HP names new CEO as Dion Weisler steps down

HP will have a new president and CEO from 1 November. Enrique Lores is replacing Dion Weisler, who is stepping down due to family health issues and returning home to Australia.

Lores, currently president of HP’s Imaging, Printing and Solutions business, will work with Weisler through January 2020 to ensure a seamless transition. Following this, Weisler will continue to serve on HP’s board of directors until the next annual meeting of stockholders. Weisler, who joined HP in 2012 and has served as president and CEO since 2015, said: “Serving as CEO of HP is the highlight of my career, and I want to thank the entire HP team for the support they have shown me. I’m incredibly proud of what we have achieved and equally confident in where we are heading as a company. Enrique has been a tremendous partner whose leadership has been instrumental in setting this company up for success and delivering on our strategy. He is one of the smartest people I know, and I have great confidence in his ability to lead and inspire the next chapter of HP’s transformation and growth.” “On behalf of the board, we respect Dion’s decision to support the needs of his family,” said Chip Bergh, chair of HP’s board of directors. “We thank him for leading HP post-separation, building a strong team and restoring the company to drive strong shareholder value creation over the last four years.” Bergh added: “Enrique is an inspiring and proven business leader and is the right person to lead HP into the future. Since the time of separation, the board has had an ongoing and diligent succession planning process that included vetting and benchmarking internal and external candidates. Through this rigorous process, Enrique emerged as the board’s unanimous choice as successor and we are confident he will build on the company’s progress and capitalize on new opportunities.” HP has added approximately $7bn in annual revenue, generated over $13 billion in free cashflow, and has met or exceeded its non-GAAP EPS guidance for 15 consecutive quarters since the separation of Hewlett-Packard Company in 2015. Lores was a key architect of one of the largest and most complex corporate separations in business history. He was instrumental in transforming HP’s cost structure while simplifying the organisation and creating the capacity to invest in innovation to drive profitable top and bottom-line growth. Since 2015, Lores has served as president of HP’s Imaging, Printing and Solutions business, which had revenues of over $20bn for fiscal 2018 and has consistently outperformed the company’s printing peer set. Over the past year, Lores has been working with the HP board on a global review of the company’s strategy and business operations, with a focus on simplifying its operating model, evolving its business models and driving significant improvement in its cost structure while making the company more digitally enabled and customer-centric. Lores will provide more details on this work and his vision for the company on 3 October during HP’s investor update.