Dive Brief:
- Dentsply Sirona CFO Glenn Coleman is resigning from his role as finance chief and principal accounting officer to “pursue another opportunity,” the dental supply company announced Tuesday in a securities filing. Coleman will step down from his position effective Nov. 7.
- Coleman is the second CFO to step down from the dental supply company in as many years, following the departure of his predecessor, Jorge Gomez, in 2022. Gomez left Dentsply to take on the top financial seat for pharmaceutical company Moderna — only to abruptly step down after one day in the role after Dentsply announced an accounting probe which encompassed his actions, CFO Dive reported at the time.
- Dentsply has initiated a search for Coleman’s successor, according to the company filing. The CFO’s departure is not the result of any disagreement with the company on “any matter relating to the Company’s financial statements, internal controls, operations, policies, or practices, including accounting principles and practices,” the company said.
Dive Insight:
A veteran of global technology company Integra LifeSciences Holdings, Coleman joined the Charlotte, North Carolina-based company as its CFO in September 2022 as part of a flurry of leadership shifts following the launch of an internal accounting probe by its audit and finance committees, CFO Dive reported at the time. That same month, Dentsply also appointed Simon Campion as its new CEO.
In November 2022, Dentsply concluded its probe — which concerned whether incentives used to sell products to distributors were accurately accounted — finding no evidence of intentional wrongdoing upon its close. However, it noted that its former CFO Gomez — along with the company’s former CEO and other senior managers — had violated provisions of its ethics and business conduct code, CFO Dive reported.
The dental supply company has struggled to regain its footing following the probe, seeing slumping sales and revenue after the spotlight on its financial accounting practices and its executive leadership shifts.
In a bid to bolster its savings and cut spending, Dentsply announced a restructuring plan last February aimed at improving operational performance and boosting profitability.
The plan — which aimed to drive up to $200 million in annual cost savings — included the creation of a new executive position focused on regulatory affairs. It also included significant layoffs, with Dentsply planning to reduce its global workforce by approximately 8% to 10%, according to the February release.
In July 2024, Dentsply announced another round of layoffs, anticipating a reduction of between 2% to 4% of the company’s global workforce, according to a securities filing. As of December 2023, Dentsply had approximately 15,000 employees globally, according to its annual report.
The plan also included shifts to Dentsply’s executive team, with the company eliminating the role of chief business officer in July. Andreas Frank, the current executive in that seat, will step down effective Oct. 1, according to the July filing.
As of last month, Dentsply expected its plan to be completed by the end of next year and anticipated it will drive between $80 million to $100 million in annual cost savings.
The July restructuring plan comes as the company reported net sales slumped 4.2% year-over-year to $984 million in its most recent quarter ended June 30. The company also reported a net loss of $4 million, compared to net income of $86 million for the prior year period, according to its Q2 2024 earnings results.
Dentsply also announced it was revising its full year outlook given its results for the first half of the year as well as ongoing macroeconomic pressures. The company now expects to see net sales between $3.86 billion to $3.90 billion, “down (1%) to flat on an organic basis,” it said.
Dentsply did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
