US fast food chain Whataburger hires Melissa Ehresman as Vice President of Digital Experience
Melissa Ehresman has joined Whataburger as its new Vice President of Digital Experience. She was previously at XO Health and brings a track record of leading digital transformation and building organisations across healthcare, financial services and consumer facing industries.
In her new role, she will lead the evolution of Whataburger's digital experience strategy, including advancing its mobile and online ordering platforms and strengthening its loyalty capabilities, with the aim of creating more personalised, seamless interactions that deepen guest engagement and drive connection to the brand.
“Melissa’s experience leading digital transformation and building customer first organisations makes her a strong addition to our team,” says Scott Hudler, Chief Marketing Officer. “She understands how to connect strategy with execution in a way that improves the experience for our guests, and we’re excited for the impact she’ll have at Whataburger.”
2026 RTIH Innovation Awards
Digital experiences will be a key focus area at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards.
The awards are now open for entries and celebrate global retail technology innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.
Our winners will be revealed at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards Ceremony, taking place at The HAC in Central London on Wednesday, 4th November.
Check out our 2025 winners here.
Our 2025 hall of fame entrants were revealed during a sold out event which took place at The HAC on 16th October and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by award winning comedian, actress and writer Tiff Stevenson.
In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “This is the awards’ fifth year as a physical event. We started off with just 30 people at the South Place Hotel not far from here, then moved to London Bridge Hotel, then The Barbican, and last year RIBA’s HQ in the West End.”
“But I’m conscious of the fact that, to quote the legend that is Taylor Swift, You’re only as hot as your last hit, baby. So, this year we’ve moved to our biggest venue yet, and also pulled in our largest number of entries to date and broken attendance records.”
He added: “This year’s submissions have without doubt been our best yet. To quote one of the judges: The examples of innovative developments across both traditional and digital retail spaces were truly remarkable.”
Congratulations to our winners, and a big thank you to our sponsors, judging panel, the legend that is Tiff Stevenson, and all those who attended our 2025 gathering.
