Southern Wine & Spirits of America And Glazer's Announce Post-combination Functional Leadership Team

News provided by

Southern Wine & Spirits of America, Inc.; Glazer’s, Inc.

Apr 07, 2016, 05:14 ET

MIAMI and DALLAS, April 7, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Southern Wine & Spirits of America, Inc. ("Southern") and Glazer's, Inc. ("Glazer's") today announced the appointment of key corporate functional leaders for the future Southern Glazer's Wine and Spirits, LLC ("Southern Glazer's"). These appointments will be effective following the close of the transaction between the two companies, which is expected at the end of the second quarter 2016.

Wayne E. Chaplin, President and Chief Executive Officer of Southern, said, "I'm delighted to congratulate these exceptional executives on their future roles within Southern Glazer's. Each of these positions will be critical to our success, and we are fortunate that they will be held by the most talented leaders in the business. We are well on our way to building an industry-leading team that will hit the ground running, and I am excited for what we will accomplish together in the months and years to come."

Key leadership roles reporting to Lee Hager, who will serve as Southern Glazer's Executive Vice President, Secretary and Administration, include:

Bobby Burg, Senior Vice President, Chief Supply Chain Officer. Burg will lead the day-to-day design, development, and implementation of the company's strategic supply chain network. Key functions he will oversee include: regional and warehouse operations, fleet, distribution facilities, planning and logistics, safety and security, and supply chain strategy and analytics.

Ann Dozier, Senior Vice President, Chief Information Officer. Dozier will collaborate with our senior business leaders and external partners, to develop the vision for the company's technology ecosystem; enabling the overall business strategy. In her role, Dozier will oversee the implementation and optimization of the joint IT organization, business systems and supporting infrastructure, digital initiatives, customer and supplier technology solutions, and technology risk management and governance.

Michael Adams,Senior Vice President, Chief Technology Officer. Under the direction of Dozier, Adams will focus on the development and implementation of the long-term IT integration strategy and IT operating model for the combined company. In his role, Adams will work in close collaboration with our business leaders, suppliers, customers, and strategic vendors.

Wilemia Shaw, Senior Vice President, Human Resources Commercial and Field Operations. Shaw will help lead the development and execution of the human resources strategy for the combined company, including the definition of the HR operating model to support the business. She will also serve as interim Chief Human Resources Officer, leading overall human resources while assisting in the selection of a successor for this role.

Michael Head, Senior Vice President, HR Integration. Head will lead and oversee the Day One integration priorities for Health, Welfare and 401(k) strategy, programs, and plan design. Additionally, he will help define, plan, and oversee activities for effective and efficient HR operations for Day One coordinating with IT, Finance, Payroll, and Shared Services.

A key leadership role reporting to the executive leadership group of Brad Vassar, who will serve as Southern Glazer's Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer; Lee Hager, who will serve as Southern Glazer's Executive Vice President, Secretary and Administration; and Thomas Greenlee, who will serve as Southern Glazer's Executive Vice President of Finance, includes:

Stephen Von Oehsen, Senior Vice President, Office of Strategic Management. Von Oehsen will lead the Office of Strategic Management, overseeing transformational initiatives and day-to-day activities concerning corporate strategy, process and organization optimization, communications, public relations, change management, project management, and corporate social responsibility.

Key leadership roles reporting to Thomas Greenlee, who will serve as Southern Glazer's Executive Vice President of Finance, include:

Scott Guensler, Senior Vice President, Corporate Controller. Guensler will be responsible for all financial accounting and audit functions at the corporate, regional, and state levels. He will oversee the company's Shared Services operation.

Todd Newman, Senior Vice President, Financial Planning and Analysis. Newman will oversee all financial planning and analysis activities including the annual budgeting process, quarterly business reviews, and financial KPI management at the corporate, regional and state levels.

Bob Hersh, Vice President, Tax. Hersh will oversee tax operations including planning, compliance, and reporting. Over the course of the next year, he will transition the long-term tax leadership role to Cheryl Rawson, the new Tax Director.

Pat McNamara, Senior Vice President, Risk and Facilities. McNamara will oversee corporate insurance programs as well as key elements of facilities management including real estate strategy and lease management.

Barry Goldberg, Senior Vice President, Customer Service and Order to Cash Integration. Goldberg will be responsible for implementing and optimizing a national customer service support function. In addition, he will lead the optimization of the order-to-cash processes across the company, including supporting the required processes and technology.

Key leadership roles working with Steven Becker, who will serve as Southern Glazer's Executive Vice President, Treasurer and Compliance:

Barkley Stuart, Executive Vice President, Federal Government Affairs. Stuart will interact with Federal lobbyists and government officials — representing Southern Glazer's and supporting the overall strategy for the business.

Alison Herman, Senior Counsel, Regulatory and Compliance. Herman will lead the overall strategy and day-to-day activities of ensuring the company's corporate, regional, and divisional operations are in compliance with applicable regulations, laws and standards as well as support licensing requirements and provide sales compliance training.

"Our people are our most valuable asset, and these outstanding leaders will help to ensure that Southern Glazer's achieves its fullest potential," said Shelly Stein, President and Chief Executive Officer of Glazer's. "All are highly accomplished in their roles, and ideally suited to lead us in these critical areas by drawing upon the best practices of each company to ensure our long-term success."

About Southern Wine & Spirits of America, Inc.

Southern Wine & Spirits of America, Inc. is the nation's largest wine and spirits distributor and broker with operations in 37 states and the District of Columbia. The multi-state distributor currently operates in: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Florida, Kentucky, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wyoming. On a national basis, Southern Wine & Spirits of America, Inc. employs more than 14,500 team members. Southern urges all retail customers and adult consumers to market, sell, serve and enjoy its products responsibly.

For more information about Southern and its responsible consumption program, see: http://www.southernwine.com.

About Glazer's, Inc.

Glazer's, one of the country's largest privately held companies, currently operates in 15 states, Canada and the Caribbean, and is one of the nation's largest distributors of wine, spirits and malt beverage products. The company has operations in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Canada, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The third-generation family business was founded in Dallas in 1933. For more information, please visit our website at www.glazers.com.