Thursday, June 26, 2008

Google names Bell executive its CFO

Google names Bell executive its CFOPatrick Pichette, former president of operations at Bell Canada, joins Google as CFO in August.(Bell)

Search engine giant Google Inc. has named Bell Canada executive Patrick Pichette as its new senior vice-president and chief financial officer.

Pichette, currently president of operations at Bell, will begin his job at Mountain View, Calif.-based Google on Aug. 1, reporting to chief executive officer Eric Schmidt.

Pichette, a 45-year-old Montreal native, joined Bell in 2001 as executive vice-president of planning and performance management, and went on to hold a number of positions including CFO from 2002 to 2003. He was also head of the telecommunications practice at McKinsey & Co. and CFO of Call-Net Enterprises.

Schmidt said Pichette will play a key role in helping Google grow its search and advertising businesses.

"Patrick brings the expertise and track record of a successful CFO, along with the hands-on business experience of a seasoned operations executive," he said in a statement issued on Wednesday. "This strong combination of skills and experience will be an important addition to Google's executive management team and will support our ongoing efforts to increase value for our users, advertisers and partners."

Pichette, who was unavailable for an interview, said in a statement that he was equally excited about his new role.

"Google is a great company with a phenomenal brand and an outstanding management team," he said. "As an avid user of Google products, I've admired the company for many years and am excited about working with my new colleagues in Mountain View and around the world."

Bell also announced on Wednesday that L. Scott Thomson, its executive vice-president of corporate development and planning, has been named executive vice-president of finance and CFO of Calgary-based Talisman Energy Inc., starting July 2.

"We wish both Patrick and Scott every success in their new roles with these leading companies and thank them for their exceptional contributions to BCE and Bell," said Michael Sabia, CEO of BCE Inc.



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