Executive Team

Dave Pace has served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Red Robin since April 2025 and has served on the Board of Directors since August 2019. Prior to his appointment to the role of President and Chief Executive Officer, he served as the Chair of the Board of Directors. Dave brings 35 years of leadership and turnaround experience in the food, beverage and retail industries, among others.

From 2020 to 2023, Dave served as Co-Chief Executive Officer and director of Tastemaker Acquisition Corporation, a special purpose acquisition company focusing on the restaurant, hospitality, and related technology and service sectors. From 2016 to 2018, he served as Chief Executive Officer of Jamba Juice, where he led the brand through a highly successful repositioning and tripled profit performance and ultimately a strategic sale of the company. Prior to that, he served as President of Carrabba’s Italian Grill, from 2014 to 2016, where he oversaw broad operational changes, significant margin improvement and accelerated profit growth. From 2010 to 2014, Dave served as Executive Vice President and Chief Resource Officer at Bloomin’ Brands, where he was responsible for real estate development and human capital deployment across approximately 1,500 restaurants, 100,000 team members and five brands. Earlier in his career, Dave held various leadership positions at Starbucks, PepsiCo, and Yum! Brands, among others. Dave currently serves as the independent Chair of the board of directors of Farmer Bros. Co., a publicly traded company. He also serves as a director of Authentic Restaurant Brands, a restaurant portfolio company of Garnett Station Partners, since 2022, and as a member of the ownership advisory board for the NHL’s Dallas Stars since 2017. Mr. Pace earned his Bachelor of Science degree in industrial and labor relations from Cornell University.

Dave’s favorite Red Robin menu item is the Whiskey River BBQ Burger.

Mark has served as Chief Financial Officer since May 2026. As CFO, Mark is responsible for all Red Robin financial disciplines including accounting, financial planning & analysis, tax, treasury and investor relations.

Most recently, he served as President of Bonefish Grill and Fine Dining, where he successfully led a $900M business across more than 220 restaurants. Mark also held senior leadership roles across Finance, Strategy, and Investor Relations, leading global business development, capital planning, and complex M&A initiatives. He understands how to connect operational performance to financial outcomes, make clear data-based decisions, and drive accountability at every level.

Humera has served as Chief People Officer since September 2025. As CPO, Humera is responsible for overseeing Red Robin's organizational strategy and vision centered on the continued strengthening of Red Robin's culture and the advancement of its recently announced First Choice Plan.

With a distinguished career spanning more than 30 years, Kassem has demonstrated expertise in cultivating organizational culture and driving talent development across various industries. Most recently, Kassem served as Chief People Officer at Dave & Buster's. She is a veteran executive having held multiple senior human resource roles with iconic brands including Coca-Cola, Delta Airlines, JCPenney and Jamba Juice. She holds a Master of Organization Management degree from Dallas Baptist University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications from the University of Southern California.

Humera’s favorite menu item is the Sautéed ‘Shroom Burger.

Jesse Griffith has served as Chief Operations Officer since November 2025. In this role, Jesse leads both strategic and day-to-day operations for the company’s nearly 500 restaurants, franchise relations and partnership with beloved pizza brand, Donatos. He is focused on Guest satisfaction, operational excellence, building strong teams, and profitable growth. Jesse joined Red Robin as Senior Vice President, Operations in March 2023.

Prior to joining Red Robin, Jesse served as Vice President of Operations with Austin, Texas-based Torchy’s Tacos, which doubled in restaurant unit growth during his tenure. Prior to that, he served as Vice President of Operations for California Pizza Kitchen. During his career, Jesse also has held the role of Market Partner at Texas Roadhouse over an eight-year stint, where he developed the state of Virginia for the company, and was a multi-unit operator at Quaker Steak & Lube and Bennigan’s. He even worked for a brief period at the Pentagon! Jesse is proud to have served on the boards of both the California Pizza Kitchen and Torchy’s Tacos charitable foundations.

His favorite Red Robin menu item is the Bacon Cheeseburger.

John has served as Chief Transformation Officer at Red Robin since June 2026. As CTO, John leads the company's refranchising transformation, supply chain, and facilities functions.

Prior to joining Red Robin, John served as Chief Business Development Officer at Torchy’s Tacos from March 2020 to August 2023, overseeing supply chain, construction, real estate, design, and facilities during a period of significant growth. Before Torchy’s, he was Senior Vice President of Supply Chain, Culinary, Facilities & Quality Assurance at Bob Evans Restaurants from November 2017 to March 2020, where he led key operational and quality functions across the organization.

With more than 25 years of leadership experience spanning supply chain, development, facilities, real estate and restaurant operations, John has led enterprise-wide initiatives across nationally recognized restaurant brands, directing complex supply chains, multi-unit development programs, real estate portfolios and large-scale operational transformations. His experience spans both high-growth and mature organizations, with a track record of driving profitability, enhancing operational performance and supporting sustainable expansion.

John has also served as a Board Member for Parry’s Pizzeria & Taphouse since 2019, providing strategic guidance to support the company's continued growth and long-term success.

John's favorite menu item is the Royal Red Robin burger.

Deena DePhilips serves as Chief Technology Officer for Red Robin. In this role, Deena leads the company’s technology strategy and execution across digital platforms, restaurant technology, cybersecurity, data and analytics, enterprise systems, infrastructure, technology operations and the advancement of Red Robin’s AI strategy.

With more than 20 years at Red Robin, Deena brings broad experience across technology, operations and enterprise transformation. Prior to becoming CTO, she served as Head of Technology and held leadership roles spanning digital transformation, enterprise systems, restaurant technology and operational excellence. Her background includes modernizing core technology platforms, strengthening digital and data capabilities and applying emerging technologies to support business growth, operational efficiency and the Guest experience.

Deena holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology.