2024 Manufacturing Symposium: Value Creation and Risk Mitigation in Manufacturing and Distribution Sector M&A

Latoya Conners Gray is a dynamic experienced leader with a history in pricing, risk management, operations and technology across multiple industries. She began her career in Consulting and then moved to Retail. She then made a leap to the Distribution/MRO. Latoya is a results-driven, strategic and operational focused leader that can bring together IT and Business operations for optimal results.  Latoya has 20 years of experience implementing and improving profitable programs. She is a trusted business partner with a successful track record in building relationships and motivating senior executive partners/peers and employees to define and achieve business results.

Latoya is highly invested in her organizations and believes in developing talent. She has a history of building high functioning and high performing collaborative teams, nurturing talent and moving organizations forward to exceed their goals. 

Latoya lives in the Northwest suburbs of Chicago with her husband and twin boys age 10. She spends her free time at soccer and football games, golfing, at PTO meetings and trying new restaurants. Latoya serves on two boards. She and her family enjoy serving underprivilege communities, being active in her church and giving back to those in need.

Gail Holmberg is a Senior Partner in the Midwest practice of Fortium Partners.  She brings over 30 years of leadership experience with prominent national brands in driving process and organizational optimization through creative uses of technology. Her extensive background in a variety of industries has given her the unique ability to demystify technology decisions and drive organizational change as a fractional/virtual CIO.

Fortium Partners is a professional services firm providing world-class IT leadership to clients focused on finding solutions to complex technology issues or difficult-to–solve operational challenges. Services include interim, fractional, and virtual CIOs, Chief Technology Officers and Chief Information Security Officers as well as facilitation of IT strategy, IT assessments and IT due diligence.

Holmberg served as the CIO of Bally Total Fitness, as a divisional CIO for Sears, Roebuck & Company and in a variety of management positions at The Quaker Oats Company. Prior to joining Fortium, Holmberg served as COO and CIO of Tandem HR. She was also President of her own firm, Blue Morpho Consulting, where she provided CIO advisory services with a focus on SMB companies. Earlier in her career, she was a Big 4 consultant with Deloitte, Haskins and Sells.

Holmberg holds a Master of Public Administration from Harvard University and a bachelor of arts in communications from Illinois State University. She proudly serves on the boards of the Association for Corporate Growth – Chicago Chapter (where she co-chairs the Manufacturing and Distribution Committee) and the Sugar Beet Co-op. She also serves as a Mentor in the Chicago Innovation Women’s Mentoring Co-op. 

Kathleen Steele is a visionary leader and entrepreneur with over thirty years of corporate strategy, branding, marketing, and technology expertise. As an operating executive, consultant, founder, and board member, she advises executives on innovative growth, brand, and talent management strategies that drive shareholder value while protecting reputational risk and improving customer and employee engagement. Currently, Kathleen is the CEO of Red Caffeine, a growth consultancy that builds Grow-to-Market™ strategies for mid-market companies in the manufacturing, technology, professional services, and education sectors with combined revenues of over 2.5 Billion. She has advised executives on developing and promoting first-mover technologies, positioning and launching new products and services, changing brand perception to aid business turn-around, and helping organizations with their human capital strategies. She has successfully guided the management of a crafting product from idea to acquisition by the largest strategic player in the space, a technology product launch campaign that led to 80% revenue growth, more than doubling their business, and an award-winning repositioning a strategy that reached a global audience, changed negative market perception, and drove new customer acquisition. Kathleen is a notable speaker and author on employee experience, growth planning, branding, and marketing. She has delivered keynote presentations and workshops at the Gathering of Games, the Women in Manufacturing Summit, Conference, Inc. 5000 Conference, and hosts a live webcast called Business as “Un”usual. She has been recognized for numerous industry and entrepreneurial awards, including the Inc 5000, Enterprising Woman of the Year, James Tyree Emerging Business Leadership, Entrepreneurial Excellence, and Business Excellence.

David Doyle is the President and Chief Executive Officer of HEIDENHAIN CORPORATION, a subsidiary of Dr. Johannes HEIDENHAIN GmbH, a global leader in high performance motion control solutions, headquartered in Traunreut, Germany. David is based at HEIDENHAIN’s Silicon Valley office in California. David joined HEIDENHAIN in 2016 team in Schaumburg, IL, spearheading organization change, infrastructure and business development activities in North America within the electronics, automation and machine tool capital equipment markets. HEIDENHAIN also enables advanced systems capabilities in the robotics, automotive, energy, agriculture, medical and life science industries. With over 33 years in technical, product management and senior leadership roles, David has worked with GEC Plessey Semiconductors, KLA-Tencor, Machine Vision Technologies (acquired by Agilent Technologies), Orbotech, Accent Optical Technologies (acquired by Nanometrics) and more recently ONTO Innovation. His work in the Semiconductor industry has given David a global perception on high volume manufacturing technology and innovation. Throughout his career, David has been instrumental in expanding applications for the innovative technologies his companies have developed and creating market leading positions. The metrology technology innovations and products he promoted while with Nanometrics have enabled advanced process control solutions for FinFET logic, 3D NAND, DRAM and compound semiconductor devices which support advanced computation, cloud-based analytics, machine learning, communications, and emerging artificial intelligence applications. David holds double honors degrees in Chemistry and Experimental Physics from Maynooth University, Ireland, and has completed professional development programs at attended Stanford University.

