Shelby Publishing 2014 Woman Executive's of the Year

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2014 Woman Executive of the Year

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The Shelby Report of the West • APRIL 2014

Woman Executive of the Year

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A Q&A with Unified Grocers VP and Chief Marketing Officer Sue Klug Read more about how Klug got started in the industry and how she balances family and her executive role at the largest wholesale grocery distributor in the western U.S. in an interview with The Shelby Report from Unified’s Commerce, Calif., headquarters in mid-February.

Q: How did you get started in this business? This is a timely question because one of your mentors just passed away. We’d like to hear a little bit about Bill Davila and specifically how he may have influenced you as a woman coming up in the industry.

Sadly, two people who were significant to my joining the industry, joining Vons, passed away in the last week. Bud Moorman—he worked in deli in the manufacturing area of Vons. I joined Vons in 1979 and my mom actually worked in the deli kitchen; she worked on the factory line with the cheeses and the lunchmeats. I was in my early 20s.

I was visiting my mom in this factory/ deli/kitchen environment and Bud Moorman stuck his head in and he said, “Would you be interested in thinking about working for Vons someday?”

And that’s how the whole conversation started. I started in a function that now resides in the mailroom, which was sorting DSD invoices that came in from the stores.

Sue and Todd Klug at the 2013 Western Association of Food Chains convention.

Sue Klug is perhaps the best-known woman in the West Coast food industry.

The 54-year-old Unified Grocers executive started in the business at Vons as Susan Lawmaster in her early 20s. She went on to work at Lucky Stores before joining Catalina Marketing and later Albertsons/Supervalu. Prior to coming on board with Unified in late 2012 as the wholesaler’s SVP and chief marketing officer, Klug served as president of the Southern California Division of Albertsons for five years.

“Through the years I have had the good fortune to witness Sue’s successes during her years with Vons, Catalina Marketing, Lucky Stores, Albertsons and now Unified Grocers,” says friend and Western Association of Food Chains (WAFC) COO Carole Christianson. “She has left her footprints in every organization she has served.”

As much as she’s known for her business prowess, Klug, to the same caliber, is a supporter of women. In an industry historically dominated by men, Klug came up in the grocery business during a time when there were no other women to look to for guidance. Today, she serves as that beacon she didn’t have. In fact, Klug

has mentored countless young women over the years in how to succeed in business—from how to conduct oneself to professional makeup application.

She’s an advocate for education, too—something she credits for helping her choose her career path and succeed.

Growing up poor, Klug’s parents did not encourage her to go to college after graduating from Temple City High School in Temple City, Calif. It didn’t take her long to realize, however, that—for her own security—she needed an education.

She graduated from USC’s Food Industry Management program in 1984 and would soon earn her bachelor’s degree as well as an MBA. Because of her dedication to advancing education at Unified and across the industry, Klug received the Illuminators Education Foundation Torch Award last year.

But for Klug, her most important role is wife and mother. Her son Sean is 18 and her daughter Shelby is 16. Shelby has cystic fibrosis, and the Klugs have long been powerful advocates of finding a cure for the disease—a reason why the West Coast food industry is such a strong supporter of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

Q: What do you think prompted Bud Moorman to ask you that question?

He knew my grandfather had worked for Vons and my father had worked for Vons and he knew my mother. He knew the family, so I guess he just thought that I came from good stock or something.

Then I was working in this accounting/mailroom function and there was a Teamsters strike, so a bunch of the people that were in the accounting area went out to do the books because the bookkeepers were honoring the strike, and I had a bit of an accounting background from high school. They said,

“Can you do some of this other work because the skilled people have gone to the stores?” So it sort of gave me an opportunity. The strike, honestly, was an opportunity to show them I could do something else. It was kind of fun. I worked through accounting, then I went into inventory management.

I had that background, but while I was in high school we were so poor, college wasn’t going to be in the cards. The only thing my parents said to go for were any kind of cash awards—like write an essay or something and get a cash award as a senior. I got a big award from Bank of America. But if it was a scholarship, they were like, “No, you’re not going to go to college.”

Q: It was just assumed?

Oh, yeah...My dad said the reason women go (to college) is to get their M.R.S. degree, to find a man. That was for the rich people, and that wasn’t going to be us.

But while at Vons in this accounting thing, I see people get promoted and I’m thinking, “I’m as good as them, I think.” But I didn’t have the opportunity, and it was because they had been through college. That’s what sort of sparked me. I ended up going to Pasadena City College. I ended up with 72 units that I ultimately transferred to USC. But it was really that hunger to get out of the cycle of poverty. My dad, the one that had worked at Vons, he and my mom divorced when I was quite young.

He was an alcoholic. He died. My mom remarried and my stepdad didn’t work, so she had this factory job and four kids.

Q: Tell us about your siblings.

My older brother, Greg, he’s two years older and he’s from my real dad. When my mom remarried, they had two children, so I have a younger brother who’s eight years younger and a sister who’s 10 years younger from a different dad. My sister lives in North Carolina and my Please see page 42

Sue is a giant of the industry. She embodies heart, compassion and astute business sense. Her core values define her leadership. Sue has served on City of Hope’s Food Industries Circle advisory board for many years and is a true Champion of Hope. Congratulations, Sue. We are proud to call you our friend.”

