People like Johanna Söderström are changing the world by helping companies foster cultures where employees feel heard, valued, and inspired. Söderström is an HR leader with more than 20 years of experience. Over the decades, her innovative approach to team member engagement has gained her much respect in the industry — and pushed her to higher positions with increasing responsibility.
In July 2020, Söderström joined the C-suite at Tyson Foods, one of the world’s largest food companies and a recognized leader in protein. As Executive Vice President, Chief People Officer, and a member of the Enterprise Leadership Team, Söderström leads all aspects of the company’s global people strategy. Reporting to CEO Donnie King, she brings a single-minded focus on continuing to build the company’s culture, talent, and capabilities for the future.
Before Tyson, Söderström spent more than 11 years at The Dow Chemical Company. She joined Dow in 1999 as HR manager for the Nordic region and continued to progress through a series of HR positions in Finland, Germany, and Switzerland. In February 2006, she left Dow to join Huhtamaki — a global sustainable food packaging company — as head of global compensation and benefits. But in 2007 Söderström returned to Dow to assume the role of HR director and serve as managing director for Germany.
Soon she added the role of HR director for Europe, Middle East, Africa, and India. Söderström was then appointed global HR director and strategic business partner for the performance materials division. In 2011, she relocated to the U.S. The following year she was named vice president for the HR center of expertise and was subsequently promoted to senior vice president and chief human resources officer for Dow, where she is credited with overseeing the company’s cultural and organizational transformation through the DowDuPont merger and spin-off.
Söderström holds a master's in economics from the Hanken School of Economics in Helsinki, Finland, as well as the Society for Human Resource Management Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP) credential. Away from Tyson, she is a member of the board of Neste, the world’s largest producer of renewable diesel and jet fuel from waste and residues.