The franchisor of Applebee’s and IHOP has continued to restructure its senior management with the hiring of Tony Moralejo as president of global and international development and the appointment of Justin Skelton as chief information officer (CIO).
Both will report to the CFO of Dine Brands Global, Tom Song.
The moves come as Dine Brands is searching for a CEO to succeed the current holder of the position, Steve Joyce. The company announced at the end of May that it would not renew Joyce’s contract when it expires Feb. 1. No reason was given for the decision by the board of directors.
Moralejo joins the company from Church’s Chicken, which operates abroad as Texas Chicken. During a career that spans two decades, he has also held franchise development and legal posts for Burger King.
Skelton joined Dine Brands a year ago as VP of information technology infrastructure and operations. He has been serving as CIO on what was intended to be an interim basis.
“As we get through the global pandemic we realize we must have key leadership and capabilities in place to compete effectively everywhere, on all brands, across all geographies,” Song said in a statement. "Re-shaping our portfolio for long-term growth for all franchisees across the globe has always been our mission, and our approach is about deliberate and sustainable growth, with a technology infrastructure that supports and enables all restaurants. Tony and Justin have a clear understanding of this.”
Dine Brands is the largest franchisor of full-service restaurants in the industry. Applebee’s and IHOP have suffered along with many in their respective segments—casual and family dining—from the closure of dining rooms to slow the spread of COVID-19 and a drop in traffic triggered by states’ stay-at-home orders. Hundreds of units of both chains were temporarily closed during the pandemic.
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