Panera has a new leader for its three-year transformation plan.
The fast casual announced Wednesday the hiring of Nikka Copeland as SVP of the newly created Office of Transformation and Strategy. The executive will be responsible for managing Panera’s turnaround and “driving business model clarity that will be instrumental as the company transforms for sustained performance and growth,” according to a news release.
She officially joined the team on Tuesday and reports to CEO Paul Carbone.
“I’m excited to join Panera at a time of such remarkable growth potential and to work alongside a talented team to drive meaningful change that brings purpose and strategy together into action,” Copeland said in a statement. “Together, we will focus on delivering a great guest experience, high-quality food and good value to accelerate Panera’s momentum and transform the company for sustained growth and profitability.”
Most recently, Copeland served as SVP, business services domain lead at World Kinect, a global energy company. Earlier in her career, she worked at Burger King for over seven and a half years in a variety of roles, including senior director, corporate finance.
Copeland has 20-plus years of experience with “leading global transformations, unlocking performance, and scaling growth,” the news release said.
“I look forward to working closely with Nikka as we develop and execute our strategic plan to build a culture of highly engaged and empowered teams, deliver an exceptional guest experience and increase franchisee profitability,” Carbone said in a statement. “Nikka brings a wealth of experience in finance, strategy and operations that will prove invaluable as we create the blueprint to scale and grow Panera for the future.”
Panera has spent the past year putting new leadership in place. In March, Carbone was announced as CEO, the chain’s third chief executive in two years. A couple of months later, former RBI CEO José Cil was named chairman of Panera Brands, a fast-casual platform comprising Panera, Caribou Coffee, and Einstein Bros. Bagels. Panera Brands has seen at least four chairmen in the past two years.
As of June 3, Panera had 2,197 cafes in 48 states, Washington D.C., and Canada.
The company is owned by JAB Holding, which bought it for $7.5 billion in 2017 and took it private.
