2023 MW Emerging Leaders

The Shelby Report of the Midwest is pleased to honor...

EMERGING

LEADERS

Heather DeSoto AWG VP, VMC Sales Heather DeSoto is a remarkable individual whose career in the retail grocery industry has been marked by dedication, exceptional leadership, problem-solving abilities and commitment to

community service.

One of Heather's most significant achievements was her instrumental role in supporting retailers during the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Recognizing the impact of supply chain disruptions and sourcing limitations, Heather worked diligently to provide viable alternatives and innovative product ideas to ensure grocery stores could meet customer demands.

In addition, she played a pivotal role in developing

Lindsay Ginter AR Marketing Director, Digital Media Operations Lindsay Ginter started her career with AR Marketing as an intern in 2014. In less than a decade, she has become a thought leader in grocery marketing. She

Cody Inman Storewise Inc. VP, Technology Cody’s exceptional leadership skills and innovative mindset have helped him make remarkable contributions to the growth and success of Storewise.

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promotional strategies that not only attracted customers' attention but also effectively balanced overall gross margin through margin drivers and aggressive ad items.

What sets Heather apart as a leader is her unwavering dedication to the people she serves. Having experienced the retail industry from both the retailer and supplier/wholesaler perspectives, Heather understands the "pain points" faced by retailers firsthand.

This empathy drives her to work tirelessly to address and resolve these challenges, ensuring a smoother and more successful partnership with retailers. Her passion lies in serving retailers. Her genuine care for their well-being motivates her team and peers to do their best in their daily tasks.

Heather's leadership approach centers around mentoring and empowering her team. She encourages her team members to approach her with problems along with suggested solutions, allowing them to participate in the resolution process.

Through constructive coaching and collaboration,

Heather fosters a culture of growth and learning within her team. Furthermore, she leads by example, keeping the overall endgame in mind and maintaining a positive attitude throughout the journey, celebrating every success achieved along the way.

Beyond her professional accomplishments, Heather's commitment to community service is commendable. She engages in volunteer work, contributing her time and efforts to various causes, including church activities and supporting local food banks.

Her involvement as the president of her neighborhood's homeowners’ association showcases her ability to produce tangible results and make a positive impact in the neighborhoods she serves.

Heather embodies the spirit of innovation, resilience and compassion necessary to drive the retail grocery industry forward and positively impact the communities it serves. Her passion for her work and her commitment to serving others make her a true leader worth recognizing and celebrating.

now manages the grocery industry’s most knowledgeable digital marketing team, focusing on digital display advertising, social media and reputation management, texting, email, digital couponing and OTT/CTV marketing. They serve about 1,000 grocery retail rooftops.

A creative at heart, Ginter’s approach to leadership and retail marketing is unique and customer-forward. She has implemented multiple marketing process management systems – not only for AR Marketing but for the agency’s clients. Lindsay’s sought-after process for simplifying media

procurement while integrating it into reducing promotional approval times is saving clients significant resources.

Ginter is a graduate from the University of Findlay, where she earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees and where she and her husband continue to serve in collegiate ministry.

She also volunteers on the public relations committee for Findlay and Hancock County’s Habitat for Humanity, where the team spreads awareness and raises support for build projects in the community.

Cody's visionary leadership style has been instrumental in propelling Storewise's technology division to new heights.

His ability to anticipate industry trends and translate them into actionable strategies has consistently resulted in cuttingedge technological solutions that have positively impacted the company's performance and customer experience.

Cody is a rare technology leader who always thinks about the end user. He embodies our core value of “love the independents” when he creates anything new. He even speaks to the retailers by name and challenges the team to

build something that they find mission critical as they battle much larger, big box competitors.

Cody's guidance, strategic vision and hands-on approach have helped – and will continue to propel – Storewise to stay ahead of the curve in a highly competitive market.

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AUGUST 2023 • THE SHELBY REPORT OF THE MIDWEST

Patty Kuehn SpartanNash Store Director, Family Fare In my role, having a “people first” leadership style has been incredibly important. Through building strong, supportive relationships with my team and implementing creative problem solving, I’ve worked to create a winning culture and drive sales.

Recently, I identified an associate with potential to thrive in the produce department and reassigned this individual. By having the right person in the right place, we saw a growth of over 25 percent in this department, in addition to an impressive overall store sales increase of nearly 4 percent.

