Earl Ellis in

Earl Ellis

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Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at Panera Bread
📍 Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul Area, United States

Earl Ellis is the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at Panera Bread, described by peers as a proven and outstanding financial leader. With a background at global brands like ABM Industries, Best Buy, and Coca-Cola, he specializes in M&A, enterprise transformation, and driving organic growth. He is a Certified Public Accountant and holds a degree from the University of Guelph.

Outside of finance, Earl is passionate about purpose-driven work. He is a champion for diversity, equity, and inclusion, reflected in his membership with The Executive Leadership Council. He also serves on the board of Xylem, a global water technology company, focusing on solving critical water issues.

He has been named one of the Most Influential Black Executives in Corporate America.

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Experience
9 Years
Current Role
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Job Level
Leadership
Location
Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul Area, United States
Personality Overview

How Earl shows up

Communication Style
Decision Approach
Work Preference

Behavioral traits and communication patterns that shape how this person evaluates opportunities, builds trust, and makes decisions in professional settings.

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Priorities

Topics Earl cares about

Enterprise Transformation
He has a proven record of leading large-scale change initiatives, including ERP system implementations and cost structure optimizations at major corporations.
M&A and Growth
His career focus is on driving business expansion through strategic M&A activities and fostering organic growth to enhance revenue and profitability.
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Career

Work history

10-2025
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Panera Bread
3-2023
Member Board of Directors; Audit Committee Chair
Xylem
11-2020 - 9-2025
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
ABM Industries
1-2018 - 11-2020
Senior Vice President Finance
Best Buy
5-2016 - 12-2017
Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Best Buy Canada
In the press

Media appearances

Panera Bread Names Earl Ellis Chief Financial Officer. Featured in Panera Bread
See now
Panera Bread hires CFO. Featured in Restaurant Dive
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Education
Hons B.A.
University of Guelph
Social presence
in
Behavioral profile

DISC profile (public)

DISC behavioral profile

Dominance, influence, steadiness, and calculativeness scores with guidance on how this person prefers to communicate and decide.

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