The Shelby-Griffin Report presents the 21st annual tribute to Women of Influence in the food industry. For 21 years, we’ve honored the outstanding women shaping the food industry—from executives and innovators to mentors and community leaders. This year’s nominees represent a diverse range of roles, backgrounds, and regions, each making a profound impact in their careers and beyond.
Explore their stories below, and join us in celebrating their achievements.
2026 Women of Influence
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2026 Women of InfluenceJacqueline Michlitsch
Senior Director of Sales Support, Albertsons Cos. -- Shaw's
Read MoreJacqueline Michlitsch leads with inspiration and a commitment to achieving high standards for herself and her team. She is an authentic and thoughtful leader, known for being collaborative, team-focused and a joy to work with.
A humble, people-centered leader, Michlitsch brings a strong foundation of experience and a commitment to continued growth. Recognized by her organization as a high-potential leader, she was selected to attend the Food Industry Management program at the University of Southern California, an investment in her continued growth and future leadership impact. She represents a rising leader who is expanding her influence and helping to shape the future of the food industry.
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2026 Women of InfluenceJamie Collins
VP of Marketing and Advertising, Dierbergs Markets
Read MoreJamie Collins embodies what it means to be a Woman of Influence in the food industry. A visionary, mentor and authentic leader, she has redefined customer engagement in her current role. Over her 25-year career, Collins has led with curiosity, accountability and courage -- encouraging her teams to "be comfortable being uncomfortable" while building a culture rooted in innovation and heart. Under her leadership, Dierbergs has evolved into a digitally connected, customer-first brand. She spearheaded the development of the Dierbergs app, advanced loyalty and personalization strategies and built a seamless omnichannel experience that connects digital engagement to the in-store journey. Her data-driven approach has strengthened analytics capabilities, increasing customer engagement and loyalty participation. One of her most transformative achievements was guiding Dierbergs' transition from a decades-long weekly print ad to a digital ad platform. This shift required deep cross-functional collaboration and thoughtful change management. The result: greater agility, measurable cost and environmental savings and a more personalized, real-time customer experience. Beyond Dierbergs, Collins serves on the Women's Grocers Association's board of directors, advancing mentorship and leadership opportunities for women. Through innovation, empathy and strategic vision, she is an inspiration to colleagues, peers and future leaders alike.
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2026 Women of InfluenceJamila Jackson
Director of Replenishment, Harris Teeter
Read MoreJamila Jackson is a results-driven leader who consistently delivers strong execution against key merchandising and operational metrics, demonstrating reliability, accountability and a disciplined leadership style.
She drives follow-through on priorities and ensures teams deliver on expectations across multiple initiatives. Her ability to translate strategy into action strengthens performance, supports alignment and reinforces a culture of ownership.
Beyond operational excellence, Jackson helps shape culture and engagement. She serves as co-chair of the Women's Empowerment Group and is a member of the Harris Teeter CORE Team, contributing to associate development, inclusion and community connection.
She leads by example, invests in others' growth and fosters an environment where associates feel supported and empowered to succeed.
Jackson's impact extends beyond the workplace. She volunteers with the School Improvement Team at Butler High School, served as director of Dream Academy and supported after-school programs and tutoring through Prosper U.
She also participates in Harris Teeter volunteer events, reinforcing the company's commitment to service.
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2026 Women of InfluenceJan Concannon
Director of the Project Management Center of Excellence, Harris Teeter
Read MoreJan Concannon leads the strategy, structure and continuous advancement of project management practices across the Harris Teeter organization. As a respected professional woman in leadership, she brings strength, credibility and a collaborative mindset to her role, serving as both a strategic driver and a role model for excellence.
Concannon defines and champions a clear vision for project management excellence, ensuring strong alignment between enterprise strategy and project execution. She is responsible for establishing and standardizing methodologies, governance frameworks, tools and templates that create consistency, accountability and transparency across initiatives.
Passionate about developing others, Concannon focuses on building organizational capability by mentoring and coaching project leaders, identifying competency gaps and elevating overall project performance. She also oversees resource and portfolio management to ensure effective prioritization and execution across complex initiatives.
Through a strong commitment to continuous improvement, performance optimization and best-practice sharing, Concannon drives measurable results while fostering an environment of professionalism, empowerment and high performance.
Beyond her formal leadership responsibilities, she is involved in the THRIVE Resource Group at Harris Teeter, which is dedicated to fostering an inclusive workplace where all associates feel valued.
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2026 Women of InfluenceJanet Moreno
Senior Asset Protection Manager -- Safety, Northgate González Markets
Read MoreJanet Moreno supports safety initiatives across Northgate González Market's stores. In her role, she helps ensure associates have the proper personal protective equipment, that safety equipment is maintained in good condition and that training programs promote safe work practices. She also collaborates with cross-functional teams to develop programs and processes that help associates perform their responsibilities safely.
Moreno began her career with Northgate in 2002 as a courtesy clerk. Over the years, she has grown within the organization, holding several roles that have shaped her professional journey. She worked as a cashier and payroll clerk before moving into the role of safety coordinator. She later joined the risk management department as a claims coordinator and eventually transitioned into human resources as a district manager, where she supported several districts.
