Consumer Goods & Services

Professionals focused on products and services for personal use, working in sectors like retail, customer care, and product development

Josh Garverick

Josh Garverick

Author of the book "Migrating to Azure", contributing author to "The Developer's Guide to Azure (2021)", "Implementing Event-Driven Microservices Architecture in .NET 7 (2023)", "Azure Integration Guide for Business (2023)", and author of several online courses, Microsoft MVP Josh Garverick is a seasoned IT professional with more than 15 years’ enterprise experience working in several large industry verticals (finance, healthcare, transportation, logistics, retail/consumer products, oil & gas, insurance). He specializes in Digital Transformation as well as Application Lifecycle Management and is currently involved in enterprise cloud adoption projects. When not geeking out over technology and architecture frameworks, he enjoys spending time with his wife and daughter.

Author of the book "Migrating to Azure", contributing author to "The Developer's Guide to Azure (2021)", "Implementing Event-Driven Microservices Architecture in .NET 7 (2023)", "Azure Integration Guide for Business (2023)", and author of several onl... Show more

Shawntel Waajid

Shawntel Waajid

Looking for the ultimate natural hair care experience? Look no further than Shawntel Waajid and Nappy Hutt LLC! With over 45 years of experience in braiding and natural hair care, our owner and lead instructor is a master cosmetologist, natural hair care stylist, and master loctitian. Plus, we offer the best in hair care products with our own Fertilizer and Kings Solutions lines. Join us for a hands-on seminar and discover the beauty of natural hair care!

Looking for the ultimate natural hair care experience? Look no further than Shawntel Waajid and Nappy Hutt LLC! With over 45 years of experience in braiding and natural hair care, our owner and lead instructor is a master cosmetologist, natural hair ... Show more

Nico Botes

Nico Botes

I am a Data Platform Manager, focusing on the Microsoft stack at Montego Pet Nutrition. He loves working with data and started his career in IT working with Microsoft SQL Server. After spending a decade in the UK, working for several multi-national organizations across different industries in various roles, he has settled back in his country of birth in a remote part of the Karoo, South Africa.

I am a Data Platform Manager, focusing on the Microsoft stack at Montego Pet Nutrition. He loves working with data and started his career in IT working with Microsoft SQL Server. After spending a decade in the UK, working for several multi-national o... Show more

Stéphane Clavier

Stéphane Clavier

J'ai toujours cultivé une certaine polyvalence dont les différentes facettes s'enrichissent mutuellement.
Coach professionnel et agiliste, j'écoute et je questionne individus et organisations pour les aider à clarifier leurs problématiques et à construire leurs propres solutions.

J'ai toujours cultivé une certaine polyvalence dont les différentes facettes s'enrichissent mutuellement. Coach professionnel et agiliste, j'écoute et je questionne individus et organisations pour les aider à clarifier leurs problématiques et à cons... Show more

Gregor Bauer

Gregor Bauer

Started career in international teams developing and delivering custom device management and IoT solutions for leading telecom providers worldwide. During this time leading technical teams in the delivery of customer solutions and in PreSales, which included as well the creation of architectures and cost estimates. As a solution engineer at Couchbase, he now focuses on challenging solution consulting, such as application modernization and development as well as multi-cloud strategies and especially edge computing with a focus on sustainable high user experience.

Started career in international teams developing and delivering custom device management and IoT solutions for leading telecom providers worldwide. During this time leading technical teams in the delivery of customer solutions and in PreSales, which ... Show more

Murray Fife

Murray Fife

I’m a Strategist, Author, and Trainer dedicated to helping people make sense of complex systems. I guide businesses through the real-world challenges of implementing and optimizing complex systems, turning confusion into clarity.

I don’t just teach, I bring it to life. Through hands-on training, story-driven walkthroughs, and easy-to-follow documentation, I turn technical content into something engaging and practical. My goal is to make learning feel less like a black box and more like a powerful tool anyone can master.

