Cox Enterprises announced that Charles Odom has been named executive vice president of Finance, effective immediately. Odom succeeds Maria Friedman who will transition to a senior advisory position within Cox.

In this role, Odom will add to his Corporate Finance & Treasury responsibilities by also leading Assurance & Enablement and Tax & Accounting Services. His responsibilities will now include oversight of the Cox Enterprises finance function including accounting, tax, audit, treasury, and financial reporting, planning and analysis. He will also be responsible for managing the company's risk management programs and pension investments for Cox Enterprises and all its subsidiaries.

"Maria and Charles have closely collaborated for nearly two decades and share a common vision for the Cox Finance team and its priorities," said Dallas Clement, president and chief financial officer, Cox Enterprises. "Charles' leadership has been pivotal to our success over the past few years, and I have no doubt he will continue to deliver the same level of excellence moving forward. I'm deeply excited for both of them as they step into their new roles."

Odom has been part of the Cox family since 1996 in various finance roles including SVP and CFO for Cox Media Group (CMG). Most recently he has led a team spanning multiple functions, including enterprise finance, retirement investments, corporate financial planning and analysis, finance systems, treasury operations and capital markets. Prior to Cox, Odom worked for Deloitte as a senior accountant. 

"I want to thank Maria for her leadership and guidance over the past decade," said Charles Odom, EVP, Finance, Cox Enterprises. "I'm excited about taking this next step with Cox as we continue to expand our current businesses while diversifying into new ones. This is an important time for our company and I'm happy to support this work going forward."

Odom earned a bachelor's degree in accounting from Mercer University and completed the Kellogg Management Institute program at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management.