North America Cereal Co. Profile
North America Cereal Co. is a cereal leader in the U.S., Canada, and Caribbean, with beloved brands, a heritage of innovation, and more than a century of operational success.
As a standalone company, North America Cereal Co. will have greater strategic focus and operational flexibility, and will direct capital and resources toward unlocking growth, regaining category share, and restoring and expanding profit margins.
~$2.4 B*
est. annual net sales
~$250 M*
est. adj. EBITDA
*All net sales and adjusted-basis EBITDA figures are based on the Company’s 2021 unaudited results derived from internal management reporting, further adjusted for splits by brands and markets, as well as preliminary cost and expense allocations, including corporate expenses; these figures will be refined prior to the transactions. Please refer to the reconciliations of adjusted-basis EBITDA, a non-GAAP financial measure, to reported operating profit in the press release about this announcement.
Leadership Team
Gary Pilnick
Chief Executive Officer
As a highly respected 22-year veteran of Kellogg and an Executive Committee member since 2003, Gary possesses a deep knowledge of the business. In his current role as Vice Chairman, Corporate Development and Chief Legal Officer of Kellogg Company, Gary is involved in key decisions across every facet of the business, including most recently as part of the team of executives leading the move to separate Kellogg into three independent companies.
Gary was a key architect of Kellogg’s proven Deploy for Growth strategy and has been heavily involved in shaping the Company’s growth portfolio, spearheading many major strategic initiatives including the acquisition of Pringles and the Company’s expansion into Africa. He has also overseen a number of complex operational initiatives at Kellogg, which have resulted in demonstrable improvements to the Company’s operational efficiency and effectiveness. In addition to his deep understanding of the business, Gary has significant and wide-ranging expertise bridging corporate strategy, M&A, legal, investor relations, and supply chain, amongst other areas. Gary has profound affection for the Company, consistently demonstrating that to those he touches with his engaging and inspiring leadership style.
In a career spanning more than three decades, Gary has built substantial experience in the consumer packaged goods sector, his decades at Kellogg having followed leadership roles at Specialty Foods Corporation and Sara Lee Corporation.
Norma Barnes-Euresti
Chief Legal Officer
Norma is a 23-year veteran of Kellogg Company and brings her substantial knowledge of Kellogg and the ready-to-eat-cereal category to the role of Chief Legal Officer of North America Cereal Co. In her current role as Vice President and Chief Counsel, Employment, Ethics & Compliance at Kellogg Company, Norma manages all Kellogg business units in the areas of labor and employment. Norma joined the Keebler Company in November 1999 and became an employee of Kellogg as part of the Company’s 2001 acquisition of the Keebler business. She is an American Bar Association Fellow, and serves on the Board of Directors for the National Judicial College and the LGBT Bar Association.
Shannon Bible
Chief Transformation Officer
In her current position as Senior Director, Strategic Initiatives, Shannon plays a leading role in managing the separation of Kellogg into three independent companies, making her the ideal choice to take on the future role of North America Cereal Co.’s Chief Transformation Officer. Shannon has an impressive track record of leading transitions and transformations, including Kellogg’s $1.3 billion sale of the Keebler business and the construction and execution of the related Transition Services Agreement (TSA). Her nearly 10-year career at Kellogg includes having served as the finance and accounting lead within Global Business Services.
Sherry Brice-Williamson
Chief Supply Chain Officer
Sherry brings 20 years of substantial operating experience across the supply chain to her role as Chief Supply Chain Officer of North America Cereal Co. She has been with Kellogg for more than a decade, and in that time, she has held a number of leadership roles spanning manufacturing, category operations, and quality and compliance. In her role as Vice President, Global Food Safety and Quality, Sherry leads the Company’s quality and compliance processes globally. She joined Kellogg as part of the Pringles acquisition from Procter & Gamble, where she served in a variety of supply chain roles over nearly 14 years.
Bruce Brown
Chief Customer Officer
Bruce brings significant, broad-based sales and customer expertise to the role of Chief Customer Officer of North America Cereal Co. Throughout his nearly 25 years at Kellogg, Bruce has held a variety of leadership roles across sales and customer marketing in both cereal and snacks, including as Senior Vice President, Western Customer Teams, and Senior Vice President, National Customer Teams. On top of his current role as Vice President, Customer Strategy and Planning, he has led significant projects to integrate, optimize and position the Company, and his team members, for future growth. Prior to Kellogg, Bruce held sales roles at Mott’s USA and The Dial Corporation.
