Supply Chain Conference - Energy Workforce & Technology Council

Supply Chain Conference

Event Date: September 23, 2026

Event Time: 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. CST

Location: HMH

3300 N Sam Houston Pkwy E
Houston, TX 77032

Open to Members and Non-Members

As demand for reliable, affordable energy continues to grow, resilient supply chains play an increasingly critical role in supporting energy security and ensuring the industry can deliver when it’s needed most.

Join Energy Workforce’s Supply Chain Conference on September 23 to hear from industry leaders on the trends, challenges and opportunities shaping the future of the energy supply chain.

Through panel discussions and attendee-selected breakout sessions, participants can focus on the topics most relevant to their organization and leave with practical strategies for navigating today’s evolving market conditions.

Check the Membership Directory to confirm your company’s membership.

What to Expect

Expert Insights

Gain invaluable knowledge from industry leaders on the latest trends and strategies in supply chain management.

Networking Opportunities

Connect with peers, industry experts, and potential partners to expand your professional network.

Interactive Sessions

Participate in breakout groups focused on critical areas such as AI Strategy & Cyber Risk and Human Capital, Tariffs/International Trade, Sourcing Strategies and Diversity in the Energy Industry.

Exclusive Offers

Take advantage of early bird pricing and special sponsorship opportunities to enhance your visibility.

Speakers

alex krutz

Managing Director, Patriot Industrial Partners

Alex Krutz is the Managing Director of Patriot Industrial Partners, an industrial advisory firm founded in 2020 that helps leaders strengthen performance across industrial policy, planning, and production-from strategic planning and value creation to performance improvement and supply chain optimization. Known across the industry as the “Factory Doctor,” Alex has a reputation for rapidly improving business strategy, quality, delivery and financial performance.

Meraj Huq

General Manager, Supply Chain Management (SCM) for Chevron’s Gulf of America (GOA)

Meraj Huq is a seasoned Oil & Gas executive with more than 25 years of leadership experience globally. As General Manager, Supply Chain Management (SCM) for Chevron’s Gulf of America (GOA) business, he leads the organization’s end-to-end supply chain strategy and execution, encompassing Operational Excellence in SCM, contracting and procurement, logistics, materials management, as well as marine and shorebase operations. In addition, he is responsible for advancing supply chain synergies and value creation across Chevron’s global offshore assets portfolio.

Prior to his current role, Meraj led Chevron’s Global Logistics organization – worldwide movement of people and materials across a broad range of services, including aviation, marine transportation, trucking, freight forwarding, and site services. He also brings extensive experience in Major Capital Projects (MCPs), having served as Supply Chain Manager for Chevron’s Gulf of America major capital project portfolio and led multi-functional shared services organization for Chevron’s Kazakhstan MCPs.

Meraj joined Chevron in 1999 as an Analyst in the Bangladesh Business Unit immediately following his graduation. Over the course of his career, he has held a variety of leadership positions of increasing responsibility across multiple geographies—including Bangladesh, Kazakhstan, and the United States—and across both base business operations and major capital projects. His experience spans several disciplines, including Cost Engineering, Technology, and Supply Chain Management.

He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) from the Institute of Business Administration at the University of Dhaka, Bangladesh, and earned his Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Rice University in Houston, Texas. Meraj is currently based in Houston.

Faith Philips

Senior Director, Supply Chain, Chord Energy

Faith Philips is a Senior Supply Chain Director with over 25 years of experience turning supply chain chaos into well-oiled operations. With a knack for driving efficiency and sparking cross-functional collaboration, Faith thrives where others might buckle under pressure, resilience isn’t just a buzzword for her, it’s how she leads. Known for her hands-on leadership style and genuine investment in developing talent, Faith brings deep industry expertise, a strategic mindset, and a healthy sense of humor to every organization she serves.

Kierra Williams

Vice President of Human Resources, Atlas Energy Solutions

Kierra Williams is Vice President of Human Resources at Atlas Energy Solutions, where she leads HR strategy supporting a rapidly growing and increasingly technology-enabled energy workforce. Throughout her career, Kierra has held human resources leadership roles across Cardinal Health, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, Amazon, OnTrac Logistics, and Atlas Energy Solutions, giving her experience across healthcare distribution, manufacturing, e-commerce, transportation and logistics, and energy.

A common thread throughout her career has been supporting large, operationally complex workforces where the ability to attract, develop, and retain skilled talent has a direct impact on the supply chain and the business. She has worked alongside operations through periods of significant growth, labor market disruption, changing workforce expectations, and the introduction of new technologies that have changed both how work gets done and the skills employees need to be successful.

