The NCA Next Generation

Meet the future leaders of the coffee industry

Join the NCA Next Gen Coffee Professional Group

The Next Generation group is an ongoing initiative from the NCA to support talented young professionals who are passionate about the coffee industry.

Whether you want to change your career or change the world, we encourage you to get involved. This is a unique opportunity to build your network, gain real-world leadership experience, and give back to the community. (And you never know where the opportunity could lead.)

For more information, please contact Matthew Cariani at mcariani@ncausa.org.

About Next Gen

NCA Next Generation Mission Statement

The Next Generation Council will identify, recruit, and engage the next generation of leaders in the US coffee industry. It will encourage the under-40 coffee community to participate in the National Coffee Association by increasing activity and input into events, providing ongoing education, and promoting leadership and development amongst its constituents. Doing so will provide the National Coffee Association with a steady stream of future leaders across the spectrum of the industry.

The group will be structured in two levels: leadership (the Next Gen Council) and membership.

General membership is open to young professionals between the ages of 21-39 who are working or interning in the coffee industry.

Registration is accepted on a rolling basis. Those interested in being a member of the General Membership should submit this form, or contact Matthew Cariani at mcariani@ncausa.org.

The Next Gen Council

You can help shape the future of the NCA - and the coffee industry.

Members of the Next Gen Council will establish themselves as industry leaders through unique, hands-on experience and networking opportunities with NCA Board members and senior executives.

Next Gen Leadership will be responsible for setting the strategic direction of the group and working with the NCA Board of Directors. The council consists of three officers (Past-Chair, Chair, Vice-Chair) and five council members. Leadership roles are determined by the NCA External Member Relations (EMR) Committee.

Non-officer council members must chair or co-chair one of the Next Gen Council committees.

NCA Next Gen Council members must be employed by NCA member organizations.

NCA Next Gen Council Application

NCA Next Gen Committees

Looking to get more involved in the NCA Next Gen? Join one of three Next Gen Committees. Play an integral role in the planning and execution of Next Gen initiatives. We are looking for dedicated, enthusiastic and motivated people to join the Communications, Events and Engagement Committees.

Committee Request Form

The Next Generation Council

Chair
Zach Olsen
Regional Account Manager, BUNN-O-Matic Corporation

With over 10 years of experience in the coffee industry, Zach has a strong passion for the business. He started his foodservice career 15 years ago as a fine dining server at a country club in East Lansing, MI.

Those early experiences in turn, helped provide an added perspective for this industry . Zach holds a Bachelors of Science in Food Industry Management from Michigan State University where he continues his involvement as a volunteer, participating in several speaking engagements throughout the year. From 2007-2015 he worked in various professional sales roles for a regional coffee roaster, spending half of those years living in Chicago. In January 2015 he started working as a Regional Account Manager for BUNN and moved back to his native state of Michigan.

Vice Chair
Janet Colley Morse
Vice President, The Dupuy Group

Janet Colley Morse represents the 4th generation of The Dupuy Group, which was founded by John Dupuy in 1936. Since the early years as a New Orleans coffee warehouse, Dupuy has expanded to 4 additional port cities including Miami, Houston, Jacksonville, FL, and Charleston, SC. With coffee still serving as the main commodity handled by Dupuy, the company has broadened its scope to include a variety of value added services including cleaning, upgrading, and blending.

Janet serves as Vice President and is one of two remaining family members, the other of which being her father, Allan Colley, who serves as President of the organization. She serves on the Logistics Committee of the Green Coffee Association, is a past President of the Southern Coffee Association, and is currently President of theGreen Coffee Association of New Orleans.

Past Chair
Brandon Jackson
Vice President in Commodities & Logistics, Brown Brothers Harriman

Brandon Jackson is a Vice President in the Commodities & Logistics group at Brown Brothers Harriman. In this role, he manages a team of lenders responsible for structuring and managing senior secured revolving credit facilities for brokers/traders/distributors of metal, energy, and agricultural commodities. His responsibilities include relationship management, deal structuring, underwriting, and credit analysis.

Brandon joined BBH in 2008 in its Investor Services division. After being admitted into the firm’s Banking and Finance Training Program, he joined the Commodities & Logistics group. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Green Coffee Association. Brandon graduated cum laude from Villanova University in 2008 with a B.S. in business administration, triple majoring in finance, marketing and international business.

