Top Procurement Officers from Fortune Powerhouses Share Market Intelligence to Benefit Small Biz

WASHINGTON - July 14, 2015 - PRLog -- Thirteen top-level procurement officers from Fortune powerhouses — AT&T, Caesars Entertainment, Capital One, Duke Energy, Hilton Worldwide, Ingersoll Rand, Marriott International, PepsiCo, PG&E, TIAA-CREF, UPS, Webster Bank, and Wells Fargo — spoke at the Corporation Procurement Officers Forum. They discussed trends in local and global procurement trends, policies, practices and opportunities for suppliers in different industries.

The CPOs were:
George Sloan, Vice President, Supply Chain, AT&T Mobility
Michael Fath, Chief Procurement Officer, Caesars Entertainment
Jim Gorzalski, Chief Procurement Officer, Capital One
Jeffrey Corbett, SVP, Chief Procurement Officer, Duke Energy
William Kornegay, Senior VP, Supply Management, Hilton Worldwide
Keith Sultana, VP, Global Procurement, Ingersoll Rand
Stephane Masson, VP, Global Procurement, Marriott international
Grace Puma, SVP/Chief Procurement Officer, PepsiCo
Gun Shim, VP, Supply Chain Management, PG&E
Austin McKeehan, VP, Head of Strategic Sourcing & Finance Operations, TIAA-CREF
Gary Kallenbach, Chief Procurement Officer, UPS
Mark Wan, VP, Head of Strategic Sourcing, Webster Bank
Greg Schmid, SVP, Head of Supply Chain Management, Wells Fargo

The Corporation Procurement Officers Forum, held on June 3, 2015 at the Marriott Hotel & Conference Center in Bethesda, Maryland, was part of the 3-day 30th Pearl Anniversary & CelebrAsian Procurement Conference held last month.

CelebrAsian is the flagship event of the US Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce Education Foundation (USPAACC) and the country’s largest business-to-business conference convened by Asian Americans to connect with large, medium and small enterprises.

Rakesh Sachdev, President & CEO of the global biotechnology company Sigma-Aldrich, was the Conference Chair. Comcast/NBCUniversal, Marriott International, PepsiCo, and Wells Fargo were Corporate Co-Chairs.  Ampcus, DCR Workforce, and SevenTablets were Asian American Business Co-Chairs.

Through innovative programs, CelebrAsian provides a roadmap to Asian American suppliers to effectively navigate the supplier diversity arena and access procurement opportunities.

The Conference theme, “Gathering of the Eagles,” symbolizes the far-reaching vision of Asian American business owners who believe the sky is the limit and personifies the enduring values of the Pan Asian American business community and that of Fortune powerhouses who have the vision of building mutually beneficial relationships with Asian Americans.

In all, 880 Conference participants gathered for 3 days under one roof, 411 Asian American suppliers came from all over the country to connect with 91 Fortune powerhouses, 34 Government Agencies and 14 Media partners.

500 pre-scheduled one-on-one business matchmaking meetings were held between suppliers and buyers, about 50 commodities that major corporations and government agencies will purchase in the coming 18-24 months.

To learn more, visit http://www.uspaacc.com or http://www.celebrasianconference.com

About USPAACC: Founded in 1984 as a national non-profit non-partisan organization, USPAACC has been the single unified voice advocating equal opportunities for Asian Americans in the United States. We promote and propel economic growth by opening doors to business, educational and professional opportunities for Asian Americans and their business partners in major corporations, government at federal, state, and local levels, and small/minority communities. USPAACC serves as the gateway to Asian American suppliers, information about Asian Americans and the dynamic Asia Pacific and Indian Subcontinent markets.