Bob began his retail career with 18 years in the grocery industry, managing multiple stores for Safeway Stores, Inc. and AJ Bayless Markets. In 1989, Bob joined PetSmart, with the chain operating 7 stores. As Vice President of Store Operations, he was responsible for various activities including opening and operating all new areas of stores for PetSmart throughout the U.S. As the organization grew to over 500 stores in 1998, he managed the successful integration of three major acquisitions, Petzazz, Ohio Valley; Petstuff, East Coast and Canada; and Pet Food Giant, New Jersey and New York. Bob also served as Regional Vice President for Banfield, The Pet Hospital, providing leadership for 90 veterinarian hospitals throughout the western United States. Bob is a retailer at heart, thoroughly committed to surpassing the customer’s expectation with a great shopping experience.

Bob joined Petsense as President and CEO on May 31, 2005, the day of incorporation. The Petsense Leadership Team developed the successful business model for providing pet supplies and services to small markets throughout the U.S. In September 2016, Tractor Supply Company (NASDAQ: TSCO) acquired Petsense a leading specialty retailer with 136 stores in 25 states. Petsense continues to operate in its Scottsdale AZ headquarters with the Petsense Leadership Team.

As announced at the time of the acquisition, Bob retired in December 2016 and is thoroughly enjoying time with family, friends and activities.

Mr. Barnhorn most recently served as equity sponsor and Chairman of two early stage food and beverage companies, Bevology and Wild Waters, and is highly involved in a range of roles and networks at the intersection of the food/beverage space and the private equity/financing communities. His career as an entrepreneurial leader, industry advisor and investor is focused on the development of innovative growth brands in emerging food, beverage and nutrition categories. Mr. Barnhorn was previously the Founder and CEO of the Fantasia Fresh Juice Company, a company which he built into the leading fresh juice/smoothie company in the Midwestern United States culminating in its acquisition by North Castle Partners and subsequent merger with Naked Juice.

Mr. Barnhorn currently serves as an independent director on the Board of Directors of Pint Size Corporation, Bonadea, Galaxy Granola and Deluxe Honeydrop. Additionally, Mr. Barnhorn’s private equity investments in consumer-facing companies include PopChips, Aidells Sausage, Ciao Bella Gelato, Mavericks SurfVentures, and Hydropoint Irrigation Systems.

Prior to focusing on the consumer products space in the mid 1990’s, Mr. Barnhorn’s background incorporated a broad range of industry and functional experience including Strategic Planning Associates (Corporate Strategy Development and Implementation across primarily consumer-focused businesses), LIAS, Ltd. (Director of a Division of the Hungarian state-owned technology company in Budapest), Swander Pace (Consumer Products Strategy and Operations consulting), and brief stints with P&G (Sales) and DLJ (Investment Banking). Mr. Barnhorn holds an MBA from Stanford University and a B.A. in Economics from the University of Virginia.

John Cook is a Partner and Director Emeritus of McKinsey & Company. Mr. Cook has spent 25 years with the Firm, having completed consulting assignments across five continents. He led McKinsey’s Packaged Goods Practice, Food Retailing Practice, and the Firm’s Global Corporate Strategy Practice. He has led impact across a wide range of clients in a variety of industries, including consumer packaged goods, retailing, media, printing and industrial businesses.

Mr. Cook has played a significant role in helping clients with corporate strategy and governance, organizational design, and identifying, valuing, and integrating mergers and acquisitions. He frequently attended Board of Director meetings in an advisory capacity.

Mr. Cook also has held several line management positions. Early in his career he was in line marketing with Gillette and Procter & Gamble. More recently, he assumed the No. 2 position at The Kellogg Company for several years. While there, Mr. Cook played an instrumental role in turning around the company’s core business; acquired and integrated four high-growth strategic acquisitions; strengthened the company’s relationship with its major customers; and created a new innovation pipeline for the company’s R&D efforts. He led the creation of three new divisions that grew the Company’s top line by 30%; built a highly talented management team across the company; and doubled the company’s stock price.

Mr. Cook serves on the Boards of The Brown-Forman Company, Winona Capital Management, Chicago Public Schools (AUSL Turnaround Organization) and the Dean’s Advisory Board of the Ross School at the University of Michigan.

Mr. Cook was a Baker Scholar at the Harvard Business School, where he was given the Brown Award as the top marketing graduate. Prior to Harvard, he received dual degrees – with high distinction in business administration and with honors in economics – from the University of Michigan.

