SPRINGDALE, ARK. – As part of its strategy to better meet customer needs by dedicating resources and establishing a new corporate structure, Tyson Foods Inc. announced the appointment of Donnie King to the role of chief operating officer. King, a 35-year veteran of the industry, recently was named president of Tyson’s Poultry business, a role he will continue. Previously, he worked as group president and chief administration officer. He has more than 35 years of industry experience.

King will report to Dean Banks, president and chief executive officer. Banks said the move is part of Tyson’s reorganization to enhance its operational agility, customer service and speed up its process of moving innovations to market. He said all four of Tyson’s business units will be able to execute these goals as customer sales will be “embedded” with each segment, focusing on meeting customer needs and delivering on those needs quickly.

“Consumer preferences are changing and evolving at a rapid pace,” Banks said. “We must accelerate our pace of change to not only meet but exceed our customers’ expectations while delivering high quality, innovative products. That’s why we’re adapting our organization to enable our businesses to respond rapidly to the changing environment.”

The presidents of Tyson’s Fresh Meats, Prepared Foods and International segments will report to King as well as the chief customer officer.

“We must simplify and focus our structure to facilitate faster operational decision making, and we must remove obstacles to provide an unmatched customer experience,” King said. “This is part of an ongoing process of aligning resources around our business segment structure to ensure Tyson Foods is able to meet customers’ needs where they are and in real time.”