Join us in March to explore social governance and the impact that our companies can have on the communities we work, live, and build in. This will be the first event in CFBN’s Finance Series – Investing in Your Community. Thought leaders from the food and beverage industry will join us to explore how companies are forging these new paths between business and social investment, and how your company or brand can embrace these ideas too.
*Please note: Out of an abundance of caution, as Chicago faces COVID-19, we have converted this event to a virtual webinar! All attendees who pre-registered with payment will receive a refund for their registration fees.
CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE WEBINAR LINK (FREE)!
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This morning event will feature speakers from food and beverage, finance, and beyond - providing multiple insights into this new focus on corporate social responsibility, and corporations’ commitments to environmental, social, or community investment.
Joining us "virtually" for these conversations:
Renee Metcalf, Senior Vice President; Bank of America
Renée Metcalf is market executive of Illinois Middle Market Global Commercial Banking for Bank of America, where she is responsible for banking services for middle market companies with revenue between $50M and $2B. Metcalf, a senior vice president, has been in her current position since 2010. Metcalf joined Bank of America in 1998 in Kansas City as a client manager in Commercial Real Estate Home Builder Division. Metcalf holds a degree from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, and a master’s degree in general business from John Carroll University in University Heights, Ohio. In addition to an impressive career in banking, her civic involvement includes serving as treasurer for the Chicago affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, and leadership roles on the board of HomeAid Chicago. She was named as one of the 2013 Influential Women in Business by the Daily Herald, and won Bank of America’s 2015 Global Diversity and Inclusion Award and she is the Treasurer of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Renée and her husband, Jim Metcalf, reside in Chicago.
Brett Lutz, Vice President - Global Communications; ADM
Brett has served as VP of Global Communications at ADM since 2018. In this role, Lutz directs all internal and external corporate communications activities, including communication strategy, PR and media relations, social media, crisis communications, global colleague communications, corporate branding and digital strategy efforts. Lutz joined ADM from Whirlpool Corporation, where he served as Head of Corporate Communications and Change Management. Brett is a member of the Arthur W. Page Society and the Ragan Communications Leadership Council, and is a leading voice in both corporate reputation, digital communications and employee advocacy. He serves on the board of Greater Table, a nonprofit consortium of food companies addressing food insecurity in the Chicagoland area, and holds the position of president of the board of directors for GhostLight Theatre, a community-centric black box theater in Benton Harbor, Michigan. Lutz earned both his Masters and Bachelors degrees from the University of Oklahoma, where he studied Journalism, French Literature and International Business. He holds advanced language certificates from Université Blaise Pascal (France) and Università di Bologna (Italy).
Lisa Demme, Marketing Director; FONA International
Lisa Demme currently serves as Marketing Director for FONA International - a leading flavor and taste solutions company located in the southwest suburbs of Chicago. With over 30 years of foodservice experience, her career exemplifies her belief in the social importance that food and beverage plays in our daily lives. From restaurant management to national food and beverage procurement, Lisa’s experience spans all channels of the industry with her work at prominent companies and organizations such as Levy Restaurants, Motorola Food Works and The Compass Group. A mid-career switch, led by her desire to work more closely with food and beverage product developers, resulted in Lisa taking on sales and marketing leadership roles with a variety of CPG companies like Conagra, Unilever and Sara Lee. A native of Chicago, she is a graduate of Mundelein College with a Bachelor of Arts degree. Lisa has been an engaged and active board member with the Chicagoland Food & Beverage Network for the past two years and joins the Bigger Table as its Vice Chair in 2020.
Marisa Sullivan, Vice President Equity Research; Bank of America Merrill Lynch
Marisa Sullivan is a vice president in US Equity and Quant Strategy focused on ESG research. Previously, she was an equity research analyst on the US Food and Discount Retail team. Prior to joining the firm in 2014, Sullivan held several research and management roles at a think tank in Washington, DC. She has a BA in international studies from Boston College, a MA in international economics from Johns Hopkins University, and is a CFA charterholder. She is based in New York.
