Featured Speakers

Angus Fletcher is a Professor of Story Science at The Ohio State University, where he studies how narrative shapes human behavior, decision-making, and innovation. His work sits at the intersection of cognitive science, psychology, and storytelling, offering a fresh lens on how people think, solve problems, and drive change. For continuous improvement leaders, Fletcher’s expertise is especially relevant: he translates complex research into practical insights on how to influence culture, build alignment, and move teams from analysis to action. Rather than focusing on tools alone, he helps leaders understand how to engage the human side of improvement—how to frame problems, communicate ideas, and inspire better thinking across an organization. His work has been used by global organizations and government agencies to improve performance and decision-making, making him a compelling voice for leaders looking to strengthen not just their processes, but the way their people think and act.

Anna Nguyen has worked at Nationwide Children’s Hospital for 14 years in various roles in biobanking and cancer research, bioinformatics, data management, and now process improvement. She is currently a Process Improvement Specialist and facilitates teams from all over the organization through process improvement and change. She is an Ohio Wesleyan University graduate with a bachelor’s in chemistry and zoology.

Chad Cummings is an accomplished leader in continuous improvement, serving as Vice President of Lean Transformation and Improvement at the Cleveland Clinic. With a career spanning more than 25 years, Chad has refined his expertise across both manufacturing and healthcare sectors, where he has become a recognized practitioner and champion of Lean methodologies.

Prior to joining the Cleveland Clinic, Chad held significant leadership roles in a range of industries, successfully applying process improvement strategies in various Fortune 500 companies. Throughout his professional journey, Chad has consistently demonstrated a commitment to implementing transformative systems and frameworks that advance organizational performance.

Chad’s academic achievements include dual undergraduate degrees in Business and Engineering from Ohio University, complemented by a master’s degree from Case Western Reserve University. His educational foundation provided the springboard for a career dedicated to driving operational excellence and fostering a culture of innovation.

Danielle Klein is a Process Improvement Specialist at Nationwide Children's Hospital where she facilitates teams through process improvement projects that improve safety, efficiency, and effectiveness. Danielle is an Ohio University graduate with a bachelor's in industrial and systems engineering and a master's in healthcare administration. She also received her Six Sigma Black Belt certification from the American Society for Quality. Danielle loves contributing to improvements in clinical and non-clinical spaces and the opportunity to communicate and educate on process improvement methodologies.

Greg Poyet-Smith leads business transformation for Amazon Finance and Global Business Services, where he drives operational excellence initiatives and strategic transformation across global business lines. In this role, he leads Lean Six Sigma teams, manages portfolios of high-impact initiatives, and develops transformation roadmaps that deliver measurable improvements to performance and ROI. Greg has more than 15 years of experience leading global teams across technology, healthcare, finance, and supply chain organizations. Prior to Amazon, he spent over a decade at Cardinal Health in Operational Excellence leadership roles, where he led Lean Six Sigma deployments, developed continuous improvement talent, and drove large-scale operational improvements across distribution and healthcare operations

Dr. James Cole has served with USSOCOM and has been a Navy Officer, paratrooper, military diver, and surgeon. He left active duty in 2000 but after the events of September 11th, he rejoined the reserves and was deployed to both Afghanistan and Iraq. He practices Trauma Surgery, Critical Care, and Emergency General Surgery in Illinois.

Joseph Baker is the Chief Operating Officer at Veritext Legal Solutions, one of the largest legal technology providers in the United States. A Lean Six Sigma Black Belt and experienced operations leader, Joseph specializes in operational execution, leadership development, and scaling organizations through periods of growth and transformation. He has delivered results across several Fortune 300 service organizations and brings deep expertise in operational excellence, AI and product commercialization, customer experience strategy, and post-merger integration. Known for his ability to connect strategy with frontline execution, Joseph focuses on building strong leaders, developing talent pipelines, and driving measurable performance improvements that help organizations grow while strengthening their culture.

Kim Scibelli is the Executive Director of Supply Chain and Operations at AVS Bio. As an accomplished champion of Lean principles, with a demonstrated history of success in logistics, operations, and continuous improvement across the supply chain workflow, Kim has coached multiple teams through Lean Transformations. She helps create cultures centered around high-level problem-solving and develops strategies for cultivating cultures of continuous improvement. She summarizes her experience in three key areas; an engaging and effective team leader, a process improvement pioneer, and an organizational management expert.

Mark Reich spent 23 years at Toyota, beginning in Japan in 1988, where he worked in Product Planning during the critical launch of Lexus. In 1994, he returned to the U.S. to join the Toyota Supplier Support Center (TSSC), helping apply the Toyota Production System (TPS) across industries—including healthcare and nonprofits.

In 2011, Mark joined the Lean Enterprise Institute (LEI), serving as COO and now as Senior Coach and Chief Engineer, Strategy. He has led lean transformations and coached executives in hoshin kanri across companies such as GE Appliances, Michigan Medicine, and Turner Construction.

Mark holds a degree from Ohio Wesleyan University and studied Japanese at Nanzan University. He is fluent in Japanese.

As Director of Continuous Improvement at Ace Hardware’s Corporate office in Oak Brook, Illinois, Tim Malone is a transformative leader with a proven track record in supply chain optimization and operational excellence. Tim has advanced through key roles in Inventory Control, Replenishment Planning, Supplier Compliance, and led Ace’s import warehousing operations across multiple locations.

Currently, Tim spearheads the Continuous Improvement department, driving Lean Six Sigma initiatives and enhancing the efficiency of Ace’s private Fleet utilization. Renowned for cultivating a culture of accountability and continuous improvement, Tim is dedicated to delivering measurable results and fostering high-performing teams.

Tim Malone holds an MBA from Northern Illinois University and a Bachelor of Science in Operations Supply Chain Management from Marquette University.