Group O announced Thursday, March 31, that Kevin Kotecki, former CEO and president of Pabst Brewing Co., and a Rock Island High School graduate, has been appointed as the new CEO of the Milan-based company.
Gregg Ontiveros will continue as principal owner of the end-to-end solutions supplier founded by his father, the late Bob Ontiveros. That means, Group O said in a news release, Gregg Ontiveros will continue to focus his time and talents on building new and existing client relationships for the company he helped to grow into one of the largest Hispanic-owned businesses in the nation.
Group O called Mr. Kotecki “a visionary leader with a unique combination of skills and accomplishments from both large corporations and entrepreneurial businesses. Kevin will continue the momentum built by Gregg Ontiveros. Gregg Ontiveros’ entrepreneurial spirit and continuous interest in technologies has taken Group O from a $49 million company in 1999 to the thriving $900 million multi-faceted enterprise it is today.”
Mr. Ontiveros, who most recently served as CEO, said of Mr. Kotecki: “By leading world-class brands like Pabst Brewing Company, Proctor and Gamble, Mark Anthony Brands, Brachs, and Coors Brewing Company, Kevin not only brings extensive experience in strategic planning, sales, marketing and operations, but a fresh perspective to a B2B business model. Group O is ready to take the business to the next level and is excited to welcome Kevin to our Group O family.”
In the release, Mr. Kotecki said “I am thrilled to be joining the Group O team. I have witnessed the company’s tremendous growth over the years, driven by exemplary leadership, clever innovation and world class collaboration and teamwork. I greatly admire the amazing culture that Gregg and Bob Ontiveros have created and nurtured, and am excited to be a part of it.”
Mr. Kotecki is a graduate of Rock Island High School and received his Bachelor in Business Administration from the University of Iowa and his MBA from Northwestern University – Kellogg School of Management.
“With a knack for creating successful strategies and potent tactics, Mr. Kotecki has consistently generated strong sales and profitable growth,” Group O said. He also “excels at igniting positive cultural transformations, engaging a diverse workforce, and building high functioning teams.”
As president and CEO of Pabst Brewing Co. and Brach’s Confections, Mr. Koteki “implemented new vision, strategy and marketing approaches to improve financial performance resulting in both organizations being named fastest growing brands in their categories.”
Group O was founded in 1974 by Bob Ontiveros and his wife Blenda as a small, family–run packaging company. It has grown into a multi–faceted enterprise with world–class industry experience supporting brands including AT&T, Michelin, Samsung, and PepsiCo. Mr. Ontiveros died on Tuesday, Feb. 8, at the age of 83.
Besides its Milan headquarters, today Group O boasts major operations in Minnesota and Texas. It employs more than 1,000 professionals with diverse industry experience in optimizing inventory, materials, logistics, fulfillment and customer engagement.
For more information on Group O, visit GroupO.com.
