CKE Names Alisa Gmelich Hardee’s President

CKE Restaurants, which includes the Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s brands, offered an executive leadership team update. The hiring of Alisa Gmelich as Hardee’s president marks one change.

Gmelich is a seasoned franchise industry veteran who has held leadership roles at Sprouts Farmers Market, Auntie Anne’s, IHOP, McDonald’s and Burger King. In her new role, she will focus on reigniting growth, elevating the guest experience, strengthening franchisee alignment and advancing CKE’s broader Burger Revolution (a cooked-to-order platform) across the Hardee’s system.

CKE’s executive leadership team update under CEO Joe Guith, who joined the company in 2025, aims to support the growth and development of Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s. The structure provides dedicated leadership for each brand with the hiring of Gmelich. Guith also has worked to advance operational excellence, franchisee profitability and long-term brand relevance.

Strengthened Leadership Team

Other leaders at the company include the following:

• In Fall 2025, Iwona Alter joined CKE and serves as president of Carl’s Jr. She is a former COO for Habit Burger & Grill.
• Ewan Davenport, president of international, leads CKE’s international business, which remains a substantial growth driver, with more than 600 restaurants in development worldwide.
• Ben Halliwell, chief commercial officer, joined CKE earlier this year after most recently leading omnichannel teams at Marco’s Pizza and Inspire Brands.
• Danton Nolan serves as CFO. He has held executive roles at Church’s Texas Chicken, Inspire Brands, Arby’s and Wendy’s.
• In late 2025, Mauricio Sirgo joined CKE and is chief supply chain officer. Sirgo previously led large-scale supply chain organizations for Yum Brands, Kraft Heinz, Aramark and General Electric.
• Nick Melka serves as vice president of strategy and guides the company’s long-term transformation agenda.

Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s have more than 3,600 franchised or company-operated restaurants domestically and in more than 35 international markets and U.S. territories.