Sunit Patel, the CFO of Crown Castle will step down at the end of March 2027. He will be replaced by Kris Hinson, who is currently the Chief Commercial Officer.
The company also announced that Cathy Piche, the Chief Operating Officer, will leave at the end of February 2027. Crown Castle will conduct a search for her replacement.
Mr. Patel has only been the CFO since April 2025, though he joined Crown Castle as a non-executive director in January 2024. In their press release, the company described Mr. Patel’s departure as a retirement. While it is true that he will be 65 years old by the time he retires, he will also be receiving a severance package. He will get $1.25 million being one times base salary and target bonus, plus a pro-rated bonus for 2027. Mr. Patel will also get continued vesting of restricted stock units. At December 2025, they were worth $2.8 million.
Ms. Piche originally joined Crown Castle in 2011, then left for a competitor in October 2023, before being hired back a year later. Like Mr. Patel, she will get one times base and bonus ($1.1 million) and a pro-rated bonus for 2027. Her restricted stock units will continue to vest (worth $1.5 million at December 2025).
Mr. Hinson joined the company in 2023 as VP, Corporate Finance and Treasurer. Prior to that, he spent 13 years at ExxonMobil in various roles, including Director of Investor Relations.
Recent Struggles
Crown Castle has a tumultuous few years. Current CEO Chris Hillabrant was appointed in September 2025. His predecessor, Steven Moskowitz, was fired in March 2025 after just 11 months in the role. The CEO prior to that was forced out in December 2023, just ten days after Elliott Investment Management, an activist investor, urged the company to do so. Elliott had been pushing the company to divest of its fiber business and they were the ones who originally nominated Mr. Patel as a non-executive director.
At the beginning of May, the company sold its fiber business for $8.5 billion. Elliott had been pushing for that, so Mr. Patel departs after he has helped achieve that goal.
In anticipation of the sale, the company had reduced its headcount by 20% or 1,250 employees earlier in 2026. Those reductions were also accelerated by the financial difficulties of DISH Wireless, a major customer. Crown Castle has sued DISH over the cancellation of its contract and for monies owed.
SEC filing – 8-K Crown Castle CFO change