I work hard to cultivate a fun, tight-knit environment in

Michael Liscow Topco Associates Senior Director, Sourcing Michael is a positive, thoughtful and professional leader. Although 2022 was challenging for our supply chain, his leadership was crucial in serving our membership.

As roadblocks from labor, ocean freight, raw ingredients and packaging threatened our progress, he diligently led our edible grocery sourcing team to maintain our mission.

When supply chains broke down, he resourcefully sought, secured and on-boarded additional supply options.

Despite turbulence, Michael’s leadership was key in sourcing competitively priced, national brand-quality products and keeping our members in-stock.

Ralph Malicki Piggly Wiggly Store Owner I own three Piggly Wiggly supermarkets in Wisconsin. I have always viewed a supermarket as a place of community. We see people at the best of times and the worst of times. In our communities, we know when Mrs. Smith is coming to shop and what she’s looking for.

We like to make a positive impact both inside our walls and outside our walls in the communities we serve.

I believe it is our role as business owners to be a positive force. I believe this is done by deliberate actions within the community through participation, as well as being a positive force with our associates. This, while maintaining the best

Rob Marsh Pyramid Foods COO When I started with the company in 1998 as an assistant store director, I was driven to be more and put a plan in place. I have since held the titles of store director, district manager, director of operations, director of store development and engineering,

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my store, which has helped us attract and retain top talent. I strive to lead by example, always working hard, serving others and approaching every situation with kindness. I’m grateful that several talented co-workers from my previous stores (major competitors to SpartanNash) came to my store to work again on my team.

By working to coach and uplift associates, I work in a store where everyone has a winning mentality. My team members are incredible and have zero recorded incidents in 74,000 hours of work. Seven associates, all of whom I used to mentor, have earned well-deserved promotions. This store culture has also made a drastic, positive impact on our store turnover and has led me to be involved with helping recruit talent at other stores in my region.

I’m incredibly proud of what I’ve accomplished in my time as store director. I was thrilled to be selected as one of 23 associates to be enrolled in the company’s Propel Leadership Development program, which taught me communication and conflict resolution skills I use often. I was

also honored to be one of 12 finalists chosen from 175 nominations for the FMI Store Managers Award.

In my role, it's important to me to leverage the store's EMERGING successful performance to serve and support the local community. My team has strengthened the store’s connection with the local University of Nebraska-Omaha and has facilitated donations to several local community organizations, including neighborhood churches.

I love to reward the local elementary “students of the month” by giving them doughnuts. We’ve also helped local addiction recovery resources by allowing fundraisers outside of our busy storefront.

These outreach efforts have not only helped promote real change in our community that my team can be proud of but have also positioned our store as a valuable resource in the community.

Michael was responsible for spearheading our advanced order initiative. Although some suppliers were unwilling to participate due to labor or supply constraints, he secured participation by thoughtfully managing the timing of member orders and improving service levels for members during the key fourth quarter selling season.

Leadership comes naturally for Michael. A key contributor in improving our joint business planning process, he led training for more than 100 associates in center store and cross-functionally within Topco.

Equally impressive, he took the initiative in building the first center store sourcing supply update, a clear, singular view of all category performance and challenges our members should be aware of.

Michael led development, training and coaching for multiple initiatives for the sourcing event process in 2022, which enhanced the sourcing calendar, developed the sourcing event alignment meeting and accompanying template and simplified the sourcing event member

survey. These brought alignment, efficiency and increased productivity, enabling our sourcing team to better collaborate with other functional areas – category and quality assurance in particular.

Michael’s interaction with others is perhaps his most impressive leadership quality. With members, Michael is thoughtful, listening to pain points and responding with empathy and action. With suppliers, he is respectful and understanding but always advocating for members. He holds himself and his team to high professional standards.

Decisions must be timely, made with logic and rationale.

And the analysis to support decisions must be clean and error free. With internal stakeholders, he is understanding, patient and curious, always pushing for ways to achieve more together.

From his viewpoint, our responsibility is to keep our members competitive and relevant… a challenge he will always embrace.

possible shopping experience for our shoppers.

I believe my role is to juggle all those balls at the same time. In my world, it is impossible to separate community impact from business – they are one in the same. I’d like to think one of my current roles is to be as active in the communities as possible. I do this by being involved in as many community boards and organizations as time allows.

I’m not really one to talk about accomplishments. I don’t view what we do as destination but as a journey. I realize that is cliché, but it is true. Accomplishment implies an ending.

