College of Agriculture & Natural Resources Alumni & Friends

Tom Ryan, Ph.D., of Denver, Colorado, will receive a Michigan State University College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (CANR) Outstanding Alumni Award at the March 1 ANR Awards Program.

The CANR Outstanding Alumni Awards are given to those who have distinguished themselves by obtaining the highest level of professional accomplishments, and who possess the highest standards of integrity and character.

In his own words, Ryan is “an amalgam of many things.” A three-time MSU graduate, Ryan earned his bachelors (’79), masters (’82) and Ph.D. (’85) in Food Science.  During his doctoral studies at MSU under the mentorship of Dr. Ian Gray, Ryan became intrigued with marketing and consumer research which set him up on a career path that has produced innovations that consumers around the world are now familiar with.

After completing his Ph.D. work at MSU, Ryan started his career in development roles at Procter and Gamble and Pillsbury. Early on, he recognized the power of blending a comprehensive technical knowledge of food science with an understanding of consumers behaviors. He meticulously researched and evaluated restaurant trends in pursuit of the next "big idea" to bring to grocery shelves. Along this path, he developed a passion for restaurants, menu innovation potential and the vast opportunity for creative advancement in the emerging restaurant landscape.

Ryan joined Pizza Hut as Senior Vice President for Business Development in the late 1980’s. Melding his scientific training with a keen business acumen, Ryan and his team’s developed many of the iconic food products and menu enhancements that consumers around the world are now familiar with, including the stuffed crust pizza, breadsticks and chicken wings, Sicilian pizza, and Meat Lover’s pizza.

In the late 1990’s, Tom joined McDonalds and held menu development, chief marketing officer and worldwide chief concept officer titles. At McDonalds, Tom was responsible for the development and implementation of several menu innovations and concepts that would go on to gain wide-spread popularity worldwide, including the Dollar Menu, McGriddle breakfast sandwiches, the McFlurry and fruit-and-yogurt parfaits. In 2003, Ryan joined Quiznos as chief branding officer. In this role, he introduced record setting new sandwiches into the marketplace, like the Steakhouse Beef Dip and the Prime Rib Sub.

In 2007, Tom created his own company, Smashburgers, which became an industry model for quality and growth. It was twice named by Forbes magazine as “America’s Most Promising Company,” and has won winning numerous industry awards for quality and taste. In 2018, Smashburgers was purchased by Jollibee Food Corporation (JFC), a Manila-based restaurant powerhouse. Ryan is currently the Global Taste Advisor to JFC, focusing on optimizing concept and menu elements.

Tom’s namesake concept, Tom’s Urban, opened at LA Live, in the heart of Los Angeles, California, in 2014. Later that same year, Tom's Urban opened on the strip in Las Vegas, Nevada, followed by three new restaurants around the country. He is also the founder of Tom’s Watch Bar, a gastropub founded in 2014 with locations nationwide. Promising "All the Sports, all the Time," Tom's Watch Bar features highly curated sports programming, pairing main coverage on a central oversized stadium screen with hundreds of smaller screens to provide guests with a unique 360° viewing experience.

Ryan has earned many professional accolades, including being named by Gourmet Magazine as one of the "25 Top Food Entrepreneurs of the Last 25 Years." Throughout his career, he has generously found ways to inspire the next generation of Spartan innovators and entrepreneurs in the food industry. Ryan has served as a guest lecturer for Food Science and Marketing classes and as a speaker to the MSU Food Science Club. He has presented at the Innovate State Speaker Series and served as a judge for the Burgess Institute for Entrepreneurship & Innovation “New Venture Challenge,” a campus-wide new business pitch competition. Ryan also regularly offers up his restaurant spaces for various MSU alumni and student events.

Ryan and his wife Jody spend their time between Denver and Minneapolis with their three adult children and one granddaughter.