Board of Directors

A. Ryals McMullian

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Mr. McMullian has served as chief executive officer and a director of the company since 2019. He became chairman of the board of directors in May 2023. Mr. McMullian served as chief operating officer from June 2018 until May 2019 and as chief strategy officer from May 2017 until June 2018. Prior to that, Mr. McMullian served as vice president of mergers and acquisitions and deputy general counsel from 2015 until 2017, and in various legal roles of increasing scope and authority. He joined the company in 2003 as associate general counsel.

Mr. McMullian holds a master’s degree in business administration, a juris doctorate, and a bachelor’s degree in finance and real estate from Florida State University. He is a member of the Georgia Bar Association and, in addition to serving on the board of directors of the Consumer Brands Association, is a trustee for Georgia Research Alliance and Florida Tax Watch. He also serves on the executive committee of the American Bakers Association.

Edward J. Casey, Jr.

Mr. Casey has served on our board since 2020. Mr. Casey has served as a member of the board of directors of Avenu Insights & Analytics LLC, an analytics and administrative solutions provider, since July 2024. From 2022 until its sale to CBRE Group in 2024, Mr. Casey served as Executive Chairman of J&J Worldwide Services, Inc., which provides mission essential support services to U.S. Department of Defense military bases and government facilities.

Prior to that time, he served as the chief executive officer of the North American business for IDEMIA, a global leader in identity and digital security technologies, from January 2018 to February 2021. Previously, he served as acting chief executive officer, chief operating officer, and a member of the board of Serco Group plc (LSE), a provider of public services in defense, transportation, immigration, healthcare, and other sectors based in the United Kingdom, from 2013 to 2017, and served as chairman and chief executive officer of Serco's North American business from 2005 to 2013.

He previously served as a director of Talen Energy (NYSE), from 2015 until it was sold in 2016. Mr. Casey has also served as a director of Tyto Athene, LLC since 2021.

Thomas C. Chubb, III

Independent Presiding Director

Mr. Chubb has served on our board since 2020 and as independent presiding director since May 2023. Mr. Chubb has served as chairman, chief executive officer and president of Oxford Industries, Inc. (NYSE), a branded lifestyle apparel company, since 2015. During the course of his career with Oxford Industries, which spans more than 30 years, he was named vice president, general counsel, and secretary in 1999; executive vice president in 2004; president in 2009; a member of the board in 2012; and chief executive officer and president in 2013.

George E. Deese

Mr. Deese has served on our board since 2004, including as chairman from January 2006 to May 2023. Mr. Deese was chief executive officer of the company from January 2004 until May 2013. Previously, he served as president and chief operating officer of the company from May 2002 to January 2004 and as president and chief operating officer of Flowers Bakeries, the company's core business division, from 1983 to May 2002. Mr. Deese joined the company in 1964.

He previously served as a board member of the Grocery Manufacturers of America (GMA), and previously served as a trustee of the Georgia Research Alliance. Mr. Deese previously served as chairman of the American Bakers Association (ABA) and on the ABA board and executive committee. He also served as vice chairman of the board for Quality Bakers of America (QBA) and as a member of the QBA board for 15 years.

Rhonda O. Gass

Ms. Gass has served on our board since 2016. Ms. Gass has served as vice president and chief information officer for Stanley Black & Decker since 2012. Ms. Gass is responsible for Stanley Black & Decker's comprehensive and cross-business unit IT strategy, delivery and support, and security infrastructure. She also leads the functional transformation activities for the company, focusing on effectiveness and efficiency. Previously, Ms. Gass was vice president of strategy, technology, and governance for Dell, where she worked for 12 years in positions of increasing scope and responsibility.

Ms. Gass also serves as a director of W.P. Carey Inc. (NYSE).

Brigitte H. King

Ms. King has served on our board since 2023. Ms. King has served as global chief digital officer of Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE) since 2020, overseeing Colgate’s digital commerce, digital marketing, and omnichannel strategies.

