JACKMONT - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- VICE PRESIDENT of AIRPORT OPERATIONS
Andrew Pierson serves as Vice President of Airport Operations for Jackmont Hospitality. A graduate of San Diego State University, Andrew has been with Jackmont Hospitality for more than 20 years in various positions. In his current role, Andrew oversees the day-to-day operations of 8 different restaurants spread across Atlanta's sprawling Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport - one of the world's busiest travel centers and Los Angeles International Airport. Throughout his career, Andrew has greeted guests with a smile and sought to provide the best possible customer satisfaction in some of the most challenging restaurant settings that exist. His leadership has helped embed a network of top-flight restaurants in airports, where each Jackmont concept provides an oasis of good food, friendly service and much-needed libations. Andrew's comfort amidst the chaos of the airport and the restaurant industry allows him to ensure that customers have wonderful experiences, and he's always ready with a quick smile, a solution to a problem or, blowing off steam riding his Bike on the Silver Comet Trail.
Job Titles:
- CEO
- Executive Director
- Head
Brooke Jackson Edmond - sometimes known as the "better half" - is Executive Vice President and Co-founder of Jackmont Hospitality. She has more than 20 years of experience in construction and hospitality services. Brooke guided the early stages of development and construction for Jackmont Hospitality, including their first TGI FRIDAYS® location - an, ahem, $1.3 million restaurant at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.
Brooke is known for her astute sense of fashion, but don't let that fool you - she is as comfortable in a hard hat as she is in a pair of heels. Before Jackmont Hospitality, Brooke owned and operated a construction service company that served a few no-name clients like the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games and the Walt Disney Company. She also worked for a little place called Turner Construction Company.
When it's time to hang up her hard hat, Brooke's real passion takes center stage. She actively volunteers in the community by serving on the boards of the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau and the High Museum. Since 2010 she has raised close to $1 million in support of numerous organizations and institutions that make Atlanta special including, MAYNARD, a feature-length documentary about the life of her father, the National Black Arts Festival, the Maynard Jackson Youth Foundation, a non-profit teaching foundation and leadership academy, also founded by her father to teach high school students in the Atlanta metro area, the Atlanta Ballet, Jack and Jill's Atlanta Chapter, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta and Elton John's Aids Foundation.
As the daughter of the late Maynard H. Jackson, Jr., Brooke honors her father by following his wise advice: "Always fully participate…be honest in every situation…always run the business with integrity…and treat your employees well." Brooke hopes to one day pass on her own words of wisdom to her children: "Work hard and keep quiet until you have something to say."
Brooke received her Bachelor of Science degree from Spelman College and studied at Cornell University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Brains, brawn, and beauty - this rock star has it all!
Brooke is also CEO, executive director, and head woman in charge of her home in Atlanta, with husband Dr. Rod Edmond and five children, Holman, Clark, Hayes, Brooke Lee, and Cassandra Elizabeth. They are members of Ebenezer Baptist Church.
Job Titles:
- VICE PRESIDENT of HUMAN RESOURCES
Charlye Miller serves as the Vice President of Human Resources at Jackmont Hospitality and is responsible for compliance, talent acquisition, benefits administration, as well as training & development strategies for more than 3,000 employees. Charlye lives for good food and loves to help people, which is why she fits in perfectly here at Jackmont Hospitality. She was drawn to HR through her passion for interacting with people and helping to impact business growth through our most important assets, our people. Batten holds an MBA from the Keller Graduate School of Management, a graduate certificate in Human Resource Management from Keller Graduate School of Management and a BBA in Business Management from Georgia State University. Charlye is a member of the National Society for Human Resource Professionals and a former Membership Committee Co-Chair for the National Association for African Americans in Human Resources. When she's not busy running Jackmont Hospitality's stellar talent and culinary world, Charlye runs a culinary program of her own…she's known as her family's very own "Executive Chef." You can usually find her cooking dinners weekly for her family and friends.
