Hospital Housekeeping Systems (HHS) and Culinary & Nutrition Solutions (CNS) are proud to announce that William Bessette has been named Vice President of Integrated Business Development.
Bessette’s knowledge and training, combined with a balance of operational and sales experience, has allowed him to have an immediate impact on HHS & CNS’s performance in the health care market. His ability to communicate at the executive-suite level, with a thorough understanding of the critical business issues affecting senior management, makes him an important asset to both the HHS and CNS teams.
In his past roles, Bessette has accomplished a wide array of achievements in the culinary field, including developing a territory with an 1,800-mile span, and creating & servicing more than 45 accounts with a P&L responsibility exceeding $125 million. He also has represented previous company interests in the presentation, sale, service and clinical nutrition of more than 30,000 customers/meals per day, and he has organized, directed and facilitated the renovation, modernization and start-up of multiple food service concepts and operational regions.
His career in health care food service management began in 1996 when he was named Regional Culinary Director for Morrison’s Healthcare. Previously, he gained nearly 20 years of experience as a District Manager for Morrison Cafeterias, developing Chef training programs and establishing a company-wide Product Standardization Initiative. Bessette was quickly promoted to Regional Director of Operations for Morrison’s Healthcare in 1997, and then to Vice President in 1999.
After leaving Morrison’s Healthcare, Bessette held Vice Presidential roles with Luby’s Restaurants, Inc. where he spearheaded business development and the implementation of their new Culinary Services Division, including crafting operational guidelines and establishing service processes.
“The experience at Luby’s/ Fudderucker’s Restaurants Inc., and a close working relationship with Lubys’ CEO, Chris Pappas, gave me the insight to develop an ‘inside-out approach’ to healthcare food services,” says Bessette. “You’ve got to start in the kitchen to ensure you have the production capability to provide restaurant quality meals—and service—to your patients.”
Bessette is certified by the Culinary Institute of America and has sales training certifications from Dale Carnegie, Ray Leone Sales Funnel, Speak Easy Talk So People Listen, and Miller Heimann. He graduated from the University of West Florida with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Communications, and currently resides in Houston, Texas.