Polaroid Corp., struggling to transform itself into a high-technology imaging company, named Gary T. DiCamillo, a Black & Decker Corp. executive, as its next chairman and chief executive officer.

Mr. DiCamillo, 44 years old, is an ex-McKinsey & Co. consultant known for cost-cutting, productivity improvements and rapidly introducing new products at Black & Decker, where he headed the $2 billion Power Tools & Accessories division. But he has little experience in high-technology areas of the kind on which Polaroid has staked its future.

He will succeed I. MacAllister Booth, 63, a 37-year Polaroid veteran, who will retire on Dec. 1. The Cambridge, Mass., company, whose main franchise still lies in instant photography, has been searching for a new leader since February, and was expected to name an outsider.

In New York Stock Exchange composite trading, shares of Polaroid dropped $1.125, or 2.7%, to $40.875, an indication that shareholders may be disappointed the company did not name a higher-profile executive, several analysts said.

"It's not a name that anybody would recognize unless you're deeply involved in Black & Decker," said Eugene G. Glazer, an analyst at Dean Witter Reynolds.

Under the stewardship of Mr. DiCamillo, an engineer by training, the global power-tools unit had strong sales and profit growth. It is the largest division at Black & Decker, which is based in Towson, Md. Prior to joining the maker of hand tools and small appliances in 1986, he served as vice president and general manager of Culligan. He spent three years at McKinsey, and five years as a brand manager at Procter & Gamble Co.

In an interview, Mr. DiCamillo declined to say what plans he has for Polaroid. "I'm certainly not intimidated by high-tech areas," he said. "I like the stuff. And while I wouldn't necessarily classify power tools as high tech, certainly there's a high degree of technology that goes into our products."

The issue for Polaroid, he says, is whether its new digital-imaging technologies are "commercially viable" and will "pay off in the marketplace for shareholders."

Analysts say Mr. DiCamillo will face formidable challenges. Polaroid has been attempting to expand its core instant-photography business into more modern digital-imaging products, including scanners and medical devices. In recent years, the company has suffered several marketing miscues, including introducing an imaging machine for hospitals whose format and images were not standard, and smaller than doctors wanted. "Polaroid has a long-standing reputation as a lousy marketer, even though it has a very widely recognized brand franchise," says Mr. Glazer.

Although the company had about $100 million of its $2.31 billion in annual sales in the new areas last year, operating losses in the areas were about $180 million. A similar operating loss is expected in the areas this year, despite increased revenues, analysts say. Meanwhile, Polaroid focused less on marketing its traditional photographic companies, they say.

"If he can cut those losses and improve the core business through marketing, then he's on his way," says Brenda Lee Landry, an analyst at Morgan Stanley & Co.

Polaroid has scored successes with its photographic products in overseas markets such as Russia. Its stock price has risen about 25% this year. Third-quarter earnings were about $23.7 million, off about 24% on sales that were flat at $580 million.

Alex Henderson, an analyst at Prudential Securities, says Mr. DiCamillo is a good fit for the company because he has a reputation for cost-cutting and productivity improvements. "Polaroid desperately needs somebody to do both of those things," he says. But he questions the executive's lack of experience in the high-technology area.

Dow Jones & Company

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