Google finally picks a CFO

Google has finally picked the replacement for retiring Chief Financial Officer George Reyes: Bell Canada's president of operations, Patrick Pichette.

Pichette, who, like Reyes, will also sport the title of senior vice president, has almost 20 years of experience in financial operations and management in the telecommunications field.

At Bell Canada, which he joined in 2001 as executive vice president of planning and performance management, Pichette has worn several hats, including CFO in 2002 and 2003.

He was also involved in Bell Canada's ongoing migration to a nationwide Internet telephony infrastructure.

Pichette held the CFO title also at Canadian telecom company Call-Net Enterprises from 1994 to 1996.

His first day at Google is Aug. 1, and he will take over as CFO on Aug. 12, Google said in a statement on Wednesday. Pichette is right for the job because he has experience not only as a CFO but also as a "hands on" business executive, Google CEO Eric Schmidt said in the statement.

Google certainly took its time finding a replacement for Reyes, whose original plans were to retire by the end of last year. The search for a new CFO began in mid-2007, when Reyes announced his intention to step down. Reyes now plans to leave Google in early August.

Reyes joined Google as CFO in 2002 and has been involved in critical financial events at the company, including its unorthodox and closely watched initial public offering. During Reyes' tenure, Google became a global Internet powerhouse, growing at a dizzying pace in all its key areas: finances, personnel, technology scope, international expansion and business focus.

The IDG News Service is a Network World affiliate.