Qualcomm’s (Nasdaq: QCOM) Board of Directors chose company President Cristiano Amon to succeed Steve Mollenkopf as CEO, effective June 30, 2021. Mollenkopf told the board he’s choosing to retire after 26 years with the company. To ensure a smooth transition, Mollenkopf will continue his employment as a strategic advisor for a period of time.
Mollenkopf, 52, became CEO in March of 2014. He began his career as an engineer and, for nearly three decades, helped define and lead Qualcomm’s strategy and technology roadmap, according to the company. Qualcomm credited him as helping to propel smartphones into the mainstream and overseeing the expansion into new industry segments such as the Internet of Things (IoT), RF Front End and Automotive. Mollenkopf was also instrumental in the company’s rise as a smartphone technology supplier.
“With our business model clearly validated and our leadership in 5G, this is the right time for Cristiano to assume leadership of the company and preside over what I see as the single largest opportunity in the company’s history,” Mollenkopf said. He credited Amon with spearheading the development of Qualcomm’s 5G strategy, including its acceleration, technology roadmap and global rollout.
“Steve navigated through unprecedented circumstances during his tenure, facing more in his seven years as CEO than most leaders face in their entire careers,” said Mark McLaughlin, Chair of Qualcomm’s Board of Directors. “Under Steve’s leadership, the company remained focused and created immense value for stockholders, inventing key technologies that are driving economic growth and improving lives.”
McLaughlin said Amon Cristiano “was the clear choice” to be Qualcomm’s next CEO, having the track record of “successful execution, deep company knowledge,” strong relationships with industry partners and the vision to take Qualcomm forward.
Amon, 50, has been Qualcomm’s president since January 2018. He’s responsible for Qualcomm’s semiconductor business (QCT), which includes Mobile, RF Front End, Automotive and IoT revenue streams, and the company’s global operations. Amon has driven the expansion and diversification of the business across industries and customers, overseen Qualcomm’s 5G strategy, and for almost 15 years has been steering development of a leading and differentiated product roadmap, according to the company.
Amon joined Qualcomm in 1995 as an engineer and has held several business and technical leadership positions throughout his tenure. Amon holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and an honorary doctorate from UNICAMP, the State University of Campinas, Brazil. He also serves as the co-Chairman of the World Economic Forum IoT Council.
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