As a published author and long-time blogger, I’m passionate about sharing what I’ve learned to help others succeed. Whether it’s configuring a ledger or navigating supply chain flows, I aim to make the process intuitive, insightful, and (dare I say) fun.

I’m a Strategist, Author, and Trainer dedicated to helping people make sense of complex systems. I guide businesses through the real-world challenges of implementing and optimizing complex systems, turning confusion into clarity. I don’t just teac... Show more

Kotreshi S

Kotreshi S

I am the Global Community Manager at Precogly, an open-source threat modeling platform, leading the charge in building and scaling a global community around our solution.

What I Do: I own the end-to-end community experience—from developer relations and AppSec engagement to strategic outreach targeting DORA/CRA compliance stakeholders. I orchestrate our presence across Discord, GitHub, LinkedIn, and X, creating touchpoints that matter.

My day-to-day includes running AMAs (Ask Me Anything) with security leaders, hosting webinars and product demos, executing outbound campaigns to developers and enterprise AppSec teams, and maintaining a direct feedback loop between our community and product team. I don’t just manage conversations—I shape product direction by translating user needs into actionable insights.

Working at the intersection of cybersecurity, compliance, and open-source community building, I’m helping redefine how security practitioners approach threat modeling. This role demands high discipline, consistent output, and comfort with rejection—qualities I bring to every outreach effort and community interaction.

Background: With 4+ years in Social Media Marketing and team leadership experience, I’ve delivered results across 10+ projects in Healthcare, Hospitality, Telecalling, and Education, specializing in Lead Generation, Campaign Management, and Community Growth.

I am the Global Community Manager at Precogly, an open-source threat modeling platform, leading the charge in building and scaling a global community around our solution. What I Do: I own the end-to-end community experience—from developer relation... Show more

Faïçal Congo

Faïçal Congo

Faical Yannick P. Congo holds a PhD in Cloud Computing and Data Systems and developed a strong research background in collaboration with NIST and Université Clermont Auvergne (UCA), focusing on cloud architectures, data platforms, and standardization-driven approaches.

He has led and contributed to large-scale cloud, data, and AI initiatives within major international organizations including OCP Nutricrops, Sodexo, and Alain Afflelou, working in regulated, multi-region, and business-critical environments.

In parallel, Faical has built entrepreneurial ventures in the United States, France, and Africa, delivering AI and digital solutions across multiple industries, from agriculture and services to retail and industrial sectors. His work consistently emphasizes vendor-agnostic architectures, open technologies, and long-term platform autonomy.

His current focus lies at the intersection of Private AI, cloud-native platforms, Kubernetes, and DevSecOps standards, with a particular emphasis on compute-driven AI standardization (CPU/GPU), agent-based architectures, and sovereign AI operating models.

Faical Yannick P. Congo holds a PhD in Cloud Computing and Data Systems and developed a strong research background in collaboration with NIST and Université Clermont Auvergne (UCA), focusing on cloud architectures, data platforms, and standardization... Show more

Nandini Suthar

Nandini Suthar

With 15 years of expertise in the design and research domain, Nandini is currently a Lead UX Designer at Salesforce, where she shapes cutting-edge user experiences for the Energy and Utilities Cloud. Her career spans both design studios and global enterprises, where she has driven products from ideation to execution, seamlessly aligning business objectives with user needs.

During the lockdown, Nandini co-founded Crafty Delights, a creative venture dedicated to fostering connection among parents and children through engaging activities and thoughtful content.

Passionate about promoting team well-being, facilitating cross-functional collaboration, and mentoring future talent, Nandini is committed to delivering meaningful impact in every project she undertakes. Outside of work, she’s an avid trekker and explorer, always drawing inspiration from the world around her.

With 15 years of expertise in the design and research domain, Nandini is currently a Lead UX Designer at Salesforce, where she shapes cutting-edge user experiences for the Energy and Utilities Cloud. Her career spans both design studios and global en... Show more

Mark Stewart

Mark Stewart

Modernization underpins business transformation; I support customers by simplifying the process with the expertise, tools and services that AWS provides. I have over 30 years of experience of supporting successful business transformation objectives with technology, 5 years with AWS.