—Cheryl Kennick, senior director of development, City of Hope/Food Industries Circle

Congratulations to Sue Klug On Being Named The Shelby Report of the West’s 2014 Woman Executive of the Year!

Sue Klug has contributed so much to the food industry on multiple levels. She is a champion and a dynamic leader who has helped to orchestrate organizations and events to help promote the industry as well as women and men in the workforce. She is an inspiration to us all.

Congratulations, sue, on this well-deserved and distinguished honor!

All of your friends at,

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younger brother lives in Kentucky. Greg lives in Sacramento.

I went to school at night, worked fulltime during the day, so I was in accounting, inventory management, went over into data processing...

Q: As you went through these positions, how many women did you see moving through these positions?

None. There were no women in positions of power.

Q: This was a solid, good ol’ boy system then?

There were no women or officers.

Q: Did you understand how to navigate working with men? Was it your personality or your abilities?

I honestly think I was running to something that would keep me off food stamps.

Q: So you were very motivated?

Very much. It wasn’t like I was mo-

tivated for money and stuff; I’ve never been that person. It was, I didn’t want to not know if I was going to get dinner.

That was the force early on.

Q: Did your mentors, Bill and Bud, guide you in terms of how to dress, how to talk to people, how to look or how to speak?

Back in the ’80s, Bill used to call me “Disco Sue.” I had a bad disco stage—really curly hair and too much polyester.

But once I graduated from the USC (Food Industry Management) program, it was sort of the moment where I thought, “Oh, I could really have a career.” It’s not just about (getting and staying out of poverty). It could be something more than that.

Q: When did you graduate from the USC program?

That was 1984, and then I got my degree, my bachelor’s, in ’85.

Q: Even today, there are people being promoted in this industry that don’t

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2014 have a degree from college. Do you really believe it was the degree that opened the doors for you or was it your motivation and desire?

At that time in the USC program you got college credits. I believed in my gut, like I had this epiphany, that I needed to get a college degree and that would mean that I wasn’t going to have to worry about dinner on the table. I wasn’t committed to the food industry, frankly, at that time.

Q: You were just looking at it as a degree. A steppingstone toward success.

Yes, but the program, the content of the program, is what completely turned me around and I said, “I can not only get a degree and be safe, I can have a real career in this business.” That is why I’m such an advocate for that program— because it meant so much to me on so many different levels. After I graduated they said I could get my masters. No one in my family had ever been to college, so I said, “OK, I’ll take the GMAT.” That was the test at the time. I don’t

“As I think about the people who really impacted my career and the lessons I’ve learned, it’s all about having a very real connection to people and demonstrating that you care about them,” says Klug, who, as one migiht guess from the football helmet, is a USC Trojans fan.

even think that test is around anymore, but I took it. I was lucky and scored well. It took me five years, but at night I got my MBA. Q: You were given a lot of opportunities that not a lot of other women out there who have an education were given. True? So what is it that Sue Klug did?

I think I was willing to take risks early.

Even in that accounting thing, I was willing to raise my hand during that strike and say, “Give me a shot.” I was willing to transfer into inventory management and learn the buying system. I was willing to step into data processing at the time without any (code and systems knowledge). I knew nothing.

Q: You could learn it and do it, though.

Yeah. I think it was being willing to take the risks. And I also think having those strong mentors along the way.

Bill Davila was my primary mentor. He was incredibly creative and brilliant and really pulled the best out of people.

There are a few different mentors I want to talk about. I was just thinking about them and the issue, I would say, with each of them, the overriding thing if I had to button them all up, is they knew how to connect with people at a very different level. Bill connected with me and he connected with a ton of people and taught me a lot. When you talk about mentors sometimes you think, “Oh, they gave you a pass and they were really easy on you.” My mentors were the toughest people on me that you could ever meet. It was not unicorns and rainbows; it was tough stuff. But they were tough because they cared and they were pushing me to be my best. Bill’s creativity, his passion for the Hispanic consumer, those never left me, and it serves me well here at Unified, obviously. Really, he had a very strong appreciation for diversity. So while there were no real women in positions of power, Bill, being the only Hispanic in a position of power, understood how it was to be the odd one out in the room— and I think he really embraced it.

And then I think about Dick Goodspeed and Larry Del Santo. Again, they connect to people and they care. Dick and Larry, when I worked for them— Larry would always pat you on the back and Dick would kick you in the butt. It’s true.

Q: In a nice way…?

Yeah. They taught me to connect to people, but secondly, there’s power in a really strong team. Neither of those guys would have been as good without the other. That was another terrific example to me; that’s a life lesson I took away.

And another one I was thinking about was Jeff Noddle. When the Supervalu transaction happened, the first thing Jeff did was come out and connected with the store directors. He got in their stores, he talked to them about the is-

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2014 sues. He could have worried about labor and capital and the deal costs, synergies and all the other things you do during an acquisition, but he just sat in back rooms and talked to people. As I think about the people who really impacted my career and the lessons I’ve learned, it’s all about having a very real connection to people and demonstrating that you care about them.

