Divert Expands Leadership Team
Food waste solutions company Divert, Inc. is gearing up to advance its mission by bolstering its leadership team. The West Concord, Mass.-based firm is bringing on four leaders to steer strategy as it plans to scale to 30 facilities by 2031 and widened its customer base to include 8,000 grocers, CPGs, distributors and foodservice operators.
Divert named Andrew Johnston as VP of industrials, tasked with strategy and revenue growth with the company’s industrials customers. Johnston’s 15 years of experience includes a role as head of commercialization of the Trenton Renewables food waste anaerobic digestion facility; he earned a master of science and MBA degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Master of Engineering Management, Bachelor of Engineering, and Bachelor of Arts degrees from Dartmouth College.
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Frenchie Audette was appointed VP of foodservice and will lead strategy and revenue in that area of Divert’s work. His background includes nearly 20 years of foodservice expertise, including key positions at Local Kitchens and Square, Inc., along with his experience as a former restaurant owner. He holds a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Washington.
In addition, Divert tapped Derek Spillane as VP of IT. He joins the company from Surgalign, where he led global enterprise applications and IT operational teams, and he will leverage more than 26 years of IT industry leadership. Spillane is a graduate of the National University of Ireland, where he earned an MBA, and University College Galway, where he received a Bachelor of International Commerce degree.
Elswhere in the organization, Lee DeVasier is now VP of transportation and supply chain at Divert, leading daily execution on transportation and managing supply chain logistics. His three years of strategic engineering work includes his most recent role at Pitney Bowes, where he was responsible for all aspects of the parcel network, facility placement, transportation design and execution, as well as the relationship with the United States Postal Service. DeVasier received MBA and Bachelor of Business Administration degrees from the University of Kentucky.
“We’re deeply committed to hiring exceptional leaders with the expertise, knowledge, and agility needed to support us in this next stage of growth,” declared Ryan Begin, CEO and co-founder of Divert. “With the additions of Andrew, Derek, Frenchie, and Lee, we’ve brought on valuable and diverse perspectives that will expand our food service and industrials business, strengthen IT operations, and optimize our transportation and logistics strategies."
In early December, Divert announced the opening of an integrated diversion and energy facility in Turlock, Calif., the first of its kind in that state. The company was also named a winner of Progressive Grocer's 2024 Impact Awards, recognized for its work in sustainability and resource conservation.
