Yum! Brands, Inc. announced the promotion of Shannon Hennessy to The Habit Burger Grill Division Chief Executive Officer, reporting to Yum! Chief Executive Officer David Gibbs, effective June 6, 2023.

Hennessy, who currently serves as President of The Habit Burger Grill Division, will succeed Russ Bendel, who has announced his decision to retire at the beginning of June after a successful decades-long career in the restaurant industry. As CEO, Hennessy will continue to build on the brand's unique strengths and assume responsibility for driving its overall growth strategies and performance. As President of The Habit Burger Grill, Hennessy has overseen development, franchising, marketing and international expansion.

In this role, she has also been responsible for contributing to the brand's strategy to accelerate growth, nurturing cross-brand collaboration and driving company culture. Hennessy joined Yum! in 2020 as the Chief Financial Officer of KFC Global Division, where she was responsible for leading the global finance function and ensuring continued growth and profitability of the KFC business.

She also oversaw the brand's global financial planning, supply chain management and strategy functions. Russ Bendel joined The Habit in 2008, growing the brand from 16 restaurants to approximately 350 restaurants by the end of 2022. Under Bendel's leadership and relentless attention to operations, he led a major brand transformation that introduced drive-thrus and digital order channels to meet growing needs for convenience.

Over the years, The Habit has received multiple awards, including being recognized as having the Best Tasting Burger in America by Consumer Reports in 2014 and earning the No. 1 spot in the USA TODAY Readers' Choice list of 10 Best Regional Fast-Food Chains in America in 2019 and 2021. Prior to joining The Habit, Bendel served as President and Chief Operating Officer of The Cheesecake Factory.

Bendel's career also includes tenures as President and Chief Executive of Mimi's Café, President of Roy's Restaurants, Franchise Partner of Outback Steakhouse in California and Chief Operating Officer of El Torito Restaurants and Panda Express.