NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Shake Shack today announced the appointments of Chief Development
Officer, Chief Global Licensing Officer, Chief Information Officer and
Chief Marketing Officer, as well as the addition of its ninth board
member. All four positions represent new roles at the company, filled
with a balanced team of internal and external talent. With sizeable
growth ahead and a relentless focus on excellence, experience and
hospitality, Shake Shack’s team of senior leaders will be instrumental
in its strategic growth.
Andrew McCaughan, formerly Vice President of Development at Shake
Shack, has been promoted to Chief Development Officer, effective
February 28, 2019. He will be responsible for the overall growth of the
company, leading the real estate strategy, design, construction and
facilities functions. Since joining the company in 2010 with just three
Shacks, Andrew has developed and led a best in class development team,
secured iconic real estate in numerous new markets, and guided the
restaurant’s design vision to constantly enhance the guest experience.
Now with over 200 restaurants worldwide, Andrew actively focuses on
orchestrating the extension of brand and digital experience into the
physicality of the restaurant, while leading strategic growth and
development of new locations. Prior to joining Shake Shack, Andrew
worked in multiple facets for renowned Chef and Restaurateur Rick
Bayless. It was under Bayless that Andrew cultivated his passion for the
restaurant business, from fine dining to street food.
Michael Kark, formerly Vice President of Global Licensing at
Shake Shack, has been promoted to Chief Global Licensing Officer,
effective February 28, 2019. He will be responsible for overseeing the
company's rapidly expanding licensed partnerships around the world.
Michael has led our international business since nascent stages in 2012,
having established pivotal partnerships and developed an extraordinary
organization capable of building our business around the globe. Over the
past eight years, Michael has launched Shake Shack across the UK, Middle
East, Hong Kong, Mainland China, Japan, South Korea, Russia and Turkey
alongside some of the industry's most admirable partners. In addition,
Michael actively pursues business development for future partnerships
while managing cross-functional teams including operations, real estate,
marketing, design, culinary and supply chain. Before joining Shake
Shack, Michael spent eight years overseeing operations at Chipotle—one
of the world's industry-shaping QSR brands. Prior to that, Michael spent
four years with Marriott International supporting world-class
hospitality.
“Investment in our teams and developing future leaders from within has
always been incredibly important at Shake Shack. We believe the unity
that we have built amongst our teams and across the company is a key
driver of our ability to deliver a great guest experience and
successfully grow our footprint,” said Randy Garutti, Shake Shack CEO.
“We’re proud to name Andrew McCaughan as Chief Development Officer and
Michael Kark as Chief Global Licensing Officer, two individuals that
have grown with me and the Shake Shack Leadership Team over the years
and have a proven ability to lead, execute and inspire. As we continue
to build community gathering places across the U.S. and around the
globe, both Andrew and Michael will be instrumental.”
Dave Harris has been named as Chief Information Officer
and will be responsible for overseeing all aspects of technology at
Shake Shack. Dave comes with a breadth of experience across digital
innovation and technology-enabled growth in large multi-unit
environments. Prior to joining Shake Shack, Dave served as Vice
President of Digital Technology at Newell Brands, a publicly traded
consumer goods company, where he had global responsibility for the
eCommerce and Digital Marketing technology across their diverse
portfolio of brands including Sharpie, Elmers, Contigo, Graco,
Calphalon, Coleman, Marmot, Rubbermaid and Yankee Candle. He has led the
delivery of multiple tech transformation initiatives ranging from
creating new commerce websites, optimizing checkout to increase
conversion, developing new analytics capabilities, and building a
cohesive data-centric view of consumers across Newell's brands. Before
Newell, Dave was CIO at Yankee Candle where he was responsible for
leading the global IT function. There, he led the development of their
omnichannel strategy which included deployment of a new POS across 600+
retail stores as well as the implementation of the web, mobile and kiosk
technology. Prior to joining Yankee Candle, Dave held various technology
leadership roles at Legends, jetBlue Airways, Avis Rent A Car and Virgin
Atlantic Airways, where he developed and led teams responsible for
consumer websites, reservations and POS systems, loyalty programs,
information security, infrastructure, operations and compliance.
