Jack in the Box has appointed Rachel Ruggeri, former Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Starbucks, to its board of directors as an independent director, effective September 17. The appointment comes as longtime director Michael Murphy prepares to retire and will not stand for reelection at the company's 2027 Annual Meeting of Stockholders.
Ruggeri brings more than 30 years of finance experience across the quick-service restaurant and consumer goods industries. She spent more than two decades at Starbucks, rising through increasingly senior finance roles before becoming CFO, and previously served as CFO and Senior Vice President at The Krusteaz Company. She currently sits on the board of Stryker Corporation, where she chairs the Audit Committee, and also serves as a director at Open Farm.
Mark King, Executive Chairman and Interim CEO of Jack in the Box, said Ruggeri brings an exceptional combination of public company finance leadership and restaurant expertise to the board, and separately thanked Murphy for his years of service and contributions to the company. Chris Torino, a partner at GreenWood Investors, said the board has made substantial progress over the past year in refreshing its composition, adding relevant expertise, and increasing alignment with shareholders, calling Ruggeri a strong addition and adding that GreenWood looks forward to Taylor Montgomery's planned transition to CEO and eventual board appointment.
The appointment is part of a broader board overhaul tied to Jack in the Box's cooperation agreement with GreenWood Investors, an activist shareholder the company first reached an agreement with last November and has now extended. The board has been reduced to nine members over the past year and previously added former P.F. Chang's CEO Eduardo Luz in April. Montgomery, a Yum Brands alum who most recently served as Taco Bell's Chief Marketing Officer, became Jack in the Box's president on September 14 and is expected to become CEO, along with a board seat, within the next 12 months.
The leadership changes come as Jack in the Box works to reverse a difficult stretch, with same-store sales declining in nine of the past ten quarters. The company, which operates and franchises approximately 2,115 restaurants across 25 states, Mexico and Guam, has pointed to Ruggeri's financial background as a key piece of steadying that performance going forward.
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