Keynote Speakers

Dr. Beth Cudney is President of Cudney Consulting Group, LLC, and a Professor of Data Analytics in the Simon School of Business at Maryville University. She received her B.S. in Industrial Engineering from North Carolina State University, her master’s in mechanical engineering and MBA from the University of Hartford, and her doctorate in Engineering Management from the University of Missouri–Rolla. She received the 2025 ASQ Grant Medal. Dr. Cudney received the 2024 Book of the Year award from the International Lean Six Sigma Institute and the 2023 Masing Book Prize from the International Academy for Quality (IAQ) for her book on Lean Sustainability. She received the 2022 ASQ Crosby Medal and the 2021 Bernard R. Sarchet Award from ASEE EMD for lifetime achievement in engineering management education. She received the 2021 Masing Book Prize from IAQ for her book on Lean Six Sigma. In 2018, Dr. Cudney received the ASQ Crosby Medal for her book on Design for Six Sigma. She also received the 2017 Yoshio Kondo Academic Research Prize from IAQ for sustained performance in exceptional published works. She is an ASQ Fellow, IISE Fellow, and ASEM Fellow. In 2010, Dr. Cudney was inducted into IAQ. She received the 2008 ASQ Feigenbaum Medal and the 2006 SME Outstanding Young Manufacturing Engineering Award. She has published 17 books and over 140 journal papers. Dr. Cudney is a certified Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt. She holds eight ASQ certifications, including ASQ Certified Quality Engineer, Manager of Quality/Operational Excellence, and Six Sigma Black Belt, amongst others.

Dr. Duan Yonggang is Executive Vice President of China Association for Quality (CAQ), Companion of International Academy for Quality (IAQ), and the current Chairperson of Asian Network for Quality (ANQ). He has long focused on quality management and brand development, contributing to progress in quality improvement and brand building in China while fostering international exchange and collaboration. Under his leadership, CAQ delivers professional services that enable enterprises to improve quality performance and build stronger brands, empowering Chinese companies to achieve breakthroughs, sharpen their competitiveness, and enhance resilience for long-term growth. 

Rashad is a Non-Executive Director, strategy specialist and an operational Quality, governance & assurance expert. A Chartered Quality Professional, Project Manager PMP certified, and Project Management Office Certified Practitioner, with extensive experience in setting up project management processes and quality management standards from the ground up across different industries, including financial services, banking, shipping, retail and employee health and wellbeing, and FinTech. With a proven track record of guiding ambitious businesses to operational excellence, Rashad is the Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Chartered Quality Institute (CQI) and Senior Vice President, Quality & Business improvement for SGX global subsidiaries implementing Quality Management principles, spearheading efforts to optimise regulatory compliance in financial benchmarks, fostering process improvements, efficiency and excellence.
Rashad is a fellow of the CQI and has been recognised as a Fellow of the CX Academy for his contributions to elevating the profile of the customer experience industry. He is a mentor for Quality practitioners registered with the CQI, as well as new project managers with the Project Management Institute (PMI). He is actively engaged with PMI through various advisory and global leadership roles.

Ana Sofia Silva has built a career spanning nearly 18 years. Throughout this journey, she has led teams in the areas of sustainability, quality, enterprise risk management, and business continuity, supporting and contributing to different phases of the organization’s strategic evolution.

With a background in engineering and a career developed within the Oil and Gas sector, her work has focused on the intersection between technical management and organizational strategy. She held technical management roles in the quality area at Galp and Sonae Distribuição, and also worked at EDP and Nestlé, where she participated in the implementation of environmental management systems.