Warner Music Group’s chief financial and operating officer, Armin Zerza, has left the company after slightly more than a year in the roles. The departure took effect immediately and was described as personal.
The company has started a search for a permanent successor. Lou Dickler, Warner Music’s global controller and chief accounting officer, will take over as acting CFO. Tom Corson, co-chairman and chief operating officer of Warner Records, will serve as interim COO.
Zerza’s short tenure followed a major cost-cutting plan
Zerza joined Warner Music in May 2025 as CFO and added the COO title this past May. His exit occurs while the company carries out a restructuring effort to reduce expenses by $300 million. The plan, announced last July, included $170 million from layoffs and $130 million from administrative and real estate cuts.
CEO Robert Kyncl praised Zerza as a key leader during a transformative period. “We thank Armin for his outstanding business and financial leadership and his contributions to WMG,” Kyncl said.
Before joining Warner Music, Zerza spent six years at Activision Blizzard, including four as CFO. He also held financial roles at Procter & Gamble for 11 years.
Interim leaders take charge as quarterly results improve
Dickler has been with Warner Music for 21 years. He previously filled the interim CFO role for four months starting in November 2021. His current position as global controller and chief accounting officer began in July 2025.
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The leadership change arrives as Warner Music prepares to release its fiscal third-quarter earnings on August 5. Preliminary figures filed Monday showed operating income jumped 80% year-over-year to about $305 million for the quarter ended June 30. The company also reported a boost in music streaming revenue.
The company has been expanding its digital tools. In April, it acquired Revelator, a music distribution platform, to improve service offerings. Two months later, Warner Music bought Sureel AI, a system that monitors how AI models use copyrighted music in training and output. The acquisition helps ensure artists and rights holders receive payment when their work appears in AI-generated content.
Most employees will not notice an immediate impact. The restructuring is already underway, and the financial results suggest the approach is showing progress. Still, the sudden exit of a top executive—especially one hired to oversee cost reductions and reinvestment—could affect the speed of those efforts. The next CFO will take over a company in the middle of a financial shift, facing pressure to keep the changes on track while the music industry adapts to AI’s growing influence on creation.
Warner Music, which separated from Time Warner Inc. in 2004, runs labels like Atlantic, Warner Records, and 10K Projects. It maintains headquarters in Los Angeles and New York.
Zerza will stay available through the end of the fiscal year to help with the transition.
