About
Distribution Strategy Group’s thought leadership, research and consulting services are led by a team with decades of experience as senior operators in the distribution industry. They have since worked with more than 70 distribution companies to build a solid foundation to win in today’s changing market.
Ian G. Heller
Co-Founder & Chief Strategy Officer
Ian Heller has more than 30 years of experience executing marketing and e-business strategy in the wholesale distribution industry. He has written and spoken extensively on the impact of digital disruption on distributors.
Ian entered the distribution industry as a truck unloader at a Grainger branch while in college. He eventually became Vice President of Marketing there and has since held senior executive roles at GE Capital, Corporate Express, Newark Electronics and HD Supply. Ian most recently served as President and COO for Modern Distribution Management, a specialized information and analytics firm serving the wholesale distribution industry.
Ian earned a BA in History from Roosevelt University and an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, where he was elected commencement speaker by his classmates and won the Dean’s Distinguished Service Award.
Jonathan Bein, Ph.D.
Co-Founder and Managing Partner
Jonathan Bein, Ph.D. has worked with many distributors to make their marketing a profit center. He has developed and applied analytic approaches for customer segmentation, customer lifecycle management, positioning and messaging, pricing, and channel strategy for distributors.
Prior to Distribution Strategy Group, Bein has successfully led and been part of executive management for software product and services companies in information technology, healthcare, and communications. Bein has been CEO of several companies including:
SkyeTek — grew revenues and valuation four-fold of RFID manufacturer in seven months.
IGS, Inc. — delivered 100 software solutions for companies such as AT&T, Comcast, Verizon, and Lucent.
Bolder Heuristics, Inc. — achieved Inc 500 ranking with software services for telecommunications, healthcare, and IT.
As VP Engineering at Informed Access, a provider of phone based healthcare triage, he drove development of core products and services and the company was subsequently sold for $300M. As VP, Engineering at Telwatch, Bein drove development of network management software that became the core platform for Objective Systems. At Martin Marietta, he applied artificial intelligence to perform automatic real-time fault handling of spacecraft hardware.
Bein earned his Ph.D. in Computer Science at the University of Colorado with a focus in Data Intensive Expert Systems and a BA in Computer Science at Indiana University.
Claire Chaplais
VP, Operations
Claire Chaplais is Distribution Strategy Group’s VP of Operations. She has more than 25 years of experience in operations and marketing communications strategy and management, primarily in the high-tech industry.
With extensive experience and a strong track record in business development, content marketing and events, Claire has worked for companies including Wind River Systems, StorageTek, Harris Broadcasting and Gestalt IT. Claire prefers fast paced environments, and thrives on developing and implementing successful business operations plans, and on motivating great teams to deliver strong and successful programs.
At Distribution Strategy Group, Claire oversees all operations, including project and program management; client contracts and communications; human resources, contract management and more. She ensures we deliver programs on time, and helps us meet the goals of our company, our audience and our clients.
Claire graduated from the EM Normadie School of Business with a BS in Business and Marketing
Dakotah Kirchenwitz
Director of Business Development
Dakotah is focused on ensuring the creation of engaging and useful content for Distribution Strategy Group’s distributor audience and optimizing results for DSG’s partners.
Starting his career as a warehouse worker, Kirchenwitz has eight years of sales and marketing experience in the construction and distribution industries. He worked up to warehouse management and then moved into a customer-facing sales role.