The Walt Disney Company’s Chief Financial Officer Christine McCarthy participates in a panel discussion throughout the annual Milken Institute Global Conference at The Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California, April 29, 2019.
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Christine McCarthy, Disney’s chief financial officer, will step down from that role, the entertainment giant said Thursday.
She is going to take a family medical leave of absence, and through that point, she is going to proceed as a strategic advisor to Disney, the corporate said. McCarthy may even help discover a long-term successor, Disney added. Veteran Disney executive Kevin Lansberry, who currently works as finance chief for Disney’s parks business, will turn into the corporate’s interim CFO effective July 1.
“I’m immensely grateful for the chance Bob provided me to function CFO of this iconic company and am happy with the work my talented team has done to position Disney to capitalize on the business possibilities that lie ahead,” McCarthy said within the news release announcing her departure.
McCarthy, who began with Disney in 2000 and have become CFO in 2015, leaves as Disney undergoes a broad restructuring during Bob Iger’s second tenure as CEO. The corporate has targeted 7,000 job cuts during several rounds of layoffs this yr.
Disney has also contended with a tougher ad marketplace for media firms and struggled to set itself apart in a crowded streaming space. In its fiscal second quarter, Disney reported operating losses of $659 million for its direct-to-consumer segment.
During McCarthy’s tenure, Disney’s streaming spending skyrocketed, and free money flow fell. For some time, that was superb. Disney’s stock got a bump because the variety of Disney+ subscribers soared. But when the balloon popped on streaming valuations in 2022, she needed to alter strategies. That continues to be a piece in progress.
McCarthy also emerged as a pivotal figure during last yr’s upheaval at Disney, which saw Iger return to switch his successor as CEO, Bob Chapek. During Chapek’s tenure, she moved toward his inner circle, only to reportedly activate him, which proved to be the ultimate straw for the previous chief executive.
But Iger has loyalists at that company, and McCarthy’s move toward Chapek showed she wasn’t in that camp. So, she never had the identical status internally as being trusted by Iger as others, in line with people aware of the matter.
Iger struck a positive tone about McCarthy in Thursday’s announcement, nevertheless.
“Amongst her many contributions to the corporate, one in every of the things I love most about Christine is the generous mentorship she has provided to so a lot of her colleagues through the years, including countless women,” Iger said within the news release. “She has opened doors, created opportunities, and served as a task model for girls at every level of business — not only at Disney, but all over the world.”