Q: You have a support group, obviously. You have your husband Todd, who is the rock and he takes care of so many things for you. He’s got a big career of his own at Popchips and previously at Coca-Cola, which is amazing. You have two children, one of whom has always been a high-needs child. What is it that enables you to have a career, a husband who has a career and still do what you do?

I think having the support system is really important— great family support, great friends, a company that unPlease see page 44

APRIL 2014 • The Shelby Report of the West

Woman Executive of the Year

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derstands. I just got Shelby out of the hospital yesterday. She was ill. Thankfully with the internet now you can be sending emails at midnight and you can kind of get caught up, but I always tell women to really think about what you want and understand that, and once you do, make sure you articulate what it takes. Because a lot of times people get to the what do they want but they don’t do the hard work of what it’s going to take and how you set the wheels in mo-

Q: Todd tells us you’re a list person.

I am. I have to be. I have to be highly organized. I know everything I have to accomplish every day. I know everything he (Todd) has to accomplish every day, even though he doesn’t acknowledge it. That’s just how I keep myself organized.

Q: Is your list on a spiral notepad or notebook?

I don’t tear the pages out, so then

2014 Q: What time do you typically wake up in the morning?

4:30 (Monday-Friday). I try to get into the office early.

Q: You’ve always been an early bird?

Yeah, pretty much.

Q: Shelby now takes care of herself, without much help anymore.

Yeah, but as the mom with the list…I have a list for her, too—so I have to make sure she’s done everything in the

This is a well-deserved award. Sue is an accomplished executive and skilled professional. She’s been an outstanding addition to the Unified senior leadership team and her energy and drive have already had a significant impact on our business. Sue has impeccable credentials, a wealth of experience in the grocery industry and understands independent retailers and what they need to be successful. Her passion for the business has raised the bar for all of us. She’s a strong advocate for women in leadership roles and we’re very pleased to see her contributions recognized by others in the industry.”

—Bob Ling, president and CEO, Unified Grocers

tion to make all that happen.

Q: Tell us about Shelby.

Cystic fibrosis is the No. 1 genetic killer of children. When she was diagnosed at two years old they told us she might live to her early 20s. She’s 16 today. Cystic fibrosis just clogs up the lungs and digestive system. If I had been born with it, statistics say I wouldn’t have lived to be 10 years old. They’re living longer (today) because of the treatments. And those treatments take hours of her time every day, just to try to maintain her health. It’s degenerative, so she loses lung capacity and health every year.

While the disease is the most horrible thing I think I could have imagined for my child, I’m sure there’s worse. I haven’t seen it. The one thing it really has blessed us with is getting to know at a very real level how much people care and how much they’re there to support us. And you wouldn’t know if you weren’t as needy as we are in terms of fundraising and awareness and getting people involved in our cause. I would never have guessed that people in this industry could be that good and that caring and that supportive and that generous. I very much, from that perspective, look at it as a blessing because we are thankful every day for the support we get. Across competitors, CPG companies and third-party suppliers. Every which way you look. It’s unbelievable.

Q: You’ve mentioned before that she starts her day at 5 in the morning.

It’s 4 or 5 in the morning on school days. On the weekends she can sleep in.

I just do it chronologically. And then about once a week I go back and say, “OK, is there anything in the last week that fell through the cracks?” It really helps me kind of stay on it.

Q: Have you learned to do that now with your cell phone?

A little bit. I like to see something visually and if my cell phone loses power or whatever...but I do keep my calendar and everything on (the phone).

Q: Did somebody teach you to make lists, or is that something that is selftaught?

I think it’s just self-taught. It’s what works for you. Everybody has different things that work. I make notes on the littlest things in the world, but that helps me stay on point and gives a sense of accomplishment. At the end of the day I look and say, “Did I nail it or did I leave it on the table?”

Q: Do you set goals, like five-year or 10-year goals?

I don’t have clearly articulated goals because I’ve just found in my life and my career I have to be somewhat opportunistic. I kind of push myself every day and I sort of know what I’m aiming for today or this month or this year. But one thing I’ve learned, particularly with Shelby’s illness, is I live every day in the moment. Every good day we have is a day that I am thrilled with. I’ve been lucky in parts of my career and my life.

I have an amazing family and great friends. I relish and appreciate that.

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right order and that the pills have been taken and the rinses and the sprays have been done. There’s a whole regimen of things that have to get done.

Q: What time do you normally go to bed?

10.

Q: We’ve gone through a lot of personal stuff in this interview. Anything you want to share about the business of Unified, perhaps? This is a new venture for you—previously you were with Albertsons, Supervalu. This is a really different kind of landscape that you’re navigating through.

I basically grew up in the chain environment—lots of time at Vons and then Lucky, which obviously later became Albertsons—and really great experiences and some terrific people. But the chain environment is very, very different than the independent environment.

I’m really, truly enjoying this time in my career because what I feel like I’m able to do is take some of the learnings and techniques and technologies from the chains and help the independents through a wholesaler like Unified that can provide some scale…so they can complete more effectively. It’s a perfect kind of marriage because independents are incredible merchants and they have great passion and drive for the business.

