MBA Alumni Advisory Board

Bill has been an innovator in the digital/physical retail world with Consumer Packaged Goods technology and manufacturing companies for over twenty years in numerous leadership positions requiring the need to transform stale business models. He joined Walmart's Global Data team in 2018 as Chief of Staff/Director, Data Planning and Communication on the heels of leading numerous agile teams as the Chief Client Officer of VML/Rockfish and for large supplier shopper and category support teams like General Mills, Pfizer, and Nielsen. No stranger to the Walmart tech environment, Bill was instrumental in the creation of Walmart SPARC (Supplier Portal Allowing Retail Coverage) - linking 65,000 suppliers to in-store OSA analytics - as well as building out Sam's Club Mobile, Customer Central, SupplierHub, and the first iteration of WalmartOne.

Bill came into the role with Walmart Global Data directly after graduating from the year-long Stanford Graduate School of Business Corporate Innovation program, where he built a cutting-edge AI-driven eCommerce analytics platform currently being implemented across multiple flagship supplier and retail broker organizations. Furthermore, he concurrently completed MIT's Entrepreneurship and Blockchain programs while holding an MBA focused on retail tech from the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas, and an undergraduate BS in digital marketing from California State.

Bill was instrumental in founding the NWA Tech Summit, now recognized as the premier annual Midwest digital innovation event that caters to 1,800+ attendees. He was chosen by the NWA Business Journal as one of the "40 Under 40", was "Who's Who" in Shopper Marketing 2017 & 2016, is an Institute Faculty Member of the Path to Purchase Institute, was named to the "Arkansas 200 Executives" Hall of Fame in 2017, and has taught undergraduate/MBA-level courses in digital marketing, consumer behavior, and shopper insights.

Andrea Albright is a senior-level merchandising executive for Walmart. She started her career at Walmart in 2005 and quickly ascended to positions of increasing responsibility. Her results in sales and profit growth, cost reduction, merchandising innovations, and talent development led to a reputation as a strong, dynamic leader.

Andrea earned a dual master’s degrees from University of Arkansas – an M.B.A. and M.Ed., Hr Development – and a B.S., Apparel and Textile Science from Kansas State University. She serves as a University of Arkansas MBA Alumni Board Member as well as an Alumni Board Member for Kansas State University. Andrea now lives in Bentonville, Arkansas with her husband Patrick, daughter Mackenzie, and son Liam. They enjoy frequenting the farmers market, biking, and spending time at the lake.

Kenny Bierman, a 2015 full-time MBA graduate, works for PepsiCo as a senior category adviser for Walmart. Before Bierman began his journey in the MBA, he worked for more than nine years for the U.S. Air Force.

Bierman fell in love with the Air Force when he was a young boy. Growing up on the outskirts of a military base, he recalls watching the planes flying over his house, and hoping one day to be one of the pilots behind the controls. This was a dream he sustained throughout high school and worked diligently to be awarded an Air Force ROTC scholarship to the University of Oklahoma for his undergraduate degree. After college, Bierman was commissioned into the U.S. Air Force and went to flight school.

Bierman thrived in the Walton MBA program. Now leading a successful career in business, Kenny is succeeding in his corporate position. Looking back at this transformative time, he describes the experience of obtaining his MBA as “amazing” and says he is always “looking for ways to give back to the university.”

Matt started with Tyson Foods in 2015 and is currently the Director of Human Resources for Corporate Services. In that role he supports FSQA, Engineering, Health & Safety, Aviation, and Corporate Facilities. Since joining Tyson he has supported various areas of the business as an HRBP and started off with the Talent Acquisition team.

Matt is also a Soldier in the Arkansas Army National Guard and in March 2021 will retire after 20 years of service. During his tenure with the National Guard, he has served overseas in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom on two occasions and held various leadership positions.

He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management from the University of Phoenix and went on to graduate from the University of Arkansas with a Master’s of Business Administration.

