Los Angeles – Privately held Warner Music Group on Wednesday named Michael Fleisher, former chief executive of research firm Gartner Inc., as executive vice president and chief financial officer of the music company that is home to artists like Madonna and Josh Groban.
Fleisher, 40, will report to Warner Music Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Edgar Bronfman Jr.
He will oversee all finance functions, information technology and investor relations for Warner, which is the smallest of the four big record companies.
Michael Ward, the company’s interim CFO, will return to his full-time position as managing director of Bain Capital.
Last month, Warner Music reported earnings for the first 10 months of the year, which saw operating income recover to $7 million from a $197 million loss a year earlier. Recorded music sales were $2.1 billion, up about 1 percent from a year before.
A group of private equity investors led by Bronfman bought the company last year from Time Warner Inc. for $2.6 billion.