EL SEGUNDO, Calif.,
Sept. 21, 2015 /PRNewswire/
-- Mattel, Inc. (NASDAQ: MAT) today announced the appointment
of four executives to key senior roles enhancing the company's
leadership expertise as it implements its plan to deliver improved
performance:
- Richard Gros, Chief Human
Resources Officer
- Juliana Chugg, Global Core
Brands Officer
- Catherine Balsam-Schwaber, Chief
Content Officer
- John Vandemore, Chief Financial
Officer, Global Brands and Commercial
"Today's announcement is an important step towards
re-invigorating our culture and increasing accountability, as we
accelerate our efforts to deliver enhanced creativity, innovation
and financial performance," said Christopher Sinclair, Mattel Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer.
Richard Gros, Chief Human
Resources Officer, will report to Mr. Sinclair and lead Mattel's
efforts in becoming a more innovative and performance-driven
organization. Mr. Gros has 30 years of experience in human
resources with proven expertise in global talent acquisition and
assessment, organizational strategy and development, succession
planning and culture building. He spent nearly two decades at
PepsiCo, including significant time in emerging markets, where he
led the opening of offices in China, India
and Russia. In addition, he has served as CHRO for publicly
traded companies including Caribiner International, United Rentals
and Cambridge Solutions, and founded an executive search consulting
company targeted at Fortune 500 and emerging growth companies.
Juliana Chugg, Global Core Brands
Officer, will oversee all aspects of marketing strategy, creative
execution and product development across Mattel's iconic brands and
will be responsible for driving continued innovation throughout the
portfolio. She will report to Richard
Dickson, Mattel's President and Chief Operating Officer.
Ms. Chugg joins Mattel from General Mills, Inc., where she was a
proven leader in operating multi-branded portfolios. Most
recently she served as President of the company's Meals division,
which includes brands such as Progresso, Old El Paso and
Betty Crocker, where she managed all
aspects of the multi-billion dollar business and oversaw impressive
sales growth across the portfolio. She also served as
President of the company's Pillsbury division. Ms. Chugg also
serves on the Board of Directors of VF Corporation, one of the
world's largest fashion companies. Earlier in her career, Ms.
Chugg held product management and general management roles at Berri
Australia.
Catherine Balsam-Schwaber will
join Mattel in the new role of Chief Content Officer, where she
will lead Mattel's efforts to implement an integrated strategy for
content creation and distribution, digital and media that connects
consumers with the company's brands in meaningful and innovative
ways. Ms. Balsam-Schwaber will report to Mr. Dickson.
Ms. Balsam-Schwaber joins Mattel from NBCUniversal, where she
led the corporate content and innovation agency. As a
recognized leader in the entertainment business, Ms.
Balsam-Schwaber also directed transformative content strategies at
AOL, Time Warner, MTV and iVillage. She began her career in
the White House Communications Office and later joined NBC News as
a producer for the flagship NBC Nightly News program.
John Vandemore, Chief Financial
Officer, Global Brands and Commercial, will lead a new Brand
Finance Group, reporting to Mr. Dickson with a functional reporting
line to Kevin Farr, Mattel's Chief
Financial Officer. He will be responsible for financial
strategy and performance metrics for the global brand portfolio, as
well as the North America and
International commercial organizations.
Mr. Vandemore most recently served as Chief Financial Officer
and Treasurer of International Gaming Technology, where he was a
member of the executive leadership team. Prior to that, he
held leadership roles with The Walt Disney Company, including CFO
of the Walt Disney Imagineering division. Previously he
served as an associate with AlixPartners, where he helped guide
numerous companies through successful turnarounds.
Richard Dickson, Mattel President and Chief Operating Officer,
said "These proven leaders bring important skills and experience
across the critical areas of talent development, content creation
and delivery and performance measurement. Richard, Juliana,
Catherine and John are highly respected, experienced leaders and we
look forward to working closely with them to foster a
high-performing, inventive and entrepreneurial culture at
Mattel."
About Mattel
The Mattel family of companies (Nasdaq: MAT) is a
worldwide leader in the design, manufacture and marketing of toys
and family products. Mattel's portfolio of best-selling brands
includes Barbie®, the most popular fashion doll ever produced, Hot
Wheels®, Monster High®, American Girl®, Thomas & Friends®,
Fisher-Price® brands and MEGA® Brands, as well as a wide array of
entertainment-inspired toy lines. In 2014, Mattel was
named one of the "World's Most Ethical Companies"
by Ethisphere Magazine and in 2014 ranked No. 5
on Corporate Responsibility Magazine's "100 Best
Corporate Citizens" list. With worldwide headquarters in El
Segundo, Calif., Mattel's companies employ approximately
31,000 people in 40 countries and territories and sell products in
more than 150 nations. Visit us at www.mattel.com,
www.facebook.com/mattel or www.twitter.com/mattel.
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SOURCE Mattel, Inc.