Global bakery manufacturer and ingredients distributor Dawn Foods has announced two additions to its North America leadership team. Ahmet Hepdogan joins the company as vice president of procurement in North America and Josh Bruketta has been promoted to vice president of people, North America.

Hepdogan succeeds John Wolf who will retire in March 2023. In his role, Hepdogan will lead Dawn's regional procurement team, working on strategic contract strategies and negotiations and identifying innovative global sourcing solutions to meet Dawn's business goals. He will also lead strategic material and service planning, work cross-functionally on regional and global procurement strategies, and support commodity risks within the supply chain. Hepdogan will serve as a member of the Dawn North America Leadership Team and report to John Schmitz, president of Dawn Foods North America.

"Ahmet has a successful history leading world-class procurement organizations across the food and beverage industry with a focus on building relationships and delivering strategic plans," said Schmitz. "He is an effective leader and advocate for the digitization of procurement, which aligns with our continued transformation agenda focused on supporting our business and customers around the world."

Prior to Dawn, Ahmet served as chief procurement officer for Ferrara, a sweet snack business and affiliate of Ferrero International. He also held strategic procurement and leadership roles at ARYZTA (Aspire Bakeries) and U.S. Foods.

Bruketta, who has been with Dawn since 2021 and previously served as a director within the department, now leads the people organization for North America. In this new role, Bruketta is responsible for talent management and development, change management, and driving departmental excellence across the region. He will continue to partner with leaders across the business to drive Dawn's people-first culture and support the company's business strategy.

"Josh has been instrumental in driving significant change in the areas of retention, recruitment, and more for our commercial and distribution business," Schmitz added. "He will continue to work closely with our global people partners to position Dawn as an employer of choice and to elevate the team member experience. I appreciate his counsel and expertise and look forward to seeing him continue to drive our organization forward."

Bruketta will also report to Schmitz and serve on the Dawn North America Leadership Team.