We like to look more at impact. On a daily basis, have we made a difference for anyone?

One of the things I am most proud of is the fact that we have been in business for more than 12 years now. At the start, both of our sons were involved in the business. One has since went on a different course but still remains close by. We are also proud of the mobile market we’ve helped establish in partnership with Hunger Task Force, a regional force here in Wisconsin, that deals with food insecurities.

Over the course of my career, I’ve been lucky to work with some incredible mentors. Even though they may not have known at the time, they have made a difference to me. I hope to pass that on to others.

As far as achievements, we’ve worked with many good people inside and outside the business. As a result of working with all these folks, it has afforded me the opportunity to learn and grow as a leader and help my community by serving in various other roles in the community.

In the grocery business, being a good grocer is just a part of it. Ask anyone in the business, and they will tell you that they are involved in many things in the communities they serve. I’ve had the opportunity to serve on many boards in my area and look forward to many more years of service.

VP of perishables, VP of sales and merchandising, VP of operations and was recently promoted to COO. As for accomplishments, I was awarded "Top 40 under 40"

by The Springfield Business Journal. I have won Store Director of the Year by our wholesaler, AWG. I also was awarded best center store merchandiser by AWG. I received the "Presidents Award" from the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame for the work I do for children's charities. I recently was named an "MVP" by the local chamber of commerce for volunteer work in the community.

I was recently elected to the board of directors for the National Grocers Association. I also sit on the board

of directors for the Nixa Education Foundation, the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame and Price Cutter Charity Golf Championship.

We are a 37-store, employee-owned supermarket chain.

I was diagnosed with leukemia a couple of years ago and go to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota for treatments. I have been married for 23 years and have two children – one a freshman in college pursuing an architecture degree and the other a sophomore in high school. My wife is in the medical field.

I am a very driven individual and still have bigger goals to achieve.

LEADERS

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THE SHELBY REPORT OF THE WEST • JULY 2023

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AUGUST 2023 • THE SHELBY REPORT OF THE MIDWEST

Kristina Maurer Maurer's Market Vice President My current title is vice president, which in a small family business means anything and everything that needs to be done – from cashier and pricing to HR and cook.

The most challenging part of the job is the current

Mike Olwig Fox’s Piggly Wiggly President I serve the needs of 800plus team members and the 10 communities throughout southeastern Wisconsin where our stores are located. Fox Bros.

Piggly Wiggly is the region’s only 100 percent employee-owned grocery store and we are very proud of the fact that this makes us the most locally owned and operated grocery stores in our area.

A big part of my role is to ensure that we are delivering on our mission statement of providing superior service and offering the highest quality products to our customers while we are supporting the communities and our team members who support us.

I started my career with Fox Bros. as a store director when we only had two locations. As we have grown over the years, I have held various roles, including director of operations

Micah Powless Kroger Assistant Store Leader Micah Powless is an encouraging and inspiring leader who cares about his associates and giving customers an exceptional experience. He leads by example and helps his associates be the best

Mike Semmann Wisconsin Grocers Association VP, Governmental Affairs Michael Semmann is a government relations and trade association professional who brings experience specializing in lobbying, policy analysis, campaign finance and message development.

In his current role, Semmann continues to build his career by establishing trusted relationships to create meaningful policy solutions.

Prior to joining WGA, Semmann worked for the North Carolina-based technology company SAS, providing analytics

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environment that we live in. Running a grocery store during the COVID-19 pandemic created conditions that had never been seen before. New norms were created, staffing and customer challenges, supply and shipping issues. They all created a new normal. You cannot apply old logic to new conditions, which makes every day a battle.

This business is difficult, it is challenging and can be rewarding. You need a thick skin, but tears will still happen. It helps to have the confidence to fail; be always in the pursuit of sales growth; intelligence to learn from mistakes; and the ability to self-reflect, so you can continue to grow, learn and inspire.

The person you are at the beginning of your career is never the person you are at the end of it, and the ability to self-reflect gets you through the EMERGING journey.

I am president of Gio's Garden, which is a nonprofit in Madison, Wisconsin, that provides respite care to children (birth to 6 years old) with special needs.

I have a bachelor’s degree from Saint Mary's CollegeNotre Dame and an MBA from Indiana Wesleyan University.

and VP. Since taking over as president in January 2022, the Fox Bros. Piggly Wiggly chain has grown from nine stores to 10, and we have also invested in improving the shopping experience for our customers in all of our stores. Some examples include self-checkouts in all locations, as well as hot food bars and full-service meat and seafood cases.

