Maybe your resolutions for 2007 are more ambitious than the standard “eat less junk food” and “exercise more” goals. Have you considered “find a new job”?
Of course, just like scaling back on an M&M’s fetish, thinking about a job change is much easier than actually going ahead and doing it. We hope we’ve made the first step — and perhaps the second — easier for you by compiling the best of our career-oriented stories of 2006.
These tips and examples come from finance executives who have made major career changes, including John Chidsey, who moved from CFO to CEO of Burger King in April, and Susan Frasca, who told us earlier this year how she traded her job as a finance chief to that of a restaurant owner nine years ago. Perhaps this first batch of stories will get you thinking about a job switch — or even a new career altogether. And then take a look back at the biggest CFO job changes of 2006. Throughout the new year, you can follow all the latest moves in the careers section of our archive. And don’t forget to keep your eye on our Careers section for new job postings and job moves. Could you be next?
What’s Your Next Move?
• Making the Short List for CEO
More finance chiefs are finding their way into the CEO slot, as Burger King’s John Chidsey recently did.
• Hire Callings
Leaving a finance career doesn’t necessarily mean leaving finance.
• Fresh Start
A break from CFO duties can be rejuvenating, but don’t stay away too long.
• A Perfect Fit
The demand for finance talent may be soaring, but candidates refuse to settle for just any job.
• Bigger Fish, Smaller Pond
Leaving a large company for the CFO spot at a smaller company can be a great move—as long as you do your homework.
• Private Club
Opportunity is knocking for CFOs who have the skills that private-equity firms demand.
• Hire Power
Even if you’re not looking for a job, a job may be looking for you.
• Heavy Vetting
Boards of directors now want to talk to would-be CFOs—and vice versa.
• Career Swings
Finance career paths increasingly include a stopover in IT.
• Are You Overworked?
Surprise. A new study says the CFO’s job is harder than ever. But the news isn’t all bad.
Biggest Career Moves of ’06
• UnitedHealth CFO Resigns Amid Overhaul
Incoming CEO will also see his options repriced downward and will have to let go of the value of certain options, with the two actions amounting to a drop in the value of past equity compensation worth $190 million.
• Comverse CFO, Two Others Resign
The company’s board questions the timing of stock option grants amid wider regulatory scrutiny of the issue by the SEC.
• Will CFO Decker Take the Reins at Yahoo?
Yahoo taps CFO Susan Decker to head the most prominent of the company’s three business units, sparking speculation that she is the favorite choice for the corner office.
• HP CFO Wayman to Retire
CFO Robert Wayman, a 37-year veteran of HP, will step down at the end of the year. His final year with HP was tarred by a board room leak investigation that led to the resignation of then-chairman Patricia Dunn.
• Bank of America CFO Resigns
Sarbox took the “fun” out of being a CFO, said de Molina, who may head back to his risk-taker roots.
• Sears Taps Monaghan as CFO
Edward Lampert turns to former tank commander and AutoNation CFO Craig Monaghan to lead the ongoing integration of Sears and KMart.
• The Post Office Gets a New CFO
The U.S. Postal Service looks to private industry for its new CFO, and selects Harold Glen Walker, known for his work building Whirlpool’s innovative shared-services center in Dublin.