Hewlett-Packard today announced that Léo Apotheker has stepped down as CEO, president and director. He has been replaced by Meg Whitman who steps in as president and chief executive officer. According to Ray Lane who also became executive chairman of the board today:
“We are fortunate to have someone of Meg Whitman’s caliber and experience step up to lead HP. We are at a critical moment and we need renewed leadership to successfully implement our strategy and take advantage of the market opportunities ahead. Meg is a technology visionary with a proven track record of execution. She is a strong communicator who is customer focused with deep leadership capabilities. Furthermore, as a member of HP’s board of directors for the past eight months, Meg has a solid understanding of our products and markets.”
Léo Apotheker became HP CEO last September after Mark Hurd resigned over inappropriate business conduct charges.
It remains to be seen what changes Whitman will bring to HP. Will she reverse course over the decision to spin off HP’s PSG group? And will she revive the webOS device business? Stay tuned…