One of the true challenges in the industry – and for us – over the past year has been how to develop, motivate and retain our team members. Through the implementation of multiple programs at all levels of our organization, we have been able to achieve a retention rate of over 80 percent for full-time team members.

Programs that we provide include educational workshops based on servant leadership philosophy, employee stock ownership plan, education and food safety training, just to name a few. Throughout the year, we also look to motivate/ reward our team members through sales and display contests and company outings such as our summer family picnic, share price reveal parties and our managers awards dinner.

We are also able to offer a wide range of flexibility in our scheduling, catering to all of the various needs of team members.

Supporting our communities in which we work, live and play is at the very heart of what we do. From supporting local food pantries and participating in local chambers of commerce to Mr. Pig walking in parades and instituting a round-up program for our Charity of the Month – it has all had a big impact on the communities where we have stores.

Over the past two years, we have been able to help raise more than $600,000 through our Charity of the Month roundup program. These funds are then distributed to nonprofit organizations within the communities of our stores that support a wide range of services, including food pantries, senior citizens, veterans, humane societies, Special Olympics and the homeless, to name a few.

Some of my greatest accomplishments over the past year have been to see the growth of our team members. Whether it be a team member promoted to their first management position or seeing one of our top store directors achieving their hard-earned goals or setting sales records, I am only as good as the people around me. As they continue to succeed, I know I will, too.

they can be.

He was valedictorian of Kroger’s Store Leadership Development Program in 2021-22 and was among 324 management trainees across Kroger’s family of stores.

He also was selected to be the leader and champion of the Fresh Start Program for District 8 of the Central Division.

His leadership helps guide stores to train, equip and coach associates to grow in their roles and careers.

His store also led his district last fiscal year in the lowest shrink. He help guide his store to win multiple sales challenges in his division. His store had exceeded operational

expense goals, ID sales goals and increased EBITDA percentages.

He not only has multiple degrees but also within the last few years acquired professional certificates associated with great institutions such as Harvard, Wharton, Yale, Dartmouth, Columbia, Stanford, John’s Hopkins, Northwestern, Wesleyan, Notre Dame, Emory and the University of Minnesota.

He is not only committed to growing himself but is committed to helping his associates grow and achieve their highest potential.

and software solutions to state and local governments in Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Non-profit management is where he spent the bulk of his career. He held the position of EVP/COO for the Wisconsin Bankers Association, where he was responsible for the oversight and implementation of the association’s advocacy, legal and public relations objectives.

Working with the WBA Board of Directors, he developed strategic initiatives, served as a liaison to bank CEOs throughout the state and acted as an industry representative before all levels of Wisconsin government. He was a cofounder and executive director of the Wisconsin Bankers Foundation, a public charity dedicated to promoting financial literacy by empowering consumers.

His additional association experience includes advocating before state and local governments on housing, development

and growth initiatives for Wisconsin home-builders associations.

Semmann’s educational background and interest in innovative technologies led him to co-found Advancing AI Wisconsin in 2017, a grassroots organization designed to increase awareness about machine learning and its impact on the state’s economy.

He is the past chair for the Association of Wisconsin Lobbyists and sits on the board of the Hessen Wisconsin Society to develop and strengthen partnerships between Wisconsin and the State of Hessen, Germany.

He has a degree in economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Mike lives with his wife, Joleen, in Verona, Wisconsin, where they endeavor to keep up with their four daughters. He enjoys traveling, live music and volunteering for community organizations.

LEADERS

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THE SHELBY REPORT OF THE MIDWEST • AUGUST 2023

Emmarene Smith SpartanNash Early in Career Program Manager As a food solutions company with 17,500 associates, SpartanNash has hundreds of promising future leaders working across the business. Emmarene's job is to ensure those leaders develop the skills and experience they need to thrive and support others.

She designs programs for leaders at every level, teaching skills including conflict management, communication and team building. By creating and leading high-quality training programs, Emmarene keeps leaders engaged and helps them grow, which guides the overall success of the company.

In 2022, about 500 associates participated in programs

Kaitlin Tisdale AWG Senior Manager, Corporate Accounting Kaitlin Tisdale has demonstrated her expertise by effectively overseeing all financial reporting functions, including budgeting, period-end closing and the yearend audit. Kaitlin's responsibilities also extend to overseeing the day-to-day accounting functions for all subsidiaries, as well as capital asset and lease accounting for the company. Her dedication and attention to detail in this position has proven invaluable.

