Executive Bios
 Darryl A. Hutson
Chief Executive Officer
With 38 years of experience in the incentive industry, Darryl Hutson brings a long track record of success and unparalleled expertise to his position as chief executive officer. Hutson drove the creation of AEIS, a joint-venture between American Express and Maritz Inc. Prior to AEIS' inception, Hutson was corporate vice president, director of marketing for Maritz Performance Improvement Company, a division of Maritz Inc. In that position, he created, developed and launched the exclusively yours® card and the your choice® card, which revolutionized the incentive industry by directing cardholder spend to specially chosen merchants. This direct spend process was ultimately patented in 1997.
Hutson honed his vast knowledge of the incentive industry during his many years working at Maritz Travel, America's largest incentive travel company, beginning in 1969. His career advanced with remarkable speed, moving him from travel director to corporate vice president of Maritz Inc. in only five years. From 1975 to 1993, Hutson served as Maritz Travel's corporate vice president, group vice president of marketing and director of motivation marketing, where he was responsible for overseeing the sales and support of all group travel programs. He also served as corporate vice president and director of operations of Maritz Travel Company. Hutson began his travel industry career with American Airlines in 1961.
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 James Menadier
General Manager & Chief Operating Officer
As both general manager and chief operating officer, Menadier is responsible for the strategic direction and management of sales and operations business units of AEIS. Menadier joined AEIS as chief financial officer at the company's inception in 1997. Prior to joining AEIS, Menadier held numerous financial/analytical positions with the American Express parent company in New York City and in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Menadier earned his undergraduate degree in business administration from Rutgers University, Newark College of Arts and Sciences and an M.B.A. in finance from Fordham University Graduate School of Business Administration.
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 Russell Yergensen
Chief Financial Officer
As chief financial officer, Russell Yergensen leads AEIS’ strategic planning, finance, pricing and legal management teams supporting revenue growth and implementation of innovative programs to deliver custom enhancements and operating efficiencies. Previously, Yergensen served as vice president and director of strategic planning and business analysis for American Express Travelers Cheques and Prepaid Services. With two decades of global prepaid experience, he has played instrumental roles in launch of more than a dozen prepaid products (campus cards, phone cards, chip cards) in public, private, and government sectors in various consumer and corporate segments.
He joined American Express after serving as a certified public accountant for Ernst & Young in providing financial audits and business consulting for startup, turnaround, and mature businesses. Yergensen earned Master’s of Accountancy-Information Systems and Consulting degree from Brigham Young University. Yergensen serves as board member for several non-profit charities and as volunteer in youth development activities.
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 Deanna M. Baker
Vice President, Employee Development & Human Resources
Deanna Baker and her team are responsible for driving AEIS' high-performance culture initiatives and directing corporate human resources. Baker's multi-industry (entertainment, healthcare, finance and government) HR management experience includes HR compliance, HRMS, policy development, organizational design, performance management, compensation, recruiting, leadership development, and benefits.
Prior to joining AEIS, Baker served in numerous HR leadership roles, including the California-based companies Disneyland Resort and Triad Financial. Baker began her career with The Boeing Company (formerly McDonnell Douglas) where her various assignments involved overhead and program finance. Baker holds a bachelor's degree in finance from Northern Illinois University.
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 Matt Harris
Vice President, Marketing
Matt Harris leads AEIS' marketing team in the development and implementation of strategic initiatives for promotions, product, quality and research. Harris brings a unique understanding of motivation, incentives and loyalty philosophy to the prepaid space.
Before joining AEIS, Harris worked as vp of marketing and solution development for Maritz Inc. During his tenure he championed the development of thought-leadership positions, led the effort to create an innovative, unified brand and helped to introduce a more solutions-focused go-to-market strategy.
Harris also served as managing director and senior brand consultant at J. Walter Thompson where he served on the leadership team for the B2B marketing group, collaborating with clients such as Johnson & Johnson, Sigma-Aldrich Chemical and Solutia.
Harris received his MBA from Washington University's Olin School of Business where he now acts as a member of their Marketing Communications and Advertising Board. Harris also serves as a board member for Catch a Falling Star Inc. and as a volunteer for numerous local charities.
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 Sheree Herr
Vice President, Licensing
Sheree Herr is responsible for AEIS' license partner program which includes the acquisition and ongoing relationship management of AEIS' license partners. Prior to her licensing role, Herr held the position of VP of employee development, human resources and legal management for AEIS.
Before joining AEIS, Herr was the director of human resources of Angelica Corporation and director of marketing and sales with Angelica Image Apparel, a subsidiary of Angelica Corporation. She has also served as a professional consultant in organizational assessments and individual feedback programs.
Herr received a bachelor's degree in psychology from Vassar College and earned a master's degree in public administration and organizational psychology from Saint Louis University.
