Paul Vogel | Spotify
Audio streaming platform Spotify announced the departure of Paul Vogel, their CFO since 2020. Before being promoted to the finance leader position, Vogel worked as head of FP&A, treasury, and investor relations beginning in 2016. Vogel's departure will be effective in March 2024. The departure comes shortly after the company announced its third round of layoffs this year, which will target 17% of its workforce. Daniel Ek, CEO of Spotify, said the company needs a CFO with a "different set of experiences."
Paula Oyibo | Ulta Beauty
Beauty retailer Ulta Beauty promoted Paula Oyibo, senior vice president of finance, to finance chief. Oyibo joined Ulta Beauty as vice president of finance for merchandise, marketing, and e-commerce in 2019 and has held her current position since February 2022. Before joining the retailer, Oyibo held finance and controller roles at Whirlpool and in senior-level auditing and consulting positions with PwC. Oyibo succeeds Scott Settersten, who will retire effective April 1, 2024. Settersten has worked at Ulta Beauty for 20 years and has been CFO for over 10 years.
David Reeder | Chewy
David Reeder will take over as chief financial officer of online pet-product retailer Chewy on Feb. 14, 2024. Reeder joins the company from semiconductor manufacturer GlobalFoundries, where he has been CFO since 2020 and led its 2021 initial public offering. He previously was chief executive officer of Tower Hill Insurance Group, as well as president and CEO of Lexmark International. Earlier in his career, Reeder was CFO at Electronics for Imaging, and he also held executive roles at Cisco Systems, Broadcom, and Texas Instruments. Reeder replaces interim CFO Stacy Bowman, who will continue to work as Chewy’s chief accounting officer.
Ellie Mertz | Airbnb
Ellie Mertz, Airbnb’s vice president of finance, will take over as the online homestay marketplace’s CFO on March 1, 2024. Mertz joined the company in Feb. 2013 from Netflix, where she worked for over seven years, most recently as vice president of finance and investor relations. Mertz currently serves on the boards of DoorDash and wholesale marketplace Faire. Mertz replaces Dave Stephenson, who has been CFO of Airbnb since 2019. Stephenson is stepping into a new role as the company’s first chief business officer, effective January 2024. Stephenson has worked at the company since 2018, and before joining Airbnb, he was CFO of Amazon’s worldwide consumer unit.
Caren Prince | Firebirds Wood Fired Grill
Firebirds Wood Fired Grill named Caren Prince as the casual restaurant chain’s new chief financial officer. Most recently, Prince worked at doughnut chain Krispy Kreme, where she was CFO for over three years. Before that, she worked in finance at Mars for 20 years, ultimately becoming CFO of the retail group, overseeing flagship M&M World stores, My M&MS e-commerce, and B2B operations. Prince succeeds now-retired CFO Christopher Olson.
George Bchara | Thrive Pet Healthcare
Thrive Pet Healthcare hired George Bchara as its new chief financial officer. Bchara joins the veterinary hospital network from Conn's HomePlus, where he worked for seven years, most recently as CFO. Before that, he was the home goods retailer’s chief accounting officer. Earlier, he was chief accounting officer of BankUnited. He started his career at PwC, where he held various roles in audit, mergers & acquisitions, and general advisory within the financial services sector. Bchara succeeds John O'Connor, who left the company earlier this year.
Craig Aaron | BorgWarner
E-mobility supplier BorgWarner promoted Craig Aaron, the company’s vice president and controller, to finance chief, effective March 1, 2024. Aaron joined BorgWarner in 2007 and has held several positions in accounting and finance. Before that, he worked at Federal-Mogul as a corporate account manager and at Deloitte & Touche as an in-charge auditor. Aaron succeeds Kevin Nowlan, who is retiring after a 28-year career in finance.
Adam D. Howell | Crimson Wine Group
Crimson Wine Group, owner and operator of boutique, estate-based wineries, hired Adam D. Howell as CFO, effective Dec. 12. Howell most recently worked at wine company Duckhorn Portfolio, where he was senior vice president of finance and accounting. Earlier in his career, Howell worked for Deloitte as an external auditor and for Ernst & Young’s financial accounting advisory practice.
Michelle LaSpaluto | Chimerix
Michelle LaSpaluto was named chief financial officer of biopharmaceutical company Chimerix. Since joining Chimerix in 2011, LaSpaluto has held roles of increasing responsibility spanning finance, accounting, and investor relations, and she was most recently vice president of corporate financial planning and investor relations. Before joining Chimerix, she was senior director of accounting at AlphaVax. She began her career at Coopers & Lybrand in Detroit before transferring to Raleigh with PriceWaterhouseCoopers.
Chelsea Gibson | 3E
Chelsea Gibson is the new CFO of 3E, a chemical management software provider. Gibson was most recently finance chief of the online business journalism company Industry Dive, which was acquired by Informa PLC in 2022. Before joining Industry Dive in Jan. 2022, she worked at Williams Lea Tag for over 10 years, most recently as chief financial officer of Tag Global Markets. She previously spent six years at American Express where she held manager and director roles. (Disclaimer: Industry Dive acquired CFO in late 2020)