At Atlas, Kierra brings that experience to an energy industry undergoing its own workforce transformation as automation, autonomous technology, and other innovations continue to reshape operations. She is passionate about building practical talent strategies that address today’s labor challenges while preparing employees and organizations for what comes next, with a particular focus on workforce development, upskilling, early talent, and creating cultures where people can grow alongside technology.

Ben Burt

VP of Customs, Crane Worldwide Logistics

Ben Burt is Vice President, Customs Brokerage at Crane Worldwide Logistics, where he oversees customs brokerage operations across all modes of transport in the United States, leading both operational execution and business development.

Prior to Crane Worldwide, Ben spent his career at Kuehne Nagel, most recently as Sub-Area Vice President overseeing a territory spanning Oklahoma and North Texas, where he drove significant process improvements and gross profit growth. Before that role, he served as Director of Customs, leading a major realignment of the customs team and launching a successful broker license training program.

Ben began his customs brokerage career at Expeditors International, holding several roles including Customs Brokerage Manager in Houston, where he spearheaded the transition to a paperless operating environment and built out ongoing process improvement and regulatory compliance initiatives.

A licensed customs broker, Ben brings deep expertise in CBP regulatory compliance and trade policy to his work advising clients through today’s rapidly evolving tariff landscape.

Walter Ulrich

President & CEO, Medical Bridges

Walter Ulrich is President & CEO of Medical Bridges, a life-changing and lifesaving nonprofit serving the global poor by providing desperately needed medical supplies and equipment to clinics and hospitals. In the last 3 years, Medical Bridges prepared, staged, and shipped 700 tons of desperately needed medical supplies and equipment valued at more than $34 million throughout the developing world including the Americas, Africa, and Asia, serving countries where the energy industry is active and countries in crisis including Venezuela and Ukraine. Medical Bridges has served 107 countries in the last 29 years. Medical Bridges has also provided medical materials domestically in response to local emergencies including during COVID and in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey. Walter is a member of the Texas Advisory Committee of the bipartisan US Global Leadership Coalition. He was awarded the Order of Merit by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for extensive medical relief to the people of Ukraine. Sigma, the international nursing honor society, awarded him its Archon “First to Lead” award at its international biennial event with participants from 40 countries. Formerly a management consultant, he provided executive leadership at Arthur D. Little including as a Senior Director in the firm’s Houston-based Energy Industry practice. A graduate and former Trustee of Stevens Institute of Technology, Mr. Ulrich proudly served his country in the US Marine Corps. He lives in Pearland with his wife Beth, an author and nurse educator.

Kersten Metz

Senior Director for Executive Talent Recruitment, Baker Hughes

Kersten Metz is a People & Culture leader at Baker Hughes, where she serves as Senior Director for Executive Talent Recruitment and also currently leads Talent & Learning integration efforts for Chart Industries following its acquisition by Baker Hughes. She partners with business leaders to build executive talent pipelines, strengthen leadership capability, and drive organizational effectiveness across global operations. Her work spans executive recruitment, talent management, succession planning, leadership assessment, learning strategy, and cultural integration.

In her current role supporting Chart Industries, Kersten is helping shape the future talent and learning strategy for a global manufacturing and industrial workforce, including leadership development, talent reviews, organizational capability building, and culture integration. She is passionate about helping organizations align talent strategy with business priorities to accelerate growth, transformation, and long-term business performance.

Kersten brings a unique perspective on the intersection of leadership, workforce capability, and business transformation, helping organizations develop the talent needed to navigate increasingly complex industrial environments.

Jeffrey Ostrander

Head of North American Basin Supply Chain, SLB

Jeff currently leads the Supply Chain organization for the North America Land Basin of SLB with nearly 30 years of experience in the industry. His past 16 years have been with SLB have delivered numerous roles spanning Supply, HR Training, Career Planning and Global Services in multiple regions domestically and internationally. Prior to joining SLB he worked in the logistics industry for an industry leader and held roles in Finance and Supply Chain. An active Mentor for the WISE program (Women inspiring Supporting Empowering) at SLB and remains a evangelist for Talent development in the function and industry.

Chris Mersinger

Director, Energy, Power & Infrastructure, Piper Sandler

Chris Mersinger joined the Piper Sandler energy, power & infrastructure investment banking team in 2024. He focuses on energy services and equipment, infrastructure services and construction.

Prior to joining Piper Sandler, Mersinger was chief financial officer at a large construction firm in Houston, Texas. Previously, he was an investor at a mid-market energy-focused private equity fund. Mersinger began his career as an intelligence officer in the U.S. Army and continues to serve in the reserves.