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 Martin Hood
Vice President, Partnership Sales
As senior vice president, partnership sales, Martin Hood is responsible for the strategy and new business development of both the reseller group and AEIS parent, American Express. The reseller group focuses on serving a range of distribution partners in the performance improvement, promotional, financial services, advertising and loyalty sectors. AEIS serves American Express as a direct customer, as well as a provider of value added solutions and services for its own corporate and consumer incentives.
Prior to his current position, Hood launched AEIS' consumer promotions group where he was responsible for the overall strategic direction and planning for the organization's entry into the consumer promotion market. Concentrating on rebate and loyalty programs, Hood led the team to target brands and original equipment manufacturers directly, in addition to working with agencies. Hood also established and led AEIS' merchant partnership and channel sales teams that acquired and managed a network of over 200 merchant and 80 authorized distributor accounts.
Hood came to AEIS from American Express, where he began his career as a territory manager in Cincinnati, later rising to account executive and senior manager in New York City, and ultimately director for new business partnerships for American Express Establishment Services. While there, Hood signed 35 national merchant partnerships that resulted in incremental charge volume totaling more than $1 billion and developed notable partnerships with Wal-Mart, Sprint PCS, Elder Beerman Department Stores and Bob Evans Restaurants.
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 Tracy McFadden Wright
Vice President, American Express Partnerships
McFadden Wright is responsible for sourcing travel and retail redemption options for AEIS cardholders via the acquisition, management and promotion of over 175 merchant relationships as well as managing the strategy and new business development of the American Express sales team. AEIS serves American Express as a direct customer, and provides value added solutions and services for their merchant clients.
McFadden Wright was initially hired as controller at AEIS' inception, where she created the original finance and accounting systems and procedures. McFadden soon assumed additional responsibilities throughout the company including financial operations, risk management and card operations. After serving as the AEIS compliance officer and vice president of finance for six years, she transitioned to sales via her role within merchant partnerships. She then expanded her scope of responsibility to include management of the American Express sales channel.
Prior to AEIS, McFadden Wright was the financial merchandise manager at Maritz Performance Improvement Company. She served as corporate controller for The Linde Group, a regional recruiting firm, where she garnered new business development and merger/acquisition experience. McFadden Wright began her career as an auditor with Price Waterhouse. In addition to her C.P.A. certification, she holds a bachelor's degree in finance with an accounting concentration from the University of Illinois.
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 Lawrence J. Newman
Vice President, Sales
Larry Newman is responsible for the overall strategic direction, budget and planning for the AEIS sales teams and authorized distributors. Newman joined AEIS from Best Manufacturing, where he served as vice president of Baker Linen, the hospitality division of Best Manufacturing. While there, Newman developed both a core line of hospitality apparel and Baker Linen's first apparel catalog.
Prior to this, he held several leadership positions including executive vice president, sales and marketing,in a 27-year career with Angelica Image Apparel, a division of Angelica Corporation. Newman led the development and implementation of a strategic plan that identified the firm's key drivers and core competencies, resulting in a company turn-around. Newman earned a bachelor's degree in marketing from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa and an MBA from the University of Missouri, Columbia.
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 DuWayne Milner
Vice President, Business Analytics
DuWayne Milner leads the development of AEIS' company business plan, analyzes business optimization and growth/capacity planning, and evaluates new business ventures/opportunities for the company. Prior to his current position, he served as director of product marketing where he and his team focused on the strategy and development of customized incentive-based programs aimed at obtaining new and expanding existing AEIS relationships.
Before joining AEIS, Milner served as director of business development for Fujitsu Consulting and as director of product management with McLeodUSA and Consolidated Communications. Additionally, Milner's experience includes new business start-up, mergers and acquisitions and participation with global alliance teams within various industries. Milner earned a bachelor of science in business in both accounting and finance from Eastern Illinois University and is also a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
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 Dan Sanders
Vice President, Finance and Controller
In his role as vice president of finance and controller, Dan Sanders is responsible for all strategic financial budgeting/forecasting, yearly audit reports and financial statements. His team manages AEIS' risk compliance, accounts payable/receivable, financial operations, and general accounting functions. Sanders previously served AEIS as senior accountant, assistant controller, and director of finance, respectively. During his tenure, Sanders has worked successfully to ensure AEIS' finances are in good standing.
Sanders came to AEIS from its parent company, Maritz, Inc., where he served in various accounting roles before assuming the position of merchandise accounting manager. Sanders received a bachelor's degree in accounting from Missouri State University.
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 Dan Easley
Vice President, Operations and Program Management
As vice president of operations and program management, Dan Easley is responsible for process and quality improvement, client services, inventory management and enhancement of vendor relationships.
Before joining AEIS, Easley was the director of operations at Laser Light Technologies, a local high tech laser micro machining facility, where he gained high volume, fast paced manufacturing and distribution operations experience. He also acted as plant, manufacturing and engineering manager at Federal Mogal. Easley holds a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical technology from Washington University.
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