Investing.com -- The Wendy’s Co (NASDAQ:WEN) announced on Tuesday that Gunther Plosch will become the company's next Chief Financial Officer in early-May, ahead of a previously announced corporate succession plan in which CEO Emil Brolick intends to retire from the company near the end of next month.
Plosch, 48, comes to Wendy's after spending the last 16 years in a variety of finance positions at Kellogg Company (NYSE:K), including the last two as the company's Vice President of Global Business Services. At Wendy's annual stockholder meeting next month, Brolick is expected to be succeeded as the company's CEO by Todd Penegor, current president and CFO of the fast-food corporation. Penegor is expected to retain his position as president of the company, while Brolick is expected to remain on Wendy's Board of Directors, the company said in a statement.
"I am confident that Gunther will be an excellent addition to The Wendy's Company and our senior leadership team," Penegor said in a statement. "He brings a wealth of financial leadership experience from the food and consumer packaged goods industries, and he has a proven track record of driving growth and margin expansion, which will serve both our Company's and our franchisees' business models well. We are eager to benefit from his contributions to the brand."
Plosch started his career with Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) in Austria, where he spent nine years in a variety of roles, culminating with a position as Associate Director of Finance for the company's Eastern and Central Europe divisions. He joined Kellogg's in May, 2000, as the company's finance director of its U.K. division, before he earned a promotion to its U.S. business in May, 2005. In January, 2010, Plosch was named Kellogg's CFO of its North American operations, where he remained for four years until he was elevated to Vice President of Global Business Services. Shares in Wendy's were inactive in after-hours trading.
In Tuesday's regular session, Wendy's shares fell 0.05 or 0.46% to 10.93.