Last updated on June 27th, 2016 at 11:28 am
General Mills has appointed Jeffrey L. Harmening president and COO, effective July 1.
Harmening will be responsible for all company operations, including U.S. retail, international, the convenience store and foodservice segments, sales and channel development, as well as global supply chain, and innovation, technology and quality functions. Harmening will continue to report to chairman and CEO Ken Powell. Harmening’s successor will be announced at a later date.
Harmening, 49, is a 22-year veteran of General Mills and has served as the EVP and COO of the $10 billion U.S. retail segment since May 2014. Previously, Harmening was CEO of Cereal Partners Worldwide (CPW), the company’s joint venture in Switzerland with Nestlé. In that role, he was responsible for the nearly $2 billion global cereal business that distributes products to more than 130 countries outside North America. Harmening also has served as president of the General Mills cereal operating unit and in various U.S. marketing roles.
“Jeff has a wide range of experience in both the U.S. and internationally. The timing is right to bring together overall operations under one leader. Jeff is well positioned to accelerate our global Consumer First strategy to drive both growth and profitability,” said Powell.
Harmening holds a bachelor’s degree from DePauw University and an MBA from Harvard University. He serves as a trustee for DePauw University and is on the board of Partners in Food Solutions, a global non-profit organization that brings together business and technical expertise from global food companies to help fight hunger in Africa. Harmening also serves on the board of CPW.
