Kevin Alavi, ’02, MBA ‘15, Leads Food Wholesaler UNFI’s Sustainable Operations
As the director of sustainability and social Impact at United Natural Foods, Inc. (UNFI), Kevin Alavi, ’02, MBA ’15, focuses on renewable energy, energy efficiency, waste, recycling, donations and reporting for the food wholesaler.
UNFI is North America’s premier grocery wholesaler delivering the widest variety of fresh, branded, and owned brand products to more than 30,000 locations throughout North America, including natural product superstores, independent retailers, conventional supermarket chains, ecommerce providers, and food service customers. Alavi is tasked with making their operations more eco-friendly.
“The projects we work on support our national footprint of large, cold storage distribution centers that consume a great deal of energy and waste,” Alavi said. “These projects are geared to reduce the energy we use while producing our own natural energy to offset consumption, while working toward zero waste processes.”
Reflecting on his career, which has spanned 20 years and began in marketing, purchasing and procurement, Alavi is grateful to have found a passion for sustainability and social impact in business.
“I am fortunate to have a position that fills my cup in many areas,” he said. “I lead a talented team of people who I enjoy working with and focus on their development and wellbeing. The impact of our work makes a difference in the communities our business serves and for our associates. Whether it’s our renewable energy projects or our donations program, the work my team is leading has real impact. You can see the fruits of our labor with every project and the impact it has our on our people, communities and climate.”
While Alavi enjoys his daily work, it is not without obstacles.
“The biggest challenge I face in my role is the cost of capital that is required for many of our projects,” he said. “This is true for all organizations, prioritizing which projectshave the biggest impact and to proceed with. Through my education and experience, I have created a strategy to identify which projects will yield the greatest return on investment while contributing to our climate targets. When we present project that contribute to our climate targets, promise strong ROI and improve processes, our success rate for approval is much higher.”
Alavi has successfully managed the planning and execution of over 100-plus projects per year in a fast-paced setting while meeting budgets and timelines for commercial, retail and hospitality environments. His career journey started decades ago when he was growing up in the 1980s in Elk Grove Village, Illinois. The biggest influences in his young life were his siblings, who helped him to focus on the future.
“Being the youngest, I had the advantage of watching my brother and two sisters tackle and succeed at life — whether it was in education or their careers,” he said. “As I started college and in the beginning days of my career, my oldest sister, Neda Alavi, was my go-to for advice. She still is. She has been the constant professional and blueprint for success, as far as I can remember.”
Neda excelled in school and her career and now is a chief learning officer and managing director at Deloitte.
“She always gives me direct and honest feedback, never sugar-coating it. Sometimes it wasn’t easy to hear what she had to say, but it always comes with the best intentions for my growth, success and happiness,” he said.
After graduating high school, Alavi was attracted to NIU because of that sibling connection.
“My brother, Steven, went to NIU and graduated with a degree in accounting in 1997. I saw his immediate success in job placement after graduating; that was a major factor for why I chose NIU,” Alavi said. “I chose to pursue a degree in marketing with an emphasis in sales as it aligned with my passion of problem-solving while connecting and helping others.”
During this time, the late Marvin Rosen, a history professor, guided Alavi during a pivotal time in his college journey.
“I was 19 years old and a little lost. Professor Rosen saw that and spent time with me outside class to help get me back on track,” Alavi said.
NIU’s sales marketing program provided Alavi with connections to many organizations with real-life experiences, and this opened the doors to opportunity.
“The classroom atmosphere, curriculum and frequent role-playing mirrored Corporate America, and they were key contributors to my early success,” he said.
Post-graduation in 2002, Alavi started his career in sales. After a few years, however, he transitioned into procurement.
“Having the sales experience was one side of the negotiation table, so it was fitting to join procurement, the other side of the table,” he said. “Though it was a leap, and in some ways a reset in my career path, it was the best decision I made. Being involved in procurement, I supported many business units: operations, marketing, communications, and health and safety, while partnering with legal and finance. It gave me so much exposure to the inner workings of the entire organization and taught me so many skills.”
When Alavi began at Sears Holdings in 2009, he had only been with the procurement team for a couple of weeks when he was asked to lead a project.
“The next thing I knew, I was in the C-suite wing of the building, sitting with leaders that I wouldn’t normally have a chance to work with. [Former Sears CEO] Eddie Lampert was on the screen via video, and I remember being in awe of the setting I was in. It was then that I realized the real opportunity that procurement could open up for me, and reflecting back today, it certainly has,” he said.
After moving up the ladder at Clarie’s Accessories and Attract, Alavi decided to return to NIU to earn his MBA.
“I chose NIU for my MBA program for a couple reasons. First, because I had a positive experience with my undergraduate program, my confidence was high that I would replicate that with the MBA program. Also, having one of the campuses in Hoffman Estates made it much more manageable while working full time in that area,” he said.
Alavi was proud to return to the classroom with Huskies who were resilient, adaptable and had a growth mindset, as well as true grit. He is quick to credit Management Professor Jon Briscoe with teaching him how to look inward and address his own strengths and opportunities.
“I learned so much about myself, which led to so much personal development and growth. [Professor Briscoe] was a catalyst that fueled my passion for leading others,” he said.
During the MBA program, Alavi earned a graduate certificate in managerial leadership, which focused on psychology, motivation and what fuels someone to be motivated and stay motivated.
“These additional classes have been critical to the success I have experienced as a leader. Many, if not all, of the skills I have learned in this program I exercise and use today. As a result, I have developed and promoted many associates that I led. When I look back at all that I have achieved, I am most proud of all the people I have helped achieve their professional goals,” he said.
After earning his MBA, Alavi went to work in sustainability for Humanscale before landing at UNFI. From here, he hopes to continue his career in sustainability.
“I want to be in a role where I am crafting and executing business strategies to improve operational efficiencies and processes,” he said.
“I take real pride in developing people, and I continue to see myself in a role where that is one of the core responsibilities.”
