Shake Shack names Papa John's CEO as its new leader in CEO shakeup

Shake Shack named a new CEO on Thursday, the first outsider to lead the company in its 20-year history. Rob Lynch, the current president and CEO of the Papa John’s pizza chain, will join Shake Shack’s board and become its CEO on May 20. Lynch succeeds Randy Garutti, who started what would become Shake Shack from a hot dog cart in New York in 2001. Shake Shack Chairman and founder Danny Meyer said Thursday that Lynch is an ideal candidate to lead Shake Shack as it embarks on a period of global growth. Shake Shack ended last year with 518 restaurants worldwide; Papa John's has 5,900.