Sodexo Names New Leaders of Sustainability, CSR and Diversity, Equity & Inclusion in North America
July 20, 2021
Gaithersburg, Md – July 20, 2021 – Sodexo announced today two new leaders in North America to advance Sodexo’s Better Tomorrow Roadmap 2025 -- Jessica Synkoski, vice president of sustainability and corporate social responsibility and Tony Tenicela as vice president of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
“The success of this work is directly connected to thoughtful strategies and expert leadership which shape company DNA and culture,” said Mia Mends, Global Chief Diversity Equity and Inclusion Officer and CEO, Impact Ventures, Sodexo, Inc. “We are thrilled to add two leaders that are passionate and innovative and possess a track record of success advancing impact strategies across global companies. Sodexo will benefit strong from their leadership.”
Jessica Synkoski is vice president of sustainability and corporate social responsibility, North America. She joins from AstraZeneca where she most recently was the director of governance and reporting for global sustainability responsible for developing and managing its sustainability roadmap for success in alignment with company priorities. Jessica has also held sustainability roles at Lockheed Martin and United Technologies. She holds a Bachelor of Science from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, and an MBA from Yale School of Management at Yale University.
Mrs. Synkoski will continue to lead Sodexo’s commitments to reduce food waste by 50 percent, ensure 100 percent of employees are trained on sustainable practices and reduce carbon emissions by 34 percent.
Additionally, Sodexo named Tony Tenicela as vice president of diversity, equity and inclusion, U.S. Prior to joining Sodexo, Mr. Tenicela served as the Global Leader for Marketplace Diversity and Workforce Engagement Services at IBM where he led the development of its global customer-facing organization leveraging DE&I and talent management and identifying new business opportunities in 45 markets. Mr. Tenicela holds a Bachelor of Science from the University of Pittsburgh, an MBA from the Anderson School at UCLA, and a MA equivalent from the University of California at Berkeley.
Mr. Tenicela will continue to build upon Sodexo’s diversity, equity and inclusion success in the US. Primarily, he will continue to foster an inclusive workplace culture and ensure that Sodexo attracts, develops, engages, advances, and retains a high-performing workforce that reflects the communities where Sodexo operates. This includes shepherding the development of strategies, action plans, partnerships and thought leadership to drive accountability and outcomes through data and metrics.
Find more information on Sodexo’s Better Tomorrow 2025 roadmap and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion commitments.