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Wendy’s execs press on
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December 20, 1999: 5:13 p.m. ET
Top execs vow to look inside and out to replace Teter, who died Saturday
By Staff Writer Tom Johnson
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Top executives at Wendy’s International Inc. moved swiftly Monday to assure investors that Chairman Gordon Teter’s death over the weekend would not disrupt the company’s operation or projected earnings flow.
In a hastily-arranged conference call with analysts and investors Monday afternoon, the Dublin, Ohio-based fast-food restaurant chain said it would consider both internal and external candidates to replace Teter, Wendy’s chairman, president and chief executive officer who died suddenly Saturday night of natural causes.
"What we plan to do is begin the process of evaluating what we need,” said Frederick Reed said, Wendy’s chief financial officer. "Certainly we will consider the appropriateness of people inside the company and test them against those outside the company.”
Separately, company officials also reiterated their expectation for "strong” fourth-quarter financial results, including overall sales growth between 5.5 percent and 6 percent.
Company likely to look in-house
Analysts interviewed Monday said the company currently has three viable internal candidates for the top spot, including Reed, Jack Schuessler, president and chief operating officer of the Wendy’s franchise, and Paul House, president and chief operating officer of the Tim Hortons franchise.
Those three will join Wendy’s two senior chairman -- franchise founder Dave Thomas, who will temporarily expand his responsibilities as senior chairman to oversee the company’s management, and Tim Hortons founder Ronald Joyce, the company’s largest shareholder -- on a Special Chairman’s Management Council tasked with naming a successor.
Although a group of outside directors on Wendy’s board routinely discusses a succession plan for the company’s upper management, Wendy’s officials intend to explore all their options before making a decision, Reed said.
"Our goal is to keep things moving in the right direction,” Joyce said. "I am convinced that these two companies have not even begun to reach their potential in the North American market and internationally.”
Weighing the candidates
Analysts said they did not expect the succession process to take an inordinate amount of time. Most also expected the company to lean toward looking for an internal candidate, just as it did in hiring the previous two chairman -- Teter and James Near, who passed away in 1996.
"I’m quite certain the board will look for someone with similar goals as the company has now,” said Anton Brenner, an analyst with Cruttenden Roth Inc. "There are [a handful] of people that are qualified to serve internally and they each bring different qualification to the table.
Of the three mentioned by analysts Monday, Schuessler, 48, boasts the longest tenure with the company, having joined the franchise in 1974. Under his leadership, the Wendy’s chain has posted strong financial results in recent quarters, including growing same-store sales more than 7 percent during the third quarter.
House, 56, joined Wendy’s when it acquired the Tim Hortons chain in 1995. That chain has routinely posted even stronger numbers than its American counterpart, including generating same-store sales of 12.5 percent during the third quarter.
Reed, 51, joined Wendy’s in 1996 as an executive vice president and serves on the company’s executive, finance and board membership committees of the board.
Like many restaurant chains, Wendy’s (WEN) stock has been under intense pressure since late summer despite posting solid financial results.
Since posting its 52-week high of 31-11/16 in late July, investors have shaved nearly 35 percent of Wendy’s stock’s value.
Still, investors reacted calmly Monday to Teter’s death. Wendy’s shares closed up 1/16 to 20-11/16. 
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