Dunkin’ Donuts today announced the appointment of two senior-level strategic hires to support the brand’s ongoing focus on leadership marketing and operational excellence. Dan Saia, vice president of consumer engagement, and Weldon Spangler, regional vice president of the Midwest, bring a wealth of experience within the food and beverage industry and successful track records representing some of the world’s most prominent retail brands.
With more than 20 years of experience in strategic marketing for food service brands including 11 years at YUM! Brands, Daniel Saia has joined the company as vice president of consumer engagement. Saia will be responsible for the creation, development, and execution of Dunkin’ Donuts’ advertising, media, and interactive strategies and plans, working closely with Dunkin’ Donuts franchisees to develop innovative advertising campaigns and consumer messaging to support sales growth and enhance brand equity. He will report to John Costello, chief global customer and marketing officer.
Most recently, Saia served as vice president of marketing and communications at YUM! Brands, where he was responsible for 52 business units globally. In that position he oversaw leading global brands such as KFC, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell and was part of the management team that delivered six consecutive years of double-digit sales increases. Earlier in his tenure with YUM!, Saia served as senior director of advertising for YUM!’s international division.
Prior to joining YUM!, Saia was vice president and global account director with Leo Burnett Worldwide, where he was responsible for the development and implementation of the advertising and marketing plans for several multinational companies, including McDonald’s, Kraft General Foods, and Kellogg. He began his career with the Xerox Corporation.
“Dan has a long history of developing creative marketing strategies and programs that have delivered results for some of the most respected companies in our industry,” says John Costello, Dunkin’ Brands chief global customer and marketing officer. “We are thrilled to have Dan on board helping to lead our continued efforts to grow the Dunkin’ Donuts’ brand.”
Weldon Spangler, whose background includes both Starbucks and Taco Bell, has joined Dunkin’ Donuts as regional vice president for Dunkin’ Donuts Midwest. Spangler will be responsible for translating the company’s business strategy into day-to-day execution at Dunkin’ Donuts restaurants in the Midwest region. He will report to Paul Twohig, brand operating officer.
Most recently, Spangler served as a division vice president for knowledge learning corporation. In this capacity, he was responsible for the general management of KinderCare Learning Centers in nine regions which included serving more than 100,000 children and 28,000 employees. As a division vice president, he led both field operations and operations services and worked to ensure the development and implementation of key initiatives to support business needs.
Prior to joining Knowledge Learning Corporation, Spangler spent nearly 15 years with Starbucks in positions of increasing responsibility. His last position with that company was regional vice president for the Pacific Northwest Region of Starbucks where he oversaw the operations, regional marketing, human resources, and store development for more than 600 retail stores. He began his career at Taco Bell, overseeing field operations in several markets as a district manager and zone manager.
“Weldon has extensive operations leadership experience and has delivered strong results in very competitive retail environments,” says Paul Twohig, Dunkin’ Donuts brand operating officer. “As part of the Dunkin’ Donuts operations leadership team, he will be extremely instrumental in helping us deliver on our goals for operational excellence, outstanding guest service, and franchisee profitability.”
