Intel poaches CFO from rival Qualcomm

Intel’s new chief financial officer is George Davis, who had been CFO at rival Qualcomm since 2013.

Davis, 61, is the first big hire for new Intel chief executive Bob Swan, who had been Intel’s CFO before getting the top job in January.

Under Swan’s predecessor, former CEO Brian Krzanich, Intel broke with a tradition of promoting internal executives and often went outside the company to fill significant openings. Swan went the same way Tuesday in picking Davis.

Intel and Qualcomm are heated competitors in the wireless chip market. Coming from a financial role, Davis may not bring a lot of technical expertise with him to Intel. But he’s an industry veteran, having spent six years as CFO for key Intel supplier Applied Materials before joining Qualcomm.

Intel’s headquarters are in Silicon Valley but the company’s largest and most advanced operation is in Washington County, Ore., where the chipmaker has 20,000 employees. An Oregon executive, Intel finance vice president Todd Underwood, had been serving as Intel’s interim CFO since the company promoted Swan to CEO.

Intel did not immediately disclose Davis’ compensation Tuesday. Qualcomm valued his pay at $7.6 million in cash, stock awards and other compensation during 2018.