Former Expedia Group CEO Peter Kern stepped down as vice chairman and is leaving the company’s board, the travel giant said Wednesday in a new regulatory filing.
Expedia announced in February that Kern would resign as CEO in May. Kern, a board member since 2005 and vice chairman since 2018, took over the Seattle company as it went through widespread layoffs in 2020 and then navigated Expedia through the pandemic, which heavily disrupted the travel industry.
Kern was replaced by Ariane Gorin, previously president of Expedia for Business.
Kern and Expedia agreed that “given the speed and success of the Company’s recent management transition, that Mr. Kern’s service as Vice Chairman would end” on Sept. 10, according to the filing. Expedia eliminated the board seat previously held by Kern.
Expedia declined to comment when contacted by GeekWire for additional information about Kern’s departure or his next steps beyond Expedia.
Expedia topped expectations for its second quarter, with $3.6 billion in revenue, up 6% year-over-year, and profits of $386 million, flat compared to the year-ago period. Gross bookings reached $28.8 million, up 6%, and room nights booked grew 10% to 98.9 million.
Expedia shares were down 3% on Wednesday.
Other key personnel changes across the Pacific Northwest tech industry:
— Bilal Matten joined Seattle-based global health nonprofit PATH as chief AI officer, a newly created role. Matten most recently was executive director of Digital Square, supporting the ministries of health across Africa and Asia.
“I believe that AI has the power to revolutionize the way we address global health challenges, and I am excited to work with the talented team at PATH to harness that power,” Matten said in a statement.
PATH employs more than 3,000 people across 24 countries, and has more than 200 employees in Seattle, where it recently inked a lease for a new headquarters space.
“We’re excited to collaborate and support countries in harnessing the power of ethically and effectively applied AI to improve public health, reaching communities in need and transforming lives for a healthier future,” PATH CEO Nikolaj Gilbert said in a statement.
— Everett, Wash.-based manufacturing giant Fortive announced that CEO James Lico will retire as part of a plan to create a new spinoff called NewCo. Fortive exec Olumide Soroye will replace Lico, and another exec, Tami Newcombe, will be CEO of NewCo, which will focus on precision technologies. Fortive also announced that CFO Chuck McLaughlin will retire. The publicly traded company has a startup incubation partnership with Pioneer Square Labs in Seattle.
— Seattle-based cosmetic procedure information platform RealSelf named Minou Clark as its new CEO. Clark was previously a senior vice president at 11:11 Media, a media company founded by Paris Hilton, and held exec roles at Yahoo, Dotdash Meredith, and Popsugar. “I’m so excited to steer this nearly 20-year-old brand into an exciting new era as a digital-first, consumer-facing destination,” Clark wrote on LinkedIn.
— Tax software giant Avalara hired Kevin Sellers as its new chief marketing officer. Sellers, who is based in Phoenix, previously was CMO at Ping Identity and Avnet. Avalara recently relocated its headquarters from Seattle to North Carolina.
— Matt Willis joined Spokane, Wash.-based retail returns marketplace BuyWander as co-founder and COO. Willis is a serial entrepreneur who previously founded RentSavvy and ShiftDirect, among other Seattle-area startups. BuyWander also announced that former Amazon Prime exec Greg Greeley joined the company as a board advisor.
— Matthew Guarini joined Bellevue, Wash.-based nonprofit The Technology Business Management as its new executive director. Guarini, based in Boston, was previously a vice president at Forrester.
— Cascadia Capital, an independent investment bank with offices in Seattle, hired Don More as managing director in its technology and software group. More, based in New York, was previously managing director at Lincoln International.
https://ift.tt/MYKRG4X September 11, 2024 at 03:57PM GeekWire
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