Johnson Controls International plc, announced that Olivier Leonetti would join the Company and succeed Brian Stief as the chief financial officer. Leonetti will join the Company in the next several weeks and initially be appointed as executive vice president and chief financial officer-elect.
He will assume the role of executive vice president and chief financial officer, following the filing of the Company's annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year 2020. Current Vice Chairman and CFO Brian Stief, will step down from the CFO role at that time.
Orderly transition
Stief and Leonetti will work closely together over the next several months to ensure an orderly transition
Stief will remain in his role as vice chairman, serving in an advisory capacity, and will retire from the Company at the end of this calendar year. Stief and Leonetti will work closely together over the next several months to ensure an orderly transition into the 2021 calendar year.
"I am extremely pleased to welcome Olivier to our team," said George Oliver, chairman and CEO. "Olivier brings over 25 years of extensive international financial management and leadership experience, with deep financial acumen and a strong background in digital technologies. I look forward to Olivier's contribution as we intensify our focus on transforming the future of building technologies and I am confident he will have an immediate impact on the organization as a whole."
Contributions
"Brian has been an invaluable partner to me, and his contributions have been essential to the successful integration of Johnson Controls and Tyco," Oliver continued. "I have valued his leadership and guidance over these last four years, and I would like to thank him for the instrumental role he played in positioning the company for long-term success."
Most recently, Leonetti served as senior vice president, CFO for Zebra Technologies where he was instrumental in repositioning Zebra Technologies as a global provider in Internet of Things (IOT) and Intelligent Automation technologies. With responsibility for over 1000 employees, Leonetti managed all finance and IT functions, including Investor Relations and Global Business Services.
Leveraging opportunities
Prior to Zebra Technologies, Leonetti was executive vice president and CFO for Western Digital Corporation
Prior to Zebra Technologies, Leonetti was executive vice president and CFO for Western Digital Corporation, where he was an active leader in the repositioning of the company to leverage opportunities created by the digital revolution.
In this role, Leonetti developed and implemented enterprise strategy including disinvestments and digital transformation of the company culture, including leading the rationale for the high profile acquisition of SanDisk, a provider in flash memory.
Various finance roles
During his career, Leonetti has held various finance roles, including the development of commercial and operational excellence strategies, across multiple industries. He spent over 14 years at Dell Inc. serving in a variety of global roles, including responsibility for the strategy and associated financial plans for the worldwide consumer division.
Leonetti is an active member of the Board of Directors for Eaton Corporation and sits on the Audit and Governance committee.
He is a Certified Accountant and holds a list of other academic accomplishments, including professional qualifications in internal audit from the Graduate School of Management, Aix-Marseille, France; an MBA from Ecole Supérieure des Affaires, Grenoble, France; and a Master's degree in economics and accountancy from the University of Aix-Marseille, France.