It’s their family’s name on the outside of the building. Their entire family works for the operation. There’s a drive there the chains can’t even comprehend. If you can complement that drive and passion and commitment with some scale, technology, programs and approaches and strategy—that to me is where the magic is. And I think that’s what I can help bring to the business because of the expertise that I’ve had over the years working in the chain environment.

Q: We’ve always respected how you

Q: That gives you family time and all that in the evenings?

Yeah.

Q: What time do you normally get home?

Eh, 6.

Q: You have somewhat of a normal work schedule?

Yes, but I do travel a lot for work because we have office in Northern Cal and Portland and Seattle. Next week, for example, I’m out all week. I leave on Sunday afternoon. But if it was just an average Sue and Shelby at a “Hike the Halo” event at Angels Stadium to week...and again, the benefit the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. good thing is there’s so much you can do now present yourself—in terms of your with the connectivity at home. So I can business attire, your appearance. Talk get home, make sure the homework’s to me a little bit about being a woman moving, make sure dinner’s moving, and how you present yourself profesmake sure laundry’s moving and then go back and tidy up from the day. Check sionally.

In the ’80s, I was Disco Sue, curly hair my list.

Please see page 46

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and too much polyester. And I think once I kind of went through the USC program and knew that I was going to commit to a career, I started—there were no role models inside the business really—looking around, looking at magazines, looking at women in positions of power and authority.

Q: So you did do some homework?

A little bit, yeah. But back in those days, honestly, women dressed to look like men. We wore those very plain suits. We wore the little silk neckties. What I’m excited about today is while you still need to look very professional, I think you can bring a feminine touch. And I always talk about bringing your whole self to work. The person I am at work is not different than the person I am at home. Do I dial some things up or down appropriately? Yeah, I think I do. But I think being authentic is really, really important. I think people that you work for, that work for you, that you interact with, they have a good sense if you’re the real deal or not.

Q: What advice would you give to a young woman reading this story?

There are certain norms you have to conform to, and I have person-

clothes a lot; with weight; with hair; and, in fact, when I was with Albertsons, I took a group of about 20 women to MAC, the cosmetic company, and we went through how to do your makeup with professional polish. It’s important,

Q: Do you have time to exercise yourself, and what’s your passion?

Yes, an elliptical; I have it at home. I like to cycle; that’s another thing. And I do a little bit of Pilates. But mostly elliptical for cardio.

Q: Anything else you’d like to share?

Many of the women I know that are in bigger jobs, the husband does the heavy lifting at home. Or they’re single

ally counseled many women on those norms. I’ve probably been bolder than maybe I should be at times, but it’s because I care. Helping people understand, helping women understand, there is a certain expected norm and if you operate outside of that there’s going to be consequences that go with it. Maybe it’s not fair, and I can’t help that, but it is what it is. So, “Here’s a norm, it’s your choice.” I’ve helped women with

2014 or they’re married without kids. So it is a little bit unique. Again, I attribute all that (for me) to the support groups.

We sort of started talking about how the USC program really convinced me that it wasn’t just a way for me to get a

Sue Klug with children Sean and Shelby and husband Todd.

and I feel compelled to help women.

Like I say, I’ve bought people salon gift certificates. Just yesterday, in fact, I sent a weight loss program to a woman I’ve been talking to about her health and her physical appearance. I just think, women particularly, have to operate inside those norms.

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degree. It was a way to have a real career in the industry. Part of my passion today is around providing educational opportunities for people inside the industry, and that’s why the WAFC is so important to me personally because (the FIM Program) was not just a career-changer, it was a life-changer. I think this industry has become more difficult. It requires more technology and probably requires a little bit more sophistication than it might have in years gone by. All that screams the need for education.

Q: You’re breaking the glass ceiling again. In April, you’re going to become the 94th, and first woman president, of the WAFC. Is there anything you can share with us that you see you want to do right away to put your

stamp on the presidency?

It will have been, just about exactly, 30 years from when I graduated from the program in 1984 to when I become the president in 2014. And if you had told me as the 20-something-year-old back then that I would someday be that person, I would have never, in a million years, believed you. It is incredible. To me, that just speaks to the value of the program itself.

There are real initiatives we’re working on inside the WAFC. I don’t know if they’re necessarily linked to women, per se, but what we’re really trying to do now is target people of all ages and stages—kind of working on the community college program, which is more of an entrylevel to education that is vitally important and growing by leaps and bounds; the next step is the 14-week USC Food Industry Management Program to really get people solidified in the industry and in their career; and then the new initiative is exploring something at a graduate level for people who maybe came into the industry with a finance degree or an engineering degree or whatever it might be—but really giving them some higher education and learning behind the important issues in the industry. That, we hope, will all come together in the next year or so.

Last year, one thing I’m really proud of, is we started on the first-ever resource group here at Unified. It’s the Unified Women’s Resource Group and that has been highly successful. We rolled it out in our Southern Cal office.

