Featured Speaker(s)

MODERATOR:
MARYFRAN JOHNSON
President and CEO
Maryfran Johnson + Associates

Maryfran is an award-winning IT journalist and editor who recently launched her own business in executive events and CIO roundtables. Leveraging an extensive IT executive network built during her leadership roles at TechTarget’s CIO Decisions Magazine and IDG’s Computerworld, Maryfran brings her expertise in IT leadership issues to a variety of public speaking, panel moderation and event planning roles.

As the founding editor of TechTarget’s CIO Decisions Media Group, Maryfran led the April 2005 launch of CIO Decisions, a 50,000-circulation monthly magazine for senior IT executives at midmarket companies. In its first year, CIO Decisions earned more than a dozen editorial and design awards, including “Best New Publication” from the American Society of Business Publication Editors (ASBPE). She also created and launched the annual CIO Decisions Conference and managed editorial operations for two IT executive websites, www.SearchCIO.com and www.SearchSMB.com.

Prior to joining TechTarget in 2004, Maryfran served as Editor in Chief of the national newsweekly Computerworld, where she spent 15 years in reporting, editing and managerial positions. During her five years as editor in chief, Computerworld's editorial team won more than 100 journalism awards, including “Magazine of the Year” in 2003 from ASBPE. In 1999, she created and launched the Premier 100 IT Leaders Awards Program and Conference, which today is the largest and most successful executive event in the computer industry.

Maryfran earned her master's degree in journalism from The Ohio State University, where she was a Kiplinger Public Affairs Reporting Program Fellow in 1987-88. She earned her BA in Journalism from the University of Florida, which in 2002 honored her as one of six “Alumni of Distinction” for the College of Journalism and Communications. She lives in the Boston area with her husband, two daughters and two absurdly spoiled miniature dachshunds.


SPEAKER:
DAVE KISTLER
Vice President & CIO, Dynamics Research
is Vice President and Chief Information Officer. Mr. Kistler is responsible for the company’s Information Technology and Enterprise Business Systems operations.

Prior to joining DRC, Mr. Kistler was Vice President, Application Development, for Staples, where he was responsible for software development for all North American functions and business units. Mr. Kistler brings to DRC more than 30 years of extensive IT experience, including management positions at EMC2 and Digital Equipment Corporation.

Mr. Kistler holds has a degree in Mechanical Engineering from Worcester Industrial Technical Institute.


SPEAKER:
FRAN MURPHY
Dynamics Research
is Vice President, Corporate Controller and Chief Accounting Officer. He has responsibility for financial support of the company’s business units and all accounting related activities.

Prior to joining DRC, Fran was responsible for leading the Sarbanes-Oxley readiness program for MTS Systems Corporation. Prior to MTS, Fran consulted for KPMG’s CFO Advisory Services. Prior to these experiences Mr. Murphy was the CFO of Raytheon’s RF Components Division. Fran brings to DRC more than 22 years of financial management experience in the defense, commercial electronics and computer services industries including management positions at Compaq Computer Corporation, Digital Equipment Corporation and Honeywell.

Fran holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Merrimack College and a Masters Degree in Business Administration from Babson College.

SPEAKER:
JOHN A POLIZZI
is the Senior Vice President & CIO at BJ’s Wholesale Club, Inc. in Natick, MA for this eight billion dollar, regional merchant has 170 locations from Maine to Florida. Mr. Polizzi has previously held lead IT positions with Blockbuster, Inc.; Caldor; Burger King-North America; and a number of other leading retail chains.

John has forty years in the Information Technology field.
His industry focus has been Retail, covering thirty one years of his career. He has held leadership roles in Supermarket, Mass Merchant, Drug Store, Fast Food and Specialty Retail segments with both Global and Domestic responsibilities.

He is a graduate of Rutgers University and took his M.B.A. training at the University of Tampa. His professional affiliations have included Society for Information Management (SIM), Co-Chair of Association for Retail Technology Standards (ARTS), SIM CIO Advisory Board and other trade organizations.


SPEAKER:
RAY R. SAREERAM
Senior Vice President, Logistics
Since joining the BJ’s Wholesale Club, Inc. team in March 1996, Ray Sareeram has orchestrated the Company’s logistics operations spanning inventory control, distribution and transportation. The key thrust of his areas of responsibility has been maintaining cost efficient operations while achieving optimum merchandise investment in support of corporate sales objectives.

Previously, he was a career officer in the United States Navy, rising to the rank of Rear Admiral. Serving in a variety of assignments worldwide, his focus was operational logistics, acquisition contract management, and finance.

He earned a Bachelor of Arts from California State College, Sacramento, and a Master of Business Administration from The University of Michigan. Additionally, he is a graduate of the National Defense University’s Industrial College of the Armed Forces.

He and his wife, Cathy, reside in Westborough, Massachusetts.