Rising staRs
KaRen BRassel Category Manager, Frozen, ahold Usa
Brassel drove 3 percent growth in the frozen department through ideas that positively influenced shoppers’ perceptions of frozen foods, including the “Aisle of Joy” and “Froduce” décor packages to support the ice cream and vegetable programs, respectively. She shifted promotional spend to alternative and digital; her improvements to display plans resulted in lifts of as much as 22 percent. Brassel identified key value items in her categories in which to invest in pricing strategies, and worked with vendors to increase sales and offer value, resulting in line improvement of between 9 percent and 20 percent.
Dawn gates-Bishop senior it Manger, ahold Usa
Diane CoUChMan
senior Director, peapod interactive, ahold Usa/peapod
Couchman executed the remodel/conversion of 25 A&P stores to the Stop & Shop banner, opening five stores in five weeks; one store opened in six days.
Crowder achieved revenue increases of more than 20 percent for shopper marketing programs, through increased support from existing and new partners.
She led initiatives to grow sales, profit and households for Ahold USA that required new processes and the coordination of departments that hadn’t worked together before, including the generation of more space for major initiatives, and collaboration and communication with cross-department teams.
She drove a “launch-andlearn” mindset within the teams from vendor partners to push understanding of, and innovation in, the online grocery business.
Couchman solicited food and toy donations from Giant Landover associates and vendors for a Christmas party for needy children at Baltimore’s Mercy Hospital.
Crowder co-led the development — from idea to execution in 10 weeks — of a new category of meal kits, sharing consumer insights and resources with a key partner; based on preliminary success, the kits have expanded into all key markets, with plans to grow the product line.
JUlie gRant
lisa gUintheR
senior Manager, portfolio, ahold Usa
Gates-Bishop led the U.S. finance team ahead of Ahold’s merger with Delhaize, identifying all finance impacts and coordinating the IT team to execute the project.
In her previous role of business consultant, Grant initiated key IT projects such as the GC Friday Ad Break, which resulted in labor and sales improvements.
She created a process for resource demand planning for internal and external resources, which can identify a work queue 12 months out for optimal management.
She kicked off a project that moved a major vendor to EDI invoicing and honor receiving, resulting in labor savings, guaranteed delivery and random-audit credit.
Gates-Bishop reworked the invoice validation process for a large external vendor, saving more than 5,000 labor hours and $175,000 for the company and its business partners; her leadership on the above projects earned her several iStar awards from her Ahold USA peers.
In her current role, Grant helped define “ways of working” for a new commercial organization, which was implemented and is exceeding expectation; she also received the Commercial All Star Award from the merchandising strategy and support leadership team.
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linDa CRowDeR
Manager, space planning, ahold Usa
Category Manager, ahold Usa
Guinther was the strategic lead for reinvention of Ahold USA’s bakery department, including building assessments, departmental strategy, design/fixture layout, pilot, capital approval, merchandising and execution; to date, the department has seen 6 percent sales and 16 percent unit increases. She was the team lead for avian flu navigation, managing changes to assortment and pricing, supporting stores to ensure needs were being met, and maintaining or exceeding sales expectations despite flu impacts. Guinther supported the Humane Society, Ronald McDonald House and the Salvation Army’s Angels program.
| Progressive Grocer | Ahead of What’s Next | June 2016
ChRista FoRtieR human Resources generalist, ahold Usa/ stop & shop new York Metro
Fortier created a divisional engagement committee to help improve associate engagement survey results, and developed and executed a plan of action for the leadership team, exceeding goals by six points. She oversaw the divisional human resources team through the conversion of 25 A&P stores to the Stop & Shop banner, interviewing and hiring more than 3,000 associates, and onboarding more than 75 exempt managers. Fortier received ONEHR awards for Making Ideas Happen and for her work with the A&P human resources conversion team.
paUlette haRlanD
Front end specialist, ahold Usa/stop & shop new York Metro
Harland supported the conversion of 25 A&P stores to the Stop & Shop banner within six weeks; advance work included associate training, supply ordering and mentoring teams. She rolled out Operate for Less for the front end, working with the director of operations to reduce the cost of rollout by more than 50 percent by centralizing within the division the production of all components needed to support the savings effort. Harland received the 2015 People’s Choice award for being a district support leader, and the New York Metro Division’s Spirit award for leadership at work and beyond.