Executive shifts at J.M. Smucker Company
by February 10, 2015 11:39 am 129 views
On the heels of the Big Heart Pet Brands acquisition, J.M. Smucker announced a series of key executive promotions. The board of directors have approved the following changes, effective April 1.
Vincent Byrd will assume the role of vice chairman. Byrd now serves as president and chief operating officer. In this newly created position, Byrd, along with David West, will lead the integration and synergy efforts of the Big Heart Pet Brands transaction. Byrd has 38 years with the company.
Mark Smucker will assume the role of president, consumer and natural Foods. Smucker has 17 years of experience with the company, most recently serving as president, U.S. retail coffee.
Steven Oakland will become president, coffee and foodservice. He most recently was president, international, foodservice, and natural foods. This is Oakland’s 32nd year with the company.
Barry Dunaway will take over as president, international and chief administrative officer. He has 28 years of experience with the company, most recently serving as senior vice president and chief administrative officer.
In addition, following the anticipated closing of the Big Heart Pet Brands transaction by late spring, David West will assume the role of president, Big Heart Pet Food and Snacks. West is now the chief executive officer of Big Heart Pet Brands and has more than 25 years of food industry experience.
These five individuals, along with Mark Belgya, senior vice president and chief financial officer, will report to Richard Smucker.
"The executive promotions announced today, along with the talented teams that support them, continue to provide family leadership and broad management continuity, while also adding new talent to our leadership team," said CEO Richard Smucker. "This leadership team has a proven track record of growing brands and businesses and continues our history of strong succession to ensure our company's long-term growth."