From Churchill Downs Inc.

Churchill Downs Inc. has appointed William "Bill" Mudd to serve as executive vice president and chief financial officer, the Louisville-based racing company announced Oct. 4. Mudd succeeds Mike Miller, who left his role as executive vice president and CFO in January to pursue other business interests.

Mudd, 36, will oversee financial reporting, strategic planning, compliance, business planning, capital management, risk management and investor relations efforts. He will report to president and chief executive officer Robert Evans, assuming his new role Oct. 15.

“I’m pleased to welcome Bill to our senior management team at Churchill Downs,” Evans said. “Bill’s broad business background, his expertise in domestic and international markets, and his exceptional leadership skills will be tremendous assets as our company explores new avenues and opportunities for development and growth. It is gratifying to have attracted such a strong candidate to this role as we continue to strengthen our company’s management team.”

Mudd comes to his new position after 15 years with General Electric Co., where he most recently served as the global commercial CFO at GE Water & Process Technologies, a water process and filtration business based in Trevose, Pa. A native of Marion County, Ky., he rose rapidly to positions of increased responsibility within GE after he started his career with the company in 1992 with a part-time position in purchasing at GE’s Appliance Park in Louisville.

He held that position while he completed a bachelor of science degree in mathematics and actuarial science at Bellarmine University. Mudd joined GE on a full-time basis following his graduation in 1993. He also holds a masters of business administration degree from Webster University and was a captain in the United States Army Reserves with 14 years of service.

Mudd served as Global Commercial CFO of GE Water beginning in 2006, and from 2004 to 2006 was CFO of Supply Chain, IT and Technology Finance for GE’s Consumer and Industrial Europe, Middle East & Africa Division in Budapest, Hungary. Earlier, he served as finance manager of Global Financial Planning & Analysis and Business Development for GE Fanuc, a joint venture between GE and Fanuc, a Japanese partner.

In 2000, he began two years of service as commercial finance manager, retail for GE Appliances in Louisville. Mudd had earlier served as a financial and operations analyst for that operation.