Arvind Krishna named IBM CEO, to replace Ginni Rometty

Arvind Krishna has been announced as the Chief Executive Officer of American IT behemoth IBM.

Krishna is currently serving as the Senior Vice President for Cloud and Cognitive Software and is due to take the position on 6th April 2020. He joined IBM decades back in 1990 and has served in various leadership positions in the organization. He was the principal architect of IBM’s acquisition of Red Hat and currently works on IBM Cloud, IBM Research, and IBM Security and Cognitive Applications business.

He is to succeed Virginia Rometty, who is due to retire at the end of the year after almost 40 years with the organization. Rometty became the Chairman, CEO, and President in 2012, and played a primary role in optimizing the organizations portfolio, and repositioning IBM for the future.

“I am thrilled and humbled to be elected as the next Chief Executive Officer of IBM, and appreciate the confidence that Ginni and the Board have placed in me,” said Krishna. “IBM has such talented people and technology that we can bring together to help our clients solve their toughest problems. I am looking forward to working with IBMers, Red Hatters and clients around the world at this unique time of fast-paced change in the IT industry. We have great opportunities ahead to help our clients advance the transformation of their business while also remaining the global leader in the trusted stewardship of technology.”

“Arvind is the right CEO for the next era at IBM,” said Rometty. “He is a brilliant technologist who has played a significant role in developing our key technologies such as artificial intelligence, cloud, quantum computing and blockchain. He is also a superb operational leader, able to win today while building the business of tomorrow. Arvind has grown IBM’s Cloud and Cognitive Software business and led the largest acquisition in the company’s history. Through his multiple experiences running businesses in IBM, Arvind has built an outstanding track record of bold transformations and proven business results, and is an authentic, values-driven leader. He is well-positioned to lead IBM and its clients into the cloud and cognitive era.”

Also, James Whitehurst, the Senior Vice President and CEO of Red Hat, was elected as the President of IBM.