Papa John’s late Friday named Olivia Kirtley its new board chair as the company works to overcome a controversy surrounding departed founder John Schnatter.
Kirtley, former CFO of accounting firm Ernst & Young, had been Papa John’s lead independent director and was a natural fit to become the board chair.
In addition, Papa John’s said it is searching for “additional independent directors.”
Kirtley’s promotion to chair comes as the company faces a mounting public and legal battle with Schnatter, who resigned earlier this month after admitting to using the N-word during a conference call with a marketing agency.
Schnatter was subsequently removed from the company’s advertising and kicked out of his office, and he has since said he regretted resigning and last week sued the company and its board of directors to get access to documents related to his departure.
Papa John’s, meanwhile, has established an independent special committee, which ended Schnatter’s founder’s agreement, and has hired a law firm to conduct a cultural investigation of the company.
“Many stakeholders, including team members, franchisees and shareholders, have expressed their support for the actions we are taking,” Kirtley said in a statement.
Kirtley has been Papa John’s lead independent director since last year and has been president and board chairman of the International Federation of Accountants and the chairman of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
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