The supply chain is the lifeline of any organization, so it’s no surprise that executives like Frank Cervi are being brought into the spotlight. As Chief Supply Chain Operations Officer of Mondelēz International, Cervi is tasked with maintaining supply chain sustainability and resilience for a $90+ billion company that operates in approximately 160 countries during a time of unprecedented disruption around the globe, whether that be from COVID-19 or the recent Suez Canal debacle.
To some extent, Cervi's CSCOO role is even elevated above the traditional C-suite due to the fact that he oversees all components of the business as a result of the supply chain having touch points in so many areas.
While Cervi has many decades' worth of experience in engineering, R&D, and supply chain functions, he's worked for Mondelēz for nearly eight years. In March 2015, he joined the company as senior vice president for integrated supply chain in Europe. Then, in September 2020, due to the resignation of the incumbent, he was appointed interim senior vice president of Supply North America, making him accountable for the end-to-end supply chain of Mondelēz U.S., a $7 billion business.
Based on his success in this position, Cervi was promoted again. In May 2020, he became the senior vice president of strategy and transformation, which put him in charge of the end-to-end supply chain across the company's global operations. Notably, in this position, he established a new central data analytics team, which is currently developing machine learning and artificial intelligence solutions for all supply chain functions. In October 2022, he was appointed to his current role, which he maintains while operating out of Zurich, Switzerland.
Prior to Mondelēz, Cervi spent more than 30 years working around the world, holding positions of increasing responsibility at Metal Box Packaging, Unilever, Best Foods, and Reckitt Benckiser. In fact, during his long career, he's lived and worked in 10 countries on three continents.
On top of his many responsibilities at Mondelēz, Cervi serves as an advisor for Sigmoid data engineering and analytics. Meanwhile, with hobbies that include cycling and competing in triathlons, it should come as no surprise that the C-suite executive has a strong competitive streak. In fact, in a recent interview, Cervi's enthusiasm for his company found its way into this memorable quote: “We have winning brands. As we improve our gross margins across our business, I really look forward to us using that fuel to eat the lunches of Barilla, Mars, and Lindt. We shall not of course, be eating their products! I like to think of Mondelēz as a Great Place to Win.”