Wakefern increases cyber-security efforts, names new CIO

Wakefern Food Corporation, in coordinating cyber-security efforts and technology on both the corporate and retail fronts, has named executive Cheryl Williams the new chief information officer at the company.Williams also will serve as vice president of Wakefern’s computer information services division. She has been involved with the technology aspects of the business during her two decades at Wakefern and plans to make it a prominent aspect of the company’s future.

“From our phones to our computers, and from our warehouses to our retail stores, technology is key, and it’s important that the division stays leading edge,” Williams said.

Most recently vice president of digital commerce and innovation at Keasbey-based Wakefern, Williams will now oversee CISD — the same division where she began her career as a manager of retail systems in 1996 and later worked as a director.

She was named vice president of marketing in 2001, working with a variety of divisions to launch key consumer marketing and data programs, before being named vice president of digital commerce and innovation in 2012. 

As head of DCI, Williams led the team that launched ShopRite’s first mobile app, along with the ShopRite from Home online service and digital coupons to address the changing needs of ShopRite consumers.

She earned her bachelor’s degree from Cook College at Rutgers University.