So many bakers lament the loss of institutional knowledge when their longtime employees retire. To ensure that doesn’t happen, the fourth generation at Piantedosi Baking Co. said that they received mentoring from their predecessors when they were learning the business.

“Many of them have been with us for 30 or 40 years,” noted Arthur Piantedosi, director of business process and operational compliance. “There’s a ton of information that they can share with us and we can pull from them.”

At around age 11, Arthur and his brother, Carmine Piantedosi, director of production planning and distribution operations, spent their summers in the bakery, rotating through different departments as needed and learning about production, maintenance, sanitation, R&D and distribution before attending college.

Their cousin Adam Piantedosi, director of business development and retail sales, spent three years rotating through production, finance and sales, while Jared Piantedosi, marketing media specialist, joined most recently in 2023.

Today, Thomas Piantedosi, Adam’s father, is chief executive officer, while his brother, Bob Piantedosi, senior vice president of operations, is Arthur’s and Carmine’s dad. Joseph Piantedosi, executive vice president of marketing and business development, is Jared’s father.

Adam Piantedosi said there hasn’t been any formal transition from one generation to another. It just doesn’t work that way.

“As we continue to learn and grow, our dads and the third generation are recognizing our growth and seeing what we have been able to accomplish,” he explained. “It’s been a natural progression. There hasn’t been an official recognition that we’re running the day-to-day operation, but there definitely has been a changing of the guard, especially since the pandemic.”

This article is an excerpt from the May 2023 issue of Baking & Snack. To read the entire feature on Piantedosi Baking Co., click here.