Mersinger earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in accounting and finance from Texas A&M University. He holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Rice University.

Justine Lin

Associate General Counsel, Global Trade Compliance, Weatherford

Justine Lin is Associate General Counsel, Global Trade Compliance at Weatherford, where she advises the company on international trade and regulatory matters. Her work focuses on global trade compliance, including export controls, sanctions, trade regulations, and related compliance risks.

Prior to joining Weatherford, Justine held legal and compliance roles with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and CEVA Logistics, where she advised on global compliance matters and supported trade and export-control inquiries across international operations. She earned her law degree from the University of Houston Law Center.

Jeffrey Ostrander

Head of North American Basin Supply Chain, SLB

Jeff currently leads the Supply Chain organization for the North America Land Basin of SLB with nearly 30 years of experience in the industry. His past 16 years have been with SLB have delivered numerous roles spanning Supply, HR Training, Career Planning and Global Services in multiple regions domestically and internationally. Prior to joining SLB he worked in the logistics industry for an industry leader and held roles in Finance and Supply Chain. An active Mentor for the WISE program (Women inspiring Supporting Empowering) at SLB and remains a evangelist for Talent development in the function and industry.

Chris Mersinger

Director, Energy, Power & Infrastructure, Piper Sandler

Chris Mersinger joined the Piper Sandler energy, power & infrastructure investment banking team in 2024. He focuses on energy services and equipment, infrastructure services and construction.

Prior to joining Piper Sandler, Mersinger was chief financial officer at a large construction firm in Houston, Texas. Previously, he was an investor at a mid-market energy-focused private equity fund. Mersinger began his career as an intelligence officer in the U.S. Army and continues to serve in the reserves.

Mersinger earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in accounting and finance from Texas A&M University. He holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Rice University.

Sponsorship Opportunities

Enhance your company’s visibility by becoming a sponsor. Benefits include logo recognition, email announcements to all Energy Workforce Members, event webpage recognition, event signage, and mentions in post-event articles and social media.

agenda

10 a.m. Networking, Coffee & Registration

10:30 a.m. Opening Remarks & Safety Moment

Molly Determan, President, EWTC

10:35 a.m. – 11 a.m. Supply Chain Outlook

Steve Pankratz, Senior Manager, Strategy, Growth, and Transformation, Deloitte

11 a.m. – 11:45 a.m. Customer Panel

Meraj Huq, General Manager, Supply Chain Management (SCM) for Chevron’s Gulf of America (GOA), Chevron
Faith Phillips, Sr. Director, Supply Chain, Chord Energy
Moderator: Jeff Ostrander, Head of North America Basin Supply Chain, SLB

11:45 a.m. – 1 p.m. Market Outlook and Lunch

Energy Forces Reshaping Global Health-Walter Ulrich, President & CEO, Medical Bridges, Inc.
Market Outlook-Chris Mersinger, Director, Energy, Power & Infrastructure, Piper Sandler

TARIFFS AND INTERNATIONAL TRADE BREAKOUT SESSIONS

1 p.m. – 1:40 p.m. Session #1-Tariffs

Ben Burt, VP of Customs, Crane Worldwide Logistics
Justine Lin, Assistant General Counsel, Global Trade, Weatherford

1:50 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. Session #2-International Trade

Alex Krutz, Managing Director, Patriot Industrial Partners
Jack Belcher, Principal, Cornerstone Government Affairs

AI SUPPLY CHAIN TOOLS AND HUMAN CAPITAL BREAKOUT SESSIONS

1 p.m. – 1:40 p.m. Session #3-AI Supply Chain Tools

Dr. Andrea Little Limbago, SVP Applied AI, interos.ai
Jeff Bleier, Lead Customer Success Manager, interos.ai
Moderator: Dr. Brandee Fernandez CPIM, C.P.M, Sourcing Sustainability Director, Baker Hughes

1:50 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. Session #4-Human Capital

Kierra Williams, VP of HR, Atlas Energy Solutions
Kersten Metz, Executive Search & Strategic Pipelines and Chart Industries Talent Management & Learning Director, Baker Hughes

2:40 p.m. Groups Reconvene for Key Takeaways

Brandee Fernandez CPIM, C.P.M, Sourcing Sustainability Director, Baker Hughes

3 p.m. Adjourn

Sponsors

Reserved table sponsor

Facility Sponsor

Media Sponsor

Strategic Partners

Secure your spot today and join us in shaping the future of supply chain management. Register Here.

For more information, please contact Jessica Santos.