The Chemours Co. has named Denise Dignam as its new CEO and president effective immediately, the chemical maker announced Friday afternoon.
Dignam had been serving as Chemours’ interim CEO since Feb. 29, when the company placed her predecessor, Mark Newman, along with two other executives on administrative leave to conduct an internal review of its financial process.
An SEC filing on Dignam’s compensation has not been filed yet. However, her predecessor received a compensation package that included a $995,833 salary, stock and option awards, non-equity incentive plan and other compensation totaling over $7.6 million in 2022, according to Chemours’ 2023 annual report.
Dignam joined Chemours in 2015, around the time the chemical company broke off from DuPont, according to her LinkedIn. She held various executive roles throughout the company, most recently serving as president of Chemours’ titanium technologies business since March 2023. Before Chemours, Dignam held various executive positions at DuPont.
Prior to taking the position of interim CEO, Dignam was the president of two Chemours segments: Advanced Performance Materials from February 2021 to April 2023 and Titanium Technologies from April 2023 until her promotion to chief executive.
“Denise has the full support of the Board, and we are pleased to have an experienced and capable executive who is so highly regarded inside and outside Chemours for her track record leading the APM and TT business segments,” Dawn Farrell, chair of the board at Chemours, said in a statement. “Denise is a high-caliber leader who has the experience and capability to build value for shareholders while upholding our core values and serving our valued customers.”
With Dignam as its official CEO, Chemours is now conducting a comprehensive search for her replacement as the head of the Titanium Technologies segment, Diane Iuliano Picho, vice president of human resources and chief of staff of Chemours’ Titanium Technologies, will step in as interim president of the segment.
The executive crises and transitions have led to various other changes at Chemours.
As a result of the internal review that found its prior CEO, CFO and controller attempted to manipulate vendor payments and receivable schedules to meet the chemical maker’s publicized cash flow targets, Chemours had to delay its 2023 annual financial report to the SEC, which was due Feb. 28. The New York Stock Exchange notified the company on Monday that it has six months from March 15 to submit its financial report.
Chemours is now looking to permanently fill its CFO role. While the company comprehensively searches for a permanent candidate, SVP and Chief Enterprise Transformation Officer Matt Abbott will continue to serve as interim CFO. Jonathan Lock served as CFO for less than a year, taking up the post in June 2023.
