Executives on the move — Playing musical chairs, CEO-style

With end-of-year looming and the unemployment rate at a 50-year low, it’s been a busy few weeks for HR departments. And as Q4 progresses, many executives are looking ahead, not just to 2020, but to new roles and new challenges.

Right now, we’re keeping up with the executive moves impacting SAP, ServiceNow and Nike, as well as new leadership at AT&T, Wells Fargo and Bed, Bath & Beyond, among other companies. Suffice it to say, the new year is going to bring some big changes. 

Here’s what you need to know.   

Where SAP, ServiceNow and Nike collide
SAP, ServiceNow and Nike seem to be playing a game of CEO musical chairs these days. Bill McDermott, the former CEO at SAP, left this month and is taking the top job at ServiceNow, effective Jan. 13, 2020. (In his place, SAP has appointed not one but two CEOs:  Jennifer Morgan and Christian Klein.) McDermott takes a role previously held by John Donahoe, who led ServiceNow for the past two years. Donahoe left the cloud-based corporate software provider in October to take over as CEO of Nike. In that role, Donahoe replaces Mark Parker, who stunned investors earlier this month when he announced he was stepping down from the role he’s held for 13 years. 

AT&T prepares for streaming war
Telecom giant AT&T has been on a roll in the latter half of 2019. Its stock has climbed steadily over the past six months, and now the company is looking to reinforce that strength with a slew of in-house moves. John Stankey, CEO of WarnerMedia, was named President and COO of AT&T, Inc., and Jeff McElfresh was named CEO of AT&T Communications. Both Stankey and McElfresh are long-time fixtures at AT&T with decades of experience

The move comes as AT&T steels itself for stiff competition in the streaming space, with Disney slated to unveil its own streaming service in mid-November. Stankey was (and will continue to serve as) CEO of WarnerMedia, the parent company of numerous brands from the AT&T-Time Warner merger such as HBO, TNT and Warner Bros. In his new role, McElfresh will oversee a division that has its eyes on 5G capabilities.

Bed Bath & Beyond ready for brighter days
Struggling retailer Bed Bath & Beyond hopes to put a dismal 2019 behind it with the hiring of new CEO Mark Tritton. Expected to start Nov. 4, Tritton comes with more than two decades of experience in the industry, including stints at Nike, Timberland and Nordstorm and culminating with three years as Executive Vice President and Chief Merchandising Officer at Target.

While the announcement was celebrated in investor circles, Tritton will have his work cut out for him as the company attempts to rebound from slumping sales. 

Wells Fargo: Back from the brink?
It took a while, but Wells Fargo has finally brought in outside help at the top. Charles Scharf has been tapped as the company’s new President and CEO, representing the bank’s first external hire for the role since its 2016 account fraud scandal. Scharf, the former CEO of Visa and BNY Mellon, takes the role from General Counsel C. Allen Parker, who had been serving in an interim capacity since March and who many assumed would fill the role permanently. The company has also brought in Tracy Kerrins to serve as CIO of Enterprise Functions Technology.

More executives on the move…

• Gerard Anderson is now Executive Chairman, DTE Energy Company.
• Ajay Bhalla is now President, Cyber and Intelligence Solutions, Mastercard Incorporated.
• Nick Caller is now Managing Director, ARI Fleet UK, Holman Enterprises.
• Steven Capelli is now Chief Revenue Officer, BlackBerry.
• Timothy Cofer is now CEO, Central Garden & Pet Company.
• Todd Coffee is now Director, Healthcare Enterprise Solutions, Leidos, Inc.
• Gary Conway is now Member, Office of the CEO, Automation Anywhere, Inc.
• Nick Curcuru is now SVP, Analytics and Customer Engagement, Venuetize, LLC.
• Stephen DeWitt is now Chief Strategy Officer, Automation Anywhere, Inc.
• Mary Finch is now EVP and Chief Human Resources Officer, DXC Technology.
• Stephen Forcione is now Global Client Innovation Leader, WPP Plc.
• John Gibbs is now Group CIO, International Airlines Group.
• Vanessa Hudson is now CFO, Qantas Airways Limited.
• Julie Iskow is now EVP and COO, Workiva, Inc.
• Sabine Keller-Busse is now Group COO and President, UBS Europe, Middle East and Africa, UBS Group AG.
• Dominique Leroy is now Chairman and CEO (effective December 1, 2019), Koninklijke KPN N.V.
• Jacky Lo is now CFO, OneConnect Smart Technology Co., Ltd., Ping An Insurance (Group) Co., Ltd.
• Simon Lowden is now Chief Sustainability Officer, PepsiCo Inc.
• Claire Miles is now CEO, Yell Limited, Hibu Group Limited.
• Thomas Palmer is now President and CEO, Newmont Goldcorp Corporation.
• Daniel Portnoy is now Chief Merchandising Officer, Fresh Market, Inc.
• Christopher Rhodes is now CFO, Nationwide Building Society.
• Axel Schwan is now Regional President, Tim Hortons, US and Canada, Restaurant Brands International Inc.
• Craig Smiddy is now President and CEO, Old Republic International Corporation.
• Jessica Stauffacher is now President and CEO, Ameriprise Auto & Home Insurance, American Family Insurance Group.
• Carin Stutz is now CEO, Native Foods Cafe, LLC.
• James Swanson is now EVP and Group CIO, Johnson & Johnson.
• Lloyd Taylor is now Principal Engineer, Alembic.
• Karen Walker is now SVP and CMO, Intel Corporation.
• Mung Ki Woo is now CEO, Ditto Services, Finablr Limited.

Each executive featured here has an in-depth profile available on the Boardroom Insiders platform. Want access? Click here to learn more.