NACS Human Resources Forum

Rayma Alexander is the Director of Corporate Communications and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) at the Wills Group, the parent company of Dash In, Splash In and SMO Motor Fuels headquartered in La Plata, Maryland. She oversees DEI, reputation management and employer branding, internal and external communications, and community engagement. Prior to Wills Group, Rayma served in a similar capacity in grocery retail at Giant Food, an Ahold Delhaize company, where she was named to the Top Women in Grocery and Women of Influence ranks. She considers herself a cheerleader for humanity and is passionate about helping women activate their unique gifts, talents, and abilities to live and work purposefully. She earned her professional coach certification from the Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching (iPEC) and holds a B.S. in Public Relations from Boston University. Rayma is an alum of both McKinsey’s Black Executive Leadership Program and the NACS Women’s Leadership Program at Yale. Rayma serves on the Convenience Store News DEI Advisory Board. She is a Boston native now living in Maryland. She is married and has two adult children.

Ana Castillo, SHRM-CP, joined Parkland USA in December of 2021 and currently is serving as the P&C Manager for Retail. Ana brings over 14 of experience in the field. Ana holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology, which has equipped her with an understanding of human behavior and interpersonal dynamics in the workplace. Her academic background, coupled with her SHRM-CP certification, enables her to effectively navigate the complexities of employee relation.

Throughout her career, Ana has demonstrated a commitment to fostering a positive work environment where employees feel valued and empowered to thrive. She is dedicated to supporting the growth and success of both the company and its employees, embodying Parkland USA's core values of safety, respect, community, and integrity.

Outside of her professional endeavors, Ana enjoys crafting which she describes as spending $50 to create something you can purchase for $5.

Jenna Collard is responsible for educational programming at NACS to include NACS Show Education Sessions, Executive Education, and other educational programming such as HR Forum, Leadership Forum, and industry webinars.

Prior to joining NACS in 2017, Jenna worked as a corporate trainer for a Washington DC based real estate information company for several years. She earned a BA in Sociology & American Studies from University of Maryland and an M.Ed. in Adult Education and Training from Colorado State University.

In her spare time Jenna loves to come up with new adventures to take her daughters on, travel to take with friends, and run.

Abby joined Texas Born (TXB) in 2021 as a Recruiter for the Operations team and the TXB Corporate office. After a year of discovery, hard conversations, and foundational developmental work, Abby proposed a new training and development system for TXB. She has spent the last two years creating, developing, and implementing a training program for TXB employees that reflects the values of the company while adhering to the high standards of operation that TXB expects of all employees.

Prior to joining Team TXB, Abby spent 7 years as a social worker for the state of Texas. Abby earned a Masters of Social Work from the University of Texas with an emphasis on children and family and systems development theory. Abby spent the beginning of her career working with foster families in Texas. Her primary responsibility was to develop and execute training curriculums that provided families the training and tools necessary to work with children in foster care. She piloted a program for hard-to-place children that required specialized training for staff and parents to participate in caring for the youth in care.

When Abby is not at TXB, you can find her with her husband and three pups or curled up with a good book.

Jayme Gough is the Research Manager for the NACS Research Department. She joined NACS in June of 2017 after having worked for the Alexandria City Public Schools for several years. In addition to administering the NACS State of the Industry Compensation survey and analyzing data for the annual SOI Compensation Report, she manages the NACS category definitions and assists with the State of the Industry enterprise and consumer insights portfolio. She has a passion for helping businesses achieve success using data-drive strategies. Jayme holds a bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry from Bates College and is a certified project manager.

Kelly Harrington joined RaceTrac, Inc. in May 2022 as the Director of Asset Protection. He brings a strong background in both Computer Science and Criminal Justice, having pursued his studies at Washington State University. With close to 15 years of experience in retail Loss Prevention, Kelly embarked on his career journey at The Home Depot, initially working at store locations before advancing to roles of increasing responsibility within Asset Protection. In his final position at The Home Depot, Kelly held leadership oversight of the Organized Retail Crime and Central Investigations team, providing support to the Southern Division of US stores.

