Visionary Headliners, Rockstars
and Fab Facilitators
Interested in Becoming or Nominating a Speaker?
Headliners
Shruti Basavaraj Ahluwalia
Vice President of AI Platforms and Product Transformation
The Institute of Internal Auditors
ex-Disney, Citi, Amex
Shruti brings more than 15 years of experience leading AI-enabled platforms, digital product strategy, and enterprise transformation, all with the goal of achieving excellent customer experiences. Most recently at The Walt Disney Company, she led AI platform strategy across a $300M+ portfolio. She also held senior digital leadership roles at Citigroup and American Express, delivering measurable growth, operational efficiency, and customer impact. As co-founder and Chief Digital Officer of a healthcare practice, she built and scaled a technology-driven organization from the ground up.
Sean Albertson
Founder & Chief Executive Officer
CX4ROCKS
Sean is a globally respected thought leader, keynote speaker, and advisor with over 25 years of experience transforming customer service and experience strategies for startups to Fortune 200 companies. As the author of the award-winning 4ROCKS: Reduce Effort, Drive Loyalty, Transform the Customer Journey, Sean reveals how to create loyalty-driving experiences at the intersection of technology and human engagement.
Dan Gamber
Director of Experiences
Bridgestone Retail Operations
Wayne Simmons
Former Global Customer Excellence Lead
Pfizer
Author, The Customer Excellence Enterprise
Wayne is the founder of The Customer Excellence Agency, where he helps organizations translate customer-centric ambition into enterprise capability by aligning brand, product, and experience. He previously led global customer excellence at Pfizer and customer experience management at Bayer, where he led global efforts to embed customer-centric ways of working across the enterprise. Wayne is also the author of The Customer Excellence Enterprise (Wiley), which decodes the architecture that enables leading customer experience outlier companies to operationalize and scale customer-centricity as a source of durable competitive advantage.
Rockstar Insights
Drew Dornhecker
Head of Audi Experience & Sales Training – Southern U.S.
Audi of America
Leon Gantt
Vice President, Contact Center & Guest Experience
United Parks & Resorts
Leon Gantt is a Fortune 500 senior operations executive who turns frontline and customer data signals into disciplined execution rhythms. His Rituals to Execution approach has delivered measurable outcomes (NPS improvements from 34 to 82, attrition reductions from ~30% to 5%, and sales growth from $32M to $74M) while reducing operating costs; equipping leaders to build cadence that drives results.
Gavin Johnston
Director of User Experience Research
Hyatt Hotels Corporation
Gavin has over 25 years of experience in customer experience and strategic planning. Over the years his curiosity about what makes people tick and how that leads to innovation has been the cornerstone of his work. He has led CX research and strategy teams for a broad range of products, services, and industries including hospitality, consumer packaged goods, pharma, food & beverage, healthcare, and financial services.
Justin Leon
Director of Resort Amenities
Villatel
Marianela Oreste
Head of Guest Experience & Feedback, Popeyes US & CA
Restaurant Brands International
At Popeyes US & CA, Marianela has a track record of building transformative CX and omni-channel strategies. She is a leader in bridging technology and insights to boost satisfaction and business performance and is focused on cultivating strong, purpose-driven teams and leveraging technology to unlock their full potential. Marianela believes culture is the foundation that turns innovation into impact.
Geoff Reabold
Director of Customer Experience
Henry Schein
At Henry Schein, Geoff leads enterprise-wide programs that transform how the organization listens to, understands, and acts on customer and employee insights across multiple international markets. With more than a decade of experience spanning Sales, Customer Success, and Customer Experience leadership, Geoff focuses on turning feedback into strategy and measurable business outcomes. He oversees Henry Schein’s Global Voice of Customer program and partners closely with executive leadership to embed customer insight into decision-making across the organization. Geoff is passionate about helping companies move beyond simply measuring experience to building systems that drive meaningful action and continuous improvement.
Antoinette Staples Branch
Senior Director, Customer Insights & Success
McKesson
Sonia Tamrakar
Assistant Director, Customer Experience
Saks OFF 5TH
Sonia is a strategic customer experience leader with 18 years of expertise in delivering premium service across the hospitality, corporate, and luxury retail sectors. She specializes in translating complex data into actionable store-wide solutions. Sonia has a proven track record in managing multi-million dollar budget commitments, optimizing operational schedules, and bridge-building between high-level strategy and frontline execution.
Michelle Wienke
Director of Patient Experience
Jupiter Medical Center
With a long history in customer service, Michelle transferred her skills to healthcare after September 11, 2001. She implemented, staffed and has overseen Patient Advocacy/Experience, and was Chief Experience Officer at a Level 1 Trauma Center. She also has extensive Palliative Care and Organ Donation background, and currently oversees a team of over 50 teammates, including PX Coordinators, Pastoral Care and Valet for her hospital. After a few decades in healthcare, Michelle has “been there and can help YOU do THAT!” Engaging, enthusiastic and focused on exceptional service, in the fast-paced ever-evolving world of healthcare, there are many lessons that transfer well to any industry!
Master of Ceremonies
Brian Fitzpatrick
Partner, Events
Frost & Sullivan
Brian Fitzpatrick is the Global Lead for Frost & Sullivan’s Events Division, responsible for the Best Practice creation and execution of Frost & Sullivan events globally. He has over 28 years of management and leadership position experience and understands strategic, tactical business planning and financial management.