Throughout her six years at AWG, Kaitlin has showcased her commitment and growth within the organization.

She has held the role of division accounting manager for Valu Merchandisers Company, a subsidiary of AWG and AWG’s Kansas City Division. In both roles, she worked with division personnel to report and analyze financial results, demonstrating her ability to collaborate and provide valuable insights.

Courtney Van Gilder SpartanNash ESG and Community Engagement Manager Courtney Van Gilder embodies the company's mission of delivering the ingredients for a better life. Over her eight-year tenure with the company, she has played a vital role in ensuring that SpartanNash supports and remains connected to the communities it serves. She also is responsible for building on the company’s legacy of community support to promote and integrate its ESG values.

A standout achievement from last year was Courtney's meticulous work on SpartanNash's first inaugural ESG report.

This comprehensive document outlined the company's strategic priorities and highlighted its successes in achieving

Emily Klein Vizina Cooper Street Marketing Manager Corporate Executive Emily is an emerging leader through and through.

Before graduating with a master’s degree from Texas A&M University, she interned at Barilla.

While there, she worked crossfunctionally with R&D, legal and supply chain to develop

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aimed at nurturing leadership skills at both mid and executive levels. These skills not only benefit them, but also have a ripple effect on their respective teams.

She developed the highly successful Early in Career program aimed at attracting and retaining interns, which led to many full-time hires. Emmarene also researched and developed the year-long I GROW program, which includes workshops such as Working with Generations, Effective Communication and Coping with Change, as well as handson work experience.

She was instrumental in refining the SpartanNash University leadership development programs by enhancing the company’s selection criteria, centralizing communications and realigning courses using feedback from program graduates.

Additionally, she leads the TIDE Associate Resource Group, creating training content on diversity and inclusion.

By uplifting and educating leaders at SpartanNash, Emmarene maintains an overall People First company culture where

every associate feels supported.

Emmarene is an incredible leader and role model. In her training sessions, she gets to know each person at a deeper level and encourages associates to share their true personalities and experiences.

Emmarene also takes her own professional development seriously. She is pursuing an MBA and has completed certifications on topics including behavioral analytics, unconscious bias and effective supervisor management. She is a certified instructor for a number of organizations and recently completed an effective training course through the Haworth College of Business at Western Michigan University.

Emmarene’s exceptional work does not go unnoticed.

She was nominated for the MPWRD influential award, which recognizes Hispanic, Asian Pacific, Black and Indigenous Native Americans shaping culture, community business and humanity in Grand Rapids and West Michigan.

Prior to her tenure at AWG, Kaitlin worked as an auditor at a reputable CPA firm. This experience allowed her to develop a strong foundation in financial analysis and reporting.

Kaitlin's accomplishments and significant achievements speak to her dedication to professional development and growth. To maintain a high standard of excellence in her field, she holds an active CPA license. She attended the FMI Leadership Conference and earned the FMI Leadership Certificate, further highlighting her drive to make a name for herself in the industry.

Additionally, her participation in the Emerging Female Leaders share group sponsored by the Women's Grocers Association and her attendance at the inaugural share group meeting in Chicago illustrate her engagement with industry peers and commitment to advancing women in leadership roles.

Kaitlin's leadership qualities are evident throughout her career. She is passionately dedicated to finding ways to make improvements for the betterment of the organization, exhibiting confidence when faced with difficult or stressful situations and approaching each challenge with a

solution-oriented attitude.

She has developed the right relationships, working with other leaders in the organization to better understand the various perspectives and objectives to help overcome obstacles and silos. Kaitlin is valued as a reliable business partner and leader by all levels of management.

With a positive attitude, she does not let the prospect of failure deter her, thoughtfully managing through setbacks with tenacity and resilience and instilling the same sense of determination in her team.

Outside of her professional endeavors, Kaitlin also finds time to give back to her community. Despite her commitments as a working professional and a mother of two young children, she volunteers at the local food bank, showcasing her commitment to making a positive impact beyond the workplace.

Kaitlin’s extensive experience in accounting, coupled with her exemplary leadership qualities, remarkable accomplishments and unwavering dedication to personal and professional growth, make her an invaluable asset to AWG. She is poised to continue making significant contributions to her team and the company at large.

