Management Bios
Ronald Shaich
Chairman & Chief Executive Officer
Ron Shaich is the co-founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Panera Bread Company. Shaich began his career in the bakery-cafe industry in 1981, when he co-founded Au Bon Pain Co., Inc., the dominant operator within the French bakery-cafe category. In 1993, Shaich led Au Bon Pain's purchase of Saint Louis Bread Company and the comprehensive re-staging of Saint Louis Bread Co. Between 1993 and 1997, average unit volumes increased by 75 percent, and Saint Louis Bread Co. began its national expansion under the name Panera Bread Company. Shaich believed that in order for Panera Bread to reach its potential of being one of the leading brands in the nation, it would require all of the company's financial and management resources. In May 1999, Ron led the sale of all Au Bon Pain Co., Inc.'s business units, with the exception of Panera Bread, and renamed the company Panera Bread. Today, Panera Bread operates or franchises over 1160 bakery-cafes in 40 states delivering fresh, authentic artisan bread and cafe foods in an engaging environment on a national scale. System wide sales in 2006 are projected to exceed $1.94 billion.
Shaich has received several national awards including 2004 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year national finalist and CNN/Moneyline CEO of the Week. In 2005, Shaich received the Gold Plate Award, presented by the International Foodservice Manufacturers Association (IFMA), as the outstanding operator in the food service industry. In 2004, Shaich was honored as a Golden Chain recipient by the Multi-Unit Foodservice Operators (MUFSO). Panera has been recognized as the Association for Corporate Growth emerging growth company of 2003. The company has been cited by Fortune, Businessweek and Forbes as one of the fastest growing businesses in America.
For the fourth consecutive year, Panera Bread was rated among the best of 121 competitors in the Sandleman & Associates 2005 national customer satisfaction survey of more than 62,000 consumers. In the food industry, Panera was ranked highest among quick service restaurants in the Midwest and Northeast regions of the United States in all categories, including environment, meal, service and cost, in the J.D. Power and Associates 2004 Restaurant Satisfaction Study of 55,000 customers. As reported by the Wall Street Journal's Shareholder Scorecard in 2006, Panera Bread was recognized as the top performer in restaurant category for one-, five- and ten-year returns to shareholders.
Shaich received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Clark University in 1976, and a Master's Degree in Business Administration from Harvard Business School in 1978. He is a member of the Lown Cardiovascular Research Foundation and is the former Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Clark University in Worcester, MA and former Treasurer of the Massachusetts Democratic Party.
John Maguire
Executive Vice President
As Executive Vice President, John Maguire provides executive oversight for company operations, development and retail bakery operations. Maguire joined Panera in 1994 and has held the positions of Director of Commissary Operations, Vice President of Commissary Operations, Vice President of Bakery Supply Chain, and Senior Vice President, Chief Company and Joint Venture Operations Officer. In April 2006, Maguire was named Executive Vice President. He brings more than 15 years of bakery experience to his current role.
Prior to Panera, Maguire held various positions with Au Bon Pain Co., Inc. in the manufacturing division. Previously he was with Bread and Circus/Wholefood Supermarkets and Continental Baking Company.
Maguire attended Kansas State University.
Mark Borland
Senior Vice President & Chief Supply Chain Officer
Mark Borland joined Au Bon Pain Co., Inc. in 1986 and has held various management titles within Au Bon Pain Co., Inc. and Panera Bread, including Executive Vice President, Vice President of Retail Operations, Chief Operating Officer and President of Manufacturing Services. In his current role as Senior Vice President and Chief Supply Chain Officer, his responsibilities include management of all supply chain activities, including the fresh dough facilities, purchasing, and the retail baker group.
Borland has also served as Senior Vice President of Operations at RetailDNA.
Borland holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Management from Pepperdine University, and completed studies at the American Institute of Baking.
Scott Davis
Senior Vice President & Chief Concept Officer
Scott Davis started with Au Bon Pain Co., Inc. as a Store Manager in 1987 and was promoted to District Manager the following year. In 1993 he became New Concept Manager, leading the development of the Au Bon Pain Co., Inc. Choices concept.
Davis was enlisted to create a research and development group for Saint Louis Bread Co. in 1995 and was named Director of that department.
In his current position as Senior Vice President and Chief Concept Officer, he spearheaded the creation of a new prototype bakery-cafe for Saint Louis Bread Co. in 1996 and is now working on the next generation bakery-cafe for Panera Bread. Davis is responsible for Panera customer experience projects.