Modernization underpins business transformation; I support customers by simplifying the process with the expertise, tools and services that AWS provides. I have over 30 years of experience of supporting successful business transformation objectives w... Show more

Jeroen Akkerman

Jeroen Akkerman

I am passionate about crafting high-quality software, both as a professional and as a hobbyist. I love to see people enjoy using the programs I create. I focus on frontend development in my professional life, but also build full-stack software on occasion.

In my current role at the Port of Rotterdam and Portbase, I'm crafting cross-platform software solutions to enhance the safety and efficiency of the port's land-side logistics. This includes the development of a website, a mobile application, and data analytics tools. We're always in the process of prototyping new features and gathering user feedback to refine our software. I find great satisfaction in this dynamic environment, where close collaboration with users and stakeholders is key.

I am very much into board games, tabletop games and large-scale multiplayer videogames.

I am passionate about crafting high-quality software, both as a professional and as a hobbyist. I love to see people enjoy using the programs I create. I focus on frontend development in my professional life, but also build full-stack software on occ... Show more

Shirin Salemnia

Shirin Salemnia

Shirin is a thought leader, tech pioneer, and media innovator. As Founder of WhizGirls Academy and PlayWerks, she empowers young women to code, create, and lead with confidence. A TEDx speaker, USC professor, and award-winning visionary, Shirin inspires the next generation of innovators through technology, entrepreneurship, and storytelling.

Shirin is a thought leader, tech pioneer, and media innovator. As Founder of WhizGirls Academy and PlayWerks, she empowers young women to code, create, and lead with confidence. A TEDx speaker, USC professor, and award-winning visionary, Shirin inspi... Show more

Emily Cheshire

Emily Cheshire

Emily Cheshire is a leader of the CAS practice at Aprio, LLP, leading the team to support clients to scale their businesses.

With 15+ years of experience advising clients as an FCA chartered accountant and expert knowledge in the cloud accounting and CAS space, Emily brings her passion for creating profitable, efficient, future focused accounting teams

Emily Cheshire is a leader of the CAS practice at Aprio, LLP, leading the team to support clients to scale their businesses. With 15+ years of experience advising clients as an FCA chartered accountant and expert knowledge in the cloud accountin... Show more

Kat Maerz

Kat Maerz

I have been an MDM Administrator since Absolute software was doing MDM on Xraids. I am a self-proclaimed master at it and supported Chicago Public Schools (Launched it myself) with 150K iOS devices. I now support a small business with 800 devices.

I have been an MDM Administrator since Absolute software was doing MDM on Xraids. I am a self-proclaimed master at it and supported Chicago Public Schools (Launched it myself) with 150K iOS devices. I now support a small business with 800 devices. Show more

Mariyam Mohd

Mariyam Mohd

I bring 11 years of experience across Cognizant, Oracle, and AWS, spanning presales, sales, and post‑sales roles. I hold a PGDM from IIM Kozhikode. Over the past five years at Microsoft, I’ve been driving strategic engagement and business growth for global enterprise customers—most notably Walmart and Goldman Sachs—serving as their Account Manager.

I bring 11 years of experience across Cognizant, Oracle, and AWS, spanning presales, sales, and post‑sales roles. I hold a PGDM from IIM Kozhikode. Over the past five years at Microsoft, I’ve been driving strategic engagement and business growth for ... Show more

Matthew Fey

Matthew Fey

I'm a Senior Functional Consultant with over 9 years of hands-on experience in Dynamics 365, with in depth experience across Finance, Supply Chain and Commerce. I specialize in designing innovative ERP solutions that not only meet business needs but also scale with growth. Whether it's engaging with users to uncover pain points, mentoring new team members, or driving successful implementations, I thrive on turning challenges into opportunities.

