Dive Brief:
- Julia Brau Donnelly, 40, was appointed CFO of San Francisco-based Pinterest, effective June 20, the company announced in a Tuesday filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
- Donnelly succeeds Todd Morgenfeld who announced his departure from the technology company — which allows users draw inspiration from craft-focused images, pins and gifs — on Feb. 7. Morgenfeld’s departure is effective July 1 as he is “taking on new opportunities.”
- The CFO transition comes amid an announced multi-year strategic third-party ad demand partnership with Amazon, which the company believes can “over time, improve monetization with relevant ad content on the platform and increased shopability for users,” said CEO Bill Ready in an April earnings call for the first quarter ending March 31.
Dive Insight:
Donnelly is set to receive an annual base salary of $600,000 and will lead the company’s accounting, finance, internal audit, investor relations and workplace teams as well as the company’s planning processes, the filing said.
The incoming CFO is leaving her post as global head of finance at online furniture retailer Wayfair, where she held a seven-year tenure.
At Wayfair, Donnelly worked her way up the finance ladder, starting as director of strategic finance and investor relations in 2016, before moving on to head of corporate finance in 2017, according to her LinkedIn profile. She took the role of vice president of global head of finance and accounting in 2019.
As well as the Amazon partnership, Pinterest is looking to technology to help improve its offerings. In the earnings call, Ready cited the application’s “increasingly sophisticated AI models,” which have provided improved “relevancy and personalization,” to users
The company reported revenue of $603 million for the first quarter ending March 31, a 5% year-over-year increase, according to a company statement.
In a press release announcing the company’s CFO transition, Ready stated that Donnelly has “deep experience across e-commerce, media and technology,” and that she is an “ideal fit for our next chapter at Pinterest.”
The company’s announced CFO transition occurs at the same time as United Airlines announced its CFO’s resignation. On Wednesday, Gerald Laderman told the Chicago-based company that he plans to retire next year after almost three decades with the airline, the Wall Street Journal reported.