Job Titles:
- VICE PRESIDENT of FINANCE & ACCOUNTING
For Jackmont Hospitality's Vice President of Finance & Accounting Donell Gibson, "efficiency" is the most important word in his vocabulary. Traditionally, the food service industry has been mired by heavy transaction volume. Donell, who started with Jackmont Hospitality in March 2017, finds satisfaction in making tedious projects efficient through the use of the latest technology and accounting software. By automating many of the processes involved with collecting, aggregating and analyzing restaurant and banking data, Donell is able to increase the timeliness of his financial reporting which can help identify additional profit opportunities within the food service industry. Donell graduated Magna Cum Laude from Baruch College with a BBA in Accounting. Upon graduation, he was courted by every major accounting (currently consolidated and known as the Big Four) firm in the nation. His 30-year career includes a dynamic mix of Fortune 500, public accounting, franchised food service, and airport concessions. In his current role, Donell works closely with the operations team to ensure timely financial reporting of the company and concepts. When he's not at work, Donell enjoys traveling with his wife and their son. Donell also serves as a mentor and tutor for the next generation of his extended family, helping several of his adolescent relatives with academic enrichment and SAT preparation.
Heath Bloom brings a passion for team development and a culture of winning to his role as Director of Operations at Jackmont Hospitality's Miamia-area TGI FRIDAYS locations. A company veteran, Heath joined Jackmont in 2000 as a Manager and, as a Director of Operations, has invested his time and expertise in training the next generation of TGI FRIDAYS®. During his time with Jackmont Hospitality, Heath has had 10 team members promoted to management and has trained over 25 managers. His understanding of the TGI FRIDAYS® brand, commitment to the highest levels of great service and passion for sharing this with current and future managers makes him central to our mission as One Family Serving Many. It is Heath's bold leadership that led him to be awarded General Manager of the year for domestic TGI FRIDAYS® in 2010 and 2011 and continues his trajectory for success.
Job Titles:
- DIRECTOR of OPERATIONS
- Director of Operations for Jackmont Hospitality 's Maryland
Currently a Director of Operations for Jackmont Hospitality's Maryland and Philadelphia TGI FRIDAYS® locations, John Faison has come a long way since his days as a dishwasher. He began working for TGI FRIDAYS® in 1983 and has grown with the company - now, instead of washing dishes, he watches financials. John's greatest satisfaction comes from seeing his employees grow their own careers. Under his guidance, more than 60 people have advanced from hourly positions to careers in management. "Faze," as John was called back in his days at Rutgers University, has won several awards throughout his career, including most recently, the Presidential Diamond Star Recipient from Carlson Restaurants Worldwide. He'll also proudly tell you that he has worked in more than 42 TGI FRIDAYS® restaurants. When he's not collecting accolades, John gives back to the community through the restaurants he manages. He has organized school supply drives, needy family drives during the holidays, and breast cancer awareness initiatives, to name a few. At home, John keeps busy with his wife and children. He volunteers through his church and saves a few spare moments to work out at the gym.
Job Titles:
- PRESIDENT of STREET SIDE STORES
Ronnie Boukhari serves as Jackmont Hospitality's President of Street Side Stores. From Casablanca, Morocco to Southeast Florida, Ronnie oversees TGI FRIDAYS® restaurants - ensuring a superior dining experience to each and every guest. A graduate of The University of Toulouse in France, Ronnie has worked in the food industry for most of his career, consistently ensuring that his teams and the restaurants he oversees continue to grow to their fullest potential. He is a three-time winner of the Quarterly Sales and Profit Incentive Improvement Award, but his greatest accomplishments lie in developing talent within the Jackmont organization. Under his tutelage, 11 hourly team members have grown into management positions, eight general managers have been promoted, and five of his managers from a single restaurant are now general managers within the company. Outside of work, you can find Ronnie spending time with his wife Julie and family.
