Northbrook, IL — Bell Flavors & Fragrances, Inc. has appointed Allan Kaplan CFO, and has made several other strategic promotions within the company’s finance and IT departments, as well as the culinary and flavor division at its headquarter in Northbrook, IL.
“This promotion is an exciting testament to Allan’s perseverance and hard work throughout his career. Allan has shown tremendous unwavering dedication to his team, and his colleagues, friends and family are excited to see him take on this new challenge. He shows that he cares about his team by continuously investing his time and energy in positive, professional relationships. I congratulate Allan on his promotion to CFO and wish him continued success,” says Ron Stark, president & CEO.
Kaplan has spent more than 10 years at the company, most recently serving as the vice-president of finance. In the new role, he will oversee Bell’s finance and accounting departments, and serve as a member of the company’s executive management committee.
“I see the CFO as picture painter. By utilizing ever-changing financial data, the role of the CFO is to understand the drivers behind the company’s financial information and present that data in a clear, precise format. Doing so correctly provides the Executive Management Team with the information necessary to guide the company toward achieving its strategic corporate goals” says Kaplan
Cristalle Keane takes on the position of vice-president, sweet & dairy; flavor creation & application. In this new role, she will continue to lead the flavorist team and drive business development and innovation in sweet and dairy flavor applications.
She has worked at Bell for 23 years, earning a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Elmhurst University. She is a certified flavorist.
Chris Warsow has been promoted to vice-president, savory & culinary; flavor creation, application & delivery systems. In this role, he will develop strategies for continued growth within Bell’s savory, culinary and delivery systems platforms.
Warsow has worked at Bell for more than 15 years, most recently serving as the director of culinary application, savory flavor development and delivery systems, and was instrumental in launching Bell’s Technology and Innovation Center.
Mauro Batisteza assumes the role of vice-president, international finance, where he will partner closely with Bell’s international leaders to support business growth across its 60+ global locations.
Prior to joining Bell, Batisteza gained expertise in corporate FP&A, global treasury, strategic planning and mergers and acquisitions, and served as CFO of the Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific regions.
Mauro holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Buenos Aires and a master’s degree in finance from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Mike Barron has been promoted to vice-president, information technology, leading all aspects of the company’s corporate information systems and technology programs. He most recently held the role of senior director, information technology.
Barron earned his bachelor’s degree from Illinois State University, majoring in business administration with an emphasis in management information systems and holding a minor in accounting.
“I congratulate Mike on his well-earned promotion. His courage and dedication to creating change management culture has impacted Bell greatly. I know our company will do wonderful things under his IT leadership and I can’t wait to see Bell’s limitless future,” says Stark.
