Steve Mills

Experience

• 

  Nestlé

  Jan 1990 - Jan 2004

  • Director, Supply Chain

    Jan 1999 - Jan 2004

  • Director, Logistics & Planning

    Jan 1997 - Jan 1999

  • Manager of Industrial Engineering, Production Control, & Production Development

    Jan 1993 - Jan 1997

  • Manager of Division Industrial Engineering Services

    Jan 1991 - Jan 1993

  • Senior Industrial Engineer

    Jan 1990 - Jan 1991
• 

  High Liner Foods (USA), Inc.

  Jan 2004 - Jan 2005

  Director, Supply Chain
• 

  ARYZTA

  Jan 2005 - Jan 2020

  Oversees diverse business units including Outsourced Bakery Solutions, Commercialization Project Management, North American Inter-Company Projects, Packaging Engineering, and Graphics Design. Manages operations with touchpoints in Marketing, Procurement, Operations, Research & Development (R&D), and Sales. Supervises a team of 21 direct and indirect reports across all areas.• Manages a network of 30 Bakery Partners across the U.S., Canada, and Europe producing more than 242 food items for a total annual spend of $68M.• Supports $90M+ in annual sales for Outsourced Bakery Solutions; generated an average of $1.6M in cost improvements vs. plan through commodity negotiations, improvement projects, and new sourcing.• Reduced turnover in Commercialization Project Management Department from more than 50% to practically zero with one person leaving in 14 months to advance to another department.• Devised improved workload balance for the Commercialization team by evaluating demands, SKUs, and time requirements for each project prior to delegating assignments.• Guides Commercialization team in managing more than 225 projects with a potential impact of $238M.• Implemented Project Life Cycle Management System to link processes in SAP resulting in improved internal customer satisfaction and project tracking.• Coordinates with Graphic Design and Packaging Engineering departments to ensure merchandising and equipment align with customer needs and specifications. Streamlined food costing processes as well.• Designed improved operating practices for project alignment, communications, and reporting to coordinate projects between U.S. and Canadian business units. Teams manage an average of 15 projects worth more than $50M in net sales between business units.• Partners with sales teams to align sales projections with capacity availability to ensure client projects are delivered in a timely manner and according to requirements. Show less Assumed responsibility for co-packer relationships from 10 previously separate companies and introduced a Bakery Partner concept to improve cost-effectiveness, quality, efficiency, capacity, and reliability. Evaluated services provided by each bakery, co-packer, and supplier to reduce redundancies and capitalize on profitable relationships.• Established Bakery Partners developing highly collaborative operations with transparent pricing for commodities and packaging. Negotiated competitive pricing and sourcing to drive cost improvements. Consulted with Bakery Partners to optimize volume and distribution options.• Implemented consistent processes and procedures across companies to utilize co-packers, suppliers, and Bakery Partners more effectively and efficiently to support quality food production at competitive prices.• Compiled database of suppliers and foods as well as potential suppliers and foods to quickly respond to new business opportunities. Show less Promoted to head of Logistics for North American operations following the acquisition of Otis Spunkmeyer and four other related businesses. Managed supply chain for $2B business encompassing 19 manufacturing centers and 17 distribution centers throughout North America. Administered $120M annual transportation and warehousing budget to optimize performance and maximize productivity.• Integrated operations for all five companies to create a unified business unit that included both scalability and flexibility throughout the supply chain process. Created centralized control without centralization of staff.• Collaborated with Customer Financing to consolidate sales operations and establish a common sales organization to enhance optimization of networking including inventory, warehousing, distribution, and order fulfillment.• Analyzed third party warehouse network to build effective partnerships and warehouse locations to better fulfill customer order and business needs.• Managed inventory levels to reduce waste and obsolete or slow-moving inventory. Engaged in strategic planning with sales force to develop effective production plans with more accurate forecasting. Show less Otis Spunkmeyer acquired by ARYZTA in 2006. Directed supply chain operations and logistics for international warehousing, transportation, and distribution of goods. Oversaw deliveries to key overseas markets and served as the primary contact for major accounts.• Generated $1M+ in annual savings through detailed network optimization study and bid of nationwide third-party warehousing network.• Implemented transportation management system including freight tendering, load tracking, and monitoring of freight costs for reporting and improvement analysis.• Enhanced forecasting and SKU rationalization activity resulting in the reduction of aging and at-risk inventory. Show less

  • Vice President of Commerical Services

    Jan 2016 - Jan 2020

  • Vice President of Outsourced Bakery Solutions

    Jan 2014 - Jan 2016

  • Vice President of Logistics - ARYZTA

    Jan 2009 - Jan 2014

  • Vice President of Logistics - Otis Spunkmeyer

    Jan 2005 - Jan 2011
• 

  Aspire Bakeries

  May 2005 - Jul 2022

  Vice President Planning & Outsourced Baking Solutions at Aspire Bakeries
• 

  ARYZTA

  Jan 2021 - Jul 2021

  Vice President Planning & Outsourced Bakery Solutions
• 

  Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU)

  Jul 2022 - now

  Retired - Graduate Student in History at Middle Tennessee State University