Satya Nadella named Microsoft CEO as Bill Gates steps down
India-born Satya Nadella was appointed after a team of headhunters concluded a five-month search.
NEW YORK (Web Desk) - Microsoft settled on a veteran insider as its replacement for long-time CEO Steve Ballmer on Tuesday, ending a five-month search with a choice some analysts called a “safe pick” for the software behemoth.
India-born Satya Nadella, 46, head of the company's cloud computing division and enterprise business, was appointed after a team of headhunters concluded a five-month search that included some of the most world’s most famous executives.
Nadella is only the third person to lead Microsoft; since the company was founded 39 years ago, only co-founder Bill Gates and Ballmer have headed it. But in recent years the company has looked flat-footed as rivals Apple, Google and Facebook have dominated and innovated in hardware, online services and social media.
In a nod to Nadella's low profile outside the company, Microsoft introduced him with a sleek web page that was heavy on biographical details including the revelation that he relaxes by reading poetry.
Ballmer said he would step down last August amid mounting criticism of the company’s dependence on its Windows, Microsoft Office and workplace software, products that have generated massive profits for the company for decades but are being increasingly challenged by online alternatives. In a statement, Ballmer said Nadella was “the right leader at the right time” for Microsoft.
Some were less sure. In a note to investors, analysts at FBR Capital Markets said the appointment of Nadella was a "safe pick" compared to choosing an outsider. Microsoft was among the first to innovate in areas like smartphones, tablets and cloud services. But it has seen those ideas better executed by rivals including Apple and Amazon, the note said.
As part of the announcement, Gates said he would step down as chairman to assume a new role on the board as founder and technology adviser.
John Thompson, the Microsoft board member who oversaw its search for a new chief executive, becomes chairman. “During this time of transformation, there is no better person to lead Microsoft than Satya Nadella,” Gates said..
“Satya is a proven leader with hardcore engineering skills, business vision and the ability to bring people together. His vision for how technology will be used and experienced around the world is exactly what Microsoft needs as the company enters its next chapter of expanded product innovation and growth,” Gates said in his statement.
Nadella may be little known outside of Microsoft’s sprawling Redmond campus, but inside it he is a star. Before being named as CEO he ran one of Microsoft's fastest growing divisions, cloud services. Revenue at the division soared 107% compared to a year ago, the company said when it reported its fiscal second-quarter results on 23 January. Most of his experience is in serving corporate customers – the source of two-thirds of Microsoft profits.
