Surterra Wellness has a history of scooping up big league executives to add to its growing C-Suite, having secured Wrigley Chewing Gum heir William “Beau” Wrigley, Jr. as the company's CEO and chairman, and former Patrón Spirits Company CEO Ed Brown, who serves as Surterra's executive director.
On Monday, the medical marijuana startup announced it has appointed former Coca-Cola executive Stevens J. Sainte-Rose as chief human resources officer. Sainte-Rose will also join the startup's executive leadership team.
The news comes following Brown's hire earlier in the summer and the company's $100 million Series D raise in June. The company recently announced it would reach 2,000 employees by the end of 2019.
Prior to joining Surterra, Sainte-Rose served in international human resources roles for more than two decades. His former positions include CHRO at U.S. Walgreens, a division of Walgreens Boots Alliance Corporation with over 250,000 employees, and senior VP of human resources at Coca-Cola International. Most recently, Sainte-Rose was leading the HR department at Dawn Foods.
In his new role, Sainte-Rose will lead Surterra’s global human resources department and be responsible for developing and executing human resources strategy in support of the company’s overall business plan and strategic direction.
“Stevens’ U.S. and overseas HR senior leadership experience at large, consumer-focused companies with field teams in multiple states and countries will be mission critical as we expand rapidly. He’s particularly suited to lead Surterra’s global HR function as we enter more states, scale our operations, hire new employees at all levels, and gain a foothold outside the U.S.,” Wrigley said in a statement. “As a member of Surterra’s leadership team, Stevens brings expertise in leadership development, culture-building, change management and scaling field talent that aligns very well with our values, and will take us to the next level.”
Earlier in his career, Sainte Rose served in field HR leadership roles at Aramark Corporation, Pier 1 Imports, Burger King Corporation and Millennium Broadway Hotel. Sainte-Rose holds a master’s degree in organizational development from the University of Pennsylvania and a bachelor of science in industrial and labor relations from Cornell University.
“The prospect of joining Surterra was particularly intriguing to me because of Beau Wrigley’s long-term global vision for the company – one grounded in an employee and consumer-focused culture that provides iconic cannabis brands to consumers around the world," Sainte-Rose said. "At such a pivotal time in Surterra’s growth, I felt like my experience was particularly well-suited to help take the company to the next level as we work together to build a stellar workforce and position the company as the global leader in the industry.”
Surterra’s Executive Leadership Team
Surterra's executive leadership team consists of a star executive suite, with leaders from successful companies all over the U.S.
In addition to Wrigley, Brown and Sainte-Rose, the executive leadership team includes:
- Chief Financial Officer Fareed Khan from the Kellogg Company
- Chief Information Officer Neil Hampshire from ModusLink Global Solutions, Avon, Gillette
- Executive Director of Operations Kevin Fisher, co-founder and former CEO of New England Treatment Access and Molecular Infusions
- Executive Director of Corporate Development James Whitcomb, from Perella Weinberg Partners and an early leader of Surterra
- Executive Director of Strategy James “Jay” Holmes from Wychwood Asset Management
- Executive Director, DTC, Drew Stoddard, from Xcel Brands
Atlanta Inno did ask Surterra about the number of male representatives on its ELT, and received the following statement:
“While 52% of our workforce is female today, we continue to recruit and train women and other diverse leaders as we expand rapidly in multiple markets. Female Executive Team members include our general counsel Sara Loya and head of Corporate Communications, and we have women in various leadership roles across the company.” Laurie MacKenzie is also a member of the ELT.
