CEO Profile - The Wedge Natural Foods Co-op - KeyStone Search

7/31/2019 CEO Profile - The Wedge Natural Foods Co-op - KeyStone Search

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On behalf of our client, The Wedge Natural Foods Co-op,KeyStone Search is conducting a retained search for a Chief Executive Officer

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The Wedge Community Co-opChief Executive Officer

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ORGANIZATION BACKGROUND

The Wedge Community Co-op was founded in 1974 as a natural foods grocery store insouth Minneapolis. The co-op name comes from the popular nickname for the Lowry HillEast neighborhood, called "The Wedge" due to its shape. It was a community effort from thestart, and the founders were stunned at how quickly the store became successful.

Like other co-ops, The Wedge Community Co-op is a business owned and operated by itsmembers that operates for their benefit. Cooperation is a key element in the co-operativemodel.

The values of cooperatives are: self-help, self-responsibility, democracy, equality, equity,and solidarity. In the tradition of their founders, cooperative members believe in the ethicalvalues of honesty, openness, social responsibility, and caring for others.

The cooperative principles by which cooperatives put their values into practice are:

1. Voluntary and Open Membership: Cooperatives are voluntary organizations, open to allpersons.2. Democratic Member Control: Cooperatives are democratic organizations controlled by

their members.3. Member Economic Participation: Members contribute equitably to, and democratically

control, the capital of their cooperative.4. Autonomy and Independence: Cooperatives are autonomous, self-help organizations

controlled by their members.5. Education, Training and Information: Cooperatives provide education and training for

their members, elected representatives, managers, and employees so they cancontribute effectively to the development of their cooperatives.

6. Cooperation among Co-operatives: Cooperatives serve their members most effectively

and strengthen the cooperative movement by working together through local, national,regional, and international structures.7. Concern for Community: While focusing on members' needs, cooperatives work for the

sustainable development of their communities through policies accepted by their members.

Natural food co-ops are a particular co-op success story. In the 1970s people wantedorganic and unprocessed basic foods that were not readily available in grocery stores. Theyorganized co-ops to get these products and built connections with producers and vendors.
http://strongertogether.coop/


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While some successful co-ops have expanded into additional retail outlets, The Wedge hastaken a vertically consolidated route in its growth. Today, the organization is comprised of three divisions: the retail store on South Lyndale Avenue in Minneapolis, the Co-opPartners Warehouse (CPW) food distribution company in the Cretin Vandalia neighborhood

of St. Paul, and the Gardens of Eagan farm and greenhouse located near Northfield,Minnesota.

The Wedge Retail Store

The Wedge is one of the largest andmost successful single store retail foodco-ops in the United States, with 11,000square feet of retail space producingsales in excess of $33 million to 15,000members and many non-members eachyear. There are about 210 employees.

The Wedge is a full line natural grocerystore that includes a bakery and fromscratch deli with juice/coffee bar. Theentire operation is certified organic. Theproduce department was the first

certified department in the state of Minnesota. The meat and seafood and the juice/coffeebar were the first such departments in the nation to be certified organic. The producedepartment routinely wins accolades and awards from a variety of publications.

Co-op Partners Warehouse

The wholesale distribution department, Co-opPartners Warehouse, grew out of necessity asthe Wedge retail store required a consistent andreliable distributor to meet the needs for accessto organic produce. CPW is now a major distributor of perishable products to co-ops in sixstates, and works closely with local and regionalproducers to help get their products to market.

CPW is Certified Organic by Midwestern OrganicServices Association Inc. and specializes inproducts from local producers. On any given day, CPW will have between 200-250 organic

produce items in stock, as well as their own line of signature products such as frozen cookiedough, deli salads and chili.

CPW maintains a 45,000 square foot warehouse, employs about 40 individuals and hasapproximately $20 million in annual sales. In April 2012, the workforce of CPW voted tounionize and labor negotiations are currently in progress.


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Gardens of Eagan

In 2007 the co-op bought the Gardens of Eagan (GOE), which had beenone of the oldest local certified organic farms serving the Twin Cities

area. It began operating the 60+ acre farm in 2008. Well-known as apillar of excellence in the organic farming community, GOE provides theWedge, other co-ops, restau rants and farmers markets that featurelocal and organic food, with delicious and healthful produce includingbroccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, cucumbers, kale, peppers, sweet corn,strawberries, tomatoes and watermelon.

In 2012 the co-op bought land and a greenhouse operation inNorthfield in order to improve and expand the business and willmove Gardens of Eagan there for the 2013 growing season.

In addition to the farm operation, the not-for-profit Organic Field

School was also started as a separate program to offer educationand other services to the organic farming community.

Linda Halley, the 2003 Organic Farmer of the Year, with farmingroots in Wisconsin, agreed to return f rom the west coast as GOEsFarm Manager. She gathered together a talented team of youngfarmers and began to plant some seeds. Now, four seasonslater, new crops are growing at GOE. They are:

Farmers Market -GOE produce stands can now be found at two farmers markets. Directmarketing offers the opportunity to introduce new items to the Twin Cities. GOE is one of only a few growers of certified organic plants for gardeners.

Farm Incubator -Continuing the tradition of helping young farmers, GOE, in cooperationwith The Organic Field School, is incubating a new farm business, Fazenda Boa Terra CSA.

Educational Non-Profit -GOE is home to The Organic Field School (OFS), a non-profitdedicated to teaching about organic food and farming. As part of OFS programming, in2011 GOE staff taught growers how to construct temporary high tunnels and sharedbusiness planning for beginning farmers. In 2012, OFS and GOE have teamed up to offer new farmers workshops on financial management and marketing. Further, the MidwestFood Connection (MFC), offers natural foods education to local schools.