Heather is the President of Heather Adam's Consulting that focuses on achieving long term supplier growth at retail.

Prior to starting her company, Heather worked for 8 years in Sam's Club as a buyer in jewelry, home textiles, accessories, and electronics categories. She leverages her buying experience to bridge the gap between supplier and retailer, aiding in the areas of sales, business review and strategy, product development and business analytics. During her time at Sam's Club, she received many awards including Buying Team of the Year in 2006.

Heather received her bachelor's degree in Psychology and MBA from University of Arkansas.

Nora has a vast knowledge in product development as she worked for many years with Tyson Foods in various leadership positions. She currently works with Nielsen as the Associate Client Manager, developing actionable consumer insights through data analysis tools supporting major CPG companies.

While doing her master's degree, Nora published two papers in the Journal of Cereal Chemistry detailing about her experiments with rice research.

Nora received her master's degree in Food Science and MBA from University of Arkansas.

David Ecklund has had dual careers in academia and industry. Serving as a member of the faculty in the Haslam College of Business at the University of Tennessee – Knoxville, David was a Lecturer, the Founding Director of the Executive MBA in Global Supply Chain Management, and a member of the Global Supply Chain Institute. David continues to serve as a faculty advisor, coach, and mentor and as a member of the MBA program advisory board.

David became a University of Tennessee faculty member following a 31-year career in industry with Caterpillar, Inc. where he served in a number of positions including product development, marketing, and distribution functions supporting Caterpillar’s construction machinery, engine, and service parts businesses. David also participated in the development of two new businesses for Caterpillar: Caterpillar Remanufactured Products (Cat Reman) and Caterpillar Logistics Services.

David holds an undergraduate degree in Industrial Administration from the Ivy College of Business at Iowa State University, an MBA from the Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas where he also serves as a member of the MBA/Executive MBA program advisory board, and has completed Northwestern University’s Logistics and Distribution Executive Program and the Center for Creative Leadership European Executive Program. He is the recipient of La Medaille d’Honneur from the Department of Moselle in France for Caterpillar Logistics Services contribution to the development of business in the region; the Bell Tower of Fame Award from Greene County, Iowa for professional accomplishments that have had international significance; Iowa State University’s Citation of Achievement for an alumnus who has demonstrated outstanding achievement in life beyond the campus; the Haslam College of Business Dean’s Award for Excellence in Executive Education and Student Appreciation Awards recognizing his contributions as a faculty advisor, coach, and mentor; and the Innovation Award from Second Harvest Foodbank of East Tennessee honoring those with new ideas and fresh approaches to improve methods, advance programming, and revolutionize food banking in the ongoing fight against hunger.

David is an emeritus member of the Dean’s Advisory Council for the Ivy College of Business at Iowa State University and a past member of the Institute of Directors (United Kingdom), Institute of Logistics (United Kingdom), and Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (U.S.A.).

Jason has worked for Walmart for 20 years. He began his Walmart journey in 2000 as an hourly associate at Distribution Center 6008 in Bentonville, Arkansas while attending college. He later worked as an intern and full-time engineer in the US Logistics business where he held several roles in the field and home office supporting the general merchandise and apparel distribution networks. In 2007, Jason moved to our International Division to support logistics and supply chain engineering teams globally. . In 2018, he was promoted to VP assuming responsibilities for our International Division’s supply chain strategies, distribution engineering, and end to end supply chain efforts.

Jason was born in Little Rock, Arkansas and grew up in Conway, Arkansas. He holds a Bachelors of Science degree in Industrial Engineering and an MBA both from the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. He also serves on the alumni board for the University of Arkansas’s MBA program.

Jason is married, and his wife has also worked for 17 years with Walmart. They have two young children (Sofia and Isaiah) and reside in Bentonville, AR.

