Ten Leaders To Know: Kris Martins [Full Profile]

Company: Atlantic Coca-Cola Bottling Company

Title: Chief Operating Officer

Birth City: Cedar Rapids

Current City: Norwalk

Q: How did you get where you are today?
A: I started my career in Cedar Rapids with Coca-Cola Enterprises in 1993 as an Accounting Clerk. Over the course of the next 32 years, I took every opportunity to learn the industry and The Coca-Cola Company. I was able to move up from Accounting Clerk, to Office Manager, to Finance Manager, all with the The Coca-Cola Company. When TCCC began to refranchise to independent bottlers in 2016, I took the opportunity to move to Atlantic Bottling Company and assist in the transition which quadrupled the size of Atlantic Bottling Company. This expansion covered the majority of the State of Iowa and into four other states. I started my career with Atlantic Bottling Company leading strategy and revenue growth management. After a few years, I had the opportunity to take on the CFO role. Although I did not have the traditional CFO education, I had built the knowledge of the Coca-Cola system to help profitability grow our business. The first step in my CFO role was to hire a very talented Controller to compliment my skills and manage financial reporting. After several years as CFO, I was asked to take on a Chief Operating Officer role with leadership over our 8MM case per year Production facility, IT, RGM, Supply Chain, logistics and facilities. I took every opportunity to learn, grow and change.

Q: What excites you the most about the business you work in?
A: The beverage industry is ever changing with innovation of products, digital and technology advancements, and consumer trends. It is exciting to keep up with changes and anticipate what is needed to continue to grow our business. In the manufacturing area, the advancement of equipment has been amazing and allows us to be better prepared for future production needs with a high level of efficiency and accuracy. Most notably we have made strategic investments in warehouse automation and significant equipment upgrades within our production facility. These investments put us in a great position for future growth.

Q: What do you see as the next big trend in your industry?
A: We are going to continue to see a hyper focus on functional beverages. Our industry needs to continue offer a wide variety of products and packaging to meet these needs. Innovation and recruitment is key to keeping up with the trends.

Q: Where do you look for inspiration or to generate new ideas?
A: We are firm believers in long term strategic planning centered on growth. When we do that, it forces us to think creatively about where we are at and where we want to be. In addition, we have a network of other Coca-Cola Bottlers to leverage ideas and key learnings. The combination of long term strategic planning and levering our bottling community has helped to generate our best ideas.

Q: What does effective leadership mean to you?
A: Leadership is the ability to lead a team to a common goal. I take pride in leading with strong communication, including setting expectations and developing accountabilities. Trust is critical and can be developed by encouraging open communication and feedback. Our industry requires strong leaders to communicate goals, manage change, develop employees, and drive growth.