Prior to joining Colgate, Ms. King held various digital and marketing roles at PVH Corp., L’Oréal, and Kao Corporation, supporting brands such as Calvin Klein, Kiehl’s Since 1851, Lancôme, and John Frieda.

Margaret G. Lewis

Ms. Lewis has served on our board since 2014. Ms. Lewis is the retired president of HCA's Capital Division, which includes facilities in northern, central and southwestern Virginia, New Hampshire, Indiana and Kentucky. She began her career with HCA in 1976 and held several positions in nursing management and quality management before becoming chief nursing officer of HCA's Richmond Division in 1997. Ms. Lewis became chief operating officer of CJW Medical Center in 1998 and chief executive officer in 2001. She is a registered nurse and a fellow with the American College of Healthcare Executives.

Ms. Lewis served as a director of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond from September 2013 until December 2019, including chairman from January 2017 to December 2018 and deputy chair from January 2019 to December 2019. Ms. Lewis has served as a director of W.P. Carey Inc. (NYSE) since 2017. She previously served as a director of Smithfield Foods from 2011 to 2013.

W. Jameson McFadden

Mr. McFadden has served on our board since 2021. Mr. McFadden is the chief executive officer and senior portfolio manager of Wellington Shields & Co., a dual-registered broker dealer and investment advisor with over $3 billion in assets under management, a position he has held since January 2023. Mr. McFadden joined Wellington Shields in 2006 as a research analyst and served as president and senior portfolio management from 2017 to 2022. He also has served as head of sales and marketing for Blue Quail Wines, a winery in California, since 2010.

Mr. McFadden holds a bachelor's degree in history from Loyola Marymount University and an MBA in finance and management from New York University's Leonard N. Stern School of Business.

Joanne D. Smith

Ms. Smith has served on our board since 2023. Ms. Smith serves as executive vice president and chief people officer of Delta Air Lines (NYSE) where she leads the company’s global talent management, total rewards, HR service delivery, and diversity, equity, and inclusion functions in support of Delta’s unique people-first culture. Ms. Smith began her career as a flight attendant for Swift Airlines and has held various roles, including in sales and marketing, over the course of her more than four decades of service in the airline industry.

Ms. Smith serves on the Board of Directors for Delta Air Lines Foundation, the Board of Trustees for Agnes Scott College in Atlanta, Georgia, and is an Advisory Board Member of the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

James T. Spear

Mr. Spear has served on our board since 2015. Mr. Spear is the retired executive vice president and chief financial officer of Cadence Health, where he served from 2006 to 2012. Prior to that, Mr. Spear served as vice president finance at Keebler Foods (NYSE) and operated an independent advisory and consulting business. Since his retirement, Mr. Spear has periodically engaged in various consulting activities.

Mr. Spear also currently serves on the board of directors of The Trust Company of Illinois and The Trinity Forum. He also serves on the board of advisors to the Wheaton College Center for Faith, Politics, and Economics, where he previously served as an adjunct professor. Since 2013, the National Association of Corporate Directors has designated Mr. Spear as a Board Leadership Fellow.

Melvin T. Stith, Ph.D.

Dr. Stith has served on our board since 2004. Dr. Stith is the former interim president of Norfolk State University and serves as dean emeritus of the Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University in New York. Dr. Stith previously served as dean and professor of marketing at the Whitman School of Management. Prior to that time, he was dean of the College of Business at Florida State University and the Jim Moran Professor of Business Administration.

Dr. Stith also served as a director of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE) from 2012 to 2022, Synovus Financial Corp. (NYSE) from 1998 until 2019, and Keebler Foods Company (NYSE) from 1999 to 2001.

C. Martin Wood III

Mr. Wood has served on our board since 2001 and previously served as a director of Flowers Industries, Inc., the company’s predecessor entity, from 1975 until March 2001. Mr. Wood has been a partner in Wood Associates, a private investment firm, since January 2000. He retired as senior vice president and chief financial officer of Flowers Industries, Inc. in 2000, a position that he had held since 1978. Mr. Wood joined the company in 1970.

Mr. Wood also serves as senior active trustee on the board of Archbold Medical Center.