(Newport Beach, California) – BirchStreet Systems, the market leader in P2P software for the hospitality industry, announces the addition of Craig Selwitz as Senior Vice President for Supplier Services. With more than 30 years of experience in hospitality supply chain automation, Selwitz brings a 360-degree perspective and comprehensive vision for how buyers and suppliers can partner to innovate and transform the hospitality supply chain. The addition of Selwitz to the BirchStreat team further deepens the Company’s commitment to enabling its customers and their suppliers to increase efficiency through the use of technology.
“Selwitz brings years of supplier management and supply chain thought-leadership to BirchStreet. As a passionate believer in customer service and the use of technology to streamline and automate supply chain processes, Craig has a proven record of creatively solving complex problems endemic to hospitality,” said Steve Markle, CEO at BirchStreet Systems.
“Craig’s deep understanding of the opportunity for value creation for both buyers and suppliers makes him a highly strategic addition to the BirchStreet leadership team,” Markle continued. “As head of the BirchStreet Supplier initiative, Craig will bolster our position as the thought leader and solutions provider for the entire hospitality supply chain ecosystem.”
At BirchStreet, Selwitz will build upon his prior successes and create a robust supplier centric program. He will also design offerings that enable BirchStreet’s customers and their suppliers to achieve digital transformation through automating manual processes, thereby eliminating paper and achieving true touchless processing.
“Craig adheres to a philosophy that all members of the supply chain have a responsibility to ensure everyone is rowing in the same direction and working toward a common goal,” added Markle. “He believes in mutually beneficial relationships between buyers and suppliers that result in win-win partnerships. Old school procurement philosophies that pit buyers against suppliers are rapidly becoming a thing of the past. The new paradigm puts a premium on labor efficiencies, frictionless processes, and the business intelligence that comes from a tightly integrated supply chain.”
Additionally, Selwitz will also be tasked with refining BirchStreet’s Business Intelligence offering that provides visibility and control over buyer-level participation with contracted suppliers and items. Moreover, he will continue to enhance the BirchStreet analytics toolset that provides deep insights into buying behaviors across multiple locations with easy to create and consume dashboards and reports.
“I am excited to be joining BirchStreet as they are in a unique position to develop solutions that are truly a win-win-win for buyers, distributors, and manufacturers. BirchStreet is in position to add value at all levels and for all three, by enhancing buyer’s ability to honor their commitments to manufacturers, removing administrative friction from distributors’ processes, and enhancing manufacturer’s ability to serve their customers by deepening their understanding of when and how their products are being used in the marketplace,” said Selwitz.
Selwitz began his career in hospitality with Marriott in restaurant operations before spending time in Internal Audit, Accounting/Finance, and Strategic Contracting. He was a member of Marriott’s Procurement Division when it was spun-off in 2000 to create Avendra, forming the largest hospitality-focused GPO whose founded members included Marriott, Intercontinental Hotel Group, Fairmont Hotels, Hyatt Hotels, and Club Corp.
While at Avendra, Craig’s focus shifted from traditional procurement to the emerging disciplines of eCommerce and data analytics. While Craig was the leader of Avendra’s eCommerce activities, Avendra’s business grew by over 800%. Additionally, during this period Craig drove collaboration between BirchStreet and Avendra to create multiple innovative supply chain management systems and processes, including an automated price audit utility, item and supplier compliance monitoring, and reporting. Most recently, Craig led the development of a ground-breaking item management system that allows clients to more precisely monitor and proactively control non-compliant purchases, ensuring optimum participation in all supplier agreements.
Selwitz holds a bachelor’s degree in Finance and a Master’s in Supply Chain Management, both from Penn State University.
