Bakery software system Cybake has selected Oprah Davidson as the new business development manager of its North American division, Cybake USA.

Davidson, who at 33 years of age has already had an outstanding career in the American bakery sector, graduated from Johnson & Wales University, North Miami, Florida, with a BSc in Food Service Management, certifications in culinary, baking and pastry arts, and international work experience in bakeries in Paris, France, and the Caribbean islands of St John and St Lucia.

As a pastry cook at Orlando’s Ritz Carlton, Davidson won first prizes in two national US baking contests: America’s Best Raisin Bread Contest (in 2010) and the Perfect Puree Art of Flavor Competition (in 2011). Following that, she worked at New York City cupcake institution Sugar Sweet Sunshine Bakery. This led to being invited to join renowned baker Christina Tosi’s team at Milk Bar, where she served as a production manager at its “kitchen” hub in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Davidson has also assisted teaching at the Institute of Culinary Education in New York for three years before moving to Florida once again as a product development consultant to major US bakery brands, a business mentor to food start-ups and also owning an exclusive cake design service.

“The baking industry is changing fast. We need to change with it, otherwise a lot of talented individuals and companies will get left behind,” says Davidson. “Embracing new technology does not mean letting go of tradition; the two can work hand in hand to ensure that artisan craftsmanship never dies out. Heading up Cybake’s operations in the USA gives me the opportunity to help bakers to do just that, so I couldn’t be more honored to take this new role.”

Cybake is an ERP-class cloud bakery management software system that cuts admin, boosts efficiency and improves sales in retail and wholesale commercial bakeries of all types and sizes. The subscription-based application controls bakery orders, production, recipes, waste, deliveries and more. As well as smooth integration with accounts, e-commerce, EPOS, labeling and weighing systems, Cybake also provides bakeries with unique artificial intelligence and business intelligence options to help them tighten operations even further.

“As well as her true passion for craft baking and a peerless pedigree, Oprah possesses a huge depth of knowledge of how commercial bakeries work,” says Jane Tyler, managing director of York, UK-headquartered RedBlack Software, the creator of the Cybake cloud bakery management software system. “She has seen our industry from all sides, which makes her the perfect person for bakers to talk to about how they can modernize their business processes in order to adapt, survive and thrive in today’s market.”