I’ve been especially excited about how AI is reshaping the ERP landscape from predictive insights to intelligent automation. I’ve seen firsthand how integrating AI Agents into Dynamics 365 can unlock smarter decision-making and streamline operations in ERP systems.

As a speaker, my goal is simple: share knowledge, provide practical tools, and spark a smile. Because if you're smiling, I know the first two have landed.

I'm a Senior Functional Consultant with over 9 years of hands-on experience in Dynamics 365, with in depth experience across Finance, Supply Chain and Commerce. I specialize in designing innovative ERP solutions that not only meet business needs but ... Show more

Tunmise Akinade

Tunmise Akinade

Senior Software Engineer with 9 years of experience building scalable, high-impact systems across fintech, government, and consumer tech.

Led a team of 6 engineers that delivered Nigerian government technology projects serving 7+ million citizens. At Chowdeck, Nigeria's leading food delivery platform, architected products and features that helped scale the platform to 1 million+ registered users, and re-engineered core systems to enable expansion into other African countries. Collaborated with distributed engineering teams across the US and Kenya through Andela, delivering fintech and data visualization solutions for global markets.

Senior Software Engineer with 9 years of experience building scalable, high-impact systems across fintech, government, and consumer tech. Led a team of 6 engineers that delivered Nigerian government technology projects serving 7+ million citizens.... Show more

Leslie Short

Leslie Short


Leslie Short is the owner of The Cavu Group and the author of "Expand Beyond Your Current Culture." With four decades of experience as a seasoned brand and culture strategist and leadership advisor, she founded The Cavu Group to address critical challenges in building and guiding organizations toward sustainable cultural growth.
Leslie is uniquely skilled at fostering environments that promote continuous evolution and innovation. Her approach emphasizes the importance of listening to and understanding people, whom she recognizes as an organization's greatest asset.
She is deeply committed to creating and maintaining diverse, equitable, accessible, and inclusive cultures. Leveraging her expertise, she develops inclusive workplace strategies and facilitates transformative discussions that challenge the status quo.
Her work delves into the vital intersections of leadership, culture, accessibility, and social impact, equipping businesses with actionable insights to thrive in today’s dynamic and complex business landscape.

Leslie Short has an accomplished background that includes business, entrepreneurship, marketing, and the arts. Her journey began as a classical ballet dancer, which took her to Europe, where she lived for over a decade. After her dance career, Leslie founded an entertainment business in Japan, which was recognized as the country's best business in 1994.
She held influential roles, including President of Marketing, Advertising, and Public Relations at FUBU The Collection, as well as Corporate Operating Strategist at prominent companies both domestically and internationally. Additionally, Leslie launched K.I.M. Media LLC (Keep It Moving) and founded Ascend Bereavement Management, demonstrating her versatility and innovative mindset.

A highly sought-after speaker, Leslie has addressed audiences at prestigious events hosted by Fortune 500 companies, universities, the United Nations, and the European Union, sharing her expertise and insights with a global audience. Leslie is a Chaplain, Certified Mediator, and Conflict Coach.

Leslie Short is the owner of The Cavu Group and the author of "Expand Beyond Your Current Culture." With four decades of experience as a seasoned brand and culture strategist and leadership advisor, she founded The Cavu Group to address critical ch... Show more

Michelle Carter

Michelle Carter

Third generation funeral director, award winning journalist

Third generation funeral director, award winning journalist Show more

Michael Farley

Michael Farley

Product design leadership with a focus on wellness and behavior change.

Product design leadership with a focus on wellness and behavior change. Show more

Tim Bird

Tim Bird

Tim Bird is a Principal Software Engineer for Sony Corporation, where he helps Sony use Linux and other open source software in their products. Tim is the organizer of the Linux Boot-Time Special Interest Group and is involved with various Linux Foundation projects (including being a member of the LF board of directors). Tim created and continues to run the Embedded Linux Conference.

Tim has been working with Linux for over 30 years.

