Business News

Kodak Names Gustavo Oviedo to Position of Chief Customer Officer

Thursday 23. December 2010 - Oviedo to Report to CEO Antonio Perez, Serve on Company's Executive Council

Eastman Kodak Company (NYSE:EK) announced that it has named Gustavo Oviedo to the position of Chief Customer Officer and General Manager, Worldwide Regional Operations, reporting to Kodak’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Antonio M. Perez, effective January 1, 2011.
In recognition of this new position, Oviedo, who is a corporate vice president, also will serve on the company’s Executive Council. He is presently a member of the company’s Operations Council and the General Manager of Worldwide Sales and Customer Operations.
“Kodak has always believed in putting the customer first,” said Perez. “With the creation of the position of Chief Customer Officer, we are reinforcing our commitment to delivering products and services that reflect the input and the needs of our customers, both commercial and consumer.
“I’ve chosen Gustavo to lead this effort because of his experience in the United States and Europe as well as his specific knowledge of the growth markets of Asia and Latin America,” Perez said. “Working in close conjunction with me, Gustavo will lead our efforts to tap into the considerable growth opportunities in those regions and around the world, with particular emphasis on our strategic account program.”
As Chief Customer Officer, Oviedo’s primary responsibility will be making the customer central to the company’s delivery of products and services – from design to distribution. He will partner with all of Kodak’s business teams and Corporate Marketing to carry out his mission. From his base in Rochester, N.Y., he will oversee the company’s sales and customer operations in the Americas; Europe, Africa and Middle East Region (EAMER); and in the Asia Pacific Region (APR). This includes the company’s Strategic Account Management program, which is focused on helping to grow the customers’ businesses and, in turn, Kodak’s own sales.
Oviedo, 58, joined Kodak in 2006 with the company’s acquisition of Kodak Polychrome Graphics (KPG), serving first as Managing Director, Asia Pacific Region, for Kodak’s Graphic Communications Group. From March 2007 to December 2008, he was Managing Director of the Asia Pacific Region for all of Kodak, during which time the company’s board of directors elected him a corporate vice president.
“I am honored to be given the responsibility of serving as the company’s chief point of contact with the customer,” Oviedo said. “Our sales increasingly come from the business-to-business marketplace, which is where I have spent the bulk of my career. I look forward to doing all I can to contribute to the continued success of Kodak’s digital transformation.”
Oviedo’s international career spans more than 25 years working in the United States, Latin America, Asia, and Europe, and includes deep industrial operations management experience. Before joining KPG, he spent more than 20 years with Schneider Electric, a leader in electromechanical and electronic products, where he held positions of increasing responsibility in regional management and his responsibilities included distribution, logistics, sales and marketing, business development, and strategic mergers and acquisitions.
A native of Buenos Aires, Oviedo earned a business degree from The Universidad del Salvador, in Buenos Aires. In addition to his native Spanish, Oviedo also speaks English, Portuguese, and French.