Previously CEO & President of Aramark Northern Europe and 2018-19 NACS Chairman of the Board, Gleeson will succeed current NACS President and CEO Henry Armour.

Frank will be the fourth CEO in the organisation’s 64 year history.

“I am honored to follow the successes of Henry Armour and excited to lead NACS, which has a stellar reputation both in the United States and around the world,” Gleeson said. “Henry has been a driving force behind making NACS into a truly global organization with members in over 50 countries, as well as developing its executive education offer, its leadership in moving the industry forward with new technology solutions like TruAge and THRIVR, and its advocacy on issues critical to our industry. I look forward to building upon these successes and the great culture that Henry has led at NACS and throughout the industry.”

Armour will provide support to Gleeson and continue to lead international activities at NACS, the organization said.

“For all of my career, I have considered myself a convenience retailer—not an association executive—and that means constantly listening to the customer and responding to their unmet needs,” Armour said. “I’m proud of what we have built at NACS over the past two decades through aggressive advocacy and strong financial management. We have shown that by creating and constantly nurturing a positive culture we can accomplish extraordinary things together. I’m committed to turning over the best team and resources possible to Frank and continuing to support the organization over the coming years.”

Gleeson has extensive experience in foodservice and convenience retailing, NACS said. He was president and CEO of food, facilities and uniform services provider Aramark Northern Europe from 2017-2024. There he oversaw a team of more than 20,000 employees across 2,800-plus locations in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Before that, he was retail director at Topaz Energy Group, the largest importer, distributor and retailer of transportation fuel in Ireland with more than 330 c-stores and services stations, NACS said.

Gleeson has previously served on the NACS International Board for 19 years and was on the NACS Board of Directors for 11 years, including his term as chairman from 2018-2019.

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Kevin McGinley, Vice President of Food Services

As Vice President of Food Services, Kevin will be responsible for all aspects of the food services division at Aramark Ireland and will lead the charge in driving new sales growth within Aramark’s existing client base, while maintaining exceptional customer service and developing operational strategies to achieve measurable outcomes.

Kevin has been with Aramark for six years and previously held the position of Operations Director. He has a wealth of experience in the FMCG and service industries, having also held positions as National Sales Manager at Bewley’s, Contracts Manager at Topaz and Regional Manager at Henderson’s Northern Ireland.

Jason Keegan, Vice President of Aramark Workplace Solutions

In his new role Jason will oversee the operation of Aramark’s Workplace Solutions division. Aramark bring expertise and innovation across Energy, Property, Facilities and Food to create seamless integrated solutions for clients across Ireland.

In today’s rapidly evolving business landscape, the significance of workplace solutions has never been more apparent. As the Irish and global workforce undergoes dynamic shifts and challenges, Aramark’s commitment to innovative, adaptable, and people-centric solutions remains a priority.

Jason will be responsible all aspects of Aramark’s Workplace Solutions in Ireland including developing operational strategies and driving new sales growth, ultimately aimed at setting new benchmarks and redefining the standards of excellence in workplace solutions.

Jason joined Aramark in 2017 as an Operations Director and has previous experience in leadership and management roles in Sodexo.

On the appointment of Kevin and Jason, Tom Neville, CEO and President of Aramark Ireland said: “I am delighted to announce the appointment of Kevin McGinley as Vice President of Food Services and Jason Keegan as Vice President of Workplace Solutions at Aramark Ireland. Our success is made possible by ensuring we have a strong and passionate team – their collective knowledge, experience and leadership will be an excellent addition to our leadership team.

“Jason and Kevin’s leadership will be instrumental in helping us achieve our strategic goals and further strengthen our position in the Irish market. I look forward to working closely with Kevin and Jason, as we continue to grow the Aramark business in Ireland.”

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As President and CEO, Tom will be responsible for the strategic and operational leadership of all food and facilities management services across the organisation. He will lead the Aramark Ireland executive team with a key focus on delivering profitable growth, excellence, innovation, and customer satisfaction, building on the exceptional standards that have become synonymous with the brand in Ireland.

He will be dedicated to a customer centric approach to accelerating growth and managing productivity across Aramark Ireland. Tom is also committed to building a company culture that develops colleagues, fosters creativity, collaboration, and excellence.