Jason is currently the CFO for CR Crawford Construction in Fayetteville, AR. He previously worked for Walmart in the Real Estate and Human Resource areas and prior to that, he spent 10 years with Cooper Communities where he held roles in Finance and Real Estate Analytics.

Jason also co-owned The Wine Cellar, a restaurant/bar in Fayetteville for a few years.

Jason received his bachelor's degree in Accounting and MBA from the University of Arkansas. He currently resides in Fayetteville, AR with his wife, Amber, and three kids: Walker (13), Spencer (10) and Presley (8).

Steve has spent his career working in consumer products with roles ranging from Category Management, Shopper Insights, National Accounts Manager, and Director. He started his career with PepsiCo and worked with big CPG companies including Unilever and Danone. Most recently, Steve did consulting at Harvest Group where he helped small to medium sized businesses manage their brand in Walmart, some for the very first time at launch.

In June 2019, Steve moved to New York City where he managed Harry's launch at Walmart. He is now working for a startup in business development while also pursuing a product launch idea on the side.

Steve has been actively involved in fundraising for charity organizations like Teen Action which helps single parents with jobs and developmental skills. He also helped raise funds for American Heart Association.

Steve received his bachelor’s degree in Biology and MBA from the University of Arkansas.

Kellen Frank is a 2008 graduate of the full-time MBA program. His MBA focus is in Entrepreneurship and Innovation. Kellen works for The NPD Group, Inc. a leading retail market and consumer behavior measurement company that primarily focuses on discretionary categories like Technology, Entertainment, Apparel, and Foodservice. He currently leads The NPD Group's partnership with Walmart Inc. Kellen first joined NPD as part of the Walton College's assistantship program while pursuing his MBA. He also spent five years in Customer Business Development for Procter & Gamble where he worked on oral care brands Crest and Oral-B and the personal power brand, Duracell. Kellen was part of the North American transition team when P&G divested Duracell to Berkshire Hathaway.

Kellen is a board member of Bentonville Youth Athletics and a youth baseball coach for Legacy Sports Academy. He lives in Bentonville with his wife Rori and his two children James (11) and Ellie (9). Outside of work, family and volunteering, Kellen enjoys mountain biking, skiing, reading and travel.

Mike Goldschmidt is the Director of Sales National Accounts at Weston Foods. Weston Foods is a division of George Weston Limited ("Weston"), a major Canadian public company. Weston Foods is one of the leading bakers in North America. With over 200,000 employees, Weston is Canada's largest private sector employer

Prior to working in Weston Foods, Mike worked at Walmart for over twelve years as a buyer in the deli, dairy, and produce categories. During his tenure at Walmart he established a track record of growing businesses while also initiating cost savings that delivered millions to the bottom line. For this he won multiple award during his tenure and in 2008 was named as an "Emerging Leader" within his company.

Mike received his bachelor's degree in Food Marketing from St. Joseph's University in Philadelphia, PA and MBA from University of Arkansas.

In his undergraduate days, Mike was a member of his school's tennis team. He has always been passionate about driving business results and looks forward to adding value to the Walton School of Business.

Jared has been in medical sales for 15 years and is currently a Senior Sales Representative at Medtronic. He has won dozens of individual sales awards including 5 consecutive Star Achiever's Awards, four consecutive President's Club Awards, 3 National Sales Representative of the Year Awards, and National Rookie of the Year.

An entrepreneur at heart, Jared also started several successful businesses in a variety of industries. He is the founder and CEO of Lapovations, a medical device company creating a platform of innovative products to improve minimally invasive surgery. He is also President of Greer Property Solutions, a residential real estate company serving the housing needs of University of Arkansas students. Previously he was the owner of Northwest Arkansas TCBY, a franchise location of the world's largest chain of frozen yogurt stores, and co-founder of Tears for Life, a medical diagnostic equipment company developing a product that detects breast cancer using women's tears.

Jared received his Bachelor's in Industrial Engineering, Master's in Biomedical Engineering, MBA, and Certificate in Entrepreneurship, all from the University of Arkansas.

