Intel Replaces Departing Head of PC Business, Hires New CFO
Intel said that Gregory Bryant is stepping down as the head of its crown-jewel client computing unit.
The Santa Clara, California-based company said Bryant is leaving at the end of the month after 30 years at Intel. He was one of the most high-profile executives at Intel, leading the business that is responsible for its central processing chips in PCs and accounts for about half of the company's sales. He presented Intel's products at the Consumer Electronics Show this month. He is departing for a new opportunity, Intel said.
Intel is promoting from within to replace Bryant, known inside the company as “GB." He will be replaced by Michelle Johnston Holthaus, the executive vice president of sales, marketing, and communications at Intel. In her new position, Holthaus will be responsible for overseeing all aspects of the PC unit, including strategy and product development. The business she is taking over reported sales of more than $40 billion in 2020.
The semiconductor giant also said it has poached David Zinsner from Micron Technology to be its new chief financial officer, a prominent hire as it invests aggressively in its factories to turn its fortune around.
The personnel changes come about a year after Intel said that Pat Gelsinger would take over as its chief executive after a prolonged delay in its chip development put the company on its heels. The new CEO is trying to reinvigorate Intel, including with a plan called "IDM 2.0" to spend billions of dollars on building out its chip fabs and a vow to regain its crown in manufacturing the world’s most advanced chips from TSMC.
While the CEO is overhauling Intel's chip design and manufacturing operations, he is also shaking up its executive ranks. Last year, Intel hired Greg Lavender as chief technology officer (CTO) to fill the seat left by Michael Mayberry, who retired in late 2020. Navin Shenoy, senior vice president of its data center business, left last year. He has also moved to put his mark on the semiconductor firm with a major reorganization.
Johnston Holthaus will shift into her new role in the client computing unit in the coming months, Intel said.
Johnston Holthaus has spent 25 years at Intel, and prior to leading the company's sales, marketing, and communications operations, she managed global sales for the PC business. Her top priority will likely be leading Intel's counterattack against AMD, Apple, Qualcomm, and others challenging its dominance in PCs.
Intel’s delays in designing more advanced chips opened the door for AMD to siphon market share in PCs with competitive offerings and encouraged Apple to roll out its game-changing M1 processor for the Mac.
Intel has aggressively marketed the performance of its next generation of CPUs for PCs, which combines high-performance and energy-efficient cores in a way that resembles the design of Apple's M-series chips.
Zinsner, Micron’s CFO, will join Intel later this month. He had worked at the memory-chip giant since February 2018. He was previously the senior vice president of finance and CFO at Analog Devices.
Zinsner will have huge responsibilities in his new role. He will oversee Intel’s $20 billion expansion of its sprawling factory site in Arizona and tens of billions of dollars of additional spending planned in Europe and other regions. Intel has said it is an investment phase as it aims to rebuild its manufacturing prowess and regain its leadership status in chips. Intel has warned its recovery plans will weigh on profits for years.
Last year, Intel said that CFO George Davis planned to depart in May. He will remain with the company until then to assist with the transition. Micron said on Monday it has launched a search for its next finance chief.
