Food manufacturing
10 General Mills executives
These ten General Mills executives have held chairman and CEO, chief officer and operating unit and segment president roles at General Mills and its Cereal Partners Worldwide joint venture with Nestlé. Readers can learn how General Mills leaders run cereal, snacks, meals and baking, supply chain, innovation, strategy and retail customer teams.
Professionals to explore
01—10Asheesh Saksena
LinkedInExperience: Chief Strategy & Growth Officer · General Mills
Former Chief Strategy & Growth Officer at General Mills (2024–2026), listed at the C-Level in general management. Former Chief Growth Officer at Gap Inc. (2021–2023), President, Best Buy Health (2018–2020) and Chief Strategic Growth Officer at Best Buy (2016–2018), giving a background in corporate strategy and growth across retail and consumer companies.
Ben Irby
LinkedInExperience: President, Snacks Operating Unit · General Mills
President, Snacks Operating Unit at General Mills since June 2023. Former VP Dairy Business Unit at General Mills (2022–2023), VP - Chief Marketing and Strategy Officer at Cereal Partners Worldwide (Nestlé & General Mills) (2019–2022), and Business Unit Director roles for the Pillsbury (2016–2019) and Dry Baking (2015–2016) business units at General Mills.
Bethany Quam
LinkedInExperience: President, Big G Cereal and Canada · General Mills
President, Big G Cereal and Canada at General Mills since January 2024. Former President, Pet Segment (2019–2023), President, Europe & Australia Segment (2016–2019) and President, Convenience & Foodservice Segment (2014–2016) at General Mills, and a board member of the Yoplait SAS joint venture (2016–2019).
Brett White
LinkedInExperience: President, Meals & Baking Solutions Operating Unit · General Mills
President, Meals & Baking Solutions Operating Unit at General Mills since February 2024, responsible for a $4.5B portfolio including Pillsbury, Old El Paso, Progresso, Betty Crocker and Annie's. Former Vice President, Finance - North American Retail (2018–2024), Treasurer (2017–2018) and Vice President, Finance - International Segment (2014–2017) at General Mills.
Emily Thomas
LinkedInExperience: CEO & President · Cereal Partners Worldwide (Nestlé & General Mills)
CEO & President of Cereal Partners Worldwide (Nestlé & General Mills) since July 2023, listed at the C-Level. The profile also lists President, US Snacks at General Mills from June 2021. Former VP, Managing Director - Natural and Organic (2020–2021) and Business Unit Director roles for Pillsbury and Dry Baking and Meals (2016–2020) at General Mills.
Jeff Harmening
LinkedInExperience: Chairman and CEO · General Mills
Chairman and CEO of General Mills, a role the profile dates from January 2018, and CEO from June 2017. Former President and COO, Global Operations (2016–2017), EVP COO, U.S. Retail (2014–2016) and CEO, Cereal Partners Worldwide (2012–2014) at General Mills. The profile describes leading brands sold in over 100 countries.
Jonathan Ness
LinkedInExperience: Interim Chief Supply Chain Officer · General Mills
Interim Chief Supply Chain Officer at General Mills since January 2026, described as leading the global supply chain organization with accountability for service, resilience and operational performance. Former Vice President, Global Supply Chain Strategy, Finance and Operations (2023–2026) and Commercial CFO, US Retail Snacks Division (2018–2019) at General Mills.
Josh Yates
LinkedInExperience: Chief Customer Officer · General Mills
Chief Customer Officer at General Mills since April 2024, for North America Retail per the profile headline. Former Vice President, Business Unit Director, Cheerios and Adult Cereals (2023–2024), Vice President, Morning Foods Sales (2021–2023), Director of Trade Marketing, Big G Cereals (2017–2021) and Senior Region Sales Director (2016–2017) at General Mills.
Lanette Shaffer Werner
LinkedInExperience: Chief Innovation, Technology and Quality Officer · General Mills
Chief Innovation, Technology and Quality Officer at General Mills since June 2023. Former Vice President, Innovation, Technology & Quality, Meals and Baking Solutions (2021–2023), Sr. R&D Director, Haagen-Dazs and Global Yogurt (2019–2021), Sr. Director, Global Product Design and Pet Segment (2017–2019) and Sr. Director, Global Cereal Innovation (2016–2017).
Scott Tassani
LinkedInExperience: President, CCO · General Mills
Former President, CCO at General Mills (2017–2021) in North America, where the profile describes growth against $11B in sales through culture, talent and commercial partnerships. Now Chief Executive Officer of Lewis Bakeries since 2025. Former Business President, EVP and Chief Commercial Officer at TreeHouse Foods (2024–2025) and President & COO at meati (2022–2024).
Choose the right perspective
Match the executive's business unit or function to your question, since a snacks or cereal president sees different brands, retailers and costs than a supply chain or innovation chief. Check each role's dates to confirm whether the experience you need is current or from an earlier period.
Questions to take into the conversation
- 01How does General Mills decide which brands and categories get more investment?
- 02What do General Mills customer leaders look for when planning promotions and shelf space with a large retailer?
- 03How does a packaged food company balance innovation, product quality and supply chain cost?
Reaching General Mills executives
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About this directory
This is a professional research starting point based on business profile data retrieved on . Titles and companies reflect that source snapshot and may describe past or present roles. Check the linked profiles for current details. Inclusion does not imply Instant Expert membership or availability.
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