- Push-out Score determined
- After less than two years in the position
- Mark Dankberg taking over
- Baldridge will remain as vice chairman at Viasat
(exechange) — Carlsbad, California, June 29, 2022 — Rick Baldridge, chief executive of Viasat, leaves his position. As announced by Viasat Inc. in a news release and in a regulatory filing published on Wednesday, June 29, 2022, Richard (Rick) Baldridge leaves his post as chief executive officer at the communications company, after less than two years in the role, effective July 1, 2022.
Rick Baldridge’s duties as CEO will be taken over by Mark Dankberg, currently executive chairman at Viasat Inc.
“To scale Viasat internal operational responsibilities”
Viasat did not give an explicit reason for Rick Baldridge’s departure from the CEO post. Viasat said: “Baldridge’s new role also reflects the results of internal organizational planning and evolution over the past two years designed to scale Viasat internal operational responsibilities. Since co-founding Viasat in 1986, Dankberg has led Viasat’s growth, technology strategy and commercial operations over many years, and served as chairman and CEO from inception through 2020. Now, Dankberg will be supported in overseeing Viasat’s day-to-day operations by Kevin Harkenrider, a long time Viasat executive with experience in a broad range of operating roles who was promoted to Chief Operating Officer in 2021.”
Baldridge will remain as vice chairman at Viasat
“[E]ffective July 1, 2022, Mark Dankberg, Viasat’s co-founder and executive chairman, will resume the roles of chairman and CEO, while current President and CEO Rick Baldridge will assume a newly created vice chairman position. Baldridge will focus on the remaining steps to closing the Inmarsat acquisition, and the organizational integration planning and execution strategy to position the combined companies to achieve the financial and operational objectives underpinning the transaction – including cost, capital, and revenue synergies already identified. The organization change follows Viasat’s recent overwhelming shareholder approval for the acquisition of Inmarsat. Baldridge will also continue to lead Viasat’s evaluations of strategic initiatives and certain ongoing organizational initiatives,” Viasat said.
Share price decline since June 2021
The announcement follows a decline in Viasat Inc.’s share price of 41% since June 2021.
In the position of CEO since 2020
Rick Baldridge became CEO of the Company in 2020.
Richard Baldridge has been a director of Viasat since 2016.
Baldridge joined Viasat in April 1999, serving as the Company’s Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer from 2000 and as the Company’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer from 2002.
Baldridge was appointed President and Chief Operating Officer in 2003 and assumed his current role of President and Chief Executive Officer in November 2020.
In addition, Baldridge serves as a director of Ducommun Incorporated (NYSE: DCO), a provider of engineering and manufacturing services to the aerospace and defense industries, and EvoNexus, a San Diego based non-profit technology incubator.
Prior to joining Viasat, Baldridge served as Vice President and General Manager of Raytheon Corporation’s Training Systems Division from January 1998 to April 1999.
From June 1994 to December 1997, Baldridge served as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer for Hughes Information Systems and Hughes Training Inc., prior to their acquisition by Raytheon in 1997.
Baldridge’s other experience includes various senior financial and general management roles with General Dynamics Corporation.
Baldridge holds a B.S.B.A. degree in Information Systems from New Mexico State University.
Push-out Score determined
The Push-out Score™ determined by exechange gauges the pressure surrounding Rick Baldridge’s move on a scale of 0 to 10.
exechange reached out to Viasat and offered the company the opportunity to comment on the score.
Read the full story in the exechange report 27.2022 ($).