Kim Griffith is the Vice President of Sales for Henkel Beauty Care. She has over 25 years of leadership experience with companies such as Walmart Inc., Kraft Foods, and Frito Lay. She has established a track record of leading transformational change while achieving goals and developing talent.

Kim is actively involved with the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, and is passionate about cycling, swimming, running and CrossFit.

Kim earned her bachelor’s degree of Science from the University of Florida in Gainesville, FL in 1992 and an MBA from the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, AR in 1999. Kim has been residing in the area for the last eight years with her husband.

Dinesh currently serves as the Associate Chief Information Officer at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville.

Dinesh has previously led enterprise information technology teams at Tyson Foods and McKesson Corporation focusing on innovation, enabling new business, and operations.

Dinesh received his bachelor’s degree in instrumentation engineering from the University of Mumbai, India, his Master of Science in Instrumental Sciences from the University of Arkansas, Little Rock, and his MBA from the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville.

He lives in Fayetteville with his wife Stephanie who is a Financial Advisor, his daughter Adeline, and son Nikhil. Favorite family activities include fishing, traveling, and the outdoors.

Dan Keefer is an executive with Unilever and has been working in the CPG industry since the mid-2000s. He started his CPG career at Target Corporate, in their internal merchandising division, moving up the ranks and gaining valuable insight into retailer strategy and execution. Dan then moved to the vendor side and joined Nestle. During his tenure with the company, Dan managed sales and category management accounts including Supervalu, Kmart, AWG, Costco, and Walmart. Dan also worked for Kimberly-Clark managing their Costco and Target businesses, before joining Unilever to lead the Category Management teams.

Dan is on the Executive Leadership Team for the American Heart Association, as well as the Advisory Board for the University of Arkansas. He earned his Bachelor of Science from Iowa State University in Business Management, and his Executive MBA from the University of Arkansas. Dan lives in Bentonville, Arkansas with his wife and two daughters.

Ryan has worked for Circle of Life Hospice in Northwest Arkansas since 2009 and serves as the Chief Financial Officer. His areas of oversight include finance and accounting functions, information systems, hospitality, physical plant operations and capital projects. During his tenure, the organization has doubled in size and is the state’s second largest hospice and palliative care provider. Ryan says he looks forward to strategically planning for growth and the ever-changing healthcare environment to ensure organization sustainability and patient centered care. He is a current board member of the Arkansas Hospice and Palliative Care Association.

Ryan received his bachelor’s degree (2005) and MBA (2016) from the Sam M. Walton College of Business. Ryan is a native of Northwest Arkansas and enjoys spending time with family, hunting, and cheering on the Razorbacks. WPS!

Jacque currently lives in Dillon Beach, north of San Francisco. She is enjoying retirement and sunsets at the beach after working in the wine industry. She used her Bachelor's degree in Geology and worked in the oil industry in the late 70's and 80's.

Erin R. Moody (Rosa) is a Director of Sales with over a decade of experience in Home Entertainment. Erin oversees a team of sales managers that are responsible for the management of the digital customers Google, YouTube, Vudu, FandangoNow, Redbox, and Netflix.

Erin started her career as an administrative assistant with a startup Home Entertainment company and worked her way through the ranks. She was working for a smaller studio in NY before being recruited to move to NW Arkansas and work with the Warner Bros. sales team, specifically on the Walmart Omni Channel Strategy.

Erin is thrilled to officially be part of the University of Arkansas community completing her Master’s in Business Administration in May 2019.

Kerlee Nicolas is the Director of Sales – Grooming on the Walmart team for Procter and Gamble. Kerlee lives in Fayetteville with his wife Chantal, and two sons Kerlee Jr (“KJ”) and Noah.