It’s rolling out in March in our Seattle offices and, once we get our women’s groups rolled out, we want to look at other diversity groups—Hispanic, Asian, LGBT, whatever it might be. I’m excited by that and really enthusiastic Please see page 48

Sue is an incredibly talented leader of teams as well as one-onone. She consistently challenges us to keep the customer at the forefront of every decision we make. Her high energy, passion and enthusiasm for the business are contagious. Regardless of the challenge, Sue encourages us to ‘fight on.’ She inspires our team to stretch our thinking and our efforts.”

—Greg McNiff, VP of marketing/merchandising, Albertsons LLC

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about the response we’re getting and, again, how women are connecting to the business in a different way, exploring new career opportunities and ways they can give back to the company and to the industry.

Q: Are you still involved with the Network of Executive Women (NEW)?

I was the co-founder of the Southern California chapter of NEW, and I was the co-chair for about three or four years. Now I’m a committee lead. I lead the public relations and the media efforts. I’m really supporting the next generation and helping them anywhere I can along the way.

NEW has over 20 chapters in North America and is experiencing double-digit growth. I have really appreciated the relationships there, and it’s been very satisfying to watch the next generation of women.

Q: Have you gotten feedback from women in Southern California who have benefited from NEW?

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2014

I think primarily they benefit from the networking. Men, I think, have traditionally networked on the golf course and in business lunches or in business dinners, and that’s not as comfortable for women. We have several networking opportunities a year.

Just to get to know people has been really refreshing, I think, and helpful as well as the content of those, which is often about things like life balance or leadership or how you create your own personal brand. It’s women talking to women about issues that are sort of uniquely theirs.

Q: Men and women do network differently.

The women walk up and say, “Hey, those are really cute shoes” or “I like your haircut.” The men walk up and ask for the business.

I think teaching women to, again, be authentic always, but it’s OK to be a little bold. I think we’ve seen some of the women kind of incorporate some of that but, again, that notion of watching the next generation of women find their way is really energizing to me. It’s exciting.

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Sue Klug with The Shelby Report’s own Bob Reeves, VP-West.

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A Q&A with Food Lion President Beth Newlands Campbell Since taking the helm as president of Food Lion in December 2012, Beth Newlands Campbell has been working to transform Food Lion and win customers’ loyalty.

Tapping into Food Lion’s heritage of low prices and convenient locations, she is working to preserve what has worked well for the company in the past while creating a different company for the future by enhancing customer service and creating an easy shopping experience for customers.

Newlands Campbell isn’t shy about acknowledging the company’s need to change. In just a year, she has already made her mark on the company. Earlier this year, Food Lion completed its “phase” investments that included lower prices and reinvestments in the basics, such as fresher produce, expanded private brand products and enhanced service.

But Newlands Campbell has acknowledged that it’s not enough. In December 2013, the company opened its newest store, which showcases the imprint Newlands Campbell is having on the company.

In its newest store, Food Lion has expanded its fresh offering, including greater selection and variety in produce. The new store also transforms the experience to make shopping easy for customers, from new registers at checkout to “grab & go” dinners to making the store more convenient to shop for customers. Where did she get the inspiration for the changes? By talking to customers and listening to those who are closest to the customer every day—Food Lion’s store managers and store associates.

As she thinks through enhancements for Food Lion, and in everything she does, Newlands Campbell adheres to her motto of always putting the customer first. This focus comes from the early days in her career when she was a retail management trainee at Hannaford Supermarkets. In her 26-year career since then, the upstate New York native served as a store manager, worked her way up through the company and led a variety of functions across the chain.

Before implementing changes, she still reflects on her experiences in those roles to understand how every decision will impact the customer.

In fact, her passion for more affordable groceries stems from her days at retail where she saw firsthand the tough choices customers were making at the register, like buying dinner or paying rent. She believes Food Lion can help eliminate those choices by giving back to the community and keeping prices low.

Newlands Campbell loves a challenge. As she works to reinvigorate the Food Lion brand, she is on the path to success.

That’s why she was selected as The Shelby Report’s Woman Executive of the Year.

Read more about how she got started in the industry and how she balances family and leading one of the nation’s largest grocery chains in an interview with Editor Lorrie Griffith.

Please see page 16

Beth Newlands Campbell 2014 Woman Executive Beth Newlands Campbell of the Year 2014 Woman Executive of the Year

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Q: How did you become interested in the food industry?

My affinity for the grocery industry started in my hometown as a young child, although I didn’t know it at the time. My grandfather owned a general store in rural New York, which is actually very similar to several of our Food Lion markets. So, I guess you could say retail was always “in my DNA.” However, it was my college professor Ed McLaughlin at Cornell University, who created the spark for me. Whether we were in a finance class or an accounting class, he was always using examples about the grocery industry. It was something we all could relate to since we buy groceries. Through him, I started to see grocery stores in a different light. I realized that the grocery industry had many career opportunities.

Q: What was your first job after Cornell?

I joined Hannaford’s retail management trainee program. As part of the training, you spend a year rotating positions in the stores, from working overnight to stocking shelves to making doughnuts. The program enables you to understand the technical aspects of the business, as well as gain an in-depth understanding and appreciation for who is working in our stores and what motivates store associates. You learn how to manage all aspects of retail operations, from managing product to taking care of your associates.

