Kathryn McQuade becomes CP's CFO

Trains Magazine General Discussion
1

Kathryn McQuade, previously with Norfolk Southern, has become Canadian Pacific’s chief financial officer. In addition to the CFO responsibilities, Ms. McQuade will continue overseeing CP’s business information services and strategic sourcing group.

She replaces Mike Lambert, executive vice-president and chief financial officer, who “has left the company to pursue other interests.”

Canadian Pacific suffered a 40% profit plunge in its latest quarter, caused by a rapid rise in fuel costs, a sluggish economy and flooding in the U.S. Midwest. Profit was down to $155-million from $257-million in the year-earlier same quarter.

From the Financial Post-
CP finance chief leaves after profit plunge.

2

Is the job of CFO a stepping stone to the job of CEO?

Why did the old CFO seem to get the boot because profits are down? The article seemed to say that the profit drop was due to sort of circunstances beyonf their control

3

Let the CFO exclusively run the company is the equivilent of letting the fox in the henhouse. The CEO should not be rubberstamping everything the CFO says (can you say CSX?). There needs to be some visionary up front whose stewardship can look beyond a cold balance sheet. NS and the other healthy Class Ones have figured this out in different ways. Appeasing the wall-street trash on giddy short term returns has proven not a smart move.

4

Strange, as Ms. McQuade was CP’s Vice-President of Operations prior to the change, a broadening move, but not exactly a step up to a higher position.

5

…it’s more in line with what she was doing at NS before departing for CP.

6

I agree 100% and I work for this company!! The biggest thing that I hate about CPR is the line about appeasing the the wall-street trash with there short term returns. I hate it when my TMS talks about not doing something because “it won’t make the stock holders very happy”. Lets look at the long term growth of the company and see that if we simply do this it will be better in the long run. Please don’t turn this RR into a CSX.

Thanks