Kodak Names Antonio Perez as President, Chief Operating Officer
Perez will oversee the day-to-day operations of the following businesses and other units at Kodak: Consumer Imaging, Kodak Professional, Digital & Applied Imaging, Entertainment Imaging, Commercial Imaging Group, Global Manufacturing & Logistics, Chief Marketing Office, Research & Development, and worldwide geographic regions. His responsibilities include improving operating performance, while serving as the CEO's strategic partner and driving Kodak's growth effort, with an emphasis on generating the increased printing of pictures as the company moves to claim a larger share of the $385 billion infoimaging market.
Perez, 57, brings to Kodak more than twenty-five years of global experience in the information technology, printing and consumer electronics industries, largely with Hewlett-Packard Company. His achievements include the following:
* As President of HP's Consumer Business and Digital Media Solutions, Perez led one of HP's major growth areas - digital imaging and e-publishing. The unit reached $16 billion in revenue under his leadership.
* Perez managed HP's inkjet imaging business between 1995 and 1999, during which time the installed base of inkjet printers grew to 100 million from 17 million and revenue grew to more than $10 billion through continuous improvement of the business model and the creation of new printing categories.
* Under his leadership of the inkjet business, HP applied thermal inkjet technology to large-format printers for the first time. Perez expanded thermal inkjet to printing categories new to HP, such as all-in-one products, fax machines, color copiers and photo printers. He also led HP's entry into the digital camera market.
* After his retirement from HP, Perez served as President and CEO of Gemplus International between June 2000 and December 2001. During this period, he took the company public while growing revenues by 70% in the first fiscal year.
"Antonio is a seasoned business leader who is a world-class expert on output, or the printing of images," Carp said. "His significant experience with all aspects of digital printing will help us accelerate Kodak's output opportunities in digital and traditional markets. Our goal is to have Kodak products, technologies and services present wherever people and businesses print images.
"He joins Kodak as we pursue a larger share of the $385 billion market opportunity known as infoimaging," Carp said. "Antonio will help Kodak further those efforts with his exceptional operational abilities, his passion for building businesses in competitive markets, his knowledge of the industry and strategic vision."
In his 25-year career at HP, where he retired as a member of its Executive Council, Perez worked in Spain, Germany and the U.S., gaining worldwide business experience in such areas as digital cameras, scanners, printers, copiers and supply chain management. In those assignments, Perez was noted for building teams that measured success by achieving sustained, profitable growth through higher sales, market share and earnings. His work at HP included the creation of Phogenix Imaging, a Kodak/HP joint venture now producing digital inkjet minilabs.
"Digital imaging is my passion, and Kodak is the worldwide leader of the imaging industry," Perez said. "As the industry develops, Kodak will take advantage of the huge market opportunities available to companies that bridge the worlds of imaging and information technology for the benefit of customers. Those opportunities will be especially powerful in digital publishing, the printing of pictures in all their forms as well as image-rich marketing collateral documents."
"The know-how at Kodak - from the company's patent portfolio to its understanding of image science - is second to none," Perez said. "I am enthusiastically looking forward to joining their team to help Kodak further extend its imaging leadership into the digital imaging industry."
A native of Spain, Perez studied electronic engineering, marketing and business in Spain and France. He has held positions in management, sales, marketing, manufacturing and research and development during his career, and lived with his family in five different countries while working with both consumers and commercial customers. Perez plans to relocate with his family to the Rochester area, where Kodak is headquartered.
Kodak also announced that Martin M. Coyne II, Executive Vice President and Group Executive of the company's Photography Group, will retire from the company.
"Marty Coyne made a number of significant contributions during his 16-year career at Kodak, including growing our Health Imaging business to be our second largest business, leading the successful digital conversion of our commercial imaging businesses and tightening the integration of our Photography Group," Carp said. "We thank him for those contributions, and wish him well in his retirement."
Reporting to Perez will be: Daniel P. Palumbo, President of Consumer Imaging products and services; Karen A. Smith-Pilkington, President of Kodak Professional products and services; Willy C. Shih, President of Digital & Applied Imaging products and services; Eric G. Rodli, President of Entertainment Imaging products and services; Carl A. Marchetto, President of Commercial Imaging; Charles S. Brown, Jr., Director of Global Manufacturing & Logistics; James C. Stoffel, in his capacity as Director of Research & Development; Carl E. Gustin, Jr., Chief Marketing Officer.
In addition, Henri D. Petit, Chairman and President of Kodak's Greater Asia Region (GAR), will continue in that role and will also be responsible for the worldwide regional infrastructure and will report to Perez. In this capacity, Yoshikazu Hori, President of Kodak Japan Ltd.; Alain H. Popelard, Chairman of Eastman Kodak S.A. (Europe, Africa, Middle East Region); and Alan Witrock, Regional Operations Manager for the Latin America Region, will report to Petit.
Reporting to Carp will be Perez; Robert H. Brust, Chief Financial Officer; Daniel I. Kerpelman, President of the Health Imaging Group; Bernard Masson, President of the Display Group; Michael P. Morley, Chief Administrative Officer; James C. Stoffel, in his capacity as Chief Technical Officer; and Daniel T. Meek, in his capacity as Corporate Kodak Operating System Director. In addition, John J. Chiazza, General Manager, Global Integrated Supply Chain, will report to Meek.