Davis holds an Associates degree of Applied Sciences in Computer Science from State University of New York, Mohawk Valley.
Rebecca Fine
Senior Vice President & Chief People Officer
Rebecca Fine joined Panera Bread in August 2004 as Senior Vice President and Chief People Officer. Fine brings more than 25 years of experience in the restaurant industry to her current role, overseeing all aspects of the company's human resources and people development functions. She is a member of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the Women's Foodservice Forum and the American Society for Training & Development (ASTD).
Prior to joining Panera Bread, Fine served as Chief People Officer for Seed Restaurant Group, operator of Fazoli's Italian Restaurants. Previously, Fine has also held various positions for both Shoney's Inc. and Hardee's Food Systems, Inc.
Fine attended the University of Missouri.
Jeffrey Kip
Senior Vice President & Chief Financial Officer
Jeff Kip joined Panera in April 2003 as Vice President of Corporate Development and later assumed the role of Vice President of Finance and Planning. In May 2006 he was promoted to Chief Financial Officer. In his current role, Kip's responsibilities include oversight of the accounting and finance functions, risk management, financial planning and investor relations. Kip brings a breadth of experience in capital markets and investment banking to his role at Panera.
Prior to joining Panera, Kip was part of the media and entertainment investment banking team at UBS Warburg. Prior to joining UBS Warburg, Kip was an investment banker for Goldman, Sachs & Co. in New York, where he specialized in mergers and acquisitions and corporate finance for consumer, retail and industrial clients in both the public and private sectors.
Kip holds a Masters of Business Administration from Duke University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from Williams College.
Thomas Kish
Senior Vice President & Chief Information Officer
Tom Kish joined Panera Bread in April 2001 as Vice President and Chief Information Officer. In December 2004 Kish was promoted to Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer. In his current role, Kish oversees Panera Bread Information Services, which includes Field Services, Technical Operations and Enterprise Systems.
Prior to joining Panera Bread, Kish was Vice President, Information and Support Services for Papa John's International, where he was responsible for the Information Services Organization as well as the Division of the company that included their Print Production and Promotion companies. Kish began his career with Arthur Andersen & Co. in their consulting practice.
Kish holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin.
Michael Kupstas
Senior Vice President & Chief Franchise Officer
Mike Kupstas joined Panera Bread as Vice President of Operations (Company, Franchise and Bakery) in January 1996. In June of 1999, he became Vice President of Franchising and Brand Communication continuing in that role until his promotion in January 2002 to Senior Vice President, Chief Franchise Officer, the role he currently fills at Panera.
Prior to joining Panera Bread, Kupstas was the Senior Vice President/Division Vice President for Long John Silver's, Inc. He held several marketing positions with Long John Silver's before leading its largest division. Kupstas also held several marketing positions at the Red Lobster division of General Mills Restaurant Group, now Darden Restaurants.
Kupstas holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration-Marketing from North Adams State College in Massachusetts.
Michael Markowitz
Senior Vice President & Chief Brand Officer
Michael Markowitz joined Panera Bread in November 2004 as Senior Vice President and Chief Brand Officer. In this role, Markowitz is responsible for building the value of the Panera brand through a variety of techniques including traditional and non-traditional advertising, public relations, retail and other forms of communications. In addition to overseeing these areas of marketing, he is also responsible for brand insight and market research, franchise and neighborhood marketing.
Markowitz is a 30-year veteran of the marketing world, having served as the principal of his consulting firm, Michael Markowitz and Associates, since 1991. He has worked with leading companies across numerous industries including Anheuser-Busch, Amgen, Harrah's, ING, Merck, Microsoft, Pepsi-Cola, Taco Bell and Universal Studios. Earlier in his career, Markowitz was president of two Ogilvy & Mather Advertising subsidiaries, in New York and Kenya, spent a number of years as a senior advertising agency executive, and held marketing and sales management positions with firms in the consumer electronics and entertainment industries.
Markowitz attended City College of New York where he majored in Political Science and Literature.
Michael Nolan
Senior Vice President & Chief Development Officer
Michael Nolan joined the management team of Panera Bread in August 2001. His prior experience includes serving as Executive Vice President and Director of John Harvard’s Brew House LLC, and Senior Vice President of Development for American Hospitality Concepts, Inc. Nolan also held the position of Vice President of Real Estate and Development at Apple South Inc. and Morrison Restaurants Inc.
Nolan holds a Masters of Business Administration and Finance from the University of South Alabama and a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.