Jack M. Greenberg is the Chairman of Western Union Company, and the retired Chairman & CEO of McDonald’s Corporation. He was named Chairman of Western Union Company in September, 2006. He previously served McDonald’s Corporation as its President and CEO, and Chairman and CEO of McDonald’s USA, as well as Vice Chairman & Chief Financial Officer. Before joining McDonald’s, Mr. Greenberg was a partner and Director of Tax Services for both the Midwest Region and the Chicago office of Arthur Young & Company, and served on the firm’s Management Committee.

Mr. Greenberg currently serves on the boards of The Allstate Corporation, Hasbro, Inc., InnerWorkings, Manpower Inc., and The Western Union Company.

Mr. Greenberg’s civic involvement includes service on the boards of DePaul University, where he previously served as Chairman, the Institute of International Education, The Field Museum, Chicago Metropolis 2020, and the Advisory Committee of The Partnership for New Communities. He is also a member of the executive committee of The Chicago Community Trust.

A graduate of DePaul University School of Commerce, Mr. Greenberg also earned a juris doctor degree from DePaul University School of Law. He is a certified public accountant and a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Illinois CPA Society and the Chicago Bar Association, where he served as former chairman of the federal tax committee and chairman of the board of trustees of the Chicago Bar Foundation.

Ken Harris is a Managing Partner and Founder of Cadent Consulting Group, LLC., a Marketing and Sales Consulting firm focused on accelerating the growth of its clients. Prior to Cadent, Ken served as the CEO of Kantar Retail Americas Consulting and was a founding Partner and owner of Cannondale Associates Consulting, sold to the Kantar division of WPP in 2004. While at Kantar Retail, Ken led the management team responsible for overseeing all aspects of company operations. His primary responsibilities were the integration and expansion of the company’s consulting practice, interface with WPP, the holding company of Kantar Retail and client business development. Ken was one of the five members of the Global Management Board of Kantar Retail, which was responsible for creating and implementing the objectives, growth and business strategies for the global organization.

Ken is also the retired Chairman of Enjoy Life Foods, the leading producer of Free From foods in the U.S. and Canada that sold to Mondelez (formerly Kraft Foods) in March, 2015. The cookies and snacks Enjoy Life produces and the consumers for which these products are targeted are free from the eight most common allergens. After Ken joined Enjoy Life in May of 2012, the company doubled in size.

He is an author and frequent speaker at industry conferences. Ken has line management experience in marketing, trade marketing and sales at Jacobs Suchard and Coca-Cola Foods. He received his BA from The University of Michigan. He serves on the Board of C&S Wholesale Grocers, David Evans Foods, Winona Capital Management, Eternal Water, LLC, Fetch Rewards, Incredible Foods, Feel Good Foods, Sucker Punch Gourmet, LLC and Matt’s Cookie Company.

Ken is actively involved in the Alumni Association of the University of Michigan, The USO of Illinois, Dana-Farber Cancer Research Institute, The Boy Scouts of America and is the President of the Board of Trustees of Kenilworth Union Church. Ken is married to Julianna and has two boys Ken, III (14) and James (12) and resides in Kenilworth, IL.

John Heil retired from Lawry’s Foods, Inc., in 2006 after a thirty-year career that included senior positions in Sales and Sales Management, Marketing, and President of this most dynamic consumer packaged goods brand. His experience crossed all disciplines of the business and he was instrumental in delivering rapid, continuous growth throughout his tenure, with innovation and new products being central to this success. John also served on the Board of Unilever North America.

Today, he remains affiliated with the Lawry’s brand as a very active member of Lawry’s Restaurants, Inc., Board of Directors, involved in formulating strategy development and growth initiatives. This has resulted in a career that now spans 40-years with Lawry’s.

Additionally, John serves on a number of other Boards (including Johnny’s Fine Foods and Winona’s Advisory Council), in addition to assorted philanthropic endeavors. He is currently pursuing a number of personal interests, including the production of a Broadway theatrical play, writing a book on wisdom, lecturing and teaching business leadership at USC, and motivational speaking engagements with Fortune 500 organizations.

John has both a Masters of Business Administration and an undergraduate degree in Business Administration from the University of Southern California.

Paul Hylbert is currently Chairman and CEO of Kodiak Building Partners, a company recently formed to invest in building products distribution. Prior to forming Kodiak, Hylbert was CEO and a co-founder of ProBuild, the nation’s largest distributor of lumber and building materials.

