R. MARK SMITH

Glen Ellyn, IL ***** 847-***-****

adg1e2@r.postjobfree.com linkedin.com/in/mark-smith1 Finance Executive/CFO Transformational Leader

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Accomplished Finance Executive/CFO with expertise in corporate finance, management, sales/marketing, and business transformations. Significant P&L responsibility managing revenue and profit growth in large corporate and small, privately owned companies. Demonstrated success in key sales, marketing, and operations roles at Pepsi. Excels at leading growth and cost containment initiatives, efficiency optimization, and organizational improvement. Recognized for the ability to lead, develop, empower, and connect with individuals at all levels while maintaining open communication, empathy, and transparency. Influential, persuasive, and well respected. Areas of Expertise

Planning/Analysis Management Reporting Budgeting Forecasting Pricing Architecture Business Development Internal Controls/Audit M&A/Due Diligence P&L Management Project Management Process Reengineering Distribution/Warehousing Expense Control Corporate/Product Strategy Customer/Union Negotiation Prestige Account Activation Sales Operations/Management Strategic/Tactical Pricing New Product Marketing PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Federated Group, Arlington Heights, IL 1/2014-6/2020 Chief Operations Officer, 9/2015-6/2020

Vice President of Finance, 1/2014-6/2020

Report directly to CEO/Owner. Lead all day-to-day operations, overseeing five direct and 35 indirect reports. Accountable for administrative (HR, IT, legal, facilities), financial, procurement, and risk management operations, including financial and operational strategy, metrics tied to the strategy, and the ongoing monitoring of control systems designed to report accurate financial results.

• Finance/Strategy: As the financial gatekeeper, ensure the integrity of fiscal data. As a part of governance and oversight, develop and present annual strategic plan and quarterly performance reviews to the Board of Directors. Created a strategic platform to increase export sales of brands using established brokers in South and Central America.

• Accounting, Planning & Analysis: Institute rigor and process in financial planning and reporting, including the establishment of KPIs across all business units. Develop account level planning and forecasting tools for sales teams and cash flow forecast model for ownership. Manage relationships with auditors, banks, insurance providers, and outside legal counsel. Reduced monthly close process by eight days via process improvement.

• Contract Negotiations: Review all contracts to ensure profitability metrics and risk compliance. Negotiated facilities and administrative services contracts, resulting in a 12% or $307,000 reduction in fees and outside services, and holding healthcare premiums flat over four years.

• IT: Lead ERP update consolidating multiple independent systems, including general ledger, inventory, fixed assets, and receivables. Migrated 90% of antiquated systems to cloud platforms, reducing ongoing IT costs by 50%.

• Operations: Directly assist operations on all strategic and tactical matters related to budget management, cost benefit analysis, forecasting needs, and securing of new funding. Right-sized the foodservice organizational structure leveraging cross functional resources. Reversed a negative profit trend and achieved profit goals in the first year. Led headcount review of all functions, resulting in an 11% or $910,000 reduction in payroll expense while maintaining revenue and customer service levels. R. Mark Smith 2

PepsiAmericas/Pepsi Beverages Co., Chicago, IL 8/1993-6/2011 Vice President, Sales & Marketing, 1/2008-6/2011

Developed and executed all local sales and marketing of a $700 million division. Led a sales team of 11 with direct accountability for all independent retail accounts, including grocery, convenience, club, and dollar. Oversaw in-store execution at all national accounts. Owned pricing strategy for all brands/packages and retail marketing programs. Directed all new product launches and innovation.

• Differentiated regional grocery chains from national grocers, resulting in 3.5% growth after years of decline. o Negotiated contracts targeting unique packaging, flavors, and beverages that aligned with consumer demographics, specifically African American and Hispanic. o Developed competitive pricing architecture that provided margin expansion through a focus on PET packaging and non-CSD beverages.

o Devised a promotional strategy aligning consumers’ shopping habits and budget constraints, targeting aggressive first-of-the month, holiday stock up promotions, and value-based brand/packaging for the end-of-the-month shopping occasion.

o Used category management to shift consumer focus and space to brands and packages that improved margins, allowing for investment on core CSD packaging during critical shopping occasions. o Achieved share growth and dominance with over 45% of the LRB business.

• Led new product launches of Crush, LifeWater, Muscle Milk, Max, and Rockstar, leading the business unit in volume and share performance.

• Created more transparency and clarity within pricing architecture by collapsing 12 pricing groups into four and reducing the number of price points by 50%.

