Brett Ponton has resigned as CEO and president of Monro Inc., and as a result the company's chairman of the board of directors, Robbert Mellor, will take over as interim CEO.
Monro says Ponton resigned Aug. 1 and is leaving the company effective Aug. 19 "to pursue another opportunity." He has also resigned as a member of the board of directors, effective immediately. He turned in his resignation days after the company delivered its latest financial results.
Ponton's next "opportunity" is to serve as CEO of ServiceMaster Global Holdings Inc., a provider of essential services to residential and commercial customers in the termite, pest control, cleaning and restoration markets. He'll join ServiceMaster by Oct. 1; that company announced his appointment the same day Monro announced Ponton's departure.
Ponton joined Monro as president and CEO in 2017, succeeding John Van Heel, who spent 15 years at the company.
Mellor says, “On behalf of the board of directors, I would like to thank Brett for his leadership and contributions to Monro. We have a strong leadership team in place and a solid foundation to drive a scalable platform for long-term sustainable growth. We are confident that our firm commitment to driving the continued execution of our Monro.Forward strategy combined with our solid balance sheet positions us well to capitalize on long-term growth opportunities.”
Ponton says, “I am very proud of the progress Monro has made in its transformational journey and believe our accomplishments have established a strong and durable platform for future growth. It has been a pleasure to work with our incredibly talented and collaborative team and board. For these reasons and many more, leaving Monro was an incredibly difficult personal decision. Monro is a strong business with an outstanding team and winning strategy, and I am confident the company will achieve continued success in the years ahead."
Mellor has been chairman of the board since 2017 and has served on the board since 2010. He will serve as interim CEO while the company searches for a new permanent leader.
Monro says Mellor will work alongside senior leadership to ensure the company's performance and initiatives, including Robert Rajkowski, chief operating officer; Brian D’Ambrosia, executive vice president and chief financial officer; and Maureen Mulholland, senior vice president, general counsel and secretary.
Appointment to board of directors
Monro also announced the appointment of Leah Johnson to its board, effective immediately. Johnson, 57, brings extensive knowledge and deep experience in corporate communications and marketing to the board. She has served as chief communications and marketing officer of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts since July 2019. Previously, she served as CEO of LCJ Solutions LLC, a strategic communications consulting firm she founded in 2009. Before thatJohnson served as senior vice president of global corporate affairs at Citigroup Inc. and vice president of corporate communications at S&P Global Ratings. She earned a bachelor's degree from Harvard University.
Johnson was appointed to fill the current vacancy on the board caused by Ponton's departure, and will serve until her successor has been elected and qualified at the 2020 Annual Meeting of Shareholders.
Mellor says, “We are pleased to have Leah join our board of directors and are confident that her recognized expertise in strategic communications and marketing will add tremendous value to the company as we continue to execute our Monro.Forward strategy. Leah’s background undoubtedly strengthens our Board and reinforces our commitment to driving a diverse organization, as we leverage her wealth of experience in assisting other companies and organizations with diversity and inclusion initiatives.”
