 T. Russell SHIELDS
Ygomi LLC
Russ Shields is Chair of Ygomi. Mr Shields is a Board Member of the ITS World Congress, founding Board Member of ITS America, former Chair of the TRB Communications Committee, former Convener of ISO/TC204/WG16, and Co‑Chair of the ITU Collaboration on ITS Communications Standards. Mr Shields is also a member of the National Space-Based Positioning, Navigation and Timing Advisory Board, a Presidential advisory committee. He received the 1998 SAE‑Delco Electronics ITS Award, was named an SAE Fellow in 2007, was inducted into the inaugural class of ITS America’s Hall of Fame in 2008, and was named the inaugural U.S. member of the ITS World Congress Hall of Fame in 2010. In 2008, to recognize his more than 40 years defining new industries, the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business awarded him the Distinguished Alumni Award in Entrepreneurship. |
 Roger C. LANCTOT
Strategy Analytics
Roger is Director, Automotive Connected Mobility in the Global Automotive Practice at Strategy Analytics, and is an advisor to the L.A. Auto Show Automobility forum, the International Telecommunications Union, and the World Wide Web Consortium. Roger draws on 25+ years' experience in the technology industry as an analyst, journalist and consultant. Roger is a graduate of Dartmouth College. |
 Manuela PAPADOPOL
Co-founder, Sansea Consulting
Manuela Papadopol is the co-founder and managing director of Sansea consulting, a global management and marketing consulting firm. She helps companies identify, articulate and implement strategic solutions in the automotive and technology industries. She serves as an advisory board member for Automobility LA (affiliated with the LA Auto Show) and is an active member of Women in Automotive Technology, an organization created to connect, educate and drive the future of the automotive industry. Papadopol also holds a patent in voice-activated acquisition of non-local content. She was named a 2016 Woman Worth Watching by Diversity Journal and featured in Connected World Magazine's "Women of IoT Marketing" 2016. Prior to starting her own business, Papadopol served as global business development lead at Elektrobit, a leader in automotive software. Prior to that she established the global marketing team at Microsoft automotive. She began her business career in public relations and marketing at BMW in 1996 moving to Mercedes-Benz as a public relations manager in 2000. Fluent in German, Spanish, English and Romanian, she holds a degree in marketing management from the Romanian-American University in Bucharest and a post-graduate degree in public relations and business development from the University of Washington. |
 Tim CAVANAUGH
SAE International
Tim Cavanaugh has been working in the auto industry his entire life. Actually, he was born into it with a Dad who was a Five Star Chrysler Dealer in the little town of Monmouth, Illinois (Home of Wyatt Earp and Ronald Reagan). By the age of nine Tim had already geared his go-kart to run 55 MPH. He got most of his practical engineering knowledge before he was 15 years old from three Master Technicians in his Dad’s shop. After 25 years at General Motors, Tim launched over 30 vehicles and received two Chairman’s Awards. One for connecting OnStar to the Electronic Control Module (ECM) in order to feed vehicle health data to a webserver and then onto a smart phone. And another for a flawless vehicle launch on the Chevrolet HHR. Tim also wrote the requirements a year before California required “Hands Free” calling. Tim developed and deployed the first WiFi integrated into vehicles in the Chevrolets and Cadillacs. He was known for quick development of new options. While executive director, Tim’s team of four combined divisions of BAE Systems developed what they called a Military Version of OnStar on Prognostic Steroids and Predictive Maintenance which also won a Chairman’s Award. For two years Tim worked for US Congress as a military advisor for our boots on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan. At SAE International, Tim runs electronics events globally. The Connect2Car Brand was created to educate automotive and aerospace engineers on the attributes of Connected, Autonomous and Automated Vehicles along with IoT/Cloud based technologies. Tim likes to fly. He has a daughter Catherine at the US Air Force Academy who is already a pilot and a son Tom who wants to replace Jimmy Fallon when he retires from the Tonight Show. Tim has an MBA in Finance and Marketing from St. Edward’s University in Austin. |
 Mike ULF
SAE International
Michael (Mike) Ulf is an Event Manager with SAE International. Mike has been with SAE International for five years and in the event industry for 14. Originally from Pittsburgh, PA with extensive experience in Washington D.C., Baltimore and New York markets. Mike is an Event Manager on cyber security, hybrid, connected vehicle and additive manufacturing platform programs for SAE International. Mike is the lead staff responsible for managing internal and external teams, committees, budgets, timelines, vendors and overall leadership of the program. |
 Nori FOUGHT
SAE International
Nori Fought is Content Administrator at SAE International for 18 years. She is responsible for tactical, detailed management of event content development processes to include collection, review and dissemination of assigned materials for SAE Events. Nori works closely with the Business Development Managers, Event Managers, SAE authors, session organizers, paper reviewers and other volunteer program/technical contributors. Prior to joining SAE, Nori was executive secretary for several consultants in automotive occupant protection. She is a professional chauffeur. |
 Jim FORLENZA
SAE International
Jim Forlenza established himself as a global business leader of events well before it was chic to enter the international market. An entrepreneurial spirit, the enjoyment of working in pressurized environments, and strong team-building and leadership skills, have been at the backbone of a successful career. Jim’s experiences provide a unique skill set that is rare among other event leaders. Jim has a highly successful understanding of both volunteer-driven, non-profit organizations, as well as for-profit entities on both the domestic and international stages. Jim currently oversees the conference and tradeshow group for SAE International – a portfolio of 25+ automotive and aerospace related events staged across the globe. While directing the overall management of the event team, Jim is responsible for a staff of nearly 30 employees based across the globe. |
 Stefano POLIDORI
ITU/TSB
Stefano is Advisor at the International Telecommunication Union and responsible for the technical secretariat of ITU-T Study Group 9 "Broadband cable and TV”. He is also responsible for the Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) activities, including the Symposium on the Future Networked Car at the Geneva Motor Show. Stefano is the ITU representative to the European Multi Stakeholder Platform on ICT Standardization at the European Commission.
After few years in the private sector, joined the ITU in 2004 covering various positions including Coordinator for ITU Kaleidoscope academic conference and Advisor for Study Group 11 "Signalling, protocols and test specifications". Stefano holds a Master in Electronic Engineering from the University of Rome, Italy and a Master of Science in mobile communication from Aalborg University, Denmark. |
