Speakers

Alan Ahern, Crowley Associates

Bio coming soon.

Alex Chausovsky, 3DM

Alex Chausovsky is the President & CEO of 3DM Consulting. He is a highly experienced market researcher and analyst with more than two decades of expertise across subjects including economics, manufacturing, automation, advanced technology trends, and business cycle analysis. He has consulted and advised companies throughout the US and Canada, Europe, South America, and Asia.

Alex has delivered over a thousand presentations, webinars, and workshops to small businesses, trade associations, and Fortune 500 companies across a spectrum of industries, and is the go-to source of industry data and insights for business owners and leaders. Alex's analysis has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, on the BBC, and on NPR, and he is a Top Voice on LinkedIn.

Jim Carroll, Global Futurist
Business Trends, Leadership & Innovation Expert

Jim Carroll is recognized as the world’s leading futurist, trends and innovation experts, with a massive
global blue-chip client list. Over the last 30 years, more than 2 million people have shared his insight at
his events. Jim’s global client list gives him a front-row seat to the high-velocity change that is
occurring as disruption comes to take hold of every industry and every organization.

With that insight, and the customized research that he undertakes for every engagement, he helps to
transform growth-oriented organizations into high-velocity innovation heroes!

He has been invited in by NASA (twice) to share his insight on the future of the space industry; by
Disney, to advise on new strategies for creativity and innovation; by the PGA of America for his
thoughts on how to accelerate the golf industry; by Pfizer for insight on the future of medical science;
by the World Bank for his thoughts on opportunities for economic development; and by the Wall Street
Journal for his perspective on disruptive trends. Among countless others…

Jim Carroll is an author, with numerous books including Now What?, Think Big, Start Small, Scale
Fast; Surviving the Information Age, The Future Belongs To Those Who Are Fast, Ready, Set, Done:
and What I Learned From Frogs in Texas.

Greg Engen, Contata

Greg Engen is President of Contata Solutions, a data and AI consultancy that helps organizations turn complex data into practical business value. He leads the company’s growth strategy and the development of Relevate AI, an AI Data Activation Platform that enables organizations to unify customer data, identify new opportunities, and improve sales and marketing performance. Greg brings deep experience across data, analytics, marketing technology, and business strategy, with a focus on translating emerging technologies into measurable results.

Dale Ford, ECIA

Dale Ford is a highly respected industry analyst with extensive experience producing award winning market research. He brings expertise in technology trends, competitive analysis, forecasting and supply/demand research of the electronics, semiconductor and electronics components industries. Mr. Ford has been researching the electronics and electronics components industries for over 25 years. His focused research delivers enhanced visibility on the products, technologies, and players shaping the electronics value chain.

Nick Krmpotich, DigiKey

Nick Krmpotich is Vice President of Artificial Intelligence & Intelligent Automation at DigiKey. He leads the company's AI strategy and enterprise adoption initiatives, helping business teams apply AI to improve productivity, customer experience, and operational efficiency. With more than 20 years of technology leadership experience, Nick focuses on turning AI innovation into measurable business value.

Kevin Kurland, Senior Technical Expert

Kevin Kurland is a Senior Advisor with Beacon Global Strategies, where he advises clients on strategic trade issues, including export control policy compliance. He brings nearly three decades of expertise from the Bureau of Industry and Security at the U.S. Department of Commerce, where he served as a senior executive in multiple capacities, including Acting Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Strategic Trade and Technology Security, overseeing export control and defense industrial base policy, and Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement, where he was responsible for implementing BIS’s export enforcement program.  

Kevin also serves as a Senior Technical Expert (Non-Resident) to the Economics Program and Scholl Chair in International Business at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Trustee for North America Ambassadors at the International Sanctions and Export Control Society, and advisor to the University of Georgia’s Benson-Bertsch Center for International Trade & Security.

David Loftus, ECIA

Over a 35-year career in high tech, David Loftus has served in a broad range of senior executive positions, including Vice President of Worldwide Sales and Marketing for Maxim Integrated, Executive Vice President Worldwide Sales and Applications for Cypress Semiconductor, Senior Vice President Worldwide Sales and Corporate Marketing for Intersil Corporation, Vice President & General Manager for Spartan Products for Xilinx Inc.In addition, Mr. Loftus served in Hong Kong from 2002 to 2005 as Vice President & Managing Director - Xilinx Asia Pacific.

Mike Morton, TTI, Inc.

Mike Morton serves as CEO of TTI, Inc., a Berkshire Hathaway company and global leader in electronic component distribution. With over 45 years of industry experience, Mike has been instrumental in shaping TTI’s operational strategy and global infrastructure. Since joining the company in 1978, he has held key leadership roles across business management, supply chain and product operations, culminating in his appointment as CEO in 2021.

Recognized for his visionary leadership and deep industry insight, Mike continues to drive progress and excellence across the TTI enterprise. His commitment to the company’s core values and strong relationships within the electronics community make him a respected voice in our industry.

Umesh Mishra, Ph.D
Richard A. Auhll Professor and Dean
The Robert Mehrabian College of EngineeringUniversity of California, Santa Barbara

In July 2023, after 33 years as a professor of electrical and computer engineering at UC Santa Barbara, Umesh Mishra began his tenure as the eighth dean of the university’s College of Engineering. He has specialized in gallium nitride (GaN), a high-performance wide-bandgap semiconductor material that continues to play a primary role in the development of ever-moreenergy-efficient devices, such as LEDs, highly efficient microwave-power amplifiers for 5G
connectivity, and advanced power electronics. He has also served as the director of numerous multidisciplinary research-initiative centers, and he co-founded the university’s Solid State Lighting and Energy Electronics Centers (SSLEEC). In an effort to bring GaN into wider use, in
1996, Mishra co-founded Nitres (now part of Wolfspeed), the world’s first start-up to commercialize radio-frequency GaN transistors and GaN LEDs. In 2007, he co-founded Transphorm (acquired by Renesas in 2024) to commercialize GaN transistors for power conversions.