ESG milestones and metrics, while also defining ambitious goals for the company to uphold.

Dedicated to helping fulfill SpartanNash's ESG goals, Courtney drives impactful corporate and community initiatives with versatility and creativity. One area where Courtney excels is in encouraging participation from SpartanNash associates. She manages volunteer efforts and coordinates initiatives such as Adopt-A-Road clean-ups and Versiti community blood drives and has a bold commitment to hunger-related causes.

Additionally, Courtney recently spearheaded a number of sustainability initiatives, including plastic bag recycling programs in retail stores, eco-friendly swag for corporate events and the inclusion of QR codes on SpartanNash water bottles. After each bottle is consumed, users scan the code to trigger a donation from the company, driving engagement, reducing environmental impact and supporting charitable causes.

Courtney is also very intentional with choosing

sustainability partners. She was the principal behind SpartanNash’s partnership with food waste reduction app, Flashfood. Notably, SpartanNash was the first company to introduce this program in Michigan and Indiana through its pilot program at corporate-owned stores, Family Fare and Martin's Super Markets. As a result of this partnership over the last three years, one million pounds of waste has been diverted and families have saved $1.9 million on groceries.

For this year’s Earth Day, she guided a partnership with sustainability solutions organization Ecodrive to plant 20,000 mangrove trees in Kenya in recognition of SpartanNash associates and customers. This initiative stored and captured 13.6 million pounds of carbon dioxide and created 200 workdays for local Kenyans. She also led a successful campaign for Veteran's Day.

a marketing strategy for a new consumer segment, utilizing digital media promotion, improved product packaging and new diversity initiatives.

Soon after graduation, she took her talent to Kraft Heinz, where she was the senior associate brand manager involved with the Oscar Meyer brand, as well as Just Crack an Egg. This included managing aggregated consumer insights, sales, market and competitor data to identify factors correlated with performance and delivering recommendations to the executive team for product improvement and distribution strategies to help increase market share.

She managed the relationship with multiple agencies and

has always kept the consistent change in consumer behavior at the forefront of her decision-making. She then went on to be the senior associate brand manager at Kimberly-Clark, where she spent almost two years.

She has now brought all of her talents to Cooper Street, a growing cookie company based in Michigan that serves quality ingredient cookies with no nuts, dairy and anything artificial. She has spent four months as director of marketing, supporting and creating solutions to expand door count and reach across the nation.

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AUGUST 2023 • THE SHELBY REPORT OF THE MIDWEST

Kimberly Ward Topco Associates Senior Manager, Demand Planning and Replenishment Kim Ward has built out a new demand planning process over 16 months, leading her team in managing 30,000 items across 290 suppliers and 42 Topco members.

The new process provides a monthly statistical forecast, augmented by member insights and industry trends.

Starting her role at Topco, Kim inherited a planning process that captured historical order quantities in spreadsheets that were reviewed by Topco members, aggregated and then sent to suppliers once a year.

Kim understood that this antiquated, manual process was neither effective nor scalable. Due to COVID-19 pandemic

Corinne Watters SpartanNash Events Lead Corinne Watters leads the strategy and execution of corporate events ranging in size from hundreds to thousands of attendees.

Watters joined SpartanNash in May 2021 as an executive assistant after working for 15 years in nonprofit operations. She was promoted to events lead less than a year later due to her quick learning, leadership, creativity and keen eye for detail.

She earned a subsequent promotion in July 2023 as a result of her outstanding job performance.

Kelly Weaver Fairlife Senior Director National Accounts Kelly Weaver leads a team that serves two of the largest grocery retailers.

In her two years at fairlife, she has been instrumental in generating year-over-year growth by focusing

Emilie Williamson Roundy’s Supermarkets Division Corporate Affairs Manager My goal is to change the world through food and there is no better avenue to accomplish my goal than via the grocery industry. In addition to the various internal and external communication aspects of my job, I am also responsible for partnerships and sponsorships within the communities we serve.

My position provides me a unique perspective on how to best support the health and wellness in these communities.

My passion is food and nutrition. During my 10-plus-year tenure here at Roundy’s (a division of The Kroger Co.), I have made the commitment to gain the necessary credentials to become a nutrition expert.

While still working full time, I attended a local university over the course of two years, successfully served my 1,100

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experiences, the need for demand forecasts were greatly magnified, as were our suppliers’ need for information to help navigate supply chain issues.

