Google chief financial officer retiring

Google chief financial officer Patrick Pichette is retiring after nearly seven years as one of the Internet titan's top executives.

His pending departure was disclosed in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing available online Tuesday.

A date for Pichette's departure from Google had yet to be set and he "intends to assist in the search for a new CFO and ensure an orderly transition," expected by the company to occur within six months.

Prior to joining Google in 2008, Canada-born Pichette worked at McKinsey & Company, and Bell Canada.

The Rhodes Scholar earned degrees from the University of Quebec in Montreal and from Britain's Oxford University.

Pichette laid out his reasons for retiring in a heartfelt post at Google+ social network, explaining in touching detail how after more than 25 years of non-stop work he is shifting gears to explore the world with his longtime wife, Tamar.

"I could not find a good argument to tell Tamar we should wait any longer for us to grab our backpacks and hit the road—celebrate our last 25 years together by turning the page and enjoy a perfectly fine mid-life crisis full of bliss and beauty, and leave the door open to serendipity for our next leadership opportunities, once our long list of travels and adventures is exhausted," Pichette said in his post.

Pichette described working at Google as a privilege and expressed thanks for the friendship of co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, along with chairman Eric Schmidt.

"Patrick has been a joy to work with and I wish him all the best on his new adventures," Page said in a Google+ post of his own.