Last updated on August 22nd, 2014 at 01:11 pm
Affiliated Foods in Amarillo, Texas, promoted three employees, effective July 28. Jeff Robinson is new COO; Dave Hiatt is CFO; and Alan Craig is director of purchasing.
Robinson took on the COO position that had been vacant for many years. He will be involved in all segments of the business and will assist Affiliated Foods President and CEO Randy Arceneaux in the growth and continued stability of the company.
Robinson joined Affiliated Foods in 2003 as a grocery buyer and quickly advanced through the buying department to director of purchasing. He launched new marketing, reclamation and planogram programs; implemented food safety and recall systems; restructured the purchasing department to reduce expenses and improve product mix skills; and maintained budget goals.
Before starting with Affiliated, Robinson was a software engineer attached to the U.S. Army Research Laboratory High-Performance Computing Center in Maryland.
Robinson grew up in Amarillo and is a graduate of West Texas A&M University. He furthered his education by achieving his master’s of science in mathematics from Texas Tech University.
Hiatt came to Affiliated Foods in the latter part of 2013 as controller. As CFO he succeeds Tammie Coffee, who retired to pursue other interests. Hiatt is responsible for all aspects of accounting at Affiliated Foods, including the departments of payables, receivables, payroll and general ledger in accordance with procedures and practices required by law, as well as ethics and policy. His career spans 30-plus years of accounting experience.
Hiatt received his bachelor’s degree in accounting from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, and his master’s of accounting from The University of Rhode Island. He formerly served with international accounting firms including Price Waterhouse, had his own bookkeeping, accounting and consulting business, and held top financial positions in food service, warehousing and manufacturing companies across the country.
In his new role, Craig, a 37-year veteran of Affiliated Foods, is charged with overseeing category managers and buyers, managing marketing funds, negotiating best pricing programs, training and many other functions associated with the job, while maintaining fiscal and operational leadership.
Craig went to work for Affiliated in 1976 as an order puller while still in college. He also unloaded railcars when it was done by hand, one case at a time. He advanced to forklift driver, managing overstock and pick-slot replenishment and then moved on to the front dock as quality control checker.
In 1983, Craig moved into the office as buyer and became proficient in purchasing multiple categories of products, keeping out-of-stocks at a minimum, selecting suggested ad items and negotiating with vendors for deals and allowances. He moved to category manager last year, where he oversaw the training and guidance of buyers and expanded duties in negotiating for deals and allowances working with outside auditors.
Craig is a native of Pampa, a graduate of West Texas A&M University and is married to Cindy Craig, executive assistant to the president and COO of Affiliated Foods.