Over a 40 year career, Hylbert held key management positions at Wickes Lumber, Wickes Europe, PrimeSource and Lanoga Corporation.

Hylbert grew up in the Chicago area (Evanston and Northbrook) and was educated at Denison University (BA) and the University of Michigan (MBA).

Paul and his wife have 3 children and 7 grandchildren and now reside in Denver, Colorado.

Rhonda Jordan is a retired executive of Kraft Foods, where she held a variety of leadership roles during her 25-year career. She served as Operating Unit President of three different business divisions, including the U. S. Cheese, Grocery, and Frozen Pizza Divisions. She also served as President, Global Health & Wellness, and Sustainability, where she was responsible for development of Kraft’s health and wellness and sustainability strategies and plans across the company. Rhonda was a member of Irene Rosenfeld’s extended Kraft Executive Team.

Rhonda began her career at Kraft in the marketing function, which led to P&L responsibility for a diverse range of categories and businesses. In addition to her experience base in marketing and innovation, Rhonda’s general management positions expanded her responsibilities to include functional leadership of division sales, finance, operations, research and development, logistics, and strategy groups. She developed global experience as President of Global Health & Wellness and Sustainability, and also in a prior position as Senior Vice President of Global Cheese and Dairy, with responsibility for developing a global strategy for Kraft’s Cheese & Dairy business. Rhonda benefited from a broad range of roles throughout her career, leading both well-established and newly emerging businesses, while developing a track record for consistent delivery of results and development of high-performance teams.

Rhonda currently serves on the Board of Directors for Colfax Corporation (CFX), Ingredion Inc. (INGR), and Bush Brothers & Co. At Colfax she is Chairman of the Compensation Committee and a member of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. She is a member of the Ingredion Compensation Committee, and chairs the Compensation Committee for Bush Brothers & Co. Rhonda is also on the Chicago Chapter Board of the National Association for Corporate Directors (NACD), and she serves on the board of IES Abroad (International Education for Students Abroad), a non-profit organization developing global study abroad programs for a consortium of approximately 250 U.S. Colleges and Universities.

Rhonda holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Northwestern University and the J.L. Kellogg School of Management. She lives in Wilmette, IL with her husband and two college-age sons.

Dan Jorndt retired in January, 2003, as chairman of the board of Walgreen Co., the drugstore chain headquartered in Deerfield, Ill.

Mr. Jorndt earned a pharmacy degree in 1963 from Drake University, Des Moines, Iowa. He began his career with Walgreens that same year. After holding various store management positions, he became a district manager in 1968.

Mr. Jorndt, who earned a master’s degree in business in 1974 from the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, was promoted to a regional director (1975), a regional vice president (1979), and vice president and treasurer (1982).

In 1985, Mr. Jorndt was named senior vice president and treasurer of Walgreen Co. He was promoted to president and chief operating officer in 1990, the same year he was elected to the Walgreen Co. board of directors.

Mr. Jorndt was named chief executive officer in January 1998 upon the retirement of Charles R. Walgreen III. In January 1999, he retained the CEO title while David W. Bernauer assumed the position of president and chief operating officer. Mr. Jorndt succeeded Charles R. Walgreen III as chairman of the board in July 1999, when Mr. Walgreen became chairman emeritus. In January 2002, Mr. Bernauer succeeded Mr. Jorndt as CEO, while Mr. Jorndt retained his position as chairman of the board.

Mr. Jorndt serves on the board of directors of the mutual fund, Investment Company of America (I.C.A.) and on the AMCAP Fund/American Mutual Fund, Inc.

International executive with 25+ years of experience in FMCG, sporting goods, outdoor products, fitness products and modern luxury lifestyle brands with true omnichannel approach towards consumer.

Experience in listed and private companies with strong owners and ambitious growth agenda. Deep understanding of corporate re-structuring, transformation programs, acquisitions & divestments, integration projects, brand management and sales leadership.

Former President & CEO of Fiskars Corporation (including Fiskars, Gerber, Iittala, Royal Copenhagen, Waterford Wedgwood and other great global brands), former Executive Board Member of Amer Sports Corporation (including Salomon, Wilson, Atomic, Arc'Teryx, Mavic, Suunto Precor and other great global brands) and former board member of Wärtsilä Corporation.

