NEW YORK: Autodesk Inc reassigned its chief financial officer (CFO) after an internal investigation into accounting practices delayed financial filings for weeks.
Deborah Clifford, who has been CFO since March 2021, will become chief strategy officer, effective immediately, the company said last Friday in a statement.
Elizabeth Rafael, an Autodesk board member, was appointed interim CFO and remains on the board.
The decision to replace Clifford as CFO was made by the board of directors’ audit committee, which led the investigation, executives told employees during a call last Friday afternoon, according to a person familiar with the discussion who asked not to be identified.
Autodesk management appointed Clifford to her new post following the decision.
In early April, the engineering software maker delayed its annual financial disclosure and said it was opening a review of its accounting processes around free cash flow and operating margins.
Autodesk said that “there will be no restatement or adjustment of any audited or unaudited, filed or previously announced, generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) or non-GAAP financial statements.”
The disruption of the filings stemmed from the way the company accounted for billings from multi-year software contracts, it said in the statement.
Company representatives couldn’t be reached for further comment.
Autodesk shares jumped 8% in extended trading after the announcement.
The company had said earlier that it didn’t expect any previously issued financial data to be affected by the probe.
Still, the unusual delays in filing earnings reports stirred investor anxiety, and the stock had dropped 22% to US$201.60 through last Friday’s close since the investigation was announced. — Bloomberg
