Speakers
SMC³’s business connectivity reaches thought leaders across the transportation industry. Each conference brings representatives from the shipping, logistics, transport, technology and legal/government communities together to present you with the latest trends and ideas.
 | John R. Bagileo has been practicing transportation law for more than 40 years, representing the interests of both carriers and shippers in regulatory matters. He has represented clients before state courts, federal district courts, the Court of Federal Claims, the Courts of Appeal, the U.S. Supreme Court, and federal and state transportation regulatory agencies. Bagileo earned the distinction of being one of the nation’s leading transportation attorneys by representing shippers, motor carriers, transportation intermediaries, railroads and ocean carriers. |
 | Bernard Baumohl is chief global economist at The Economic Outlook Group. As an economist, he has been far ahead of the curve in assessing the direction of the U.S. and world economy. Baumohl began his career as an analyst with the Council on Foreign Relations, a think tank specializing on international affairs. He later served as an economist at European American Bank with responsibilities to monitor the global economy and develop forecasts. Baumohl was also TIME magazine's senior economics reporter for two decades. An award-winning journalist, he covered the news from New York, Washington, London and Jerusalem. Apart from his role as chief global economist, Baumohl also teaches at the New York Institute of Finance and is an economics commentator on Public Television's Nightly Business Report. A frequent guest on television and radio, he is also cited often in the Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, New York Times, Business Week, Barron's, and U.S. News & World Report. He has made hundreds of speeches around the country and lectured at New York University and Duke University. |
 | Dr. Roger H. Bezdek has 30 years’ experience in consulting and management in the energy, utility, environmental and regulatory areas, serving in private industry, academia and the U.S. Federal government, and is the founder and president of Management Information Services, Inc., a Washington, D.C.-based economic and energy research firm. His consulting background includes energy technology and market forecasting, oil, coal, natural gas and nuclear energy analyses; estimating the impacts of renewable energy and energy efficiency; assessment of DOE energy R&D programs; estimation of the costs and benefits of energy systems; assessment of the economic effects of environmental and energy technologies; energy industry forecasting; environmental impact assessments; and creation and management of Federal energy programs. Dr. Bezdek has served as Corporate Director, Corporate President and CEO; University Professor, Research Director in ERDA/DOE; Special Advisor on Energy in the Office of the Secretary of the Treasury; U.S. energy delegate to the European Community and to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization; and as a participant in the U.S. State Department AMPART program. He has served as a consultant to the White House, the Office of Al Gore, federal and state government agencies, and various corporations and research organizations. He is active with the National Research Council of the U.S. National Academies of Science (NAS), and currently serves as a member of the joint NAS/Chinese Academy of Sciences Committee on U.S.-Chinese Energy Cooperation and on the NAS Committee on Fuel Economy of Medium and Heavy Duty Vehicles. During 2008, he presented energy briefings to the staffs of Senators Barack Obama, John McCain and Hillary Clinton. |
 | Beth Ann Bovino is a senior economist at Standard & Poor’s based in New York. In this position, she works with David Wyss, the chief economist, on S&P’s economic forecasts and publications, and co-authors the weekly Financial Notes and Weekly Economics Call. Beth Ann has created industry drivers reports for analyst research. She is quoted regularly in the press and has appeared on many major television programs. Prior to joining Standard and Poor’s in 2004, Beth Ann spent over 10 years doing economic and market research with Sungard Institutional Brokerage, UBS Warburg, and the Federal Reserve. Beth Ann holds a Ph.D. in economics from Columbia University, a master’s in international and development economics from Yale University, and a bachelor’s in economics from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. |
 | John R. Brandt, CEO and founder of MPI, a global research firm, has spent more than two decades studying leadership in effective, purpose-driven organizations. An expert on how companies and communities can adapt themselves to the realities of new markets, new corporate structures and new customer expectations, he is an accomplished leadership and management innovator, with a broad array of responsibilities spanning his interests in management, technology and journalism. Brandt’s passion for journalism has earned him more than 20 awards for reporting, writing and editing. Most recently he served as President, Publisher and Editorial Director of the Chief Executive Group, publisher of Chief Executive. Prior to joining Chief Executive, Brandt was publisher and editor-in-chief of IndustryWeek. Under his leadership, the once troubled magazine won more than 70 editorial awards for excellence while more than doubling its revenues. Brandt is also an internationally recognized expert on management and technology, lecturing frequently on topics including the new shape of customer value, leadership in the new economy, lean management, management best practices, economic outlook, building world-class communities, and manufacturing strategies for the new millennium. |
