CHICAGO, March,12, 2026 - If Scott Murphy’s business card listed all the roles he fills for Dunkin’ and its multi-brand parent, it’d have to be some sort of fold-out model to fit everything.
Start with his core function. He’s the president of Dunkin’, a 13,200-unit, 40-nation quick-service operation that’s almost all franchised. By the standards of most companies, that’d be a 25-hour-a-day responsibility.
But that’s only Day Job #1. Murphy is also Chief Brand Officer for parent company Inspire Brands, with oversight of about another 20,000 restaurants across an additional five brands.
That means having a read on the burger market (served by Sonic), the sandwich sector (Jimmy John’s and Arby’s), the ice cream business (Baskin-Robbins), and, in more than a dash of variety, casual dining (Buffalo Wild Wings).
He’s also responsible for the brands’ domestic development as well as the use of their brand names on retail products available in grocery stores.
Those are just his official duties. There’s also his role as a cross-pollinator facilitating the sharing of ideas across the portfolios.
"Right now we have a compendium of 116 value programs that we’ve launched across the brands,” says Murphy. Sister brands can tap that resource for ideas and how they've worked in the field.
A case in point: The value-focused $5 deals that Dunkin’ has adopted. “We’ve had a lot of success with our program,” Murphy continues. “We pushed that over to some of the other brands.”
It’s almost a hive mind approach to common challenges and opportunities, with Murphy functioning as the facilitator. “The beauty is we always have one brand that’s testing something,” he adds.
Murphy likens the situation to serving as a player-coach. And, just like athletes who’ve served in that unusual capacity, he draws from both vantage points to sharpen his approach to the other.
“It makes me a better chief brand officer,” says Murphy. “I get to see the opportunities our brand officers see,” along with the implications. Strategy and tactics are part of the picture.
.png)
He has a varied career from which to draw. Although he’s spent 20 years with Dunkin’, it’s been in a wide range of functions.
For instance, he spent about nine years in supply chain management, working with franchisees on the procurement, manufacturing, and distribution network they collectively own. It’s a rare career rung in an industry where brand chiefs and c-suite officers tend to climb through finance, marketing, or operations.
Not that Murphy doesn’t have deep experience in those disciplines. He was involved in the sale of Dunkin’ and Baskin-Robbins to Inspire in 2020 for $11.3 billion, still the second-largest acquisition the restaurant industry has ever seen.
The deal was completed as Murphy was overseeing a recast of Dunkin’ from a doughnut chain with a near-religious regional following into a beverage-focused brand with strong breakfast and overall daytime sales. The transformation required a sweeping overhaul of the chain’s operational DNA for a system with thousands of units. And virtually all of them were franchised.
"When we welcomed Dunkin’ into the Inspire family, I immediately saw just how important Scott Murphy was to the business,” says Inspire CEO and co-founder Paul Brown. “He had earned the genuine respect and trust of franchisees, team members, and restaurant operators. It was obvious that his leadership was a cornerstone of the brand’s success.”
Throughout Murphy’s executive tenure with Dunkin’, it’s been a marketing-driven concept. He was part of the team that came up with the brand’s long-running “America Runs on Dunkin’” marketing theme, the anthem for its transformation into a nationwide beverage chain.
His oversight extends to the commercial that ran during this year’s Super Bowl game, a take-off on 1990s sitcoms that featured such stars from those days as Ted Danson, Matt LeBlanc, Jennifer Aniston, and Jason Alexander. The spot also pays tribute to Dunkin’ Boston roots with appearances by former Boston Patriots great Tom Brady and local-boy-done-good Ben Affleck.
“I have to keep my 20-year-old niece interested in the brand, and I have to keep the interest of my 80-year-old father,” says Murphy. “That’s why I can’t let go of our brand;” it’s an icon to too many people.
To keep it fresh, Murphy says he strives to create “a safe environment where people can do their best work and can work honestly, and can fail.
“I also know when not to micro-manage people,” he continues. “We pay people a lot of money and we hire Type A people. Not to take advantage of that would be a mistake.”
“Scott and I have worked together for more than 20 years, and I’ve seen firsthand the profound impact he has had on both the business and its culture,”says Inspire CFO Kate Jaspon. “He leads with clarity, empathy, and an unwavering sense of purpose, qualities that have successfully guided our teams through moments of challenge and transformation at both Dunkin’ and Inspire.”
Downtime for the 53-year-old means spending time with his family and being on his boat along the Massachusetts coast. “The only place where I’m truly relaxed is on the water,” says Murphy.
And if he needs a pick-me-up during his multi-job days? After all, American runs on Dunkin’.
“My favorite Dunkin’ doughnut is a glazed cruller that might be known in some places as a Long John,” he reveals. “My doctor’s not happy about it, but I have one of those every morning with a cup of back coffee.”
As Managing Editor for IFMA The Food Away from Home Association, Romeo is responsible for generating the group's news and feature content. He brings more than 40 years of experience in covering restaurants to the position.