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General Mills has announced the appointment of its current chief operating officer, Dana McNabb, to the role of chief executive officer.

McNabb succeeds Jeff Harmening, who will become executive chair of the board of directors, as CEO. Both appointments are effective from 1 January 2027.

During her 27 years with General Mills, McNabb has held various senior leadership positions across general management, enterprise strategy, marketing and international. She was promoted to the COO role earlier this year, previously serving as group president of North America Retail and North America Pet.

In her current role as COO, she leads all four of the company’s operating segments and key operating functions, including North America Retail, North America Pet, North America Foodservice, International, Sales, Supply Chain, and Innovation, Technology and Quality.

McNabb’s previous roles at General Mills include chief strategy and growth officer, group president of Europe and Australia, and president of the US cereal operating unit.

The company’s board of directors unanimously elected McNabb to take on the role, with independent lead director Maria Henry commenting: “Dana has made significant contributions as a key member of the executive leadership of the company over the past few years, and across the business globally throughout her career”.

She added: “She has a strong track record of success, and a deep understanding of our consumers, our brands, our company and our industry. Dana is an outstanding leader with a clear strategic vision that she will translate into tangible outcomes for our shareholders, employees and the communities we serve.”

Henry also thanked Harmening for his leadership, under which General Mills grew and strengthened its portfolio.

“It has delivered over $17 billion to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases, and revamped a third of its portfolio for greater growth, including the addition of the growing Pet category,” she added. “The company has benefitted from Jeff’s steadfast and calm leadership during nearly a decade of extraordinary and unprecedented circumstances.”

Commenting on her appointment, McNabb said returning the company to growth is the priority. She added that by “building industry-leading, digitally enabled demand generation, and modernising our supply chain, we will fundamentally improve how we operate”.

“Jeff not only grew our company, he modernised it,” McNabb said. “He laid new groundwork for our digital and technology capabilities, revamped our portfolio for growth and challenged us to work and operate in ways that better match today’s world.”

Harmening expressed gratitude to the General Mills team for advancing the company’s strategy during “trying” circumstances.

“I am confident that Dana has the vision, urgency and intellect needed to advance our next chapter,” he concluded. “She is the right leader for this time, one that will take our company to the next level.”