 | Mike Brewer is director of corporate transportation with Siemens Corporation and has been in various functions within the company for 20 years, including transportation, distribution and logistics. In his current role Brewer heads the Siemens North American Traffic Council and is responsible for negotiating and contracting, as well as transportation supplier management. He also serves as chairman of the National Electrical Manufacturers Association’s Global Transportation and Logistics Committee. Prior to Siemens Brewer spent 5 years in transportation management at Rockwell International. |
 | Ken Burroughs is currently vice president, revenue management and pricing with UPS Freight, the nation's fourth largest LTL carrier. He has been with UPS Freight for the past twelve years, but has been in the transportation industry his entire career, which spans nearly 40 years. Burroughs’ background has involved both LTL and truckload motor carriage, and includes positions in sales, operations, finance, customer service, pricing and more. He is a member and former board member of the National Motor Freight Traffic Association (NMFTA) representing Virginia. Burroughs is also a longstanding member of the SMC³ board of directors, having served on the board for the last 8 consecutive terms. In his spare time he does volunteer work with numerous nonprofit organizations including United Way, Habitat for Humanity and Meals on Wheels. |
 | Bob Costello is the chief economist and vice president for the American Trucking Associations (ATA), the national trade association for the trucking industry. As chief economist, he manages all of ATA's collection, analysis and dissemination of trucking economic information. This includes several monthly trucking economic indicators, motor carrier financial and operating data, an annual freight transportation forecast, driver wage studies, weekly diesel fuel price and economic reports, and a yearly trucking almanac. Costello also conducts economic analyses of proposed regulations and legislation affecting the trucking industry. Costello is often cited in the news media as an expert on trucking economics, including The Wall Street Journal, Business Week, CNBC, FOX Business Channel and National Public Radio. He has testified at congressional hearings on trucking issues. Prior to joining ATA in 1997, Costello was an economist with Joel Popkin & Company in Washington D.C., an economic consulting firm that specializes in the analysis of wages, inflation and economic trends. |
 | Douglas A. Fisher is director of the Center for Supply Chain Management at Marquette University. Fisher’s responsibilities include teaching in the areas of operations and supply management, working with students and local businesses to support internships and student activities, and overseeing center operations, including fostering relationships with supply chain professionals and developing outreach activities. Fisher is also a partner at Cascade Consulting Partners, Inc., a management consulting firm in Eugene, Ore., specializing in enterprise profit optimization. Fisher possesses more than 30 years of practical business experience in the freight transportation industry. Prior to joining Marquette, he spent 3 years teaching at Auburn University in Alabama. He previously served as the vice president of business development at Manugistics, Inc., now a part of JDA Software Group, Inc., in Scottsdale, Ariz.; president of SurfAir, Inc., in College Park, Ga.; and vice president of international operations and marketing at Yellow Freight System in Overland, Kan., in addition to numerous other management positions at air cargo and trucking services companies. |
 | Alan Gayle is a senior investment strategist and director of asset allocation at RidgeWorth Investments, SunTrust’s $60 billion institutional money management subsidiary. Gayle manages the RidgeWorth asset allocation funds, which Barron’s ranked number 3 out of 59 mixed-equity funds in their 2008 Fund Family Rankings. He also leads RidgeWorth’s Asset Allocation Committee, convenes the senior management Investment Policy Group and is responsible for developing and communicating the investment outlook, strategy and asset allocation for RidgeWorth. Gayle has been with the RidgeWorth/SunTrust organization for more than 30 years. He has testified before Congress on economic and regulatory issues affecting the banking industry and is regularly quoted in the financial press, radio and TV. |
 | Dan Goodwill is president of Dan Goodwill & Associates, Inc., a transportation consulting company. Goodwill is an experienced leader and consultant who has held several executive-level positions in the transportation industry, including that of president of Yellow Transportation’s Canada division, president of Clarke Logistics (Canada’s largest intermodal marketing company), general manager of the Railfast division of TNT Canada, and VP of sales and marketing for TNT Overland Express. His consulting practice focuses on helping shippers more effectively manage their freight transportation and helping trucking companies and 3PLs build their businesses. As part of his consulting activities, Goodwill has worked with clients in Canada, the United States and Mexico on freight bids that have improved their transportation services and reduced their freight costs by millions of dollars. |