Kenneth C. “Casey” Keller, Jr. was appointed to the position of Chief Executive Officer at Peet's Coffee in August 2018.

Prior to Peet's, Keller was North American Regional President at Wm. Wrigley Jr. and Alberto Culver where he was President of the U.S., responsible for leading the U.S. business to deliver sales and profit growth.

Prior to Alberto Culver, Keller was executive vice president and chief marketing officer of Motorola, Inc., responsible for company-wide marketing strategy development and execution.

From 1998-2006, Keller worked from the HJ Heinz company. He served as chairman and CEO of Heinz Italy, where he led a successful turnaround and revitalization of Heinz’s leading position in Infant Feeding and Medical Food in Italy. Previously, Keller was the chief growth officer for H.J. Heinz Company with responsibility for defining the strategy and key initiatives to drive profitable, topline growth and strengthening the focus on and plans for the company’s top brands. Prior to that role, Keller was managing director of Heinz’s U.S. Ketchup, Condiments & Sauces business and global category leader, Sauces & Condiments.

Before Heinz, Keller spent almost ten years in marketing and brand management at the Procter & Gamble Company, where he was responsible for Pringles, Duncan Hines and other leading consumer brands.

As an officer in the U.S. Navy, he led several divisions onboard the USS Dewey (DDG-45). Keller was also on the staff of the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Surface Warfare in the Pentagon. He was awarded the Navy Commendation and Achievement medals.

In 2001, Keller was named Grand Marketer of the Year by Brandweek magazine for the turnaround and growth of Heinz Ketchup.

Keller received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and History from Cornell University and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Harvard Business School.

As the principal executive in charge of Cubs operations for the previous eight seasons, Crane has helped Chicago welcome over three million fans through Wrigley Field’s turnstiles each season since 2004, including a record mark of 3,300,200 fans in 2008.

Has led numerous projects to expand Wrigley Field’s seating capacity, including the construction of the CBOE Bullpen Boxes in 2008, Bud Light Bleachers in 2006, right field Bullpen Boxes in 2005 and Dugout Boxes in 2004.

Crane Co-founded Comcast SportsNet Chicago, the Cubs cable partner, with Jerry Reinsdorf in 2003 and has served on the Board of Directors since its formation.

From 2003-2009, increased the payroll by more than 70-percent, with the team winning the N.L. Central Division three times in those seven years.

Kenney holds a law degree from the University of Michigan and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Notre Dame.

John is currently Co-Founder and General Partner of Bambini Partners, LLC a consumer product and media markets advisory enterprise. Prior to forming Bambini Partners, John was CEO of Callaway Arts & Entertainment, a highly regarded publishing and IP development enterprise that spawned winning brands such as Miss Spider (by David Kirk), The English Roses (by Madonna); and The Sunny Patch brand (in partnership with Target). Additionally, under John’s leadership, Callaway was selected by Apple as one of the first kid’s app developers for the launch of the iPad.

2006 to 2008 - John served as the Chairman and co-founder of the Ready-to-Learn Partnership (RTLP). Funded in part by a $47.4 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education, RTLP is dedicated to producing new pre-school media targeting the early reading and literacy skills development for young children. The RTLP funded and produced WorldWorld™, an Emmy Award winning PBS Kids television program which was launched in September ’07 in the U.S. and September of ’08 throughout Asia on Disney Asia.

From 1992 – 2005 John was President of Learning Curve International. Learning Curve, founded by John in February, 1993, grew to a $140 million privately held international designer, manufacturer and marketer of high quality branded developmental children’s products including Thomas the Tank Engine wooden trains and Lamaze infant development toys among others. Learning Curve was acquired by RC2 Corp. (NASDAQ RCRC) in March of 2003. Under John’s continued leadership, the Learning Curve brand grew to more than $400 million by 2006.

John is considered a leader within the educational / developmental toy industry having authored numerous trade articles on brand management, product innovation and merchandising. He is the recipient of the 2004 inaugural Playthings Industry Achievement Award for Brand Builder for the Thomas the Tank Engine train brand. John was also honored with the 2005 Lifetime Achievement Award by the American Specialty Toy Retailing Association. Additionally he has served on numerous trade industry association boards including the T.I.A. (Toy Industry Association); A.S.T.R.A. (American Specialty Toy Retailing Association) and the (N.R.F.) National Retail Federation.