Through these experiences, Moreno gained a deep understanding of company operations and the importance of supporting the associates who are at the heart of Northgate Market.
She describes her leadership style as collaborative, supportive and focused on continuous improvement. She believes in leading by example, encouraging open communication and building trust through hard work, honesty and respect.
Outside of work, Moreno enjoys cooking and spending time with her husband going to the movies.
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2026 Women of InfluenceJenna Sullivan
VP Sales, So Good So You
Read MoreJenna Sullivan is a star, leader and "hype" woman -- the reason the So Good So You team feels like a family. She shines bright every day, leading the team forward, finding ways to achieve success in everything it does. It's because of Sullivan that the team synergizes so well. Thanks to her, team members maintain a positive attitude and are resilient to change. More importantly, it is because of her that they find happiness at work. They thank her for showing up for them every day. They are lucky to have her as their boss, peer, partner and friend. So Good So You has been very successful with Sullivan as the leader of the sales team. Joining the company nearly nine years ago, she has paved the way for growth, taking the brand from an itty-bitty startup to the No. 1 wellness shot brand and fastest growing functional beverage in the U.S.
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2026 Women of InfluenceJennifer Lambert
SVP Chief Digital Officer, Hy-Vee
Read MoreJennifer Lambert is focused on building connections with customers through simple, intuitive and personalized digital experiences. In her current role, Lambert oversees all of Hy-Vee's digital properties and leads the retailer's digital-first strategy, which centers around data, personalization and artificial intelligence. Starting her career as a software engineer, Lambert brings a high level of technical expertise to her role, serving as a liaison between Hy-Vee's digital, operations and marketing teams. To drive e-commerce sales, Lambert and her team have been focused on advancing the web and mobile shopping experience to make online shopping easier for customers. In 2025, the team developed a new unified basket experience that's designed to simplify online ordering by allowing customers to order groceries along with custom-made items -- including cakes, floral arrangements and party trays -- in one transaction for pickup or delivery. To support Hy-Vee's continued focus on making lives healthier, Lambert's team also worked with the FoodHealth Company to launch FoodHealth Scores within the grocer's mobile app. This feature allows customers to quickly compare the nutritional value of products across the store, as well as identify better-for-you alternatives. Both advancements have seen rapid adoption across Hy-Vee's customer base and stand out as key differentiators in the industry.
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2026 Women of InfluenceJennifer O'Malley
Senior Sales Manager, St Pierre Bakery
Read MoreJennifer O'Malley joined St Pierre in 2023 with more than a decade of CPG experience across leading brands such as Pirate's Booty, Green Giant, Snapple and Kettle Chips. In March, she was promoted to her current role in recognition of her strong commercial impact within the U.S. business.
O'Malley manages the brand's East Coast territory from Maine to Florida, driving distribution growth and strategic partnerships with major distributors including Bozzuto's, C&S, UNFI and KeHE, alongside regional retailers such as Wakefern, Food City, Big Y and Ingles.
In the last 12 months, O'Malley has delivered exceptional results by expanding white space opportunities and accelerating growth within existing accounts. Through strategic planning and strong partner relationships, she achieved double-digit growth across nearly every account in her territory while positioning the region for continued expansion.
O'Malley also demonstrates strong commitment to community impact. In 2025, she completed a triathlon in Portland, Maine, to raise funds for the Maine Cancer Foundation through the Tri for a Cure initiative.
Through commercial expertise, resilience and purpose-led leadership, O'Malley continues to deliver meaningful growth and lasting impact.
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2026 Women of InfluenceJennifer Petersen
EVP and Chief Science Officer, Sun World
Read MoreJennifer Petersen exemplifies the leadership, discipline and forward-thinking required to move the food industry forward. She leads Sun World's global research and breeding programs, ensuring scientific innovation translates into commercial outcomes.
Over her four-and-a-half years with the company, Petersen has played a critical role in aligning breeding, licensing and commercialization into a unified model designed to deliver consistent quality, scalability and long-term value across the supply chain.
Her impact is clear, she:
- Built a global innovation pipeline, overseeing the development of 56 advanced selections and commercial varieties across grapes, stone fruit and mango.
- Leads a team of 40 scientists and professionals, including a largely women-led group at Sun World's research headquarters.
- Drove commercial success at scale, helping develop Autumncrisp grapes to surpass $1 billion in global retail sales, demonstrating her ability to translate science into sustained consumer demand.
Petersen's impact also is reflected in how she leads. She has built a culture grounded in curiosity, accountability and shared ambition, where teams come together to push boundaries and deliver results. It is the kind of leadership that can be seen in action -- new varieties on the table, quickly picked over and the best ones gone first.
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2026 Women of InfluenceJeri Elsasser
Director of Marketing, Trinity Fruit Company
Read MoreJeri Elsasser plays a key role at Trinity Fruit Company, working alongside the VP of marketing and the business' efforts to grow consumption at a consumer level and elevate marketing efforts across all commodities. She is a rock star.
Celebrating the Women of Influence in the food industry for 21 years!
Presented by The Shelby-Griffin Report
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