See you Next Semester on January 26th!

Keynote Speakers

Our three keynote speaker sessions will take place from approximately 10:15 AM-Noon Central on Friday, October 17, 2025

Check back for additional speaker bios and schedule details.

From Curds to Community – Making Cheese Curd Day Cheddar, Year after Year

Join as we discuss Culver's approach to integrated marketing, highlighting the evolution of the cheesiest holiday around: National Cheese Curd Day.

Emily Patterson – Vice President of Marketing

Emily is Vice President of Marketing at Culver’s, where she has spent nearly two decades shaping the brand’s growth and guest experience. She began as an intern and has since guided the company through pivotal shifts in the marketing landscape, including the rise of digital and social media, the evolution of the long-running “Welcome to Delicious” campaign, and a 185% increase in restaurant count.

In her current role, Emily leads all aspects of Culver’s marketing to ensure the brand reaches guests effectively and efficiently. From menu innovation and digital engagement to brand strategy and campaign development, she is focused on driving awareness, fostering loyalty, and building strong guest connections nationwide. A proud University of Wisconsin alumna, Emily lives in Sauk City with her husband and four boys.

Liz Haferkorn – Director of Marketing

As the Director of Brand Marketing at Culver’s, Liz is responsible for integrating brand efforts across all paid, owned and earned channels and overseeing campaign execution for over the 1,000 Culver’s restaurants and counting in 26 states. In her 10 years with the brand, Liz has contributed to many of Culver’s social and digital guest engagement and communication programs as well as oversight on strategic partnerships.

A born and bred Wisconsinite – Liz grew up in the Milwaukee area, attended the University of Wisconsin (go class of 2014!) and now resides in the Madison area with her family.

Ali Weber – Marketing Manager - CRM

Ali joined Culver’s marketing team two years ago with a focus on CRM, guest communications, online content/campaigns and digital optimization. She currently manages the email and push channels as well as supports the development, deployment and guest adoption of digital enhancements including the soon-to-be-released Culver’s loyalty program.

Ali has spent her entire professional career working for B2C brands in the Madison area, including digital marketing/CRM roles at American Girl (Mattel), Musicnotes.com and as a copywriter on the global creative team at Fiskars.

Sargento Marketing Case Study: Introducing Sargento to a New Generation

Hear how Sargento is introducing their brand to a new generation of customers.

Michael Vaszily - Director of Sales

Michael is a passionate and innovative Marketing & Sales professional with a 30-year track record of success leading brands like Ziploc, Heinz Ketchup and Sargento. Michael currently serves as a Director of Sales at Sargento and is a proud alum of the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. Michael also has an M.B.A. from Marquette University. He lives in Sheboygan with his wife and three kids – two of which are in college, one at UW-Whitewater.

Tim Shannon – Sr. Brand Manager, Sargento Slices

Tim is a brand marketer who leads Sargento’s Slice business. Tim leads the Marketing team on Sargento’s largest cheese segment, Slices, and is responsible for Slice brand strategy; communication strategy; innovation commercialization; P&L management and more. Over his 15+ years in food marketing, Tim has worked on several national brands and award-winning campaign and innovation launches. Tim is a proud graduate of the University of Notre Dame also has his M.B.A. from Northwestern University. A native Cheesehead, Tim lives in Sheboygan, Wisconsin with his wife and three daughters.

Roadmap to a Championship…and beyond

Join us for Dustin Godsey’s keynote session to learn how the Milwaukee Bucks built a championship brand, on and off the court, and how they continue to evolve and look forward.

Dustin Godsey - Chief Sales and Marketing Officer

Dustin Godsey is in his fourteenth season with the Milwaukee Bucks, his second as Chief Sales and Marketing Officer after serving eight seasons as Chief Marketing Officer. In his role, Godsey oversees the team’s marketing and advertising, ticket sales and service, digital platforms, content, broadcasting, live events, promotions, and creative services, as well as the marketing of Fiserv Forum, the team’s world-class arena in downtown Milwaukee and the surrounding Deer District neighborhood. During his tenure, he has built an award-winning team that has overseen a number of high-profile projects, including the team’s acclaimed rebrand in 2015 and was named to Business Insider’s 2022 list of most innovative CMOs.

Prior to joining the Bucks, Godsey spent seven years with Spectra Venue Services, most recently as Regional Marketing Director, where he was responsible for all event marketing and public relations efforts at Philadelphia’s Wells Fargo Center and Spectra’s managed facilities in the Northeast. He is a 2002 graduate of the University of Iowa with degrees in marketing and journalism.

Watch the Virtual Keynote

Have Questions?

Contact Rafa Alvarez-Reyes (alvarezrrj09@uww.edu) or Mallory Michalski (michalskmj05@uww.edu) for more info.

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