Q: The retail management trainee program seems to be something very unique in the industry. Is this something that most large chains do? Do others have similar training programs?

I believe it is a fairly unique program in the industry.

My sense is that a lot of other retailers have a more traditional career path in that you work in stores and work your way up, typically through grocery. Additionally, there is generally not a lot of movement from corporate

to retail.

At Food Lion, and across Delhaize America, we tend to look at career paths differently. We look for talented people and skill sets that are transferrable across the organization. Our talent comes from the more traditional

ranks such as store associates, as well as new talent being recruited into the retail management trainee program. It’s about doing both well.

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Great Lakes Cheese Congratulates on 90 years of success.

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2014 Woman Executive of the Year

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MARCH 2014 • The Shelby Report of the Southeast

Woman Executive of the Year

2014 Q: Have you encountered people in your career that were reluctant to give you a chance because you were a woman?

I felt invited by Hannaford to join the industry 26 years ago, when I received a letter asking me to interview. Clearly, there are still opportunities for companies to embrace diversity among their entire workforce and make a bigger impact. From my perspective, you also have to do more than simply embrace diversity. You also need to have diversity with competence. It’s not just about having more women. It is about having really good leaders, regardless of whether they are men or women. Companies that figure out how to do this well will win.

Q: What are some strengths you bring to your role that grow out of your perspective as a woman?

I do not believe I necessarily come in with a different lens than any of my peers, regardless of whether they are men or women.

I bring leadership, the ability to communicate with people, and a passion for serving our customers and winning.

As I consider changes for the company or strategize about how we’re going to improve service, I always think about the store associates I worked with during my first week with the company.

I often reflect on what it is like to work for our company, what it is like to be one of our customers and what the store experience is like. For me, I like to think about this award as “Executive of the Year, Who Happens to Be a Woman.” I am very grateful for the honor and appreciate the award. However, I have never thought about my position through the gender lens of being a woman. I focus on “how do I be a great leader that people want to follow?” and “how will my decisions impact our associates and customers?”

One of the things I really love to do, though, is work with emerging leaders and help open the door for the conversations they may be struggling with, such as: “How do you be a working mom?” or “how do you be a working dad?”

I was very fortunate to have had great role models in my parents. My mom worked full-time, and she was “all-in” as a mom.

She was also “all-in” as a full-time teacher. This was back when not as many women worked outside of the home. My dad, who also worked full-time, was the person I could dream with. One day I was a veterinarian, and the next day I was going to be a doctor or

children. My kids are growing up with three generations living under one roof – a full-time working mom, a stay-at-home dad and my mom, who also lives with us. We know that we are absolutely blessed to be able to have this experience.

Q: Who are your mentors?

an astronaut. He never stopped to say, “Well, wait a minute. You can’t do that because you’re a woman.” He always asked me what I wanted to do. I think that is a gift we can all give our

Throughout my career, I have been fortunate to have had many mentors who have coached and guided me along the way. As part of the retail management trainee program, each of us was assigned several mentors as part of a formal mentoring program.

Here’s to you,

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Beth Newlands Campbell, 2014 Woman Executive of the Year.

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Woman Executive of the Year

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2014

Beth Newlands Campbell has struck up a friendship with Food Lion “rock star” Ralph Ketner.

Shelby Report file photo

While these mentors were very helpful, I believe the lasting relationships with mentors have been the ones where I was actually the one seeking the mentor out or a relationship that I created on an informal basis.

For example, when I was a little girl, it was a neighbor who was like a grandfather to me. Mr. Gramlich taught me to appreciate nature and the environment.

We didn’t call it sustainability then, but it was around sustainability and giving back to the community. He was a friend who made maple syrup with me in the backyard. But unbeknownst to me at the time, he was a retired executive from Eastman Kodak.

I’ve also had a number of colleagues throughout my career at Hannaford and Food Lion that I deliberately sought out as mentors, and still consider mentors today.

The most recent relationship I developed is with Food Lion founder, Mr. Ralph Ketner. He is someone I consider a friend.

He is incredibly smart and holds a lifetime of wisdom. I greatly value his opinions. He is 93 years old now. When I moved to North Carolina a little over a year ago, I picked up the phone and called him. Since then, we have developed a great relationship. We surprised him with a birthday party at our company picnic in September. We had a 6-foot-tall card and everyone in the company was invited to sign it. At Food Lion, he is a rock star, both in the community and in our company.

Q: Your parents set a great example. Tell me about their influence on you as a leader?

They taught me to be present. For example, if I am at a basketball game for one of my daughters, I am “all-in” watching them play. I try not to be on my phone. When I am at work, I am focused on work. When I am with my family, they are my priority. I learned this from my parents. There is nothing worse than being at a game and missing the best play of the game.

You also asked about when I knew I had “made it” in the grocery industry. It was when I became a store manager. The first time you get a store is a big deal because you have a huge impact on associates and customers. The first store I took over was in Troy, N.Y. My parents, along with their neighbors, came to the opening.

They stayed for about five days and had a huge party. That was when I realized that I made it. It was a big deal to my parents. It was also a big deal to me. The pride of running a store was huge. It is a memory that I will never forget.

