Amex Leadership Shift Puts Chenault Closer To Travel

American Express this month announced that its business travel and commercial card leaders now report directly to chairman and chief executive Kenneth Chenault.

The move comes as company president Alfred Kelly Jr., who led the consumer and small business card divisions, announced that he will leave the company in April to pursue a chief executive position elsewhere, according to SEC filings detailing Kelly's separation agreement. Vice chairman Edward Gilligan, who had been leading the global Business to Business Group, where American Express Business Travel and Global Commercial Card reside, now oversees the company's global consumer, small business and network businesses organizations.

Amex U.S. Consumer Services president and CEO Judson Linville now reports to Gilligan. Global commercial card president Anré Williams and global business travel president Charles Petruccelli, former Gilligan reports, now report to Chenault.

American Express also announced new business units designed to handle payment industry shifts and business growth when the economy begins to recover.

In a companywide memo to employees, Chenault said, "Expense management, while always important, increasingly is becoming a strategic imperative for companies of all sizes. Our commercial card and business travel businesses are uniquely positioned to offer industry-leading solutions in this arena. The growth potential here is quite substantial, especially in the markets outside the United States. Therefore, we will retain a strong, separate focus on the commercial services sector."

American Express also is implementing a new global service organization that houses customer services, technologies, operations, business processing and information management under the leadership of group president Stephen Squeri, who was CIO and head of technologies for the past four years. Before that, Squeri had senior leadership roles in several business units, including global commercial card.

Former American Express Business Travel COO and global customer group president Priyan Fernando was named executive vice president of global business services, working with Squeri and overseeing operations including financial processing and reporting, real estate services, procurement and human resources processing. Fernando's travel management company position has not been filled. Petruccelli oversees Fernando's previous reports, said a company spokesperson.

Amex also said a new enterprise growth organization would focus on "leveraging existing assets, generating incremental fee revenue and driving entry into new payment areas and related businesses."

In the memo, Chenault said, "First, I believe that, while the global economy will recover, we can expect to see a 'new normal' of slower billings growth, as consumers and businesses remain cautious about their spending. Second, new payments products and platforms will evolve, requiring us to be innovative and forward thinking as we look to maintain our industry leadership. And third, given the ongoing challenges presented by a lower growth environment, a premium will be placed on those companies that are lean, flexible and highly productive in delivering value to customers, business partners and shareholders."