By Maria Saporta
Atlanta-based Veritiv, a relatively new business destined to be listed as a Fortune 500 company in 2016, is solidifying its top management team.
As an industry leader in business-to-business distribution solutions, Veritiv opened its doors on July 1, 2014 following the merger of International Paper’s xpedx division and Unisource Worldwide.
Mary Laschinger, chairman and CEO of Veritiv, announced Tuesday morning that the company has named a chief strategy officer and a chief information officer.
Adam Taylor has been appointed as a senior vice president and chief strategy officer – making him part of Veritiv’s senior leadership team.
David Hudson has been named vice president and chief information officer – in charge of leading Veritiv’s Information Technology team.
Laschinger said Taylor will be responsible for “developing and driving Veritiv’s long-term business strategies and future growth platforms,” which will guide the combined company through its post-integration process. “Adam brings to Veritiv more than 15 years of experience managing strategy, innovation, business development, and M&A activity with leading global organizations,” Laschinger added. “His appointment further strengthens Veritiv’s senior leadership team.”
Taylor will focus on corporate strategy and all associated strategic planning processes; new business development strategies and plans; and merger and acquisition planning and execution.
Before joining Veritiv, Taylor served as vice president of Strategy, Innovation, and Corporate Development at Office Depot, Inc., where he led the company’s recent transformation strategy that played a significant role influencing the company’s financial performance.
He previously served in strategy and business development roles with AT&T identifying growth opportunities within the mobile segment that helped drive impressive revenue growth for the company.
Taylor’s prior experience included strategy work in the healthcare software and communications industries, where he held various leadership and executive management roles.
As CIO, Hudson will be responsible for developing and executing the company’s overall IT strategy, including budgeting, staffing, and the organization’s IT integration work.
Hudson will report to Steve Smith, senior vice president and chief financial officer of Veritiv.
“Dave brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to Veritiv, and I am excited to have him lead our IT organization,” Smith said. “He will be responsible for several important projects that are key to Veritiv’s success in 2015 and beyond, including operational system changes, cyber-security, e-commerce, and other IT initiatives that will enable Veritiv to reach our next level of distribution excellence.”
Hudson has more than 20 years of experience managing large-scale IT operations, change management, technology deployments, and enterprise solutions in global business environments.
Most recently, Hudson was chief business strategy officer and senior vice president – Technology Strategy at Amtrak in Washington, D.C. There, Hudson led the transformation of the organization’s IT strategy and service delivery model to realize tangible savings and improve operating efficiency enterprise-wide.
Previously, Hudson was CIO for Insight Global, a provider of IT employment solutions for Fortune 1000 clients; senior global director of IT Business Delivery at Recall Corporation; and he also held various business and IT leadership roles with General Electric. He is a decorated United States Army veteran.