Interests - John serves and has served on numerous not-for-profit boards, including Kids In Distressed Situations (K.I.D.S.) a leading children’s products industry coalition dedicated to contributing and distributing new products to needy families globally ; The Eric Carle Museum of Children’s Art; and Operation Respect (national anti-bullying training program for teachers and students).

Academic - B.A. Degree in Industrial / Consumer Psychology, The College of New Jersey, (Trenton, N.J.) He has been a guest lecturer at Columbia University School of Business MBA Program and The College of New Jersey and has served on the University of Chicago New Ventures judging panel for the U of C MBA program.

John Lewis serves as President and Chief Executive Officer, Nielsen Consumer North America. In this role he is responsible for the overall management, business performance and strategic direction of ACNielsen in the United States. Lewis is also responsible for accelerating revenue growth across all VNU Marketing Information businesses in the US.

From 1994 to 1999, Lewis served as Executive Vice President, Marketing, ACNielsen USA. During his tenure, he improved the marketing function, accelerated product development, helped restore ACNielsen’s competitive leadership position and launched new products that today account for a significant portion of US revenues.

Lewis comes to ACNielsen from his role as President and CEO of Knowledge Networks, a venture-backed marketing information company. Knowledge Networks is a leader in the online marketing survey research space. Under Lewis’ direction, the company moved from a struggling start-up to a profitable and growing leader in this segment of the industry. Knowledge Networks served many of the same clients and business issues as ACNielsen.

Prior to Knowledge Networks, Lewis ran another venture-backed start-up as President and CEO of SMS Technology, an innovative provider of packaging to the Consumer Packaged Goods industry. Earlier in his career, Lewis was one of the first employees of The NutraSweet Company, where he held a number of executive positions including General Manager of the Consumer Products Division and Chief Marketing Officer.

Lewis holds a Masters of Business Administration degree from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management and an undergraduate degree in Political Science from Princeton University.

Clay strongly believes that entrepreneurs perform the most noble acts of anyone in a free society because they keep the Great American Dream alive by putting their capital at risk to create jobs for others.

Clay’s success story began in 1970 when he became the seventh employee of The Iams Company. By 1982 the owner, animal nutritionist, Paul Iams was ready to retire. He convinced Clay, and his wife, Mary, to raise enough capital to buy his company.

As new owners, the Mathiles faced a myriad of small business challenges, but thanks to dedicated employees, loyal customers, and Clay’s innovative leadership, Iams became a world leader in dog and cat nutrition in less than a decade. In 1999, the Mathile family sold Iams to Procter & Gamble for $2.3 billion.

Today, Clay attributes his commitment to professional management principles as a key reason for the phenomenal growth of Iams. Dedicated to inspiring others to be lifelong learners, Clay is the author of two books: Run Your Business, Don't Let it Run You, and his autobiography, Dream No Little Dreams. Clay and Mary live in Dayton, Ohio, where Clay serves on a select group of non-profit Boards that focus on education, medical innovation, and social justice. However, Clay insists that his most-important roles are as husband, father of five, and grandfather of 15. Now, life as a family man has led to yet another dream and vision for the future: “A Family United Forever.”

Jeffrey Nugent joined Sientra in 2014 as a board member, prior to becoming the Chairman and CEO in 2015. Mr. Nugent’s experience includes serving as the CEO and Worldwide President of Neutrogena, where he led the acquisition by Johnson & Johnson. Neutrogena is regarded as one of the most successful acquisitions in J&J history. Following Neutrogena, Mr. Nugent became the President and CEO of Revlon, where he led a turnaround in profitability and a global initiative of new product innovation.

He was Founder, President and CEO of Precision Dermatology, a multi-channel dermatology and skin care company he established in 2010. The company grew both organically and by M&A and was acquired by Valeant Pharmaceuticals in 2013. He began his career at Johnson & Johnson where he held a number of senior responsibilities in general management, research, finance, marketing and manufacturing across pharmaceutical, medical device and consumer franchises.

He was appointed Vice President of Worldwide Quality. Most recently, Mr. Nugent had been Interim President, Chief Executive Officer and a Director of Biolase, Inc. Mr. Nugent has also served as Chairman, Director, President and Chief Executive Officer of a number of aesthetic medicine, medical device and consumer focused companies including Bioform, Inc. prior to its acquisition by Merz Aesthetics, Inc. He has also served on the Board of the Child Welfare League of America. Mr. Nugent holds a B.S. in mathematics from St. Joseph's College and earned an M.B.A. in finance and marketing from Loyola University in Chicago. He served as an Artillery Officer in the U.S. Army while assigned to military intelligence at the Pentagon.

