In his first six months as chief executive of ConAgra Foods Inc., Sean Connolly has moved to jettison its unprofitable private-label business and drastically revamp its headquarters operation. Now he’s turning his sights on the supply chain, according to The Wall Street Journal.
In an interview Friday, Connolly said David Biegger, a former Campbell Soup Co. executive who will join ConAgra on Monday, will lead a “deep dive” to search for ways to increase efficiency in the manufacturing, procurement, transportation, warehousing and other functions for its retail brands.
“We need to be relentless from a productivity standpoint,” Connolly said. “We are looking at any and all ways to make [supply-chain] expenses more efficient.”
Many packaged-food companies have announced plant closures and manufacturing-worker layoffs to cut costs—a step ConAgra also has taken in years past. Asked about that, Mr. Connolly said: “We have closed plants in the past. We always look for ways to find efficiencies in the manufacturing network, and sometimes that means consolidations.” But he added that “we have no imminent plans to do anything like that.”
ConAgra on Thursday said it would cut about 1,500 office jobs and move its headquarters to Chicago as part of its efforts to improve profitability.
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