with the evolving business requirements from going operations to solving wicked problems to becoming C-Suite analytical story tellers that influence every decision.  As analytically driven roles are gaining prominence, decision-makers are relying on techniques that feel more at home in a movie.  During this session, we will discuss the underlying causes of the large disruptions we have seen driven by analytics, but also learn from new use cases where advanced analytics will help us thrive in the future.