Kerlee was born in Venezuela to Haitian parents and grew up in Boston, MA, where he received his B.S. degree in Business Management from Mount Ida College. Kerlee later received his MBA from the University of Arkansas. Northwest Arkansas holds a special place in Kerlee’s heart and he is eager to help improve the community.

Kevin is currently the Senior Manager for Walmart Labs. He works on streamlining and automating internal processes and products to gain efficiencies. Kevin analyzes reports to improve data visualization to gain impactful market insights.

Prior to his time with Walmart, Kevin was the Principal and Director of Operations at ImPro Advisors. He worked hands- on with clients to assess and improve business processes and developed solutions around eliminating wasteful business practices. Kevin was also the Co-founder and COO/CFO of cycleWOOD Solutions. The company aimed to produce a sustainable alternative to high density polyethylene bags.

Kevin received his bachelor's degree in Industrial Engineering and his MBA from the University of Arkansas.

M.J. is currently the Administrative Director for the Neurosciences Service Line at UAMS. In her current role, she works to support physicians and staff to deliver optimal outcomes for patient centric care in a cost effective manner. Their multidisciplinary team combines analytics, best practice and clinical experience to produce desirable results. Obtaining her MBA has enabled M.J. to enhance her business management and analytical skills to become a more effective leader.

M.J. obtained her bachelor's degree in Physical Therapy from the University of Central Arkansas and MBA from University of Arkansas. Also an entrepreneur, while practicing as a physical therapist, M.J. built two physical therapy private practices and a commercial real estate LLC."

Liz is the Senior Pricing Advisor at FedEx.

She has been working with FedEx Services since 2012 in different divisions such as finance, sourcing, operations, sales & pricing. She has expertise in project management & process improvement. Prior to joining the company, she also worked as a Marketing Assistant at Community First Bank.

Liz received her bachelor's degree in Business Administration from Arkansas Tech University and her MBA from University of Arkansas.

She currently resides in Harrison, AR with her husband and three dogs.

Laura is the Senior Vice President for Global Sustainability for Walmart Stores, Inc. In this role, she is responsible for partnering with internal and external stakeholders to develop and implement sustainability strategy.

Laura joined Walmart in 1994, as a store intern in Florida. In 1995, she transitioned to the Walmart Home office as the buyer for toys, cosmetics, and flowers. In 2003, she was promoted to Vice President and Divisional Merchandise Manager (DMM) and served as the DMM in various departments including: dry grocery, meals, wireless, video games, and toys. In 2010, Laura was promoted to the Senior Vice President of Toys, Seasonal, Celebrations, and Seasonal Key Events and served as a GMM in Entertainment.

She earned her bachelor's degree of Science in Finance from the University of Florida in Gainesville, an MBA from the University of Arkansas and is a Graduate of the Global 2020 program at the Tuck Business School at Dartmouth.

MaryJohn is a recent graduate of the Walton Full-Time MBA program with a concentration in data analytics. During her time in the program, she interned at NielsenIQ on the Customer Activation team and is now currently an Associate Client Manager for NIQ working with Walmart.

Before the MBA program, MaryJohn attended the University of Arkansas for her undergraduate degree in Marketing, also gaining a minor in psychology. In her free time she loves playing tennis, hiking, and discovering everything NWA has to offer!

Will is the Vice President of Winrock Farms.

He served on the staff of U.S. Senator John Boozman from 2011 until 2016. He also served in the Senator's Washington D.C. office as a legislative correspondent, focusing on issues like budget, taxes, labor, agriculture, and homeland security.

Will has a bachelor's degree in History from Rhodes College and earned his MBA from the University of Arkansas.

Bill is a seasoned sales, marketing and insights leader, driven to create mutual value and focused on career development and business growth. Bill recently transitioned from leading Mars Wrigley Confections category advisory relationships with Walmart and Sam's into mentoring and supporting startup business development. Bill spent much of his career focused on impulse product merchandising innovation, representing Coca-Cola and Mars brands including Simply Orange and M&M's.

