HP, Compaq name new executives
The computing giants have figured out how to divvy up jobs among several top executives as the pair move ahead with their merger plans.
- Shankland covered the tech industry for more than 25 years and was a science writer for five years before that. He has deep expertise in microprocessors, digital photography, computer hardware and software, internet standards, web technology, and more.
Compaq's top technologists will keep their jobs in the combined company, with Chief Technology Officer Shane Robison and Chief Information Officer Bob Napier retaining their titles, HP Chief Executive Carly Fiorina said in an e-mail to employees Friday.
Robison came in ahead of HP CTO Richard DeMillo, and Napier beat out HP Chief Information Officer Maurine Conway.
HP Chief Financial Officer Bob Wayman will keep that post for the combined company. Compaq CFO Jeff Clarke is helping to lead the merger team.
"The selection decisions were not easy," Fiorina said in the e-mail. Fiorina and Compaq CEO Michael Capellas jointly decided on the posts in meetings facilitated by the human resources integration team, Compaq said in a fact sheet on its Web site.
The executives Fiorina named will each appoint teams to deal with merging their own sections, she said.
Fiorina and Capellas have been speaking confidently about the merger, but spooked investors have sent the $25 billion deal down to its current value of less than $20 billion.
Although Compaq won out for CIO and CTO, several HP executives will stay on in top posts:
• Dick Lampman, who has been director of HP Labs, will retain his post, but with the new title of senior vice president.
• Allison Johnson, vice president of global marketing and communications at HP, will be senior vice president of brand communications. She will handle advertising, media relations and employee relations.
• Debra Dunn, vice president of strategy and corporate operations at HP, will become senior vice president for "e-inclusion and community engagement," where she will concentrate on public affairs, corporate philanthropy and computing technology for those who can't afford it.
• Susan Bowick, vice president of human resources at HP, will become senior vice president of human resources.
The two companies' top lawyers, Compaq's Tom Siekman and HP's Ann Baskins, will keep their jobs until the merger is complete, Fiorina said.
The companies announced several other top posts earlier. HP's Vyomesh Joshi will lead the printing and imaging division; HP's Ann Livermore will lead the consulting and services division; Compaq's Peter Blackmore will lead the servers, storage and software division; and HP's Duane Zitzner will lead the PC and handheld devices division.
Fiorina will remain CEO, and Capellas will become president.