Todd Richards, Culinary Director for Jackmont Hospitality, mastered his culinary skills studying under some of the industry's most renowned chefs, including Chef Darryl E. Evans, and working in many well-respected restaurants. As the opening chef for One Flew South, located on Concourse E of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Richards was on the esteemed team that propelled One Flew South to become the first and only airport restaurant in the U.S. to be a two-time contender for the prestigious James Beard Award. Now returning to the Jackmont fold, Richards oversees the development of Jackmont's chef-driven restaurant concepts including One Flew South and Chicken+Beer (owned in partnership with Ludacris and located on Concourse D in Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport). Richards continues to use cutting-edge techniques that inspire an open dialogue about the rich history and future of American Southern food. Richards states, "I look at each plate as a canvas: it is very important that each guest perceives the craftsmanship, ingenuity and time put into every recipe and every plate." Last year, Chef Todd Richards made his debut in the literary world, publishing his first cookbook SOUL: A Chef's Culinary Evolution in 150 Recipes. Richards holds a membership with the Southern Foodways Alliance and has been invited to cook for the James Beard House, a foundation in which he is a member as well.
Valerie Richardson Jackson is known for the many hats she wears, figuratively and literally. To Jackmont she is known as Chairman of the Board and Principal. Throughout her life, she has embodied an innovative spirit and blazed a path of firsts for African-American women. She was among the first African Americans hired as a telephone operator by the Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone Company while a student at the high school where she and her two brothers integrated in the early sixties - all the while dealing with daily racial harassment and intimidation. After receiving a BS in business management from Virginia Commonwealth University, she established the first clerical training program for the Neighborhood Youth Corps in Richmond, VA. Upon being offered a scholarship, she earned an MBA from the prestigious Wharton School of Finance and Commerce at the University of Pennsylvania. Valerie also was the first African American to hold the positions of marketing account executive with Grey Advertising in New York and regional marketing supervisor for Trans World Airlines, also in New York.
Today, Valerie continues on the pioneer path as chairman of the board and principal of the hospitality industry's own trailblazing firm, Jackmont Hospitality. Valerie was married to the late Maynard H. Jackson, Jr., former Atlanta mayor, who was chairman of the board, co-founder and principal of Jackmont Hospitality.
Never one to rest on her laurels, Valerie served as special advisor to the Mayor's Office of Economic Development during her tenure as Atlanta's first lady. She represented Atlanta from Moscow to Lagos. Her direct efforts helped to bring the Democratic National Convention to Atlanta in 1988. Valerie also served as co-chair of the Children's Olympic Ticket Fund, a non-profit foundation established to purchase and distribute Olympic tickets to over 20,000 financially challenged children.
Valerie is no stranger to the public eye - or ear. Her voice is recognized as that of the award-winning host on the National Public Radio (NPR) station WABE's, "Between the Lines" and "Valerie Jackson in Conversation," a series of conversations with some of the brightest and most notable writers and thinkers, including Maya Angelou, President Jimmy Carter, Cornel West, the Honorable Hillary Clinton, and Deepak Chopra.
On her full plate over the years, Valerie has served on numerous boards, including the American Cancer Society, Habitat for Humanity, Northwest Georgia Girl Scout Council, and Georgia Chapter of the International Women's Forum. Currently, she is the board chair and principal teacher at the Maynard Jackson Youth Foundation's Leadership Academy.
Not unsurprisingly, Valerie has won many awards. She was recognized by the Mayor's Office of Atlanta and the Governor's Office of Georgia for her profound commitment to service. She was named one of the 100 Women of Influence in Atlanta by the Atlanta Business League and included in the 100 List of Georgia's Most Powerful and Influential Women by the Women Looking Ahead magazine. She also is a member of the YWCA of Greater Atlanta's Academy of Women Achievers and was appointed in 2003 by Georgia's Lieutenant Governor to the board of the Georgia Commission on Women.
Valerie shared over 25 years of marriage with the late Maynard H. Jackson, Jr., Mayor Emeritus of Atlanta, and lives in Atlanta, GA. Their daughters Valerie-Amanda and Alexandra live in Los Angeles, CA.