Oliver Bilstein is responsible for logistics and production control operations for BMW’s plant in Spartanburg, South Carolina, which is the OEM’s largest factory globally. He oversees inbound logistics, plant logistics and material control across the plant’s multiple warehouses, press, body and paint shops and battery assembly, with responsibility through to outbound logistics shipping and export. Bilstein has been with BMW for 25 years across functions including corporate planning, capacity planning and model allocation, as well as logistics. He spent three years in China leading production projects for BMW’s JV BMW Brilliance, and led logistics and financial controlling for BMW’s plant in Munich before taking on his current role in 2021.

In the role since January 2020, David Leich leads global supply chain operations along with assembly, propulsion and stamping, material launch execution and the demand/supply planning and scheduling organisations. He represents GM’s Global Purchasing and Supply Chain team on its North American Staff. He joined GM in 1989 and has worked across purchasing, supply chain and production, including working at different plants, executing launching for new vehicles and a greenfield plant. He has also led supply chain for pre-production, launch readiness and risk management, before taking over demand/supply planning in 2019 to lead vehicle and propulsion scheduling and capacity planning. Since 2015, Dave has represented General Motors on the Board of Directors for the Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG). He has a BS Degree in Supply Chain Management from Michigan State University and a MS Degree in Management from Walsh College in Troy, MI.

Gerardo is an experienced automotive supply chain executive with extensive experience leading Nissan’s regional and global supply chain and manufacturing operations, currently responsible for supply chain improvements in North America. He recently led Nissan Americas Semiconductor Supply Crisis Management Strategy enabling incremental production volume during the severe global supply crisis, receiving the 2021 Global Nissan President Special Award in recognition of his leadership and his teams’ contribution.

Since joining Nissan in 1989 he has successfully implemented global innovations, improvements and strategies across new model launches in Mexico, Brazil and USA, dealer and manufacturing order-to-delivery and vehicle allocation in the Americas markets, and global sales planning and car flow management in Japan. In 2015 Gerardo received the Global Nissan-Renault Alliance SCM Innovation award in Paris.

Michael Schad has oversight of Toyota’s front-line service parts and accessory fulfilment centers & Distributors that service dealers across North America; Logistics Operations; Brand Protection; and TPS Promotions for service parts supply chain. The network includes 13 fulfilment centres, all modes of transportation oversight, and operations with 10+ North American and Global Distributors. He has worked for Toyota for more than 20 years across parts operations, including network planning and project management, as well as roles in post-production processing and vehicle logistics. He oversaw Toyota’s Baltimore and Boston parts distribution centres operations and went on to lead parts operations across the region. Michael Schad has a BA in business logistics from Penn State University and an MBA from Boston University.  

Sarah Pero has held the role of Senior Buyer of transportation, logistics and customs services at Brose North America since 2016. In this position she supports the complex domestic and international transportation and customs needs for 10 North American manufacturing locations while driving processes, service standards and cost savings. With more than 20 years of purchasing and logistics management experience, she has held various OEM, Carrier and 3PL roles within the automotive vertical. She is based at Brose's North America headquarters in Auburn Hills Michigan. She holds a B.S. from Cornell University and a Supply Chain & Logistics certification from Georgia Tech.

Kiki Nice is responsible for supply chain planning & operations for Daimler Truck North America’s powertrain division, Detroit Diesel. In this role, she has been responsible for transport management, freight consolidation center network, third-party logistics management, as well as logistics planning for new product launches. Kiki Nice has 12 years’ experience in the automotive industry across commercial and passenger vehicles, including half of her career abroad on assignments in China and Germany. She is now happily back in her hometown of Detroit, Michigan. She has been an Associate Professor of Supply Chain at Aalen University in Germany and holds a degree in International Business. She enjoys creating strategy with her team and developing a culture of coaching leadership. She believes that everything in life is a negotiation and feels energised when solving supply chain challenges.