Tom joined Aramark in 2019 as Chief Financial Officer for Aramark Northern Europe, where he was responsible for the financial operations of the entire organisation, providing strategic guidance to support the company’s overall business objectives.

“We are delighted to announce the appointment of Tom Neville as CEO and President of Aramark Ireland,” said Carl Mittleman, Chief Operating Officer, Aramark International. “We are confident in Tom’s extensive experience and expertise to lead this important market.”

“Since joining Aramark, I have been fortunate to work with a talented and dynamic team of industry leaders,” said Neville. “I’m focused on leading this exceptional team towards delivering continued growth across all our services, while continuing to deliver excellence, innovation, and customer satisfaction.”

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Aramark’s annual Healthcare Chef of the Year challenges the finest healthcare chefs across the country to an exciting live cook-off where they must showcase their culinary skills in front of four industry experts.

The competition is open to all Aramark healthcare chefs in Ireland and this year’s contest saw seven talented chefs competing against each other to be crowned Aramark Healthcare Chef of the Year 2023.

Winning dish

The winning dish, created by Pat, was vegan scallops with courgette and basil purée, confit tomato, and stuffed courgette with roasted aubergine and olive crumb.

The competition required the chefs to prepare, cook and present two portions of a main course dish in sixty minutes. This year, 75% of the dish needed to be entirely plant-based, with a focus on Irish seasonal fruit and vegetables. The final quarter of the dish could contain organic chicken, organic turkey or fish authorised by the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) or the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC).

Judging panel

Pat’s meal impressed the expert judging panel made up of Amanda Courtney, Senior Dietitian at Aramark Ireland who judged the nutritional content of the meals prepared; Derek Reilly Culinary Director for Aramark and Sustainability Chef, Justin Moorehouse. The competition was chaired by Audrey Crone, Executive chef with Unilever Food Solutions.

Culinary Director for Aramark Ireland, Derek Reilly said: “Aramark Ireland’s Healthcare Chef of the Year competition is a fantastic exhibition of some of the finest chefs across the country. Not only do chefs in the healthcare industry have to prepare delicious meals, but they must also keep the nutritional values of the food front of mind – modifying dishes to specific dietary requirements on a daily basis. We were blown away by the incredibly high standards across the board, the passion for food and the diligence to hygiene shown by the finalists. Well done to all involved!” 

Following the announcement, Aramark Chef of the Year Pat Mills said: “I am delighted to have been named Aramark Healthcare Chef of the Year. As a chef in the healthcare sector, we are continuously striving to create delicious meals that are nutritionally balanced and in line with health requirements. This competition was a wonderful way to show my creativity and try something new. I’d like to congratulate all other finalists who took part and thank Aramark for a fantastic day!”

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The final took place across two days from 21st to 22nd February in Aramark’s Development Kitchen. The competition featured a day of delicious meals and exceptionally high levels of culinary talent, where the independently chosen national finalists were invited to create a two-course meal.

Aramark Head Chef, John Cudmore, was acknowledged as the winner after impressing the judging panel with his outstanding dishes. For his main course, John created a delicious beetroot sea trout brandade with sweet pepper chilli coulis which was followed by caramelised rum pineapple, kiwi lime caviar and marshmallow sabayon for dessert.

Second place was awarded to Liam Davidson who is Chef Manager at Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen. Both John and Liam were rewarded for demonstrating an outstanding understanding of texture, flavour, layers, and colour to deliver culinary excellence.

John and Liam will travel to Chile, South America compete in the Aramark International Chefs Cup in April. This competition is open to chefs who are currently employed by Aramark Corporate Catering services, who are the organisers of the competition.

Speaking about the competition, Paul Bloxham, Culinary Director, Aramark UK commented: “The Aramark Chef of the Year competition celebrates much more than fantastic food- it demonstrates the amazing capabilities of our colleagues. I am so proud that we are able to gather together as an organisation and share these experiences. I want to congratulate John and Liam and all the other finalists on their amazing creations.”

Following the announcement, winner of Aramark UK Chef of the Year John Cudmore commented: “I am honoured to have been awarded the title Aramark UK Chef of the Year 2023. As a chef, I am always looking for opportunities to be creative and I would like to thank the team at Aramark UK and Paul Bloxham for coordinating such an amazing event. Congratulations to all involved in this wonderful day of food showmanship. I’m looking forward to the next step of the competition!”

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