In his current role at RaceTrac, Kelly is charged with establishing and enhancing Asset Protection and Loss Prevention programs and processes. His focus lies on shrink reduction, enhancing physical security, crime response, and fostering a culture of awareness within the organization. RaceTrac, a family-owned company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, has been serving its customers since 1934. With over 10,000 team members spread across two operating divisions (RaceTrac, featuring 575 corporate stores in 8 states, and RaceWay, with 225 franchise locations in 11 states) and affiliated companies (Metroplex Energy and Energy Dispatch), Kelly's responsibilities extend to these entities as well.

In the early stages of his role at RaceTrac, Kelly familiarized himself with the business and proactively forged relationships with both internal and external partners to positively impact the organization. One notable achievement is his development of reporting tools that have significantly improved visibility into fuel theft occurrences, a widespread issue affecting fuel retailers nationwide. Kelly is deeply committed to cultivating relationships with law enforcement agencies, making it a core mission during his tenure at RaceTrac. He leverages data-driven insights to inform his decision-making process and consistently seeks innovative solutions to various business challenges. As we approach the new year, Kelly is eager to continue his work in expanding and strengthening the Asset Protection program at RaceTrac.

Julie joined Casey's in 1994 as Legal Counsel as its first employment law counsel. She became Vice President of Human Resources/Legal Counsel in 2003 with oversight, in part, of the departments of Human Resources, Payroll, and the Child Development Center. In 2010, Julie was promoted to Senior Vice President, Corporate General Counsel and Human Resources. In August of 2015, her area of focus changed slightly to align with her last position of Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary where she oversaw the Company’s legal, compliance, regulatory and risk areas housed primarily in the departments under her direct supervision of Legal, Enterprise Risk Management, Risk Management (including Worker’s Compensation, Security and Food Safety), and the Project Management Office. She also served as the Company’s secretary with oversight of SEC compliance and coordination of Board matters. Julie served on the NACS Board of Directors for many years culminating with the position of Chairman from 2020-2021.

Before joining Casey's, Julie was an attorney for Shearer, Templer, Pingel &Kaplan. Julie has been active in a number of organizations including the Association of Corporate Counsel (Iowa Chapter), Iowa State Bar Association (past chair of the Corporate Counsel Section), Drake University Law School Board of Counselors and Delta Theta Phi International Law Fraternity, where she served four years as its president. She currently serves on the non-profit Boards for the Wildwood Hills Ranch of Iowa, the James Arthur Albert Foundation, and the Affiliated House Corporation of Gama Phi Beta at Iowa State University. She is also a board member of SuckerPunch Gourmet LLC.

Julie earned a J.D. from Drake University Law School and a B.A. in political science from Iowa State University. She and her husband Tom are the parents of four children and 1 granddaughter.

About Casey’s: Headquartered in Ankeny, Iowa, Casey’s General Stores, Inc. operates more than 2,400 convenience stores in 16 Midwestern states. Casey’s offers self-service fuel, a wide selection of grocery items and an array of freshly prepared food items. Among the most popular of Casey’s prepared food are its made-from-scratch pizzas, donuts, subs and sandwiches. Casey’s operates from three company distribution centers, enabling an approximate delivery of 90% of in-store products as well as 55% of fuel.

Amber’s career in Talent Development for the Spinx Company began with her very first job as a part-time convenience store salesclerk. At sixteen years old, she was just looking for a way to make some pocket money. Once she graduated high school, she quickly moved to full-time and soon found herself taking on more and more leadership roles. First, as a food and beverage manager, then assistant store manager, and then general manager. By her tenth anniversary at the Spinx Company, she had gotten married, had four wonderful children, and joined the Training Department as a field trainer for new teammates. Now entering her seventeenth year, she manages the company’s training programs and team of field trainers. She has earned a SHRM-CP certification and will graduate with an associates’ degree in May. She’s well versed in the world of recruiting and is a frequent contributor and strategic advisor for the organization’s leadership development programs. She credits her success to the many terrific mentors who’ve taught her the skills needed to excel and to tackle whatever next opportunity lay ahead. She loves working for a company who inspires teammates to be the best they can be. What she found was a career that grew as she grew. She didn’t envision a top leadership role in Talent Development, nor did she realize the impact that this journey would have on her life and profession, and she cannot wait to see what she’ll learn next!