Tim Bird is a Principal Software Engineer for Sony Corporation, where he helps Sony use Linux and other open source software in their products. Tim is the organizer of the Linux Boot-Time Special Interest Group and is involved with various Linux Fou... Show more

Madhu Vadlamani

Madhu Vadlamani

15 + years of experience in AI and Data analytics. Speaker - mentor and trainer

15 + years of experience in AI and Data analytics. Speaker - mentor and trainer Show more

Markus Mäkelä

Markus Mäkelä

Markus Mäkelä is a platform engineer specializing in generative AI applications. Over the past 2 years, he has focused primarily on integrating agentic capabilities into various parts of the platform engineering stack. He especially enjoys developing scalable and portable foundations that enables his team to keep pace with the fast moving cutting edge of the field of generative AI.

Markus Mäkelä is a platform engineer specializing in generative AI applications. Over the past 2 years, he has focused primarily on integrating agentic capabilities into various parts of the platform engineering stack. He especially enjoys developing... Show more

Mike de Jager

Mike de Jager

South African born, UK resident, Mike is a Mechanical Design Engineer & spent 20 years as a Draughtsman in the Dairy industry, a Project Technician & ran the drawing office for NCD/Clover Dairies. At Toyota, he worked as a mechanical designer in body in white. He moved to the UK in 2001, spent 7 years creating & designing 3D technical models.
He continued his studies in IT & enhanced his developer & web design skills at Halesowen College.
At age 50, in 2008 Mike jumped tracks & began a new career as IT Manager & NAV implementation project leader for SSI Schaefer in Andover, England. With the NAV project successfully implemented, he moved to Evosoft as support office manager, then to Sci-Net in Oxford as a consultant & then to KPMG for a three year corporate engagement.
As the Dynamics 365 Solution Architect for Experience/GCC for almost 3 years - now Global Solutions Architect for Dynavics, Mike has implemented multiple D365 solutions for a range of customers in a variety of industries in the UK.

South African born, UK resident, Mike is a Mechanical Design Engineer & spent 20 years as a Draughtsman in the Dairy industry, a Project Technician & ran the drawing office for NCD/Clover Dairies. At Toyota, he worked as a mechanical designer in body... Show more

Parichay Das

Parichay Das

Parichay is a seasoned technology leader with 14+ years of experience, specializing in Artificial Intelligence, Generative AI, and advanced AI-driven solutions. As a trusted advisor to global enterprises, he has successfully guided organizations through their AI transformation journeys—driving innovation, efficiency, and sustainable growth. With proven expertise in Solution Architecture, Strategy Consulting, AI/ML, Data Analytics, Cognitive Solutions, and Cloud Computing, he brings a unique blend of strategic vision and technical excellence to complex business challenges. A gold medalist with a Master’s degree, he is recognized for delivering cutting-edge solutions that create measurable impact. Beyond his core leadership role, he is an active speaker, panelist, industry chair, and judge at leading technology and management forums. He has mentored over 1,000 professionals and learners globally, shaping the next generation of innovators in the AI ecosystem.

Parichay is a seasoned technology leader with 14+ years of experience, specializing in Artificial Intelligence, Generative AI, and advanced AI-driven solutions. As a trusted advisor to global enterprises, he has successfully guided organizations thro... Show more

Jazmin Rivera

Jazmin Rivera

Jazmin Rivera is a CPR and emergency preparedness educator, instructor, and advocate dedicated to training everyday people to act decisively in life-threatening situations. With hands-on experience teaching individuals, families, schools, workplaces, and community organizations, Jazmin equips her audiences with the critical skills and confidence needed to save lives when every second counts.

Her mission is simple but vital: to ensure that no one hesitates during a cardiac emergency. Through engaging presentations, real-world scenarios, and practical demonstrations, Jazmin shows that prepared hands and quick action can mean the difference between life and death.

Jazmin’s work has empowered countless participants to become first responders in their own communities, bridging the gap between bystander uncertainty and life-saving action. Whether delivering keynotes, workshops, or interactive demonstrations, her presentations leave audiences alert, equipped, and ready to act.