Kyle Bawot
Coffee Trader, Olam Americas

Kyle Bawot is a coffee trader at Olam Americas. He attended Skidmore College, from where he holds a BA in Economics. His interest in coffee was first sparked while serving as a Peace Corps Economic Development volunteer in Northern Peru, where he was first able to learn about the coffee supply chain. Shortly after his return to the US, Kyle landed an entry level position at Olam where he quickly worked his way into a trading role.

Kyle holds both Q Grader and ICE Exchange Grader licenses and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in International Political Economy on a full scholarship at Fordham University. His passion for the industry continues to grow but his true interest lies in addressing the ongoing sustainability challenges our industry faces.

Jonathan Gabbay
Vice President, RGC Coffee

Having officially started his coffee career over ten years ago, Jonathan extended the family tradition becoming the third generation of Gabbay coffee merchants. Starting in the coffee lab and working his way up to the trading desk, today Jonathan is Vice President of the company helping manage one of North America’s largest independent green coffee importers that services almost every major North American market.

During his career he attended numerous Canadian and US association events and today is extremely proud to be part of the NCA’s Next-Gen council with an eye on mentorship for young professionals just entering the coffee industry. Jonathan has a Finance degree from Montreal’s McGill University and has remained in the city, marrying his childhood sweetheart and working on the 4th generation of coffee professionals.

Shelby Westfeldt Mills
President and Coffee Trader, Westfeldt Brothers Inc.

Shelby Westfeldt Mills, began her career at Westfeldt Brothers Inc. in 2007 becoming the 6th generation to work for the family company. Shelby is the president of the New Orleans, Louisiana-based green coffee importer.

She started with WBI eleven years ago as a futures trader, and worked her way to Coffee Trader and Vice President of the company before assuming her current position in 2016. Prior to joining Westfeldt Bros, she was a soft commodities futures and options execution service clerk (New York Board of Trade) for East Coast Options Services in New York focusing in Coffee, Cocoa and Sugar.

During her career in coffee, Shelby has served as President of the Southern Coffee Association, The Pacific Coast Coffee Association and the Green Coffee Association of New Orleans as well as being a Board Member of the World Trade Center of New Orleans.

Shelby attended her first NCA convention as a little girl with her father and continued to do so throughout her career. She is honored to be a part of the Next Gen Council and enthusiastic to help pioneer the future of such an incredible organization. She resides in New Orleans with her husband John and daughters Sunny and Malin.

Eric Mitchell
Green Coffee Buyer, S&D Coffee and Tea

Eric Mitchell is a licensed Q Grader and Green Coffee Buyer at S&D Coffee and Tea. He attended James Madison University where he double majored in International Business-Finance and Spanish. His passion for the industry was first established while working with a small organic cooperative as a Peace Corps volunteer in Coto Brus, Costa Rica. From there he sought opportunities to learn about the industry, which led him to work with both a small exporter in Tepic, Mexico and as a volunteer on a Haitian USAID project.

Amber Gray
Manager of Green Coffee Operations and Distribution, Starbucks Coffee Company

Amber Gray is the manager of green coffee operations and distribution for Starbucks Coffee Company. She leads a growing network of green coffee warehouses, supporting operations for the US and international markets. Amber has been in the coffee industry for 5 years; her journey beginning at Atlas Coffee Importers where she provided logistics services for specialty roasters across the US. Amber has an analytical background, stemming back 18 years when she worked for a post payment auditing firm in Arkansas and subsequently a food distribution company planning load distribution throughout the US.

Her path took an alternative course in 2011 when she embarked upon a culinary journey, studying baking and pastry arts at the Oregon Culinary Institute in Portland.

Working in coffee has been the perfect combination of Amber’s strategic and analytical abilities paired with her creative interest and curiosity in food and beverage. In her free time, she enjoys running in the Pacific Northwest, exploring craft breweries and spending time with her fur balls, Barley and Hudson.

Leadership Criteria

Applicants must do the following to be eligible for a leadership role:

Submit a commitment letter from a manager stating that an individual has permission to attend the annual Next Gen council meeting at the NCA Annual Convention
Provide a resume and cover letter. (Cover letter explains an applicant’s reason for applying and how they can contribute.)
Submit a recommendation letter from a manager.
Served at least one year on a council committee. (This criteria does not apply for the 1st Council being formed this year)
Must be employed at an NCA member company

To be eligible for a Leadership position, the candidate must be 39 years or younger at the start of his/her term.

Term limits for leadership roles are set at two years with no option for reelection.

Selection Process

For the first cycle of leadership positions only, the NCA will select individuals who they feel possess leadership qualities and desire for making a meaningful impact within the NCA.