2019 Management Exchange

Speakers

Roger Haston,Ph.D.

Dr. Haston received a Ph.D. in geophysics from the University of California Santa Barbara and an MBA in finance from Rice University. His career began in the oil and gas industry working for Amoco and Arco in Houston, Texas. Dr. Haston moved to Colorado in 1998 where he started and grew a successful business in geophysical data processing. He had a strong desire to give back to the community and became involved with Humane Society of Boulder Valley, first as a volunteer, then later as a board member and board chair.

What began as volunteerism soon grew into a new career path as Dr. Haston’s passion for helping animals continued to grow. In 2012, he committed himself full-time to animal welfare taking on the position of Executive Director at the Animal Assistance Foundation. There, he merged his passion for science, business and leadership to help the animals of Colorado and beyond. In 2016, Dr. Haston joined PetSmart Charities, North America’s leading funder of animal welfare, as the organization’s Chief Innovation Officer. There, he’s focused upon data collection, interpretation and analysis to predict trends, evaluate best practices, explore the impact of the human-animal bond and examine the future of animal welfare.

With more than 15 years’ experience in animal welfare, Dr. Haston has become an internationally recognized leader in data, trends, metrics and analysis conveyed through impactful and approachable storytelling. He is a highly sought-after speaker who has presented on a number of animal welfare and economic topics at conferences and events around the world. He has served on the boards of Humane Society of Boulder Valley, Colorado Pet Overpopulation Fund, PetAid Colorado, Catalyst Council, Emancipet, Animal Grant Makers, National Council on Pet Population and Shelter Animals Count.

Whitney Miller, MBA, DVM

Dr. Whitney Miller serves as Petco’s veterinary medical subject matter expert, supporting Petco’s Animal Care, Education & Compliance team. In her role, she works closely with Petco’s executive team and cross-functional leaders across merchandising, store operations, private brand and more, to ensure the company’s industry-leading standards for animal care are upheld, and the importance of those standards are communicated and reinforced at every touchpoint and throughout every level of the business.

Dr. Miller received her MBA and Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) degree in 2006 and 2008 respectively, both from Colorado State University.

Prior to joining Petco, Dr. Miller served as a contract veterinarian for Zoetis, worked in federal government relations for the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), advocating on animal welfare issues, and spent time as a private practitioner of companion animal veterinary medicine. She also completed the AVMA Congressional Fellowship program, where she spent a year advising on science policy for a U.S. Senate Committee. During her tenure she worked on issues related to biosecurity/biodefense, medical emergency preparedness, and influenza pandemic readiness and response.

James T. Penrod, CAE, FASLA

Jim joined the American Association of Veterinary State Boards (AAVSB) in August, 2015 as its Executive Director. The AAVSB is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization whose mission is to support and advance the regulatory process for veterinary medicine. The membership of the AAVSB consists of 62 jurisdictions representing all of the United States and the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and nine Canadian provinces. Prior to joining the AAVSB, Jim worked with state and provincial regulatory boards while employed with the Council of Landscape Architectural Registration Boards, in Reston, Virginia, since 1991.

Jim is a past chair of the Certified Association Executive (CAE) Commission and also served as a member of the examination committee for the program prior to his service on the Commission. The CAE program is designed to elevate professional standards, enhance individual performance, and designate association professionals who demonstrate the knowledge essential to manage an association in today’s challenging environment.

While at CLARB, Jim received the CLARB Presidential Recognition Award for outstanding and tireless service to the Council in its efforts to protect public safety and welfare through leadership and innovative strategic management of the profession’s licensure exam. He was honored by the American Society of Landscape Architects when he was elected to be a Fellow of the association in 2010 for his leadership and management within the profession. In 2018, Jim received the Distinguished Association Executive Award from the Kansas City Society of Association Executives (KCSAE). As the KCSAE’s highest honor, the recipient of this award exemplifies the best in executive association management, continually bringing credit to the profession and the association management community.

John Volk

John Volk is senior consultant with Brakke Consulting, the largest consulting firm serving the global animal health, veterinary and pet care markets. He is an expert in strategy and communications, and highly knowledgeable about veterinary practice. John is principal author of five landmark studies of the veterinary profession: Brakke Study of Financial and Economic Behaviors of Veterinarians (1998), AVMAPfizer Business Practices Study (2005), Bayer Veterinary Care Usage Studies (2011-2013), Veterinary Pet Insurance-Veterinary Economics Financial Health Study (2014), and the Merck Animal Health Veterinary Wellbeing study (2018). He has been widely published in veterinary journals and is a frequent speaker at veterinary conferences, especially on topics such as industry trends, practice consolidation, preventive care plans, pet insurance, and pet ownership.

John is a graduate of the University of Illinois where he earned a BS in agricultural communications and did graduate work in marketing. He also served on the faculty of the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine as communications director.