The Hershey Co. Names First Chief Technology Officer
HERSHEY, Pa. — The Hershey Co. is investing in its people and its digital capabilities, naming Deepak Bhatia as its first chief technology officer.
Bhatia, who will also join Hershey as a member of its executive committee, will lead the company's global technology strategy, and architecting and deploying digital capabilities that are innovative, flexible and prepared to meet the changing needs of Hershey's consumers, retail partners and employees, the company announced.
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Formerly the vice president of supply chain optimization technologies at Amazon, Bhatia brings deep expertise in developing cutting-edge automated systems, supply chain planning, optimization and simulation, artificial intelligence and predictive analytics.
"We are investing in our people and digital capabilities to strengthen our infrastructure and scale across our growing supply chain and business units," said The Hershey Co. President and CEO Michele Buck. "As we continue to double down in this area, Deepak has the expertise needed to successfully lead our technology strategy leveraging end-to-end data, analytics and automation to elevate our employee experience, create commercial value and advance our leading snacking powerhouse vision."
During his 12-year tenure at Amazon in supply chain optimization, Bhatia led the development of large-scale automated decision-making systems dealing with some of the most computationally and mathematically challenging problems in large complex supply chains, bringing applied science, software engineering and product management together.
Prior to Amazon, Bhatia spent 11 years at Applied Materials, where, in addition to supply chain optimization, he also built expertise in predictive business analytics to inform product management and innovation strategies.
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"I am honored and humbled to be joining Hershey, a company with an incredible legacy and culture," shared Bhatia. "We are experiencing unprecedented technological innovation, and I am thrilled to spearhead the development and execution of a technology-driven transformation that will meet and exceed the evolving needs of our consumers and customers. I look forward to shaping a future of innovation and excellence."
Bhatia holds a master's of science in Management Science and Engineering from Stanford University and an master's of science in Aeronautics and Astronautics Engineering from Purdue University. His first day at Hershey will be Oct. 23.
Pennsylvania-based The Hershey Co. has more than 100 brand names in approximately 80 countries worldwide that drive more than $10.4 billion in annual revenues, including Hershey's, Reese's, Kit Kat, Jolly Rancher and Ice Breakers, and fast-growing salty snacks including Skinny Pop, Pirate's Booty and Dot's Homestyle Pretzels.