We are incredibly excited to announce that our employee, Muntazir (Monty) Mehdi, is one of this year’s 2022 Progressive Grocer GenNext Award recipients!
As the grocery industry continues to adapt to a quickly-changing landscape of new consumer attitudes and needs, grocery retailers must also welcome a new generation of leaders. These are individuals with fresh perspectives that align with the evolving nature of the food industry and are committed to innovation and unique solutions for every consumer need.
The Progressive Grocer GenNext Award aims to highlight individuals under the age of 40 who have taken the initiative to make an impact on their organization, industry, and colleagues and have set themselves apart as leaders pioneering the food retail field. These leaders aim to innovate new ways to improve processes within the industry. They also strive to disrupt outdated methods that consumers are turning against, including those that promote environmental damage and health issues.
Monty has been recognized as an outstanding grocery champion through his:
- High level of commitment to the food retail industry.
- Innovative thinking to overcome challenges and take advantage of opportunities that improve shoppers’ experiences.
- Inspirational actions, leadership, accomplishments, and vision.
- Drive to impact the world outside his scope of work by getting involved in the community.
We’re ecstatic to see that Monty’s accomplishments and efforts are being rewarded because he has been a visionary force in spearheading the development of our company’s analytics initiative. We pride ourselves on our AI (artificial intelligence) and ML (machine learning) initiatives and the value it brings to our customers, and Muntazir has played a vital role in the evolution of our Fresh Retail Platform.
In the midst of the pandemic, Monty helped set up the AI/Analytics function that currently helps hundreds of our clients’ stores understand the impact of shifting patterns and metrics. He recognized the major shift in consumer behaviors related to labor shortages and fresh food standards. Moreover, the insights gained from his work identified the exact areas of opportunity where stores could deliver more accurate forecasting, increase their operational efficiencies, and improve their employee and customer loyalty.
Alongside Invafresh’ team of data scientists and analysts, Monty engaged in consultations with retailers across North America to assist them in making data-driven decisions to improve the operation of their stores. The result was hundreds of grocery stores benefiting from reduced food waste, improved consumer experience, and increased fresh product availability despite existing external challenges.
At Invafresh, Monty has demonstrated a high degree of sensitivity and openness to different perspectives, opinions, and actions. His work is achieved with the utmost professionalism and thoughtfulness, and he’s able to use his technical know-how to develop innovative solutions to the ever-changing needs of our customers. All these traits combined with his passion for the field have helped us better understand our clients’ needs and the macro challenges within the grocery retail industry.
We could go on and on about Monty’s exceptional qualities and achievements as a Freshologist TM – but we’ll just let the award speak for itself! You can read the official announcement by heading over to the GenNext Awards page here.
