Parker's Hires Its First Director of HR

SAVANNAH, Ga. -- The Parker Cos. continues to build up its leadership team, naming Michelle Weckstein as the company's first director of human resources.

"With Parker's continued rapid growth, it was time to expand our human resources team and bring in a person with Michelle's professional [human resources] and convenience store experience," said Greg Parker, president and CEO of the Savannah-based retailer.

In her new role, Weckstein will oversee all recruitment, compensation, benefits and training strategies for The Parker Cos., which is approaching a staff of 500 employees for its current 34 Parker's convenience stores in Georgia and South Carolina. Two additional stores will open in June.

Prior to joining Parker's, Weckstein was human resources manager for Terry's Tire Town Holdings, headquartered in Alliance, Ohio.  She also previously held the position of director of human resources for Easy Trip Stores, headquartered in Pittsburgh and Cleveland. There, she managed the acquisition transition of EZ Energy Inc. to 7-Eleven Inc.

During her career, Weckstein also has served as a regional recruiter for the Applebee's Neighborhood Grill and Bar chain, and was human resources director for the Winking Lizard, a regional restaurant group based in Cleveland, for 11 years.

"Michelle brings what we believe is 'the secret sauce' that we are looking for in our management team," Parker said, "which is positive, high-energy individuals with deep professional experience."

She attended the University of Akron and is a member of the National Society of Human Resources Management. She will be relocating to the Savannah area in May.

This marks the third addition to the Parker's leadership team just this month. In mid-April, Stephen Hines joined the company as chief technology officer and Louise D. "Lou" Phelps was brought on as director of corporate communications, as CSNews Online previously reported.