Michele Buck is an American businesswoman. In March 2017, she became the first female Chairman, President, and

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

The Hershey Company The Hershey Company, commonly known as Hershey's, is an American multinational company and one of the largest chocolate manufacturers in the world. It also manufactures baked products, such as cookies and cakes, and sells beverages like milksh ...

, an American food manufacturing company, replacing former CEO John Bilbrey.

Early life and education

A native of central

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, Buck earned a bachelor's degree at

Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania (Ship or SU) is a public university in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania. It is part of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. Founded in 1871, it later became the first teachers college in Pennsylvania. ...

and received a Master of Business Administration degree from the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United State ...

in 1987.

Career

Before joining Hershey in 2005, Buck worked for 17 years at

Kraft The second incarnation of Kraft Foods is an American food manufacturing and processing conglomerate, split from Kraft Foods Inc. in 2012 and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. It became part of Kraft Heinz in 2015. A merger with Heinz, arran ...

Nabisco Nabisco (, abbreviated from the earlier name National Biscuit Company) is an American manufacturer of cookies and snacks headquartered in East Hanover, New Jersey. The company is a subsidiary of Illinois-based Mondelēz International. Nabisco' ...

, holding several senior positions including Senior Vice President and General Manager for Kraft Confections, as well as senior positions at the

Frito-Lay Frito-Lay is an American subsidiary of PepsiCo that manufactures, markets, and sells corn chips, potato chips, and other snack foods. The primary snack food brands produced under the Frito-Lay name include Fritos corn chips, Cheetos cheese-fla ...

division of

PepsiCo PepsiCo, Inc. is an American multinational food, snack, and beverage corporation headquartered in Harrison, New York, in the hamlet of Purchase. PepsiCo's business encompasses all aspects of the food and beverage market. It oversees the manufa ...

. At Hershey, Buck spearheaded the acquisition of Krave Beef Jerky, acquired by Hershey in 2015, and barkThins, a healthy chocolate brand acquired in 2016. Prior to her appointment as CEO, Buck served as Chief Operating Officer for Hershey, where she led the company's day-to-day operations in North America as well as operations in Central and South America. In December 2016, it was announced that she was to succeed John Bilbrey as chief executive officer of the company. In 2017, Hershey announced its first acquisition under Buck, a $1.6B deal to purchase Amplify Snack Brands, further diversifying Hersey's holdings in the healthy snack category. It is the largest deal to date in the history of The Hershey Company. Buck currently serves on the board of directors at

New York Life New York Life Insurance Company (NYLIC) is the third-largest life insurance company in the United States, the largest mutual life insurance company in the United States and is ranked #67 on the 2021 Fortune 500 list of the largest United States ...

, and as a Benefit Co-Chair for the Children's Brain Tumor Foundation. In October 2019, Buck was elected chairman of the board of directors at The Hershey Company.

Awards

In 2005, while serving as Senior Vice President, President of U.S. Snacks at Hershey, Buck received the ''Women Worth Watching'' Award. Buck received a ''Corporate Citizenship Award f''rom the Committee for Economic Development or CED. Buck has been named multiple times to '' Fortune's'' "Most Powerful Women" list.

References

Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American chief executives of food industry companies UNC Kenan–Flagler Business School alumni The Hershey Company American chief executives of Fortune 500 companies American women chief executives Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania alumni 21st-century American women {{US-CEO-stub