The moves represent a ‘thoughtful and strategic approach to long-term growth,’ according to General Mills.
“To ensure that we continue to execute well and to deliver on our commitments to improve sales growth and strong profitability, we have been intentional in the timing of our transitions,” said CEO and chairman of the Board Jeff Harmening.
CFO Don Mulligan will retire next June after 12 years in the role, and will start acting in an advisory capacity starting in February. The current controller, Kofi Bruce, will take his place.
Mulligan has spent more than two decades at General Mills in various financial capacities, leading a 185% increase in shareholder value, according to Harmening.
“[Mulligan] was instrumental in this performance by helping craft plans that balanced long-term growth and profitability and initiatives that actively transformed our portfolio to be more global and more growth-facing,” he said.
“His dedication to employees and shareholders alike has helped mold General Mills into the global company it is today.”
Kofi joined the company in 2009, following leadership stints at Ford Motor Company and Ecolab, a water, hygiene and energy company based in Minnesota. In each of his financial roles at General Mills, he guided the convenience store and foodservice segments to higher profitability, the company said, through a cross-functional approach to ‘creative, sustainable solutions to complex organizational challenges.’
Cereal changes on the international scene
In January, the maker of Cheerios and Nature Valley will also promote US cereal lead Dana McNabb to group president of its European and Australian segment.
McNabb is another 20-year company veteran and has served as VP of global marketing for Cereal Partners Worldwide (CPW), General Mills’ Switzerland-based collaboration with Nestlé.
She has been in her current US position since 2016, where she propelled ‘Big G’ cereals to the top of the category – a first since the mid-2000s, the company said. She ‘modernized’ marketing and helped create ‘top new products.’