Bill has successfully launched and developed a billion-dollar brand (Simply Orange) and has won multiple Walmart supplier of the year awards. Bill's accomplishments are driven by values in action that include a possibility mindset and putting people first.

Bill's current role enables him to spend extra time with his wife Mindy, daughters, and three grandchildren. He enjoys bike commuting the Northwest Arkansas greenway with friends, RVing and enjoying the lake with family.

As a Principal Managing Partner for Workday, Riley's focus is to help Workday customers achieve success and value in their technology, people, and process transformation initiatives.

Prior to joining Workday, Riley held the position of Vice President of Information Services with J.B. Hunt Transport Serves, Inc. During his time at J.B. Hunt, Riley focused on innovating enterprise applications to simplify business processes such as corporate finance, rating/billing, pricing, B2B, maintenance, and many others while managing over 22,000 workers and over 6 billion dollars in annual revenue.

Riley earned his bachelor's degree in information systems and MBA from the University of Arkansas. He has also attended the CIO institute at The University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

Riley is a part of the Arkansas Hall of Fame Nominating Committee. He, his wife Julie, his son John Riley and daughter Grace live in Rogers, Arkansas.

Ryan currently serves as the Director of Sales for Taylor Farms - America's favorite maker of salads and healthy fresh foods.

After receiving his bachelor's degree from the Walton College in 2002, Ryan Stearle spent five years working for Sears and a major Budweiser distributor in sales and management before returning for his MBA in 2008.

During the fulltime program Ryan interned for Procter & Gamble before accepting a position with Alltel Wireless in Little Rock upon graduation. Late in 2009 he moved back up to Northwest Arkansas to join the Walmart Vendor Community, and he and his family have been here since.

Over the past five years Ryan has held a variety of marketing and sales leadership positions with Infinity Products Group, Alberto Culver, The Coleman Co., Rawlings Sporting Goods and Conair Corporations.

Tsanko is the Director of Data and Application Architecture at USAble Life and has been with the organization for the last 10 years. Tsanko is an IT professional and has focused his career on IT integration, automation, project and vendor management, and procurement efforts.

While pursuing his MBA, Tsanko became a member of Beta Gamma Sigma and was honored to receive the Outstanding Graduate Student award. He also holds a master's degree in Computer Science from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and has also received the HBX CORe (Credential of Readiness) from Harvard Business School.

Tsanko is originally from Bulgaria but has called Arkansas home for the past twenty-two years. He met his wife Leah in Little Rock where they currently reside with their daughter Sofia. Some of his hobbies include traveling, soccer and volleyball.

Matt is the Senior Director of Engineering and Facilities, Global Operations Services at Marriott International, where he ensures environmental and regulatory compliance through the Global Leadership Team by establishing Global Engineering and Facilities Management strategies. He manages Marriott's global energy platform to support corporate sustainability efforts. He has been with the company for the last eight years.

Matt has a bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering and MBA from the University of Arkansas.

Matt enjoys a variety of activities including running, biking, golf, playing the bass, photography, home brewing, and traveling. Both Matt and his wife are private pilots and love flying above the DC traffic whenever possible. Matt also has two Great Danes and a cat... none of which are allowed to fly.

Born in New York but proudly proclaiming herself a Fayetteville, Arkansas native, Joanne loved growing up in the college town. Raised by small business owners and first-generation Americans, Fuller learned the values of generosity, hard work, and perseverance from her parents, Tom and Pearl.

After graduating from Fayetteville High School where she served as Senior Class President, Fuller ventured to Texas to attend Southern Methodist University. She received her Bachelor of Arts with dual degrees in corporate communications and public affairs and Spanish, graduating cum laude with honors in liberal arts in 2011. In 2013, Fuller took her "can-do" attitude and enrolled in the MBA program at the University of Arkansas and graduated in 2014 with a global marketing concentration.

