AMC Networks promotes CFO to CEO, names new finance chief

Dive Brief:

New York-based entertainment company AMC Networks has promoted Christina Spade from CFO and chief operating officer (COO) to CEO, effective Sept. 9, according to a company release.
Spade, a media and entertainment industry veteran, who previously held senior roles at ViacomCBS, CBS and Showtime, succeeds interim CEO Matt Blank. Patrick O’Connell, a CBS and Goldman Sachs veteran, will take over the CFO role.
As CEO Spade will receive a minimum annual base salary of $1.75 million while O’Connell as CFO and executive vice president will receive a salary of $800,000, according to a company filing.

Dive Insight:

Spade served as both CFO and COO at AMC Networks for almost two years. Spade’s move up to CEO is the latest example of the CFO position becoming an increasingly common C-suite stepping stone.

Spade’s experience in holding the dual CFO-COO role is also part of a broadening trend of increasing responsibilities for many CFOs.

O’Connell joins AMC Networks with over 20 years of experience in financial services. After starting his career at PwC in 1996 as an auditor, O’Connell went on to managerial roles at Goldman Sachs, CBS and most recently, BRANDED — a digital consumer product platform — where he served as their CFO from March 2021 until June of this year, according to his Linkedin profile.

O’Connell is set to serve as both the CFO as well as vice president. “Patrick is a highly accomplished executive focused on delivering strong financial performance with a deep understanding of today’s media landscape opportunities,” said Spade in a company statement.

AMC Networks saw a 46% increase in subscribers to 10.8 million in the second quarter, driven by the AMC+ premium streaming bundle launch in Spain, the company reported last week. The jump in subscribers suggests the company is on track to reach their long-term subscriber goal of 20-25 million by the year 2025, according to the filing.