Contact Information: Media Contact: LaunchSquad for SignalDemand 415-625-8555 signaldemand(at)launchsquad(dot)com
Former Cargill President Bill Rupp Joins SignalDemand Board
Executive From the Largest Private Company in the U.S. Brings Thirty Years of Industry Experience to Leading Price Optimization Firm
| Quelle: SignalDemand
SAN FRANCISCO, CA--(Marketwire - February 9, 2009) - SignalDemand, the global leader in
on-demand price and margin optimization software, today announced the
appointment of Bill Rupp to its board of directors. Mr. Rupp brings nearly
three decades of manufacturing experience to the board as a former top
executive at Cargill, one of the
world's largest providers of food, agricultural and risk management
products and services.
"SignalDemand has pushed the boundaries of what is possible in the
commodity manufacturing industry," said Bill Rupp. "Cargill Meat Solutions
has taken full advantage of SignalDemand's optimization technology in the
last several years, which has helped strengthen both the company and
Cargill's partnerships with customers. I am eager to bring my experience
to bear toward SignalDemand's continued success, helping industry leaders
solve today's challenges through improved pricing practices and
decision-making."
"Bill Rupp knows the challenges of driving shareholder value through
improved pricing for a multi-billion dollar manufacturer," said Mike Neal,
CEO and founder of SignalDemand. "Bill is an innovator, willing to
challenge the status quo, and a very compelling change agent. His intimate
understanding of large-scale commodity manufacturing organizations will be
a great asset to SignalDemand as we expand internationally and launch new
optimization software and services."
Mr. Rupp has worked in the manufacturing industry for almost three decades,
helping to lead Cargill, one of the world's largest and most powerful food
companies and the largest private company in the United States. During his
tenure at Cargill Mr. Rupp has opened new meat processing facilities, led
plant operations and filled the role of general manager at a meat packing
facility. He was vice president of operations for Cargill Beef, which
generates approximately $10 billion in annual sales and employs over 15,000
people, before becoming president of Cargill Beef, a role he held for ten
years.
Mr. Rupp also supervised Cargill's beef businesses in Argentina and
Australia as well as sales offices located in Japan, Taiwan, Shanghai, and
Tokyo. For the past two years, in addition to his responsibilities with
Cargill Beef, he also served as president of Cargill Meat Solutions,
which has annual sales of $21 billion and employs over 35,000 people
worldwide.
At Cargill, Mr. Rupp helped drive the company's use of advanced
technologies to grow its business, spearheading the implementation of
SignalDemand's price optimization solution. Recently, Cargill announced 25
percent year over year growth in Q4 2008, attributing its success to the
company's strategic use of information to drive intelligent
decision-making. Increasingly, access to business intelligence that
directly impacts profitability will become the base line price for entry in
terms of an organization's competitive advantage.
Mr. Rupp is also a board member of the Kansas Big Brothers Big Sisters and
Lose The Training
Wheels, a startup not for profit that specializes in helping children
with disabilities learn to ride bikes. He holds a BS in business
administration from the University of South Dakota.
About SignalDemand
SignalDemand provides manufacturers with on-demand software and services to
achieve maximum profit margins in the face of volatile markets and
increasingly complex pricing decisions. Using patented, comprehensive
mathematical models to process thousands of variables, SignalDemand's
technology allows customers to adjust supply and demand on a continual
basis. By recommending best price, supply utilization and product mix in
moments, SignalDemand enables better day-to-day decision-making.
SignalDemand was recognized as a 2008 Rising Star in Deloitte's Technology
Fast 50 program for Silicon Valley. The company was named a "Cool Vendor"
in the Gartner "Cool Vendors in Manufacturing, 2008" and was the only
on-demand pricing company recognized by JMP Securities' "Hot 100" list of
private companies in 2008. Companies such as Cargill, Farmland Foods,
Hormel, National Frozen Foods, Rich Products, Seaboard Foods and Ventura
Foods rely on SignalDemand for immediate and ongoing improvement of
financial performance. For more information, please visit
www.signaldemand.com.