Jazmin Rivera is a CPR and emergency preparedness educator, instructor, and advocate dedicated to training everyday people to act decisively in life-threatening situations. With hands-on experience teaching individuals, families, schools, workplaces,... Show more

Vasiliy Fomichev

Vasiliy Fomichev

Digital technology practice lead, visionary, radical, yet open-minded and people-focused leader specializing in delivering solutions with Sitecore Content Hub, Sitecore XP and XM Cloud, Personalize, and CDP, artificial intelligence, cloud, and Blockchain. 10x Sitecore MVP with over 16 years of experience during which Vasiliy developed and managed five Sitecore practices.

Digital technology practice lead, visionary, radical, yet open-minded and people-focused leader specializing in delivering solutions with Sitecore Content Hub, Sitecore XP and XM Cloud, Personalize, and CDP, artificial intelligence, cloud, and Blockc... Show more

Rama Mohan Reddy Pilli

Rama Mohan Reddy Pilli

Rama Mohan Reddy Pilli is a seasoned Data & AI Architect with deep expertise in large-scale distributed data systems, modern lakehouse architecture, and real-time analytics engineering. With extensive experience at Kard Financial and Dell EMC, he has led mission-critical initiatives that modernize data platforms, optimize compute at scale, and enable high-throughput AI and analytics workloads.

Rama specializes in building multi-petabyte Databricks Delta Lakehouse ecosystems, architecting medallion-modeled pipelines using Delta Live Tables, Auto Loader, Photon, and Spark 3.x performance tuning. He has engineered real-time merchant intelligence systems, high-scale segmentation APIs, and EKS-based microservices powered by AWS S3, IAM Roles for Service Accounts, ALB ingress, and Terraform-first infrastructure. He is recognized for delivering multimillion-dollar impact through cost-efficient cloud designs, Z-Ordering and Liquid Clustering optimization, and resilient ETL frameworks supporting millions of users.

An IEEE Senior Member and SAS Eminent Fellow, Rama actively contributes to global technology awards as a judge and speaks on scalable AI architectures, data engineering automation, and next-generation lakehouse design.

Rama Mohan Reddy Pilli is a seasoned Data & AI Architect with deep expertise in large-scale distributed data systems, modern lakehouse architecture, and real-time analytics engineering. With extensive experience at Kard Financial and Dell EMC, he has... Show more

Milos Grubjesic

Milos Grubjesic

Milos is a data scientist and machine learning engineer from 2006. With a master's in computer science, Milos combines deep technical expertise with practical applications in ML engineering and data science. Currently, he is working on Kubeflow solutions at PepsiCo, enhancing their data science capabilities.

Milos is a data scientist and machine learning engineer from 2006. With a master's in computer science, Milos combines deep technical expertise with practical applications in ML engineering and data science. Currently, he is working on Kubeflow solut... Show more

Alison Hillman

Alison Hillman

With signature glasses and unapologetic vision, Alison Hillman shows up for people, purpose, and the messy middle of entrepreneurship. She’s the Alison in BTP by Alison, an award-winning branding and photography business, and founder of theTABLE, a community-driven platform built for connection, candor, and growth.

After walking away from corporate America to build a life that felt more aligned with her values, Alison fully leaned into storytelling, branding, and community building. Now, with over 15 years of experience, she helps small business owners find their voice, clarify their message, and build something that actually feels like them.

She’s been named St. Louis’s Favorite Photographer by the Post-Dispatch, is a multi-year St. Louis Magazine A-Lister, and proudly received the Gamechanger Award for Physical Empowerment in Business.

Alison is proud to call South City home, where she’s known as Jason Squared’s best girl — wife to Jason, mama to Jase, and always the loudest cheerleader for the people she loves.

With signature glasses and unapologetic vision, Alison Hillman shows up for people, purpose, and the messy middle of entrepreneurship. She’s the Alison in BTP by Alison, an award-winning branding and photography business, and founder of theTABLE, a c... Show more

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