Microsoft named Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella as its new chairman in place of John Thompson on Wednesday.
Nadella, who took over as CEO from Steve Ballmer in 2014, has been instrumental in growing his business, including multi-billion dollar acquisitions such as LinkedIn, Nuance Communications and ZeniMax.
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The company said Thompson, who took over the chairmanship of co-founder of software giant Bill Gates in 2014, will serve as its lead independent director.
The top management move comes a little over a year after Gates stepped down from the board and stated that he will focus on philanthropic work for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, one of the largest charities in the world.
The company announced last month it was conducting an investigation into Gates’ involvement in an employee nearly 20 years ago after it was announced in 2019 that he attempted a romantic relationship with the person.
Microsoft had declined to comment on whether its board of directors had decided to leave Gates.
The company also announced a quarterly dividend of 56 cents per share, payable on September 9th.
