Diageo Australia has announced a slew of new appointments to its executive leadership team across marketing, supply chain, HR and corporate relations.
Sarah Shimmons assumes the Marketing & Innovation Director role, Carolina Puerta takes the Supply Chain Director role, Dan Timmins steps into the HR Director role and Wilson Del Socorro will take on leadership of the Diageo Australia Corporate Relations function in addition to his existing APAC Regional CR Director responsibilities.
Diageo Australia Managing Director Dan Hamilton said: “The calibre of talent joining my executive leadership team is second to none. There’s incredible growth opportunity in the Australian drinks industry and I’m delighted to be able to draw on the deep expertise from leaders who have been working across Diageo in other markets.
“They all bring a global lens to how we leverage our blend of iconic brands like local star Bundaberg Rum as well as our global giants like Johnnie Walker and Smirnoff in the Australian market and how we continue to build strong partnerships with our customers and other important trade partners.”
Shimmons is a seasoned marketing leader with more than 16 years FMCG marketing experience and has been in the Diageo business for seven years working in Ireland, Great Britain, North America and Global Travel where she’s held several key roles including Global Marketing Director on Smirnoff, Category Marketing Director for Vodka, Rum and Tequila, and most recently Global Travel’s Marketing and Innovation Director, based in London.
As Global Marketing Director on Smirnoff, she launched Smirnoff’s most recent global campaigns “Infamous Since 1864” and “We Do We”, as well as leading Smirnoff’s flavour innovation and RTD pipeline.
Puerta was most recently Operations Director – Tequila and Mezcal for Diageo Mexico. Based in Guadalajara, she held this role for four years, and brings almost two decades of supply operations experience across other multinationals in FMCG, health and the telecommunications industries.
Timmins has worked across several roles in Diageo throughout his eight-year tenure, most recently as Head of HR South LAC, based in Santiago. During his time in Chile, Dan has played a key role in the business’ transformation journey, growing and developing local talent.
Del Socorro first joined Diageo in 2010 and has held several roles across Asia and the UK including Global Government Affairs Director, International Trade and Tax Director and Southeast Asia CR Director.
Wilson has held the APAC Corporate Relations Director role since February 2022 and having recently relocated to Brisbane, will now expand his role to include leadership of the Australian corporate relations function, and joining the Diageo Australia executive team in addition to his position on the Diageo APAC executive leadership team.
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