Applebee’s CIO Mike Czenige Loses Job Amidst IHOP Acquisition

Plus: CIO announcements from Aon eSolutions Group, Navistar International and more.

International House of Pancakes (IHOP) completed its $2.1 billion acquisition of Applebee’s yesterday. Many Applebee‘s executives, including its CIO Mike Czenige, lost their jobs in the deal. The Applebee’s executives who didn’t make the transition include, according to the Kansas City Star and IHOP press releases:

• Dave Goebel, president and CEO
• Steve Lumpkin, CFO
• Carol DiRaimo, VP of investor relations
• Carin Stutz, EVP of operations
• Kurt Hankins, EVP of menu development and innovation
• Larry Miller, VP of finance
• Scott White, VP of HR

The Kansas City Star reports that Goebel, Lumpkin and Stutz are walking away with $5.3 million, $3.9 million and $1.3 million in severance respectively. Severance packages for the other executives were not listed in SEC filings, according to the KC Star.

Aon Corp. announced yesterday that Paul Holden joined the insurance and risk management company’s eSolutions Group as its CIO. Holden’s primary responsibility is to expand eSolutions’ suite of technology products that manage risk, adminster claims and oversee core insurance business processes. Holden most recently worked for Dynetech Services Corp. as its CIO and vice president. Previously, he served as Broadspire Management Service‘s VP of IT and as Sedgwick Claims Management Services‘ VP and director of technology infrastructure. Holden, 34, boasts 18 years of IT experience. A spokesperson for Aon says the eSolutions Group’s new CIO took his first job at a technology firm when he was 16. 16+18=34.

Navistar International hired a consultant as its new VP and CIO earlier this month. Don Sharp (at left), 39, had been working for the Warrenville, Ill.-based truck and engine manufacturer for the past nine months as a program manager on the company’s restatement/reaudit efforts. Navistar effectively tried Sharp on for size and liked the fit. Says Daniel C. Ustian, Navistar’s chairman, president and CEO, in a press release: “We have gotten to know Don well over the past nine months and believe that his background and management style will fit well with our company.”

Randall Kalik joined the law firm of SmithAmundsen as its CIO on November 12. Kalik is responsible for developing the business workflow for the firm in addition to overseeing IT. He has over 10 years of experience managing IT in professional services firms and graduated from Nova Southeastern University in 1989.

Joe Caro joined St. Louis, Mo.-based Brown Shoe Company on November 5 as its SVP and CIO. He most recently worked for CitiGroup’s CitiFinancial International division as its SVP and CTO. In that role, he was responsible for developing and managing technology for the international consumer lending business. Prior to that, he was MasterCard‘s vice president of internet technology solutions and served as Edward Jones‘s director of banking and online brokerage technology. He also previously worked for Accenture. Caro earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Marshall University and an MBA from Indiana University.

Jim Burdiss, CIO of Affinia Group, hired Sam Quick as his new senior director of data integration and web services on November 8. Like Burdiss, Quick’s boss, Quick joins the Ann Arbor, Mich.-based on- and off-highway replacement products and service industry from Smurfit Stone Container Corp. At Smurfit, Quick served as director of IT applications. Over the course of his 27-year career in IT, Quick has worked for a variety of different industries including pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, healthcare and communications. He was the manager of electronic commerce and system support for Merck AgVet, manager of EDI operations and support for McDonnell Douglas/BT Tymnet and director of e-commerce for Moog Automotive. Quick holds a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from Fontebonne University.