Mike Christensen
Chief Human Resources Officer
In his current position as Senior Director, Human Resources for North America Sales, Mike plays a critical role in overseeing our Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion strategy, and in driving talent, organizational effectiveness, and culture at Kellogg, making him the ideal choice to take on the role of Chief Human Resources Officer of North America Cereal Co. Throughout his more than 11-year career at Kellogg, he has held roles supporting the ready-to-eat cereal business, developing significant expertise in organization and change management as well as talent strategy. Prior to joining Kellogg in 2011, Mike held several human resources roles at The Toro Company.
Stacy Flathau
Chief Corporate Affairs Officer
Building on her 13-year Kellogg career, Stacy brings significant stakeholder engagement experience to the role of Chief Corporate Affairs Officer of North America Cereal Co. where she will be responsible for communications, government relations and philanthropy. In her current role as Senior Director, Corporate Communications at Kellogg Company, Stacy is responsible for external communications, including media relations, crisis communications, supply chain, and labor communications. Prior to joining Kellogg, Stacy was a journalist for 15 years, reporting on business and partnering with an editorial board of staff and community leaders as a Metro Editor and Columnist at the Battle Creek Enquirer.
Sarah Ludmer
Chief Wellbeing and ESG Officer
As the current Senior Director of Wellbeing and Regulatory at Kellogg Company, Sarah brings deep experience to the role of Chief Wellbeing and ESG Officer of North America Cereal Co., where she will shape the company’s wellbeing and regulatory agenda, and oversee Consumer Affairs. The entire North America Cereal Co. leadership team will work together to create and deliver the company’s ESG strategy, and she will partner with Doug VanDeVelde, Chief Growth Officer, to commercialize ESG. Since joining Kellogg in 2014, Sarah has worked on nutrition marketing and regulatory initiatives that have helped shape the Company’s growth portfolio. Prior to joining Kellogg, Sarah managed the Nutrition Working Group at Del Monte Foods and worked as a clinical dietitian. In her new role, Sarah will report to both Gary Pilnick, Chief Executive Officer, and Doug VanDeVelde, Chief Growth Officer.
Dave McKinstray
Chief Financial Officer
Dave is a seasoned financial executive who has held multiple operating Chief Financial Officer roles throughout his nearly 15 years at Kellogg. In addition, he has significant experience in global roles across risk management, treasury, and corporate and financial planning. He brings deep financial and analytical expertise to the Chief Financial Officer role of North America Cereal Co., having served as CFO of the U.S. Snacks business and as CFO of U.S. Retail Sales before moving into his current role as Vice President, Integrated Business Planning. He has played a leading role in several strategic initiatives at Kellogg. His roles prior to Kellogg included positions in commodity risk management and trading.
Bill Rex
Chief Information Officer
As the current Chief Information Officer of Kellogg North America, Bill is uniquely positioned to step into the role of Chief Information Officer of North America Cereal Co. Bill brings significant IT expertise and leadership experience to the role, having led several successful IT transformation programs at Kellogg. Prior to joining Kellogg in 2020, Bill held IT positions at Stryker, Mylan, and Rockwell Collins.
Doug VanDeVelde
Chief Growth Officer
As the current General Manager of Kellogg’s U.S. Cereal business and one of the industry’s foremost experts on ready-to-eat cereal, Doug brings deep and varied experience to the role of Chief Growth Officer of North America Cereal Co. Throughout his more than 25-year career at Kellogg he has built deep commercial expertise and has served in a number of leadership roles, including Senior Vice President, Global Breakfast Category, and Senior Vice President, Marketing and Innovation for U.S. Morning Foods. He is highly respected across the Kellogg world for his knowledge of the ready-to-eat cereal category and our strategic playbook. His role as Chief Growth Officer of North America Cereal Co. will encompass Marketing, R&D, Revenue Growth Management, and Insights & Analytics.
Our Brands
List of brands is meant to be indicative and not exhaustive.