Mr. Lin serves as a Cybersecurity Advisor (CSA) with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), where he supports CISA’s mission of strengthening the security and resilience of the nation’s critical infrastructure. As a CSA, Wei Chen introduces organizations to various CISA cyber security products and services, along with other public and private resources, and act as a liaison to CISA cyber programs. Mr. Lin is a licensed attorney in Illinois and a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP). He earned a Juris Doctor (JD) degree with a Certificate in Health Law from DePaul University College of Law, and a Bachelor of Science (BS) degree in Information Assurance and Security Engineering from DePaul University.

Achim is a passionate business developer and has been working for Kuehne + Nagel for over twenty-five years in various management positions in multiple countries. He is a professional freight forwarder with particular areas of expertise in seafreight and airfreight. As of May 2015 he is directing Kuehne + Nagel’s global automotive business. In that capacity Achim is constantly traveling to the automotive hot spots of this world and has deep understanding of the automotive industries trends and challenges and initiated the companies transformation from traditional automotive to new mobility. Achim is a specialist in inbound to manufacturing and after-market logistics. He is recognized in the industry for pioneering lithium battery life cycle logistics and is passionate about supply chain decarbonization.
Achim holds a degree in economics from Germany’s oldest private business school for transportation and foreign trade (DAV) as well as a bachelor’s degree in business administration and management studies from Oxford Brookes University in England. In 2005 he successfully acquired an Executive MBA in Logistics from University of St. Gallen in Switzerland. Besides his German mother tongue he speaks English and Spanish fluently.

Ana Lucia Ochoa leads supply chain functions across the metal forming division at American Axle Manufacturing (AAM), which includes 43 plants supplying customers across automotive OEMs and tier-1 suppliers. Based at the manufacturer’s headquarters in Michigan, she oversees sales and operations planning (S&OP), plan for every part, inventory management, forecasting and tracking, as well as logistics management. In her corporate role, she also helps define and meet supply chain and logistics targets across the organisation. Ana Lucia Ochoa has more than 15 years’ experience at AAM across both Mexico and the US, and has held a wide range of roles in supply chain, logistics and procurement across the company. She has degrees in supply chain and logistics, and international trade business from the University of Guanajuato in Mexico.

Jim has spent over 20 years with C.H. Robinson, serving in a variety of commercial and leadership roles in the company’s Chicago, Miami, and Minnesota offices. He is currently a Vice President in the North American Surface Transportation division, with oversight of the company’s automotive vertical. In this leadership role, Jim is focused on providing a seamless experience, superior outcomes, and continuous improvement for our automotive customers. Jim is based in Eden Prairie, Minnesota at C.H. Robinson’s headquarters. He holds a BBA, Finance from the University of Iowa and an MBA from the University of Manchester.

Frank Bateman is a Vice President for Ryder Supply Chain Solutions servicing the Automotive Vertical.  He joined Ryder in 2000 and has served in positions of increasing responsibility, including Logistics Engineer, Logistics Manager, Group Logistics Manager, Director, and Group Director.  He has led the successful development of several accounts and manages a blended portfolio of locations in the United States, along the southern border, and in the interior of Mexico.  Frank holds Bachelor’s degrees in International Business and Spanish and a Master of Business Administration.

Sarah Amico is the Executive Chairperson of Jack Cooper Holdings Corp., North America’s largest car haul company and a WBENC-certified Women-Owned Business Enterprise (WBE). She oversees the Company’s Board, Strategy, Mergers & Acquisitions, and Human Capital Development. Prior to her appointment by the Board as Executive Chairperson, she served as Vice Chairman of the Board. She has been a Director since 2011 and serves on the Board's Nominating and Governance Committee.

Sarah received her B.A. in Politics magna cum laude from Washington & Lee University and her M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.

Oskar Orstadius took the position as Chief Sales Officer in September 2020. Oskar joined Höegh Autoliners in 2012 as Head of Global Port and Cargo Operation. In 2014, he transferred to the commercial department as Head of Breakbulk and expanded the breakbulk portfolio. In 2018 he moved to Tokyo, Japan as Head of Asia to lead the teams in the South-east and East Asia region. Oskar is educated as a Master Mariner at the Merchant Marine Academy in Kalmer, Sweden. Earlier in his career he served as an officer on board PCTC and Deep sea RORO vessels. After his active career at sea, Oskar continued working within the PCTC industry in various operational roles including five years in Germany.

