December 20, 2024
Divert, Inc., a sustainable solutions company committed to solving the wasted food crisis and advancing a circular economy, today announced the expansion of its executive leadership team with the appointment of four new strategic hires–Andrew Johnston as vice president of industrials, Derek Spillane as vice president of IT, Frenchie Audette as vice president of food service, and Lee DeVasier as vice president of transportation and supply chain.
Johnston and Audette will spearhead strategy and revenue growth with the company’s industrials and food service customers. Spillane will oversee all aspects of business technology, focusing on IT solutions, data security, and digital operations. DeVasier will lead daily execution on transportation and managing the logistics of Divert’s supply chain.
“We’re deeply committed to hiring exceptional leaders with the expertise, knowledge, and agility needed to support us in this next stage of growth,” said Ryan Begin, CEO and co-founder, 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.”
This momentum comes during a period of transformative growth for Divert, as the company continues scaling to 30 facilities by 2031 to meet increasing demand for its solutions to address the wasted food crisis. Divert has expanded its customer base significantly in the past year, now working with nearly 8,000 customer locations–including grocery retailers, food manufacturers, distributors, and food service.
- Andrew Johnston, VP of Industrials
Johnston brings over 15 years of commercial and technical experience from companies in all stages of growth. In his most recent roles, Johnston served as a strategic advisor to venture-funded and privately held technology companies in starting commercial activities and scaling efficiently. Notably, Johnston led the commercialization of the Trenton Renewables food waste anaerobic digestion facility, establishing its business development, sales, marketing and logistics organizations.
“Eliminating wasted food is among the most profound, tangible and immediate things we can do to reduce emissions, while creating a multitude of other societal and economic benefits,” said Johnston. “Divert has already proven itself as a market leader in partnering across the food value chain at a remarkable scale and level of sophistication. I’m thrilled to join the team to expand our support of our industrial customers, creating novel solutions for a traditionally underserved group of stakeholders and ensuring no food goes to waste, even in the most complex environments.”
Johnston holds a Master of Science and Master of Business Administration degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Master of Engineering Management, Bachelor of Engineering, and Bachelor of Arts degrees from Dartmouth College. - Derek Spillane, VP of IT
With over 26 years of IT industry leadership, Spillane has a proven track record in implementing solutions that optimize operations, foster collaboration, and drive transformational change. In his most recent role at Surgalign, Spillane led the global enterprise applications and IT operational teams, delivering innovative and scalable solutions.
“I am thrilled to join the Divert team and look forward to partnering across departments to drive the company’s continued growth and success,” said Spillane. “Leveraging my experience across a broad spectrum of IT roles, I’m eager to deliver meaningful business value for the company through enterprise IT systems and operational excellence.”
Spillane holds a Master of Business Administration from the National University of Ireland and a Bachelor of International Commerce degree from the University College Galway.
- Frenchie Audette, VP of Food Service
Audette brings nearly two decades of food service industry expertise to build impactful partnerships and strategies that align with the evolving needs of national restaurant brands. Audette has held key leadership roles across the industry, including with Local Kitchens, Square, Inc., and as a former restaurant owner. In his most recent role at Local Kitchens in San Francisco, California, Audette led the sales, partnerships, and markets teams, driving growth and expansion through streamlining partner and menu offerings, and signing and onboarding national partnerships.
“I’m excited to join Divert because it uniquely combines my commitment to sustainability with my passion for supporting food service and restaurant operators,” said Audette. “At Divert, I have the opportunity to drive impactful solutions that not only address our wasted food crisis, but also enhance the operational efficiency and profitability of our partners in the food service industry.”
Audette holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Washington. - Lee DeVasier, VP of Transportation and Supply Chain
DeVasier brings nearly three decades of leadership in strategic engineering, steering large-scale operations and optimizing processes to drive revenue and continuous improvement. In his most recent role at Pitney Bowes, DeVasier 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. His leadership resulted in record results for the organization across transportation spend reduction, increased service performance, and network speed. Previously, he spent nearly 28 years in a variety of roles with United Parcel Service (UPS), most recently leading efforts for the organization’s three largest customers focused on operational efficiency and profitability.
“Divert is filling a big gap in addressing the national wasted food crisis and I’m proud to join this effort to more effectively manage and mitigate unsold food products,” said DeVasier. “I look forward to leveraging my expertise in strategic planning, optimization, and people leadership to help Divert scale.”
DeVasier holds a Master of Business Administration degree and a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of Kentucky.
About Divert
Divert is a sustainable solutions company on a mission to solve the wasted food crisis and advance a circular economy through nationwide infrastructure and innovative technologies. Founded in 2007, the company provides an end-to-end solution that leverages data to prevent waste, facilitates edible food recovery to provide to people in need, and transforms unsold food products into renewable energy to power communities. Through this integrated approach to reducing wasted food – Prevent, Provide, Power™ – the company works with nearly 8,000 customer locations across the U.S. to reduce wasted food and positively impact people and the environment. Its customer base spans industries and includes five Fortune 100 companies. For more information on Divert, Inc., please visit www.divertinc.com and follow the company on LinkedIn, X, Threads, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.
Divert Media Contact
Caroline Legg
Director of Public Relations
(203) 313-4228
clegg@divertinc.com
