Glenn Brandt, most recently Rogers's senior vice-president of corporate finance, has been appointed as the company's new chief financial officer.Aaron Vincent Elkaim/The Canadian Press
Rogers Communications Inc. has appointed Glenn Brandt, a 30-year veteran of the telecom and media giant, as its chief financial officer, the latest in a series of changes to the company’s senior leadership under its new CEO.
Rogers’s president and chief executive officer Tony Staffieri held the CFO role for close to a decade before he was fired by the company’s board last September amid a battle for control of the Toronto-based telecom.
Mr. Staffieri was rehired in November as CEO, replacing Joe Natale, after chair Edward Rogers reconstituted the board with his own slate of hand-picked candidates without holding a shareholder meeting. The move drew opposition from his mother, Loretta Rogers, and sisters, Martha Rogers and Melinda Rogers-Hixon.
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Mr. Brandt, who was most recently senior vice-president of corporate finance, takes over from Paulina Molnar, who has been serving as interim CFO since Mr. Staffieri vacated the role last fall.
The change was made as Rogers awaits approvals from three federal bodies for a transformative, $26-billion takeover of Shaw Communications Inc. Rogers will have to raise billions to finance the deal.
In a statement, Mr. Staffieri praised Mr. Brandt’s “extensive experience in corporate finance, including raising capital and working with credit agencies.”
“His strong leadership as CFO will be integral as we work to successfully come together with Shaw, drive growth across our business, and maintain the strong balance sheet needed to invest for the future,” Mr. Staffieri added.
Mr. Staffieri has made a number of changes to the company’s upper ranks in recent weeks, including appointing new presidents for its wireless division and for Rogers Sports & Media, which owns television and radio stations as well as stakes in baseball’s Toronto Blue Jays, hockey’s Toronto Maple Leafs and basketball’s Toronto Raptors.
Mr. Staffieri also gave company director Robert Dépatie an operational role, making him president and chief operating officer of the telecom’s home and business division. (Mr. Dépatie stepped down from the board in order to take the job.)
Last week, Mr. Staffieri made his first public appearance since taking the company’s helm. During a conference call to discuss the telecom’s fourth-quarter results, he vowed to turn around its lagging performance relative to its peers, echoing earlier comments made by Mr. Rogers.
Mr. Brandt, who joined Rogers in 1992 and worked his way up through increasingly senior roles, said in a statement that he is “honoured and excited to take on this new role at such a critical time in our company’s history.”
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