Production Innovations - A tour around the farm today will reveal new innovations shoulder

to shoulder with the tried and true methods that have made GOE a success story.

MISSION

The Wedge co- ops mission as a natural foods co-op is to provide a diverse selection of highest quality, fairly-priced products and a deepening understanding of their importance toour members, employees and community.
http://www.mosesorganic.org/attachments/news/foy03.htmlhttp://www.organicfieldschool.org/http://fazendaboaterra.com/http://www.organicfieldschool.org/http://www.organicfieldschool.org/http://fazendaboaterra.com/http://www.organicfieldschool.org/http://www.mosesorganic.org/attachments/news/foy03.html


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To achieve this, the organization will: Earn the loyalty of our member-owners through an ongoing commitment to service Forge a deepening bond between sustainable local producers and the co-op community Build upon Cooperative Principles and Values .

POSITION OVERVIEW

Reporting to the Board of Directors, the Chief Executive Officer will lead all managementactivities and operations of The Wedge Community Co-op. Functional areas includeretail/wholesale, merchandising, marketing, supply chain, product strategy anddevelopment, publishing, human resources and finance. The CEO will use a respectful,constructive and collaborative style to help drive the organization to continue to achieveoperational efficiencies, revenue and profitability goals. The nine positions reporting to theCEO are: Store Manager, Co-op Partners Warehouse Manager, Gardens of EaganManager, Financial Manager, Grocery Manager, Human Resources Manager, IT Manager,

Membership and Marketing Manager, and Special Projects Manager.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

Provide day-to-day leadership and management reflecting the vision, mission, and corevalues of the organization.

Provide key strategic management and leadership to help the organization to achieveoperational results, cash flow and other operational, staff and membership goals andobjectives.

Establish credibility throughout the organization as an effective developer of people, apassionate advocate for members and an effective community and co-op spokesperson.

Coordinate, with the Board of Directors, the development and implementation of long-range strategic plans and annual plans designed to achieve the objectives of theorganization. Translate those plans into actionable goals, plans and performancemeasurements for the organization.

Investigate new business opportunities and make recommendations to the Board of Directors about expansion, acquisition, and partnership possibilities.

Oversee the operational aspects of the organization. Develop and implement plans toenhance the performance of the organization related to the operational infrastructure of systems, processes, and facilities.

Measure and manage effectiveness of all processes. Understand key metrics andprovide executive reports on the operating condition of the company.

Ensure accurate, detailed financial reports and analysis. Remain aware of key financial

measures of the organization and take actions, as needed, to remain consistent with theorganizations budget. Oversee the marketing of the organization, including consideration of brand/image,

promotions, merchandising, public events and communication. Motivate and lead a high-performance team of experienced, tenured individuals. Foster a positive, caring, accountable, team-oriented environment. Attract, recruit and retain new members of the team. Provide mentoring as a cornerstone to the developmental philosophy of the organization.


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Positively represent the organization with key customers, vendors, co-op organizations,partners and other important constituencies. Act as a public spokesperson on behalf of The Wedge.

Present information and recommendations to the co-op s Board of Directors . Interact

with the board of directors in order to provide them the information they need to provideassistance and oversight.

QUALIFICATIONS

The successful candidate for this key executive position should have grocery, distribution or related retail leadership background including P & L responsibility and supervisoryexperience. He or she will have familiarity with and commitment to organic and naturalfoods.

The ideal candidate is an experienced and visionary professional with a passion for the

importance of providing access to nutritious, organic and natural food. The successfulcandidate will be a person of integrity and stature in their community with proven leadershipexperience, an entrepreneurial spirit, exemplary business and/or nonprofit managementskills, and a strong commitment to raising the visibility and impact of The Wedge CommunityCo-op. Community relations and partnerships, and board development are all keycomponents of this exciting role.

A bachelor s degree is required and a master s degree is a plus. Ten or more years of progressively responsible experience in grocery or related retail and/or distributionoperations is desired. Significant experience in broad external relations is desirable. Other essential skills and experience include:

A proven track record of success leading, building and growing an organization througha collaborative leadership style.The willingness, presence and capacity to be the Wedge s face to the public, whichincludes being an effective communicator, a gracious influencer, and a good listener.Demonstrated financial management and budgeting abilities.Outstanding leadership, planning, organizational, and management skills.Ability to establish and maintain excellent, productive relationships with the Board of Directors, staff at all levels, community-based partners and public representatives.Ability to build relationships and work effectively with people from diverse cultures andbackgrounds.

The CEO will have experience leading in a complex environment and will have a

background of managing an organization by thinking strategically, yet keeping a keen eyeon operations, employee satisfaction and customer relations. This individual must have atrack record of building strong mutually beneficial relationships and achieving resultsthrough empowering people. He or she will be an excellent listener who values loyalty,passion, hard work, innovation, cooperation and team spirit.


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COMPENSATION

The compensation package for this position is competitive and attractive. It includes a basesalary, management bonus and participation in a comprehensive benefits plan.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

Marcia Ballinger, PhD Lars Leafblad, MBAPrincipal Principal612-375-8895 [email protected] [email protected]

Because Culture Matters

KeyStone Search is a prominent Minnesota-based executive search firm with a special emphasis on corporate culture fit. KeyStone Search has specialized expertise in the

recruitment of C-Suite leaders in general management, sales/marketing, financial,technical/operations, human resources as well as non-profit executives.

105 Fifth Avenue SouthCrown Roller Mill, Suite 512

Minneapolis, MN 55401612-375-8900

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CEO Profile - The Wedge Natural Foods Co-op - KeyStone Search