A member of the National Academy of Engineering, Mishra is also a fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and the National Academy of Inventors, and the recipient of IEEE’s David Sarnoff Award and Jun-ichi Nishizawa Medal; the International Symposium on Compound Semiconductors’ Quantum Device Award and Heinrich Welker Award; as well as the Distinguished Education Award from the IEEE Microwave Theory and
Technology Society.

Dr. Malini Natarajarathinam is a Professor in the Industrial Distribution (ID) program within the Department of Engineering Technology and Industrial Distribution (ETID) at Texas A&M University’s College of Engineering. She holds the Leonard and Valerie Bruce Endowed Chair and serves as the Program Coordinator for the Industrial Distribution Program, one of the largest and most well-regarded programs in the country. 

Dr. Natarajarathinam also directs the Thomas and Joan Read Center for Distribution Research and Education, the only university-based center in the U.S. focused exclusively on wholesale distribution. Since its establishment in 1988, the Read Center has served as a hub for applied research, industry partnerships, and professional development. 

She teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in purchasing, logistics, strategic supplier relationships, and customer experience, emphasizing real-world applications through case studies and industry collaboration.

Widely recognized for her leadership in industrial distribution, Dr. Natarajarathinam remains committed to advancing education and innovation in industrial distribution.

Eric O'Neill, Cybersecurity Expert, Legendary FBI Operative 
 

Eric began his career in the FBI as a graduate of the FBI’s Intelligence Program. He spent the first five years as a field operative in a special surveillance group tasked to surveil and monitor foreign, national, and domestic terrorists and spies.

Eric transitioned from “ghosting” targets from the shadows to direct undercover work with a singular assignment—with little backup or support: Catch his new boss, Robert Hanssen, a 25-year veteran of the FBI, in the act of espionage with the Russians. Hanssen died in a supermax prison last year at the age of 79.

Eric’s edge-of-your seat story is featured in the dramatic thriller, Breach, starring Ryan Philippe and Laura Linney. The film is set inside the FBI, the gatekeeper of the nation’s most sensitive and potentially volatile secrets, and it reveals the story of the greatest security breach in US history. During the Hanssen investigation, Eric worked directly undercover with the spy within the FBI’s Information Assurance Division, created to protect all classified FBI intelligence. Read about it in Eric’s acclaimed book, "Gray Day: My Undercover Mission to Expose America’s First Cyber Spy" (Crown).

After serving as a national security strategist for several companies, Eric founded The Georgetown Group which has become a premier investigative and security consultancy in Washington, DC. The firm specializes in counterintelligence operations, economic espionage, cybersecurity penetrations, AI-fueled attacks, internal investigations, and security risk assessment.

Eric is also a media commentator. He and his work have been covered by CNN, C-Span, Fox, NPR, Newsweek, TechCrunch, “Fresh Air with Terry Gross,” World News Now, Access Hollywood, and more. Eric is an honors graduate of Auburn University and George Washington University School of Law. Eric’s latest book "Spies, Lies and Cybercrime: Cybersecurity Tactics to Outsmart Hackers and Disarm Scammers" was released in October 2025 by HarperCollins to critical acclaim.

Amit Shah, InstaLILY

Amit Shah is Founder and CEO of InstaLILY, the autonomous AI platform for the physical economy. He has spent more than two decades building and scaling technology-driven businesses, from early-stage innovation to public-company leadership. Before founding InstaLILY, Amit served as President of 1-800-Flowers.com, where he helped grow the company to more than $2 billion in revenue, after beginning his career at McKinsey & Company.

He currently serves on the board of Groupon, where he is the inaugural Chair of its board-level AI Committee, and previously served on the board of Blue Apron. He has also served on the boards and executive committees of trade associations and nonprofit organizations, including the Modern Marketing Alliance. Amit is also Co-Founder of AI Trailblazers, a leadership community for operators, investors, and technologists shaping the future of AI. He holds a master’s degree from Harvard University and a bachelor’s degree from Bowdoin College, and lives in New York City. 

Curt Steinhorst, The Distraction Expert

Curt Steinhorst is the author of the bestselling book, Can I Have Your Attention?, a Top 30 Global Guru, and a regular Forbes contributor on Leadership Strategy. He pulls from a decade's worth of attention science, generational differences, and technology trends to shape leadership, engagement, and productivity. Curt has collaborated with thousands of executives to discover common approaches to finding clarity, harnessing human attention, and developing teams that yield powerful results. His unique perspective and entertaining speaking style combine unforgettable stories, cutting-edge research, and practical case studies. His many clients include AT&T, Southwest Airlines, Deloitte, JPMorgan Chase, Nike, the US Naval Academy, and SAP, to name a few.

Mike Swenson, Mel Foster Group

Mike Swenson is the CEO of Mel Foster Group. Mike joined the company 43 years ago and became president in 2003. Mike holds a marketing degree from the University of Minnesota.

An active member of several industry associations, Mike has served in leadership roles, including ECIA Conference Chair and ECIA Board member. Mike also served on the EDS Board from 2015 to 2022. More recently, Mike participated as a panelist for the CEO Perspective session at the ECIA Conference and presented a webinar on AI.

He is currently a member of the Manufacturer Representative Committee.