As a second-generation business owner in manufacturing, Jim Carr has embraced the opportunities and challenges that come with leading a high-tech machine shop that his father founded in 1972. Since becoming sole shareholder and President of CARR Machine & Tool in 2004, after decades of experience working alongside his father, Jim has steadily grown and evolved the business through innovative thinking. Including a culture shift, upgrading ERP, adopting “TRACTION” and simply by not doing what everyone else is. Today, CARR Machine & Tool Inc. has matured into an aerospace CNC machine shop serving elite industries; Space & Exploration, Semiconductor, Aerospace, Medical and the Department of Defense. Known for their unique culture and with recent implementation of high-technology tools, equipment and automation; 5 axis machining, mill-turning and CMM inspection it has truly aligned with its accreditation of being a world class AS9100D facility. Jim’s experience includes full knowledge of GD&T, conventional and CNC machining /programming and CAD/CAM systems, as well as vast industry leadership and service roles. What differentiates him from his manufacturing peers is his innate passion for marketing, brand and design. In 2014, recognizing the need for more resources for business leadership in manufacturing, Jim co-founded MakingChips, the #1 rated manufacturing podcast, with Jason Zenger. Through weekly episodes and speaking engagements, Jim equips and inspires manufacturing leaders across the world with his experience, thought leadership, and business wisdom. Now, in 2024, Jim is continuing his personal mission to give back to his community through inspiring manufacturing professionals through his own new introspective manufacturing podcast my TRUE POSITION. Where he discusses relevant industry-specific topics like; nepotism, scaling your business, debt, business succession, buying CNC equipment and more.

Sri Manda, Chief Security & Trust Officer at Peloton Interactive is responsible for all things security for this trusted and transformative brand with over three million subscribers. Sri has over 15 years of security domain expertise driving large scale, modern cybersecurity programs which are data and automation led in addition to running physical security & corporate security initiatives that touch supply chain, retail, VIP security, fraud, investigations and loss prevention initiatives
 

Prior to this, Sri was the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) at TheRealReal, the marketplace for authenticated luxury consignment, deputy CISO at News Corp.

Sri is based in Manhattan and has a passion for tennis and all things data science.

Terrel (Terry) Bressler joined Prairie Capital Advisors in 2012 and is a shareholder in the firm. He focuses on mergers and acquisitions (“M&A”) and capital advisory engagements. In this role, Terry assists middle market business owners in understanding and assessing their strategic business alternatives and then developing and executing transaction solutions to meet the owner’s objectives. He works with family, management-owned and private equity-owned businesses and helps these clients address their growth and ownership transition issues, including executing recapitalizations, M&A, company sales and ESOPs. Terry frequently speaks on and writes about M&A and financing topics. He also authors Prairie’s quarterly M&A and financing topics newsletter, the Prairie Middle Market Perspective. Terry was announced as a 2017 Thought Leader of the Year Finalist by the Alliance of Merger & Acquisition Advisors (AM&AA). During his 30-year investment banking career, Terry has originated and executed a wide variety of M&A and capital raising assignments for middle-market companies and their shareholders. Terry has developed expertise working as an advisor with clients in many different industries. During his career, he has raised nearly $2.0 billion in debt, mezzanine and equity capital and has assisted in the sale of companies with valuations as small as $10.0 million and as large as several hundred million. To date, Terry has completed over 80 investment banking transactions.

Todd has over a decade of experience in the areas of profit and cash flow improvement, operations and process improvement, financial planning and analysis, profitable growth strategy, and mergers and acquisitions. At Industrial Opportunity Partners (IOP), he works with the management teams of IOP’s portfolio companies, the firm’s Operating Principals, and other members of the Operations team to implement key operational and financial initiatives. Prior to joining IOP, Todd served as a management consultant with The Keystone Group advising middle-market manufacturing and distribution companies. Previously he worked at Monsanto Company (acquired by Bayer) as a financial analyst and accountant. Todd holds a BSBA in finance and accounting from Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis and an MBA with high honors from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. He is also a Certified Management Accountant (CMA).

Duncan Bourne has been with Wynnchurch since 2003. He brought more than twenty-two years of consulting and operational experience to the firm, including stints as Senior Manager with Ernst & Young, Senior Associate with Alix Partners and Partner with BDO Seidman LLP. Duncan began his career with BP Amoco as a chemical engineer. He is a Certified Turnaround Professional and a Certified Insolvency and Restructuring Advisor.