As previously announced, Jay Livingston has been named Chief
Marketing Officer at the company and will be responsible for leading
strategic and innovative marketing at Shake Shack. Jay brings a wealth
of experience in scaling large global brands, as well as in high growth
consumer-facing early stage companies. Jay previously served as
Chief Marketing Officer of BARK, makers of BarkBox, from July of 2017.
Prior to that, Jay was Senior Vice President of Global Marketing at Bank
of America where he held senior marketing roles across the corporation
during his twenty year career. Jay is also an active angel investor and
advisor in NYC, and is a founding member of Unite America.
“Shake Shack is experiencing incredible growth and now more than ever,
our leadership teams will be key to our success,” said Randy Garutti,
Shake Shack CEO. “We’re thrilled to welcome Dave Harris as CIO and
Jay Livingston as CMO. With a continued focus on cultivating a connected
community through the strength of our brand and the evolution of our
digital products, Dave and Jay’s partnership will be integral in
forwarding a personalized dialogue with our guests, building the
infrastructure needed to support innovation, and honing in on the
intersection of convenience and excellence in experience through tech.”
The search for CIO and CMO was conducted by True Search.
Shake Shack also welcomes a new member to its Board of Directors
with the appoint of Sumaiya Balbale, effective March 19, 2019. A
skilled executive with years of experience in e-commerce, digital media
and marketing technology and analytics, Sumaiya will become the ninth
member of Shake Shack's Board of Directors. Sumaiya was the Vice
President of E-commerce, Mobile and Digital Marketing for Walmart US
from January 2017 to February 2019. In her role she helped deliver two
consecutive years of significant double digit growth for the e-commerce
business while also leading and transforming the digital media, social
media, marketing analytics and marketing technology capabilities of the
organization. Sumaiya joined Walmart after the retailer purchased
Jet.com in September 2016. An early member of the Jet team, she led all
consumer marketing for the startup including brand, acquisition and
retention efforts. In addition to growing the Jet business to a $1B run
rate in the first 12 months, she also created award-winning advertising
for the brand which won the Cannes Media Grand Prix in 2017. Sumaiya
served as VP of Marketing at Jet from September 2014 through October
2017. Prior to Jet, Sumaiya held leadership roles at multiple Amazon
e-commerce verticals including Diapers.com, Casa.com and Soap.com.
Before venturing into eCommerce, Sumaiya spent time as a brand
strategist in advertising, working at FCB and Deutsch for clients such
as IKEA, Novartis, and SC Johnson. Sumaiya is a graduate of Harvard
Business School and Brown University. She was named one of Fortune’s 40
under 40 in 2018.
"Shake Shack has an incredible brand and I've long admired it's unique
ability to create a passionate customer following by building great
customer experiences," said Balbale. "As Shake Shack
continues to expand, I'm excited to leverage my expertise in brand,
e-commerce, and digital marketing to help guide their growth."
Photos available here: https://shakeshack.sharefile.com/share/view/s7fb162b5764480c8
About Shake Shack
Shake Shack is a modern day “roadside”
burger stand known for its 100% all-natural Angus beef burgers, chicken
sandwiches and flat-top Vienna beef dogs (no hormones or antibiotics –
ever), spun-fresh frozen custard, crinkle cut fries, craft beer and wine
and more. With its fresh, simple, high-quality food at a great value,
Shake Shack is a fun and lively community gathering place with
widespread appeal. Shake Shack’s mission is to Stand for Something
Good®, from its premium ingredients and
caring hiring practices to its inspiring designs and deep community
investment. Since the original Shack opened in 2004 in NYC’s Madison
Square Park, the company has expanded to more than 200 locations in 26
U.S. States and the District of Columbia, including more than 70
international locations across London, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Istanbul,
Dubai, Tokyo, Moscow, Seoul and more.
Skip the line with the Shack
App, a mobile ordering app that lets you save time by ordering
ahead! Guests can select their location, pick their food, choose a
pickup time and their meal will be cooked-to-order and timed to arrival.
Available on iOS and Android.
Learn more: shakeshack.com
| IG: @shakeshack
| t: @shakeshack
| facebook.com/shakeshack