Steve Seymour, SPHR, SHRM-CSP, is the Director of Human Resources at Country Fair, Inc., a subsidiary of United Refining Company, headquartered in Erie, PA. Steve is also an Adjunct Faculty member at Mercyhurst University in Erie, where he teaches courses in Human Resources and Finance. Steve holds a Bachelor’s degree is in Organizational Resource Management and a Master’s in Human Resources, Training & Development. Steve’s first job, at the age of 14, was a cashier at his neighborhood convenience store.

Steve considers himself an HR nerd, who believes that, if done properly, technology and “the human touch” can blend effectively to help build award winning corporate cultures. Steve is most proud of Country Fair’s “Best Places to Work” designations from Forbes Magazine in 2019 and 2021.

Steve, his wife Beth and rescue cat Elby reside in North East, PA. Steve currently sits on the Board of Community Shelter Services in Erie and spearheads an annual coat and clothing give away in North East.

Lori Buss Stillman is the Vice President, Research and Education for NACS. Joining NACS in 2019, Lori leads the association’s industry-leading research portfolio, which includes the NACS State of the Industry suite of products and events, Convenience Voices shopper research) that provides moment-of-truth insights into shopping behavior, monthly data insights from the CSX database and other research and insights programs critical to the convenience and fuel retail industry. She assumed responsibility for NACS Education programs in 2022, including event content, online learning, and Executive Education programs available at Yale, Cornell, MIT, Kellogg, and Wharton.

Stillman has a deep background in data analytics, decision support, business development and consulting. Most recently, she served as executive vice president of analytics, insights and business intelligence for Advantage Solutions. Leveraging 30+ years in the FMCG industry, she also has served as senior vice president of new client acquisition for Information Resources Inc., vice president of marketing and business development for WEBCO General Partnership, and senior vice president of strategic business development for Nielsen.

Stillman earned a B.A. in business communications from Maryville University. She is active in the advancement of our industry, holding board level positions with the NACS/Coca-Cola Retailing Research Council, Conexxus and with the Western Michigan University Food and CPG Marketing Program Industry Advisory Board. She is also a frequent speaker on the disruption taking place across the retail landscape.

Lori makes her home in Northern Virginia, with her husband and daughter.

Hannah Ubl's core mission is to create organizations that don’t suck. She’s devoted her career to flipping the traditional workplace script, throwing out the old “employees are lines on a spreadsheet” in favor of treating people at work more like… well, people.

As Co-founder of Good Company Consulting, she’s sought after for her bold take on building workplaces that prioritize the human experience while simultaneously increasing the bottom line. Hannah’s dedicated the past decade to researching people at work - not just top talent and leadership - but everyone in between. She’s discovered a strangely well-kept secret for recruiting and retaining the workforce of the future: the best recipe for organizational success is rooted in mindfulness, empathy, and kindness.

Hannah’s work is a fresh approach to the standard (and outdated) workplace narrative. Not afraid to ask the hard questions, she pushes audiences towards self-inquiry to help them become better leaders, better managers, and better colleagues.

With heart, deep conviction, and a good dose of self-deprecating humor, Hannah will sweep you along on a journey of insights that lead to deep, lasting mindset shifts about how work works. A passionate speaker and consummate professional, she’s energized by her audiences and brings her full self to each and every presentation.

Kyle R. Vowinkel is a lecturer at Cornell University’s Johnson School of Business. He provides riveting presentations on leadership and communication strategies, based on over three decades of government service as an FBI executive, an FBI Agent, a US Army officer, and a crisis negotiator.

Vowinkel elevates corporate leaders and teams, empowering them with the tools to connect with and influence others. He shares lessons acquired from his decorated service on two high performing US National assets; the Department of Justice's elite counterterrorism unit, the FBI Hostage Rescue Team (HRT); and the FBI Crisis Negotiation Unit (CNU).

Vowinkel was integral in resolving some of the FBI's most precarious missions when he matched wits with kidnappers, pirates, and terrorists. He’s worked with tactical and negotiation professionals around the world, deploying to over twenty countries - From Germany, to Scotland Yard, to rotations with the US military in Iraq and Afghanistan.

An impactful and memorable event speaker at West Point, Cornell, Google, Hostage Negotiation Seminars, and FBI conferences. Kyle’s interviews on the Fox News True Crime and FBI Retired Case File Review podcasts resulted in more than 100,000 downloads.