AT&T (No. 35 on the Fortune 500) announced this week that Pascal Desroches, senior executive vice president and CFO, will retire effective Dec. 31. Jennifer Biry, a former longtime AT&T finance executive who most recently served as CFO and chief operating officer of McAfee, has been named deputy CFO effective July 6 and will succeed him as CFO on Jan. 1, 2027.

The timing aligns with a broader trend. Globally, 60% of outgoing CFOs retired or moved to board roles in the first quarter of 2026, up from 56% a year earlier and well above the seven-year first-quarter average of 39%, according to Russell Reynolds Associates’ Q1 2026 Global CFO Turnover Index.

Desroches eloquently described a paradox that leading CFOs encounter in their careers, especially in times of uncertainty.

“Along the way, I’ve learned that progress isn’t linear,” he wrote in a LinkedIn post on Wednesday announcing his planned retirement. “It takes discipline, resilience, and, at times, the willingness to make difficult decisions in service of something bigger and longer term. Some of the most defining moments of my career came in those periods of transformation—when the path forward wasn’t always clear, but the conviction to move forward had to be.”

Before joining AT&T, he was EVP and CFO of WarnerMedia and administrative officer of Turner Broadcasting System Inc., and previously served as Turner’s CFO and as global controller of Time Warner.

Desroches’ tenure at AT&T coincided with one of the most consequential strategic resets in the company’s recent history. AT&T separated DirecTV, divested its media assets through the WarnerMedia-Discovery transaction, reduced debt, reset its dividend, and renewed its focus on telecommunications infrastructure. At the same time, the company increased investment in 5G and fiber while simplifying its balance sheet and cost structure.

He has described those efforts as part of repositioning AT&T around its core telecommunications business. In conversations, I had with him over the years, Desroches consistently emphasized that finance leaders should be partners to the business rather than gatekeepers.

One leadership lesson he frequently returned to involved creating an environment where difficult conversations are encouraged.

“You can’t be in an organization where everybody’s terrified of the CFO—it just doesn’t work,” he told me last year. “As executives, we have to leave our door open, even for bad news, because it gives us an opportunity to problem-solve,” Desroches said, which was a lesson he learned from the late media executive Dick Parsons</a>.

His successor arrives with a profile that increasingly resembles what boards are seeking in modern CFOs. Biry brings deep institutional knowledge from more than two decades at AT&T, as well as experience leading finance and operations in technology and cybersecurity through her most recent role at McAfee.

In a LinkedIn post, Biry described her return to AT&T as a “full-circle moment that truly feels like coming home.” Her background reflects the increasingly broad expectations being placed on CFOs.

AT&T CEO John Stankey praised both leaders during the transition. In a statement, he credited Desroches with helping strengthen the company and sharpen its strategic focus, while expressing confidence that Biry’s breadth of experience will help drive the next phase of execution.

As one generation of CFOs retires, succession planning is becoming as important as strategy itself.

Desroches alluded to that in his message. “Colleagues who challenged my thinking, teams who delivered under pressure, and leaders who placed trust in me—those relationships are what I’ll carry with me most,” he wrote.

Leaderboard

Fortune 500 Power Moves

Shane Tackett, CFO of Alaska Airlines (No. 322), has been appointed to the additional role of president. Tackett will continue leading the organization’s finance, fleet management, investor relations, supply chain, internal audit and information technology functions, while also adding the commercial organization, led by Andrew Harrison, chief commercial officer, to his portfolio of responsibilities. His promotion builds on a career spanning more than 25 years at Alaska Airlines.

Every Friday morning, the weekly Fortune 500 Power Moves column tracks Fortune 500 company C-suite shifts—see the most recent edition.

More notable moves this week:

Andrew Farag was appointed EVP, CFO and treasurer of The Lovesac Co. (Nasdaq: LOVE), a direct-to-consumer furniture retailer, effective immediately. He succeeds Keith Siegner, who has stepped down from the role but will remain with the company for a transition period. Farag brings more than 20 years of experience. Most recently, he served as managing director at Riveron. Prior to his consulting roles, Farag held CFO and COO positions at Net Retailers, Inc. and Dynamic Communities.

Brian Tabolt was promoted to CFO of Newmont Corporation (NYSE: NEM) effective July 1. Tabolt, who most recently served as Newmont’s chief accounting officer and group head, finance, will bring over 20 years of experience. Since joining Newmont in 2021, he has held a series of strategic leadership roles including group head, financial planning and analysis and interim CFO. Before Newmont, Tabolt served as VP, controller and chief accounting officer at Molson Coors Beverage Company.

Lucas Bravo was appointed CFO of Blaze Pizza, a fast-casual artisanal pizza brand. Bravo has financial leadership experience in both private-equity-backed and publicly traded organizations. Over the course of his career, he has worked at brands, including Burger King, Auntie Anne’s, Cinnabon, Moe’s Southwest Grill, and Jamba. Earlier in his career, Bravo worked at consulting firms Accenture and Booz Allen. 

Jim Stanley was appointed CFO of Congruex, a provider of digital infrastructure engineering and construction services. Before Congruex, Stanley was SVP at Frontier, and he played a key role in the company's acquisition by Verizon. He spent 12 years at the Center for Diagnostic Imaging, serving in roles including CFO, and subsequently, chief operating officer.

Big Deal

Grant Thornton's Q2 2026 CFO survey finds that U.S. CFO confidence in the economy has fallen to its lowest level in 20 quarters, yet most finance leaders continue investing in technology and AI. Only 37% are optimistic about the next six months, but 67% expect to increase IT and digital transformation spending, and 68% anticipate profit growth.

Nearly half rank technology upgrades as a top priority despite concerns about cost control, supply chains, inflation, tariffs, and energy disruptions. Most organizations are piloting, scaling, or integrating AI to improve forecasting and cost intelligence, though many are still developing governance and risk frameworks.

The survey also finds that economic pressure is sharpening the focus on efficiency, resilience, and disciplined execution. Sixty-seven percent of finance leaders say they have made at least moderate changes to cost and efficiency initiatives in the past year.

Going deeper

Here are four Fortune weekend reads:

"‘AI is going to create a labor shortage’: Jeff Bezos sees more jobs being created in the new economy, not less" —Catherina Gioino

"Meet the CEO of US Polo Assn: He grew up in one of America’s poorest regions and now hosts Prince William and runs a $2.7 billion brand" —Orianna Rosa Royle

"The G7 just pledged to break China’s rare earth grip—there’s a lot of work to do" —Mia Osmonbekov

"‘I have nothing to lose’: Perplexity CEO says fear of failure is ‘the stupidest thing’ holding you back" —Emma Burleigh

Overheard

"Our entire sales methodology is to go to a business and say, 'Do not trust us. Do not trust our model.' In fact, I hope you’re skeptical, because it means you’ll be a better customer in the long run."

—Ned Koh, cofounder of the AI startup Aaru, a provider of synthetic research and simulation software, said at the recent Fortune Brainstorm Tech conference.