She is currently working at Nielsen as an associate client director. She finds passion in leading her team and using data to tell stories and deliver business solutions to her clients. At Nielsen, she is part of the Diversity Leadership Network, a leadership development program designed to strengthen and diversify the leadership pipeline at the organization by accelerating a diverse group of top talent. She and her husband, Jake, along with their son, Miles and rescue pup, Lucy, live in Fayetteville. When she isn’t hiking or walking the trails, Fuller loves catching up on the news, playing trivia, cooking and traveling.

Amberle has spent the last 3.5 years at RB. At present, she is the Account Manager for OTC Medicine for the Walmart account. RB is a global personal health and wellness company, based out of the UK. OTC Medicine is proud to serve consumers around the globe with some of our biggest brands, Mucinex, Lysol, Enfamil, and Durex.

Throughout her professional career, it has been her goal to focus on health matters that are bigger than just herself. It is the purpose driven element of RB that gives Amberle a reason to wake up each morning and find what she can do to further healthcare for all Americans. In 2019, with her incredible team, Mucinex Nightshift was launched; the first ingredient innovation in the cough cold flu category in 10+ years. Amberle loved being able to go from concept to market on a product that truly created a better nighttime solution for consumers.

Amberle is a lifelong Arkansan. She grew up in the small town of Farmington, just minutes from the University of Arkansas. After receiving her undergrad from Arkansas Tech in Russellville, Amberle moved back to NWA to go to the University of Arkansas for her MBA. It was a lifetime dream of Amberle’s to be a Razorback! Values she still holds near today from her time at the U of A are “stronger together” and “keep your curiosity”. Those two things have helped Amberle build friendships, expand her perspectives, and create many opportunities personally and professionally.

Kellen is the Director of Marketing at Phigenics, which is an independent water management company that helps companies optimize the total cost of their water systems through improving safety and efficiency.

Kellen has been a Community and Organizational Development volunteer for Peace Corps-Bulgaria. He has also worked at Heifer International which aims to work with communities to end world hunger and poverty. He also served as the Freshwater Conservation and Water Stewardship Researcher in Istanbul, Turkey.

He has a bachelor's degree in Economics from the University of North Dakota, and completed his MBA degree from the University of Arkansas in joint collaboration with the Clinton School of Public Service from where he earned a Master of Public Service degree.

Kellen spends his time participating in Toastmasters and the Northwest Arkansas Net Impact Professional Chapter. He is married to a fellow MBA alumnus, Tugce Utecht.

He currently serves as the Senior Director of Omnichannel (Digital & New Venture Acceleration) where he oversees innovation in technology and logistics to produce a seamless customer experience—both online and in-store.

Prior to his current position, Rand was Senior Director of Electronics Accessories where he led the merchandising efforts and Senior Director of Business Strategy and Sustainability where he worked to incorporate sustainability in Walmart's global business strategy.

During his time as a buyer, Wal-Mart recognized him as a Buyer of the Year and the food manufacturing community voted him one of the nation's Top 5 Buyers of Frozen and Refrigerated Food.

Before his time at Wal-Mart, Rand worked in public accounting for KPMG. Rand received his bachelor's degree from Brigham Young University in Economics and his MBA from the University of Arkansas.

Rand is a father of two, a husband, and an active youth leader. He has a background in public service including two years in the Philippines.

Don is the Director of Culinary Services at Tyson Foods. Don focuses on growing results in customer's top lines by positioning Tyson prepared foods presented in signature applications. He has been with Tyson for the last fourteen years.

Don served in the United States Army where he was trained in culinary. He then catapulted his career into food service graduating from the Culinary Institute of America and earning a bachelor's degree in Hospitality Management from Florida International University. He has always focused his culinary expertise on enhancing the customer's experience and currently focusses on creating signature products for Tyson Foods.

Don is passionate about Animal welfare, Arts & Culture, and is actively involved with his son's boy scouts' team training them for camping and preparing food items with bare minimum.