BILL LOMBARDO

CEO, MONIN AMERICAS, CLEARWATER

Monin Americas may not be a household name, but its products are ubiquitous across restaurants and hospitality venues throughout the country. The company's flavorings are served in 10 million drinks per day that are sold in 180 of the nation's top 200 restaurant chains. As CEO of the Clearwater-based flavor and beverage company, Lombardo has helped steer its expansion across the Americas while keeping innovation at the core of its strategy. Lombardo has made a career of challenging convention and turning that instinct into growth. After business school, he joined General Mills and was assigned to a small team charged with moving the company beyond its traditional grocery categories. The assignment became a career launching point, leading to innovations across grocery, restaurants and foodservice. At a University of South Florida Muma College of Business CEO forum earlier this year, Lombardo reflected on the lesson he took from that experience. “Understand who you are — what your strength is,” he said. “Someone recognized that I'm a guy who likes to bend the rules.”