Speaker Bios
Dan J. Sanders
Dan J. Sanders is Chief Executive Officer of United Supermarkets, Ltd., a privately held supermarket chain with stores in 27 cities. Founded in 1916, the 93-year old company is known for its corporate citizenry and service-oriented culture. In 2001, United joined previous winners Sony Corporation and IBM as recipient of the prestigious Better Business Bureau’s National Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics. In 2003, the company was named the inaugural winner of the Supermarket News Community Service Award for its innovative concept of UCrew community volunteer teams. United has been listed in Texas Monthly’s Best Places to Work in Texas every year since the program began.
Prior to joining United, Sanders was a principal partner at adplex, a marketing company specializing in content creation and management, advertising production, and business consultative services for high-profile corporate, retail, and entertainment organizations. Sanders and his leadership team purchased four companies, including MCI Digital as adplex grew to more than $100 million in annual sales. Sanders was instrumental in preparing the company for sale to Windward Capital, a New York-based private investment firm, in 2002. With completion of the deal, adplex became a $200 million company with more than 1,000 employees and 11 locations across the country. Sanders also founded AdContent, a company specializing in content management, online ad building, promotions management and digital photography. Clients as diverse as American Airlines, NASCAR Images, HP, and YMCA used the company’s innovative Web-based rich media software to manage their intellectual property worldwide.
In addition to his business endeavors, Sanders is a military veteran. He is a former Air Force U-2 reconnaissance pilot and a highly decorated officer, recognized for his aerial achievements during combat missions flown in the first Gulf War. He received the Air Medal for one act of extraordinary achievement during a combat mission over Iraq and earned three other Air Medals for meritorious achievement for flying weather reconnaissance missions requiring the penetration of 33 typhoons. Additionally, his service to the country was recognized with a number of other medals and commendations.
Sanders was named a distinguished graduate and class leader for pilot instructor training at Randolph Air Force Base, and he was recognized by the Lubbock Chamber of Commerce with the Outstanding Undergraduate Pilot Training Student Award that recognized his community service during undergraduate pilot training at Reese Air Force Base. He also served as a member of the Air Force One Presidential Advance team for President George H. W. Bush.
A graduate of Lubbock Christian University, Sanders received an all-university gold medal as the recipient of the Trustees’ Award upon graduation. The award recognizes the graduating senior who best embodies the ideals of the university. He also received LCU’s Oustanding Recent Graduate Award, given annually to one graduate who has made extraordinary achievements within 10 years of receiving his degree.
An active community leader, Sanders serves in leadership roles with several local non-profits. He is a recent appointee to the Food Marketing Institute board of directors, an organization committed to serving the public interest regarding the world’s food supply.
Julie Ness Bell, PhD
Julie Ness Bell, PhD is the founder and President of The Mind of a Champion, a consulting firm in Dallas, TX. The Mind of a Champion (MOC) is focused on working with organizations that seek to improve their Performance Intelligence.
Dr Julie received her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Oklahoma State University and a Master’s and Doctorate of Sport Psychology from the University of Virginia where she studied under Dr. Bob Rotella.
Dr Julie and the MOC team have worked with teams and individuals across the country to improve personal performance and make an impact on the entire organization. She has had a long-term relationship with companies such as Time Warner Cable, State Farm, Ernst and Young and Bruswick Outdoor Recreation.
Dr Julie focuses on taking the core principles of sport psychology and transferring them to the corporate playing field. Her proprietary methodology of training Performance Intelligence reaches audiences at all levels of the organization. At its core, Performance Intelligence is an indicator of how well you can perform when it counts. Her presentation on “Lower Your Handicap; Raise Your Leadership” has received such wide acclaim, it is being contemplated as a published work.
Performance Intelligence is comprised of five attributes: Confidence, Focus, Self-Discipline, Competitiveness and a Winning Game Plan. The aptitude and intersection of these five attributes is your Performance Intelligence – your ability to performance your best when it counts regardless of the circumstances.
The impact of her keynote presentations often lead to opportunities to dig deeper into the health of the organization relative to Performance Intelligence. Be it through Bootcamps, Advances or on-line Performance Training Centers, Dr Julie is able to reinforce the concepts of Performance Intelligence as integrated into the ethos of the organization.
Julie is currently working on her soon to be published book with McGraw Hill; her book is to be out early 2009.
