President and CEO
Lakeside Foods | Manitowoc
Joe Yanda represents the fourth generation of family leadership at Lakeside Foods, a Manitowoc-based producer of food products for the retail, food service and industrial sectors. He joined the family business full-time in 1999 as a quality assurance technologist and went on to hold leadership roles in the areas of sales, operations and supply chain. He became chief operating officer in 2019 and president and CEO in 2021. Founded in 1887 as a pea-canning plant, the company today has 1,200 employees and 14 production facilities. Its products – which include canned and frozen vegetables, canned meat, canned dry beans, smoked sausage, frozen desserts, appetizers and canned pet food – are distributed across the U.S. and in 14 countries. Under his leadership, Lakeside acquired Cher-Make Sausage Co., also of Manitowoc, in 2021. Yanda serves on the boards of the Consumer Brands Association and National Association of Manufacturers.
Education: Bachelor’s, Luther College; master’s, Silver Lake College
Advice for first-time leaders: “Stay humble, listen more than you talk, lead by example, and empower your team.”
Favorite Wisconsin destination: “Manitowoc.”
Your sport if you could be an Olympian: “Nordic skiing. I think Nordic skiers are some of the most fit athletes in the world.”
