| Talent Intelligence · US Food & Beverage · Issue 01 |
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Every Wednesday: one story and the hiring it causes, the week's senior moves in US food and beverage manufacturing, one number from my own desk, and three operators I represent. Every claim is linked, so you can check me.
The first few issues are open to anyone with the link. After that, the full issue goes to subscribers.
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| 01 · The Signal |
| The COO seat is going. The work is not. |
On 4 September, Conagra Brands retired its chief operating officer and deleted the job. On 1 October, Post Holdings makes its chief operating officer the chief executive. Three days later, Tyson Foods hands the top job to a 35-year Procter & Gamble commercial leader, with a Tyson operator running the segments underneath him.
Conagra's two division presidents, Noelle O'Mara and Jill Dexter, now report straight to John Brase, who arrived as CEO in June from J.M. Smucker, where he was president and COO. Post's Nicolas Catoggio has been COO only since January. At Tyson, Jeff Schomburger succeeds Donnie King, with Wes Morris, a former Tyson Prepared Foods and Poultry president, as COO.
Three decisions, one question: where does the operating load sit relative to the CEO? Conagra and Post put an operator in the top seat. Tyson put a commercial leader there and kept a strong operator beneath.
Nobody removed the work. At Conagra it now sits with two division presidents carrying plants, networks and capital calls with nobody between them and the CEO.
Which is where the hiring lands. A leader who suddenly reports to the CEO rebuilds their own bench first: VP Manufacturing, VP Supply Chain, VP Food Safety and Quality, and the plant leaders who now decide what used to go up a level. I would expect that rebuild to surface through the first half of 2027, as the new chief executives set their first full operating plans. If you supply or co-manufacture for any of the three, expect calls to your best operators.
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Sources:
Conagra, leadership update, 28 Jul 2026 ·
Food Dive, Conagra names Brase CEO ·
Post Holdings, executive transition, 7 May 2026 ·
Tyson Foods, Schomburger to succeed King, 28 May 2026 ·
Tyson Foods, Morris named COO
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| 02 · The Move List |
| Senior moves taking effect in September and October. Every company name links to the release behind the row. Names link to LinkedIn where I could confirm the profile. |
| Who and what |
Company · moved from |
Effective |
John Ghingo
President and CEO |
Hormel Foods
President, Hormel |
26 Oct 2026 |
Jeff Schomburger
President and CEO |
Tyson Foods
Tyson board since 2016; ex-Global Sales Officer, P&G |
4 Oct 2026 |
Donnie King
Steps down as CEO |
Tyson Foods
43 years at Tyson |
4 Oct 2026 |
Nicolas Catoggio
President and CEO |
Post Holdings
EVP and COO, Post |
1 Oct 2026 |
Rob Vitale
Executive Chairman |
Post Holdings
Chairman and CEO, Post |
1 Oct 2026 |
Tom McGough
Retires as EVP and COO; role eliminated |
Conagra Brands
Nearly two decades at Conagra |
4 Sep 2026 |
Dave Hulays
Chief Financial Officer |
Hershey
SVP Finance, Hershey |
2 Sep 2026 |
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| 03 · The Read |
| With no COO, who owns the plants on a bad Tuesday? |
Taking out a COO layer is the right call more often than it gets credit for. It fails one way: the seat goes, the decision rights stay put, and every trade-off between a plant, a customer and a capital budget lands on the CEO's desk, slower than before.
Hire a division president or chief supply chain officer into that structure and you are not hiring the job on the org chart. You are hiring the part of the COO's job that was handed down without the title. Most interview plans never test for it.
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| 1 | "Tell me about the last decision you escalated that, looking back, you should have made yourself."
What it tests: whether they will carry what the missing layer used to carry. A good answer names the decision and what the wait cost. |
| 2 | "Your plant needs a line for a new customer next quarter, and your commercial lead has promised it to someone else. There is no COO. How does it get settled, and by when?"
What it tests: whether they settle cross-functional conflict with their peers, or route it to the CEO and call that alignment. |
| 3 | "What will you bring to the CEO in your first 90 days, and what will you make sure never reaches them?"
What it tests: whether they see a direct line to the CEO as a filter, not just access. Someone who can name what stays off that desk has worked without a buffer. |
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| 04 · The Number |
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13 of 73
senior leaders are available because someone else redrew the org chart.
A hand count of my active candidate files on 15 September 2026, counting only those where the recorded reason they are looking is a restructure, layoff, sale, merger or change of owner.
If your brief quietly screens out anyone between roles, you are screening out people whose seat was removed for them, not by them.
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| 05 · On the Bench |
| Three senior operators I represent. Anonymous, because most people worth hiring at this level are still in post. |
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HC-058
Operational risk and EHS executive, president level. Multi-site manufacturing and distribution. 29 years.
• Ran technical services and risk across a US and Canada network, reporting to the CEO and board
• Sustained a 60 percent cut in injuries and at-fault vehicle accidents; related insurance premiums down 35 percent
• Chaired a global safety leadership council spanning North America, Europe and South America
Right fit for: a multi-site business where operational risk is a drag on margin or the exit story. Currently bench-available. Will not relocate; travels anywhere in North America.
Request the unredacted profile: HC-058
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HC-059
Senior Director, Transportation and Fulfillment. 28 years. Former Army logistics officer.
• Built a direct-to-consumer fulfillment operation from nothing to 98 percent of orders shipped within 72 hours
• Grew a logistics team from one person to more than 50 across eight departments through rapid store expansion
• Eliminated big-box retailer chargebacks at a consumer products manufacturer
Right fit for: a growth-stage brand adding a second channel, or a distribution network that has outgrown its leadership. Currently bench-available. Mid-Atlantic or remote.
Request the unredacted profile: HC-059
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HC-060
VP Engineering and Project Management. Capital delivery and automation. 15 years.
• Owned capital engineering, automation and construction across a multi-site portfolio; built and led a 30-person organisation
• Recovered a stalled, high-visibility production automation program
• Earlier career in large-scale energy infrastructure, so the capital discipline is real
Right fit for: a business mid-build on a new plant, or running an automation program that has slipped. Currently bench-available. Pennsylvania base; open to relocation and travel.
Request the unredacted profile: HC-060
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| 06 · One Line Back |
| Does your business still have a chief operating officer? |
| Reply with yes, no, or "we just took it out". Reading on the web? Email me the one word. I will publish the split next Wednesday. |
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Issue 02 lands Wednesday 23 September, 6am Central, with what you told me about the COO seat and that week's moves.
Know someone who runs plants, or hires the people who do? Forward them this.
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I run retained executive search for US food and beverage manufacturers, Director to C-suite. One sector, one person, a small number of mandates at a time. I put a leader forward only when the move advances their career and answers a problem the business actually has. Appointments hold because of what I decline, not what I close.
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If the COO question is live for you: [email protected], or thirty minutes here.
Scott Williams
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