Meet our management team! These six hands-on, talented team members are truly experts in their fields. They strategically steer the direction of the franchise while working closely with both bakery owners and the 25-member Dillon crew. Whether in bakeries, at industry gatherings, or researching ways to better our business, they're the real thing: great leaders and great people too.
Mike Ferretti, President and CEO
Janet Tatarka, Director of Franchise Services
Mark Peterson, Director of Bakery Operations
Michael Basile, Chief Financial Officer
Debbie Huber, Director of Development
Kate Ord, Director of Marketing
If you've had a chance to check out some of the other pages on this site, you're probably thinking the same thing I was back in 2001. What a cool company. What cool people. What a philosophy. Wow!
For years, I had envisioned an environment where people worked to make a difference in the world, and were still able to make a living. I'm a dad too, and I wanted to show my kids that you can be a responsible corporate citizen and still operate a professional, high quality company. Great Harvest was it. In June of 2001, I jumped in and never looked back. I've served as President & CEO of Great Harvest Bread Co. ever since.
One of the things I'm most proud of is our Great Harvest mission statement. To paraphrase, it says life is too short to not have a good time. If you're going to do something, take the time to do it right. Treat people with respect. Make some money to fund the things that matter to you. Take care of the people and things around you. These aren't ideals that we put down at the end of the day. That really is who we are.
How did I get here? I spent quite a few years as a franchisee of a different system to learn how to operate a small business firsthand. I also spent some time consulting for that same franchise company, later acting as their chief financial officer. This combination of franchisee and franchisor experience has allowed me to bring a unique, and hopefully fair, perspective to Great Harvest.
Life before franchising was pretty different. I was a tax accountant with Price Waterhouse, specializing in the financial institutions business. I went to college at the University of Virginia, and earned my MBA at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
In my free time,
you'll find me hanging out with my wonderful wife,
Eadie; our cool kids, Peter and Michael; and our
dog, Benji. I love spending time on my bike and
crave moments on the open road. I've completed
over 40 bike rides of at least 100 miles, many of
them as a volunteer coach for the Leukemia and
Lymphoma Society's Team in Training program. In a
somewhat questionable move, I recently decided to
expand my exercise horizon and enter the multi-sport
world of triathlons. I'm starting to think riding a
bike for 100 miles is a whole lot more fun when I
don't have to swim before - or run after - the ride.
See you in Montana, the bakeries, or somewhere in between...
Mike 
Experience
Started career with National Jewish Center for Immunology and Respiratory Medicine in Denver, Colorado, as a kitchen supervisor. Oversaw tray-line food production, cafeteria food production, catering events, and was purchasing agent. Started at Great Harvest in 1991 as a "generalist". Have been "The Wheat Lady", convention planner, customer service trainer, extranet webmaster, newsletter editor, and have done lots of special projects. Currently Director of Franchise Services, where I oversee the opening and training of new stores, group purchasing, wheat, R & D, and web presence.
Competencies
Give me the idea, I can make it happen; keeping projects and goals on track; balancing many balls at once – and being in control of the balls! Foodie.
Education
B.S. degree in Food Systems Management from Montana State University. Minor in Business Management.
In My Free Time
Hanging out with my son and daughter...and enjoying every moment that I'm given with them. Pouring over any cooking magazine I can get my hands on, experimenting in the kitchen, tasting new wines, good books, and a brisk walk. (Rumor has it I can walk faster than some runners!)
Favorite Aspects of Great Harvest
Great people. Honey Whole Wheat bread – hot out of the oven. The challenge of doing something new every day!
Experience
All of my work experience has been with Great Harvest, starting in June of 1991 and working happily ever after. Brought in as an "Administrative Generalist", things progressed quickly due to internal needs for bakery field support. Over the next seven years, I held several positions including opening trainer, bakery manager, field representative, and franchise candidate selection. Since 1998, I've been our Director of Bakery Operations. Our department is responsible for supporting and advising each and every bakery in the core areas of their business, from bread quality and menu development to improving bakery efficiency and troubleshooting equipment problems.
Competencies
A natural people person. Excellent team builder and team player. I love to teach and coach, and believe you must do both side-by-side to have a happy staff. Strong at prioritizing and juggling many balls, I get things done and stay balanced at the same time.
Education
B.S. degree in Biology from Concordia College. Minor in Psychology.
My Favorite Aspects of Great Harvest
I really love the people and the bread. It's also allowed me to experience our great country, coast to coast.
Family
I have a wonderful family. I married my high school sweetheart, Kathy, in 1991 and have never looked back. We have two children, Andy (born in 1992) and Kelsey (born in 1994). When away from work, the four of us spend most of our time adventuring in Montana's great outdoors: playing sports, hunting, fishing, and camping.
Belief
We get one shot at this little game called life, so you might as well have fun. Life's too short to spend all of your time working and worrying about money. Get out, be active, live your dreams, and enjoy the people around you.
