Keynote Speakers 
Tom Seddon
Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer
InterContinental Hotels Group PLC.
Tom Seddon has been Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of InterContinental Hotels Group PLC (IHG) since 2007. He is a member of the Executive Committee and is responsible for Worldwide Brand Management, Global Sales, Marketing, E-commerce, Revenue Management, Loyalty Programs and Corporate Responsibility. From 1994-2004, Tom worked for IHG in the United States in a number of senior roles including Senior Vice President, Americas Brand Performance and prior to that was responsible for the company's distribution channels and global Revenue Management as Senior Vice President of Strategic Services. He also headed up Sales and Marketing for the Holiday Inn brand family in the Americas.
Before joining IHG, Tom was Chief Executive Officer of the Subway Franchisee Advertising Fund Trust. Earlier in his career, he worked for Mercer Management Consulting and at Motorola Communications in the UK.
Tom holds a Bachelor of Science (BSc) and a Master of Engineering in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from the University of Bath. He is a native of the UK, a naturalized US citizen and is married with two children.
Brian Rice
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.
Brian Rice is Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. He leads the company’s Treasury, Accounting, Corporate and Strategic Planning, Internal Audit, Investor Relations, Commercial Development, Information Technology, Revenue Management, and Trade Support and Service areas.
After joining Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. in 1989, Brian served in a variety of senior management positions. As Executive Vice President, Revenue Performance, he oversaw the company’s initiatives in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). He also served as Vice President, Market Planning and Development; and Director, Revenue Planning and Analysis.
Prior to joining Royal Caribbean, Brian was Director of Sales Planning and Administration at Kloster Cruises Ltd., the former parent company of Norwegian Cruise Line and Royal Viking Line. He also has held several managerial positions in Sales, Marketing and Finance.
Brian earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and Management from Jacksonville University and a Master’s in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing and Promotion from the University of Miami.
Jeff Dyke
Executive Vice President of Operations
Sonic Automotive, Inc.
Jeff Dyke is Executive Vice President of Operations and is responsible for direct oversight of all Retail Automotive Operations of Sonic Automotive, a Fortune 300 company and one of the largest automotive retailers in the United States with over 130 dealerships. Before assuming his current position, Jeff served as Chief Operating Officer-South East Division, where he oversaw Retail Automotive Operations for Alabama, Georgia, Florida, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and South Carolina. He first joined Sonic in October 2005 as its Vice President of Retail Strategy, a position that he held until April 2006, when he was promoted to Vice President-Eastern Division, a role he held from April 2006 to March 2007. From 1996 to 2005, Jeff worked in the automotive retail industry at AutoNation, where he held several positions in Divisional, Regional and Dealership Management.
Prior to the automotive business, Jeff was with National Convenience Stores, Inc. where he had direct responsibility for Purchasing & Merchandising for Non Alcoholic Beverages and Snacks in over 800 retail units.
Jeff was born and raised in Houston, Texas. He now resides in Charlotte, NC with his wife (Jody) and two daughters (Ashley & Erin).
