Grain Craft
 
CHATTANOOGA, TENNESSEE, U.S. — David A. Krishock, a longtime baking instructor at Kansas State University, has joined Grain Craft as bakery technical support manager.

Grain Craft also announced two other additions — Preston Powell as account executive and Natalie Faulkner as senior communications manager.

At Grain Craft, Krishock will work with baking customers and will serve as a technical resource for dough and baking inquiries. He will work with the Grain Craft quality assurance and test lab teams.

A well-known figure in grain-based foods, Krishock most recently was production manager for City Bakery, an artisan bakery cafe business in Asheville, North Carolina, U.S. At City Bakery he was responsible for production, purchasing and new product development.

Before that Krishock spent 12 years as a baking science and management instructor in the Department of Grain Science and Industry at Kansas State University. His first position at KSU was as the BNEF (Bakers National Education Foundation) instructor. At Kansas State, Krishock taught courses on baking science and bakery layout and design. He received the undergraduate teaching award from KSU and also taught courses for the International Grains Program and AIB International.

Before joining Kansas State, Krishock was production manager with Zingerman’s Bakehouse in Michigan from 2002-05. Before that he was director of technical services bakery/food service division at King Arthur Flour Company, Inc., Norwich, Vermont, U.S.

Krishock is a graduate of the American Institute of Baking and managed his own baking business in Highlands, North Carolina, U.S., for five years.

Powell will be responsible for promoting bulk and bagged products to new and existing Grain Craft customers. He also will offer support to the company’s current sales team. He will be based at the company’s Overland Park, Kansas, U.S., offices.

Powell most recently was a business development manger at General Mills, Inc. He joined the company in 2013 as a field customer specialist. He graduated from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign with a bachelor’s degree in finance.

“The addition of Dave Krishock and Preston Powell is an exciting step for Grain Craft,” said Peter T. Frederick, president of Grain Craft. “Our bakery technical support manager position held by Dave Krishock further demonstrates our commitment to be more than a flour provider. We are passionate about serving our customers and delivering the resources they need to be successful.  Dave’s expertise will be another step towards our resource offering.

“In addition, our new account executive, Preston Powell, is a polished professional who effortlessly aligns with our existing group of long-time sales experts. Both of these very talented people were strategically selected to enhance Grain Craft’s excellent service, to support our continued growth and to further cultivate our legacy of longtime partnerships.”

Faulkner will be responsible for developing, leading and implementing strategic communication plans business-wide with the goal of enhancing the visibility and strength of Grain Craft, the company said.

Faulkner has more than 15 years of experience in business-to-business marketing. Most recently, she spent 10 years at J+J Flooring Group, a division of the third largest carpet manufacturer in North America. At J+J, Faulkner led product marketing, branding, digital strategy and external and internal communications initiatives. Earlier, she was marketing director for five years at Walnut Square Mall in Dalton, Georgia, U.S.

A graduate of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Faulkner holds a bachelor’s degree in communications with a minor in marketing.

She will be based in Grain Craft’s Chattanooga office.

“We value the importance of telling the Grain Craft story with intention and consistency to both our employees and our customers,” Frederick said. “Therefore we have chosen to invest in this new role of senior communications manager.  With Natalie’s background in B-to-B and her extensive experience in both marketing and communications, we are excited about the many opportunities and initiatives ahead to build upon the existing strength of our company.”