Mastercard Promotes Vosburg To Chief Product Officer And Kirkpatrick To President, North America

Mastercard made two major executive changes on Thursday (Dec. 3) that are effective as of Jan. 1. Craig Vosburg has been promoted to chief product officer and Linda Kirkpatrick will succeed him as president, North America. In the CPO role, Vosburg will lead the newly combined products and engineering division, overseeing growth areas and executing new opportunities.

“Craig has been an integral part of our leadership team over the past decade. He’s brought a thoughtful and analytical approach to resetting our course in North America and the results speak for themselves,” Michael Miebach, president and CEO-elect, said in a statement on Thursday (Dec. 3). “As we prepare for the next decade, we believe this same approach will deliver dividends in an integrated product management and engineering organization. The teams will have a greater ability to collaborate and innovate to take advantage of the opportunities of the post-COVID world,” Miebach added.

As president, North America, Kirkpatrick will oversee customer-facing activities in the U.S. and Canada. Earlier this year, she was named president, U.S. issuers, managing the company’s regional credit, debit, commercial and prepaid card programs.

“Linda has deep experience across so many areas of our business,” said Ajay Banga, chief executive officer. “In each role, she’s established herself as a trusted partner and a relentless force to deliver a positive impact for our customers, our partners and the markets where we operate. This foundation – and the relationships she has established along the way – will only strengthen our ability to deliver on tomorrow’s opportunities.”

In a PYMNTS interview in September, Kirkpatrick said that although some card issuers have been holding back new launches, cards with flexible points and rewards are important, especially now, as people pay down debt and grow fearful about the economic future.

Regarding Mastercard’s $825 million acquisition of data aggregator Finicity, Vosburg said the move will make it easier for people to control their data.