Agenda & Speakers

Michael Marino, CXO, Caesars Entertainment

Michael Marino is the CXO of Caesars Entertainment. 

Michael oversees the Total Rewards Loyalty program, which consists of customers from Caesars’ gaming, hospitality, and online businesses.  Michael also oversees the Caesars.com e-commerce business, digital media, and PlaybyTR, Caesars’ mobile app.  Michael’s previous roles within Caesars include Vice President and Executive Associate to the Chairman, President and CEO and Director of Marketing Analytics.  Prior to joining Caesars, Michael worked at Bain & Company and Capital One Financial.
 
Michael holds a BS in Computer Science and an MBA from the University of Virginia.

Jennifer Kempton, Director, Loyalty & Customer Engagement Partnerships, Choice Hotels

Jennifer Kempton brings her experience in hospitality and account management to her role at Choice Hotels where she is the Director of Partnerships and Customer Engagement.  A strong relationship builder, Jennifer’s responsibilities include managing and growing a strong portfolio of partners that enhance the value of the loyalty program for guests and bring additional value to several cross-functional departments at Choice.

A graduate of Kansas University, Jennifer has had multiple roles in her 11 years at Choice.  She started managing the Choice Privileges Co-Brand Card relationship and then was an integral part of the Brand Solutions team serving as the primary liaison between major accounts and Choice’s shared services which include Opening Services, Franchise Management, Brand Strategy and Franchise Relations.  Further, Jennifer supervised the cross-functional team that develops and hosts multiple vendor-related networking events, the largest of which is the vendor tradeshow at the Choice Hotels Convention attended by nearly 6,000 participants and approximately 300 exhibitors. 

Brian Popelka, SVP, Supplier and Customer Care. Overstock.com

Brian Popelka, as senior vice president of supplier and customer care, is responsible for the strategic direction and operational effectiveness of Overstock's award- winning customer care department. Under his direction, the department has repeatedly ranked in the top four of the former NRF Foundation/American Express Customer Choice Awards, and earned the Gartner Gold Award and the 2011 Stevie Award for the Retail Customer Service Department of the Year. Popelka also oversees all relations with the company's drop-ship fulfillment partners.

Popelka has held several positions since joining the Overstock in 2002, including business to business manager, director of the books, media, movies and games department, and vice president of customer care. In these roles, Popelka has contributed greatly to the success of Overstock, helping to set the tone of the company's culture while at the same time spearheading development of a media channel, travel site, and auto sales site.

Popelka holds a Bachelor's Degree in Journalism, Broadcasting, Film and History from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Samuel Johnson, VP Global Marketing, Customer Loyalty & Insights, Ryder

Samuel Johnson is the Vice President of marketing for Ryder System, Inc., a $6.4B FORTUNE 500® transportation and supply chain solutions company with more than 26,000 employees.  Mr. Johnson is responsible for all aspects of Customer Loyalty and Market Intelligence for Ryder.
 
Mr. Johnson joined Ryder 2005 as a Senior Manager, Strategy & Development, and then became part of the FMS Sales & Marketing team as Director of Customer Retention prior to his current role.
 
Throughout his career, Mr. Johnson has held leadership roles in several fortune 500 companies. Starting at a Coca-Cola bottler and beverage distributor, and then as a management consultant with A.T. Kearney Inc.  
 
Mr. Johnson holds an MBA in Marketing & Supply Chain Management from Michigan State University and a B.Sc. (Hons) in Engineering from the University of the West Indies.  He serves on the board of directors of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Miami and also on the board of governors for the National Private Truck Council.