CIO of SC Johnson & Sons to Join Company in January
SpartanNash (Nasdaq: SPTN) announced today that Arif Dar will become the
new Chief Information Officer (CIO) for the company, effective January
2, 2019. Since 2015, Dar has served as the Chief Information Officer for
Racine, Wisconsin-based SC Johnson and Sons, a privately held global
manufacturer of household cleaning supplies and consumer goods with
operations in more than 60 countries.
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Arif Dar (Photo: Business Wire)
As SpartanNash’s Chief Information Officer and Senior Vice President,
Dar will be responsible for the development and execution of the
enterprise-wide IT strategy, ensuring alignment with the enterprise’s
overall business strategy, and providing strategic direction and
oversight for the design, development, operation and support of IT
systems and programs. This oversight includes enterprise architecture
management, application management, security and risk management, and
infrastructure and operations support management while leading the IT
team and leveraging technologies to drive and sustain a competitive
advantage. Dar will report to SpartanNash’s President and Chief
Executive Officer, David M. Staples.
“We look forward to having Arif join the company,” noted Staples, “as
his record of large scale IT strategic planning and execution combined
with his vision, collaborative leadership, supply chain experience and
knowledge of the food distribution industry lay the foundation for
success at SpartanNash. During his tenure at SC Johnson, Arif’s
cross-functional relationships throughout the business, empowering
management style and ability to drive operating efficiencies with
diverse technologies drove an improved customer experience, cost savings
and sales growth.”
In addition to working for SC Johnson, Dar has held executive IT
positions at Maple Leaf Foods (Toronto), Bombardier Transportation
(Berlin, Germany), General Motors (Michigan), Tyco International (New
Jersey) and General Electric (USA, Asia, Middle East, Europe, Americas).
He received his Master of Business Administration degree in MIS and
Operations from the University of Western Ontario, Canada; his Master of
Science degree in Communication Systems and Radio Engineering from
King’s College, University of London, U.K.; and his Bachelor of Science
degree in Electronics & Electrical Engineering, University of
Engineering & Technology, Lahore, Pakistan. Dar also has his black belt
in Six Sigma Quality Training. He is relocating to West Michigan with
his wife Nageen and two sons.
Dar will be assuming the CIO position from David deS. Couch, who is
retiring effective February 2, 2019. Couch joined the company in 1987
and has served as Chief Information Officer since 2013. “Dave’s
leadership has been key to our success. We thank Dave for his
contributions to the company and wish him and his family all the best,”
said Staples.
About SpartanNash
SpartanNash (Nasdaq: SPTN) is a Fortune 400 company whose core
businesses include distributing grocery products to a diverse group of
independent and chain retailers, its corporate-owned retail stores and
U.S. military commissaries and exchanges; as well as premier fresh
produce distribution and fresh food processing. SpartanNash serves
customer locations in all 50 states and the District of Columbia,
Europe, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Bahrain, Djibouti and Egypt. SpartanNash
currently operates 160 supermarkets, primarily under the banners of
Family Fare Supermarkets, Martin’s Super Markets, D&W Fresh Market, VG’s
Grocery, Dan’s Supermarket and Family Fresh Market. Through its MDV
military division, SpartanNash is a leading distributor of grocery
products to U.S. military commissaries.
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Meredith Gremel
Vice President, Corporate Affairs & Communications
SpartanNash
616-878-2830