Ross Clarke, Carter's Director of Supply Chain Logistics, has been an integral part of the Carter organization since 2015. In this role, he oversees continuous improvement initiatives for Carter's extensive customer network in the US and Mexico. By leveraging technology effectively, Ross has streamlined KPI reporting and delivered remarkable cost savings exceeding $20 million for customers during his tenure. A former student-athlete at Butler University, he earned his bachelor's degree in finance in 2015 and later obtained his MBA from Anderson University in 2018.

Agustin Sustaita is the Chief Commercial Officer of D-Troy Logistics and Member of the board of directors of Transportes Logisticos Especializados. As part of this role, he is responsible for Commercial, Customer Service and Operations of domestic and international clients including automotive, retail, manufacturing, special cargo, and hazmat businesses using a wide range of logistics solutions including flatbeds, dry-vans and car-hauling truckloads. Bringing more than 25 years of experience in operations management, he has cultivated a distinct competitive advantage leveraging Customer Satisfaction, Continuous Improvement, and commitment to meeting customer needs.

Mike has worked in supply chain for over 28 years mainly in Automotive.  He has worked the automotive supply chain from all angles - working for an OEM (General Motors), working as a consultant with OEMs and tier 1 suppliers, working as a software provider to OEMs, and finally working as a logistics service provider.  Mike has been with syncreon, a DP World company, for eight years serving in diverse leadership roles as head of Corporate Strategy, CHRO, Engineering & Automation, and now leading the commercial team.  Mike has responsibility for commercial growth of all supply chain services for the US and Mexico for DP World.

Alan Votaw joined Ascent in February 2023, serving as the senior vice-president for sales for the On-Demand segment, leading the execution of the sales strategy with a keen focus on diversifying the end-market, enhancing value through cross-selling initiatives, and spearheading the global expansion of Ascent's time-critical services. With his roots in Germany, Alan brings over two decades of invaluable experience from his tenure at prominent global logistics firms such as Panalpina and Kuehne + Nagel. He has been deeply entrenched in the automotive logistics and supply chain sector throughout his career, holding pivotal positions in Global Key Account Management and Vertical Leadership. Alan's expertise lies in crafting customer engagement models tailored to address a broad spectrum of supply chain and logistics challenges faced by automotive OEMs and tier suppliers. His approach prioritises operational flexibility, reliability, and the continuous creation of value. His passion for customer satisfaction is a driving force in his work. He believes effective solutions to any challenge can be achieved through meaningful dialogue and establishing trust and consistently integrates this philosophy with Ascent's guiding principles and customer engagement models.

Christine has over 25 years of experience in logistics, supply chain and purchasing and prior to joining FreightVerify held progressively responsible roles at Cooper Standard, Jack Cooper Holdings, General Motors and Ford. Christine, who has an executive master’s degree in business administration and a bachelor’s degree in materials and logistics management from Michigan State University, was named in the Automotive News 100 Leading Women in the North American Automotive Industry list in 2015. She is actively involved in a number of charitable causes, including being a co-founder of shoe distribution organisation, Lace Up Detroit.

Eva Ames is the Vice President of DSV’s global Electrification and Mobility Competence Center (EMC2), supporting electrified and future mobility customers who produce everything from micromobility scooters to batteries, passenger cars, and heavy equipment. Eva has a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) and joins DSV after a career as an engineer at Honda R&D Americas, Tesla Motors, and Electric Last Mile Solutions. She was also a regulator for light duty passenger vehicles at the United States Department of Transportation National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (US DOT NHTSA) prior to her 6 years with Mahindra Automotive North America, where she was the Director of Logistics for their R&D center, manufacturing facility, aftersales division, and Mahindra GenZe.