Atlanta — Cox Communications
chief technology
officer Scott Hatfield resigned last week
after leading the consolidated
information-technology
and engineering
group for 18 months.
“It was a mutual decision
based on Cox’s
business needs and Mr.
Hatfield’s personal reasons,”
Cox director of media
relations David Grabert
said in an e-mailed statement.
“We appreciate his
significant contributions over the years,
particularly his work over the last year
and a half, which created our unified
technology organization, combining IT
and network engineering.”
According to a Cox executive with
knowledge of the situation, a main factor
behind Hatfield’s departure was that
president Pat Esser wants to “continue
to optimize the business across the
strategy, product, technology and marketing
functions.”
Hatfield, reached via e-mail, declined
to comment. His resignation was first
reported by Light Reading Cable.
According to Cox, Percy Kirk, senior
vice president and general manager of the
Atlanta-based operator’s Oklahoma division,
will assume interim
CTO responsibilities until
a replacement for Hatfield
is identified.
Hatfield, formerly Cox’s
chief information officer,
took over management
of the consolidated technology
group in December
2008 and was put in
charge of all aspects of
Cox’s architecture, design,
development and
deployment across video,
data, wireline voice and
wireless. He officially assumed
the CTO spot in June 2009, after
the retirement of Chris Bowick, a
29-year cable-technology veteran who
now runs independent consulting firm
The Bowick Group.
Hatfield joined Cox in January 1996,
after working in IT management positions
for Ohmeda, Xerox, General Dynamics
and Ford Motor.
Separately, Cox has modified the
role of Dallas Clement, currently executive
vice president and chief strategy
and product officer. Clement will focus
on strategy, and Cox plans to hire
a separate executive in charge of product
management. Clement and the new
executive will report to Esser.