Q: What are some of the best parts of leading a large grocery company?

I always enjoy the challenge of delivering really strong results.

When we achieve our results as a company, it is a big source of pride for me, and our associates. After results, all the rest is easy. We create shareholder value (and a great shopping experience), and can give back to our associates and communities.

I consider my job to be a developer of people. The highlight for me is when I’m able to help others grow in their careers. It’s the moments when you can tap into someone’s strengths and give them confidence to take on the next challenging role. It is amazing to watch a person grow and develop. After all, our job as leaders is to ensure there are talented people in the pipeline that will help our company continue to be successful in the future. I’m fortunate to have the opportunity to work with a lot of those incredibly talented leaders at Food Lion and across our banners every day.

Q: In your opinion, what is one of the biggest challenges for Food Lion? How are you working to overcome it?

One of the challenges for me, and for us as an organization, is how we leverage being big. We have 1,113 stores in 10 states.

That can sometimes feel paralyzing because you think, “Where do I start?” For me, I am putting a lot of thought into “how do we be big,” but “how do we act small at the same time?”

At Food Lion, it is really about one store at a time, one customer at a time, one checkout experience at a time, one associate at a time. It is figuring out how to do all of these things well, not just one. We know we have to always keep our stores fresh. The positive is that there is so much more we can do in 1,113 stores that isn’t just about a remodel.

We can, and are, getting better every day. I have spent the last year focusing on that, as well as how to get different. That is the work that will take place over the next couple of years for us as an organization. We can’t forget that it all starts with the customer. At the end of the day, it is the voice of the customer that matters.

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The Shelby Report of the Midwest • MARCH 2014

Woman Executive of the Year

2014

Rose Mitchell’s Influence Will Have Impact for Years to Come

Rose Mitchell was the first woman in the history of West Des Moines, Iowa-based HyVee Inc. to be named an officer of the company. That happened in 1992. Three years later, the company that was founded in 1930 named her to the board of directors, another first for a woman executive.

Had she not gone with Hy-Vee, Mitchell most likely would have been the first woman superintendent of a school Rose Mitchell system. She would have been the “first woman” something.

Her rise to the top is the result of her “gotto-get-it-done” attitude that has bolstered her as she stretched her abilities beyond what she thought she was capable of doing.

“There were times when I felt like Hy-Vee would ask me to do the impossible,” Mitchell said. “The first reaction you have is, ‘Well, I can’t do this.’ And then you sit down for a minute and you let it sink in. Then I would swing that chair around and say, ‘OK. I’ve got to do it.’ Taking that first step is really, really hard.

“You’ve got to start. The very first thing you do is the hardest—putting that first word on paper, taking that first step,” said the Spencer, Iowa, native. “But once you get the first sentence down, it’s like the dam opens and it just comes. I think it’s a mental thing.

You climb over the wall. Then it flows.”

Over her 35 years with Hy-Vee, Mitchell has taken on many roles. In the early days, she performed human resources functions and started Hy-Vee’s career and alumni days.

“You grow into a lot of these positions,” Mitchell said. “Your talents kind of attract projects and jobs, and I started a lot of things that were eventually handed off into other departments. I did a lot of HR (human resources) functions in the early years before our HR department actually oversaw them— started our first Career Day and now that’s a huge event we hold every year. I even helped open small retail locations we experimented (with) back in the 80s and 90s.”

Mitchell retired from Hy-Vee in October 2013, after reaching the position of SVP of

governmental affairs. Retired in her case doesn’t mean she’ll be on the golf course every day, although she does like the sport.

She was director of the Hy-Vee Classic Senior Women’s LPGA Golf Tournament for two years and bested her husband Jerry by getting a hole-in-one before he did.

She’s keeping her company email address for one year, and wants to stay connected at least for a little while to the company she first went to work for in 1978.

She was a teacher back then, after graduating from Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa, with an English degree. The job she took at Hy-Vee was meant to supplement her income for a couple of months, until school started in late August.

When a corporate position came open and was posted, Mitchell saw it, read it and decided that she was not qualified for it, even though the job involved teaching and training development, strengths the former teacher surely had.

“There were a couple of lines in there— ‘may need to assist with accounting or bookkeeping functions at store level,’ and I thought to myself, ‘Nope. Can’t do that part.’

And because of one line in the whole entire job description I didn’t think I was qualified for, I discounted all the rest of it. This is where it’s important to have mentors and others who, when you know your employees well, walk over and give them an encouraging word.”

Steve Budd, her manager at the time, was that mentor for her. He told her she could do it.

It turned out that the little piece of the job description that had given her pause was inconsequential.

She said that is a classic example for how women sometimes hold themselves back.

“They tend to want to be more over-qualified and be able to do every single thing, and so, in particular, when you look at women in our industry, they need a lot of encouragement,” Mitchell said.

“Women make a difference. If you don’t have a woman at the top with you, you need to get women at the table regardless. But it’s happening. Two key women in the industry are heading up the associations: Leslie Sara-

Michelle Hurd, president of the Iowa Grocery Industry Association (IGIA) with Rose Mitchell, who received the 2013 IGIA Legislative Leader award. Mitchell was the fist non-legislator to receive the award.

