VideoWaste Management Inc. is hoping to clean up its act, the impetus behind recent management changes. The Oak Brook, Ill.-based waste- hauling concern announced the appointment of Donald R. Chappel as EVP and CFO. The firm dumped Earl DeFrates from the CFO role last month, after twice having to lower earnings estimates, causing its shares to plummet. DeFrates, however, remains an employee of the company. Chappel was acting CFO at Waste Management before its merger last year with USA Waste Services Inc.
Coming Ashore
Life sure is sweet for Mark Q. Huggins. The former CFO of Van Camp Sea Food Co. is assuming the CFO role at Sugar Land, Tex.- based Imperial Sugar Co. Huggins replaces Mary Burke, who plans to pursue business opportunities in her hometown of Chicago.
It's no longer teatime for Darrell F. Askey. The 43-year-old recently resigned as CFO of Celestial Seasonings Inc. Askey left the Boulder, Colo., tea concern to become EVP of Met-Rx Engineered Nutrition Inc. Celestial has begun a search for his successor.
Moline, Ill.-based Deere & Co. is cultivating its corporate office. In an unexpected move, Bernard L. Hardiek left his post as head of Deere's flagship agriculture-equipment operation. He was succeeded by Robert W. Lane, who served for two years as CFO, before moving to Germany to run operations overseas. Hardiek was considered the front-runner to succeed Hans Becherer as CEO. Lane might now hold that position.
The word is out about Gregory S. Patrick. Patrick was recently named CFO of Snyder Healthcare Services Inc., a division of advertising conglomerate Snyder Communications Inc. He steps into the newly created position at the Bethesda, Md.-based health-care marketing firm from Merck & Co., where he served as a senior executive.
She's the One
Sandra B. Cochran is beginning a new chapter as president of Books-A-Million Inc., located in Birmingham, Ala. Cochran succeeds Clyde Anderson, who will continue as the book retailer's CEO. VP and controller Richard S. Wallington has been written in as CFO.
Ed Meyercord, 34, is the newest financial operator at long-distance telephone provider Talk.com Inc. The former VP of marketing and corporate development at the Reston, Va.-based firm replaces George Farley, who is retiring.
Andrew J. Greenebaum is blasting into cyberspace. The former CFO of CD Radio Inc. will be clicking in as the finance chief of Ecompanies, a Los Angelesbased den of Internet companies. Greenebaum, who had been with the satellite-to-car-radio broadcast company since August 1997, says he feels "a great sense of accomplishment" from his two-year stint. The company is searching for his replacement.
Executive Upheavals
FPIC Insurance Group Inc. is insuring some changes in the executive domain. The Jacksonville, Fla.-based company has fired two top officers, CFO Robert B. Finch and Steven R. Smith, president of Florida Physicians Insurance Co., an FPIC division. According to company COO John R. Byers, the dismissals came directly from the board, which determined that "new blood" was needed. Steven Coniglio, CFO of a separate FPIC unit, will assume the CFO duties on an interim basis.
Marshall Day, SVP of finance and accounting for Atlanta-based Home Depot Inc., is leaving the nest after 13 years of service. Day, 55, plans to retire next April from the home- improvement company, where he served as CFO until 1998. He will continue to report to current CFO Dennis Carey for an eight-month transition period.
Finally, gfn.com, the gay financial network, has recruited Stephen F. Rossi for its newly created CFO position. Rossi comes to the company from Refco Group Ltd., where he served as SVP. Gfn.com is an online provider of financial and business news to the gay and lesbian community.
----------------------------------------------- --------------------------------- Chapter Two Ascendant? Not Yet.
Henry Silverman's struggle to recapture the hearts and wallets of investors goes on and on. The chairman and CEO of Parsippany, N.J.- based Cendant Corp., the financially troubled direct marketer and hotel franchiser, has been selling off assets left and right ever since a massive accounting fraud alleged in March of last year slashed the company's market value in half. But the stock has barely responded to Silverman's efforts.
Now, some analysts claim that a settlement of shareholder lawsuits filed in the wake of the meltdown may be near, thanks to a decision in a parallel case against the company not to delay criminal proceedings. Would a settlement finally remove the cloud hanging over the company? Maybe. It depends on the size of the deal, how much insurance Cendant has, and how easily it can finance any shortfall in coverage.
When CFO asked in October 1998 how much coverage the company carried, a spokesman said only that it ran to "nine figures." Attorneys for the plaintiffs say they've heard similar estimates, but no specifics. The company dismissed reports that Cendant could have to pay between $3 billion and $6 billion to satisfy plaintiffs, based on the size of shareholder losses and previous settlements in fraud cases. Still, when analysts told the press that the company could easily pay a settlement that high, the reports nudged the stock up only a point, to around $18.
Reader Comments» Post a comment