Ms. Owens was responsible for leading the global communications and brand management function at UPS beginning in 2005. She was responsible for the first global communications platform, the Effie award-winning "We (heart) Logistics" and has introduced new models for integrated communications while expanding the company's social and digital platforms. Owens began her UPS career in 1979 as a part-time employee in Philadelphia, and eventually led some of the company’s largest business divisions, including serving as President of UPS's West and Southeast Regions.

She also has served as the Corporate Vice President of Transportation, where she directed the coordination, planning, and asset utilization of UPS's global air and ground operations, the largest integrated transportation network in the world. Owens served on the UPS Management Committee, which included the CEO, COO and other key leaders. Christine serves on the board of directors of the WPO (Women’s Presidents Organization), C&S Wholesale Grocers, JMI motorsports marketing, and also served on the Corporate Board of Advisors for the National Council of La Raza.

As co-founder and CEO, Mr. Parkinson has overall responsibility for running Peapod LLC, an online grocery shopping and delivery service. He and his brother Thomas founded Peapod in 1989, took the company public in 1997, and sold it to Ahold in 2001. Peapod is currently a wholly owned subsidiary of Royal Ahold. Peapod currently has revenues of about $600 million and over 4,000 associates (commonly referred to as Podsters).

Prior to founding Peapod, Andrew spent eight years in marketing and management positions at Procter & Gamble and Kraft, Inc. He graduated from Wesleyan University in Connecticut with a B.A. in Economics and a concentration in Econometrics.

Smith has served as president or CEO at six consumer companies, with a proven track record in ecommerce and direct marketing that spans more than 25 years. He most recently served as president & CEO of a high growth consumer subscription company called Full Circle. Prior to that he served as president & CEO of Avelle/Bag, Borrow Steal, where he helped introduce the new category of online rental of consumer fashion goods. Previously he served as president & CEO of Classmates.com, a leader in online social networking and the 4th largest paid content site on the Internet at the time. While president of Nordstrom.com, he helped lead a turnaround that resulted in its first quarterly profit. In 1999 he founded LifeSketch.com, the first multi-functional scrapbooking site. As president & CEO of Lands’ End Inc. the $1.4 billion, international retailer, he launched LandsEnd.com, the first major retail website and executed a company turnaround that led to record sales and profits.

He has served on multiple corporate and advisory boards and was most recently a board member of REI, the $1.9 billion outdoor retailer. Smith is also an NACD Board Fellow.

Don Thompson is a well-known and respected leader within the global business community and, currently, the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Cleveland Avenue, LLC. Having recently served as the President and CEO of the largest restaurant business in the world, Thompson has driven results in both the US and International markets throughout his 25-year career at McDonald’s.

Thompson is known for innovative and strategic leadership and as a true advocate of franchisee collaboration having established strong relationships with the independent men and women who owned and operated 80% of the 35,000 McDonald’s restaurants in 120 countries around the world. Under his leadership, strategic business initiatives such as McCafe Beverages, Value Menu transitions, and the “partnering” investment strategy with the Franchisees were established and have created substantial shareholder value over the last decade. Most recently, Thompson initiated and led the organizational transformation toward developing both the McDonald’s Global Digital and Sustainability Strategies as well as the Burger Customization global food strategy.

Prior to joining McDonald’s, Thompson served six years as an Electrical Engineer for the Northrop Corporation where he specialized in power supply design and manufacturing for high technology countermeasure systems.

A leader in the business community and a tireless advocate of diversity and inclusion, Thompson serves on numerous civic and philanthropic boards. He is a member of the Executive Leadership Council, the Commercial and Economic Clubs of Chicago, Business Council, World Business Chicago and the Arthur M. Brazier Foundation. He serves as a Trustee on the boards of the Cleveland Avenue Foundation for Education, Northwestern Memorial Hospital and Purdue University. Thompson also serves on the boards of The Northern Trust Corporation, Royal Caribbean Cruises Limited, Beyond Meat and as an Advisory Board member of DocuSign, Inc. Thompson previously served as a Director on the Exelon Board from 2006-2012 and the McDonald’s Corporation Board from 2011-2015.

Thompson received a bachelor of science in Electrical Engineering from Purdue University and an Honorary Doctorate degree in Science from Excelsior College.