Dan Klein, CEO & Co-Founder; Tiesta Tea
Dan Klein, CEO and Co-Founder of Tiesta Tea, has had an entrepreneurial spirit since he was young, from raising money for charity to taking entrepreneurship courses in college. His tenacity has taken him to now a successful CEO of the fastest-growing tea company in the US. Dan is a fantastic mentor, leader and friend who has an unmatched amount of energy and passion for what he does and who he works with. Dan is an active guest speaker and his hobbies include sports, travel and spending quality time with family and friends. Dan led the company's sales team to have Tiesta Tea products in over 8,000 stores worldwide including Target, Safeway/Albertsons, Kroger, Costco and many more. Dan and Tiesta Tea have been featured on Inc.’s 30 Under 30 - Rising Stars, Crain’s 20 in their 20’s, Inc. 5000 (3 years in a row) and Inc.’s Best Work Place.
Rahul Pasarnikar, President & Co-Founder; CredMade
Rahul Pasarnikar joined Chicago CRED in 2017, and has led the launch of CREDMADE, their first social enterprise. CREDMADE was launched in 2019 as a for-profit, Public Benefit Corporation to create employment opportunities and to spur economic development in Chicago’s south and west side. CREDMADE’s first venture is a Contract Food Packaging business, competing in Chicagoland’s rich Food and Beverage industry. Prior to joining CRED, Rahul spend 5 years as a management consultant with McKinsey & Co., serving clients in their Digital practice with an emphasis in marketing and sales operations. Rahul also spent over 12 years in technology consulting, implementing enterprise CRM systems for mid-sized and large corporations, including with his own start-up consultancy. Rahul holds his BS in Industrial Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and his MBA from Georgetown University.
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JD Elder, Vice President; Tilia Holdings
JD Elder is a Vice President at Tilia Holdings, a private equity firm focused on making investments in the lower middle market across the global food supply chain. Prior to joining Tilia, JD worked as an Investment Associate at Linden Capital Partners. He began his career in investment banking at Citigroup. JD graduated summa cum laude from Washington University in St. Louis. He holds an MBA with high honors from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
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Randy Bridgeman, Partner; Perkins Coie LLP
In his counsel to public and private companies, Randy Bridgeman often serves as outside corporate counsel and deal steward, quarterbacking the deal process from pre-sale preparations through to closing and positioning clients for expansion, strategic partnerships and changes in ownership. Randy’s recent acquisition and sales counsel includes a series of cross-border, co-manufacturing joint-ventures for a global food manufacturer; the sale of a multinational, family-owned manufacturer; several corporate venture investments; and brand acquisitions for multinational companies with complex intellectual property assets. Additionally, in his role as go-to outside counsel, Randy often advises and steers clients toward legal resources and resolutions related to litigation strategy, labor and employment, intellectual property, regulatory compliance, estate planning and real estate issues that arise in his clients’ legal matters. Randy is a founding member of the Private Directors Association, and is also active in the Chicago Bar Association and formerly served as co-chairman of it mergers and acquisitions and business and corporate law committees.
Jordan Buckner, Owner & Founder, TeaSquares
Alan Reed, Executive Director; CFBN
Alan Reed is the Executive Director of the Chicagoland Food & Beverage Network. Prior to his current role, Alan was Executive Vice President, Strategy & Innovation at Dairy Management, Inc., and was responsible for creating and driving innovative strategies to grow dairy demand. Before joining DMI, Alan was a strategy consultant working with a variety of Fortune 100 companies. He also spent years in advertising working with clients including Procter & Gamble, Kellogg, United Technologies, and a host of retail, foodservice and high tech businesses. Alan has a degree in Telecommunications from Indiana University, an MBA in Management & Strategy from Northwestern University, where he has taught innovation and new product development, and a certificate in Non-Profit Management from the University of Notre Dame. He currently resides in Oak Park, Illinois with his wife and 2 children.
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