Share this:

Future connect kept it going with a panel discussion of four high ranking executives.  Some standout ideas from Ric Jurgens of Hy-Vee included: treat your current job  as if its your last.  Don’t always look ahead.  Avoid negative people. Never be satisfied. Set a good example at work and home.  And don’t take yourself too seriously.  (Jurgens fired off the best joke of the conference so far noting that he blew his nose on FMI President Leslie Sarasin’s purse handle.  Leslie responded by theatrically wiping her hands with sanitizer.)

Don Knauss added in the importance of creating an environment for debate and discussion along with the importance of being optimistic.  Steve Smith of K-VA-T stores and Beverly Grant of Procter & Gamble added in about the importance of personal mentors and the need for humility, even as you rise up in a company.  All together, really valuable lessons.

Sarasin finished the morning with a review of FMI’s key research studies Speaks and Trends. (Information available at the Resource center.)  She reviewed the changing consumer landscape, plus the opportunity in educating shoppers on health and wellness.  Sarasin also reviewed a series of key FMI industry initiatives including the new recall portal.

Advertisement