HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) announced that Southern California Lead Region President John Sotoodeh will head Wells Fargo’s Southwest Region. He succeeds Paul W. “Chip” Carlisle, who announced his retirement earlier this year. Sotoodeh will relocate to the company’s Southwest Region headquarters in Houston before the end of the year.
“I could not be more excited about having this opportunity to lead such a successful team, in such a vibrant region of the country,” Sotoodeh said. “The Wells Fargo Southwest Region, under Chip Carlisle’s leadership, has a great reputation for excellent customer service and community involvement. I plan to learn from their work and help the team build on its current success. I also look forward to supporting the civic life and health of our communities across the Southwest Region.”
Sotoodeh is a 24-year company veteran, who started his career as a teller. He currently leads Community Banking in Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, Imperial, San Bernardino and Riverside counties. His new area of responsibility will cover Texas, Arkansas and New Mexico, with 780 banking stores, and more than 9,800 team members.
Carlisle, who served as the lead executive for the Southwest Region, is retiring after a banking career that spanned four decades. He became president of the Texas Region in 2004 and was appointed to his current duties in 2011.
“I am thrilled for the team, our customers and the community that John will lead our operations here,” Carlisle said. “I have worked with John for many years and know firsthand what a strong and committed leader he is. John will be a terrific asset to this team and the entire community.”
Sotoodeh has been active in supporting the community in his current role, serving on the boards for the United Way of Greater Los Angeles, KCET-TV, California Chamber of Commerce, the Autry National Center of the American West, and the advisory board for BankWorks.
About Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) is a nationwide, diversified, community-based financial services company with $1.6 trillion in assets. Founded in 1852 and headquartered in San Francisco, Wells Fargo provides banking, insurance, investments, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance through more than 9,000 locations, 12,500 ATMs, and the internet (wellsfargo.com), and has offices in 36 countries to support customers who conduct business in the global economy. With approximately 265,000 team members, Wells Fargo serves one in three households in the United States. Wells Fargo & Company was ranked No. 29 on Fortune’s 2014 rankings of America’s largest corporations. Wells Fargo’s vision is to satisfy all our customers’ financial needs and help them succeed financially. Wells Fargo perspectives are also available at Wells Fargo Blogs and Wells Fargo Stories.