Experience
I began my professional career in 1987 in the Portland, Oregon office of KPMG, one of the few remaining international public accounting firms. After seven years with KPMG, I moved to Bend, Oregon, to take the Treasurer position with Consep, Inc., an ag-biotech firm. Two years later, in 1996, I accepted the Controller position with Great Harvest and my wife and I moved back to our home state of Montana. My pre-Great Harvest experience included SEC reporting and disclosure, financial statement audit work, and mergers and acquisitions. At Great Harvest, my primary responsibility is to keep the financial affairs of the company in order.
Education
B.S. degree in Accounting from Montana State University. I'm also a licensed CPA in the state of Montana, and received my Masters in Business Administration degree from Colorado State University.
In My Free Time
I coach Little League Baseball, enjoy running, play softball, ski, and spend time with my wife, Shauna, and our three kids, Alex, Matt, and Madi.
What Keeps Me Going at Great Harvest
Definitely the people: both here in Dillon, and in our franchise community. I can't imagine working with a better group of individuals!
Credo
Gather all the facts, express an opinion based on those facts, and know the difference between the two. (Not sure if this is really a credo, or exactly what it means, but I think it's pretty cool.)
Experience
Joined Great Harvest in 1991, fresh out of college. Started by working on legal projects, squeezed into a small office with Hans Wendt (now a Great Harvest owner in Bellingham, Washington) and the mailing table. After a few years, moved to the operations side of the company and have done new bakery tracking, training, openings, visits and special projects. Managed several different Great Harvest departments over the years. Presently serve as Director of Development, with responsibilities ranging from franchise candidate selection and territory definition to location hunting and franchise agreements.
Education
B.A. degree in Economics from Amherst College. Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Montana.
In My Free Time
I hang out with my husband, Jim, and two young kids, Nick and Lindsey.
My "Finding Great Harvest" Story
I was finishing college in Massachusetts and frantically job hunting all over the West. My husband (boyfriend at the time) saw an ad in his local paper for a job in Dillon, Montana. My first reaction was, "That's very sweet of you to try to help with my hunt, but there can't be a 'real' job in Dillon, Montana." On a whim, I called the 800 number and was greeted by the nicest person on the other end of the line. She sent me a packet of information and I was shocked to learn what a cool company this is - and that the job sounded very challenging and interesting. Long story short, I got the job and still love Great Harvest!
Credo
Imagine life is a game in which you are juggling five balls. The balls are called work, family, health, friends and integrity. And you're keeping all of them in the air. But one day you finally come to understand that work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back. The other four balls – family, health, friends, and integrity – are made of glass. If you drop one of these, it will be irrevocably scuffed, nicked, perhaps even shattered. And once you truly understand the lesson of the five balls, you will have the beginnings of balance in your life.
Favorite quote
"Those who give up freedom for security deserve neither security nor freedom." ~ Ben Franklin
Experience
I’ve spent more than 15 years working with some really fantastic Fortune 500 companies, arts organizations, national nonprofits and high-tech start ups. I’m a former executive with Seattle-based public relations and advertising agencies The Rockey Company (now Hill & Knowlton) and The EvansGroup (now Publicis). My favorite clients include Starbucks, Disney, Nickelodeon, the Seattle Art Museum, Seattle Opera and a Boeing-sponsored organization called Communities In Schools. In the course of my career I also had the honor of providing media relations support to a former U.S. president, and to a personal hero of mine, Marian Wright Edelman, president and founder of the Children’s Defense Fund. One of my most enlightening and enriching life experiences was in teaching kindergarten at a highly diverse Title I grade school in Ballard, Wash.
Competencies
Developing and managing public, employee, community and customer outreach strategies; brand management; major event coordination; market research; print, video, CD and online communication production. Experience in virtually all aspects of both traditional and online marketing.
Education
I have a bachelor’s degree in communications with a minor in psychology from the University of Washington; K-8 Elementary Education Certification from the University of Washington, Bothell.
In My Free Time
I look for every opportunity to relive my childhood through my turbo-charged, super-silly son James. I also follow current affairs, especially as it relates to political, environmental and educational issues. I enjoy bike riding, skiing, hiking, fly fishing, traveling and spending time with my family, including my Sheltie (dog) Jorge and Maine Coon (kitty) Zoe. I also love inventive gourmet cuisine in its many forms and cannot say “no” to chocolate.
Favorite Aspects of Great Harvest
Where to begin? The company philosophy embodies the things I believe to be essential to a happy, satisfying and fun career. I am very proud of how we provide customers with tasty, healthy alternatives to eating over-processed, nutritionally barren food. I’ve been an enthusiastic customer and advocate of Great Harvest for many years and now I have an office wafting distance from the test kitchen. My friends in corporate America are so jealous!
Favorite quote
Success
To laugh often;
To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children;
To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends;
To appreciate beauty;
To find the best in others;
To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition;
To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived.
This is to have succeeded.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson
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