BEDFORD, Mass. (AP) -- Progress Software Corp. announced Monday that its board has elected Philip Pead as non-executive chairman of the board. The business software company also appointed Melissa Cruz as chief financial officer.
As chairman, Pead succeeds Michael Mark, who will remain on the board. Pead has served on the board since July 2011.
Cruz replaces Charlie Wagner, who left the company in March. The company said Cruz is a 28-year veteran of the technology industry. She has worked as chief financial officer at number of software companies, including health care software company Picis, data center software company BladeLogic and network security software company Concord Communications.
Benchmark analyst Mark Schappel said in a research note that the new CFO selection should be neutral for the stock for now but will help the company's operations in the long run.
Cruz will have to help the company execute the new strategic plan it announced in late April, which includes refocusing on its application development roots, the analyst said. He reiterated a buy rating on the stock.
Shares of the Bedford, Mass.-based company fell 20 cents to $19.62 in afternoon trading. They are down 20 percent since late March.
