Pace has ended a torrid 12 months by replacing CEO Neil Gaydon with Mike Pulli, until now CEO of Pace Americas.
In a statement, Pace said Gaydon, who has been with the set-top developer for 16 years, was to seek a new challenge.
Chairman, Allan Leighton, who had recently led a strategic review of Pace’s activities said: “Mike has developed a hugely successful business for Pace in the Americas, and his background and gravitas in the industry make him the right leader to succeed Neil and deliver our Strategic plan”.
Pace has issued three profit warnings in 2011. In March it emerged that a US provider had delayed an order by 12 months into 2012, effectively skipping a generation of technology. Two months later the Japanese Tsunami led to problems within the supply chain. Most recently, floods at hard drive supplier Western Digital’s Bang Pa-In facility in Bangkok impacted supplies of personal video recorders.
The Leighton review, which published its findings in November, announced plans to merge the Pace Europe and Pace Networks businesses into a single unit.
Gaydon joined Pace in 1995 and established the company’s Americas operations in 1999, which have become an increasing part of the company’s revenues, and now represent $1.7 billion of annual revenues.
Before joining Pace in 2004, Pulli was CEO of programming business Digital Latin America. Before that he spent eight years at Motorola in various international senior management positions, including vice President of international operations and vice president of Latin America.
Pulli will continue to live in the United States, but split his time with the Pace headquarters in Saltaire.
