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If you'll recall, Microsoft revealed as a footnote to its Q3 2013 earnings report that then-CFO Peter Klein would be stepping down. Today, we're learning a bit more about the transition. Starting right now (well, a few minutes ago), corporate vice president Amy Hood has been moved up to chief financial officer, and while Klein is set to remain onboard through June, Hood is grabbing the title right away. Prior to this role, Hood served as CFO for Microsoft's Business Division, and has been with the company for just over a decade. Asked if she had any immediate plans, she softly nodded and whispered: "I'm bringing Clippy back." Just kidding. But that would've been awesome.
Filed under: Microsoft
Source: Microsoft
Microsoft's fiscal third quarter earnings (the calendar's first) can reflect the post-holiday lull, and there's a certain truth to that for Q3 2013: the company is reporting $20.49 billion in revenue, lower than what it saw during the holidays, and an equally soft $6.06 billion in profit that dipped below both the previous quarter and the same period last year. That said, any potential slowdown in PC sales isn't clearly manifested here. Possibly owing to the afterglow of the Windows 8 launch, the Windows Division's revenue of $5.7 billion is a sharp increase from the $4.62 billion of a year ago, and it's dampened mostly by having to defer $1.09 billion of that revenue for those who took advantage of Windows 8 upgrade deals. The company also posted healthy year-over-year revenue gains for its Entertainment and Devices Division (to $2.53 billion) and Online Services Division (to $832 million), although the Business group saw a relatively modest 8-point jump to $6.32 billion despite the launches of Office 2013 and Office 365.
As part of the results, CFO Peter Klein has given advance notice that he's leaving Microsoft at the end of the company's fiscal year, which ends in June. Neither the company nor Klein has explained the departure, but it's characterized as a friendly one, rather than the abrupt exit we saw the last time around.
Filed under: Desktops, Laptops, Software, Microsoft
Source: Microsoft
Common wisdom would suggest that executives talk up their existing device lines to keep customers buying until the next generation is ready. Leave it to Google CFO Patrick Pichette to think outside the box, if not necessarily for the better. He told guests at the Morgan Stanley Technology Conference that the current roster, while good, doesn't "'wow' by Google standards" -- it reflects the 18-month device pipeline that fell in Google's lap when it acquired Motorola last year. As such, we won't see the full fruits of collaboration until Google has owned Motorola for long enough to put its own spin on products. While the remarks stoke the fires of anticipation for any future flagships, they may have unintentionally produced an Osborne Effect: however advanced Motorola's phones will be in the near term, customers may still have the nagging suspicion that something better is just around the corner.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Google
Source: The Verge
RadioShack's board of directors have asked current CEO James F. Gooch to step down from his position, effective immediately. While the management team doesn't have a replacement in mind, current CFO Dorvin Lively will assume control of the retailer while a recruitment agency begins headhunting. Neither party offered any reasons for the announcement, but the wording of the release (below) did bring to mind the phrase "bloodless coup" for some reason.
Continue reading RadioShack parts company with CEO James F. Gooch in management shakeup
Filed under: Misc
RadioShack parts company with CEO James F. Gooch in management shakeup originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 26 Sep 2012 12:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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"La la la la. I can't hear you." Verizon's CFO, Fran Shammo, might've just as well made those comments with his hands firmly cupped over his ears, as the firm's chief number cruncher told attendees at today's Goldman Sachs investor conference, "Unlimited is just a word, it doesn't really mean anything." While Sprint and T-Mobile would certainly take issue with that statement, Shammo then dug the hole deeper by saying, "That whole unlimited thing, I think, is going by the wayside." These comments were made in the context of Shammo playing up the carrier's shared data plans, wherein he explained his belief that consumers "think they consume a lot more data than they really do." Shammo also revealed that Verizon has converted more subscribers and devices over to the new scheme than it'd initially anticipated.
Naturally, change within any industry takes time, but now that Sprint is in a position to offer unlimited data at a meaningful speed and T-Mobile has climbed aboard the bandwagon, Verizon may have to change its tune if a significant number of consumers decide that unlimited isn't dead after all. You can view the entire transcript at the source link below, but consider this: would you take unlimited plans into consideration when shopping between carriers, or is Mr. Shammo right that consumers really don't use that much data? Give us your thoughts in the comments below.
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile
Verizon CFO buries his head in the sand, claims unlimited data is 'going by the wayside' originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 Sep 2012 17:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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9to5Mac, CNET | 
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Advanced Micro Devices' Senior VP and Chief Financial Officer, Thomas Seifert, has decided to leave AMD three short years after joining the company. As you may recall, Seifert briefly took the reigns of AMD as interim CEO in early 2011, until the firm found a permanent replacement in Rory Read later that year. No word on why Seifert has decided to depart the chip maker -- other than "to pursue other opportunities" -- but we do know that Devinder Kumar, AMD's current Senior VP and corporate controller will replace him on an interim basis. The full announcement awaits in the PR after the break.
Filed under: Desktops, Laptops
AMD CFO Thomas Seifert calls it quits, Devinder Kumar takes his place on an interim basis originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 Sep 2012 16:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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HTC's CFO Winston Yung has been shunted into a 'corporate development' role after barely a year on the job. He orchestrated some pretty controversial deals during his tenure, including the $300 million purchase of the Beats Audio brand from Dr. Dre -- an acquisition that has so far shown little value except as a marketing device. Yung also occupied the hot seat while HTC's balance sheet suddenly flipped from brilliant to bad and then worse, and was outspoken in his views of what went wrong. HTC has provided no reason for the job shift, leaving analysts to guess at how the company's strategy will change to capitalize on its new One smartphones and battle against Sammy's imminent contender. The new CFO is Chia-Lin Chang, a former Goldman Sachs partner and Motorola engineer who hopefully knows how to handle pressure.
HTC moves aside CFO who oversaw $300 million Beats Audio deal originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Apr 2012 03:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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