• Viacom Inc. announced that Richard J. Bressler, senior executive vice president and chief financial officer, has notified the company that he will not renew his contract, which expires in March 2006. Bressler joined the New York-based entertainment holding company in his current role in March 2001 from AOL Time Warner, where he was executive vice president of AOL Time Warner and chief executive of AOL Time Warner Investments. Previously, he was chairman and CEO of Time Warner Digital Media, following four years as executive vice president and CFO of Time Warner Inc.
• San Francisco-based Levi Strauss & Co. named Hans Ploos van Amstel chief financial officer, effective March 7. Since 2003, Ploos van Amstel had served as vice president and CFO for the apparel retailer’s European division; before joining Levi Strauss, he spent 14 years at Procter & Gamble. Ploos van Amstel takes over from Jim Fogarty, a managing director with the financial consulting firm Alvarez & Marsal, who has served as Levi’s interim CFO for the past year.
• Robert W. Davis has been named executive vice president and chief financial officer of Computer Associates International Inc., effective March 1. Davis joins the Islandia, New York-based software company after eight years at Dell Inc., where he was vice president of corporate finance and chief accounting officer; previously, he was assistant corporate controller at MCI Communications Corp. Davis will succeed and report to chief operating officer Jeff Clarke, who has served as CFO since joining Computer Associates in 2004.
• Medtronic Inc. announced that chief financial officer Robert L. Ryan will retire from the company on April 29. Ryan joined the Minneapolis-based medical technology company in 1993 from Union Texas Petroleum Corp., where he served in several roles, including nine years as CFO. Ryan will be succeeded by vice president, corporate controller, and treasurer Gary L. Ellis. Ellis joined Medtronic in 1989 as director of corporate control; he served in Europe as vice president of international finance before assuming his current position.
• Stephen T. Golding was appointed executive vice president of finance and administration at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. Golding joins Cornell from the University of Colorado system, where he has served as vice president of budget and finance since 2003. Before Colorado, Golding was with Morgan Stanley Investment Management for six years as head of philanthropic marketing and client services. He also served a stint as vice president of finance at the University of Pennsylvania from 1994 to 1997. Golding succeeds Harold D. Craft, who was vice president of administration and chief financial officer since 2000.
• Kevin F. Mahoney has joined A.T. Cross Co. as vice president of finance and chief financial officer. Before joining the Lincoln, Rhode Island-based maker of writing instruments, Mahoney served as director of corporate development at Raytheon Co. Previously, he was a partner at Deloitte & Touche, where he specialized in serving high-growth, acquisition-oriented, and other companies in the midst of significant transition.
• The St. Joe Co. announced that Anthony M. Corriggio will be joining as chief financial officer. A former investment banker in New York, Corriggio served in various roles in Morgan Stanley’s real estate group before joining the Jacksonville, Florida-based real estate operator; he was also a key member of the St. Joe banking team at the bank. Earlier, Corriggio served as a captain in the United States Air Force.
• RedPrairie Corp., a supply-chain technology provider, appointed Jeff Liesendahl chief financial officer. Liesendahl joins the Waukesha, Wisconsin-based company from travel website Orbitz, where he was corporate controller. He also has held finance positions at Hawk Medical Supply, Brandess Kalt Aetna Group Inc., and KPMG LLP.
• Houston-based Hanover Compressor Co. appointed Lee E. Beckelman vice president and chief financial officer. Beckelman, who joined the company in 2002, has represented the oil-services company before the investment community and has been involved in a number of initiatives to help Hanover exit non-core businesses and reduce debt. Previously, Beckelman worked for J.P. Morgan and Bechtel Enterprises Transworld Oil USA.
• Stellar Technologies Inc., which provides employee Internet management and security software, named John E. Baker chief financial officer. Baker has spent the last decade as an independent owner/operator and financial consultant for early-stage companies. He began working with Naples, Florida-based Stellar last year; previously, Baker worked for Deloitte & Touche, City Investing Company, Rheem Manufacturing, and The Home Insurance Co.
• Transportation specialist Landstar System Inc. promoted vice president, chief financial officer, and secretary Bob LaRose to executive vice president. LaRose joined the Jacksonville, Florida-based company in 1989 as vice president of finance and controller.
