Leadership Transition
The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) has appointed Dave Hulays as Chief Financial Officer, effective September 2, 2026. Hulays, who most recently held the title of Senior Vice President, Finance, succeeds Steve Voskuil, a seven-year finance chief who announced plans to retire in early 2027.
The transition is structured for continuity. Voskuil moves into a newly created SVP, Strategic Projects role, advising the CEO and Board while supporting the handoff — a deliberate overlap that signals Hershey's intent to protect momentum on its current strategic priorities amid ongoing category pressures in the confectionery and snacking segments.
What Hulays Brings
Hulays joined Hershey in 2012 as VP Finance, Canada, and has since expanded his remit across virtually every financial function at the company — U.S. and International commercial finance, Global Supply Chain, M&A, Corporate FP&A and Finance Strategy, Global Tax & Treasury, and Enterprise Transformation. Before Hershey, he spent 15 years at Procter & Gamble in roles spanning commercial finance, supply chain strategy, global business development, and FP&A across North American and International markets.
That dual pedigree — a global CPG platform in P&G and deep institutional knowledge at Hershey — positions Hulays to manage the cost and margin mechanics that have challenged the broader confectionery supply chain, including cocoa commodity volatility and input-cost inflation that have weighed on foodservice and retail channel margins alike. Kirk Tanner, President and CEO of The Hershey Company, cited Hulays's cross-functional reach as central to the appointment, noting he has "helped shape nearly every corner of this business, from our commercial and supply chain organizations to our growth agenda."
Operator Implications
For foodservice operators and distributors that source Hershey's confectionery, baking, and snacking portfolio, a CFO transition at a supplier of this scale carries downstream relevance. Pricing strategy, trade investment, and capital allocation decisions that affect channel partners and away-from-home accounts flow through the finance organization. Hulays's background in supply chain finance and M&A suggests continued attention to cost-structure discipline — a priority as ingredient and commodity costs remain elevated across the foodservice supply chain.
Hershey's foodservice channel includes ingredient supply to bakery, dairy, and dessert-focused operators, making CFO-level decisions on pricing architecture and trade terms consequential for procurement teams at multi-unit chains and contract feeders. Operators tracking supplier financial leadership changes should note Voskuil's extended transition period — running through early 2027 — reduces near-term disruption risk on contract and pricing negotiations.
Hulays holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Waterloo and an MBA from York University's Schulich School of Business. For broader context on C-suite moves shaping the food and beverage supply chain serving commercial foodservice, leadership continuity at major ingredient suppliers remains a key variable for operator procurement planning through 2027.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
