The Board of Directors of First Data Corporation, a global leader in electronic commerce and payment processing, today announced that Jonathan J. Judge has been named chief executive officer (CEO). Judge will begin his new position on Oct. 1, 2010.
Previously, Judge served as president and CEO at Paychex, Inc., a publicly traded, leading provider of payroll, human resources and benefits outsourcing solutions for small- to medium-sized businesses located in Rochester, N.Y. He will relocate to Atlanta, where First Data is headquartered.
"I am grateful for the opportunity to join a world-class organization with both an experienced leadership team and global employees who are committed to meeting customers' needs and ensuring the company is an even stronger leader in electronic commerce and payment technology solutions," said Judge.
Judge succeeds Joe Forehand, chairman of First Data's board of directors and a senior advisor at KKR, who was also serving as the company's interim CEO. Forehand will continue to serve as chairman of the board.
"When I assumed the interim role, I referred to First Data as a great company with a great history and a great future," said Forehand. "First Data's future is taking shape now, and Jon has demonstrated the leadership and ability to take the company into its next stage of growth and development. Jon is a dynamic individual who has thrived as a leader of both public and private companies."
Biographical Highlights about Jon Judge
Jonathan J. Judge is CEO of First Data Corporation, a position to which he was named in September 2010.
Prior to joining First Data, Judge served for six years as president and CEO of Paychex, Inc., a publicly traded, leading provider of payroll, human resources and benefits outsourcing solutions for small- to medium-sized businesses. During his leadership, Paychex revenues grew from $1.2 billion to approximately $2 billion and achieved a market capitalization of approximately $10 billion. Paychex was named one of the world's most ethical companies by the Ethisphere Institute in 2007, 2008 and 2010. During each year of Judge's tenure as CEO, Paychex was ranked among Fortune magazine's "100 Best Companies to Work For." Also in 2010, Computerworld magazine ranked Paychex for the sixth consecutive time as one of the best places to work in information technology.
Before serving at Paychex, Judge was the CEO for Crystal Decisions, a private $300 million software company providing business intelligence solutions. In December 2003, the company was purchased by Business Objects, a rival business intelligence software vendor, for approximately $1.2 billion. Judge helped integrate the two companies through 2004.
Judge began his career as a sales trainee and spent 26 years with IBM Corporation, serving in a series of positions with increasing responsibility. In his last year with IBM, Judge led the Personal Computing Division, a $10 billion business unit that offered a broad range of products, solutions and services to customers around the world. Judge also served as general manager of Worldwide Sales and Service in IBM's Personal Systems Group, a $15 billion business unit with over 5,000 sales and support personnel in 160 countries driving channel sales, direct sales, pre- and post-sale technical support and customer relationship management. At IBM, Judge served on the Worldwide Management Committee. He left IBM in 2002 to become a CEO of Crystal Decisions.
Judge serves on the board of directors of Dun & Bradstreet and PMC-Sierra, Inc. Judge also serves as a member of the Upstate New York Regional Advisory Board of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. He is a graduate of Harvard University and holds a bachelor's degree in economics.