 | Brad Gregory, director of software alliances for SMC³, is directly responsible for developing SMC³’s business alliances with supply chain technology providers. Over the last 10 years with SMC³, Gregory has coordinated the seamless integration of the company’s CzarLite, CarrierConnect and RateWare products into well-known TMS, ERP and Carrier Management systems, including Carrier Logistics, Inc., Descartes, HighJump, i2, LeanLogistics, Manhattan, MercuryGate, Oracle, RedPrairie, SAP, Sterling Commerce, TMW and Tell Systems. Gregory’s professional experience also includes carrier, 3PL and technology companies from both Sales and Operations perspectives. He is also a certified instructor in the Phillip Crosby Associates (PCA), Quality Improvement Process and has been involved with the implementation of the PCA principles at SMC³ and a major LTL carrier. |
 | Art T. Nourot is senior director, carrier procurement and business development for Unyson Logistics, a Hub Group Company. Nourot directs the design and development of Unyson’s strategic carrier network with a focus on optimizing carrier service, cost and capacity for the clients’ benefit. Additionally, he facilitates the growth and development of Unyson’s vendor base via relationships with senior carrier management representatives. Since Joining Hub Group in 1998, Nourot has held several key leadership roles, including operations director for Unyson’s western region and director of highway services for Hub Group’s Golden Gate operations. Prior to his work with Hub Group, Nourot held various management positions in the transportation and logistics industry. |
 | Warren Patterson has more than 25 years' experience in the logistics and supply chain arena, with particular emphasis on solutions development, process evaluation, business strategy and management. As senior vice president of product strategy and development for SMC³, Patterson is responsible for facilitating the direction and continued growth of SMC³’s family of transportation rating products and services. He is currently leading the company’s migration to SOA-based technology architectures and the SaaS delivery model. He was also instrumental in the design and development of the SMC³ Bid$ense transportation procurement solution. Patterson’s professional background includes over 16 years of employment with IBM, starting in distribution operations, with later positions including development, operations research, product management, management, marketing and consulting for both domestic and international clients. More recently, Patterson co-founded and served as president and CEO of MercuryGate International. |
 | Donald Ratajczak, Ph.D., is emeritus professor of the J. Mack Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University and consulting economist for leading businesses and governmental agencies. Ratajczak is one of the world’s most celebrated economists and a primary source of economic forecasting information. His analyses of business cycles, international trade, economic forecasting and Federal Reserve policy are featured regularly on CNN, CNBC and in major print media. Hailed the nation’s “top economic guru” by BusinessWeek magazine, Ratajczak is a recipient of the prestigious Blue Chip award for forecasting accuracy. |
 | David G. Ross, CFA, joined the Stifel Nicolaus research team in connection with Stifel’s acquisition of Legg Mason’s Capital Markets Group in December 2005. He covers the freight transportation industry, with a concentration in the LTL, Logistics, and Parcel sectors. The Wall Street Journal recognized him as the “Best on the Street” analyst in Industrial Transportation for 2008. Financial Times/Starmine also named him the No. 1 Stock Picker in the Road & Rail sector for 2008. Ross joined Legg Mason in 2001. Prior to that, he worked as a financial analyst for RailWorks Corp. and before that as an investment banking analyst for Deutsche Banc Alex. Brown in their global transportation and logistics group. Stocks under coverage: Arkansas Best Corp. (ABFS), Con-way, Inc. (CNW), Expeditors International of Washington, Inc. (EXPD), FedEx Corp. (FDX), Forward Air Corp. (FWRD), Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (ODFL), Saia, Inc. (SAIA), Vitran Corp. (VTNC), United Parcel Service, Inc. (UPS), UTi Worldwide, Inc. (UTIW), YRC Worldwide, Inc. (YRCW) |
 | Danny Slaton is senior vice president of business development for SMC³. As one of the most recognized individuals within transportation industry circles, Slaton is regularly sought out for dialog and insight regarding issues surrounding transportation pricing. His extensive background, which has involved regular communications with carriers, shippers, logistics service providers and technology developers, has given him an industry knowledge base that is virtually unrivaled among his colleagues. This year Slaton marks his 25th year with SMC³, where over the years he has been instrumental in the research, development and sales strategy for many of SMC³’s flagship products. |
 | Lara Sowinski is managing editor of World Trade Magazine, a publication of BNP Media. Sowinski has an extensive background in international trade, having worked for customs brokers, importers, transportation companies and as a trade consultant. She writes regularly on various topics impacting the global supply chain. Last month World Trade announced that it will rebrand to World Trade 100 in July to focus on a targeted audience base of companies with 100+ employees. Commenting on the rebrand, Sowinski said, “We will be able to target the core audience and dive deeper into the content rather than provide a general overview for all companies." |
 | Will Taylor is director of operations for Averitt Express, where he spent the first 10 years of his career as an engineering leader. He is a 13-year veteran of the transportation industry, with expertise in operations, engineering and technology. His industry experience includes optimization of line haul and scheduling operations, improvement of cross-dock systems and implementation of onboard computers for the entire Averitt fleet. |