WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. -- Beer importer Heineken USA has hired Bridget Lasda, former vice president of sales for the Coca-Cola Co., as vice president of national accounts, and promoted Tara Rush to senior vice president of corporate relations.
Lasda will join the company on July 27; Rush's promotion is effective immediately.
VP of National Accounts
Lasda had been with Coca-Cola for 13 years, most recently as head of the Target account. Previously, she held leadership roles in operations, sales and category development, serving as vice president of category commercialization for Coca-Cola’s water, tea, coffee and venturing & emerging brands.
“We are thrilled to welcome Bridget to the Heineken USA team,” said chief sales officer Ray Faust, also a former Coca-Cola Co. executive. “I am confident that her experience, leadership, passion and drive will accelerate our national accounts ambition and support continued growth across our portfolio of brands.”
Lasda earned her undergraduate degree at Pennsylvania State University and completed her MBA from Emory University. She is a passionate volunteer with The Special Olympics and the Boys & Girls Club, and she was president of Coca-Cola’s women’s business resource group.
SVP of Corporate Relations
Rush, in her new role, reports to the company’s president and CEO, Dolf van den Brink, and joins the Heineken USA management team.
“Tara is a dynamic leader who has elevated the CR function within our business,” said van den Brink. “Her passion for Heineken USA’s purpose and emphasis on fostering strong cross-functional relationships throughout our organization make her the right choice to lead the CR function during this time of extraordinary growth across our portfolio.”
Rush has been serving as the interim CR leader since March, advancing the broader CR agenda while the company conducted an internal and external search to fill the position. Rush joined Heineken USA in 2013 as senior director of corporate communications. In this role, she led corporate and brand public relations, employee and distributor engagement, crisis communications, reputation management, corporate events, philanthropy and consumer affairs.
Tara joined Heineken from Emanate, a midsize public relations agency. Tara opened Emanate’s Los Angeles office in 2007 and, after building her team, led consumer-marketing and social-relevance campaigns for a number of leading CPG and travel clients. Prior to Emanate, Tara led public relations at Mars Inc. and held roles in the consumer marketing practices at Ketchum, Edelman and Weber Shandwick in New York.
Heineken announced in March that van den Brink will leave Heineken USA at the end of this month to lead Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma/Heineken Mexico to try to recreate his success in the United States there.
Ronald den Elzen, the current managing director of Heineken Portugal, will take over as CEO of Heineken USA effective July 1.
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