“The Shelby Report has made an excellent choice for its Woman Executive of the Year award,” said IGIA President Michelle Hurd.

“Rose Mitchell has been a tireless advocate for the grocery industry.

She has helped shape Iowa’s political and business landscape. More than that, she has helped to mentor the next generation of industry leaders. She has been a personal friend and a mentor to me and to countless others in this industry.

Iowa is a better place to live and work in part thanks to Rose Mitchell’s unique personal gifts and professional talents and her willingness to share them both so generously.”

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sin (president and CEO) at FMI (Food Marketing Institute) and Pam Bailey (president and CEO) at GMA (Grocery Manufacturers Association),” Mitchell said.

She also believes women should do more to help each other.

“More women need to speak up. We aren’t known for supporting each other as well as we should, so I want to put the onus a little bit on women to speak up. I’ve been known to be an advocate for women and to speak out for 15, 20 years. But those of us in our 40s and 50s, we really need to be vocal and active and supportive. I’ve tried to do my best to lead by example.”

She also tries to pass along the wisdom she has gained when she returns to Simpson College, which presented her with its Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award in 1995 and its Greek Alumni of the Year and Advisor of the Year awards in 2002. She remains active with the Tri Delta sorority, for which she has been a collegiate district officer since 2006.

She tells young people that they have to be ready when the opportunities present themselves, like she was when the training supervisor position that lifted Mitchell to the corporate level came along.

“You need to meet the people you work with, see what’s going on around you, learn other things, not just in your department, but in other departments all around the business, so that when opportunity comes, you know more than just your narrow little area,” Mitchell said. “That was good advice I got from a boss and something I’ve passed along. It’s what allowed me to help develop and write Hy-Vee University.”

Hy-Vee University is the award winning in-depth training program for the company’s employees. It appeals in particular to employees fresh from college who want to continue to learn as they begin their careers.

“Having a teaching background, she came into our industry very well qualified to help us train the employees at the store level and also the future leaders at the company,” said Ric Jurgens, former CEO and president of Hy-Vee. They began working together when they were both very young, new executives.

“We’ve been friends and colleagues for virtually all of her career, and so I probably know her as well as anyone and probably appreciate her Ric Jurgens more than anyone else does,” Jurgens said. “She not only helped create virtually every significant training piece that we ever developed in our company, but she also set the pace for women in management. She was the reason we would hire so many over the years because they become such good managers.”

Another former CEO has high praise for Mitchell as well. Hy-Vee Chairman Emeritus Ron Pearson, who immediately preceded Jurgens as president, CEO and chairman of the board, said Mitchell was a “key individual in our company in a lot of areas.

“She was an example setter and a mentor for females coming up in our company want-

ing to grow their careers.

Rose just set example after example, growing to the ranks of the board of directors of HyVee and the executive committee of Hy-Vee,” Pearson said. “And then she also greatly helped us develop our relationRon Pearson ships with the legislative arms of the state governments, somewhat in the federal government, too, although we only operate in eight states. Rose led that particular area for our company.”

She has been honored for her work in that arena, just as she has been in every other area of her service at Hy-Vee and her substantial volunteer work. Iowa Congressman Tom Latham recognized Mitchell’s accomplishments in the state house of representatives last September.

“Rose’s contribution to Hy-Vee and to the great state of Iowa cannot be overstated,” Latham said. “While Mrs. Mitchell’s expertise and experience are sure to be missed, she leaves behind a truly grateful community and an excellent example of service for which to strive.”

Her work with food industry organizations also has been lauded. Mitchell was active in federal and state politics and policy through her nearly two-decade-long participation in FMI’s government affairs committee. She served as chairperson of the committee in 2013. In January, she received FMI’s Glen P. Woodard Jr. Public Affairs Award.

“In government relations, Rose epitomized the ideal lobbyist for the industry—someone with a solid reputation in both the substance of the issues and access to key elected officials, which made a difference over and over again for FMI and the industry as we tackled priority issues in Washington and in the state capitols,” said Jennifer Hatcher, FMI’s SVP of government and public affairs. “Rose and Hy-Vee have been critical to FMI and the industry on a host of issues big and small, legislative and regulatory, and federal and state. We would not have had the achievements we did without the skillful work of Rose and the Hy-Vee colleagues she enlisted on three issues in particular: swipe fees, front-of-package labeling and hours of service.”

Mitchell’s influence continues to grow in a big way, and Jurgens said he would be amazed if it didn’t.

Mitchell has taken on the unpaid, volunteer role of campaign manager for Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad’s reelection campaign.

Mitchell described her true-to-form reaction: “That was jaw-dropping when I was asked to do that. I thought, ‘Are you kidding me?’”

There’s little doubt she’ll swing that chair around and get it done.

“Rose is retired from going to work every day, and I don’t anticipate that she will take on another full-time job,” said Jurgens. “But do not be surprised if you see big things from this lady in the future. She is someone who gets involved and makes a difference and I’ll be shocked if she doesn’t continue to do that for the rest of her life.”