Leaning into her deep, demand planning experience, Kim’s professional insights allowed her to redefine Topco’s process. Rising to the challenge, Kim helped create the strategic framework for a demand planning system at Topco.

Her subject matter expertise and strong leadership were invaluable in guiding the project from start to finish.

Kim organized and executed “voice of the customer” sessions to get stakeholder feedback. She was instrumental in developing the day-to-day processes and helped train more than 300 system users in a 10-month time frame.

Kim’s excellent project management skills kept the project rollout on schedule and the new process and software are now fully operational. Kim has shifted her focus from training users to helping her team drive better forecast accuracy through demand consensus meetings and root cause analysis.

Her continuous improvement mindset and commitment

to excellence have resulted in three straight months of improved forecast accuracy across center store.

Dedicated to Topco members and the customers they serve, Kim EMERGING strives to improve forecasts, turning forecast accuracy data into meaningful information.

An emerging leader within Topco, Kim possesses subject matter expertise and unbridled enthusiasm for demand planning and has given Topco members and suppliers a superior forecast to plan from.

Among Kim’s leadership qualities is her ability to listen to and encourage stakeholders, helping them to adopt and champion this cutting-edge, innovative new process. Highly respected by both her team and her peers, Kim was selected to participate in Topco’s year-long leadership development program, dedicated to cultivating emerging leaders within the company.

In her role, Watters ensures corporate events help achieve key business objectives to inform, inspire and engage a wide range of audiences, including associates, customers, investors and media.

During the past two years, Watters has planned events that spotlight SpartanNash’s “people first” culture. These include quarterly town hall events, which earned her a national award from venue partner Live Nation; frontline associate recognition event called Circle of Excellence; the SpartanNash Summit for senior leaders, which earned another national award; multiple corporate holiday parties; an office grand reopening party; mass volunteer events for corporate associates; and family-focused events.

The attendee survey results speak for themselves, showing consistent event-over-event ratings improvement and an average rating of 9.0/10, with Circle of Excellence scoring as

high as a 9.9.

In addition to these internal events, Watters was pivotal in planning the SpartanNash Food Solutions Expo for 2,000 customers, vendors and associates, as well as the first-ever company Investor Day, which involved ringing the NASDAQ opening bell in New York’s Times Square.

Watters’ projects require complex operational planning, creative problem solving and tremendous creativity – all things she has excelled at in her experience to date. Her passion and dedication have shone through because she was selected to be a part of the elite Women Grocers of America’s Emerging Leaders Share Group this past year.

Being recognized with The Shelby Report’s Emerging Leaders Award is also an honor for Corinne as she continues to grow and share her expertise in the events field.

on customer-centric strategies that deliver strong category growth for both retailers and the fairlife business.

She is also a valued leader and cross-functional partner, developing her team and inspiring her colleagues with her collaborative approach and positive attitude.

In 2022, Weaver led cross-functional teams that secured a 23 percent increase in space within value-added dairy and a 50 percent SKU increase within ready-to-drink sports nutrition, as well as closing all remaining voids with key grocery customers.

She completed the year with record growth for the core

power brand within a top grocer – up 76 percent in units and 85 percent in dollars versus the prior year. Display total distribution points grew 58 percent, share of visual inventory increased 25 percent and unit share of category rose 11 points.

Weaver is a fairlife Legen-Dairy Award Winner.

hours of internship and received my certificate in dietetics. I am now a registered dietician in Wisconsin.

One of the areas of my job that is most fulfilling is working with hunger-relief organizations and helping them in their goal of providing access to nutritious food. Whether it’s food-insecure families, seniors or homeless veterans, I work closely with hunger-relief organizations across our state, helping not only to make an impact for those experiencing food insecurity but to educate and provide better nutritional alternatives and health outcomes.

One of the accomplishments I am most proud of is creating an exciting cookbook of diverse Wisconsin restaurants and their favorite recipes. Our customers responded with overwhelming support in purchasing the cookbook. At a time when most were struggling through the effects of the pandemic, we were able to award the proceeds in the form of grants to 20 Wisconsin restaurants. They have been great supporters of the grocery industry and we were pleased to be able to support our friends in the restaurant industry during a difficult time.

The grocery world is sales oriented and my credentials

allow me to frame nutritional messaging and imagery. For example, incorporating fruits and vegetables into sponsorship imagery and creating messaging on low sodium and hearthealthy foods provides a value-add to our sales initiatives.