• Spearheaded Gatorade’s DSD initiative; accountable for pricing, customer contracts, intro programming, merchandising standards, equipment procurement and placement, finished goods forecasting, and performance reporting.

• Achieved a 72% share of the isotonic business in the first five months, a +6-pt. share swing vs. PowerAde; delivered to 4,000+ accounts with 85% distribution.

• Developed the first-ever “Power of One” programming with Frito Lay for all major independent chains, resulting in a 5% lift in volume on holidays and first-of-the-month ads. Vice President, General Manager, Cincinnati, OH, 6/2005-12/2007 Held full P&L accountability for a $130 million region; directed all aspects of the business, including sales, marketing, manufacturing, and distribution. Managed 250+ union and non-union employees, including 10 direct reports. Oversaw three distribution centers. Led forecasting, budgeting, and controls (safety, compliance, finance, legal, and human resources).

• Transitioned region’s go-to-market and selling culture from quota-based to fact-based selling. o Established stretch goals expanding beyond traditional product KPIs, focused on innovative programming, new product distribution, and higher margin brands and packages, specifically immediate consumption opportunities.

o Focused on customer/consumer needs and in-store execution; created a pull vs. push demand for products, improving velocity and operational efficiency. o Region exceeded operating plan; grew top-line revenue and margins by 5%.

• Improved morale and relationship with union; reduced turnover by 10% and significantly improved safety performance of region by 30%, resulting in improved Organizational Health Survey scores.

• Directed division through major reorganization that included a significant change in the go to market strategy and a reduction in headcount by 10%.

• Led division in innovation execution by implementing fact-based selling and aggressive distribution metrics.

• Oversaw test for new supply chain forecasting application; improved product forecasting by 25% while reducing inventory by 15% via demand-driven analytics based on store level activity.

• Grew Pepsi share in a high-margin convenience channel +2.8pts. to 42.4% through aggressive customer negotiations, in-store execution, and value-oriented pricing architecture. R. Mark Smith 3

Vice President of Finance, West Group, St. Louis, MO, 5/1999-6/2005 Led financial operations for the $1 billion division of PepsiAmericas, including four sales market units and four manufacturing facilities. Managed a staff of seven direct and 12 indirect reports. Provided financial leadership, including annual operating and strategic plans. Accountable for the financial integrity of the group’s P&L and balance sheet, including compliance with financial and operating SOPs, including Sarbanes-Oxley.

• Led the development and implementation of quarterly marketplace planning process for all of PepsiAmericas; process was designed to communicate new pricing and marketing initiatives based on real-time marketplace conditions, resulting in improved forecasting capabilities and time to market.

• Directed the creation and implementation of a CDA database for all of PepsiAmericas, improving efficiency in accruing and tracking customer payments and providing insight into true pricing by package and customer.

• Provided insight into pricing and volume to drive gross profit growth.

• Supported the acquisition of $8 million Dr. Pepper franchise and $12 million full-line vending business; provided due diligence for corporate M&A group and pro-forma analytics for acquisition; led integration of both businesses into financial and operating systems.

• Oversaw the integration of two divisions resulting from the merger of PepsiAmericas and General Bottlers, including new sales structure and assimilation into financial, sales, and operating systems, including ERP; provided pro-forma targets for year one performance for both divisions and respective manufacturing facilities.

• Developed the new West Group finance team, including structure and hiring. EARLIER EXPERIENCE

PepsiCo, Director of Business Development, Rolling Meadows, IL, 4/1998-4/1999 PepsiCo, Senior Financial Planner, Somers, NY, 8/1997-4/1998 PepsiCo, Senior Business Planner, Somers, NY, 2/1996-8/1997 PepsiCo, Senior Business Planner, Wilmington, DE, 2/1994-2/1996 PepsiCo, Business Planner, Moonachie, NJ, 8/1993-2/1994 Del Monte Foods, Business Planner, Naperville, IL, 12/1991-8/1993 Northern Trust Bank, Manager, Trust Operations, Chicago, IL, 6/1995-12/1989 EDUCATION

MBA, Finance GPA 3.75

Indiana University, Bloomington, IN

BA, Economics GPA 3.40

Graduated cum laude

DePauw University, Greencastle, IN

LEADERSHIP

• Glen Ellyn Park District, Volunteer Coach (Soccer, Football, Basketball, Baseball)

• Glen Ellyn Lakers Soccer Club, Volunteer Coach

• Glen Ellyn Titans Travel Basketball, Volunteer Coach

• Smith Farms, General Manager (1,200-Acre Family Farm)

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