Oh boy, it seems like we’ve been six months away from a recession for at least 18 months now and it’s still not clear if and when we’re going to see the economy turn sour. But no matter what happens with the macroeconomy, companies still need to hire (and fire) CFOs.
Hut, hut, hire. Christine Dorfler became the National Football League’s CFO after the departure of Joe Siclare, who was recently promoted after 11 years in the role. Dorfler, a US Army veteran and alumnus of two Division I institutions, certainly isn’t a newbie to the rough and tumble of the sports business. She’s been NBC Sports Group’s CFO since 2019. While there, she helped structure a new broadcast rights deal with the PGA tour.
Salary: TBA
This new CFO may have some questions for the Oracle of Omaha. Online bank Ally Financial has tapped Russell Hutchinson as its new CFO, amid rumors that Warren Buffet is eying the bank as a takeover target. Hutchinson has worked with Ally as an outside consultant and Ally CEO Jeffrey Brown called Russell as one of his “most reliable and trusted outside advisors.”
Hutchinson was chief operating officer for global mergers and acquisitions at Goldman Sachs after more than two decades in the group’s investment banking division advising speciality finance companies, including Ally.
Bradley Brown, Ally’s interim CFO, will return to his role as corporate treasurer after Hutchinson takes over.
Salary: $750,000 base
OK, so we’re still workshopping jokes about either delivering the goods or rolling in the dough, but the key takeaway while we come up with something witty is that Papa John’s, a pizza chain named for scandal-prone co-founder John Schnatter that has more than 3,000 stores nationwide, is searching for a new CFO after the departure of Ann Gugino. Gugino will remain an employee of the company until May to ease the transition, with Papa John’s VP of treasury and tax Chris Collins managing the company’s principal financial and accounting responsibilities.
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Salary: $550,000 base at the time of hiring, although analysts on the next earning call should ask how many Papa Rewards are included in the total compensation package.
Sysco,a Houston-based multinational food product marketing and distribution company, has filled its CFO vacancy with Kenny Cheung, who was previously the CFO of rental-car company Hertz. Cheung was hired by Hertz in 2018 and navigated the company through a bankruptcy process in the earliest months of the pandemic, which resulted in a re-IPO in 2021.
Salary: $765,000 base plus incentives
Must be something in the…air? Sealed Air, the Charlotte-based maker of Bubble Wrap, has made yet another CFO hire, its fourth since 2019. Dustin Semach will replace current CFO Christopher Stephens, who announced his retirement last year. Semach, who brings more than two decades of financial experience, was previously CFO of TTEC, a Colorado-based customer experience and tech company.
Salary: Annual base of $640,000 with a $300,000 signing bonus. Plus, we have to believe the job comes with all the Bubble Wrap one could pop.
Electric vehicle manufacturer Nikola promoted Anastasiya Pasterick to CFO. Pasterick previously was Nikola’s vice president and corporate controller. Outgoing CFO Kim Brady will remain with the company until the end of next month as a “non-executive officer in an advisory capacity.”
Salary: $450,000 base plus 500,000 performance stock units subject to approval of the board of directors.
Nielsen,the audience data and research company, has hired Warren Jenson to serve as the company’s CFO. Jensen replaces Linda Zukauckas, who led the sale of the company’s consumer goods data unit to Advent International. Jenson’s background as a CFO includes stints at numerous Fortune 500 companies, including Amazon, Delta Airlines, NBC, and Electronic Arts.
Salary: TBA–LR, DA