What we eat is central to our health, and I feel I have made a difference by messaging how better nutritional choices result in better health outcomes.

I am also involved with our state legislature in supporting appropriate legislation that benefits the grocery industry. I enjoy educating legislators on how the industry works and how nutrition plays a key role in the business.

I have been privileged to receive a Rising Star award from the Wisconsin Grocers Association. I am also the state media representative for the Wisconsin Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

I truly enjoy the grocery world because, first and foremost, it’s a people business and one in which I can work to make those positive food connections, finding opportunities for those nutritional changes with those who choose to shop our stores.

LEADERS

8/1/23 9:13 AM

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THE SHELBY REPORT OF THE MIDWEST • AUGUST 2023

NGA Student Case Study Competition leveraging emerging leaders

by Jim Dudlicek NGA director, communications and external affairs Employee recruitment and retention remains a top issue facing the independent retail industry. According to many industry and academic research studies, at least 58 percent of U.S. retailers said they have experienced hiring challenges over the past two years that have negatively impacted their business.

During this time, most of these retailers increased wages and benefits for full-time employees, yet they still saw a significant increase in their employee turnover rate.

Independent grocery retailers must assess how they should structure their financial plans and team activities to increase recruiting and retention. How can companies develop a comprehensive strategy that delivers the best combination of internal benefits with competitive corporate positioning?

As part of the NGA Student Case Study Competition in February, 11 colleges worked on strategies and tactics for marketing and implementation of this program. Auburn University emerged as champion.

The National Grocers Association and the NGA Foundation hosted a recent webinar to explain more about how this program can benefit independent grocery retailers.

Moderated by Kelly Hanson, the foundation’s senior project manager, the discussion included: Erica Campbell, director of talent management at St. Louis-based grocery retailer Dierbergs (the retailer at the center of this year’s case study contest); and Jarrett Prizel, a supply chain management student at Auburn University and a member of Auburn’s winning case study team.

Here are some key takeaways from the discussion: The contest promotes industry leadership and innovative thinking. The competition provides college students considering careers in the grocery industry with hands-on, realworld experience, exposure to the independent grocery sector and a chance to develop solutions that can impact the industry, amid a spirit of fair competition and good sportsmanship.

After researching, developing and finalizing solutions presented during three rounds at the NGA Show, the winning school receives $4,000, with each student team member taking home $1,000.

Students were uniquely equipped to address this year’s topic. Grocers are seeking to enhance their employee recruitment and retention, and students are of the age group representing the industry’s emerging work force.

Teams could bring personal perspectives to these questions: What can grocery retail do to improve the connection points with employees of all ages and reduce turnover rates? How can grocers position themselves as a top potential employer for younger generations seeking fulfillment beyond financial in their career? How should independent grocers restructure their team to support employees’ needs during the hiring and training process? What are unique offerings independent grocers can offer both full-time and part-time employees that will encourage retention?

The contest offered students a reallife challenge. In Prizel’s case, his team brainstormed for about a month and created a network of professors to assist in developing his team’s skills in different business areas, including finance, supply chain management, entrepreneurship and consulting.

Students tackled how to fit solutions to case requirements

and company culture; structure teaching while allowing for worker autonomy; identify industry-leading strategies; and explain how their solution worked financially and strategically.

Auburn’s winning solution. The team impressed Dierbergs and contest judges with its three-phase plan that encompassed employee education, recognition, gamification of work processes, career coaching, employee retreats and networking groups.

Retailer takeaways from the contest? Dierbergs aims to focus on digital marketing to enhance its recruitment and culture; establish a mentoring program; increase its investment in scholarships, SAT/ACT prep courses and GED programs; and invest in learning and leadership development.

I’m a retailer and want to participate – what do I have to do? Dierbergs was asked to collect and provide data that would support the student’s research and solutions; coordinate with the NGA Foundation to answer student questions; and participate in the judging of the competition at the NGA Show.

In addition, Dierbergs sent a delegation of seven senior leaders to attend the NGA Show, sponsored a lunch for students at the show and hosted two of the competing teams, one to participate in a share group and another to spend a day with the management team in St. Louis.

Engagement opportunities for next year’s contest – a retailer partner, sponsorship partner, topic ideas and contest judges.

Online Learn more about the NGA Foundation’s student programs at www.nationalgrocers.org/ foundation/ student-case-study or contact nga-foundation@nationalgrocers.org.

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8/1/23 9:14 AM