Brock Furlong brings more than 30 years of food industry experience to Stampede. He joined the team in 2010 following robust marketing, sales and leadership roles with The Quaker Oats Company, Pillsbury and Maple Leaf. In five years as President of Maple Leaf Poultry, Brock grew the company from $270M in sales to over $600M, making it the largest poultry company in Canada. Following suit at Stampede, Brock was named President within a year. Brock is Canadian originally and graduated from Wilfrid Laurier University in 1990. He now lives in the suburbs of Chicago with his wife, Jill. They have been married for more than 20 years and have three children.
Brock Furlong
CEO & President
Vito is responsible for all operating aspects and facilitation of management at Stampede. He brings more than 20 years of food industry experience. Vito runs a streamlined organization throughout our multi-plant manufacturing network. After earning a B.S. from DePaul University and an M.B.A. from Northern Illinois, Vito worked for Square D Company, Kraft Foods, Baxter International and then Maple Leaf, where he worked alongside CEO Brock Furlong. Vito joined Stampede in 2011 as CFO and shifted his leadership role to COO in 2019. When he’s not crunching numbers, you’ll likely find Vito doing crunches or competing for his next best Peloton ranking.
Vito Giustino
Chief Operations Officer
Vito brings more than 23 years of financial expertise to Stampede, leading the overall financial profitability, liquidity and risk management of the company. After earning degrees in both accounting & finance from Augustana College and his M.B.A. from DePaul University, Vito began his career in Public Accounting as a CPA before furthering his career in leadership capacities with Kraft Foods, Baxter International, US Foods and Maple Leaf, where he worked alongside COO Vito Giustino. Vito joined Stampede in 2017 as VP of Finance and then later became CFO. He lives in the northwest suburbs of Chicago with his wife, Stephanie and two sons.
Vito Tamburello
Chief Finacial Officer
Paola started with Stampede in 2018 and demonstrated remarkable growth during her career, eventually earning her the title of Director of Human Resources, overseeing all of Stampede's facilities in 2023. Before joining the Stampede family, Paola received a B.S. from the University of Texas in El Paso, majoring in public administration and minoring in legal reasoning. After graduation, she started a career at Excel Manufacturing and then moved to a career with the government housing authority before she found her way to Stampede. In her free time, she likes to spend quality time with friends and family, travel, and snow ski.
Paola Rojas
Director of Human Resources
Ray is one of Stampede's founding partners. He has more than 42 years of experience in the food service industry, including more than 30 in sales and marketing of beef, pork and poultry products. Ray began his career at Bonanza Steakhouses as the regional VP of operations, moving next to Rymer Foods as VP of sales and marketing. His success is predicated on identifying opportunities, marketing products and assisting customers as they grow their product lines and reach new customers in part through the innovation and imagination of Stampede. He is a longtime Arizona resident with his wife.
Ray McKiernan
Sr. VP of Sales & Marketing
Dennis has extensive experience in technical and product innovation, quality assurance, food safety, raw material sourcing and culinary development. After earning a B.S. in animal science and an M.S. in meat science from Iowa State University, Dennis started his career at Cargill, specializing in the research and development of beef, pork and food-processing. In 2000, Dennis took his experience to Stampede, growing to be one of the primary leaders of the executive team, moving gold-standard products from concepts to full-scale production quickly and efficiently.
Dennis Gruber
VP of Technical Innovation & Culinary Development
Krys is the power and efficiency behind all production at Stampede. He's contributed to each step of the production process, beginning as a supervisor at Stampede in 1994. Previously working at Rymer Foods, Krys quickly advanced to Production Manager, and then later became VP of Production. He takes pride in the strong relationship he has with employees, communicating fluently in Polish, Spanish and English to promote inclusion and motivate all team members. He lives in the suburbs of Chicago with his wife, Teresa. Together, they have three children.
Krys Harbut
VP of Production
Alicia has built her career with Stampede since she joined the team in 2012. As the Director of Sales Support, Marketing & Customer Service, she oversees three departments and several of the company's top accounts, specializing in customer relationships, marketing and pricing strategy. Alicia graduated from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, earning a B.F.A. with a major in photography. This background is what led her to Stampede initially as an expert in food photography and retail packaging design. When she's not working, she's either planning her next vacation with her husband or cheering on the Chicago Cubs.
Alicia Stednitz
Director of Sales Support, Marketing & Customer Service
Doug's entrepreneurial spirit has been a driving force behind his success, allowing him to thrive in the competitive food industry. After receiving a B.A. in Economics and Business from Trent University, Doug started his career at Quaker Oats company of Canada before moving to Pillsbury Canada. In 2008, Doug founded his own company, Equilibrium Foods, a natural ingredient food manufacturer which was acquired by Stampede in 2021. When Doug isn’t strategically planning, he can be found camping with his wife and daughter, watching sports with his son, or tending to his lawn.
Doug Ridge
VP of Corporate Development & Strategy
Johnny has been the backbone of Stampede's logistics team for more than two decades. Joining the Stampede team in 1995, Johnny will likely be working before most people wake up to ensure shipments are punctually picked up and delivered. He takes pride in his team and their attention to safety, efficiency and quality service for all customers. Before starting his career with Stampede, he worked as a supervisor at Rymer Foods. If you can get Johnny to leave his post, you'll find him spending time with his family. Johnny can also entertain a crowd for hours with his beautiful keyboard playing.
