CHICAGO — Gold Standard Baking (G.S.B.), a major producer of croissants, Danish and other sweet goods, tagged industry veteran Jeff Dearduff as its president and chief executive officer, effective immediately. The company operates bakeries in Chicago and Pleasant Prairie, Wis.

"We are very fortunate to have Jeff Dearduff lead G.S.B.,” said Brad Seaman, chairman of G.S.B. and managing partner of Parallel49 Equity, a Chicago-based private equity firm that acquired G.S.B. in 2015. “Jeff brings 40 years of baking industry experience delivering operational excellence, industry leading quality, and an intense focus on meeting customer needs.”

Most recently, Mr. Dearduff led the business development effort in the baking and snack industries for The Austin Co. Prior to that, he was chief operating officer at G.S.B., where he led the development of the company’s Pleasant Prairie facility in 2017.

Previously, Mr. Dearduff also spent more than four years in increasingly responsible positions at Aryzta, including senior vice-president of operations, and 27 years with East Balt Bakeries in a broad range of operating roles, including director of engineering and director of bakery operations.

Mr. Dearduff has held many leadership roles in the baking industry. He served as the chairman of the American Society of Baking in 2012 and is currently a trustee of the American Institute of Baking. He holds the designations of Professional Bakery Engineer from the American Society of Baking and Certified Bakery Engineer from the American Institute of Baking.

Mr. Dearduff was recognized by Baking & Snack magazine as its 2014 Operations Executive of the Year.