John Cikowski
VP of Logistics
Upon earning his B.A. from Georgia Southern University, Dave began his professional journey within the family business, DLLee and Sons. Throughout the years, he has held diverse roles in production, shipping, transportation, sales, and purchasing, contributing to his well-rounded experience. Today, Dave is the General Manager of Stampede South, after the Lee family merger in 2021. When Dave is not overseeing operations at the Alma, GA facility, he enjoys quality time with his family, fishing, and hunting.
David Lee
General Manager of Stampede South
For more than two decades, Adam has been on a mission to make sure Stampede remains the food manufacturing leader in food safety and quality assurance. Before joining the team in 1997, Adam received his degree in meteorology at Northern Illinois University. He soon shifted paths, developing and implementing the mandatory USDA HACCP programs for Stampede's raw and cook processing facilities. He also played an instrumental role to ensure Stampede was the first portion control steak operation to implement an antimicrobial intervention system to pretreat all beef subprimals prior to further processing in 2003.
Adam Miller
VP of Food Safety and Quality Assurance
After completing high school Ismael began his 8-year US military career, serving overseas in Korea and Iraq. Following his military service, he decided to pursue his passion for cooking and earned a degree from Le Cordon Bleu Culinary Institute in Chicago. Ismael later started his career in food manufacturing and worked at Freda Custom Foods, Optimum Food Group, and Ferrara Candy Company before joining Stampede in 2015. Today, Ismael is the Director of Warehousing & Supply Chain, overseeing the seamless and efficient flow of supply chain operations at the Sunland Park, NM facility. Ismael enjoys lounging by the pool and vacationing with his wife.
Ismael Soto
Director of Warehouse & Supply Chain
Mary has been with Stampede since the start of her career. Joining the team in 2006, she navigated through sales and business development roles before becoming the Director of Sales. She is a key player in moving product strategy and activation forward, while specializing in marketing and business development. She is involved with the Home Delivery, Industrial, Convenience, Retail and Wholesale segments. Mary earned her Bachelors and Masters degrees in Marketing and Operations from Lewis University. In her spare time, Mary likes to mountain bike and go four-wheeling.
Mary Hrycyk
Director of Sales
With more than 30 years of culinary experience, Chef Ron has as much zest as each proprietary menu item he crafts for Stampede's wide range of customers. Developing and tailoring customer experience with Stampede since 2010, Ron previously worked as corporate executive chef at Unilever Best Foods, director of culinary operations at Griffith Foods, and served in multiple fine dining establishments like the Pump Room in Chicago. He is also a member of the American Culinary Federation, Chicago Chefs Association, Research Chefs Association, Institute of Food Technology and the Educational Advisory Board of The Art Institute of Chicago, Culinary/R&D.
Ron Jolicoeur
Corporate Executive Chef
After graduating from Western Ontario University, Kevin attended Guelf college where he received his M.A. in Public Policy and Economics. He has worked in the food industry for 29 years at companies such as Quaker Oats, Schneider Foods, and Maple Leaf. Kevin worked alongside Doug at the former Equilibrium Foods for 3 years before the acquisition in 2021. He currently holds the position of VP of Sales and Marketing, focusing on Stampede’s line of natural & organic products. Outside of work, Kevin likes to spend his time with his family in the outdoors walking their dogs, hiking, canoeing, and golfing.
Kevin Schultz
VP of Sales and Marketing – Natural & Organic
After graduating from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign with a B.S., John began his career at Stampede in 2012. As a Chicago native John’s initial role was within the finance department at Stampede’s Bridgeview, IL facility, before transitioning into operations where he now holds the title of Director of Operations of our Sunland Park, NM facility overseeing production planning and day to day operations. During his personal time, you can find John at the gym or mountain biking in the scenic Franklin Mountains of El Paso, TX.
John Villa
Director of Operations – Sunland Park
A proud University of Iowa graduate, Mike began his career in hospitality and sports sales before finding his home with Stampede in 2002. Seeking experience in food manufacturing, he joined the Stampede family at the original location in the Stockyards of Chicago working in operations. Throughout his career he transitioned back to an office setting, holding positions in purchasing and sales. Currently serving as the Senior Director of Sales, he oversees national retail and food service accounts. When Mike isn’t traveling for work, he dedicates most of his time to his wife and two daughters, rooting for the Iowa Hawkeyes, or enjoying rounds of golf with friends.
Mike Asleson
Sr. Director of Sales
With over 25 years of experience, Jim oversees operations at Stampede North in Cambridge, Ontario as the General Manager. Prior to joining the Stampede family, Jim worked for Schneider’s Food Ontario, Maple Leaf and the former Delft Blue Foods. Before starting his career in food manufacturing, he earned a bachelor's degree from Conestoga College. When he’s not working, Jim spends his time playing in his men’s basketball league, golfing, and enjoying quality time with his wife and three kids.
Jim Carnahan
General Manager of Stampede North
Kristen started her career with Stampede in 2021 after the Lee family partnered to establish Stampede South. Before joining the Stampede family, she had been working in the Lee family business since 2003. Kristen currently holds the position of Senior Director of Sales & Purchasing at Stampede South. Before starting a career in food manufacturing, Kristen worked as a fitness instructor while attending Valdosta State University where she earned her B.S. Outside of the office, Kristen spends her free time with her family, while also enjoying scuba diving, water skiing, and cooking.
Kristen Harvey
Sr. Director of Sales & Purchasing
